Good Honking Bad Honking!

-by Anup Tiwari Saturday, July 05, 2008

(This story has originally appeared at MSN India website)
http://content.msn.co.in/Contribute/Others/UCStory7481.htm
Suddenly everyone is saying that honking is bad. Initially it was just my expat friends. As I write this I am reminded of a former colleague from London. We were driving together and I honked having to negotiate a blind curve. She remarked," I know how to become a millionaire in India". I did not quiet understand and looked at her for more. " I just need to start a car horn business", she said with a wink.

Now it is almost everyone. There was this big no-honk campaign in Mumbai cheer led by 'the AB', himself, around the launch of his film- Bhootnath. The Delhi administration was though not impressed and said that Delhi's traffic was a different animal that did not need a similar campaign. But that is a different story of indifference reserved for a different day.

Coming back to honking. Yes, honking is bad. Especially, when it is needless and continuous.Not the single beep gentle variety. More so when it is a pressure horn.

But wait, there is a good honking too. Don't slaughter me for that expression. Read on.

I was in Lucknow being driven around the city by a friend of mine. He had then newly bought the erstwhile Matiz. A hot new launch around that time. I am sure many of us can go back in our minds and recall it vividly.

Now this friend of mine was a polite non-honker. At one of the narrow zones near Hazaratganj, he had no option but to overtake this slow moving tempo. He did it, but in the process scratched his car. Both the drivers pulled to the side. The tempo driver stepped out and said in his fully rustic dialect, "What sir, you are driving such a luxury car and being miser about honking."

Well that is good honking for you. The type that will guaranty that your car goes scratch free.

There is more. Picture this. You are on a red light. Slowly you have taken a start like a cricket fielder and are almost at the verge of crossing. You are at a point where you cannot see the colour of the signal. What do you pray for? I know I pray for the honk to signal that light is green. The first honk and you know it is accelerator time.

Another one at the traffic signal. Have you ever been lucky to be at the head of the waiting traffic? I don't know why but when I am at the head of the pack, my mind and eyes tend to rove. Suddenly I am not there. Then somewhere from behind comes this god send honk. I am pulled out of my reverie. It is driving time again. I don't know how I could have ever done without this music to the ears. I would have never ever hit on my smart (?) collage of ideas.

But wait don't let me make non-honkers turn honkers. The idea is to stop bad honking but keep on doing good honking.

An Evening of Lilting Music- Neeta delights

It was a pleasure to attend "Gulistan", an evening of enchanting melodies and divine rythms by Neeta Soorma at Gurgaon's new cultural hub Epicenter.

Neeta is a disciple of Smt. Savita Devi and an ‘A’ grade artiste of the All India Radio, Delhi in Vocal Light Classical music as well as in the Ghazals category.

A distinguished dilettante of music and an accomplished vocalist, she did not disappoint.The renditions were in the Poorab-ang, that is the Benaras style of Thumri, Dadra, Kajri, Chaiti and Bhajan.

Accompanying Neeta on stage were Ustad Ghulam Sabir on the Sarangi, Ustad Ballu Khan Warsi on the Harmonium, Ustad Salim on the Tabla, and Shri Razak Ali on the Tanpura.

Neeta began the evening with a famous Thumri—Basuriyaa ab nahi bajao shyam…
In this thumri, the words nahi bajao were presented in various shades of emotions; from request to cajole, pleading to mild anger. Even though in the literal sense, Radha is asking Lord Krishna not to play his murli, inside her heart, she wants him to go on and on.

Thumri as the music lovers would know is a song of love, romance, passion, longing. Essentially an amorous mood of music, it came into prominence in the later half of the 19th century. The moods range from romance to apathy, from frolic to forbidden, from free-spirited to spiritual.

"Thumri is like an abstract art of expression and improvisation, like a bouquet where you have different types of flowers but each asthetically blending. Thumri is like a painting where you use different colours and strokes to create a beautiful work of art. Poorab-ang Thumri is deeply influenced by brijbhasha and the gayaki derives its spiritual inspiration from the bhakti cult, which probably explains the repeated themes of love and separation of Radha and Krishna", Neeta told right2review.com

Thumri was followed by a Dadra just as a Chota Khayal follows a Bada Khayal or a Vilambit Khayal. Dadra is one of the immensely popular styles owing to its arresting spell. Neeta’s next spell in the form of a dadra, Souten Ghan Na Ja... is a traditional composition, extremely popular with music lovers for over a 100 years.

Neeta dedicated dadra in the loving memory of Ma Siddheshwari Devi. This being one of her rarest gems. Tarpe Bin Balam Mora Jiya… surely delighted the listeners.

Neeta added from the stage, "This one is a surprise for my Guru. The practice that we follow prior to any event is that we sit together and decide on the kind of compositions that are to be presented. However, as I wanted this to be a surprise I didn’t disclose this particular one to her. I only hope that she along with all of you will also enjoy this one". Rooth Gayeele Saniyaan Hamaar… was rendered in a way that would have really done her Guru proud.

Neeta concluded the evening with a Sufiana Kalaam kafi, a poetic expression with a blend of mysticism.

Towards the end the listeners were informed by the MC, “The purpose of music, considered in relation to God, is to arouse the longing for God, and passionate love for Him, and to produce states in which God reveals Himself and His favours, which are beyond description and known only by experience. These states are called ecstasy.”

