Category Archives: World Opinion

A family repertory: The contribution of the Alkazi and Padamsee clans to Indian theatre

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Books (incl.Biographies - w.e.f.01 jan 2018 ), Community Involvement / Social Issues, Leaders, Women/Girls(since May26-2021), World Opinion, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Pune, MAHARASHTRA / NEW DELHI :

The Padamsee extended family with Ebrahim Alkazi and Alyque Padamsee standing second and fourth from left, respectively   | Photo Credit: From ‘Enter Stage Right – The Alkazi/Padamsee Family Memoir’ . courtesy the Alkazi Theatre Archives

The Alkazi and Padamsee clans have played, and continue to play, an extraordinary role in the history of modern Indian theatre

“Oh god, it’s a page turner!” That was the cry from various family members on reading the first draft of Feisal Alkazi’s family memoirs published earlier this year. Titled Enter Stage Right — The Alkazi/Padamsee Family Memoir (Speaking Tiger, 2021), it is an irresistible, exciting read. The narrative details are gripping, the pace exciting, and viewing the times described in the book of the two families in pre- and post-Independence India through the lens of Feisal allows us to enter a world that we can relate to from stories that our parents and grandparents told us of the times they lived through.

Legendary names

Both names are legendary; the Alkazi and Padamsee clans contributed hugely to the formation and recognition of modernism in both Indian theatre and art. It all started when Bobby, or Sultan, Padamsee, the eldest Padamsee brother — the two families had 17 siblings between them, several of whom would distinguish themselves in theatre and the arts — had to return to Bombay after just six months as a student at Oxford due to the outbreak of World War II. What followed was a period of creative efflorescence as

E. Alkazi weds Roshen, October 1946   | Photo Credit: Photo Credit: From ‘Enter Stage Right – The Alkazi/Padamsee Family Memoir’ . courtesy the Alkazi Theatre Archives  

Bobby penned more than 100 poems, drew, painted watercolours and, one day in 1943, gathered a group of keen college students around his mother, the Padamsee matriarch Kulsumbai’s, horseshoe-shaped dinner table weighed down with mouth-watering Khoja cuisine. Bobby announced a plan to launch their own theatre group, the aptly named Theatre Group, as an alternative to commercial theatre, inspired by the group theatre movement of 1930s’ New York. One of those in attendance at that dinner was the young Ebrahim Alkazi.

Human angle

The group would flourish over the next few years, and court controversy with productions like an adaptation of Oscar Wilde’s Salomé, in which Bobby’s 19-year-old sister, Roshen, performed the risqué dance of the seven veils. Bobby would die by suicide aged just 24 in 1946, but the group went on, reaching its zenith in the coming decades, and three of his disciples married his sisters to found a cosmopolitan clan — including Ebrahim, who married Roshen. These were heady times of enormous intermingling, set in the dying days of the Raj and the dawn of Nehruvian India. The search for a new way of living creatively through a rich cultural life that was looking for a unique national identity drew in a very intense and close-knit community and family theatre with a galaxy of close friendships between authors, poets, painters, musicians and actors. As Feisal comments in the memoir, “Going to London together in 1947, there was a Roman Catholic like [F.N.] Souza, a Muslim like my dad, a Jew like Nissim Ezekiel, great friends like Krishna Paigankar and Akbar Padamsee, the idea that they were from different communities was not in anybody’s mind at all… we were always in and out of each other’s houses as well, in my family it was all the artists as well as the theatre people. We grew up with that — it gives a human angle to all these great giants that art historians write about.”

The cover of ‘Enter Stage Right — The Alkazi/Padamsee Family Memoir’  

After training at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London in 1947, Ebrahim returned home and rejoined Theatre Group. However, following a rift with others in the group, he left and founded his own Theatre Unit company at the Bhulabhai Desai Memorial Institute in the 1950s. The Institute played an important role in nurturing modern Indian art and drama, and Ebrahim

found a space for uninhibited creativity there, before he moved to Delhi in 1962 to head the National School of Drama for 15 years. Over the years, his contribution to widening the scope, subject matter and audience for Indian theatre would be extraordinary, as would those of his brother-in-law Alyque Padamsee, Mahesh Elkunchwar, and Safdar Hashmi. Alyque, known for directing productions ranging from the English version of Girish Karnad’s Tughlaq to Jesus Christ Superstar, has also been called the father of Indian advertising, and played Jinnah in Richard Attenborough’s Gandhi. His first wife was Pearl Padamsee, a stage and film actor, director — her oeuvre included Godspell, the first big musical produced in Mumbai — and producer. Their daughter, Raell Padamsee, runs her own production house, ACE, in Mumbai.

