Delhi Comic

Check out this autorickshaw. Doesn't it look like something out of a comic book? The 'eyes' give it a sort of funny startled look!

I spotted it early in the morning...and it made me smile. What a neat way to start the day.

Mornings in Delhi are special anyway.

Wide, tree-lined roads, birds, the city just s-l-o-w-ly getting to work...If you're in Delhi before winter, I think it is the best time of the day to get out and see a bit of the city.

Art in the daily life of Indian women

Somehow, when you talk about Indian art, you think of exquisite bronze sculpture or fine wood carving or Mughal miniatures...and you forget the everyday beauty that Indian women create in their homes, all across the land.
I am stunned by the variety and richness of Indian folk art whenever I encounter it.

How can one contiguous land mass spawn so many diverse styles, so many forms of aesthetic expression?

The point came home to me yet again when I saw a collection of photos of everyday life in Indian villages. The photographer is Dr. Stephen Huyler, an American who has spent 30 years in India, and published several books. The photo above is of a small hut in Kutch, Gujarat. It is from his book, Painted Prayers.

Here are some more photos from his collection: this one below is from Jaisalmer in Rajasthan. I was struck by the sophistication of the lady's sense of aesthetic - her eye for form and shape and contrast is undeniable. The way she is making her home rise from its desert surroundings is just stunning.And here is another photo from Sawai Madhopur, on the outskirts of Ranthambore Tiger Sanctuary. Walls and floors in this part of India are often decorated with elaborate drawings. I've seen life in that area of Rajasthan - the land is arid, life is hard I'm sure. And in the middle of it all is someone creating beauty and serenity.
And this, the last one below, from Tamil Nadu - what went through her mind, as she drew this? Did she feel the beauty? I have drawn smaller versions of these myself, with rice powder and rice paste, and I know how engrossing the activity is, and how much you can lose yourself in it.

These are just a small sample from Dr. Huyler's photos. He is writing another book now, called India's Daughters: Art and Identity. In his own words, this books is "a profile of 20 different Indian women from diverse backgrounds and professions all over India. Each is in some way an artist, although not all would consider themselves as such. It is a much more personal survey than Painted Prayers, attempting to give voice to Indian women's empowerment through their own words, stories and art."

Landmark - Fact & Fiction, Basant Lok

This place has attitude. While other bookshops sex up their appeal by setting in-house cafés, customers here can’t even carry a softy. And no mobile phones, please. In Fact & Fiction, rules are rules. Thank you very much.

Delhi’s most eclectic bookstore faces the Capital’s most popular hangout — Priya cinema in Basant Lok Market. On entering, try not to bother Mr Ajit Vikram Singh, the owner. He is perhaps browsing on his Compaq laptop or reading The New York Review of Books. Else, he is listening to John Mayall on his iPod.

Walk straight, reach the end and turn left. Tonnes of travel books — conventional (Wilfred Thesiger’s Arabian Sands), crazy (Dervla Murphy’s Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle), and weird (Kate Marsden’s On Sledge and Horseback to Outcast Siberian Lepers).

If you are into contemporary fiction, turn back towards the glass door. Rotate the moving shelf and pick the latest Alice Munro or Joyce Carol Oates. You like whodunnits? That too is here. No, you’re into sci-fis? Just turn right.

The crème de la crème is on the lower right side of Mr Singh’s desk. Here you’ll spot the who's who of food writing, from MFK Fisher to James Beard to Michael Pollan.

But it’s not books alone that matters. The store would be nothing without Mr Singh. As a child, he would regularly go to Jor Bagh’s The Book Shop, another charming joint in the city. There he would look around in awe.

After growing up and having his fill of the high life — studying at Mayo College, graduating from St Stephen's and running a sugar factory in western Uttar Pradesh, Mr Singh opened Fact & Fiction in 1983. Since then his shop has built a solid reputation while he himself is considered, by a few, as... how to put it, eccentric.

One guy told me how on asking for a title, Mr Singh “not only frowned but also said that I should make sure the name is correct.” Another blames Mr Singh’s “lack of warm heartedness to him being a real prince of Mayo.” However, I’m told that by the third visit, Mr Singh does start smiling. That is if he likes you.

“Most of my differences happen with customers due to their ill treatment of books,” Mr Singh tells me. “A bookshop requires a certain amount of sanctity and sometimes I have people rushing in with dripping ice cream cones.”

That he is not a chatty type adds to the 'reputation'. It ruffles the ego of those who expect fawning-grovelling treatment just because they have been so kind as to enter his shop. But here Mr Singh is king. And he is kind. If a book catches your fancy and you are not carrying money, he reserves it for you.

Now, back to books. Step back and turn right. Poetry section. Basho. Allen Ginsberg. Anna Akhmatova. A translation of... modern German poetry! Who in Delhi would buy it? “The collection must have a good mix,” Mr Singh says. “Only then readers could discover new writing.”

Over the years, I, too, discovered many authors in this 300 sqft space. Once I discovered a secret attic when Mr Singh walked to the wall behind me and... disappeared! There was actually a false door and inside — I managed a peek — were lots of books.

That was a glimpse worth living for but this place, why oh why, offers no discounts. Naturally, after making your payment, you may not wish to return. Mr Singh needn’t worry, though. If you love books, you’ll be back soon.

City Secret – Gole Park, Windsor Place

You can cross the entire Gole Park in Central Delhi’s Windsor Place in five minutes flat. It is a traffic roundabout. While there are the usual trees, flowers, grass and bird calls, there is no getting away from the city. You may clap a hand over your ears to shut out the traffic roar, but you will still see the towering Le Meridian hotel on one side, and hotel Shangri La on the other. The park is not perfect. There are bald patches on the lawn and a little bridge straddles a dry pond.

