Jungle calm: Ranthambore

This is a photo-essay on Ranthambore, drawn from a recent visit. We were very excited about the tigers when we took the train from Delhi to Sawai Madhopur, a five to six hour long journey depending upon the train one takes. We didn't see the tiger; but came back charmed by Ranthambore nonetheless. The jungle safari early in the morning was most refreshing. We spotted a variety of birds, deer, bear, and other animals; unfortunately not the tiger. They say you have to be very lucky to see one in your first jungle tour. We saw pug marks though! And were very happy about it. The other species of animals and birds made up for the tiger's absence and the jungle cast a dense calm upon us.  

We reached the beautiful Ranthambore Vatika Resort in ten minutes from Sawai Madhopur railway station. I had booked the rooms online beforehand and had no difficulty checking in. The staff, led by Devendra, was very polite and helpful; and the cottages were amazing with very clean bathrooms. The stay was so pleasant that I would recommend this place to anybody planning a trip to Ranthambore.

we enter Ranthambore Vatika Resort 

this resort is ten minutes away from the tiger reserve

the absolutely beautiful Ranthambore Vatika Resort

the view from our cottage

my daughter Zaara is delighted to be there!

Zaara stops to pose for me :)

and then runs around again!

the next day we visit the tiger reserve. there are open canters and open jeeps that take tourists around. one can book a safari online. 

this is an old banyan tree inside the tiger reserve. 

there are lots of peacocks in the reserve

right at the entrance of the reserve, one can see this centuries' old fort, which has an ancient Ganesh temple inside.

the first time i spotted a Tiger Toothpicker

these birds are called Tiger Toothpickers because when the tiger sleeps, with its mouth open, these birds pick food from its teeth, thus, cleaning its teeth in the process. fascinating!

saw many spotted deers 

the stunning spotted deer

a kingfisher

the most convenient mode of transport in Sawai Madhopur: Autorickshaw. they charge a little more compared to the distances they cover, considering Sawai Madhopur is a small town. 

coming back to Ranthambore Vatika Resort, it offers delightful vegetarian fare. but one can go to town and eat non-vegetarian from one or two places around, like the new place Karim, where our autorickshaw guy took us. it is about five minutes from the resort, and we had amazing chicken stew and rotis there.  

spent some relaxed hours at this resort. a home away from home, and far far far from the maddening crowd!

A tip for those who love block printing: Don't forget to pick up lovely kurtas, shirts, pajamas, bed sheets, etc. from Dastkar while you are in Ranthambore.    

Vaswati Misra: Kathak (Deccan Herald, 8 March 2015)

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/464009/poetry-motion.html

Poetry in motion

Juanita Kakoty, March 8, 2015, DHNS

Stepping it up

Vaswati Misra conveyed poetic elegance through Raha at the Kathak Mahotsav in New Delhi recently. Inspired by Baul philosophy, she weaved a wonderful balance between kathak and Baul, where the audience was taken through a trance by Parvathy Baul’s singing and the Dhwani Repertory dancers’ grace. It was a choreography that deserved the standing ovation the audience honoured it with.

Vaswati has been a kathak dancer, teacher and choreographer for over 35 years now. She is the artistic director of Dhwani Repertory and has created an impeccable body of work that has contributed to the extensive range of new movement vocabulary, extending the horizons of the art form. She is also the first woman performing artiste in the legendary Shambhu Maharaj’s family.

A fine balance

A little before the curtains went up, Vaswati told me, “Choreography should always be well-balanced. None of the forms or techniques used in the choreography should overshadow the other. Often I have seen kathak choreographies studded with the entire repertoire: The tukras, the tihais, and the parans, all of it! This is a little strange because a performing art is like cooking where there are a few select ingredients brought together proportionately for a delicious dish; a little more or a little less could spoil it. Nor do we use all the ingredients for all the dishes!”

This balance is unmistakably present in her choreography. And it is achieved while giving space to every performer and partaker, which reflects on the success of her compositions. “I always feel that choreography is about giving space to everybody: To the thoughts of the choreographer, to the dancers, to the musicians, to the person you are collaborating with, like in this production, Parvathy, and also giving space to the audience to take their own flight.” No wonder this is a choreography which you take back home with you.

