Photo shoot for 32nd Anniversary

We decided to let Prarthana shoot us, and the results were awesome. See for yourself. We tried three looks- Vietnamese, South Indian, and Rajasthani.

Having a photographer at home is a blessing!

Contactless Education?

IIT Bombay has announced that it will run online classes this year. Others may follow. What does this mean for classroom education? Assuming we return to the pre-COVID world at our own pace, will education remain the same? Or will this cataclysm drive a change in it forever?

Nobody knows, but maybe we are at a tipping point, in that students and whoever pays for education (parents, banks), may just re-evaluate the options -in particular, for higher education at the graduate/post grad. levels. Is it necessary to attend a class as a cohort to get that coveted certification, or are there alternatives that can get you to the same place?

I am of course an old-world teacher (I did not say old fogey- you may have thought it). I am a believer in old-world everything..almost. The feedback and joy of seeing faces and expressions up close can't be beaten by anything, in my view. Classes threaten to be more impersonal, and that personal touch- a look, a smile, or a frown will be hard to catch. It would resemble play-acting rather than a real experience, if done on-line. Maybe we will move towards more objective testing, as it's easier to do online.

Some subjects (and teachers) may find it harder than others. At the school level, inequality may rise due to lack of access to smartphones or laptops among some students. Will the system take care of these? Schools may get back to traditional learning before the others due to these and other issues.

Anniversary Number 32

Coming up soon on June 26th is our wedding anniversary. This is an attempt at looking back through photographs.

Jab we met and decided to get hitched. Some traditions, at Pune, Patrakaar Nagar.

The families get into a frame. My BIL, and brother/sister are in it. Both parents too.

Many memories created over the years.

Clemson, our first abode after we got married. (below- Work-in-progress)

Thanks to our friend Anne Pouliquen, we had an amazing tour of France-she clicked this. Below, a recent one from Sanchi (around the stupa) and then, not-so-recent from Bhubaneswar (another stupa nearby)

Before I became a pain in the neck (above), and after (below)-

On our way to Udaipur (above) and after getting there (below).

 

Along the way, Prarthana and Pooja came along..proving we were religious!

We laughed with friends globally, from Coimbatore (above) to California (Neena, in pic below, lives there)

..attended weddings (with the bride, Aditi, in Bangalore in 2019 October).

and had parties large and small..with students doing karaoke, to music buddies in a large gathering, or small get-togethers (next 3 pics)..

to chai parties.. (below, with Bhagyalakshmi and Venkatesh)

..and went to exotic places like Cambodia, Angkor Wat complex (above), and Ha Long Bay cruise, Vietnam (below).

Generally, it's been an exciting time, fights included.

O P Nayyar

The man, more than his music. A book I read has a chapter devoted to O.P. Nayyar, the music director from Lahore. He had a unique style of composing, and he was most known for his songs sung by Asha Bhosle. Also for the hoofbeat rhythm, that he used a lot.

There are anecdotes (as narrated by him to the author) about Guru Dutt, and many film-makers like S. Mukherjee (a bigwig in those days, and the father of Deb Mukherjee, a terrible actor even in his evaluation-the father's), Pancholi (this one's from Lahore), B.R. Chopra, and many others like Madhubala (who fell out with Dilip Kumar over a court case by B.R. Chopra because she refused to go outdoors for shooting his film-probably Naya Daur). Guru Dutt gave him some Bing Crosby records which inspired him to create a few songs in his film Aar Paar, he admits.. I think Ja ja ja ja bewafaa is one of those.

He was also a unique person, who liked style. A hat and natty clothes were his trademark. But he is very open about (and critical about) many things, including his own negatives. But he says, having gone through Partition after 1947, and a forced shift to Amritsar from Lahore, nothing could shake him.

Saigal, Pankaj Mullick, and their films made by New Theatres (Calcutta), he says, brought in a whiff of a different sensibility in the earthy Punjabi folks at Lahore, and they looked forward to their new films.

There are references to his fights with family members, and tiffs with film people including Guru Dutt, and producers. But he acknowledges the role played by many of them, as well as his friends in the industry in giving him breaks. He was a man who lived by his own rules, and did not regret it one bit. Worth a look (this book is in Marathi, by Ambarish Mishra, a journalist. It also has chapters on Shobha Gurtoo, Saadat Hasan Manto, and others).

Death of the Expected

There are similarities between an event like the pandemic we are going through (or a natural disaster like an earthquake, flood, tsunami, or man-made ones), and death. Most times, people are unaware that they will die, or when.

Not in every way, but that it was totally unexpected, the Corona virus takes the cake. Nobody knows where it will hit next, or how long it will last. Creates empathy for those hit by the Plague or the Spanish Flu, doesn't it?

If you suddenly lost your livelihood, as lakhs did, without warning, how do you cope? Survive? It's tough to imagine what it could do to you, until it happens. (This can also hit the celebs, as depression resulting from a fall in status or lack of work can prove to be fatal to them too)

Hope that a cure or vaccine will save future lives and livelihoods. Medical science will come through, I think, finally. Hope also that it will make humans more human.

Gulabo Sitabo- Film Review

A film released on Amazon Prime due to COVID. I think it was good for the film, as it might not appeal to a typical theatre-goer.

I liked it, for its gentle twists, with a big one at the end, and subtle humour, dialogues, and acting. The makeup Amitabh wears is a a bit outlandish though. Also, it does not waver from its theme.

The old grandeur of Lucknow, and some of its present dilapidation, is brought out well. The references to Aliganj, Aminabad and the Imambaras brought back memories of my stay there, 2001-03. Sitapur is also mentioned. (we lived on Sitapur Road).

Worth a watch, in my view. Ayushmann is of course, good. So is the supporting cast.

Films With Original Ideas

I am sometimes amazed by films.

Queen, Shaukeen (original) are two examples. Queen had a girl who's jilted just before her marriage going off on a solo honeymoon tour of Europe! And it was a riot, with her completely enjoying herself without the appendage of a husband.

Shaukeen has three romantic old men who want to bed a young damsel. Again, Ashok Kumar, A.K. Hangal and Utpal Dutt (under Basu Chatterjee's deft direction) pull off a laugh-riot, minus any vulgarity.

Nil Battey Sannata, of recent vintage, had a simple story-line of a maid wanting to educate her daughter, and her struggles in the process. Tough to make a film out of this, but it was made, and how!

Tumbbaad was another surprise, of recent origin. It goes into the horror genre, but most unlike the Ramsay Brothers model. It is a visual delight, and suspenseful all the way. It explores an ancient curse and its impact.

Masaan was another impressive film. Vicky Donor had an unusual story too, of a sperm-donating hero.

Shyam Benegal made a few, and Govind Nihalani a couple, long ago.

Tribe of Forwarders

This is a name I have given to people who forward good content- I am a member of the tribe. They have existed from the days of yahoo mail to gmail, to FB to whatever else (WhatsApp is not in the same league, and also not as widely read in larger groups).

I have been lucky to bask in the reflected glory arising from my forwards with just a twist, like a new caption, coming from these folks. Annie Singh, Shashikala Paul, Durga Godbole, Rajesh Baji, Usha Narayanan, are just a few names that come to mind - their jokes, memes and so on made my day many a day. Also, some groups -in particular the punny ones- to which my friends introduced me, sometimes without my noticing it, have added to the fun.

It's great to find new and interesting stuff, rather than inane Good Morning messages..