Home to stage

The rich family legacy also continues through Ebrahim’s son Feisal, who started devising plays with friends in Barry John’s Music Theatre Workshop in the early 80s. Although theatre is his first love, Feisal wears many hats — theatre and television director, author, educationist, counsellor, filmmaker and founder of Ruchika Theatre. His works include Noor, a sympathetic, gendered lens on Noor Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal; A Quiet Desire, the story of Rabindranath Tagore and of his brother and sister-in-law Kadambari; the adaptation of Kipling’s The Jungle Book into a coming-of-age story, retitled Yeh Bhi Jungle, Woh Bhi Jungle, in which the character Mowgli epitomises every important transition of adolescence in his search for identity.

E. Alkazi as Macbeth in a production directed by him   | Photo Credit: From ‘Enter Stage Right – The Alkazi/Padamsee Family Memoir’ . courtesy the Alkazi Theatre Archives

Along with his sister, Amal Allana, and her husband, Nissar Allana, Feisal has strongly believed in the mixing of generations in creative work. “I make it a point that the infusion of the next generation in all the years of Ruchika is so crucial. All our kids are there and the people who started it… to keep the generations going and learning from each other.” Radhika, Feisal’s wife, an accomplished actress and arts educator, says, “It was so new to me, this world — in the family, in the home, in the drawing room — your furniture would be on stage, your clothes would be on the stage.” When Zohra Sehgal worked with Feisal in the Ruskin Bond serial Rusty, she found herself wearing a costume that was from Radhika’s trousseau. Feisal recalls her saying, “Hamare gharon mein aise hi chalta hai” (This is how it is in our homes).

The story of these two families, who played such a vital role in the history of theatre and art, is an imperative chapter in the country’s socio-cultural history.

The writer is a Delhi-based artist, arts educator, curator and researcher.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Society> Spotlight / by Kristine Michael / July 10th, 2021

Column | Exploring Kerala’s links with Yemen

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KERALA :

Representational image: Pikoso.kz/Shutterstock.

Forgotten amidst waves of bad news, including geopolitical conflicts, environmental disasters and the global pandemic, is the humanitarian crisis caused by a civil war that began in 2014 in the fabled country of Yemen. For several centuries, the southern Arab country was a bridge between Kerala and lands to the west such as West Asia, Africa and Europe.

It was enterprising merchants from modern-day Yemen who began to make use of the monsoon winds to come to Muziris. The word monsoon comes from the Arabic mawsim, which means season. These businessmen lived a pretty globalised lifestyle by splitting their time between the Malabar Coast and southern Arabia at a time when there were no identity cards, passports, visas or even a concept of a nation-state. Some of these Arabs chose to settle down in the Malabar Coast and marry local women.

In a paper for the Indian History Congress in 1976, noted historian S M Mohamed Koya was able to trace the origins of the Malabar Muslim community.

“Some of these Arabs may have come from Hijaz, Oman and Bahrain. However, they were chiefly businessmen from Yemen and Hadramaut and many .Mappila families, particularly those known as ‘tangal’ families trace their origin to this area,” Mohamed wrote.

Interestingly enough, at the time of their migration to India, these merchants probably spoke Hadramautic, a language that belongs to the Old South Arabian subgroup of Semitic. “A large number of Mappila families find their origin in the interior Hadramaut town of Tarim, a wealthy town dominated by Sayyids which was once the intellectual and religious centre of Hadramaut,” Mohamed, who was a professor at the University of Calicut for decades, added.

In the paper, Mohamed stressed the fact that the traders started coming to India well before the advent of Islam, but their presence and established relations with the people of Malabar helped spread the religion in Kerala. “As pre-Islamic traders, the Arabs provided a friendly situation that facilitated the introduction of Islam and as Muslims, they introduced the faith,” he wrote.

Ponnani’s Makhdum family

Ponnani, a historic town that was once a major trading port, is also linked to Yemen. The town, at the peak of its glory, was home to the revered Makhdum family of Islamic theologians. Under Zain-ud-Din Makhdum and his grandson Zain ud-Din Makhdum II, Ponnani became a major centre of Islamic studies and is believed to have attracted students from Java, Sumatra, the Malay Peninsula and Ceylon.

It was also in this coastal town that the Arabi Malayalam or Ponnani script was invented. Since only 28 letters of Arabic orthography were available for 53 phonemes of Malayalam, additional letters established for Persian were used for this script.

Several old Mappila folk songs and works of literature were written in the Ponnani script, which stayed popular among Kerala’s Muslim community until the middle of the 20th century.

It has been on the wane since Indian independence and is taught mainly in a few madrassas in northern Kerala and the Lakshadweep Islands. There is no clear evidence though that this script has a Yemeni connection, but it was the script of choice for the Makdhum theologians.