The package is a delightful balance of the songs and charisma of Parvathy; the dance poetry created by Daniel Freddy, Ipshita Mishra, Anasua Majumdar, Surashree Bhattacharya, Garima Arya, Rishika Roy and Pradeep on stage; the music composed by Rahul Chatterjee, Pritam Ghoshal and Kiran Kumar; the live percussion by Suchet Malhotra; the sets created by Kailash Jiwani; costumes by Jyoti Talukdar; and make-up by Naresh Khare.  

Born to a family of doctors, Vaswati admitted that she has been lucky to have had the right exposure from an early age. Her mother was an actor associated with the Bengali organisation, Juba Sampradayak. “There used to be regular gatherings of people from cultural fields in our house. Also, right next door was the Kathak Kendra, where I used to accompany my elder sister. So, even before I realised it, I was in that atmosphere. My formal training started when I was seven, and I was lucky to have the best gurus of the time — Reba Vidyarthi and Birju Maharaj.” 

Breaking conventions

Later, at 18, when she married Birju Maharaj’s first cousin Krishan Mohan Mishra, Birju Maharaj was upset because in their family, women did not dance. Vaswati broke this tradition with the support of her mother-in-law. She reminisced with a twinkle in her eye, “I wore the ghunghut at my in-laws, but when I performed on stage, my neighbours used to sit in the first row and watch. So I didn’t mind the restrictions.” Her stint as teacher and choreographer began when she joined Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra as a teacher at 19.

Speaking about Raha, Vaswatiji said, “I am fascinated with Baul, but not that kind of Baul which is blended with contemporary elements. In this composition, the subject is prem and we try to walk together: kathak and Baul. There are points where Parvathy talks about something and the dancers carry it forward, and there are times when the dancers say something and she carries it forward. And, gradually, we flow in such a way that we become one part, which is the main thought of Baul: oneness of the body, mind and soul.” 

Trying to articulate the inspiration behind Raha, Vaswatiji expressed, “When I saw Parvathy perform for the first time, I was touched by her singing which is so rustic and so rooted. Besides, the spontaneity of Baul singing, its saral rendition, fascinates me. It’s like you get into a trance and you have the courage to talk about anything and to move in any way you want. This spontaneity is also a main feature of kathak although the dance form has its own grammar and structure. 

But then, any kind of creation is very spontaneous, it’s like a spark. One can get inspired by seeing a piece of stone, a leaf, or a flower, by a thought, or poetry. And all the concepts that come to your mind are based on the ambience that you are in, the way you are groomed up, your entire upbringing. All of this together leads to the creation of something.”

on Live Banned (Deccan Herald, 1 Feb 2015)

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/456913/rocking-laughter.html

Rocking with laughter

Juanita Kakoty, Feb 01, 2015,

Comic relief

Live Banned, a comedy Rock band from Bengaluru, was amongst the impressive assemblage of music entertainers at the recent event, Chasing Storm, in Coorg. Formed in the autumn of 2010, Live Banned has been making news for its music that is marked by intelligent humour, as is evident in their latest album, If You Park Here Your Tyre Will Be Air Out, released in 2014. They have satirised and restructured popular songs across genres and languages. 

Speaking about the music they create, Amrit Rao, the vocalist of the band, conveys, “The first description of our music is awesome and it can also be categorised as Indo-international mass music. There’s social commentary, comedy, satire, parody and a sound that brings the class and mass together.”

The band’s music has an appeal across populations. There is something for everyone — from the corporate sector to those living with everyday middle class struggles. Their ‘The Auto Tune’, a popular track in English-Kannada, for instance, is a brilliant take on how the common man wrestles with the auto driver, the ‘khaki-wearing local fellows’, and how ‘wherever you want to go, you can’t afford an auto’, and how it is better to ‘buy yourself a car… or you buy an auto’!     

Live Banned comprises Amrit Rao (vocals), Sridhar Varadarajan (guitars), Siddhart Kamath (keyboard), Dheerendra Doss (drums) and Raveesh Tirkey (bass). Reminiscing about how the band got together, Amrit reflects, “Dheeru and I decided to do something different and out of the box. Something that entertained us and the audiences as well. We started jamming with the then guitarist, Dhruv, and finally found people who were receptive to the idea. The basic concept behind the band is entertainment and to make people laugh.”  