But we can say the same for all the renditions of the evening- ecstatic!

Play Reading- Zukaam.... and Adhikaar

DO COME BACK AGAIN FOR THE REVIEW POST PERFORMANCE


Mashaal brings to you Samvaad , a play reading. Samvaad (meaning Dialouge in hindi) is a small effort to bring more plays to you thorugh the age-old medium of Reading. Play Reading is actors reading a play out loud, usually one actor reads the lines for one character. In this second edition of Samvaad, we will be experimenting with two short plays.

Plays : 'Zukaam Jaari Hai' and 'Adhikaar Ka Rakshak'

Language : Hindi
Date & Time : 5:00 pm, Sunday, June 15th 2008
Location : CFD (Centre for Film and Drama)
Duration : 60 minutes
Entry : Free
About The Plays :
Two One Act comedies. A witty act where a woman is convinced her end is near; a political satire dwelling into the hypocrisy in our society.

The Reading will start at 5.10 sharp, after a brief introduction to the plays and playwrights. Discussions about the plays will follow after the reading.


Mashaal is a theatre group formed by HDC, BITS, Pilani alumni.

Click http://mailmashaal.googlepages.com/samvaad to know more

Review of oldy 1978 art-house film- Kondura

Hi, stumbled on a very oldy and rare film, Kondura, while shopping at a Delhi mall. Had never heard about it and won't be surprised if you have not. But a Shyam Benegal film with Govind Nihalani for cameraman and Girish Karnad as one of the script writers, made the DVD simply irresistible. And add to that the formidable star cast of Anant Nag and Smita Patil, the lone disc appeared to be a real steal.

I have put the review on wikipedia, click on the title above and read about this art-house film from yore.

Review of experimental theatre production "Beyond"

Thank you Rajiv for sending in this review. You too can send one at at@right2review.com


Yours Truly theatre group is a Bangalore Based English (primarily) theatre group which was set up sometime in 2002 by Ranji David and Nandini.

YT presented its latest production “Beyond” based on a play written by Badal Sircar, which was first staged in Kolkata sometime in 1972. The play was a culmination of a 6 Sundays workshop by professionals who rarely had any previous experience of proscenium theatre.

Although, the play did not complete as Badal Sircar wrote, it did add little spice and novelty by incorporating the idea of letting the audience complete the story by stopping it just 15 minutes before the end. This gave the opportunity to the audience to script the climax and improvise end of the play.

Liked more by the children than adults, the original play had 2 thieves Kena and Becha, who in order to escape from the hot chase given by the villagers, jump into the river only to be flown to a place called - Hattamala.

The play an adaptation of the original had a bunch of 6 thieves. After having funny experiences with the inhabitants of the land, the thieves led by Dada (Ranjan), soon realize that they have come to a place where there is no concept of money. Buying, selling and money were all alien concepts to the Hattamala people.

The thieves soon realize that this is the place they can easily have a soft kill when they come to know that there is a library in the town where besides books, jewellery is lend and borrowed and that too without anybody keeping a watch. So, the thieves come back to their natural instinct and strike at the library. As they were trying to vanish from the town with the booty, suddenly the Hattamala people catch them red-handed.

This and henceforth is what Badal Sircar had not written but conceived by Ranji the director himself. One more thing which I did not read in the script from Sircar was that the Hattamala people were puppets. Which again, I think is the director's vision to infuse some excitement for children and adult alike. The thieves are presented before their queen. While the public demands that the thieves must be exceuted. Now there is when, the play is stopped and audience is asked to script the climax of the play...
a) what would happen to theives?
b) will they be exceuted as demanded by the local people?

Ranji intervenes and with the help of the inputs from the audience, weaves a story while actors are on-stage waiting for the climax scent to be narrated by Ranji and then performed - impromptu.
The audience, gave suggestions from injecting Hattamalan virus (puppet like behaviour), to Dada blasting the court as Suicide Bomber. Anyhow, after a dicussion of over 10 mins, finally the actors were narrated the climax which was : The Queen falls for Dada as she realises that she herself was an alien and then ruled the land of innocent people while she orders the rest of the thieves who were dissuading Dada to fall in love with Queen to be injected with Hattaala Virus...and then the Queen leaves dada and runs away with rest of the Thieves while Dada is declared as King of Hattamala...
The villagers make merry and the show ends...
This climax was bound to get into chaos and the actors need not get any time to coordinate among themselves and keeping in mind the nascent stage of their acting skills they pulled up a great end which made audience to burst into laughter.

The play is considered to be a big hit especially for the children as there are very funny yet easy to understand incidences in the play.

In this play directed by Ranji David, the actors were professional working with Tech Mahindra in Bangalore. Well, prior to this main play there was a kind of prelude - Freedom play. It was actually, not a play but just a representation of how communal riots take place especially in rural areas were the population is not civilzed and how the leaders use the innocent people for their selfish gains. Ended with Mahatama Gandhi's - Vaishav jan to...it depicted that violence does not have any solution.......all it results is in - Destruction.
Ranji plans to take this play with more changes to the children. The group is involved in staging plays for NGOs from time to time and had recently performed at a Labor Camp in the outskirts of Bangalore.
In a nutshell - a good show and good Sunday entertainment.