This brilliant article by Kozhikode-based journalist Nijeesh Narayanan provides insights into the script, which is now in serious peril.

Zain ud-Din Makhdum II’s Tuhfat Ul Mujahideen chronicles the struggles between the people of the Malabar Coast and the colonial Portuguese. The book, originally written in the Ponnani script, describes the fierce resistance put up by the Kunjali Marakkar’s navy along with the Zamorin of Calicut against the Portuguese.

Culinary and cultural impact

There is little doubt that Yemeni elements have given an extra layer of depth to Kerala cuisine. Meen Pathiri and Irachi Pathiri are the results of Malayali and southern Arabic cuisine coming together.

Another dish that found its way from Hadraumat in Yemen to Kerala is Mandi or the famous Malabar Biriyani. Interestingly enough, the Yemeni version of the dish is usually made with chicken or lamb, and not with beef. If the Yemenis did bring Saltah, their delectable stew and the national dish, to Kerala, it did not manage to survive in its original form in the state, although many Malabari families have their own variations with different names.

Professor Mohamed in his paper wrote about how the mingling of the Yemeni immigrants with Malayalis has enriched the society of Kerala. He wrote, “Culturally the Malayalis were as far removed from the Arabs as the high topical scenery of Kerala is removed from the austere landscape of Arabia. But once wedded, the offspring of that union, the Mappilas have remained loyal to both parents.”

Before Yemen slipped into its latest civil war, there was a small and vibrant Malayali community in the country. One can only hope that the geopolitical puppet masters that have brought so much misery to the country allow it to once again live in peace. It is only when peace returns to the country that its millennia-old links to Kerala can be traced and re-established.

(The writer is the author of ‘Globetrotting for Love and Other Stories from Sakhalin Island’ and ‘A Week in the Life of Svitlana’).

source: http://www.onmanorama.com / OnManorama / Home> Lifestyle> Column / by Ajay Kamalakaran / June 28th, 2021

Dilip Kumar, the pole star of a golden age of Hindi cinema, no more

Amazing Feats, Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Books (incl.Biographies - w.e.f.01 jan 2018 ), Community Involvement / Social Issues, Leaders, World Opinion

Mumbai, MAHARASHTRA :

Dilip Kumar (1922 – 2021): The end of an era

Actor Dilip Kumar  

The right blend of star and actor, he was part of the discovery of cinema in India as a means of mass communication seen today

When Marlon Brando was struggling to find a footing in Hollywood, a shy Pathan boy from Peshawar was practising method acting in what was then the Bombay film industry, helping it come out of the Parsi theatre’s influence. As Dilip Kumar transcends to a new stage , the pole star of the golden age of Hindi cinema would be remembered for setting a template of acting for generations to come.

A veritable cultural icon who inspired economist Meghnad Desai to draw parallels between his films and the newly independent India’s tryst with socialism and capitalism in his seminal work, Nehru’s Hero: Dilip Kumar in the Life of India, there is a bit of Dilip Kumar in everyone’s life.

Discovered and later rechristened by Devika Rani of the famed Bombay Talkies, Dilip Kumar, along with Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand, were part of the discovery of cinema in India as a means of mass communication as we see it today. They had had few examples to follow and perhaps it worked to their advantage as each one carved out his own niche.

Out of the three, Dilip Kumar’s naturalistic style never became stale or dated. The right blend of star and actor who could keep both the public and the purist engaged with his craft, he kept his performances subtle, understated but always believable.

Not just his younger contemporaries like Rajendra Kumar, Manoj Kumar and Dharmendra, generations of dependable actors, from Amitabh Bachchan to Shah Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan to Irrfan, built edifices of their performances on the foundation laid by Dilip Kumar. Mr. Bachchan, who played Dilip Kumar’s son in Shakti, once said there was such finality to Dilip sahib’s performances that once he enacted a scene, there was no alternative to it. Irrfan once told this journalist that he often wondered when trained actors like him found it difficult to deal with scars left by tragic roles, how Dilip Kumar, who learnt the craft on his own, came to terms with it. Well, he did approach doctors in London, who advised him to consider lighter roles.

Film historians often label the thespian as the tragedy king for his moving portrayal of a loner who loses everything in love in a series of films such as Jugnu, Deedar and Devdas, but the eight-time Filmfare Award winner was equally compelling as a winsome romantic in Shabnam, Azaad and Kohinoor. Not to forget his intense performances as a revolutionary in Shaheed and a trade union leader in Paigham.

Be it the lawyer who rapes a village girl in Mehboob Khan’s Amar, the journalist who becomes black-marketeer in Zia Sarhady’s Footpath, the atheist in love with a mendicant in Kidar Sharma’s Jogan or the wheel-chair bound Raja Sahib in Aadmi, a role earlier essayed by Sivaji Ganesan, the Padma Vibhushan constantly lunged for complex characters where he was expected to evoke multiple emotions in a single frame.

