Not gonna write you a love song.

Luck pours in from all sides when you’re in search of love and you find hate instead, then you know you’re doing something wrong. But even in the pouring rain, you know there’s a little chance that you might get lucky. Love comes to those who need it they say, but where is love when you need it the most?

Headstart a movement that blows love right in the niche. It’s everything you hoped for you want love to conquer, love to become the player in every game, love wipe misery out, love to break divides. And then love is your only downfall. Because just like we’d imagined its overrated, sappy and gets ratings but holds no meaning. Then the provencial street like sex affair hits the market and that’s what gets the most likes.

So your head’s battling with your heart, and you have bigger problems and you can’t make your mind up. Then love gets the worst of you and on that rainy day when you need it the most the affair gets the wide space and airtime, while love gets sidelined.

So, is that how the story ends? The male lead sets love right and leaves with the girl he’s having sex with to prove sex is supreme and it doesn’t matter in love whether love comes first or sex that its the body that matters more than the mind, it’s an argument we’ve all had in our homes and bedrooms and there’s no denying that life can’t get worse. And just when its at its worst, you get take out and a movie and end up alone. Because in the end its popcorn that matters.

Does TV shape our lives?

Peter 3:9

Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary repay evil with blessing because to this you were called so.

This verse from the bible may not be much reckoned with in today’s times but I find that it is something important that is losing relevance in today’s growingly wicked world. Who’s to say that goodness doesn’t exist but it’s obvious that at the moment evil is on the rise.

Commercial movies, tv and music seem to be portraying a whole lot of violence, and themes like revenge, love, lust, pain, betrayal, etc. but what exactly is the objective behind this? Are these just money making programmes, is it because people relate to these because they see them in everyday life or is it because taking revenge from loved ones is now so common.

We see them in all popular income grossing shows in the past like The Vampire Diaries, Gossip girl, Pretty little Liars, Grey’s Anatomy etc. but what’s really troublesome is the fact that not only does art reflect life but life reflects art. And when that happens we’re all borderline paranoid, because everybody seems to be plotting against one another. What happened to happy, warm and comfortable homes where you could trust someone with your whole heart and feel safe and loved? I’m sure they exist but in homes that have no tv sets. Or most certainly in homes, where parents know the after effects of watching TV.

This is another reason the mental health crisis is on the rise. Because everything seems to be created around the conflict in families and people. Then there’s the argument that one chooses what they want to watch, but I doubt that’s even remotely possible considering no one wants to be left out when your routine coffee table and dinner table discussions involve a scene from The O.C. or Gossip Girl, which today could be Suits or 13 reasons why or Riverdale.

No offense meant to these shows because they keep everyone entertained it’s just the themes and characters that are so vengeful and untrustworthy. The only problem is when this is what’s currently happening then what does one come up with for tv. Think of a day in a scripwriter’s life. This is what they’re seeing in homes and places they visit or countries they go to. So then it comes down to whether these deep rooted problems lie in culture. And if they do, is it in every culture or just some. 

It seems to me that its a worldwide problem now, with changing eras and times, the world becomes increasingly changed in so many ways one is yet to decipher, why and how.

All I can say is Art sure does reflect life but if life reflects art then art owes some responsibility to life. Because what is depicted becomes a way of living and a way of living then becomes art. That art then decides the way we live.

That said I know I’m going to go watch another episode of TVD but point’s made.

Soulmate.

They say everyone has a soulmate who becomes such an integral part of your life because he/she is your better half. That you feel a connection with him/ her like no one else.

A few nights ago I had a feeling I was somewhere closer to finding that one person and it made me believe in fate and love more than ever. ‘Amor Fati’ or love of fate is a German concept that talks about loving your fate, or accepting it for what it is. If we accept fate and what it has in store for us, positive or negative, we will wipe out most suffering, and achieve happiness. It’s not easy to smilingly accept pain and to most it would sound like a completely absurd concept. But sometimes instead of fighting against everything, if we take a deep breath and accept life for what it is, take a moment to be thankful for what we have maybe we’ll feel better in adverse situations.

There is however, a constant battle between your mind and heart. It’s like your heart’s always saying this could be love and maybe you won’t ever find it again whereas your mind’s constantly telling you it’s all philosophical nonsense.

