Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Sunday, November 18, 2007
Play for Peace
Play for peace
Children are vibrant, children are energy filled and their happiness is like a wild fire…it spreads and multiplies quickly.
Service for people is quite often perceived as assistance or help in the form of cash or food.
Imagine an environment gloomy because of a recent calamity…the surrounding is destroyed and everyone is making an effort to get life back to normal.
Though this takes time, every effort is taken to make the atmosphere look calm, mainly for the children around.
Play For Peace facilitates developing this positivity in the air.
Seeing children around you laugh, smile and put back all worries is what every parent looks forward to. This in turn changes the mood of the adults around.
Open space and play for peace joined hands to help us understand voluntary activity in a different dimension.
The 3 day session begun and ended with us playing different games…
We played games wherein no one goes out of it nor does anyone get punished…these are games which bring people together just through simple team work…
The following games were played :
Day 1
8-step Double count 6 Dibi dibi dappe
Dracula Zip-zap Animals 7 up/watch it Jugu jaa station Everyone is it Human overhand ball juggle Violence – non violence Penguin
Not Acceptable Non -Violence Acceptable Violence The questions asked were as follows, where each one of us had a different opinion -
Non Vegetarianism Milking a cow Eskimo Eating meet Killing in self defense Sacrificing animals for worship Euthanasia Death Sentence to a Rapist Imprisonment for contempt of court Taking Jal Samhadi to protest against Narmada Dam Doing chakka Jam to protest Fare hike Compulsory standing on national Anthem Soliciting Sex for money Soliciting sex for food School examination Leaving food in your plate Using leather products Not giving house for rent to a Muslim Using loud speakers for prayers Self flagellation for religious rituals.
Day 2
Everyone is tom Dibbi Dibbi Dappe Idli vada Nerves of steel Wink House and Tenant Commonality & differences to be or not to be Count to 13 As you like it Hariyali As you like it Hinduism is the oldest religion (what About Judaism) Hinduism is a tolerant religion (What about Gujarat riots, cast violence) Buddhist practice non violence Islam is about equality Christianity teaches compassion Sikhism is a branch of Hinduism Gods are mythological figures All religion induce violence and inequality Religion curb individual freedom Conversion is acceptable Cast system is a part of Hindu religion Reservation should be given to marginalized sections Many Gods one gods Muslims are not clean Muslims intentionally avoid family planning to increase their numbers Polygamy is only promoted by Islam Christian's look down at other religion Landlord and tenants numbers – Share ur motivation in doing this course Colors – what is the most important learning you had so far Exchange – what is the last film u saw, why? Exchange – If you were not here what you would be doing right now?
Children are vibrant, children are energy filled and their happiness is like a wild fire…it spreads and multiplies quickly.
Service for people is quite often perceived as assistance or help in the form of cash or food.
Imagine an environment gloomy because of a recent calamity…the surrounding is destroyed and everyone is making an effort to get life back to normal.
Though this takes time, every effort is taken to make the atmosphere look calm, mainly for the children around.
Play For Peace facilitates developing this positivity in the air.
Seeing children around you laugh, smile and put back all worries is what every parent looks forward to. This in turn changes the mood of the adults around.
Open space and play for peace joined hands to help us understand voluntary activity in a different dimension.
The 3 day session begun and ended with us playing different games…
We played games wherein no one goes out of it nor does anyone get punished…these are games which bring people together just through simple team work…
The following games were played :
Day 1
8-step Double count 6 Dibi dibi dappe
Dracula Zip-zap Animals 7 up/watch it Jugu jaa station Everyone is it Human overhand ball juggle Violence – non violence Penguin
Not Acceptable Non -Violence Acceptable Violence The questions asked were as follows, where each one of us had a different opinion -
Non Vegetarianism Milking a cow Eskimo Eating meet Killing in self defense Sacrificing animals for worship Euthanasia Death Sentence to a Rapist Imprisonment for contempt of court Taking Jal Samhadi to protest against Narmada Dam Doing chakka Jam to protest Fare hike Compulsory standing on national Anthem Soliciting Sex for money Soliciting sex for food School examination Leaving food in your plate Using leather products Not giving house for rent to a Muslim Using loud speakers for prayers Self flagellation for religious rituals.