He experimented not just with characters but also directorial styles. Both Amar and Footpath deal with moral guilt but while Mehboob Khan visualised a mass entertainer, Zia’s treatment was neo-realist. With Tapan Sinha’s Sagina Mahto, he ventured into parallel cinema and earned praise from his contemporaries.

At the time of Mughal-e-Azam, he was the top draw, but the narrative demanded Kumar to play second fiddle to Prithviraj Kapoor, a senior and a friend of his father. He delivered a restrained performance, a subtle counterpoint to the bombastic Kapoor that is etched in the minds of cinegoers. The way he caresses the luminous face of Madhubala with a feather is perhaps the most elegant romantic sequence filmed without a dialogue.

The one that stands out and inspired many adaptations is the dacoit in Gunga Jumna, his ambitious home production where the sophisticated Kumar transformed into an Awadhi speaking rustic who’s forced to pick up the gun.

He played serious roles with such dignity that he didn’t need to be loud to make people laugh. He brought his craft to comic roles as well. In Ram Aur Shyam, the scene that still leaves everyone in splits is the one where Shyam starts playing a poor copy of Ram.

It is this constant urge for variety and chiselling of the craft that the megastar, despite the world at his feet, chose to do only around 60 films spanning over almost five decades. He refused Guru Dutt’s Pyaasa for he found the character similar to Devdas. He said no to David Lean for Lawrence of Arabia as he was not keen to commit the amount of time that the director was asking from him.

In a BBC interview, he once said that when the director came to him with a 30-year-old character, he tried to find and build the first 29 years of his life from the script so that, “I start identifying with the character. Often directors leave it to me to interpret the character.”

Known to help out his colleagues in finding a rhythm that suited the narrative, the actor is said to have ghost directed many films such as Gunga Jumna, Ram Aur Shyam and Aadmi.

He took the preparation for a character to a different level. For “Madhuban Mein Radhika Nache Re” from Kohinoor, where he played sitar on screen, he trained with sitarist Ustad Halim Jaffar Khan for six months.

It is said while filming for Dil Diya Dard Liya, he ran four rounds of the studio because in the next sequence he was supposed to snatch a rifle from Pran, playing the villain, in a state of breathlessness.

Even in his second innings, when his mannerisms became marked, he impressed with power-packed performances in Shakti, Mashaal and Karma.

Off-screen, as a philanthropist, he always maintained that “industrialisation has made us narrow-minded”. He would always say “being developed and being civilised are two different things”.

In the late 1960s, when an argument was made about films promoting alcoholism and that they could be used to promote population control, Dilip Kumar said he was for promoting good values through films but that didn’t mean films become “instructional” or a “vehicle for propaganda”.

A connoisseur of the finer things of life, he had an abiding love for poetry and literature. Often, when he had to sidestep a controversial topic, he would come up with an Urdu couplet that would capture his emotion on the subject. Once when he was asked about his relationship with Madhubala, Kumar invoked Sahir Ludhianvi: “Mohabbat tark ki maine, garebaan see liya maine, zamane ab toh khush ho, zehar ye bhi pi liya maine” (Love I have renounced and sewn the collar [of the soul/ conscience] that was ripped; O world, now you be happy, for this poison as well I have sipped).

Deeply entrenched in Indian ethos, he never got over his childhood connection with his home town Peshawar where the young Yusuf Khan would be found dribbling a football or listening to stories at Qissa Khawani Bazaar. He remained a symbol of the undivided India as the Pakistan government bestowed upon him its highest civilian honour, the Nishan-e-Imtiaz. He wrote to the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee that if he considered it prudent, he would surrender the award. However, many feel it made his wait for the coveted Bharat Ratna longer.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Entertainment / by Anuj Kumar / New Delhi – July 07th, 2021

An Indo-American’s pursuit for vanishing Islamic heritage sites

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Toronto, CANADA :

Chennai:

Mr. Siraj Thakor, from Toronto, Canada, has undertaken the monumental task of creating an online database of all the Islamic Heritage Sites of India. He likes to preserve it digitally and make it available to all to cherish the Islamic past of this great country.

Mr. Siraj is looking for volunteers to assist him with the information on Islamic Heritage Sites in India. In response to his call, someone wrote to me with detailed information about a graceful mosque that lies in ruins in the Gaya district of Bihar.

This mosque popularly called ‘Lodi mosque’ was built around 1536 AD during the Lodhi rule in India. It is believed that Sultan Ibrahim Lodi, one of the rulers of the Lodhi dynasty had taken initiatives to get this mosque constructed.

