December 2011
36 posts
The Angsty artist
Written on 16 Dec 2011
Why does art attract the pretentious and the proud-hearted?
Art, in my world view, is meant to bring people closer, soaring above hackneyed barriers of seperation; race, caste, colour, age. Art is meant to unite the sisterhood of Mankind.
But sitting here at yet another gallery show opening, I only feel sadness. I speak to the non-artist types and they are more...
BBC: Geese fly with man who reared them →
The inspiring things people do. Man hand-raises geese, and flies with them in the sky to shoot beautiful video.
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alone again, naturally.
Delhi’s winter finally caught up with me. And I remember what it is like to be living alone.
My eyelids heavy. My eyes watery. I sneeze continuously. I cough profusely. Delhi’s winter finally caught up with me. I head home early.
I get into bed. 8pm. Considering I am one who gets under the covers at 2am rather regularly, it is strange to see 20:00 stare back at you from my watch...
“We live in such a superficial world, we are all hungry for depth.”
what good is my photography?
What good is my photography
To my fellow human beings?
Is it all vanity?
Pretentions?
What good is my photography
To the starving child?
To the freezing beggar?
What good is my photography?
I must find its purpose, its use.
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dear cogitator
Dear Cogitator,
I am currently using a FED-5B Ukranian Rangefinder now; test-shooting.
Guess what? It has no light-meter, and limited exposure settings.
This is really pushing me as a photographer, one who might have taken light metering on a camera for granted.
But it really makes me feel alive, having to think about settings for every shot.
Raghu Rai has a point in wanting absolute...
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being burglars & enjoying it
things people shouldn't see
Ajoi, Sargheve, Dawa & I being silly idiots one evening.
It is these moments that I cherish.
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Shape on Sheets
I awake and stare at the crumpled white sheets
Sunlight fighting its way into the room
To embrace the baren sheets.
The crumples form a shape,
A shape my memory knows so well,
A shape my fingers can only beg for,
A shape that lies far beyond my Delhi reality,
In my London dream.
One day I shall reclaim that shape,
And the soul it belongs to.
“The treasures we get from being a humbled traveler to this world is beyond what...”
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a candle lit for you
A candle in India was lit
As she passed
From our world to another.
Your simple love
I will remember.
Your generosity to me
Like a mother to a son.
Your memory will continue to burn
In the candle in India
And beyond.
So here’s to you in the
Better place,
Where your loving kindness
Finds a true home
To watch over us as we lead
Foolish lives.
May you guide us with your tender...
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what do you do?
What do you do
At the brink of death?
What do you do
When it is not your death
But that of the woman who raised you?
What do you do
At the brink of death?
What do you do
When it might end her year of suffering
But will rip your heart out of your body?
Cry? Scream? Sigh? Live?
What do you do?
Amen, amen.
horesmaning in delhi?
Horsemaning was a way of taking photos in the 1920s, and has now taking a revival. See here for other horsemaning stuff: http://horsemaner.tumblr.com/
hmm…wonder if we should do this in delhi?
who’s in?
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stories in my pocket - joi barua
@ INK Conference 2011 | inktalks.com
I met him a year back.
I first heard him sing then.
A distinctive voice I could recognise,
A sincere soul I can relate.
He sings in many languages,
But only in one tongue.
His tunes get me through
The Delhi crunch, the grind.
His story rings out through the words,
His love through the melodies.
I hear his music,
I listen to his human...
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stories in my pocket - robert vijay gupta
@ INK Conference 2011 | inktalks.com
I close my eyes
And open my heart.
The music floats through the space
Between his inside
And mine.
His music brings me
Back to memories,
To childhood,
To the flowers I touched,
To the sunsets I kissed,
To the faces I’ve held.
The music brought me home.
In that space,
I connect with a man
I did not know but
Have come to know.
I...
a friend in 2008, a lover in 2011.
Back in 2008, I blogged about a friend who shared what her prince charming would be like.
Now in 2011, that friend is now a lover, my best friend. I hope I’m charming enough.
————————————————————-
The original blogpost:
December 04, 2008
amidst the hackling coughs and...
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delhi winters
“Huh? You mean Delhi has winters?”
I recall a friend saying this when I mentioned how bad winter was last year. Even before I moved here, I could never imagine winters in an Indian city; TV never really shows that side of things.
But yes, Delhi has winters, the famous winter chill when Delhiites finally feel proud to be Delhiites (one up on the Mumbaikers!). Last evening, it went...
too amazing not to share: poignant infra-red... →
Article commenting on India wanting to police... →
Very interesting perspective on India’s minister Kapil Sibal’s demand for the likes of Facebook and Google to sensor online content coming out of India.
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Stories in my Pocket - INK 2011
We constantly collect inspiring stories through our lives. How nice if we could them in our pockets daily.
From the 8-11 December 2011, I joined about 350 people at the INK Conference in Jaipur. Trying to describe it would do this community injustice, so here is their website: http://inktalks.com/.
Throughout these 4 days, I collected inspiring stories by exceptional individuals, stories that...
"Are you Indian?"
I cannot believe what just happened, but it did. I have never witnessed racism fully till today. I will always remember this.
It is 4,30am. I am at the Delhi airport, headed for Jaipur. I walk up to the security clearance counter. I put my laptop and coat onto the the conveyor belt into the scanner. There is a queue of other bags; I hold on to my own carry-on bag waiting for the queue to free...
SIN(GAPORE)-DEL(HI)
Counting down to the airport.
SIN(GAPORE)-DEL(HI).
DEL(HI)-JAI(PUR) the day after.
Nervous. Like awaiting a roller-coaster ride.
Why am I nervous?
Nervous.
Where I am
(written on 2 Dec 2011)
I am now in Hong Kong.
In a few days, I will be home in Singapore.
In yet another few days, I will be back in Delhi.
My changing realities can be very exciting, and it keeps my heart pumping. Yet sometimes, it can be very disorientating. Do people constantly seek permanence and stability? I think I believe that. It is just that now whilst I am younger the appeal of...
the struggle continues...
This year, I lived in Delhi for 10 months. Beyond Delhi, I have visited 7 cities, each in a different country.
For most of these visits, it is for pleasure, and do not spend much time in each. Sub-consciously, these visits are part of my search for the city(s) I would like to live in future.
One thing jumped out at me during reflection in these last few days. That the sense of struggle of the...
new storygraph updated. →
Updated my website with a new storygraph “Blinding Darkness”
Some brands that go the distance →
I was moved by this video. I was heartened by the effort and thought Nat Geo put into this campaign to bring innovations to people. The commitment to its brand really is heartening. Kudos Nat Geo!
tumblrbot asked: WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE INANIMATE OBJECT?
the-delhi-boy asked: hello brother.. love your blog.. you live in delhi? where? - a fellow delhite