RA – Page 18 – Ankahi. Unsaid.

Philately

March 9, 2025Posted in DelhiLeave a comment

75 Years of the Constitution of India.

India Posts has issued a set of five special postcards on 75 Years of Constitution with a Special Cancellation dated 20 January 2025. This special Postcards set (6×4 in) comes in an elegant box (sturdy, magnetic latch) for collectors. The five postcard set has Constitution of India stamps valued 45 Rs cancelled on the (three stamps issued earlier in 2020). Thankfully, one of the stamps has the illustration of the original Parliament building The box and the postcards have golden-leaf-embossing together with illustrations from the original copy of the Constitution. Rs. 300 only. Difficult to say these days, what will last, grab them.

Special Stamps, Cancellation and a set of five Postcards issued by India Post. — oplus_1048608

Maut ki Kitaab

March 6, 2025March 8, 2025Posted in DelhiLeave a comment

Hindustani translation of an original Urdu book. A must read. Read Maut Ki Kitab to understand the meaning of life.

If one wants to live life, one must read Maut Ki Kitab. I read sections of the book to my wife, who was very curious why I had started the book all over again. There was something very familiar about the text I finished last night. This was the first bit of Khalid Jawed Saheb’s work I read, but something was telling me that I have lived this haunting space. Brooding through the day I realised it was very Kafkaesque. There is a very strong, subconscious, undercurrent of imagery created by Jawed saheb which I find entwined with Kafka. Very story is very compelling. Everytime I read a Hindustani translation of an original Urdu work I curse myself not having heeded my father and not having learnt Urdu. Thanks @Prabhat Singh for introducing me to Khalid Jawed and his works.

In my first reading of Maut ki Kitaab I couldn’t fathom the depth and swings of the story oscillating between two distressing and monstrously painful worlds negotiated by the characters created by Khalid bhai. The second reading calmed me a bit and I could peep into the mind of this masterful storyteller who had woven an intricately captivating story that shakes the very foundation of fantasy drama. Kudos Khalid bhai, for the French edition. Zor-e-kalam aur badhe.

Windermere Theatre Festival & Awards

March 4, 2025March 5, 2025Posted in Art, Day DiaryTagged Bareilly, candid, Festival, shadow, Stage, Theater, WindermereLeave a comment

More like a crowd following Mahatma Gandhi on a march, or dancing figurines, or the characters of a busy play, or the agitating masses on the street. But no, it is none of those. A beam of spotlight created this stippled-shadow image of award trophies on a dark LED screen just before the start of the Closing Ceremony of an amazingly fulfilling theatre festival. Awaiting the award winners, these cold, dark souls had yet to find warm hands and sparkling mantel shelves. The lawns were still being readied, Bacchus had still to land on the bar, promo slides had still to be projected, ‘Hello Mic Testing’ was still echoing, while the guitar lay abandoned like a ditched, heartbroken lover. Amid all this the bright red carpet knew it was going to be a long night of celebrations. Cheers to all those who participated in the Windermere Theatre Festival & Awards and special shout-out to the winners. This one is specially for Dr Brijeshwar Singh and Prabhat Kumar.

23 February – 1 March, Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh, India

Dali in Delhi

February 14, 2025Posted in Art, DelhiTagged 2025, Art, Dali, Delhi, exhbition, Salvador, show, Valentine'sLeave a comment

Dali should have stayed back for Valentine’s

Salvador Dali’s ‘Argillet Collection’ show, at the Habitat Centre Delhi, would have been an ideal venue for a Valentine’s Date but sigh, now you have missed it. Dali was a Spanish surrealist artist known for his bizarre images.

It was an eye-popping collection of over 200 of his original sketches, etchings and watercolour paintings which included some very fine pieces bordering erotic art with human bodies squirting or sprouting flowers from their heads and thighs; eyeballs dancing in squiggles and strokes and body parts interacting animatedly with the world around them. ‘Stare for longer than a minute and these disconnected shapes begin to form new connections and meanings in the mind’s eye.’

This was the first time that a large body of Dali’s original works were exhibited in India, though two of his works are in the collection of Victoria Memorial, Calcutta. Here are two works (one is a section or detail) from the Delhi show. Sadly, lighting at the Visual Art Gallery was very poor. The show was still being mounted/dismounted.

artworks by Salvador Dali at an exhibition in Delhi, Feb 2025 — oplus_1048608

Dad’s Paper knife

February 9, 2025Posted in Art, HeritageTagged 1950s, Art, dad, Daddy, device, Father, office, paperknifeLeave a comment

A Letter Opener, Letter Knife or a Paper Knife was a fairly common device found on almost every office table during the 1940s. It used to be a straightforward blunt blade of metal to cut-open sealed and gummed envelopes. I found this one among a punching machine, a pin cushion, a stapler, a bloating roller pad, a few glass paperweights, a pen holder and various other table items in my dad’s office after he died. This was really fancy for those times. The obverse and the inverse sides of the promotional paper knife, was probably used as a give-away for cycle buyers by Perryson Cycle & Parts company in India. It is pretty much ‘usable’ even today though the mermaid-like fluke (the tail) of the knife is missing, possibly broken, in ‘handling’. With her high cheekbones and curls, this shapely-Greek-goddess-like-sensation must have been a handful for both the secretary and the boss. I don’t think these guys were missing anything in those days. “Dad, this is going to the museum of memories.”