This mosque is about 25 km from Gaya on Gaya-Patna road. It is exactly near Kundwa village at Khijrasarai block in Gaya district. It is situated on the banks of the river Falgu, a kilometer from village Kundwa. On the West of the river is Lodhipur village colloquially called Lodpur, while on the east is Kundwa village.

The mosque becomes functional only during ‘Eid’ and ‘Bakrid’ festival when some Muslims from Kundwa village come to offer prayers in this mosque.

For the rest of the years, this mosque remains a picture of neglect and want for maintenance. There is no Azaan called from this mosque as there is no one to take care of this house of worship. Some people have illegally occupied the land around this mosque but there is none to challenge such encroachments.

This historical mosque comes under the Archaeological Survey of India but neither ASI nor the Bihar government nor the Waqf Board, have any concern in protecting this Islamic heritage site.

It is in this context people like Mr. Siraj Thakor, who is Past President of the American Federation of Muslims of Indian Origin (AFMI), comes into the picture.  He wrote to me:

“Dear Brother Syed Ali Mujtaba, ASAK, I am a Past President of the American Federation of Muslims of Indian Origin (AFMI), We have undertaken the monumental task of creating an online database of all the Islamic Heritage Sites of India to preserve it digitally and make it available to all. I would take this opportunity to request you to be part of our team to collect info on Islamic Heritage Sites in your area. Alternatively, can you put in touch with someone or the organization which would be interested in such a historical task and leaves a legacy for the Indian Muslim generation to come? Wassalaam- Siraj Thakor.”

Mr. Siraj has started an All India campaign to document such historical Islamic heritage sites in ruins. If you have any similar story of any such Islamic heritage site near you, please write to him directly with photographs; (thakorsiraj@hotmail.com. You can even contact him on ‘WhatsApp’ -+1 416-277-7082.

This is a huge initiative and the efforts of people like Mr. Siraj needs to be strengthened by giving him a helping hand. Anyone, anyone where in the country who feels concerned about vanishing  Islamic Heritage Sites in India must come forward and join his team.

– Maiñ akelā hī chalā thā jānib-e-manzil magar– log saath aate gae aur kārvāñ bantā gayā –

(Translation: I set off alone towards my goal, but, people came along and it began to turn into a caravan!)

—

Syed Ali Mujtaba is a journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at (syedalimujtaba2007@gmail.com)

source: http://www.muslimmirror.com / Muslim Mirror / Home> Indian Muslim / by Syed Ali Mujtaba / June 19th, 2021

Assam’s Shaeema Ahmed earns accolade for research on Quantum Physics in Denmark

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Guwahati, ASSAM / DENMARK :

Shaeema Ahmed

Shaeema Zaman Ahmed, a youngster from Guwahati, brought laurels to Assam and India for her visionary work on quantum physics research, for which she was awarded the PhD from Aarhus University, in Denmark, on June 28.

After her earlier schooling at Maria’s Public School, Guwahati, and her Masters in Physics from Delhi University, Shaeema was at the forefront of science outreach and astronomy education with Zlife Education in New Delhi.

Thereafter, she was offered a Marie Sklodowska-Curie PhD fellowship at Aarhus University, Denmark, and was part of the Quantum-enhanced Sensing via Quantum Control (QusCo) EU programme.

Her work focussed on investigating the use and impact of quantum games and simulation tools in quantum physics education, science outreach, and quantum control research.

She was part of the design process in Quantum Moves 2 and Lab Manager and simulation tools like the Quantum Composer.

Her research studies on these tools explored how simulations can improve student learning of quantum mechanics.

Additionally, her work also addressed the potential of a citizen science game as a method to crowdsource solutions to solve quantum control problems, and the impact of the use of simulations in quantum physics outreach training.

The work was carried out under the supervision of Prof Jacob Friis Sherson, and the external examiners were Prof Sabrina Maniscalco from the University of Turku, Finland and Prof Stefan Heusler from the University of Münster, Germany.

Shaeema is the daughter of Guwahati-based paediatrician, Dr Shabina Ahmed and anesthesiologist, Dr Khafiluzzaman Ahmed.

The defence was viewed online, including her teachers at her alma mater, Maria’s Public School, Guwahati.

In a message to her alumnus, Nellie Ahmed Tanweer, Founder Director of the School, said “…the pride you bring to your school further inspires the next generation …

source: http://www.nenow.in / North East Now / Home> Northeast News> Assam / July 04th, 2021

India’s Motor Sports Body ‘nominates’ its own president Akbar Ebrahim for Dronacharya Award

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Chennai, TAMIL NADU :

Akbar Ebrahim. (TOI Photo)

New Delhi :

Indian motorsports’ governing body FMSCI has nominated its own president Akbar Ebrahim for the Dronacharya Award besides sending Jehan Daruvala’s name to the government for Arjuna Award after inexplicably ignoring him last year.