Day 2
Everyone is tom Dibbi Dibbi Dappe Idli vada Nerves of steel Wink House and Tenant Commonality & differences to be or not to be Count to 13 As you like it Hariyali As you like it Hinduism is the oldest religion (what About Judaism) Hinduism is a tolerant religion (What about Gujarat riots, cast violence) Buddhist practice non violence Islam is about equality Christianity teaches compassion Sikhism is a branch of Hinduism Gods are mythological figures All religion induce violence and inequality Religion curb individual freedom Conversion is acceptable Cast system is a part of Hindu religion Reservation should be given to marginalized sections Many Gods one gods Muslims are not clean Muslims intentionally avoid family planning to increase their numbers Polygamy is only promoted by Islam Christian's look down at other religion Landlord and tenants numbers – Share ur motivation in doing this course Colors – what is the most important learning you had so far Exchange – what is the last film u saw, why? Exchange – If you were not here what you would be doing right now?
Saturday, November 17, 2007
REPRESENTATION IN FILMS
‘FILMS’ – one of our favorite, if not the favorite, was the topic which Junuka planned to explore through the 3 sessions with us. As unanimously agreed upon, a 3-day workshop would be grossly adequate to learn about film making and understanding the complexities of it. Thus this workshop was intentionally targeted to understand the ‘representations in films’.
We had an introductory session with Junuka prior to the workshop. This helped her gauge our basic understanding and interests in films. Trivial queries too, were answered. At the end, Junuka asked us to do an assignment for the session on the first day. All of us, individually, were asked to get an object which we associated with a movie we had watched. At this thought, we departed.
DAY 1:
The first day began with everyone anxiously waiting to ‘showcase’ their associations! There was a very interesting collection of objects at the end. Objects like scissors, for the Sharon Stone starrer ‘Scissors’, a colorful friendship band for ‘Rang de Basanti’, a perfume bottle ( empty!) for the movie ‘Perfume- the scent of a murderer’, a fabulous red dress for ‘ Shall we Dance’ and knives for ‘Pirates of the Carribean’. The most unique though was Mir’s who had Nisha’s ‘long nose’ as his object which he associated a movie with! What was even more interesting was the explanation which went along with the object. The exercise was meant to bring out the fact that how a film maker uses objects to give an indirect message. Also, understanding how each one of us relates and associates with different objects.
Next, we watched a documentary named ‘America, America’. The documentary was made by an Indian. The message sent out was pretty clear. It ridiculed the politics and the diplomacy of America as a nation. The film maker left nothing to the audience to try and understand. A very strong and a direct statement was made. A discussion followed. The approach of the film maker is a choice which he takes. In the documentary, it was clearly evident that his intentions were made really clear and the message of the film was stark! There was no scope of it being understood in a manner otherwise.
This was followed by the recent hit bollywood movie ‘Chak De’ a part of the movie was viewed and then taken up for dissection. A very heated discussion, rather argument, started. There were two clear sides to it. One group was in favour of the movie and thought that it was not a stereotype. It touched a lots of issues very well and did create an impact in the minds of the audience. The other group, however, didn’t quite agree. They felt that though the subject was different, it could have been handled in a more innovative manner. The debate so strong, it didn’t end. Time came to the rescue, ending it abruptly. Junuka then called off the day giving us an assignment for the next day. Each of us, individually, had to represent what Chak De meant to each of us on a sheet of paper.
DAY 2:
The session started with each of us showing our abstract piece of art of art, along with the explanation, which showed the essence of Chak De to us. There were diverse responses. Junuka liked the honest representations which were made, hence appreciated.
Junuka then took us back in history right from the period when documentation started. These were images from the Congo Valley. As we browsed through the photographs, Junuka brought to out notice how each image was meant to give a message. Most of them were of the tribes from the Congo Valley. These were taken by the colonists who came their. It was evident the colonizers had managed to lure the tribes and bow down to the culture of the colonizers, unfortunately, giving up their own.
The message here was that in an image or a movie, the photographer or the film maker executes his own choice made with an intention of representation of people. But the approach of representation can vary from each individual. This was explored with two documentaries. The first one was a documentary of the various tribal groups present in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. This was made in 1971 for the Indian government. It contained expeditions to these islands which were largely unexplored. At some times it was because of the hostile nature of the tribes in that region who did not want any interaction with the outside world. The documentary showed various tribal groups and their lifestyles, rather their way of living. This is where the approach of the film maker was noticed. The tribals were portrayed as people who were ‘different’, not a ‘part of us’. The differences were highlighted, making them look primitive. This kind of representation definitely would not help the tribals cause. A sense of pity, completely unnecessary, was being generated.
