M. Abdul Jaffar, sanitary inspector in Avadi Municipal Corporation spreads awareness on nCOVID-19 through songs set to popular film tunes | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
M. Abdul Jaffar has created five songs so far, on how COVID-19 spreads and the need for physical distancing, among other aspects
A sanitary inspector’s penchant for singing and poetry has come in handy now, to create awareness on critical social issues. M. Abdul Jaffar, a sanitary inspector with the Avadi Municipal Corporation has recently penned lyrics and sung songs set to popular film tunes, to raise awareness about COVID-19.
It all started two years ago, when he decided to use his hobby of amateur singing on social media to convey messages about environmental and health issues.
Amidst his work schedule during the pandemic, Mr. Jaffar finds time to create awareness songs on COVID-19. He pens lyrics in simple words and sets them to popular Tamil film tunes to reach out to residents on precautionary measures to be taken. In one of the songs released on social media, he cautioned people against violating section 144 and urged them to stay at home and keep COVID-19 at bay.
“I have created five awareness songs so far on how COVID-19 spreads, the need for physical distancing and how to protect ourselves from the pandemic. I usually share it among the officials and the Tamil Nadu sanitary inspectors association,” said Mr. Jaffar.
He now sings the songs as part of the awareness campaign against COVID-19 in Avadi. “Singing helps to attract people’s attention towards the issue along with public announcements,” he said.
Mr. Jaffar has earlier penned lyrics to spread awareness on source segregation, dengue and against the use of plastics. Mr. Jaffar has won accolades for his earlier efforts to raise awareness from the Tiruvallur Collectorate and the Commissionerate of Municipal Administration. He will soon release his sixth song on the pandemic and also plans to release a compilation of 200 poems that he has written since his college days.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai / by K. Lakshmi / Chennai- April 28th, 2020
The doctor’s colleagues said she was dressed in her best attire, the protective gear, on the day of her marriage, which was postponed on her request.
Kerala doctor decided to serve coronavirus patients instead of getting married during the outbreak(Sourced Photo)
Sunday, March 29 was supposed to be one of the happiest days in the life of a young Kerala doctor as she was all set to get married to a Dubai based businessmen. However, the critical battle against coronavirus meant that instead of getting married, she decided to don her protective gear and treat patients afflicted by the dreaded virus.
Meet 23-year-old, Dr Shifa M Mohammed, a house surgeon, who was busy at the isolation ward of the Pariyaram medical college hospital in Kannur on Sunday, March 29. Instead of bridal finery, the young anti-Covid-19 warrior donned the personal protection equipment (PPE) that day. ‘Marriage can wait, not my patients, who are struggling for their lives in isolation wards,’ she had told her groom and parents. Both of them readily agreed to her decision.
“In every girl’s, life wedding is an important event. But my daughter has put her social responsibility and professional commitment before her personal needs. When she suggested postponement of her wedding, we readily agreed to it,” said her father Mukkam Mohammed, a leader of the Nationalist Congress Party and LDF district convenor in Kozhikkode.
“When we approached the groom Anus Mohammad, a businessman in Dubai, he also readily agreed to it. I am a social worker and my wife is a teacher. Both my daughters have imbibed this spirit from our social work,” Mohammed added.
His elder daughter is also a doctor and currently posted at the Kozhikkode medical college hospital.
Initially Dr Shifa was reluctant to speak about her decision, which she said was “not out of the ordinary”, but after much prodding, she said “I didn’t do anything great. I did only my duty. I don’t want to talk about it much. There are many like me who postponed their personal engagements. I am only one among them,” she said over the phone after coming out of the isolation ward.
“It is true, on marriage day I was in the corona ward and some of my friends teased me saying I was dressed in my best attire (PPE). But I always enjoy serving my patients. I don’t want to talk much about it as I did my duty only,” she said, and added that as a house surgeon, she can’t talk about her patients and other details.
As the number of Sars-CoV-2 infected have gone up significantly in Kerala, the state government has recently converted Pariyaram medical college hospital in Kannur to a dedicated facility to treat Covid-19 patients. The state has reported two disease-related deaths and 234 people are in isolation wards.
source: http://www.hindustantimes.com / Hindustan Times / Home> India News / by Ramesh Babu , Hindustan Times, Thiruvananthapuram / March 31st, 2020
Mansoor Ali Khan with his retro-fitted autorickshaw. Photo: special arrangement.