Racer turned coach Ebrahim’s name was also recommended for Dronacharya last year but none of FMSCI’s nominations for the national sports awards was short-listed by the government appointed selection panel.

However, Ebrahim was not heading the FMSCI back then and some within the FMSCI feel his name should not have been included in the nominations this time as he is holding office.

“It is ironical isn’t it. Effectively the president only decides on the nominations and he has nominated himself . Two names were discussed initially but the Council decided to send only Ebrahim’s name.

“Last year was fine but his name shouldn’t have been gone this year as he is holding office. As far as Jehan’s nomination is concerned, I am glad it has happened this year as his named should have been there last year itself,”  a FMSCI official told PTI.

Top rally driver Gaurav Gill is Indian motorsports’ first and only recipient of a national sports award, having got the Arjuna in 2019. His co-driver Musa Sherif has been nominated for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna but he is highly unlikely to be considered for the country’s highest sporting honour.

Jehan’s name on the other hand should have been sent last year. India’s biggest racing star at the moment, Jehan stands the best chance of getting the award.

“He is one deserving candidate and should be honoured by the government,” the FMSCI official added.

The 22-year-old is into his second year in Formula 2 and has multiple podium finishes to his name. He won the sprint race in Bahrain last year and has scored two podiums, a second and third place, this season.

He is also a Red Bull junior driver.

In 2019, Jehan finished third in the Formula 3 Championship, which is another support series to Formula 1.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> News> Sports News> Racing News / by PTI / June 29th, 2021

Taking a scalpel to pencil, Qatar resident carves a miniature world

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KERALA / Doha, QATAR :

Doha:

Le Pouce, or the giant thumb sculpture at Souq Waqif, is a popular public artwork installed by Qatar Museum. What would happen when that same larger-than-life art piece is carved onto pencil graphite. That’s the thought that inspired Farhan Hameed, a carving artist residing in Doha to recreate the same artwork. The result was another beautiful miniature artwork atop a pencil! 

A motion graphic designer from Kerala, India, Farhan in his free time fiddles with his pencil and scalpel, and creates miniature carvings of popular buildings and other art pieces with the most recent one being Burj Doha. 

Farhan has also received compliments from contemporary Qatari artist Ahmed bin Majed Al Maadheed whose signature he had carved and shared. Ahmed commented on the Insta post writing, “Amazing details job. Thank you brother for your work.” 

Without any knowledge about pencil carving, he attempted to carve ‘I Love My India’ onto a pencil. About a dozen pencils later, his carving was complete. “This was my first work and it was nowhere near perfect but then it was something that I made with a lot of effort. I had no knowledge of carving tools and the pencil lead would break easily. It took over three days for the piece to be completed,” says Farhan. He attempted a few more and then sent some of the snaps to Afsal who shared his knowledge about the tools used – scalpel to sharpen and needles for detailing and making holes. 

He moved to Doha for work and that is when he took up pencil carving again and started sharing them on his Instagram page. People started liking his work and recognition came when his artwork was shared by a few in the Kerala film industry. “I carved a movie name “Thamaasha” and that was part of the movie’s 25th-day screening celebration. It was then that my parents came to know about my carvings. They would see me fiddling with the pencil and doing something but allowed me to carry on with whatever I loved,” says the 27-year-old artist. 

Of all the pencil carvings that he has done in the last few years, heart lock is one of his favourite and one that took many trials. He says, “In a heart lock, you have to carve the pencil in such a way that there are two hearts locked within each other. I tried it many times but it was recently that I was able to finish it successfully.” 

The carvings on social issues have garnered the most support on social media, with the most recent one named Eid With Aqsa – a pencil carving of the Al Aqsa Mosque. Prior to that Azaadi carving on the CAA issue in India was also much appreciated among his Instagram followers as he says, “Social issues connect with a larger audience and it is a way for us artists to share our opinion as well.”     

Though all his carvings take a lot of patience, he would like to continue his work and bring many more carvings to life. “There are quite a few beautiful structures in Doha. My dream is to carve them in a miniature form and if possible to set up an exhibition sometime later,” he concludes.

source: http://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com / The Peninsula / Home> Doha Today> Community / by Anisha Bijukumar, The Peninsula Online / June 06th, 2021

Rohan Bopanna-Sania Mirza pair wins historic all-Indian Wimbledon match

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Hyderabad, TELANGANA :

File photo of Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna.   | Photo Credit: PTI

It was the first time in open era that two Indian teams competed against each other at a Grand Slam tournament.