The performances of the band have been bold and energetic; and influences have come from South Indian music, Bollywood, disco, pop, rock and metal. “Each one of us comes from a different background of music,” Amrit says. “I listen to everything, but am predominantly influenced by Progressive metal, Carnatic classical, Ilayaraja and A R Rahman. Dheeru, the drummer, loves classic Rock and EDM. Siddhart, who plays almost everything, is a heavy metal boy. Sridhar, the guitarist, loves the blues, and Raveesh, our bass player, likes a bit of everything.”

Signing off, Amrit says, “We love every composition we have created. I think the most popular ones are ‘The Auto Tune’, ‘Roads Bloody Roads’, ‘Hey Mama’ and ‘Death Dance’. And having started the New Year by chasing the storm, we hope that the storm gets bigger. We plan to play more gigs this year; more than what we did in 2014, and explore new territories like north and east India. Hopefully, even go international this year.”

Tibetan carpet weaving in Mcleodganj (Deccan Herald, 25 Jan 2015)

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/455505/weaving-legacy-exile.html

Weaving a legacy in exile

Juanita Kakoty, Jan 25, 2015, DHNS

Tibetan carpets

Dressed in the traditional Tibetan attire, chuba, the women sat in front of vertical looms tying knots over a rod, from which spilled threads of wool like streams of colours. 

These threads flowed into boxes, resting behind the women, where they were neatly arranged into colourful bales. In the adjacent room, a pretty store selling Tibetan artefacts, a few visitors were enquiring about the handmade carpets that these women were weaving.

Right there at Dolma Chowk in Mcleodganj, Himachal Pradesh, far away from Tibet, this was the scene at the Tibetan Handicraft Co-operative Society Limited centre, when I recently visited them. 

“This co-operative was started with the Dalai Lama’s blessings in 1963 to preserve the ancient craft of Tibetan carpet weaving,” told Tamding Tsering, who has been with the cooperative since 1972.

“In 1959, the year of the Tibetan Uprising, when the Chinese took control, thousands of Tibetans followed the young Dalai Lama’s flight to Dharamsala in India through the Himalayas.” He told me that his family was one amongst them and that he was still a child when he came to India.

“I grew up here and joined the co-operative as an employee, learnt carpet weaving, and in 1983, I was promoted to the position of a carpet teacher. And since 1992, I have been acting as the production manager.”

This centre and carpet weaving, he informed, have been creating jobs for refugees who arrive from Tibet as well as for those Tibetans like him who have grown up in exile. It has also been contributing to the Tibetan Government in Exile, he said, which is located a little down the road.

Art of weaving

An ancient and traditional craft, carpets have been an intrinsic part of Tibetan culture, where they have been used for a myriad of purposes: Sleeping, sitting, as horse saddles, wall hanging, flooring, etc. 

Another teacher, Dawa Dolma, sitting beside a fellow weaver, where they were working on the same carpet on a loom, told me that the technique used in their weaving was unique. “We still use the archaic vertical loom and double knots.

You won’t find any other weaving tradition using the double knot. These knots,” she said beating at them with a wooden hammer, “Are tied over a rod. When a row of knots is done, we cut the pile and slip out the rod.” When the rod is out, what remains is an emerging pattern on a flat vertical surface.

I pointed at the graphs that I saw rolled and hanging from all the looms, to which the weavers kept referring in the middle of weaving. “These graphs carry the designs of the carpets,” Dawa told me, “And they are prepared by our arts section upstairs. 

The patterns that are used for the carpets are traditional Tibetan motifs: animal, floral and figurative representations; but the colours of these patterns can change as per orders received from our customers.” 

Tamding Tsering told me that there are about 63 weavers with the co-operative today. “We have three places here in Mcleodganj apart from this centre where these carpets are being produced.” And that most of the weavers had come from Tibet as children, and have learnt the craft here.

Dawa had learnt the craft in Nepal, where her family fled for exile. Incidentally, she told me, though carpet weaving still exists in Tibet, most of the work for its preservation has been done in India and Nepal. Over the years, in fact, these two countries have produced more Tibetan carpets than Tibet. 


A young man called Tsering, who helps Tamding Tsering look after the production of carpets, revealed, “We export 85 per cent of our carpets, which are mostly sent to the US, Canada, Belgium, France and Japan. And we have a loyal clientele. We are the only ones in Mcleodganj making these handmade Tibetan carpets since 1963.” 

Speaking about the longevity of these carpets, he said, “The best thing about Tibetan carpets is the quality: They last long. One carpet lasts for at least 40 years. For instance, the ones at my home were made by my parents about half a century ago; but they still look good. So I say Tibetan carpets last a lifetime. They are washable, but should be dried well.” 

