Frozen moments
Nonika Singh

When a nephew decides to bring out a book on his aunt, he is likely to face the dilemma — how much of the private should come into public domain? And when the nephew in question happens to be India's leading conceptual artist Vivan Sundaram and the aunt none other than the legendary Amrita Sher-Gil, the artist who stirred (and continues to do so) people's imagination like none before, the book is bound to be an extraordinary endeavour.

Little wonder then, the book Amrita Sher-Gil: A self portrait in letters and writings', edited and annotated by Vivan Sundaram is already being hailed as a work of art. Released by eminent art historian Dr BN Goswamy on Friday evening at a function organised by Chandigarh Lalit Kala Akademi at Government Museum auditorium Sector 10, as Vivan also provided glimpses of his labour of love (besides his exhibitions on the Sher-gil family) in a lecture-cum-slide show, few would have disagreed with its artistic and archival value.

Brimming with Amrita's letters, reference points emanating from her correspondence and artworks, it is without doubt past reconstructed where the boundaries between the personal, social and political get interpolated. The nibbling queries — Am I exploiting the situation? Is it a personal indulgence? — were sorted out when he decided to give the full picture of Amrita with provocative moments intact.

Yet Amrita, the persona that has often clouded her superlative work, he thinks has been demystified in the final analysis. The book that records her dialogue with art critic Karl Khandalwala, her admiration for artist Jaimini Roy as well as her lament over the art scene does position her as an artist. Providing multiple entry points to readers, the book is likely to be of keen interest to both scholars and the layman.

Though Amrita was Vivan's mother Indira's sister, Vivan who was born after her death expectedly doesn't relate to her as an aunt. As an artist, however, he admires her painting skill and constant quest to seek knowledge and question things. Besides, he who has been defying conventional mediums and exploring new areas of expression via his installations does admit that he shares her everlasting desire to change.

Thus this alumnus of MS University, Baroda and Slade School, London, who stopped painting some two decades ago, says, "It is not whether the canvas tempts me or not. I am so preoccupied with other mediums like found objects, video, digital photography that I have little time to paint."

Is working with found objects as exciting? He nods and takes immense pride in the fact that he doesn't take but "makes" photographs. One of the first artists to bring digital into photography, the trigger to construct photographs came from the pictures taken by his grandfather Umrao Singh Sher-Gil whom he rates as a pioneer of modern photography, a view now endorsed by others.

Post Babri Masjid demolition and Mumbai riots he took a photojournalist's photograph, reprinted it in various sizes and presto, and created a seminal work that was quickly accepted as a genuine installation. Critiquing the idea of singular authorship, he came about a work created out of photographs of several lensmen like Ram Rahman and others. Changing notions of what art is, he agrees that few in India understand conceptual art for there is so little happening and even less being supported by institutions and museums. Conceptual art, he puts it, simply is one where the idea takes precedence over visual and requires zero skill. "The skill," he insists, "lies in re-interpretation of the material to make it a contemporary experience."

In the West, he feels, conceptual artists are privileged ones for as against painters there is a great curiosity about other mediums. On ideas often becoming bizarre, he says, "Well there will always be some art pushing the boundaries and may not be acceptable at that point of time."

In fact, as he goes about creating works out of bottles, shoe soles etc he is constantly redefining art. While in his last show 'Trash' he used throwaway objects, in future he is toying with creating what he calls "carrying and wearing sculptures".

Does he think his book on Amrita, which he has illumined with animated annotations, too is an installation of sorts? He smiles, "That would be taking things too far. Let us call it archive represented." Sher-Gil archive, he has created by way of an exhibition too.

The tempestuous Sher-Gil legacy, he shares, has not been difficult to carry. Yes it does determine his body of work as also his attitude, loads of which along with awesome talent he has inherited from both a scholarly grandfather and a celebrated aunt.

nonikasingh1@rediffmail.com

A long wait
Mona

The city beautiful is still looking for the coveted place it deserves on UNESCO’s ‘World Heritage List’

Capitol Complex, Chandigarh. Photo: Vinay Malik

On the occasion of 'World Heritage Day' today, one wonders when Le Corbusier's Chandigarh, a marvel of urban architecture in synchronisation with nature, finds a place in the coveted 'heritage' list of UNESCO.

A list that includes the likes of Paris, on the banks of river Seine; Cairo, with its famous mosques, madrasas and fountains, and Ibiza, with its unique cultural and historical legacy.