The experienced pair of Rohan Bopanna and Sania Mirza defeated the brand new combination of Ramkaumar Ramanathan and Ankita Raina 6-2 7-6 (5) in the historic all-Indian mixed doubles first round match at the Wimbledon here on Friday.

It was the first time in open era that two Indian teams competed against each other at a Grand Slam tournament.

The contest finally brought a Grand Slam debut for Ramkumar, who has made 21 attempts to qualify for the singles main draw of a tennis major.

While the first set ended quickly in favour of the veterans, Ramkumar and Raina presented a good fight in the second set, which even they led for a brief period with a break of serve.

Bopanna was clearly the best player on the court with his powerful serve and solid ground strokes from the baseline as well as the ability to execute a superior net game.

On expected lines, Ramkumar served big while Raina gave her all after growing in confidence.

Mirza’s serve is still not at its best and would improve as she plays more matches.

Mirza has moved has also moved to women’s doubles second round with Bethanie Mattek-Sands while Raina and her American partner Lauren Davis lost in straight sets to the US pair of Asia Muhammad and Jessica Pegula on Thursday night.

The 14th seeds disposed off the challenge from the Raina-Davis pair 6-3 6-2 in 70 minutes.

Bopanna and Divij Sharan are already out, having lost their men’s doubles opening round match.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sport> Tennis / by PTI / London, July 02nd, 2021

How a dry fish seller’s son from Kasaragod became most sought after navigator in motorsports world

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Mogral Village (Kasaragod), KERALA :

Another proud moment for Kasaragod as Musa Sharif gets nominated for Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, announced district collector D Sajith Babu on his Facebook page.

Musa Sharif (right and inset) with Karamjith Singh, Malaysia’s most-decorated rally driver, at the Rally of Perlis in 2018

Kasargod :

Another proud moment for Kasaragod, announced district collector D Sajith Babu on his Facebook page.

Congratulations to the pride of Kasaragod Musa Sharif, said Kasaragod MLA Nellikkunnu.

“Let’s hope the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna will reach Kasaragod through Musa Sharif,” he said.

For Kasaragod — a district with few sporting heroes —  Asia’s ace navigator Musa Sharif, 49, is a legend. He is the most experienced and sought-after co-driver in India’s motorsports world.

Acknowledging his contributions to motorsports in India, the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI) has nominated Sharif for the highest sporting honour of India.

“I am honoured by the nomination for Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna. Normally, drivers get all the attention. But navigators enjoy the blind trust of the drivers and share the podium with them,” he said. 

Since 2007, he has been the navigator of champion Gaurav Gill, who won the Arjuna Award in 2019, the year when the government recognised FMSCI as the national federation for motorsports. Musa has been a navigator for 29 years. “Coming January, it will be 30 years,” he says.

In these three decades, he has navigated for 49 drivers in 296 rallies, of which 67 were international rallies.

“I never had an off-year,” he chips in.

He has won 21 championships, including eight national championships — seven of them with Gill. Musa has travelled long rough terrains to be where he is today.

He was born to the late Zainuddin Perwad and Aysha in Mogral, a fishing village in Kasaragod. His father used to sell dry fish. 

He got hooked to driving when he got admission for Bachelor of Business Management in Badriya College in Mangaluru, 40km from his home.

Thrice in a week, he used to take his TVS Shogun or Yamaha RX100 to the college. Rest of the days, he would take the bus.

When he came to know of racing events in the city, he thought of giving it a try.

The first race he took part in was the rally organised by Karavali Auto Sports Club in Mangaluru in 1993. Congress’s Mangaluru MLA U T Khader was one of his co-racers.

He won the first championship in his fourth rally. In two years, Team MRF signed him as a navigator and he shifted gear to four-wheel racing.

He started his career as a navigator with Satish Bhat.  In 1997, he joined JK Tyre and then returned to Team MRF in 2001.

In 2013, he joined Mahindra Adventure. Since 2007, Musa Sharif and Gill are together, participating in 63 rallies, and winning in 36 rallies.

Together, they won the Rally of Coimbatore for Mahindra Adventure in January — to emerge national champions again.

His international wins came with Lohitt Urs (Asia Cross Country); Arjun Rao (Malaysian Rally Group N); Sanjay Takle (Malaysian Rally Championship) and Saneem Sani of Thrissur (UAE Rally Championship).

Every driver has a different call sign and navigators have to get adjusted to it. “Before the race, the driver and the navigator take the road twice, and prepare a ‘pace note’. It will be like a story of the road, the turns, and dips, the rise, the angle of the curves,” he said.

On the first trip, the driver gives the notes and the navigator takes them own.

On the second trip, the navigator will guide the driver based on the notes and will make corrections, if needed.

“On the race day, the driver would blindly trust the navigator and go by his command,” he said. 

