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Italy was the worst hit by the pandemic among European countries. As the country gradually makes a transition to the new normal, VISSA VENKATA SUNDAR remembers Florence, the centre of arts and culture
THE
confident and bold, orange octagonal dome soaring in the sky has bewitched the world for centuries. Duomo di Firenze, built by Filippo Brunelleschi, is both — a massive architectural and a mystery — even today. Just the description is enough to fire the imagination of most travellers and make them immediately cue into the city: Florence, it is. Though travel is yet to open up, it’s time to plan ahead and imagine how exhilarating a trip to Firenze (Florence) would be. Not surprisingly, as the name immediately conjures up images of being the birthplace of Renaissance, a city of super-rich and super-egos, full of creative geniuses, connoisseurs of art and a place where innovation and excellence found patrons and flourished. A thriving centre of trade and finance in the 14th century, the city had money and the well-off spent much of it on commissioning dazzling works of art and architecture. It ushered in a new artistic grammar and flair, where nature’s beauty and the human body were
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‘THE REACTION WHILE PERFORMING AT RICH MIX — AN ARTS CENTRE AND CREATIVE HUB IN THE HEART OF EAST LONDON, WHERE 80 PER CENT OF THE CROWD WAS BRITISH –— WAS SURPRISING. THEY COULD GRASP THE ESSENCE OF THE POETRY AND ENJOYED THE MUSIC. IT SURPASSED THE BARRIER OF LANGUAGE AND WE CONNECTED WITH THE MEANING AND THE BEAUTY. OF COURSE, THE MUSIC HELPS TO BRIDGE THE GAP. WE ARE TRYING TO RETAIN THE BEAUTY AND THE ESSENCE OF THE POEM AND NOT CHANGE THESE’
Mukund relates how each member joined organically, and in a manner which can be called nothing short of destiny, to demonstrate his belief that it was Kabir who chose the band rather than the other way round. “Neeraj watched Hadh Anhadh, Shabnam Virmani’s documentary, and got inspired by Prahlad Tipanniya ji singing Kabir’s verses. While it’s Prahladji’s songs that we perform but rather than the traditional Indian instruments these are accompanied by the guitar and drums which give them a different feel.” Neeraj was working with Natural Streets for Performing Arts (NSPA Foundation) as a resident artiste and editing the organisation’s films when he met Mukund, a mechanical engineer at an oil company who joined the organisation to look beyond the Carnatic circuit. “Neeraj was already singing Kabir and we started jamming,” he says. In the meantime, Viren, from a Kabir Panthi Gujarati family with a well-known folk singer father, heard Neeraj perform Amrit Vaani at Carter Road, Mumbai. “He was struck by how different the dohas sounded compared with what he’d heard. Finding it interesting, he too joined,” recalls Mukund. However, the band didn’t have a bass guitarist and at each performance, the trio had to get someone. At Pune, the bassist who was supposed to join them couldn’t and the sound engineer suggested Britto KC’s name who had a band of his own and taught guitar. It was time for the final piece to fall into place. “We planned to practise with him before the performance but reached the venue late. But Britto blended in so beautifully that, to a layperson, it appeared to be a perfect gig,” he says and adds contemplatively, “How did all of this happen? An energy was working in the favour of us being together and, for me, the energy was Kabir.”
