The Tribune, Chandigarh, India

Principal calls Jamat chief for open debate

New Delhi, September 3
The tussle between a lady principal, Mrs Safia Iqbal, and the Jamat-e-Islami Hind over the issue of Scholar School has taken a religious turn with an invitation of discussion on religious pattern. Both parties fight in the court for the possession of the school located in Abul Fazal Enclave in South Delhi.

The principal today invited the president and vice-president of the Jamat-e-Islami, Maulana Sirajul Hasan and Mr Shafi Moonis, respectively, for a face to face discussion in front of the media and clarify whether the Jamat, the largest Islamic organisation in the country, had violated Shariah (Islamic rule of law) in taking possession of the school property. Staying of Shafi Moonis (80) in the school premises in the presence of woman teachers was a violation of the Shariah, she alleged. TNS

CULTURE

GLITZ & GLAMOUR
Capturing Indian beauty on canvas is her metier
Smriti Kak

A beaming Meenu Kumar all set to make her debut.

What really inspired me to paint were the visuals of artists sitting in carnivals in Paris painting pictures and doing portraits,” declares Meenu Kumar, who has been painting from the time she was in her teens.

An artist who has worked with advertising agencies, launching ads that have fetched her not just appreciation but her clients more revenue, Meenu is all set to make her debut in the Capital as a solo artist.

“The exhibition is going to be held in October and the themes that I have done for this are Egyptian, Chinese and Red Indian. Apart from using canvas of paper, I have experimented with pots”. Meenu has skilfully used earthen pots as canvas for her drawings.

“I used to do interiors and there were times when I used to get stuck for a particular piece of a particular colour. That was when I started painting on pots and the response was very encouraging. From people to stores these pots found admirers and buyers.”

A graduate in Applied Arts, Meenu would sit in Chandigarh’s Sector 17, to do those 20-minute sketches. “I loved sitting in the market and doing the sketches. Faces and portraits are my forte. I haven’t done some big portraits for some time now and definitely want to go ahead with that.”

For the artist who prefers doing large canvases the urge to break away from the mundane and experiment new techniques by way of art is the goal. “I like to paint on canvas measuring three to four feet. My watercolours are sometimes done on specially ordered canvas,” says Meenu, adding, “I derive celestial pleasure in sketching, the strokes came from my within my heart and there is peace in my heart once the sketch is complete.”

Painting on pots required study so she chose to spend time with potters to learn the art from the masters. The presentation of the Victorian era went down well with the clients and buyers, says Kumar.

Having efficiently moved from painting to advertising and back to painting,

Meenu manages to find time to juggle work and family. “I have enjoyed work as a visualiser, illustrator, copywriter and calligrapher”, recounts Kumar.

“I enjoy travelling and have even sketched on the beaches of Goa”. Having spent some of her time in Gujarat, she found the environs inspiring her to capture the Indian beauty on canvas. “The reflection of rich colourful festivities of the state find a place in my paintings.

So do different emotions and feelings of love, contentment, love, anxiety and fear”.

Kudos to Valaya

A model sporting JJ Valaya’s collection J J Valaya is all set to celebrate his decade in the fashion industry. Claming to be as old as the industry itself he finds it “great to have grown up with the industry”. Though he insists that there are, “no regrets” in his decade of successful designing he adds, “I just had my own mistakes to learn from. I did not have anybody’s mistakes to learn from. But I do admit that it was great laying some principles and fundamentals of designing,” says Valaya.

Having earned himself the credentials of a brand ambassador for Swarovski the 10 years bash is going to be sponsored by the company. The celebration show that is scheduled to take place in the Capital on September 8, will have five segments based on five different themes.

“The themes that we have used are Chinese, Indian, Egyptians, Persian and African. We have also picked up the best five collections that we have had in the past decade and will be presenting these with modifications in a new manner,” elaborates Valaya.

Since Swarovski is a pet project the designer has developed custom transfers. Motifs using Swarovski have been done on outfits and it has also been skilfully merged with other forms of embroidery.

“The show is basically a celebration of being there. We have incorporated a lot of techniques like dance, narration and fashion to make the show a success,” points out Valaya, adding, “We are just started there is plenty to achieve, but its good to have been theatre.”

Cheers to the man who can only, ‘think big’.

Monsoon ragas

Pandit Ronu Majumdar has released his latest album, ‘Rain Jo’. The album provides the best of music and healing. Say Majumdar, “Music has always been a great healer and this album gives soothing music, which can be enjoyed in the rainy season”.

The album features Majumdar playing the monsoon theme and having composed the Raga Malhar on his flute. The ragas have been packaged with a bhajan blended beautifully with classical beats.

A Kajari, a romantic song sung by maidens during the monsoon is also a part of the album. “In the last few days of summer, the soil is parched, hard and dry. Along come the dark clouds or rain. The earth is sprinkled with cool fresh water, which the soil soaks up thirstily. Mother earth changes overnight. She adorns fresh green attire. The smell of fresh wet earth, rainbows in the sky, puddles of water, streams and waterfalls. All these together make-up the Rain of joy,” elucidates the master flutist.

The rain gods seem to have taken cue, the city is finally experiencing the joy of rain.

Krishna collection

Models in Krishna’s ensembles A designer’s love for Krishna and the creativity bestowed on him has been translated into the ‘Krishna’ collection. Krishna Aroop, Designer L’affaire, unveiled in the Capital a collection that has been inspired by the Lord.

The evening saw versatile singer Shubha Mudgal singing hymns of Radha and Krishna. What’s more the invitees were treated to a Lord Krishna’s favourite drinks and eatables.

The collection features rich and vibrant colours in hues of peacock blue, green, pitamber and deep reds.

The collection comprises lehngas, cholis, tissue odhnis and fusion wear. Says the designer, “Today we see a great deal of western influence in Indian fashion, music and even presentations. Our endeavour at L’affaire and in Krishna is to be deeply rooted to our rich tradition of music, craft, presentations and beautify the global woman.”