Paris on river Siene

"Chandigarh is a marvel of modern architecture and a strong contender for inclusion in the world heritage list.

On the recommendation of Government of India, a dossier is being prepared, which will be submitted by this year end," says VN Singh, nodal officer, Le Corbusier Centre-19.

Designed by famous architect Le Corbusier, Chandigarh is one of the very first cities to be created on a raw piece of land and is an epitome of urban planning.

Cairo, Egypt

"A completely realised project of Le Corbusier, Chandigarh definitely has to be on UNESCO's list of world heritage cities," says Sangeeta Bagga, who's PhD thesis "The Significance of Chandigarh as an Architectural Heritage City of Modernity" is a study of three heritage cities - Tel Aviv, Le Havre and Brasilia. "Chandigarh has much more to offer than any of these cities, which are in the list," she says.

"Capitol Complex, low-height buildings that provide a view of the hills from every terrace top, its gardens — there are hundreds of points that go in favour of the city beautiful. There is no match to the way Corbusier has designed the buildings here, which make optimum use of sunlight and air. These are superb examples of sustainable architecture," says Pradeep Bhagat, principal, Chandigarh College of Architecture.

Ibiza, Spain

But then, with heritage status comes a lot of responsibility. Avers Bagga, "It's easier to get that status, but difficult to maintain it. Once the city is on the heritage list, we need to gear up in terms of legislation, management, planning and accommodating tourists. If not maintained UNESCO's can delist us."

"The administration is already maintaining the city well. Once we get the heritage status, we need to stick to the master plan as visualised by Corbusier, and the city administration is more than willing to do that," says VN Singh.

"The heritage status will help in maintaining the city better," offers Bhagat. "The idea is not to turn it in to a museum, but conserve the rich heritage," he signs off.

mona@tribunemail.com

Class apart
Ashima Sehajpal

Do we still need a confirmation on how big brand Bollywood is in the West? One need not census the audience or count the box-office collection there, "The mere fact that Warner Bros. Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox, Universal Media Studios are investing in Bollywood films says everything," comes from Jag Mundhra, a director.

And there's no scope of his being subjective, considering the fact that he has 36 movies to his credit, including the international projects, Provoked, Backwaters, Bawander—the Sand Storm still when before a certain shot, Rohit Roy, playing the male lead, advises him to shoot another one before it, he welcomes the suggestion.

"I have done enough work in the industry to feel insecure. If the suggestion from the actor is worth it, I put it into practice," just as he did while he was shooting for the film, Apartment, to promote which he was in the city on Saturday, along with Rohit Roy and Jennifer Mayani, who has done an item number in the movie.

Like the majority of his projects, Apartment, is also based on a real issue, "Issue of people from small towns struggling to pay rent in big cities. They then begin to put up with people they have no clue about."

The 'real' subject was chosen for the 'reel' after a reality check. "I used to hold meetings with the cast and crew of my films in cafe. There, people from different backgrounds, regions and strata approached each other and wanted to share their apartments to cut down on the rent," says Mundhra.

The storyline of the movie is based on how a small-town girl, played by Neetu Chandra, begins to share an apartment with Tanushree Dutta, who plays an air-hostess, and Rohit Roy an advertising agent, who are in a live-in relationship. Neetu's character is schizophrenic and she begins to infringe in their personal space. The movie will release this Friday.

Jag Mundhra. Photos: Parvesh Chauhan

Known for making women-centric movies, Jag considers it a challenge in the male-dominated film industry, "Provoked, starring Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, was a women-oriented film too. It's a hard task to pull an audience to the multiplexes in such cases, but at the end people do look for sensible cinema."

Since Apartment is about a woman encroaching upon the space of others, some steamy scenes are expected. Says Jag, "Sex sells, but only if it is an integral part of the script. As long as you can justify it, the audience will not object."

He accepts the fact that the film has some inferences from Single White Female, "Apartment is thematically identical, but the script is different."

And finally, who else would be able to define how different is the audience of the West from that of the East? "There, people do look out for logic in every movie. In India, entertainment forms the basis still." Thus, Mundhra's next project is a comedy, Naughty at 40, starring Govinda. And we expect it to be a thorough entertainer!

ashima@tribunemail.com

Relics from the past
Mona

Right notes
SD Sharma

Picks & piques
Unreal drama
Johnson Thomas

Just two films hit the marquee this week, both of indifferent quality and minor, almost redundant thrills. Phoonk 2 from the Ram Gopal Verma stable is yet another failed attempt to spook the audience while Milind Uley's Paathshaala, an Eros International Production, is a jumbled-up, confused attempt at social commentary.

