Tuesday, March 28, 2006

The GodDappers

Last night I was talking to Swaroop regarding a suitable name for the "DP rule" we have come up with, owing to an hour-long conversation we had had the previous night. Something about "Determined about being determined, passionate about being passionate". And to punch the next 6 months with the very best focus we can ever conjure up, and to hit upon exactly the kind of work we would want to do for the rest of our lives...
We wanted to come up with a good name for this concept of "Determined about being determined, passionate about being passionate".

Swaroop suggested "Dad-Pap" and asked me if I had a better one...And lo! I decided to vouch for the very first word that came up on my mind: Dappers!!

First of all: DAP would stand for Determination and Passion.
Secondly, I love the meaning that "Dapper" stands for; which is, being elegantly stylish without being overtly flashy or ostentatious about it. It spells sophistication, and a sleek appearence.
Thirdly, ( well I admit, this point struck me off-the-cuff): If a person who blogs is a blogger, a person who DAPs ( Follows the DP Rule for success: Patented by Swaroop and Vineetha) is "Dapper"!!! :)
Howzzat!

We even thought, that 7 months down the line when we succeed in achieving our targets, we could even go out and market this 'DP Rule for Success' and start an "Art of Dapping' cult and that will be a religion in itself. And you never know, we might even be the Larry Page and Sergei Brin( Google) of the success-mantra genre! ;)
And the members of this 'Dappers' Corner' would be known as 'Dappers' . So that makes the two of us, 'The GodDappers' ;)

And it looks like Dapping is gonna work.... I have been able to consistently achieve all the small-term targets I've been setting for myself. Mom commented this morn' saying, "Vini, you are acting like your life depends on this. Chill!"

But I realised that if I chill now, the rest of my life will be frozen!!

PS: What exactly is my plan for the next 7 months will be discussed, after 7 months. In the meanwhile, keep watching this space. Sometime later you all will be able to say, "We got to watch the growth of Dappers from scratch!" ;)

The Perfect Fit ;)


The name maybe MiSF!T, but the quality of their plays is, by any sensible means, anything but that!
Scripted proved to be a thoroughly riveting play. Seamlessly lucid narration, a mood that all of us could feel a part of, unbridled intensity, a clear and intelligible storyline and characters that seemed so real that the emotional flow seemed to start from the bottom of my belly and not from the stage!
For me, watching the dress-rehersal was one thing, but watching the play on stage was quite another experience altogether. And boy! Am I glad I did the feature and also watched the play...you bet. I truly feel for those of you who missed out. Next time, perhaps!

All in all, when you want a play, you simply can't make it happen; You will have to go to the master : Rathan Thakore Grant!

PS: For all those who wanted to see my feature on this for Indian Express, " Dial M for theater" is available on http://www.highlightevents.com/misfit/home.html under Dial 'M' for theatre

Thursday, March 23, 2006

Marriages are made on Earth!

I came across this wonderful little story....Just read on...

My husband is an Engineer by profession, I love him for his steady nature, and I love the warm feeling when I lean against his broad shoulders. Three years of courtship and now, two years into marriage, I would have to admit, that I am getting tired of it. The reasons of me loving him before has now transformed into the cause of all my restlessness. I am a sentimental woman
and extremely sensitive when it comes to a relationship and my feelings, I yearn for the romantic moments, like a little girl yearning for candy. My husband is my complete opposite, his lack of sensitivity, and the inability of bringing romantic moments into our marriage has disheartened me about love.

One day, I finally decided to tell him my decision, that I wanted a divorce.
'Why?' he asked, shocked.
'I am tired, there are no reasons for everything in the world!' I answered.

He kept silent the whole night, seems to be in deep thought with a lighted cigarette at all times. My feeling of disappointment only increased, here was a man who can't even express his predicament, what else can I hope from him?

And finally he asked me:' What can I do to change your mind?'

Somebody said it right, it's hard to change a person's personality, and I guess, I have started losing faith in him.

Looking deep into his eyes I slowly answered : 'Here is the question, if you can answer and convince my heart, I will change my mind, Let's say, I want a flower located on the face of a mountain cliff, and we both are sure that picking the flower will cause your death, will you do it for me?'

He said:' I will give you your answer tomorrow....'
My hopes just sank by listening to his response.

I woke up the next morning to find him gone, and saw a piece of paper with his scratchy
handwriting, underneath a milk glass, on the dining table near the front door, that goes....

My dear, 'I would not pick that flower for you, but please allow me to explain the reasons further..' This first line was already breaking my heart. I continued reading..... 'When you use the computer you always mess up the Software programs, and you cry in front of the screen, I have to save my fingers so that I can help to restore the programs. You always leave the house keys behind, thus I have to save my legs to rush home to open the door for you. You love traveling but always lose your way in a new city, I have to save my eyes to show you the way. You always have the cramps whenever your 'good friend' approaches every month, I have to save my palms so that I can calm the cramps in your Tummy. You like to stay indoors, and I worry that you will be infected by infantile autism. I have to save my mouth to tell you jokes and stories to cure your boredom. You always stare at the computer, and that will do nothing good for your eyes, I have to save my eyes so that when we grow old, I can help to clip your nails, and help to remove those annoying white hairs. So I can also hold your hand while strolling down the beach, as you enjoy the sunshine and the beautiful sand... and tell you the color of flowers, just like the color of the glow on your young face... Thus, my dear, unless I am sure that there is someone who loves you more than I do... I could not pick that flower yet, and die..'