‘THESE POEMS, WRITTEN BY STALWARTS, SPOKE A TRUTH WHICH HAS RELEVANCE EVEN NOW. KABIR SPOKE ABOUT HUMANITY, CASTE, GENDER AND MORE. IF YOU REFLECT ON IT, WE ARE STILL FIGHTING OVER CASTE AND FOR GENDER EQUALITY. OUR ATTACHMENT TO MATERIAL OBJECTS HAS MULTIPLIED OUR PROBLEMS, WHICH KABIR OBSERVED AND SPOKE ABOUT. THIS IS WHAT MAKES US REVISIT THESE SAYINGS’ — MUKUND RAMASWAMY, KABIR CAFE
THE FIRST SONG THAT WE COMPOSED WAS JANGAL KE JOGI BY THE PAKISTANI POET IBN-E-INSHA. WE INCLUDED A SHIVA TANDAV IN THIS POEM AS HE IS A JOGI. WE WANTED TO SHOW THAT THE BORDERS, BOUNDARIES, LANGUAGES AND ARGUMENTS ARE IRRELEVANT
‘PEOPLE WHO STAYED AND CONTINUED TO STAY ARE THOSE WHO RELATE TO THE PHILOSOPHY WHICH IS QUITE SIMPLE AND, AT THE SAME TIME, DIFFICULT. IT IS HUMANITY AND LOVE WHICH MEANS THAT ALL THE BIFURCATION AND STRATIFICATIONS AMONG HUMAN BEINGS DISAPPEAR. MAYBE WE MIGHT NOT RELATE TO EVERYTHING BUT EVEN IF DO IN A MAJOR WAY, IT CREATES A SAFE SPACE TO COLLABORATE’
OF SMALL THINGS
FITNESS
AGE
Bharat Thakur is a yoga guru and founder of Artistic Yoga
IN
YOUTHFULLY A combination of yoga and a few basics can help us grow older more gracefully and actively
this century, our lifespan has increased by 55 per cent. As we gain experience, wisdom and maturity, these should be joyful and glorious years ... but are they? Are we leading healthy lives or are we beset with health problems? Let’s see how we can grow older more gracefully and youthfully. Our bodies begin to show signs of degeneration at the cellular level in small ways from the age of 25. This leads to visible signs of ageing at about 40 and more starkly from 50 onwards. These changes are an inevitable part of life but studies show that our genes play only a 20 per cent role in ageing. How we grow older, depends on how we choose to live. By making a few changes and combining it with regular yoga practise, we can slow down ageing and make it a smoother, more positive and joyful transition. The few essentials include eating nutritiously to nourish our body at cellular level. Cut down on heavy and fast foods. Including whole grains, proteins, good fats, fruit, vegetable, cold-pressed oils and yogurt. Stay
hydrated — it’s critical that you're drinking enough water. Get enough sleep to enable the body and mind to repair and regenerate themselves. Get a little sun every day to get vitamin D without which the body can’t absorb the calcium to stop our bones from becoming brittle. Cut down calories and maintain a healthy weight. Moderate your intake of alcohol. Now, let’s see how yoga can help. The ancient yogis believed that as long as your spine is flexible and strong, you stay young. When the spine is in good shape, the communication between the brain and the body is in good condition. They devised postures that stretch the spine upwards (eg Tadasana), sideways (eg Ardha Chakrasana), bend it forward (Padhastasana), backward (Ushtrasana, Chakrasana) and twist it (Trikonasana). These keep the joints and spine strong, mobile and flexible while making us less prone to injury and joint problems as we get older. Yoga asanas work on the body externally and internally. Weight-bearing asanas engage
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HOTWHEELS
RUNNING WITH THE BULLS
Kushan Mitra Auto & tech expert
Lamborghini is India’s most successful ultra-luxury car marque. And they want to keep on growing
AS
a young boy, I had once bought an encyclopedia of world cars. If I remember correctly, it was for the years 1989-1990. The cover of that book, which must be in some trunk in my mother’s house now, was the legendary Lamborghini Countach. I even had a poster of this mad Italian supercar on my wall, its scissor doors alone making it the dream car for any young child. And if you were lucky enough to be able to go to the hotel we now call The Lalit in central Delhi, you would see hotelier Lalit Suri’s Lamborghini Countach parked right on the porch. Believe me, the car looked even more bonkers in real-life. It is an abiding regret that I have not driven a classic Countach or even a Diablo, for that matter, but I have been fortunate enough to have driven the Murcielago, Diablo, Huracan and now the Urus in India. It has been a privilege to be able to drive these mean Italian machines. But that was also possible, thanks to a very odd quirk of the Indian market when it comes to ultra-luxury vehicles with a sticker price of two crore and above. Lamborghini is a market leader in this slot which is evident from the fact that, just three years after the
‘THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT DOWN PAYMENT BUT CUSTOMERS GET A LARGE-SCALE MODEL OF THE VEHICLE WHICH IS A REPLICA AS THEY SPECIFIED — THE COLOURS, THE INTERIORS, THE WHEELS — EVERYTHING. SO ONCE THE MODEL IS ON HIS OR HER TABLE, WE KNOW THAT WE HAVE JUST WHETTED THEIR APPETITE FOR THE FINISHED PRODUCT’