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Sawan ke jhooley IT’S a festival that has dazzled through the ages. Teej rejuvenates senses, as it brings with it a fresh lease of life in form of tiny droplets of rain. An age-old festival that spans across generations, Teej is celebrated throughout North India and Nepal. This colourful festival sees women observing fast for their husband’s long life, marital bliss and children. The three-day-long celebration is a combination of sumptuous feasts and rigid fasting. The festival finds its roots in the application of mehndi, colourful clothes and swings or decorated jhoolas. This festival is dedicated to Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati. According to Hindu mythology, Goddess Parvati reunited with Lord Shiva after a separation of hundred years in the month of shravan or sawan. This legend is said to be the basis of Teej and the all the aspects of festivities connected to it. Informing about the festival, astrologer Madan Gupta Spatu says: “Teej falls in the shakul paksh. This year it will be celebrated on August 4. There are three types of Teej, and this one is the Hariyali Teej, which represents a change of season. People are sure to get some respite from scorching heat.” About the traditions associated with the festival, he says: “Girls celebrate this festival at their mothers’ home. It is just like Karva Chauth. Women observe fast for their husbands’ long life, apply mehndi and wear colourful bangles.” On the significance of varied colours of bangles he adds, “Different coloured bangles are an indication of a happy married life.” “According to Hindu mythology, Teej is supposed to be highly auspicious for womenfolk and their marriage. This festival holds a lot of significance for newly married girls. They get new clothes, jewellery and cosmetic. Also known as Teej Sindhara, it is an auspicious festival,” says Manorama Sood, homemaker from Sector 28. Coming to the rituals associated with Teej, Spatu puts in: “Teej puja plays a vital part in celebrations. Women read Teej Katha and worship Goddess Parvati and Lord Shiva this day. They offer milk and fruits to the gods.” And who does the city plan to celebrate the festival. R.C Swami, president of Rajasthan Bhawan, Sector 33 says, “People of Rajasthan celebrate Teej with great pomp and show. This year also we have decided to organise a function for the women, wherein they can enjoy swings. We have called in a mehndiwala to apply mehndi, and for food, we will offer Rajasthani food like dal baati churma and some Punjabi dishes as
well.” jigyasachimra@tribunemail.com
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The Third Link WHEN Claire de Buren flew from Geneva to Kerala, her aim was to enjoy a holiday with her relatives there. But curiosity got the better of her and she cut short her family time to be in Chandigarh. Firstly, having seen Nek Chand’s miniature rock garden Muse de l’art Brut in her hometown, Lausanne, she wanted to see the original. Second, an admirer of Le Corbusier, also from Lausanne, she wanted to understand what motivated the master architect to come here to build a city. “Now I know why. He must have wanted to experiment in an environment so different from the Swiss climate. Although I haven’t seen much, I can safely say he could connect with this place, ” says Claire, tired after a live demonstration at the Government College of Art, where she taught about 60 students the technique of linoprint. “I teach school students back home and am used to larger gathering. The fatigue is due to my language problem!” she says in halting English. Claire, who ventured into digital art six months ago, talks about a technique she invented — Sketch Movie. “I animate movement of an object using a digital camera and then mix about 7,000 prints of the same in the PC to create an abstract form,” she says. As for the subject, Claire loves experimenting with the human form as “ being human I understand different moods of my subject and the collage of emotions becomes an interesting end product”. And from the conversation that follows from that point, one gets to know current art trends in Switzerland. “Digital abstract art has taken over,” she says, adding how various artists are experimenting with clicking inane objects and blending them with live form to create abstract collages. Well, though Claire has moved onto the hi-tech art form, she has given up painting in watercolour and making linoprints. “If one is a true artist, one does not give up on their roots, and this is why I decided to teach these youngsters basics like blending of colours through lino technique,” she concludes. With this, she makes the third link between Lausanne and Chandigarh — Nek Chand, Corbusier and now Lino.