The second documentary, in the same context, was ‘Nanook of the North’. This was about a person Nanook and his family and the lifestyle they lead in the frozen areas of Canada. Here the subject being talked was similar to the one in the previous documentary. But the approach taken by the film maker was a total contrast. Here, the film maker had stayed with Nanook and his family for a period before filming them. This was evident through the comfort level Nanook showed during getting filmed, unlike in the other documentary. The film maker here captured their moments of joy and happiness in his tough daily routine. It admired the way Nanook and his family enjoyed each moment inspite of being in the toughest place to live on earth. This gave a sense of admiration for Nannok. There was no putting down of the primitive lifestyles; rather a lot could be learnt from them. This was shown flawlessly. The sensitivity of the film maker was really encouraging, unlike in the previous documentary.
A third documentary, ‘Triumph of the Will’ made on Adolf Hitler was screened. This was to show how the camera, with its angles, positions and perspectives, plays a major part in representation of a person in a film. The camera highlighted the personality of Adolf Hitler and the power he possessed. The ‘hero’ of the movie was very much noticeable!
This ended the second day. The session was very well designed with apt documentaries bringing out the message out well. The finer nuisances of representation were well understood.
DAY 3:
The final day began. Everyone was exited following an eye opening second day. Junuka played a one and a half hour Iranian movie called ‘Blackboards’. The movie was about the daily struggle in the life of the people from the Kurdish tribe which lived on the Iran-Iraq border, but belonged to none of the two countries. The movie focused on the lives of the a few people who within such a turmoil, went to the villages to teach the uneducated children present their. They carried blackboards with them to every village, hence the name. It focused upon the tale of two such persons and their struggle.
The blackboards here were used for various other than what it was meant for. It became an important belonging and also very symbolic in the course of the movie. The movie ends, but the struggle remains. The film maker brought out the actual situation exceedingly well. The colors, the music (rather the lack of it), the costumes, the emotions and the expressions all were in tune with the theme of the movie.
It was followed by a discussion trying to unearth the message the film wants to leave. The movie gave a tremendous sense of hope and strength in spite of the adversities present. An important lesson to learn; one which could be applicable in each one’s case at various levels.
The movie summed up the workshop successfully. An eventful 3 days came to an end. Yet, as Junuka rightly pointed out that there was a lot more to be explored. Everyone appreciated the workshop and thanked Junuka for giving us the opportunity to understand films through a film make’s point of view. This would definitely hold us in good stead while watching any movie here onwards.
We ended by watching some of Junuka’s work, which was similar to the workshop, simply put: GOOD!
Ankur Kothari
‘FILMS’ – one of our favorite, if not the favorite, was the topic which Junuka planned to explore through the 3 sessions with us. As unanimously agreed upon, a 3-day workshop would be grossly adequate to learn about film making and understanding the complexities of it. Thus this workshop was intentionally targeted to understand the ‘representations in films’.
We had an introductory session with Junuka prior to the workshop. This helped her gauge our basic understanding and interests in films. Trivial queries too, were answered. At the end, Junuka asked us to do an assignment for the session on the first day. All of us, individually, were asked to get an object which we associated with a movie we had watched. At this thought, we departed.
DAY 1:
The first day began with everyone anxiously waiting to ‘showcase’ their associations! There was a very interesting collection of objects at the end. Objects like scissors, for the Sharon Stone starrer ‘Scissors’, a colorful friendship band for ‘Rang de Basanti’, a perfume bottle ( empty!) for the movie ‘Perfume- the scent of a murderer’, a fabulous red dress for ‘ Shall we Dance’ and knives for ‘Pirates of the Carribean’. The most unique though was Mir’s who had Nisha’s ‘long nose’ as his object which he associated a movie with! What was even more interesting was the explanation which went along with the object. The exercise was meant to bring out the fact that how a film maker uses objects to give an indirect message. Also, understanding how each one of us relates and associates with different objects.
Next, we watched a documentary named ‘America, America’. The documentary was made by an Indian. The message sent out was pretty clear. It ridiculed the politics and the diplomacy of America as a nation. The film maker left nothing to the audience to try and understand. A very strong and a direct statement was made. A discussion followed. The approach of the film maker is a choice which he takes. In the documentary, it was clearly evident that his intentions were made really clear and the message of the film was stark! There was no scope of it being understood in a manner otherwise.
This was followed by the recent hit bollywood movie ‘Chak De’ a part of the movie was viewed and then taken up for dissection. A very heated discussion, rather argument, started. There were two clear sides to it. One group was in favour of the movie and thought that it was not a stereotype. It touched a lots of issues very well and did create an impact in the minds of the audience. The other group, however, didn’t quite agree. They felt that though the subject was different, it could have been handled in a more innovative manner. The debate so strong, it didn’t end. Time came to the rescue, ending it abruptly. Junuka then called off the day giving us an assignment for the next day. Each of us, individually, had to represent what Chak De meant to each of us on a sheet of paper.