Film: Paathshaala

Cast: Shahid Kpoor, Ayesha Takia, Nana Patekar

Director: Milind Uley

Milind Uley's film had topicality on its side. The education system in India was coming in for a lot of flak because of the high stress it generates by encouraging rote learning through unrealistic and impractical methodology, leading to a rise in the number of suicides among the youth.

Paathshaala attempts to be a commentary on the education system but the whole set-up is so fake and unrealistic that you just can't help but lose interest in what transpires on screen.

The film is so poorly written and directed that whatever the makers wanted to say gets lost in the jumbled-up incoherence of it's mish-mash plotlines.

Saraswati Vidya Mandir is the school that is on the cusp of change and Shahid Kapoor is the new broom, just recruited English teacher; Nana Patekar is the Principal and Ayesha Takia the multi-tasking specialist. She handles the ECW section, takes care of the canteen nutrition and is also the warden of the hostel. The school was once ranked number 1 for its quality of education, today it is number 4. New schools with better facilities and higher fees have long since overtaken it. The management therefore wants to either generate more income through improved facilities or just opt for re-development into a posh residential enclave.

The principal's job was to convince the teachers to co-operate with his efforts to generate more moolah for the school. He calls for a staff meeting and seeks their co-operation without explaining the reason. They are sent the revised plan and rates via email and they of course object.

They gather together and put up a concerted effort to impede that change. The script never develops after a point. In fact the entire set-up appears so fictitious and puerile that you just don't believe in it. There is much confusion in the narrative also.

The principal's mysterious decision is inexplicable and using it as a plot devise to facilitate a twist makes it appear manufactured. SVM is first introduced as a day school.

Then mid-way through the film we are introduced to its residential facilities. We also see parents flitting in and out at will. Now if SVM were a residential school, obviously it wouldn't be easy for parents to come to the school for every silly little event that happens there. No one in their right mind would put their children in boarding schools just round the corner and neither would schools take-in boarders who live close by - at least not in the real world.

Then the sudden transformation of the school into an extra-curricular activity specialist appears to be against the run of play. We see auditions for reality TV programmes, sporting activities designed to attract newspapers and a lot of discontent among students.

Everything is exaggerated beyond believability. Shahid Kapoor's presence also appears to be forced. He is an English teacher but the principal wants him to teach music as well. One moment he refuses the next he is seen strumming the guitar and warbling away to glory while the students dance around him.

Everything is so superficial and insincere that it is quite galling. Get real brother! johnsont307@gmail.com

Missing fear

Film: Phoonk 2

Cast: Sudeep, Amruta Khanvilkar

Director: Milind Gadagkar

The first was a warning (that's what the ads say); the second is a joke (that's what I say). The RGV stable continues to recycle cheap thrills to gather small change. Phoonk 2 is one sure example of that policy. It's from the horror genre that RGV hopes to stamp his label on. The competition is now between him and Vikram Bhatt (remember Shaapit?) for the worst horror movie of the last decade.

The jury is still out. Both have begun making crappy C-grade films driven by a specific genre segment but lacking totally in genuine creativity or entertainment value. This film too had a contest to power its release. Ambulances were kept on the ready in the hope that at least someone would succumb to the marketing gimmick. But alas! It's a hard act. The film fails to drum-up even in the minor scares.

The spirit of Martha returns to scare the bazookas out of Sudeep's family, once again. This time she resides in a doll (borrowed from Child's Play). The evil spirit takes many forms thereafter, even entering the wife's body and threatens to wipe out the whole family. In fact if you watch the movie you would most likely want the whole family wiped out so that another sequel doesn't rise up from the ashes of this one.

The characters have little depth, their actions are pretty illogical and the narrative has very little tension. It's not as if there is no gore. In fact there is plenty of it - heads fly off, limbs are severed, skimpily clad girls are drowned and even the house-help are butchered.

But none of it raises any kind of fear. There is no build-up at all.

Even the raven which had a strong presence in the first has very little to do here. The revenge story is never explained so those who haven't seen the first will wonder why so much caw-caw about nothing. The camerawork and acting are pretty pedestrian.

Tarot TALK
P Khurrana