Entrepreneur Mansoor Ali Khan helps women autorickshaw drivers take up vegetable sales during the lockdown
In the midst of the lockdown, an entrepreneur has come up with an alternative business plan for his associates.
Mansoor Ali Khan, chairman, M Auto Pride Pvt Ltd, who manufactures and rents electric auto-rickshaws, is helping the autorickshaw drivers who hire vehicles from him, turn their hand at vegetable selling.
Mansoor says, “As autorickshaw-drivers’ business has taken a beating due to the lockdown restrictions on movement of people, I suggested that they try working as vegetable vendors as there is a huge demand for home delivery of goods and services now.”
Warming up to this idea, five women auto-rickshaw drivers are selling fruits and vegetables since the first week of April. “Till the lockdown is lifted, I’m not going to charge any rental fee for my auto-rickshaws. We have helped them identify a few apartment complexes where these auto-drivers can sell vegetables and fruits. Now, it is up to them to expand their customer base,” says Mansoor. For this purpose, Mansoor’s company retrofitted auto-rickshaws with provision for racks.
“With the permission of authorities concerned, we got three auto-rickshaws ready in four days, in the last week of March at our plant at Madipakkam. Besides, we are working to roll out another 25 such vehicles in a month, as a few more autorichshaw drivers with us are interested in taking up vegetables and fruits selling,” says Mansoor.
Auto-drivers A. Mohana Sundari and M. Selva Rani, who sell vegetables now, say, “In a day, we need to earn a bare minimum of Rs.1,000 to see a reasonable profit. Earlier, we had to slog up to 8 p.m. to earn that amount. Now, we are able to make it by noon, in fact with better profit,” they say.
Mansoor says he also offers his vehicles for free to voluntary groups and charity organisations that are reaching out to the poor and needy during the COVID-19 lockdown.
“There are many voluntary groups which distribute groceries, food packets and masks to migrant labourers, conservancy workers, differently-abled, senior-citizens and expectant mothers. They approach us as it is difficult to find transportation facility due to the lockdown. So, we provide our vehicles for free and we take care of the payment of the autorickshaw-drivers. As our vehicles run on electric power, they do not entail much fuel cost,” says Mansoor.
Voluntary groups and those who want to place orders for vegetables can call 73058 29811.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> Cities> Chennai – Entrepreneurship Chennai / by L Kanthimathi / April 28th, 2020
On April 25, the Indian-born American artist passed away at age 83 in London after a prolonged illness.
Artist Zarina Hashmi
In her complete oeuvre that stemmed from her lived experiences in Aligarh, Bangkok, Paris, New York and London, artist Zarina Hashmi constantly questioned the idea of home and belonging.
Her abstract geometric collages, floorplans and maps in printmaking techniques (largely in intaglio, lithography, silkscreen and woodblock), handmade paper and sculpture, and often accompanied with Urdu calligraphy, reflect her Islamic roots, formal degree in mathematics, an interest in architecture, ponderings over rigid geo-political boundaries and tragic memories of the 1947 Partition. The Victoria and Albert (V&A) Museum in London, Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), Hammer Museum Guggenheim Museum in New York…have featured her works in their public collections.
On April 25, the Indian-born American artist passed away at age 83 in London after a prolonged illness.
Poet and culture theorist Ranjit Hoskote, who curated ‘Everyone Agrees: It’s About to Explode’ – India’s first national pavilion at the Venice Biennale (2011) – in which he displayed Hashmi’s prints, was among the first ones to tweet of her demise. “Heartbroken to hear that Zarina Hashmi has passed away in London. She was magnificent: full of wit and shrewd wisdom, her work imbued with a tragic vision…” he wrote, and proceeded to tweet snapshots of her prints being installed and the final display at the 2011 edition.
Zarina Hashmi’s prints (top) Letters I Called Home/Bangkok series; and Bangkok 1958-1961
In fact, a major retrospective ‘Zarina: A Life in Nine Lines’ at The Kiran Nadar Museum of Art (KNMA), New Delhi that opened on January 30 during the annual India Art Fair was ongoing till the nationwide lockdown commenced. But Kiran Nadar, Founder-Chairperson of KNMA, is determined the show must go on. “We will be showcasing this show on our virtual platforms for everyone to enjoy. It is quite a coincidence that we are having her show at this time, and we lost her at this moment. It’s a huge loss to the art world.” Nadar remembers meeting Zarina a few times, when she first acquired her work some years ago. “Zarina was much more active and younger at that time. Over the years whenever she came to India, I would get an opportunity to interact with her. Zarina’s art is very subliminal, very basic at one level. She deals with lines and distance that she has abstracted in many ways. When you see her work, it looks emotional.”