DAY 2:
The session started with each of us showing our abstract piece of art of art, along with the explanation, which showed the essence of Chak De to us. There were diverse responses. Junuka liked the honest representations which were made, hence appreciated.
Junuka then took us back in history right from the period when documentation started. These were images from the Congo Valley. As we browsed through the photographs, Junuka brought to out notice how each image was meant to give a message. Most of them were of the tribes from the Congo Valley. These were taken by the colonists who came their. It was evident the colonizers had managed to lure the tribes and bow down to the culture of the colonizers, unfortunately, giving up their own.
The message here was that in an image or a movie, the photographer or the film maker executes his own choice made with an intention of representation of people. But the approach of representation can vary from each individual. This was explored with two documentaries. The first one was a documentary of the various tribal groups present in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. This was made in 1971 for the Indian government. It contained expeditions to these islands which were largely unexplored. At some times it was because of the hostile nature of the tribes in that region who did not want any interaction with the outside world. The documentary showed various tribal groups and their lifestyles, rather their way of living. This is where the approach of the film maker was noticed. The tribals were portrayed as people who were ‘different’, not a ‘part of us’. The differences were highlighted, making them look primitive. This kind of representation definitely would not help the tribals cause. A sense of pity, completely unnecessary, was being generated.
The second documentary, in the same context, was ‘Nanook of the North’. This was about a person Nanook and his family and the lifestyle they lead in the frozen areas of Canada. Here the subject being talked was similar to the one in the previous documentary. But the approach taken by the film maker was a total contrast. Here, the film maker had stayed with Nanook and his family for a period before filming them. This was evident through the comfort level Nanook showed during getting filmed, unlike in the other documentary. The film maker here captured their moments of joy and happiness in his tough daily routine. It admired the way Nanook and his family enjoyed each moment inspite of being in the toughest place to live on earth. This gave a sense of admiration for Nannok. There was no putting down of the primitive lifestyles; rather a lot could be learnt from them. This was shown flawlessly. The sensitivity of the film maker was really encouraging, unlike in the previous documentary.
A third documentary, ‘Triumph of the Will’ made on Adolf Hitler was screened. This was to show how the camera, with its angles, positions and perspectives, plays a major part in representation of a person in a film. The camera highlighted the personality of Adolf Hitler and the power he possessed. The ‘hero’ of the movie was very much noticeable!
This ended the second day. The session was very well designed with apt documentaries bringing out the message out well. The finer nuisances of representation were well understood.
DAY 3:
The final day began. Everyone was exited following an eye opening second day. Junuka played a one and a half hour Iranian movie called ‘Blackboards’. The movie was about the daily struggle in the life of the people from the Kurdish tribe which lived on the Iran-Iraq border, but belonged to none of the two countries. The movie focused on the lives of the a few people who within such a turmoil, went to the villages to teach the uneducated children present their. They carried blackboards with them to every village, hence the name. It focused upon the tale of two such persons and their struggle.
The blackboards here were used for various other than what it was meant for. It became an important belonging and also very symbolic in the course of the movie. The movie ends, but the struggle remains. The film maker brought out the actual situation exceedingly well. The colors, the music (rather the lack of it), the costumes, the emotions and the expressions all were in tune with the theme of the movie.
It was followed by a discussion trying to unearth the message the film wants to leave. The movie gave a tremendous sense of hope and strength in spite of the adversities present. An important lesson to learn; one which could be applicable in each one’s case at various levels.
The movie summed up the workshop successfully. An eventful 3 days came to an end. Yet, as Junuka rightly pointed out that there was a lot more to be explored. Everyone appreciated the workshop and thanked Junuka for giving us the opportunity to understand films through a film make’s point of view. This would definitely hold us in good stead while watching any movie here onwards.
We ended by watching some of Junuka’s work, which was similar to the workshop, simply put: GOOD!
Ankur Kothari
Monday, November 12, 2007
WITH AMAR KANWAR
They say u cannot say much about good work you just accept it but I have been given the difficult task of talking about good work and also to talk about how I accepted it .it was a privilege to attend a documentary film screening organized by open space and ftii with Mr.Amar kanwar himself. Mr Kanwar Lives and works from New Delhi.
He is the recipient of the 1st Edvard Munch Award for Contemporary Art from Norway, a Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts, Maine College of Art, USA , the MacArthur Fellowship in India, the Golden Gate Award ( San Francisco International Film Festival); Golden Conch (Mumbai International Film Festival ); The First Prize (Torino International Film Festival. Italy ) ; Jury's Award (Film South Asia , Nepal ), Grand Prix at EnviroFilm , Slovak Republic and the Golden Tree at the 1st National Environment and Wildlife Film Festival Vatavaran. Delhi. His awards can speak more than my words.