My tears fell on the letter, and blurred the ink of his handwriting... and as I continue on reading..
'Now, that you have finished reading my answer, if you are satisfied, please open the front door for I am standing outside bringing your favorite bread and fresh milk...

I rush to pull open the door, and saw his anxious face, clutching tightly with his hands, the milk bottle and loaf of bread.... Now I am very sure that no one will ever love me as much as he does, and I have decided to leave the flower alone...

Hmm, That's life, and love. When one is surrounded by love, the feeling of excitement fades away, and one tends to ignore the true love that lies in between the peace and dullness. Love shows up in all forms, even very small and cheeky forms, it has never been a model, it could be the dullest and boring form... Flowers, and romantic moments are only used and appear on the surface of the relationship. Under all this, the pillar of true love stands... and that's our life... Love, not words win arguments...

So, 'A soul mate is the one with whom you could sit with without saying a word and walk away feeling like that was the best conversation you have ever had'.

Thus the story ends..

I must say that with me into a good job now, my parents keep suggesting that I should get married. And me being me, had innumerable doubts about the same....as to how is it that two people who could be right or wrong for each other get together in a bond that spans a lifetime? What if you realise that you are two right people but wrong for each other, after you are well into the commitment of marriage...what will happen then, when you are stuck with someone whether or not you like......etc...
But this story came as a real eye-opener about various things and quietened most of my turbulent doubts...
Any man/woman who respects the solid value of things will not be able to overlook this aspect of love that the story highlights!! Its so true that just bcoz the ostentatious part of love has ceased to exist, the deeper emotions can't be deemed as dead.....Rather, we don't need to flash it around with neon light since the true-love underneath has grown solid, steady and strong!!:))

Happy living, better understanding!;))

Tuesday, March 21, 2006

MiSF!T ;)


Last week ended on such a fun note!:)
I went to meet Rathan, Anitha and the rest of the MISFIT gang on Saturday. MISFIT, which stands for My Interest Stays Firmly In Theatre, is coming out with a play on 24th and 25th of this month, called 'Scripted: Tiraa and Pinjra'. When I got to know about that, I asked the Indian Express people if I could do a story on that. They were happy to let me do it, and so here I was, meeting old friends, yapping, taking in the cool evening air, meeting the crew and ofcourse, Rathan's interview...Once that was done, Rathan asked me to stay back and watch the premiere, and I felt special being the first, exclusive one to watch the premiere of 'Scripted: Tiraa and Pinjra'.

If I could explain the way I felt about the creative and technical 'Scripted', I would say, SPELL-BINDING!!I am one person who always wondered as to what a director's actual role was, be it in a movie or drama, since there are people to manage everything- music director, actors for acting, screenplay writers to take care of the narration...I guess I more than got my answer!

Seriously, theatre is one experience we have to go through ourselves. Every nerve-ending in my body wanted to join them, act, to find that release...It must be a marvelous experience to act. Rathan even suggested that I should try my hand at it! He has this belief ( I dunno what led to the belief, though!) that I would make a good actor!!! He seems pretty confident about it, and I can't help feel exhilarated at the thought!! :))

Now wait...I can write- journals, articles, poems..., I can sing 'n dance, I can talk BIG time...but act? That's something I have never tried so far! But I guess that is going to be a beautiful experience...primarily because, I am kinda dramatic by nature, and secondly, I love the unbridled intensity you get to splurge before the camera or spotlight. And Rathan, my God! has a way of bringing the emotions out of even the 'Rock of Gibralter!'
So I have made up my mind to give it a shot. Though I don't know how am I going to squeeze in the time for all this, my mind is set on that and I'm sure I will be able to make time also.

By the way, my article on this, 'Dial M for theatre' ( Okie..I admit! I got inspired by Alfred Hitchcock's 'Dial M for Murder!!;)) came out in Indian Express ( magazine section, City Express, page 6) on Monday, 20th March.

And for the benefit of anyone who wants to watch the play, it is scheduled on 24th and 25th March ( Friday and Saturday), at Alliance Francaise. The Friday show is organized at 7:30 pm and Saturday holds 2 shows in it's kitty, one at 3:00 pm and 7:30 pm. Tickets are available at Alliance Francaise and TurnBridge School, opp. Safina Plaza, Bangalore. And are priced at Rs.99/-
For furthur info, you can visit: www.highlightevents.com/misfit

Congrats Rathan, on making MiSF!T fit so perfectly into your as well as our lives! Keep going!! :)