I further learnt from him that the centre trains youngsters in this art. “We advertise in the newspapers calling for young people interested in this craft to train with us. We provide them free training, give them free accommodation, and also pay them for their work. But the response has been disappointing.” Tamding Tsering added, “With time, the weavers are becoming less in number. The new generation is not taking an interest in the art. Probably because it involves a lot of hard work.” 

As I heard him speak, I looked at the mesmerising patterns being worked out on the looms standing in front of the weavers. Two women were trimming carpets, spread out on the floor, with scissors, giving them the finishing touches. And as I left, I said a silent prayer for them, for their enchanting craft.

on Usha Uthup (Deccan Herald, 18 Jan 2015)

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/454050/musical-mastery.html

Musical mastery

Juanita Kakoty, Jan 18, 2015,

In conversation

Usha Uthup, the grand lady of Indian pop and jazz, ushered in 2015 by regaling those present at the Chasing Storm music festival in Coorg with her renditions. The event, a compacted version of ‘The Storm Festival’, hosts camp-out musical performances in the lap of nature, with bon fires, late-night barbeques and jamming sessions. The singer said that the experience was special because it was her musical debut in Coorg, something that had not featured in her singing career of 45 years! 

Love for languages
Usha Uthup, with more than 100 albums in 17 Indian languages to her credit, recounted her musical journey, “From my school days, I have been exposed to a variety of languages. And, it’s up to an individual to soak in and make the best of what one is exposed to. That’s when my interest in music developed. Then of course, I’ve always been a people’s person. The more I observed and conversed, the more I absorbed. I love to communicate through music, and when I leave my audience with a smile on their faces, I feel wonderful.”

She has elevated lesser-used languages like Dogri and Khasi through her songs. Her vocals have gripped foreign languages like Spanish, French, German, ltalian, Zulu, Swahili, Sinhala, Russian and Ukrainian.

But her first unexpected singing experience became her chance opportunity to build up her musical career. “On one of our vacations in Madras, we were taken out to a nightclub called Nine Gems on Mount Road. On my aunt’s insistence, I sang along with a band that played there. Then came the applause. The club’s owner asked me to sing there for a whole week, and gifted me a Kanjeevaram Saree, my first one! After that, offers from several other nightclubs started to pour in. It was an experience that left me intoxicated and urged me to take on a musical career, which has been going on for over four decades now.”

And since then, she has given performances across India, addressed the youth, and defined how music can connect beyond caste, class, race and religion.

Through her vocal prowess, she has always tried to create a consciousness of love, unity, peace, tolerance and integrity. She recalled the name Harry Belafonte as her greatest musical influence. There was also one other entity that impressed her deeply during her childhood. “The Radio. It can be called my first teacher and the most serious influence, although I come from a family that appreciated different genres of music. Also, my two elder sisters, Indira and Uma, considerably influenced me back then.”

Her sisters were known as the famous singing ‘Sami Sisters’. Usha Uthup has achieved immense success as a singer and performer. And she attributes it, to a great extent, to her fans. “The support of my fans has kept me going. I never planned to become a singer, it happened by chance, and I am thankful to god for giving me that chance.”

Upcoming tunes
At the moment, she is busy with performances across the country, which, she said “were lovely as I get to be closer to my audiences.” Simultanesously, she is on to an interesting project — “I’m working with Munna and Raj on what would be a tribute to R D Burman. It is one hundred per cent original, it’s in Bangla, and is ‘Burmanesque’.” She also expressed interest to “add to her (live) repertoire.”

She has planned to render a few old and new songs like Kiss of Fire, Diamonds Are Forever, You Only Live Twice and other Bond classics after the tremendous success of her rendition of Skyfall. In an effort to justly acknowledge ‘behind-the-screen’ stars of the music industry, she has pitched for an award ceremony for technicians! “All the artistes attend award functions and get felicitated for their work. But no one spares a thought or two for technicians — the sound engineers, set decorators et al, who play a crucial role in our success.” Indeed, her music and her intentions are appreciated.

My latest short story: The bridge over Disang Noi

I begin 2015 with this short story published by Writers Asylum.