The documentary screening was held on two days, on the first day the latest film by Mr.Kanwar “THE LIGHTNING TESTIMONIES” was screened .the film explores the history of violence against women in different parts of the country then and now . Mr.Kanwar's film maps a journey of exploring our relationship with the politics of power and violence against women. It raised many issues such as the atrocities faced by women at the time of the partition and the present condition of women in different parts of India such as Nagaland and Kashmir. The film left a long-lasting impression. The film was followed by a long dialogue between the film maker and the audience.
On the second day four films were screened the first one A SEASON OUTSIDE is about the border outpost Wagah, where this film begins its exploration. A Season Outside is a personal and philosophical journey through past generations, conflicting positions, borders and time zones. It throws light on the imaginary lines created by man.
The second film A NIGHT OF PROPHECY talks about the passage of time through poetry? The film travels in the states of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Nagaland and Kashmir trying to understand the past, the severity of conflict and the cycles of change. Through poetry you come about various situations and opinions. The different poetic narratives merge together, allowing us to see a more universal language of symbols and meanings. The third film HENNINGSVAER is about being in exile and the thin line that can exist between paradise and prison. Filmed entirely through glass, this film is located on the famous cod fishing island of Henningsvaer in Norway in the Arctic Circle. The fourth film THE MANY FACES OF MADNESS is about the ecological imbalance created by people in India .it talks about the deaf ear policy of the government in pursuing the so called modernization .The filmmaker talked about length about the film and how it was made.
It was truly an outstanding experience to watch such films of high quality and it was a privilege that the filmmaker himself was screening them. The dialog made things more interesting with lot of issues in the films being talked at length. At the end I will again like to say that good work can only be called good work and writing about Mr. Kanwar and his films for me is like showing a torch to the sun. I ask forgiveness I lack the felicity. MIR DAWAR
He is the recipient of the 1st Edvard Munch Award for Contemporary Art from Norway, a Honorary Doctorate in Fine Arts, Maine College of Art, USA , the MacArthur Fellowship in India, the Golden Gate Award ( San Francisco International Film Festival); Golden Conch (Mumbai International Film Festival ); The First Prize (Torino International Film Festival. Italy ) ; Jury's Award (Film South Asia , Nepal ), Grand Prix at EnviroFilm , Slovak Republic and the Golden Tree at the 1st National Environment and Wildlife Film Festival Vatavaran. Delhi. His awards can speak more than my words.
The documentary screening was held on two days, on the first day the latest film by Mr.Kanwar “THE LIGHTNING TESTIMONIES” was screened .the film explores the history of violence against women in different parts of the country then and now . Mr.Kanwar's film maps a journey of exploring our relationship with the politics of power and violence against women. It raised many issues such as the atrocities faced by women at the time of the partition and the present condition of women in different parts of India such as Nagaland and Kashmir. The film left a long-lasting impression. The film was followed by a long dialogue between the film maker and the audience.
On the second day four films were screened the first one A SEASON OUTSIDE is about the border outpost Wagah, where this film begins its exploration. A Season Outside is a personal and philosophical journey through past generations, conflicting positions, borders and time zones. It throws light on the imaginary lines created by man.
The second film A NIGHT OF PROPHECY talks about the passage of time through poetry? The film travels in the states of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Nagaland and Kashmir trying to understand the past, the severity of conflict and the cycles of change. Through poetry you come about various situations and opinions. The different poetic narratives merge together, allowing us to see a more universal language of symbols and meanings. The third film HENNINGSVAER is about being in exile and the thin line that can exist between paradise and prison. Filmed entirely through glass, this film is located on the famous cod fishing island of Henningsvaer in Norway in the Arctic Circle. The fourth film THE MANY FACES OF MADNESS is about the ecological imbalance created by people in India .it talks about the deaf ear policy of the government in pursuing the so called modernization .The filmmaker talked about length about the film and how it was made.
It was truly an outstanding experience to watch such films of high quality and it was a privilege that the filmmaker himself was screening them. The dialog made things more interesting with lot of issues in the films being talked at length. At the end I will again like to say that good work can only be called good work and writing about Mr. Kanwar and his films for me is like showing a torch to the sun. I ask forgiveness I lack the felicity. MIR DAWAR
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Making the news
We had two great sessions with Rahul Chandavarkar. with the aid of a powerpoint presetation, he gave us insight on how a news agency is actually run. we did a detailed analysis on the layout of the newspaper - right from the first page to the last. he also gave us an in-depth account of news as well as feature writing. we studied the slightly different formats of the two leading newspapers of Pune - the times of india and the indian express.
we learnt the basic news formula - 5 Ws and 1 H i.e. who, what, when, where, why and how. the answers for these are the backbone of any news article. it is essential that most, if not all, of these be answered. it definitely gave us a headway for the OS newsletter.