For Renu Modi, Founder-Director of Gallery Espace, Hashmi was a dear friend of the gallery. “The passing of Zarina is a deep personal loss. She was a friend as well as an artist Gallery Espace represented. She was a very special person, exceedingly compassionate and lived her life gracefully, on her own terms.”
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Delhi / by Ornello D’Souza / Express News Service / April 27th, 2020
They load their vehicles with rice, pulses and spices as also medicines and hygiene kits for distribution in these villages, just 50km from Bengaluru.
Bengaluru :
Siddanapalya and Chinnaiahnapalya—two backward villages in Anekal taluk of Bengaluru Rural district—daily see a band of youngsters come there and give them gyaan on coronavirus and provide essentials.Murali Prabhas, a young startup entrepreneur, and three other fellow engineers, Thasneem Fathima, Sushmitha Singh and R Nisha, trudge every day from Whitefield to Anekal to provide succour to these affected villages due to the lockdown. Another member is Dr Raj Kumar who is busy with his medical duties but contributes to their volunteering programme in kind and cash.
They load their vehicles with rice, pulses and spices as also medicines and hygiene kits for distribution in these villages, just 50km from Bengaluru. The group tries to create awareness about the deadly Covid-19 disease and the need to maintain personal hygiene – hand washing and social distancing. However, it is easier said than done as the professionals from Bengaluru say the attention span of people is just five minutes when one talks about coronavirus and its deadly effect while the attraction for food and hygiene kits is more.
The ‘Humanity First’ group has been involved in social work for the last five years and they say the present work has not been easy as the villages with a population of 1,000-1,200 are completely unaware of what is happening in the world. Murali says, “None of them adheres to any rules of the national lockdown. As far as social distancing is concerned, it is an alien concept for them.”
Members of Humanity First distribute food at a village in Anekal taluk | Express
Presently, this group has been preparing food like pulao/tomato bhath/bisibele bhath/puliyogire at the villages itself as any packed food is not welcome here. The day’s menu is prepared taking help from a select band of 10 villagers while the vegetables are purchased from the farmers here. This makes it easy for the group to deal with them as they are highly suspicious, says a group member. “Only 4-5 of us go every day as we have to maintain social distancing. The villagers crowd around us as soon as we reach.”
Food is such an attraction that some residents bring vessels instead of plates. “We have been teaching them how to wash hands, wear masks and keep a distance of 12 feet from one another. For them, the kit is a big attraction apart from the food and within 5 minutes, we have to teach them about hygiene.”
The hygiene kit comprises a bottle of sanitiser, mask, bath and washing soaps, sanitary pads, shampoo and a strip of Dolo 650 – a paracetamol. Every day, kits worth Rs 12,000 are distributed to children who are above 14 years. For food preparation, they spend about Rs 6,000 per day.The group is managing this work from its own savings and small donations from their friends and relatives while one of the members brings his vehicle for distribution work.
In these villages, one can find migrant labourers from UP, Bihar and Odisha who work in the nearby iron and steel fabrication units, garment factories and a pharmaceutical company. Since the units are closed, the migrants have been managing with free rations from the government. For the migrants, these are hard times and even a single food item that they get from these youngsters is welcome.
The Humanity First has tied up with a women’s group who are making sanitisers and masks and they are helping them to market 2,000 masks and 10 litres of sanitiser.For this dedicated group of youngsters, it is with a prayer on their lips that they go to these villages to do their bit. “People await our arrival every day and we cannot miss it even for one day in such harsh times,” they say.
Service their motto
From 2014 onwards, Murali Prabhas has done a lot of backend work for charity trusts and Rotary. He and his friends built four washrooms for the Divine Blind School in 2016. After his visit to a school in Kolar district where children were wearing torn uniforms, Murali and his friends decided to take up social work and adopted two slums between Kadugodi and Whitefield in Bengaluru. For three years, they taught science and mathematics and distributed textbooks to Class 10 children in the slums.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Cities> Bengaluru / by Meera Bharadwaj / Express News Service / April 26th, 2020
From chips to dosas, to toys and games to razors and nail cutters … whatever the patients need, they have it.
