‘…While American superheroes are busy saving the planet from super villains who seek world domination, Hindu gods – including Hanuman– are teachers, who uplift (uddhar) us not from problems but from our limited understanding that makes everything around us a problem.’ The case of the modern day, hyper-masculine Hindu deity.
‘…I’ve grown up to love animals a tad bit more than humans. Their very distinctive quirks that often become the reason for the names they acquire is a daily conversation in our home.’ Love for our four-legged friends.
‘…Budhan’s not-so-hidden agenda has always been to inspire and create leaders from and of the community, leaders who can contribute to their societies politically and artistically. There are 40 DNT communities in Gujarat, and the plan is to develop 400 leaders from them. Budhan is currently working with 40 of them – and they will return to their communities and pass on the training.’ A story of inspired theatre.
‘The idea of sitting in a bookstore, reading, drinking coffee, writing, all of this was unavailable to our small-town imagination. Neither Modern Agencies nor Bani Library had any seating space.’ The romance and rich repository of book shops in fringe towns.
‘…any handloom lover worth their khadi kurtas knows the richness of Gujarat’s textile traditions. But barely anyone knows about Mata ni Pachedi, where a bamboo pen and vegetable dyes are used to draw amazingly detailed pictures on cloth.’ Of a little-known textile art form in Gujarat.
‘While, as an Indian, I was rooting for Virat Kohli and his boys to come through, India’s defeat was somewhat softened by the fact that the man who lifted the mace was Kane Williamson, someone I have come to know really well over the last few years at Sunrisers Hyderabad.’ On deserving champions New Zealand lifting the ICC World Test Championship mace at Southampton.
‘…My father acted in 14 of Satyajit Ray’s films – a phenomenal collaboration between a director and an actor – comparable to the collaboration between Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune. I think their collaboration was really special because in my father, I think Ray found an actor who could effortlessly blend into the character that he had envisaged.’ Of Renaissance Men, Satyajit Ray and Soumitra Chatterjee.
‘It is clear that Ahmedabad and indeed Gujarat’s non-vegetarian cuisine is alive and thriving, despite the ‘shakahaari’ agenda. Yes, the availability of meat – raw or cooked – has been constrained and constricted within certain geographical coordinates.’ Amdavadi food stories.
‘…I know cricket has evolved tremendously and we have made a lot of adjustments to provide entertainment and enjoyment to the fans, but it is important to make sure that we also look after the players. Towards that end, the WTC is a step in the right direction.’ A connoisseur’s joy as he looks at the India and New Zealand teams at the finals of the World Test Championship in Southampton.
‘A ‘devata’ must never get carried away by the devotion of the ‘yajaman’ (the worshipper). He must remember that the devotion is based on a particular need fuelled by a particular circumstance. When the circumstance changes, when the need passes, the adoration ceases and the worship ends. In other words, devotion for a ‘devata’ has a very clear expiry date.’ The shelf-life of deities.
‘It took some time for us to get used to each other while filming. He had a markedly elliptical style of giving you direction and I got better and better at decoding his cues. For him, it was all about feeling. Not once did we ever discuss intellectual motivation or cerebral impulses.’ Remembering Buddhadeb Dasgupta.
‘…Anahita and Shamini, co-founders of QueerAbad, say in the first issue of the zine ‘Tilt’, Queerabad gives “access to a queer world and way of life with all its tedha-ness”. A glimpse of the LGBT+ life in Ahmedabad.
This Website comprises copyrighted materials. You may not copy, distribute, reuse, publish or use the content, images, audio and video or any part of them in any way whatsoever.
©2025 Copyright: Vision3 Global Pvt. Ltd.