Rahul even told us about the various sources for news and how news is gathered. it was a real eye-opener for those of us who hadn't ever worked with a newspaper or done any writing before. we got all our doubts cleared and questions answered by him. he ended by telling us about the structure of heirarchy in the agency and the role of each person.
it was a much needed session as media is an important tool in a country like ours.
the next day we had an 'editorial meeting'. some of us became the editors of the OS newsletter while the rest of us were reporters. there were discussions on how we were going to go about doing our projects. it was a session of brainstorming where all of us gave our ideas and inputs about each project.
we enjoyed as well learnt a lot about writing from these sessions.
we learnt the basic news formula - 5 Ws and 1 H i.e. who, what, when, where, why and how. the answers for these are the backbone of any news article. it is essential that most, if not all, of these be answered. it definitely gave us a headway for the OS newsletter.
Rahul even told us about the various sources for news and how news is gathered. it was a real eye-opener for those of us who hadn't ever worked with a newspaper or done any writing before. we got all our doubts cleared and questions answered by him. he ended by telling us about the structure of heirarchy in the agency and the role of each person.
it was a much needed session as media is an important tool in a country like ours.
the next day we had an 'editorial meeting'. some of us became the editors of the OS newsletter while the rest of us were reporters. there were discussions on how we were going to go about doing our projects. it was a session of brainstorming where all of us gave our ideas and inputs about each project.
we enjoyed as well learnt a lot about writing from these sessions.
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
Biodiversity – Our most vital Resource.
If all the Biodiversity on this planet was to be wiped out, Human life would last for just three minutes! A powerful statement, but did a shred of doubt cross your mind? Do you feel this statement is over-rated? Think again.
When the esteemed Mr. Ashish Kothari from Kalpavriksh, Pune came to give us a discourse on Biodiversity, it certainly proved an eye-opener for all of us. The basics, interesting facts, stories of hope and stories of despair were all rolled into one into those tow hours. The fundamental question of what Bio-diversity is was taught to us. The simple classification of:
Species
Ecosystems and,
Genetic Diversity
- Would make everything from the air we breathe to marine algae (which is incidentally the atmosphere’s key source of Oxygen) to the Tiger –all a part of bio-diversity. We learnt of how diverse and rich our own country was – with 10 biogeographic zones to over a 1000 species of Mango!
Reasons to protect the Earth’s biodiversity was then enumerated on various grounds- ethical, economic and aesthetic. Why does the loss of biodiversity continue to elude us was next explained which was followed by the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan.
After having realised that we all came from different backgrounds, he connected the topic to each of the various disciplines we follow e.g. The Convention on Bio-diversity for me or the Eco – budgeting for all our Third year Economic Major students. This definitely ignited our interests every time one of us felt our thoughts drift!
All of us unanimously agreed that the most interesting aspect to Mr. Kothari’s lecture was the fact that his hard-hitting facts were coupled by very interesting and encouraging stories of how communities have taken upon themselves to protect their environment. This made each of us think positive but more importantly, set us thinking and realizing that a simple change in strategy, a good plan and a strong will could work wonders for our planet’s health.
We understood that Man was part of this huge cycle of life that surrounds us, we alone are responsible for Nature’s fury and that as the youth and future, it is our survival at stake if man’s unsustainable actions continue.
By – Chiteisri Devi
When the esteemed Mr. Ashish Kothari from Kalpavriksh, Pune came to give us a discourse on Biodiversity, it certainly proved an eye-opener for all of us. The basics, interesting facts, stories of hope and stories of despair were all rolled into one into those tow hours. The fundamental question of what Bio-diversity is was taught to us. The simple classification of:
Species
Ecosystems and,
Genetic Diversity
- Would make everything from the air we breathe to marine algae (which is incidentally the atmosphere’s key source of Oxygen) to the Tiger –all a part of bio-diversity. We learnt of how diverse and rich our own country was – with 10 biogeographic zones to over a 1000 species of Mango!
Reasons to protect the Earth’s biodiversity was then enumerated on various grounds- ethical, economic and aesthetic. Why does the loss of biodiversity continue to elude us was next explained which was followed by the National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan.
