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Soul
music goes hep
From dargahs to
modern-day studios, Sufi music is becoming the toast of the young
generation
Jasmine Singh
He
smiles like a child who has taken to the stage for the first
time, a child who has rehearsed well before his mother. With that
childlike smile still on his lips, Sufi singer Kanwar Grewal closes
his eyes. He has a quick communication to make with the Almighty. Then
he opens his eyes and notes begin to spill from the lips of this malang(wanderer),
"Na jaaye mastaan dey
veydey mast bana daingey biba."
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| From left: Lakhwinder
Wadali (Puran Chand Wadali’s son), Puran Chand Wadali,
Pyarelal Wadali |
Arts
’Art & Soul
The
canticle of the birds
Words, images, poetry and
mysticism, all come together in this sumptuous new volume of Mantiq-ut
Tayer, Islam’s greatest literary masterpiece
b.n.
goswamy
O ‘Attar, with these
mysteries’ musky scent
You’ve filled the wide world and its firmament
— the Mantiq-ut Tayer
A
Sufi once heard a man
crying. ‘I have lost a key. Has anyone found it anywhere? The door
of my house is shut and I am left without a shelter in the street! If
the door remains closed, what shall I do? I shall be forever
miserable. What shall I do?’ ‘Who wishes you to be miserable?’,
asked the Sufi. ‘Since you know where the door is, go and stay near
it, even though it be closed. If you sit near it for a long time,
there is no doubt that someone will open it for you. Your condition is
not so bad as mine. My soul is consumed in stupefaction. Of the great
enigma that bewilders me, there is no solution. There is neither a
door nor a key for me.’"
Broad
Brush
Fitness
good health
A fat lot of good
Apart from being heart healthy, omega 3 fats can boost immunity and protect against arthritis, asthma, psoriasis, PMS and certain types of cancer
Dr Ishi Khosla
These
days, many people are
taking fish oil supplements, which contain omega-3 fatty acids, either
on their own or on physician’s advice. Driving this trend is
accumulating data from observational and clinical trials that these
lipids actually reduce risk of heart disease. However, there are
several other wide-ranging benefits of consuming these special fatty
acids. These include boosting immunity, anti-inflammatory properties,
protection against arthritis, asthma, psoriasis, PMS (pre-menstrual
syndrome) and certain types of cancer. Where anti-depressant
medications have failed, it is worth trying omega-3 fats through
supplements or fish. Intake of omega-3 fats has also been found to
help patients of schizophrenia, manic depression, mood instabilities
and bipolar disorders.
Keep
it straight
Sitting for long hours in an
incorrect posture can cause back and neck pain
Dr Gerd Mueller
In
today’s hectic times, many hours are spent at offices. On an
average, a person sits more than eight hours a day at work. Many of us
do not take required number of frequent eye or leg breaks and
eventually develop many body ailments, most common of which are back
and neck pain. Lack of proper knowledge and guidance coupled with a
careless attitude towards health are the main culprits.
Society
Thanks
to her, nomads can now vote
Thirtytwo-year-old Mittal
Patel, a former journalist-turned-activist, strives to provide an
identity to five million people belonging to the 40 nomadic
communities in Gujarat. About 50 per cent of them are still leading a
nomadic life
Kavita Kanan Chandra
In
India, eight to 10 per
cent of our population comprises nomadic tribes that constitute a
sizeable 10 crore people. Through her NGO, (VSSM) or Vicharata Samuday
Samarthan Manch, a nomadic community support platform, Mittal Patel
works for the uplift of 28 nomadic and 12 denotified tribes in nine
districts of Gujarat. In 2006, her efforts bore fruit as five million
nomads were included in the Census for the first time. In 2008, voter
ID cards were given to 20,000 nomads for the first time. Till now,
60,000 nomads have got their voter ID cards and the process is
ongoing.
Travel
Where
history meets Skype
Said to be the best and most
well-preserved medieval town in northern Europe, Tallinn in Estonia
has also been listed among the top 10 digital cities in the world
Ranjita Biswas
A
song can evoke a sense of self-determination and yearning for
independence. Across the seas in Estonia it was the same. The very
essence of protest against foreign rule in Estonia is rooted in the
Estonian Song Festival. It goes back to 1869 when Johann Voldemar
Jannsen composed his famous My Fatherland, My Happiness and Joy
which became Estonia's national anthem. The country at that time was
under Russian rule. Estonians gathered at "Lauluväljak" —
the famous song festival ground in Tallinn, capital of the country,
every five years and sang this national song defiantly. After a brief
spell of freedom, Estonia again went under Soviet Russia. But people
continued to sing this song at the conclusion of the annual festival
nonetheless. So in 1991, when the country became free, people said it
was due to the 'Song Revolution'.
Globetrotting
Entertainment
Tale
of two states
There is nothing new in the
theme of movies based on inter-regional and inter-linguistic marriages
in India
Shoma A. Chatterji
The
hyped
promos and high-end marketing strategies of Chetan Bhagat’s 2
States and A Marriage turned 2 States, a full-length
feature film is practically coming out of our ears. It suggests that
this is a unique film on inter-regional and inter-linguistic marriages
in India. But is 2 States about the love between the Punjabi
Krish Malhotra and the South Indian Ananya Swaminathan the first film
on cultural symphony through marriage? Not really. Director Abhishek
Verman has given us nothing new or original to shout across the
rooftops about. It began with New Delhi (1956) starring Kishore
Kumar and Vyjayanthimala and was a boxoffice hit. Then there is Ek
Duje Ke Liye (1981), another film called Ragini (1958) with
Kishore Kumar, Ashok Kumar, Ragini and Padmini. So, what’s new?
A
class apart
Sharda Kaushik
Prof.
Anil Zankar is known for his contribution to the film industry. With
22 short films, two books on cinema, two National Awards, one for a
feature script-writing competition organised by the NFDC in 1982 and
the other for his book on the History of World Cinema, won in
1997. Zankar has more than 30 years of professional experience in
writing for films, making films, teaching and media planning. Excerpts
from an interview:
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