Bengaluru, KARNATAKA :
Dr Asima Banu, Nodal Officer, Trauma and Emergency Care Centre, Victoria Hospital, Bengaluru | EXPRESS
Bengaluru :
From chips to dosas, to toys and games to razors and nail cutters … whatever the patients need, they have it. Because their wish is her command. And she gets them whatever they want with her own money. Yet, the patients don’t know who this angel is. Meet Dr Asima Banu, Nodal Officer of Trauma and Emergency Care Centre at Victoria Hospital which has now turned into a COVID-19 facility.
It is not easy for Dr Asima, who is in charge of the entire block, to meet all the requirements of the patients. Yet, she does with a smile. “It is very new and challenging for me. Not only do I have to check on the treatment but even look into what other things the patients want. As they stay until they are fully recovered, we need to keep them happy and satisfied,” she said. Dr Asima said when patients come for testing, they just come with a phone.
If they are symptomatic, they are moved to a quarantine unit until their results come. And once they test positive, they are directly sent to the designated hospital. “When they come here, naturally, they don’t bring clothes or other essentials. And once they test positive, their primary and secondary contacts are traced and are quarantined as well. So the patient has no way to get the necessary stuff for their daily use in the hospital. And they, in turn, ask us. And we have to provide them.”
“Some patients do not want to wear the hospital garments and want their own clothes. So in such cases, I call my family and ask them to send some clothes which are completely clean and some which are unused as well. I give it to the patients. Some need sandals. I check on the size and pass on the message to my family. My son looks for the size and get it for them,” she said. Five children who have tested positive for COVID are admitted here.
They demand games, cakes and chocolates. And Dr Asima has it delivered to them through Swiggy. “It does not matter if I spend for them. They just need to be happy,” she said. Dr Asima has never gone in front of the patients as it is mostly the nurses and doctors who are in the frontline. She has created a WhatsApp group with patients and they message her whatever they want. “They have never seen me, all they know is Dr Asima gives them what they want,” she said.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Good News / by Iffath Fathima / Express News Service / April 26th, 2020
Mohammadpur Village (Chintamani Taluk) / Kolar, KARNATAKA :
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the nation-wide lockdown to contain COVID-19 from March 25, brothers Tajamul and Muzamil Pasha in Kolar took an exceptional step. They sold a 30*40 plot of land they owned in the town.
This was not to meet their financial needs in times of crisis. But to support those who had lost their livelihoods owing to the lockdown.
The two brothers, who live in the Housing Board colony of Kolar, raised Rs 25 lakh from the sale. The money was used to purchase groceries and other essentials for the underprivileged.
“Isolation is key in the fight against COVID-19. Poor people venture outside if they don’t get food. The ideal way to keep them inside their houses is by supplying groceries and food at their doorstep,” Tajamul Pasha told DH.
The Pashas hail from Mohammadpur village in Chintamani taluk in Chikkaballapur district. Tajamul was an eight-year-old and Muzamil, just five, when their parents passed away. Soon after, they relocated to Kolar with their grandmother.
Compelled to earn their livelihood, they had to discontinue studies after Class IV.
“A kind-hearted man gave us a house near the masjid in Gauripet. Hindus, Muslims, a Sikh family and several others gave us food those days. Religion and caste were never a barrier. What brought us together was humanity and we are now attending the call of humanity,” Tajamul says.
“Those days taught us the value of food. This childhood experience drove us to serve the poor till the lockdown ends,” he adds.
Community initiative
After raising Rs 25 lakh, the brothers tapped into a close network of friends, which includes members from all communities, to start the relief work. First, they bought groceries in bulk and stored them at their residence. Ration packets containing essential items: 10 kg rice, 1 kg all-purpose flour, 2 kg wheat, 1 kg sugar, edible oil, tea powder, spice powders, a bottle of hand sanitiser and face masks were prepared.
Then, they erected a tent in an open space next to their house and set up a community kitchen to serve food to those who can’t cook meals in their houses.
The volunteers have also been given passes by the police, so they can make deliveries of the essential items on their bikes.
They sourced information about those in need of help by visiting the localities themselves and seeking details from the locals and elected representatives.