Yet, this park soothes our senses. Though nothing like Safdarjang Enclave’s Deer Park or the North Campus ridge, the impure serenity of Gole Park improvises itself like a jazz tune. Within a few minutes, the garden reveals the subtle beauties of our urban lives – clipped hedges, watered plants, pruned trees and a mouthful of sky tucked amid the tall buildings, rushing cars and big-city anonymity. Falling leaves, red bougainvilleas and kuerjia trees in full bloom celebrate nature, even as the skyscrapers stand as an ode to concrete.

Between the branches, windows glisten. The green of the grass contrasts with the yellow of the public buses. The mynah’s cooing blends in with the impatience of horns. Purists will hate such man-made intrusions; but then, they must leave the cities. If you love the wilds and are prepared to accept the skyline, this park gives you the best of both worlds.

However, for Delhi, Gole Park is like an arthouse film – its merits appreciated by very few. Apart from a loner or a traffic cop, the only people in the park are usually the four gardeners. “At the most, 10 people come here daily,” says gardener Sandeep, “and that, too, in the evenings.”

Most people go to larger spaces that are, conventionally speaking, more beautiful. Favoured by ministers, bureaucrats and expats, Lodhi Garden and Nehru Park – both in Chanakaypuri – are sleeker and more fashionable. Buddha Park in Dhaula Kuan is like an escape from the city. In the Indraprastha Park, near the ITO, there is a nice pagoda. The Children’s Park in the India Gate maidan has swings, slides and merry-go-rounds. All these places cut you off from the city. Perhaps you need their isolation each time you are attacked by Nehru Place claustrophobia. The Central Park in Connaught Place could not be a cure. Too many people sunning themselves there and busy showrooms are just metres away.

But in Gole Park, the urban and the sylvan live in harmony. This must become a destination for all those who love nature but do not want to flee the city.

REPUBLIC DAY

One of the three national holidays in India, Republic Day is celebrated with great pomp and show throughout the nation each year. Preparations begin almost a month before for the actual day. A massive parade is held which reflects a touch of modernity in the display of might and technology and the capabilities of growth in various sectors. While the parade symbolizes the power and force, the different regional tableaus reflect the cultural themes and motifs. Republic Day has a very significant place in the Indian history as India became a ‘Republic’ from a ‘British Dominion’ on this very day. Browse through the following lines to know all about the history and origin of Republic Day.

Origin of Republic Day

India became independent from the British Rule on 15th August, 1947. However, the country did not have its own constitution and wholly depended on the modified colonial Government of India Act, 1935. Also, India was headed by King George VI, until the adoption of the Indian Constitution in 1950. Prior to this, the seeds of a republican nation were sowed by Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru in the Lahore session at the Indian National Congress at the midnight of 31st December, 1929 - 1st January, 1930. The tri-color flag was unfurled by the nationalists present who took a pledge to celebrate ‘Purna Swaraj’ (complete Independence) Day every year on 26th January, while continuing to fight for the establishment of a Sovereign Democratic Republic of India.

The independence was achieved in 1947 while the professed pledge was redeemed on 26th January, 1950. The Indian Constituent Assembly was called together on 9th December, 1946, where a committee was formed. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar became the chairman of the committee, who along with the other members drafted the Constitution. The Indian Constitution included 395 Articles and 8 Schedules. The Constitution was adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 26th November, 1949. In the following year on 26th January, 1950, the Constitution of India came into force and became a ‘sovereign democratic republic’ of India, 894 days after the withdrawal of British Rule in 1947, which is why, it is said that India achieved its true independence on this day.

Next, elections were held and Dr. Rajendra Prasad was elected as the first President of free India. He took the oath at the Durban Hall in the Government House, which was followed by the Presidential drive along the five-mile route to the Irwin Stadium. He unfurled the National Flag at the stadium. This transition of India into a sovereign democratic republic nation is indeed a historical event. The two decade long journey, right from the conceptualization of the dream in 1930 to its actual realization in 1950, is certainly worth a grand celebration. Today, the Indian Constitution is the longest in the world, consisting of 397 articles and 12 schedules, providing a single citizenship for the whole nation. The national holiday is celebrated with festivities and patriotic fervor across the whole nation.

Today, the Republic Day is celebrated with much enthusiasm all over the country and especially in the capital, New Delhi where the celebrations start with the Presidential to the nation. The beginning of the occasion is always a solemn reminder of the sacrifice of the martyrs who died for the country in the freedom movement and the succeeding wars for the defense of sovereignty of their country. Then, the President comes forward to award the medals of bravery to the people from the armed forces for their exceptional courage in the field and also the civilians, who have distinguished themselves by their different acts of valour in different situations.

To mark the importance of this occasion, every year a grand parade is held in the capital, from the Rajghat, along the Vijaypath. The different regiments of the army, the Navy and the Air force march past in all their finery and official decorations even the horses of the cavalry are attractively caparisoned to suit the occasion. The crème of N.C.C cadets, selected from all over the country consider it an honour to participate in this event, as do the school children from various schools in the capital. They spend many days preparing for the event and no expense is spared to see that every detail is taken care of, from their practice for the drills, the essential props and their uniforms.

The parade is followed by a pageant of spectacular displays from the different states of the country. These moving exhibits depict scenes of activities of people in those states and the music and songs of that particular state accompany each display. Each display brings out the diversity and richness of the culture of India and the whole show lends a festive air to the occasion. The parade and the ensuing pageantry is telecast by the National Television and is watched by millions of viewers in every corner of the country.
The patriotic fervor of the people on this day brings the whole country together even in her essential diversity. Every part of the country is represented in occasion, which makes the Republic Day the most popular of all the national holidays of India.