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Studies first Limelight-aspiring youngsters — be it Indian Idol star Abhijeet Sawant or Rahul Vaidya of Jo Jeeta Wohi Superstar — may have packed their books to chase what we call easy stardom but there is one star who is surely not playing the fame game. Taare Zameen Par star Darsheel Jaffery is clear in his head: Fame apart, studies are his first priority. Well, this sure comes as a pleasant surprise for us. So, while no one is studying, Darsheel who played a dyslexic kid in Taare Zaamen Par, is busy managing his homework despite his busy schedule. “I want to concentrate on my studies,” said Darsheel, brand ambassador for OYO, a new kidswear brand from Spykar. Amidst a full media blitzkrieg, Darsheel's childlike innocence was on full display. When asked: “do you think kids will wear this brand, just because you are endorsing it?” Darsheel said: “I hope so; I think they will.” Flanked by a protective mother, Darsheel gave media interviews by standing on a stool, so that reporters did not have to bend too much with their mikes! Darsheel said at the event: “I was in school when TZP released. And suddenly I was transformed from nobody to a recoginised face. Sometimes, I feel very strange that all this is happening to me.” Hot on the trail of his next project, which has not been disclosed to the media yet, this is Darsheel's second brand endorsement, the first being Horlicks.
— TNS |
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Let mythology be! Sagas of flamboyance & distorted reality? Epics are all about Manish Malhotra saris, garish make-up and weird camera angles Jasmine Singh I
remember how my whole family would plonk themselves in front of the television set every Sunday at 9 a.m. sharp. Work would come to a standstill as the characters of Mahabharat came alive on screen. Ravishing Rupa Ganguly as Draupadi and her long tresses that started the whole musibat, the very Arjun-looking Arjun, trying to make up his mind whether to fight against his own kith and kin, and the most impressive, the throaty-voiced Bhisma Pitamah (Mukesh Kapoor), a real Krishna (Nitish Bhardwaj), villain Shakuni (Gufi Paintal), blind king Dhritrashtra (Girja Shankar). It was the real Mahabharat, B.R. Chopra’s Mahabharat. And you bet, everything about it was so real — the characters, costumes and dialogues. I remember how my sister burned with anger when Dushhasan dragged Draupadi by her hair, with her husbands looking at her helplessly. “How can they do this? It is so barbaric. Why can’t this andha raja see what his sons are doing,” my sister fired a volley of abuses. It was then, and it’s now. 2008. Here comes another Mahabharat, Kahani Hamari Mahabharat Ki. My family got together again, anticipating another marvel. After all, it’s a mythological tale. And there it was, Ekta Kapoor’s wonder or need I say melodramatic wonder. My sister raised her voice once again (some people cannot sit easy while watching television), “What the hell is this? Yeh Mahabharat hai ya fashion parade? And listen to the dialogues, so artificial. None of the characters look real.” For once, she was right. Mahabharat or candy floss Mahabharat, Ekta has really pulled the creative license way too far. And the characters! Lesser we talk about them, the better. Ekta, you should have created another Kyunki…maybe a Kyunki Aisi Bhi Mahabharat Thi. Talking about the characters, most of them are working to please Madam E. Bhandua mazdoor in designer wear. They shriek, they cry like saaas bahu serials (unkey khoon main hai), costumes too revealing and sexy, the villains as mighty as the Spiderman and their laughter too loud and horrendous. Not to forget the very Ekta-type camera angles. And yes, all that lightening, thundering and noises. I bet the gods up there would be pleading Ekta for mercy— ‘Please leave us alone’. And please, all you creative minds! Spare the mythological tales of your creative improvisations. Can our Sita mata please look a little real? Soaked in makeup and designer saris, she looks a ramp model lost in the woods. And as for the dialogues, is anyone reading the scriptures? Can you please talk anything more than hey maatey, and hey pitashree? Agreed, such serials inculcate a good value system in the new generation. At the same time, we need to show them the real saga. The real legends! Let’s not distort history. They are getting enough dope on sex and glamour already. Let’s show them the real thing. (This column appears weekly) |
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Frozen in time A