Their main aim is to ensure that each member of the family receives three meals a day.
So far, the Pashas have delivered free groceries to over 2,800 families, covering some 12,000 people. They have also served food to over 2,000 people. Now, the brothers are working with other like-minded people to continue serving those in need.
“I didn’t know that the government would extend the lockdown. I have done my best, using resources the God has given me. I plan to continue to serve the needy till the lockdown ends,” Tajamul says.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Specials / by Jagadish Angadi / April 22nd, 2020
The Spanish Flu’s name comes from the fact that even as wartime censorship in the United States and most of Europe suppressed news of the influenza, the media in neutral Spain reported on it extensively. Photo: Wiki Commons
June 1918. A debilitating disease suddenly swept through Mumbai. Thousands fell ill, complaining of debilitating fever and cough, sometimes with intestinal problems.
For hundreds of unfortunates, their lungs filled with fluids and they died as their body was starved of oxygen. This was the Spanish influenza pandemic of 1918-19, which killed an astounding 50 million worldwide. Recent estimates put the death toll in India at a staggering 12 million.
Scientists refer to Spanish influenza as the ‘mother of all influenza pandemics’, since it is the common ancestor of human and swine flu viruses. The disease is inextricably associated with World War I.
The name comes from the fact that even as wartime censorship in the United States and most of Europe suppressed news of the influenza, the media in neutral Spain reported on it extensively, including when their king Alfonso XIII fell ill with it.
Spanish influenza’s first wave reached Mumbai when soldiers returned from Europe, carrying the virus with them. An even more lethal second wave hit in September.
When the pandemic reached Mysore State, it hit it hard. The State had still not shaken off the plague. Wartime shortages had pushed up the prices of food and other essentials. To make matters worse, the monsoon failed that year.
The disease first passed through Bengaluru in late June without causing much harm. The second wave in mid-September was deadlier. Suddenly, entire families fell ill.
Higher fatality
Dispensaries, clinics and hospitals were overcrowded. Doctors, nurses and compounders were completely overwhelmed. Corpses piled up. Unlike COVID-19, Spanish influenza had a far higher fatality among the young and able-bodied than the old.
Offices emptied as people across all professions and classes fell ill, among others, the health officer in Bengaluru and the then Chief Secretary of Mysore State.
In early October, Bengaluru’s City Municipal Council, under the leadership of the President KP Puttanna Chetty, took several quick, creative and effective steps to deal with the health crisis. Temporary dispensaries were opened, some housed in municipal schools that were closed at the time.
Mobile dispensaries were set up to ensure medicines reached everyone. All dispensaries were directed to stay open for longer hours and to stock enough of the medicines required, including thymol, which was prescribed a preventative.
Since hospitals were filled beyond their capacity, temporary tents and sheds were set up to accommodate the sick. Retired medical staff and medical students were brought in to help with the workload. Health officers went around neighbourhoods to see if there were any infected people and to persuade them to move to the hospitals or the camps to prevent the disease from spreading.
Leaflets in Kannada and English were distributed, which explained the symptoms of influenza, how it spread, and how it was important to ‘separate the sick from the healthy,’ and to avoid ‘the entire family congregating in the sick room.’
People were advised to ‘tie a clean handkerchief on which a teaspoon of eucalyptus oil is sprinkled, across the nose and mouth’ when entering the sick room, to provide a certain extent of protection. They were also strongly urged to avoid crowded places.
A striking feature of the response to the influenza pandemic was the voluntary effort in providing relief. Much like today, when several people are working, often with the police and the BBMP, to ensure the poor are not forgotten during the lockdown, in 1918 too, volunteers helped ensure relief supplies reached the poor and families where there was no one left to tend to the sick.
In Bengaluru, the relief operation was coordinated by Chief Officer R Subba Rao. He divided the city into several blocks with a relief party in charge of each. Supplies included medicines, milk and kanji, a lot of which was prepared at a government facility and then distributed by car, carts and even lorries.
Municipal councillors and volunteers who worked ceaselessly included Father Briand, Ramachandra Rao Scindia, Rev D A Rees, B Usman Khan, B Chinnaswami Setty, Ghulam Dastangir, B K Garudachar, R Gopalaswami Iyer and many, many others.
Assisting them were the Social Service League, Young Men’s Christian Association, students of the Wesleyan, London Mission and National High Schools, and many others. Puttanna Chetty toured the city himself to assist the relief works and ensure they went on smoothly.