The navigator
The Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI) nominated Musa Sharif from Mogral in Kasaragod for the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna

The stats
29 years | 49 drivers
296 rallies | 67 international rallies | 21 championships
8 National championships
7 with Gaurav Gill

source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Good News / by George Poikayil / Express News Service / July 03rd, 2021

Arshia Khan

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Mumbai, MAHARASHTRA / Doha, QATAR :

COO, Crowdbridge Consultants Pvt Ltd;
Editor, Crowdteck.com – A CSR Digital Magazine;
Associate Director, Crowd Central Technology

Against all odds, Arshia Khan lives to tell the tale. The year was 1985; city, Mumbai. The building Arshia’s family was residing in, collapsed, and they lost everything including her elder brother. Arshia was declared dead and taken to a morgue. Destiny however had other plans. Arshia suffered a loss of eyesight and memory, but thanks to God’s grace and timely medical intervention led by Dr Machiswala, she gradually bounced back to normalcy.

From then on, Arshia’s fighting spirit battled every obstacle in her path to emerge victorious.

One of six siblings, Arshia grew up in humble surroundings. Despite being the lone breadwinner, her father ensured good education for all. And so Arshia attended St Anne’s High School in Bandra, Mumbai which is also alma mater to renowned personalities like actor Aamir Khan and politician Baba Siddiqui.

Valuing everything that life had to offer, Arshia worked hard and excelled at everything in school. From being among the top three rankers in class to winning scholarships and best students awards, Arshia was God’s favourite child.

Following an interest towards daily affairs and national issues, Arshia pursued a degree in Mass Media (Journalism) at Rizvi College of Management. During this time, she was academically adopted on merit by an NGO called MESCO, which supports educational necessities of worthy students. The selfless service of MESCO went a long way in encouraging her to participate in social causes. Now one of her co-ventures that she is passionate about is Crowd Bridge Consultants Pvt Ltd which covers all that creates and promotes social development, wellbeing and betterment.

At Rizvi College, Arshia was mentored by (late) Prof P K Ravindranath who was an iconic journalist in his days. Following her mentor’s advice, ‘If you want to be a journalist, be on the ground, network, and build relationships’, she didn’t pursue her masters. She started networking, which eventually landed her a job at the Indian Express Newspapers. She learnt everything about journalism and media at The Indian Express. In 2010, she moved to Network 18 Media and Investments Ltd. as a Features Editor, managing a bigger team. She later diversified into the PR industry and worked at Perfect Relations’ healthcare arm – Imprimis. Two years hence, she moved to Adfactors, the PR giant, as an account manager.

As her professional life flourished, marital bliss followed. Soon after having her first baby Yahya in 2017, Arshia moved to Doha, Qatar. During 2017 – 18, she worked as a freelance consultant. By the end of 2018, she joined Crowd Central Technology as the Head of Content. Crowd Central’s CEO, Waseem Ahmed Kazi, always spoke at length about how he wanted to make a positive difference in society. Their thoughts resonated, and eventually Arshia was leading an exciting new venture, Crowdteck.com – a CSR Digital Magazine.

The objective of the magazine is to encourage good work in humanitarian causes, irrespective of cast, creed or religion. Their aim to restore faith in humanity helped them to connect with a global audience, and their online global readership quadrupled in two years.

From Mumbai to Qatar, what has been Arshia’s biggest challenge? “I have always been a passionate journalist, but was naïve about the business aspect until 2018 when I was promoted as the Associate Director at Crowd Central Technology. This big push meant that I was not only dealing with publishing of content but also specialised areas like revenue, business, and the like. As I was delegated the responsibility of handling international business across India, I learnt the specifics of a brick-and-mortar business model, including the online implications of its cyber footprint,” shares Arshia.

Although professionally satisfying and rewarding, this leap posed some challenges at the personal level. “My husband and I would work separate shifts and take turns to be with our toddler. It can be heart-breaking to leave your months-old toddler for work, and all new mothers will relate to this.”

However Arshia was lucky to be working with a company like Crowd Central Technology, which not only accommodated her requests as a new mother but also rewarded and motivated her to continue unabated.

On the other hand is Arshia’s most gratifying moment. Without a blink, she says, “Motherhood! Being a mother has been a blissful journey, which has taught me that patience and perseverance take you far. My child has disciplined me in more ways than one, and I can’t thank the Almighty enough for this little bundle of joy.”

As a parting note, inspirational Arshia shares a very important piece of advice, “I was embarrassed to seek aid or assistance of any kind. It is important that we inculcate the habit of reaching out for help in our children, who will be future leaders.”

source: http://www.passionvista.com / Passion Vista / Home> Collector’s Edition – Featured Stories – Women Leaders 2021 / April 2021