Excerpt:

"I was on the other side of the grey bridge made of cement, the sand and dust and pebbles adding a grainy quality to it. And from my side of the bridge, I saw how the road sloped downwards with a line of areca nut trees: Crops of green leaves rendered golden here and there, by a touch of the sunrays, sitting atop lanky columns. Up ahead, young banana plants sprouted out of the brown-green land, looking like dwarves against the areca nut trees. And a few paces beyond was just the brown-green land that dropped and fell into the river, Disang Noi. The water reflected the green of the trees, the grey of the bridge, the blue of the sky and the white of the clouds that formed the swirls of a brush on a canvas. On the other side of the river, the land rose again, grey in tone, slanting in posture, before turning into an expanse of greenery that stretched and disappeared into a wall of trees. All I could see from where I stood was the green of trees and the land; and the green rising up to the white clouds in a blue sky that was beginning to splash red and purple.

At the other end of the bridge, quite into the distance, a red dot blinked. It revealed the contours of a WagonR as it shot out of the greenery. I knew it was a WagonR because somebody from our village who long ago shifted to Sibsagar town had recently purchased one and when he made his annual trip to check on his property in the village, he had to give all of his time to the villagers who wanted to check out his car from inside and out. The red car almost flew on to the bridge and came to a screeching halt in the middle. There it stood, just like that, in the middle of the bridge, for what seemed like eternity. And then, a very attractive man got down. He bore the confidence of a city man."

Read the rest of the story at  http://www.writersasylum.in/2015/01/fiction/the-bridge-over-disang-noi/

on Manjeet Ral (Deccan Herald, 11 Jan 2015)

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/452700/arrived-bollywood.html

Arrived in Bollywood

Juanita Kakoty, Jan 11, 2015

Bhangra beats

He has no formal training in music, but for over a decade now, Manjeet Ral has created quite a stir in the global music scenario. 

He is known to his million fans as Manj Musik — the lead singer of RDB (Rhythm Dhol Bass) — the band of three brothers that brought different styles and genres together. That chapter closed with band member and brother Kuljeet’s death. After the spilt with the other brother, Surjeet Ral, in 2015, Manj has decided to go solo and carry on Kuljeet’s legacy under the same label.

Manj says Kuljeet (Kulypaji) has been the biggest influence in his life and recalls their musical beginning. “I sat and watched him mess with different music softwares. We created music samples, placed them on the keyboard of our Amiga 500 computer and triggered them off. Then I sang to the beats. It sounded horrible, but it was our first attempt at making music,” he reminisces.

Manj admits that Kuljeet’s death is a great loss, and that every time he goes on stage, “I thank him for composing the smashing RDB hits with me. I will keep at bringing out new music under Manj Musik as an ode to him, and use the knowledge he shared with me as my commitment towards his vision.” Today, Manj and his wife, Nindy Kaur, are a formidable team that has radically pioneered the style of British Bhangra. The duo’s music composition for Bollywood includes films Heropanti, Dr. Cabbie, Namastey London, Singh Is Kinng, Kambakkht Ishq, Aloo Chaat, Speedy Singhs (Breakaway), Tanu Weds Manu, Yamla Pagla Deewana and Bullett Raja.

The singer’s entry into Bollywood did begin with an interesting dialogue with actor Akshay Kumar. “I was in Detroit when my friend in Toronto put me through to the star who had already heard our music and considered it good. Akshay said, ‘Hi, this is Akshay from Bollywood,’ and I teasingly replied, ‘Yeah, yeah, Shah Rukh Khan called me yesterday.’ What followed was the deal with Namastey London. Akshaypaji was then our lucky charm!” Manj recalls.

Manj holds a list of musical projects to work through, “I am composing music for a couple of Hollywood films. In Bollywood, I have a single each to score with Salim Sulaiman, Vishal-Shekhar and Sunidhi Chauhan. There are collaborations with Badshah and Raftaar. I’m still working with Punjabi artistes Jazzy B and Zeus. I also have global deals with T-Pain, LMFAO and 50 Cent. And, touch wood, my recent Bollywood compositions have done so well with the masses that I’ve chances to work with Farhan Akhtar, Akshay Kumar, A R Rahman and Saif Ali Khan in the near future.”

His latest is a song called Desi Hip Hop, featuring desi hip-hop artistes like Badshah, Raftaar, Humble the Poet, Raxstar, Roach Killa and Sarb Smooth. It’s a tribute to the Punjabi music industry, which he aims to release shortly.