By the end of November, the disease was finally under control. More than 1,95,000 people died in Mysore State, 40,000 in Bengaluru alone. With the compounding problems of agrarian distress, rural areas were affected much worse.
source: http://www.deccanherald.com / Deccan Herald / Home> Spectrum> Spectrum Top Stories / by Meera Iyer / April 08th, 2020
Prince of Arcot Nawab Mohammed Abdul Ali. File. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Prince of Arcot Nawab Mohammed Abdul Ali, who is also the President of MEASI, spoke to Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami
The Muslim Educational Association of Southern India (MEASI), the parent body of The New College, Chennai, has contributed ₹50 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Public Relief Fund towards meeting the challenge of tackling COVID-19 pandemic.
Prince of Arcot Nawab Mohammed Abdul Ali, who is also the President of MEASI, spoke to Chief Minister Edapaddi K. Palaniswami over phone on Wednesday, and requested him to accept the offer from a minority educational institution, according to a release.
MEASI honorary secretary T. Rafeeq Ahmed and treasurer Elias Sait assisted Mr. Ali in raising the fund.
source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News>Cities> Chennai / by Special Correspondent / Chennai – April 23rd, 2020
Over the course of a lifelong career in the theatre, some directors decide to completely change course midway and broaden their content to appeal to larger audiences.
Sarika Singh and Harsh Khurana in Dosh
Over the course of a lifelong career in the theatre, some directors decide to completely change course midway and broaden their content to appeal to larger audiences. Others are happy working on a small scale, while a vast number of directors just fall off the map, literally disappear, due to a lack of any takers.
Feroze Abbas Khan from Mumbai started his career with Tumhari Amrita with Shabana Azmi and Farooq Sheikh and Mahatma vs Gandhi with Naseerudin Shah, Sonali Kulkarni and KK in the lead roles.
The productions were magnificent examples of star vehicles, a superb script and outstanding performances. Simply mounted, they toured the world to great acclaim. Other memorable productions followed such as the Satish Kaushik-led adaptation of Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. However, a few years ago, Feroze Abbas Khan totally changed tracks and emerged as a leading director of the musical theatre spectacle, first with an adaptation of the film Mughal-e-Azam for the stage and now with an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet as Raunaq and Jassi.
The story of the ill-fated star-crossed lovers has seen many adaptations. Feroze sets his version in rural Punjab and the script is sufficiently witty and audience-friendly. But where Mughal-e-Azam scored because of its outstanding design and lighting, magical music and beautiful dancing and above all the heavy sense of nostalgia it evoked in the audience who could sing along, Raunaq and Jassi’s music, design and acting are all just a little above average and the gravitas of the story never shines through.
On the other hand for several other directors ‘small is beautiful’ and they are happy staying far away from the commercial mainstream. Padatik Kolkata, established by Shyamanand Jalan in the 70s to champion the cause of Hindi theatre, is now in the able hands of Vinay Sharma. Here is a group totally engrossed in the small-scale creative search. Two characters meet in an amorphous space. Two chairs, a wall of cartons, an unknown ‘outside’. Who are they? How are they connected? What is their story? Vinay Sharma’s new production Dosh seems ominously similar to his earlier production Ho Sakta Hai, Do Aadmi, Do Kursiya but only on the surface. Because as this two-hander, the hour-plus play unfolds, it is a different universe we traverse.
A brother and a sister, ably played by Mumbai actors Harsh Khurana and Sarika Singh, meet after a gap of six months. He is on the verge of vacating his house, she is on the verge of leaving her husband. An evening spent together with outpourings of anger, grief, nostalgic memory and startling revelations of events long hidden in the past bring them even closer together. Played up close in Padatik’s tiny studio theatre that only seats 50 people, the production engages you throughout, till you yourself are ready to leave the claustrophobic space with the actors who leave for dinner!
If anything, there are distant echoes of Harold Pinter here, but Vinay puts his own spin on the tale. Remembering and forgetting, multiple versions of the truth, the emotional burden of a shared childhood that is recalled in different ways, mourning and loss in a world of scientific manipulation and terror are his themes.
The writer is a Delhi-based theatre director and can be reached at feisal.alkazi@rediffmail.com
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Magazine / by Feisal AlKazi / April 05th, 2020
