An age of pseudo aestheticism.

About five years before the scenario in Kerala was very different. Kids hurrying for an endless series of tuition, parents in thick framed glasses talking of studies, studies and studies.., the pranksters and naughty ones ending up as the obvious black sheep of the family, and most often ending up in drama institutes and centers catering to art and acting. That my dears, used to be a very bad period for people of art. 
And... now the whole vista is different. Almost everyone(let's say, two out of three) you meet is a photographer, and my God, that art has flourished like no other had in these years.( courtesy to a popular post saying even a monkey with a DSLR is called a photographer these days.) And again, brace yourself against those umpteen pages of Tinku photography and Pinku photography. Good photographers, God bless them, are having a very troublesome time, it seems.

Music is another area where a huge transition has occurred. With all due respect for music bands like Avial, whose music was and is genuine and are undoubtedly talented,what with their music and the huge appreciation it had garnered, every other mallu 'rock band' is having members clad in lungi and going about screaming pathetic versions of otherwise beautiful folk songs whose beauty lies, I must say, their pristine state. ( They must be feeling down too, I surmise.) More than music, I guess musicians are more focused on the number of facebook proposals they get.( courtesy to a lewd interview of a faceless singer who was getting "marry me" proposals heaped upon him,
on a  very famous Malayalam 'youth' channel which has a very serious case of misconception about what youth want.) I went to a movie with a friend yesterday, and a song really had us in splits by the end of it. The song was good( read bearable) but the singers, Oh My God, had this seriously constipated look on their faces.( btw they don't remind us of the 'Life in a metro' guys, OK...Maybe a little... oh no, they don't.)

We know that the whole history of art, right from the times of Chaucer, had been interspersed with periods of aestheticism, romanticism, classicism and in between flashes of puritanism. This sudden surge of love for art in Kerala is definitely something to be proud about, I agree. I guess even our parents are slowly getting rid of their B.Tech mania for this artistic movement and forcing their kids into music lessons and photography coaching.(Maybe this is because they have finally begun seeing the big fat unemployment club or the "Mech ,EC or civil, we do IT" club.) This is exactly where it goes wrong, as well. Why the heck aren't we happy with doing what we like? Why do we have to wield a DSLR because everyone else does? Why do we have to force toilet jokes and swear words into our movies JUST FOR THE SAKE OF IT? Why do we  to get subjected to a parade of lungi dances and songs just because some guys were innovative about it?

Art is great and is the best thing to live life. But it can be the most disastrous thing if people are just copycats about it.
 DISASTROUS.

Bibliophilism

A collection of some book reviews I had posted in Goodreads. (In case anyone would find this helpful).
 

Having discarded the "this is from the HP author" prejudice, one can start to read this book, which delights, shocks and is worth reading. I can't fathom the reason why this book had conjured up so many negative reviews, except for the flaw of the unreasonable price, which fits her image as the best selling author, but somehow the book isn't worthy of. The magic land of Hogwarts, friendship and patronus charm has given way to the harsher realities of life.The book is indeed for the "adults", but gives glimpses, now and then, of something remotely "magickish". The towering image of Barry Fairbrother somehow seems "dumbledorish". Just another reminder that writing in an easy to follow language doesn't indicate at the weakness of an author.

Being a great fan of Lahiri, the book didn't came surprising.Her lucid style, style of narration, after all these are a few reasons why her works are sought after.But for me, you should read this book for the tremendous amount of reality in it, the way she makes the reader feel as if she/he is a part of the story, and for those who prefer their books with a tinge of pathos in it,you should definitely read it.Her characterization is just superb, her "American born confused desis", ranking the top of the list. A BOOK THAT MADE ME SMILE, THINK AND CRY.

 

 

  What a great book... Bond magic is at its best in this book as he devotes various chapters to those people in his life who could be never forgotten... Simple, ordinary men and women who secures an extraordinary place in our hearts through their gestures of love and kindness... His books reek of mountain air and is the best thing that can go along with a cup of hot coffee. Truly, he is India's resident Wordsworth in prose.

 

 

 

  A husband finds his wife missing one day. A series of psychological interpretations and bombarding of cosmic truths. May be I'm not that transcendental. May be the soul got lost in translation.Call me shallow, but reading this book was a painstaking effort for me, and I had to read it just for the sake of completion, something I hate very much.No Coelho for me in the near future, I already have been subjected to a volley of life truths to last a life time. Thank you.

 

 

 

 

  One of those books in the alarmingly increasing pile of metro-reads or easy-reads or whatever you call them. Good if your aim is to kill time or read while having a face pack on your face:). No serious plot or anything,a series of diary entries that could be read in one go.Humorous in patches, I should agree that it is definitely better than some of the ridiculous Indian urban reads that come out these days, with equally ridiculous titles. 

 

 

Great book... Great book.... And I guess this time I'm really confounded. Yann Martel is nothing short of a genius. A great tale that underlines the importance of perseverance and faith. And mind you, it is least didactic as it could get.Truly, a MUST-READ.

 

 

This is definitely a book that goes into the list of must reads. This is not a didactic gospel, but a beautifully drawn picture of a happy family that goes through many temptations and sufferings, together.. a marvel of a book.