loud shrieking noise coupled with a little propeller-driven key that leaps off your nightstand, alarm clocks make sure you wake up on time. Take it from people who swear by it, still. And apart from your caring mother, who else has so far managed to wake you up on time, fixed by you. None else than your alarm clock. Remember, the loud shrieking voice that triggers off at a fixed time and goes on ringing till you instinctively flail your hands roughly in the direction of the noise, and smack. Oh, that sincere alarm clock, but how many of us still rely or subscribe to its services? Not many. Thanks to the fully loaded cell phones that have a facility for an alarm clock, the old chunky metallic and plastic pieces are almost obsolete. Nevertheless, there are people who swear by its loyalty and wouldn’t go to bed without setting an alarm. “I have lived with an alarm clocks noise for a while now and I can’t think of starting my day without it,” says 35 years old Namrata Pahwa, a graphic designer from Mohali. “I am aware of that we can set an alarm on a cell phone, but I like to stick to an alarm clock still. The snooze sound is music to ears. I don’t think a cell phones meek noise can match up to the blaring noise of this old piece.” Whether it’s the noise or the tiring procedure of shutting the alarm, it still is favourite with some. Chips in city- based businessman Sukhdeep Basota: “It takes a lot of energy to turn of an alarm clock. First the noise, then the rotating keys and then the effort to get up from the bed and retrieve the key before the neighbours wake up. And, by the time I do this, I am wide awake to make a cup of coffee.” Here it is, a simple solution for people who run away from exercising in the morning! But all said and done, those accustomed to it, do not want to replace it for smart cell phones. 52 years old Naresh Sharma has an old Titan made alarm clock gifted by his wife on their first anniversary. He fondly remembers: “She gave me a huge iron piece that was told to have a good alarm system. And god, it makes a scary noise. Forget about me, the whole neighborhood can be waken up with this”. Despite the noise Naresh Sharma will never trade it for a cell phone alarm. “Somehow I feel a cell phone wala alarm will never be able to wake me up. Rather, I will slip it under a pillow while sleeping and next morning not hear from it,” he laughs. jasmine@tribunemail.com |
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Do the
dare HE wants to conquer all the dangerous peaks, and with God by his side Harmeet Singh vows to do it one day. “You can call it a passion or pagalpan. I like to trek unknown, untouched and dangerous routes. It gives me some kind of unexplained satisfaction,” says forty-year-old Harmeet Singh Oberoi, who works with Tech Mahindra, Chandigarh. And well, it’s this passion that makes us sit up and notice this lean and athletic man who feels that age is and will never be a deterrent in his passion. “I’ve never let age affect my trekking. Infact, the thought of going to a dangerous place makes me fell young again,” says Harmeet, who treks to at least one destination in a year. “I think I can do it better than the youngsters who are into smoking and drinking. Last but not the least, they don’t have the burning desire, like the one I have.” Desire, courage and passion, is what takes him through, else he wouldn’t have trekked to the ‘so very difficult’ Swargarohini, a mountain massif in the Bandar punch range of the Gharwal Himalayas. Harmeet is excited to explain. “Swargarohini lies in the Uttarkashi district of Uttarkand, west of the Gangotri group of peaks. It’s a group of three peaks at an altitude of 6252, 6247, 6209 respectively, which makes it a steep and challenging climb.” Braving climatic conditions and traveling with limited food supplies, it took Harmeet 12 days to reach Swargarohini. “Not many people trek to this place, only 25 people a year,” offers Harmeet, who hasn’t had any professional training in this. “I have literally dodged death thrice,” he tells. “Once, I narrowly escaped a glacier that came tumbling down when I was drinking water from a stream. Second narrow escape was when I fell 3 feet in water and third was when a boulder fell on my feet. It took the guide and the porter almost 40 minutes to lift
the boulder.” However like a soldier, who does not quit the battlefield, Harmeet continues with his journey. “I am not scared of anything except God. And, I know that he is always with me,” smiles this trekker, who wants to touch Mount Everest one day. “My family was not okay with the idea, but I guess they are used to it now. They know that I will not give up my passion, no matter what.”