After having realised that we all came from different backgrounds, he connected the topic to each of the various disciplines we follow e.g. The Convention on Bio-diversity for me or the Eco – budgeting for all our Third year Economic Major students. This definitely ignited our interests every time one of us felt our thoughts drift!
All of us unanimously agreed that the most interesting aspect to Mr. Kothari’s lecture was the fact that his hard-hitting facts were coupled by very interesting and encouraging stories of how communities have taken upon themselves to protect their environment. This made each of us think positive but more importantly, set us thinking and realizing that a simple change in strategy, a good plan and a strong will could work wonders for our planet’s health.
We understood that Man was part of this huge cycle of life that surrounds us, we alone are responsible for Nature’s fury and that as the youth and future, it is our survival at stake if man’s unsustainable actions continue.
By – Chiteisri Devi
psycho- geography........phew!!!!
yaeh....... you read it right, the sessions on the 9th and 10th of october, taken by our very own Renu were on psycho-geography. nah...... it isnt as heavy as it sounds and was basically about expressing violence through art... simple, right? well, not so for some of the interns who had a mortal fear of painting. the session was flagged off on day 1 by discussing what exactly is violence and we managed to come up with a pretty concise definition that it is simply an act of aggression against a person who resists.it is about power equations but then again power is never static, its mobile and is a networked phenomenon. depicting violence through art is a means of testing social codes whether symbolic, realistic or ritualistic.
renu started by showing us a series of images she had put together so that we got a general idea of what she was planning on putting us through... the images ranged from 17th century post renaissance to modern. some were subtle, where it was difficult even to figure out instances of violence while in some it was disturbing to even look at the images because they were too graphic.well..... this was the easy part with Renu doing all the work now we had to start. which we did by jotting down 10 words we associated with violence and then 10 colours we associated with those words.. an eg of this would be war-olive green or torture-purple. the 2nd half of the session saw the interns writing a story based on chits they drew out of a box. well. they put on their thinking caps and came up with 3 brilliant stories, an eg. of which is given below:-
THE VICIOUS CIRCLE OF VIOLENCE:-
i remember this day as if it were yesterday ven though i was just a boy of 8 then. a bomb exploded somewhere near the army camp. i could hear the blast echo through the many valleys and hills surrounding our village. the deathly silence was now filled with screams and cries of the jawans. somewhere in the background i thought i heard my sister crying softly."our brother was the bomber", she said." they will soon come for us-we should run, but we have nowhere to go!".we tried to gather our thingsand make a quick exit; but it was in vain. in what like a quick flash of lightning the military forces arrived in their jeeps, driving so fast, hurtling dust and stones in all directions. soon our village was on fire-all i could see was red and yellow flames leaping into the dark,dark sky. the men in green and black started spilling out and beating up the men in our village, dragging them out of their homes with sheer vehemence and force. i did not need to see what was happening to feel-their screams echoed louder and louder, they were being assaulted and tortured brutally and yet our fellow villagers did not tell them about our brother. my sister pulled me away and hid me in a secret attic which was once our brother's room." stay here!" she said "and do not move , no matter what happens!". the jawans came to our doorstep; looking for some more men. seeing my sister cowering alone in the corner did not deter them. their faces changed, they were smiling but in an evil, malicious way and then they said something to each other in a language i did not understand. one of the jawans left but the other stepped towards her and dragged her by her long, dark hair. my sister was howling now, beggibg, pleading, writhing trying to escape. his face was indifferent and by sheer brute strenght, he slapped her till she was unconscious, tore out her clothes and raped her. i lay above, helpless and watched as he violated her. even in her unconsciousness i could ense her mind, body and soul crying in pain. my mind was turbulent, in a rage, but my limbs remained still as death. numb. the memory is fresh in my mind, the scars still show, her screams still wake me up after nightmares and each day i know that soon, i will have my vengeance.
then came the part we were all scared of, yes you guessed it , painting!!!!! we had to individually paint our idea of violence. it didnt turn out to be as difficult as we had initially imagined and the paintings turned out to be quite acceptable with some you could even classify as good. really wasnt as difficult as we thought.... you guys should also try it.............!!!!!!!!!!!!!