Then how do you find an answer? Will logic pervade or is it emotion that should rule the roost. Is an analysis paralysis going to lead anywhere or thinking from the depth of your heart going to put you in the right direction. Is it a combination of both. As you’re rushing through all these questions hoping for the best, expecting the worst, wanting to know if you’ve found the love the one true love everybody craves or if you’re imagining it. Your heart skips a beat, you close your eyes and you see an image. It’s an image of you. Maybe sometimes, you are your own soulmate. Maybe sometimes, everything fate says and does goes against your reality. Maybe your heart says yes. But your mind says no and for a veto it has to be a unanimous decision doesn’t it?

A soulmate must complete your heart and soul, your mind and body. And once that list of four is complete, you’ll know you’ve found the one. At least that’s what my mind tells me.

Matters of the heart don’t always cater just to the heart, when somebody loves you, they know you in and out. And if that’s not the case they aren’t you’re soulmate because they’re not in sync with with you. You could then consider calling them a frenemate or a lesson. The choice is yours to be made!

Men we can’t STAND!

10 Types of men to avoid:

 

1. Men who feel on top of the world when they dominate over a woman. ( Umm, what’re you living in the 18th century?)
2.  Men who think they’re too good for the world. (Such men think they’re only meant  for good things and only good things are meant for them. Very Unreal stay away!)
3. Men who think they’re so handsome that you won’t find anyone better than them. ( Yea why don’t you satisfy your narcissism by modelling instead of womanising?)
4. Men who eat broccoli with you and don’t tell you if you’ve got it stuck in your mouth. (tch tch tch….hypocrites!)
5. Men who only want physical intimacy and think that if you don’t give in to them you’re doing something wrong. ( Umm, you want sex go find someone who’ll give it to ya! Leave us alone! )
6. Men who think that looking good is a problem. ( Yea we SAW you sneakily smiling at yourself in the mirror today. And WE’RE vain! Gosh!)
7. Men who tell you you’re fat and those that tell you you’re ugly. ( Nobody’s body shaming you! Who do you think you are ? Running around leaving scars?)
8.  Men who invade your personal space. ( aaaaa. *run to the bathroom?* they’re coming for you again!)
9. Men who get angry with you for silly things because of their ego. ( Did I get angry with you when you forced me to watch football or make a sandwich?? Geez!)
10. Men who eat like pigs.  And lie like Pinnochio. (Seriously? Saw you when you spilled sauce all over your shirt and saw your nose get longer!)

Watch out guys! Don’t be dogs or your ladies will leave you!

Tibits, truly a delicacy.

A fancy new place for a vegan brunch? Yes, that’s right London has a new place called tibits that’s opened up last year and offers a vegetarian buffet for brunch.

Tibits meaning delicacy or tasty food, has a variety of home-made salads and freshly pressed juices charged by weights.

All you have to do is pick up a plate pick up a selection of your favourite salads from the wide number of available salads and wallah! Just 11 pounds.

The Swedish Kotbullar curry with rice, combined with Japanese Pan fried noodles and Asian Cole Slaw calls for a nice mix of oriental and continental salads and turns out to be an interesting fusion of the two.

Not only is there a vast number of salads and salad recipes available but they also serve it with you favourite champagne or wine. A delicious prosecco with a vegan salad does well enough to give you a healthy, low calorie and satisfying breakfast at a great price.

Tibits is definitely worth the trip! And a vegan brunch place is a great idea for a restaurant!

For more information visit their website at https://www.tibits.ch/en/home.html

Try painting gardens!

Floriculture is therapeutic, they say. But how therapeutic is painting gardens?

I happened to see Monet-Matisse, an art exhibition and boy, did the Royal Academy of Arts bring Spring to London in style.

Did you know?

Floriculture, or flower farming, is a discipline of horticulture concerned with the cultivation of flowering and ornamental plants. It’s fascinating how the great artists like Monet, Renoir, Cezanne, Pissarro, Manet, Sargent, Kandinsky, Van Gogh, Matisse, Klimt and Klee used gardening and art featuring gardening,  as therapy for victims and survivors of World War II, bringing them not just peace, but a soothing, calming and serene effect on their hearts and minds as well.