— J.S.
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Darkness at noon and moonless at night, eclipse has always rapt the human mind. And it was August 1 that saw the rare combination of a solar eclipse and a new moon fall together. A day full of unusual blends, the date also spells an odd combination of number one and eight — the former representing the energy of the sun and the latter representing the saturn — the planet of cause and effect. Informing us about the combination of dates and their ill effects, Shaman witch Renu Mathur says: “One is the number of the sun and other is the number of the saturn. Both are conflicting planets, so all dire instances happen in this combination.” There is more to it, she adds: “People born under the destiny numbers 1,4 and 8 will be seriously affected by this eclipse.” Suggesting remedies to negate the negative effects, she says: “The number 1 should use the crystal chryphase and the destiny number 4 would be protected by the use of green onyx, most deeply affected, number 8, should use the crystal obsidian.” If it sounds all Greek, then here comes some home remedies. “People falling under these destiny numbers should draw a black salt circle and burn an astrological candle to undo the ill-effects. They should write their problems on the candle with a sharp edged knife from base to the wick and then let the candle burn. And when the candle burns, the leftovers should be floated in running water.”
— TNS |
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It’s much more than
black & white... Shahnaz Husain Whiteheads are different from blackheads, although they both contain While blackheads occur mostly on oily areas, whiteheads can occur even on dry skin. Proper cleansing routine according to the skin type is important. After cleansing, wipe the skin with a rose-based skin tonic. Or, mix rosewater with witchhazel. If the skin is oily, they should be mixed in equal quantities. For dry skin, mix one part witchhazel with three parts of rose water. The use of facial scrubs also discourages white heads. If the skin is very dry, use the scrub only once a week and only on the areas with whiteheads. For oily skin, scrubs can be used more often. But, not on pimples, acne or rash. Rice powder and rose water make a good scrub. Or, you can mix dried and ground orange and lemon peels with rose water. Almond meal (ground almonds) can also be used along with the peels or by itself or it can be mixed with honey. Rub it gently on the skin in circular movements, leave it on for a few minutes and then wash it off. Facemasks can also help. Mix together one teaspoon curd, one teaspoon honey, 4 teaspoons oatmeal and egg white. Apply for 20 to 30 minutes and then wash it off. For stubborn blackheads consult a dermatologist, who can remove them easily with a sterile probe. (This column appears fortnightly)
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Kebabs calling CARE for some juicy and lip-smacking kebabs? Copper Chimney-26 starts its 15-day kebab festival. Here you can try a variety of Lucknawi kebabs, all exclusive and delectable. Aneet
Bakshi, GM, Copper Chimney-26 says: “We have been organising this festival for four years now. This year too our menu includessome exclusive kebabs in 15 non-vegetarian and 10 vegetarian varieties.” These scrumptious recipes come from the kitchen of Abdul
Samad, chef with Copper Chimney, Mumbai. The festival gels with the rains and sizzling hot kebabs make for a delightful combo. On the menu are Vegetable Galouti Kebab, a mouth melting minced vegetable kebab, spicy Irani Fish Kebab, tangy Akbari Kebab and Chicken Tikka Tarkand cooked in red wine over charcoal. These can leave any foodie craving for more. Says Abdul
Samad, “We have special Soya Seekh Kebab made from Indian spices and soyabean sauce, Methi Makkai Anjeer ki
Tikki, a unique combination of anjeer, maize and fenugreek and Murg Tandoori Kulfi Kebab. We have non-vegetarian specials like Trout Kebab with a hint of
ajwain, cooked in tandoor.” He adds: “Khas Seekh Kebab is another delicacy and it is made from special spices like paan roots, khas khas roots and fresh herbs. ” The festival merges well with the Punjabi food culture and lays a lot of emphasis on spices and sharp
flavours. You don’t want to miss this one! On till August 17 |
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