|
|
Call
Mall
A
chic, 21st century shopping mall turned out to be the place were leisurely
shoppers could appreciate the winsome Himalaya-inspired tunes of the Silk
Route gang-Mohit Chauhan, Ken Trivedi, Kenny Puri and Atul Mittle. When
the quartet played tracks from their latest album Pehchaan and their older
hit Boondein at Crossroads recently, hordes of customers deserted shops
and rushed to their enclosure. But why the mall? "It's not ideal
but lots of people hear the music," explains Mohit. And so what if
it's a long way off their dream venue (an island off the coast of Goa),
it seems their music made shopping a lot more fun.
-Natasha
Israni
The
siblings' Tribute: Rajesh
Pilot In Spirit Forever ... is a nostalgic photo-biography of the Congressman
and former Union minister who died in a car crash last year. The book,
brought out by his children Sarika and Sachin, traces Pilot's humble origins
as a milkman to a successful politician. "We were flooded with condolence
letters when he died-that's when we decided to bring out this book,"
says Sarika. The first copy was presented to President K.R. Narayanan
by (left to right) Sarika, Sachin and Pilot's wife Rama.
-Leher
Kala
Thread
Fare
Bangalore-based artist S.G. Vasudev's latest
show called Tapestry, at Bangalore's Sakshi Gallery, is an striking innovation:
he has actually embroidered his paintings on cloth. After seven years
of painstaking work with master weaver Subbarayulu, the themes that the
painter-turned-weaver had been working on for the past seven years have
finally come to life. Like Vriksha (tree of life), humanscapes and the
most recent one, "the theatre of life". Though tapestry is a new medium
for Vasudev, he's worked extensively on copper relief besides doing a
number of murals using different media. Says Vasudev: "It is possible
for an artist to adapt to a different approach and style. "So what's next
in line after being the art director of films like Samskara and Vamsa
and creating tapestry? "I'll go wherever my creative abilities lead me,"
says the 59-year-old artist, who's also one of the founders of the Cholamandalam
Art Village in Chennai.
-Stephen
David
Earth
in the Limelight
There
were Bollywood masala sequences to show conflict, Gregorian chants for
music and Spanish dance steps symbolising commercial alacrity. Only January
7 evening, the Horniman Circle Garden, Mumbai, was candlelit and abuzz
with the eager voices of 35 actors of the group Avikal enacting Prithvi,
a tale of the dying earth in which people are both the protagonists and
victims of social and environmental degradation. The play was just one
out of the many productions and creative workshops for children Avikal
founder Alok Ultaf (who wrote the play) and his group have done in the
past year. "The craft is not important for me. I lay emphasis on teaching
volunteers to be free and responsible. I also insist on self-discipline.
So the children can shout and scream but they must also realise their
responsibility towards society and the individual," says Ultaf stoutly.
But though the complex issues of greed and altruism were presented with
a sprinkling of humour, the tiring drone of "eternal doom for all" and
the unusually lengthy play took its toll. The evening was saved only by
the spirited performances of the young actors ... seems that they understand
their responsibility well.
-Himanshi Dhawan
Paradise
Painters
When
10 artists of dissimilar talent (and popularity) are given a theme to
work on, one can be pretty much assured of a diverse output. So at the
first year anniversary exhibition of gallery Art Musings in Colaba, Mumbai,
owner Shanti Chopra wanted "Eden Revisited" to be the commemorative
muse (because the gallery itself is in a colonial mansion and has an Eden-like
ambience)-with or without the trouble-creating apple. This is how it went:
Aparna Caur did a miniature-style depiction of a woman who charts her
own destiny; Baiju Parthan's Eden is not without, but within the individual;
M.F. Husain gave a "painterly tribute to the woman who gave birth
to me"; and S.H. Raza's painted the gyric embryonic force without
which there can be no Eden in the first place.
And yes,
Anjolie Ela Menon and Paresh Maity couldn't resist painting the apple.
-Natasha Israni
Stylish
Sadhu: Spiritual
guru isn't what comes to mind when  one
meets Bharat Thakur, 27-he dons jazzy designer clothes, carries the latest
cell phone, drives a swanky car. "I hate this image of gurus constantly
depriving themselves," says Thakur. "My message is simple-gain
awareness through meditation, live for today." Thakur, who's built
a practice in the last eight years claims to have some 20,000 followers.
At a two-day workshop at Delhi's Habitat Centre he taught meditation techniques,
yogic postures and simple stress busters (below) to a packed audience.
"I just want my students to experience peace," he says. Spiritual
hedonist?
-Leher Kala
Top
|
|
METRO TODAY
Sagarika
Ghose's The Gin Drinkers is easily the best diaspora novel set in India
and an account of existential dilemmas of Indian PLUs , writes INDIA TODAY
Deputy Editor Swapan Dasgupta in 