renu started by showing us a series of images she had put together so that we got a general idea of what she was planning on putting us through... the images ranged from 17th century post renaissance to modern. some were subtle, where it was difficult even to figure out instances of violence while in some it was disturbing to even look at the images because they were too graphic.well..... this was the easy part with Renu doing all the work now we had to start. which we did by jotting down 10 words we associated with violence and then 10 colours we associated with those words.. an eg of this would be war-olive green or torture-purple. the 2nd half of the session saw the interns writing a story based on chits they drew out of a box. well. they put on their thinking caps and came up with 3 brilliant stories, an eg. of which is given below:-
THE VICIOUS CIRCLE OF VIOLENCE:-
i remember this day as if it were yesterday ven though i was just a boy of 8 then. a bomb exploded somewhere near the army camp. i could hear the blast echo through the many valleys and hills surrounding our village. the deathly silence was now filled with screams and cries of the jawans. somewhere in the background i thought i heard my sister crying softly."our brother was the bomber", she said." they will soon come for us-we should run, but we have nowhere to go!".we tried to gather our thingsand make a quick exit; but it was in vain. in what like a quick flash of lightning the military forces arrived in their jeeps, driving so fast, hurtling dust and stones in all directions. soon our village was on fire-all i could see was red and yellow flames leaping into the dark,dark sky. the men in green and black started spilling out and beating up the men in our village, dragging them out of their homes with sheer vehemence and force. i did not need to see what was happening to feel-their screams echoed louder and louder, they were being assaulted and tortured brutally and yet our fellow villagers did not tell them about our brother. my sister pulled me away and hid me in a secret attic which was once our brother's room." stay here!" she said "and do not move , no matter what happens!". the jawans came to our doorstep; looking for some more men. seeing my sister cowering alone in the corner did not deter them. their faces changed, they were smiling but in an evil, malicious way and then they said something to each other in a language i did not understand. one of the jawans left but the other stepped towards her and dragged her by her long, dark hair. my sister was howling now, beggibg, pleading, writhing trying to escape. his face was indifferent and by sheer brute strenght, he slapped her till she was unconscious, tore out her clothes and raped her. i lay above, helpless and watched as he violated her. even in her unconsciousness i could ense her mind, body and soul crying in pain. my mind was turbulent, in a rage, but my limbs remained still as death. numb. the memory is fresh in my mind, the scars still show, her screams still wake me up after nightmares and each day i know that soon, i will have my vengeance.
then came the part we were all scared of, yes you guessed it , painting!!!!! we had to individually paint our idea of violence. it didnt turn out to be as difficult as we had initially imagined and the paintings turned out to be quite acceptable with some you could even classify as good. really wasnt as difficult as we thought.... you guys should also try it.............!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Human Rights and Law
Being the only Law student at the internship, the write-up for the two heavy sessions on Law and Human Rights has been 're'delegated to me !
What is Equality? What is violence ?
How does the Law treat the perpetrators and victims of Domestic Violence ? What are the differences between Criminal and Civil Law? Where would you file a complaint and can a layman ever actually seek legal redressal with the confidence that the Law presupposes?
These were just some of the very potent questions that Ms. Rama Sarode tried to answer in two back-to-back sessions . Whereas the first day was spent disucussing the very basics like Civil and criminal law - Sources of law and more importantly, the ABC of penal Law viz. The Indian Penal Code,1860, The Criminal Procedure Code,1973 and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. - the second day had the shraing of the advocate's personal experiences with handling the law (eg. cases on Domestic Violence and the problem of implementing the new Domestic Violence Act,2005 and the famous Armugam case where an alleged rapist was wrongly convicted for 12 years!)
If there was one point that was made clear during the sessions was that- even the basics of law requires much to be simplified!
Being a law student , I could vouch for the fact that our Guest had made all of it seemingly easy and interesting and yet many of the interns felt that most of it 'flew over their heads'!
However , it was not all in vain as our minds felt 'enlightened' on our basic "Rights"!
By - Chiteisri Devi
What is Equality? What is violence ?
How does the Law treat the perpetrators and victims of Domestic Violence ? What are the differences between Criminal and Civil Law? Where would you file a complaint and can a layman ever actually seek legal redressal with the confidence that the Law presupposes?
These were just some of the very potent questions that Ms. Rama Sarode tried to answer in two back-to-back sessions . Whereas the first day was spent disucussing the very basics like Civil and criminal law - Sources of law and more importantly, the ABC of penal Law viz. The Indian Penal Code,1860, The Criminal Procedure Code,1973 and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. - the second day had the shraing of the advocate's personal experiences with handling the law (eg. cases on Domestic Violence and the problem of implementing the new Domestic Violence Act,2005 and the famous Armugam case where an alleged rapist was wrongly convicted for 12 years!)
If there was one point that was made clear during the sessions was that- even the basics of law requires much to be simplified!
Being a law student , I could vouch for the fact that our Guest had made all of it seemingly easy and interesting and yet many of the interns felt that most of it 'flew over their heads'!
However , it was not all in vain as our minds felt 'enlightened' on our basic "Rights"!
By - Chiteisri Devi
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