From Claude Monet’s “Spring flowers” to Kandinsky’s “Murnau The Garden II,1910” the paintings ranged from vibrant and vividly colourful flowers in spring to modern and avant gardens.

Monet cultivated gardens throughout his life, from his early days at Argentuil during the 1870’s till his death at Giverny in 1926. The magnificent garden he created at Giverny, about 50 miles to the northwest of Paris, was his greatest horticulture creation and continues to attract thousands of visitors today. Monet found in these gardens an infinite source of creative inspiration for his painting.

The growing affluent middle class would use their leisure time  for gardening to derive aesthetic pleasure. Floral displays were put up at international fairs, while horticultural societies, plant nurseries and popular grading magazines became more popular.

Amongst the paintings on display was Renoir’s magical painting of Monet painting in the countryside. There was also Monet’s fabulous collection of paintings of Water Lilies. The art mainly featured Impressionist paintings from the 18th and 19th centuries.

Impressionism is a 19th-century art movement that originated with a group of Paris-based artists whose work brought them to prominence during the 1870s and 1880s.

Impressionist painting characteristics include slightly small, thin, yet visible brush strokes, ordinary subject matter, use of light and inclusion of movement as a crucial element of human perception and experience, and unusual visual angles.

The Impressionists faced harsh opposition from the conventional art community in France. The name of the style derives from the title of a Claude Monet work, Impression, soleil levant (Impression, Sunrise).

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The development of Impressionism in the visual arts was soon followed by abstract styles in other media that became known as impressionistic music and impressionist literature. It’s a style that uses blending of colours as well as non-blending, that is smooth and non-smooth shading.

Though I’m not aware about art as most artists are, I found peace and uplifting serenity in the art that I got a chance to see and was blown away by the contrast in play of colour and use of paint.

There was great use of greens, browns and pinks and beautiful images of chrysanthemums, lilies, dahlias, poppies, daisies, sunflowers, lilacs and roses.

Sorolla’s “Gardens of Silence” and Monet’s “Lady In The Garden” were more towards the dull and bland shade of colours as compared to Monet’s brighter more exuberant paintings.

Pissarro’s paintings brought out the femininity of women in the gardens, plucking flowers or sowing seeds and watering plants. They depicted women in white with a sharp contrast to the dark greens in the backgrounds, perhaps showing women as the more important subject in the painting unlike the other artists where the flowers and gardens hold us captive.

Leibermann’s “Gathering Flowers In A French Garden” and “Flowering Bushes By The Garden Shed” also had women in them and brought out femininity in art.

Sargent’s “Lady In A Garden” and P.S. Kroyer’s roses, spark a bright white angelic, dove-whitish hue which brings an immense pacifying feeling upon viewing it.

By the end, we couldn’t help but go on and on about the work at the small table we had at Cafe Concerto right across straight down from the academy.

The art was as much a reminder of the harsh anger filled in today’s world with the fast paced lives that people lead and how it needs to be dealt with. There is a growing need for peace lovers and art therapy in today’s chaotic, unruly and impatient city life. It is inspiring to find painters of that generation laying down examples for generation X to provide a rejuvenating effect in today’s angry world.

Indeed, Camille Pissarro was truly passionate and driven about Garden Art when he wrote to Monet in a letter after recovery from the Franco-Prussian War:  ‘I love compost like one loves a woman’.

The farmer and the tree, a comedy of errors.

An ordinary farmer committed suicide at the AAP rally against the land acquisition bill this Wednesday evening. What’s shocking is that politicians have retorted to a frenzy of unexplained blame-games trivialising a much larger issue.

While the Aam Aadmi party viciously accused the Delhi police and tried to defend itself against the complaint that its workers did nothing to save the man  who tried to hang himself from a noose made out of cloth; Rahul Gandhi declared he would support poor farmers because the centre was trying to snatch away their land.

As the drama unfolded, several politicians visited the hospital and the farmer’s village to extend sympathy to Gajendra Singh’s loved ones.

However, what’s strange is the note written by him which clearly states that he was devastated by the fact that his father had disowned him due to crop failure that season. Then why the whole dramatic series of who said what and why?

Some wondered why the police and centre did not come to his rescue, others protested against AAP as though they had literally killed the man with their own bare hands. Others decided that Narendra Modi was responsible, solely because he is Prime Minister.

