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Mysticism to modernity
Lhasa is today awash with modernity, wherein traditional values only seem to be an appendage. Pratibha Chauhan
reports on the town’s development after a recent visit
 BOARDING
the flight to Lhasa
filled me with the excited anticipation of a mystical experience in
the land of the Buddha. Particularly, for somebody who has lived in
Dharamsala and heard from nostalgic Tibetan refugees about the
grandeur of Potala Palace and effervescence of Tibetan spiritualism,
Lhasa conjured visions of maroon-robed, prayer wheel-rotating monks
and nuns milling around in a landscape dotted with monasteries.
Festive
fervour
Seat of spirituality
Track to
technology
A
legacy that comes alive
Tales of impregnable and
invincible forts stand out in the crisply edited documentary series on
these majestic marvels of India, says Nonika
Singh
WE
see the monuments ... we don’t discover them." This may
be the lament of noted theatre personality and documentary maker
Gurcharan Singh Chani. But as he, along with his son Gyandev Singh,
has just completed a 26-part documentary series Bharat Ke Durg
on India’s majestic forts, the forts have not only been revealed to
him but also, he promises, will be a revelation to the viewers.
Political
puppets
If one were to go by the Raajneeti
narrative, women exist in Indian politics only to consolidate the
power built by patriarchal and feudal forces. They have no standing of
their own, writes Pamela Philipose
Prakash
Jha’s Raajneeti, riding on the aura of India’s First Family
in politics, has been bringing in the crowds in a manner that recalls
a pre-multiplex, pre-popcorn era, when audiences actually thronged the
single-screen cinema halls and catcalled or whistled from the front
stalls.
Agony
of moms-in-law
Nivedita Choudhuri
IN
Indian families, mothers-in-law are usually described as
shrewish and the source of all domestic conflict. However, reality and
popular perception are often poles apart as many mothers-in-law
maintain that they are hounded by their daughters-in-law.
For
love of velvet
Go for velvet dresses
this winter season, says Homai
Sagar
VELVeT
is the new fabric for fall 2010. It is stepping on silk’s
toes this winter. All the Indian design doyens love it. So it can
never be far from a catwalk comeback. It is no wonder then that velvet
would claim its place as this season’s most beloved material.
Half
way to heaven
The small Himalayan town of
Askot in Pithoragarh is situated amidst huge
forest tracts and a breathtaking valley. This tiny town also lies on
famous
the Kailash-Mansarovar pilgrimage route, writes Tanushree
Podder
A
steady drizzle turned the dry
mountain rivulets into gurgling streams as our car negotiated the
steep bends on the mountain road. Clouds played hide and seek above
our head, throwing interesting patterns on the road.
Kathak
yoga for a fit body & soul
Shilpa Raina
MOVE
over monotonous fitness regimes. US-based kathak maestro Chitresh Das
has been popularising the concept of kathak yoga, which he describes
as a "union between the mind, body and soul" and an
excellent "form of a cardio-vascular exercise".
Bollywood new
and improved
The 35th Toronto
International Film Festival has put its stamp of endorsement on the
emergence of Mumbai cinema’s ‘new wave’, writes Saibal
Chatterjee
THE
35th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF),
running from September 9 to 19, marks a fresh beginning for North
America’s foremost cinema event. On the festival’s first Sunday,
TIFF will formally move into Bell Lightbox, its spanking new permanent
home that was four years in the making.
It’s raining
sequels
Bollywood gets high on
sequels, a la Hollywood, writes Robin Bansal
THE
Hindi boxoffice will soon be laden with sequels like Race 2,
Don 2 and the third instalments of Dhoom, Golmaal and Phoonk
as Bollywood walks in Hollywood’s footsteps to make filmmakers feel
secure and keep a captive audience in good cheer.
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