It didn’t end here, after the entire day’s events, an FIR was lodged, asking who was to be held responsible for the farmer’s suicide and that’s what made news all day. “Aapne kya dekha? Woh pedh par kaise chadha? ” and other such ridiculous questions were asked to the eye-witnesses by reporters.

A great deal of politicians from the Aam Aadmi Party have appeared on television and retorted with sarcasm. “ Should Shri Aravind Kejriwal have climbed a tree? Ok next time, we’ll ask him to climb the tree. ” asked Senior leader, AAP, Ashutosh, sarcastically. It was more comic, to be honest.

And while the political parties haggle about who killed him and refuse to take the blame – how we did not kill him. The more important issues of climate change, of crop insurance, of equal distribution of land among farmers, of uncalled for ceilings on land revenue, of widespread corruption in banks because of which it is almost impossible for a farmer to get a loan, have been conveniently shoved into the background.

What’s scary is that Gajendra’s soul must be twisting and turning in his grave, representing what every farmer’s spirit who has lost his life in India due to suicide has signified in the past… a lost cause.

Les Miserables Broadway – a short review

 

Les Miserables, a story about the daunting circumstances during the French Revolution, has been revived in Broadway, London and the revival is indeed sublime.

Opening with the melodic, pleading voice of Jean Val Jean, begging Javier for mercy, the musical strikes a note with the audience right from the beginning.

Despite having watched the movie, the play can be moving and keep you glued. The scenes of remorse and grief are brought out well in the beginning, by the character Fantine( Celinde Shoenmaker), who not only manages to sing like a nightingale but gracefully sets the stage for a remarkably melancholy scene where she is brutally raped and made into a prostitute.

‘Lovely ladies’, one of the tracks, tends to ring in your head after the play, because it’s so catchy. The music is indeed, spellbinding and every tune, every harmony is in place. While the acting and music, are the magnificent backbone that make the theatrical bits of the play come alive, the lighting and stage management are not to be missed. With a spiralling wooden floor, and huge pieces of equipment in terms of props (all made out of wood), the appeal is humongous. The lighting, in order to depict scenes where Jean Val Jean carries the young revolutionary across miles on his back because he is the lover of his daughter; or when the young french revolutionaries are firing bullets, is beautifully done.

All that being said, it can be a little difficult to sit through the whole play without shuffling your feet or waiting for it to end. But that’s merely because its a tad bit sad and lengthy. However, overall it is splendid.

Yet, after watching this fantastic performance, one wonders why theatre in India fails to leave the kind of impact Broadway does. Is it because it lacks finances or is there a dearth of talent?

Well, its a bit of both, to be honest, not only does Les Miserables make you want to weep but it also makes you want to sing along.( If you can stop gaping at the gorgeous set and lighting).

This level of theatre has only maybe been achieved by veteran theatre personality, Aamir Raza Hussain to some extent in India, but we still lack the kind of expertise that the British execute in theatre.

Barry John has shifted base to Bollywood and theatre biggies like the Dubey sisters Lushin and Lillette have barely any performances and when they do, they’re women-centric and cater to the elite. While plays like Zangoora and Jhumroo have managed to attract audiences to some extent, the Broadway standard and subtlety is yet to be achieved.

That said, making a trip to London, even if its solely to watch Les Miserables is worth it. Maybe someday we can hope and pray that India will achieve theatrical performances at that level, not in Bollywood but on stage.

Israeli Pop Art

Israeli Pop Art

The atmosphere was that of excitement and fervor, as the Ambassador of Israel inaugurated an ‘Israeli Pop Art’ exhibition on Thursday.
The pieces of art showcased at the exhibition were rather vibrant, vivid, colorful and had a happy tone to them. The many interesting pieces included ‘Cinderella’, an art piece with Cinderella’s oh-so-famous slipper surrounded by a large number of colorful butterflies, something so simple yet beautiful, which could be interpreted in so many different ways. ‘Lifestyle’ which had a man and woman running together again surrounded but strings entwined with butterflies in bright shades of red, yellow, blue and green. ‘Kisses’ had a large pair of lips with several pairs of smaller lips within it which could mean kisses, whether big ones or little ones both signify love. ‘Synergy’, which is an abstract concept meaning the result of the summation of two values is greater than its individual components, showed the process of photosynthesis taking place. These were ones that represented the simplicity and innocence in the work of the artist David Gerstein, an internationally renowned artist, whose art is about good-hearted objects that convey a certain irony and humour. He is clearly an expert at expressionism.
Other artwork included the work of Raphael Abecassis who’s name has a biblical reference as the Ambassador mentioned when he inaugurated the ceremony. One of his most attractive pieces was ‘Woman of Valor’ which depicted a rough sketch of a loving and happy woman standing with her arms spread opened out in the air. It had a little note in the center which started off with the lines ‘how difficult it is to find a woman of valor, for she is worth more than the rarest jewels’ and went on to explain what it meant to be a woman of valor, in a poetic way.
One of the interesting aspects of this exhibition were the series of art which had several images that looked different from different angles, sort of like what they used to have on tazos that of we got free with chip packets. These too, had interesting titles like ‘Memories’, one that’s like a mirage because it is constantly changing, just the way memories do. There was also ‘Holocaust’, which showed images of the Nazi camps where jews were tortured by the Germans during Hitler’s reign. These were in slightly duller colours.
Apart from these there were works called ‘Kaleidscope’ which showed several kaleidoscopes with scientific angles etc. that show the functioning of a kaleidoscope. There was also ‘Torsos’ which showed various kinds of human torsos in all their variety. ‘Mediterranean’ had a woman sunbathing on the beach with a skin coloured contour of a woman with blankness within the outlines. There were palm trees on the sides and she was shown at the seaside, simply showing a modern woman relaxing. ‘Liberation’ was a vivid one, with all the right splashes of paint, it had the statue of liberty amongst skyscrapers.
The art was indeed, attractive, pleasant, eye-catching and meaningful all-in-one. And with the Israeli artists there to witness reactions and advice/feedback, it became all the more exciting. Snacks and refreshments were quick to be finished and refilled, as conversations regarding how different the work was, floated around.
One thing’s for sure. The Israelis definitely know their way with the paintbrush and paint. They can make positive and good emotions come to life through their art.
Astha Sharma

Football in a girl’s world.

How often have we heard and seen in movies or real life that blue is a boy colour while pink is a girly colour? We’ve been hearing that for donkeys’ years . What my real question was that how long have stereotypes been present in India ?

Are they really still there…?

Yes, they are and I experienced it during this football world cup 2014. So if you’re a girl living in India is it weird if you want to watch football? Since when do only boys follow sports in the 21^st century, is what I want to know. I mean were umpteen times when I was watching the match and I was asked “You’re watching football? Are you a boy?” Next time I catch you in the kitchen am I supposed to tell you to get out because it’s a girl thing? Honestly, the stereotypes that have been formed for girls and boys over the years are ridiculous.
It’s enough that we have child marriage, female foeticide and ill-treatment of the girl-child still prevalent, in villages all over India. But to have gender-discrimination in cities, which are supposedly known for their modern outlook on things is nothing short of horrifying. One of my guy acquaintances posted a status on twitter, while the world cup was on saying ‘Thank god I’m single during the world cup.’ It’s almost as though he was trying to say all girls are idiotic and useless constantly looking for attention from their boyfriends. And they’re being oh so manly by ‘watching the game’ with their buddies and beer asking their female counterpart to make them a sandwich.

 

Of course apart from this, girls are constantly discouraged from pursuing careers and their mothers tell them ‘Beta, pehle daal-roti banana seekh le.’ What they don’t get is that every single time they do that they make them subservient to men, and being women themselves that is a shame. As if this isn’t enough they go ahead and insist their daughters get married all their lives, as if that’s what they were born to do, get married and make babies.

Getting back to the world cup, a lot of guys have been demeaning to girls by not answering their questions about the game. What they don’t understand is that as a girl growing up, women have almost never been encouraged to watch sports but been handed a Barbie doll and hairbrush to play with. It’s unfair that girls are treated this way and we must make it stop.

Enough is enough, women must not be held in stereotypes and guys and men must learn to respect them before it’s too late and this patriarchal society becomes a stereotypical male-driven society once again. Things are slowly changing but girls and women have to ensure that this attitude of slack towards females does not become a habit. Girl power all the way!