Out Of The Window

I often wonder why each day of our lives we either forget things that spark joy or take on things that overshadow joy. Everything that we do is in the hope that there will be a tomorrow and that we want it to be better. When that tomorrow arrives, it is spent as an investment for the future. Is it practical to look forward to something that may never come? Or is it practical to completely deny the possibility of a future that rests on the present foundation? Almost everything that we do is in preparation for the future. We are told to go to school because we need to go to college. We are told to go to college because we need to work. We are told to go to work because we need to support a family. The cycle is never ending, there is always because 'insert something in the future'. We are rarely told to live in the present. Every struggle in the present is justified as a sacrifice for the future. The conditioning, the cautioning, has made me fear the future. When something is unk

Hegemony, a term coined by Antonio Gramsci refers to the process of moral and intellectual leadership through which dominated or subordinate classes. In his work the Prison Notebooks, he talks about hegemony in the context of the post-1870 Industrial Western Europe. Hegemony which was initially associated with the political sphere now dominates almost every aspect of society. There is cultural, political, military, economic and even patriarchal hegemony in the present. Patriarchal hegemony is especially of concern to India where through decades of conditioning, women have been subordinated and a male-dominated power structure has been established. The process of reinforcing and legitimising gender roles and norms has made the institution of patriarchy so strong that it seems almost natural. The hegemonic masculinity seeks to establish complete control over the female mind and body. It also specifies a notion of 'feminity' that is biased and uphold the man as being the ultima

Existence, existentialism and existential crisis are some of the words that we hear being thrown around casually. It is not often that we stop to think about what those terms mean or what it means to exist. When it comes to existentialism, we are all certain of one thing (hopefully) that is the fact that we exist. A lot of times we would have encountered situations where we feel completely lost and we feel a sense of isolation or meaninglessness. That is precisely what existentialism says, the world itself is not meaningful but we as individuals have the capacity to shape the world around us to derive a purpose or meaning. Everything that we do in our daily life is relevant only because we have chosen to assign that significance to it. We as human beings have all the freedom to do as we please which is starkly evident in what we have done to the world. Choice is what determines who we truly are. We choose to study, read, eat, wear only certain things, all of which contributes to a m

High heels and dark lipstick Short skirts and bare shoulders She walked while society tore her confidence "Oh, she has no character", they said And she heard the haunting melody again Gory flashbacks streaking her memories Carrying the burden of trauma and pain She walked while society ridiculed her "Oh, poor girl with no self-respect", they said And she heard the haunting melody again Sun baked and short tresses Forced to smear herself with 'special' concoctions She walked while society termed her ugly "Oh, she will get no attention", they said And she heard the haunting melody again The different shes snowball into a they Hit by hurling labels, norms and stereotypes They heard the haunting melody again Yet again, from the shes different from them 

Blackout or negative poetry is a form of poetry in which few words are selected from an existing text and highlighting them in comparison to other words in order to create meaningful lines. Interesting connections can be formed between words that were previously not linked to each other or were structured to mean something different. Often such poetry is created using pages from old fiction novels for its colourful vocabulary. Here is an attempt at creating not a poem but a meaningful line from a newspaper where the choice of words in a single article is slightly repetitive. A home, A den of protection, Semblance of care.  Trauma and fear, With a sense of shame.  Mental turbulence of, Entering a crucial stage. 

Art is a medium of expression, it is the making or doing of something to derive or provide pleasure. Art is a skill which is either transmitted across generations or developed at specific points in time. Every period in history has a specific form of art that characterizes it and gives it an identity. In India, art has been closely connected to culture and emotion. In a country where culture is distinctly different every few kilometers, India is the home for innumerable art forms in various mediums such as fine art, dance, music, drama and many others. The deeply rooted traditions in the cultural system provides a strong base for the sustenance and transmission of artistic skills. Traditionally, art forms were concentrated in specific communities and it became their profession and responsibility to continue the family craft. The art that is transmitted carries along with it the memories, hard work and emotion attached to it. The skill that is passed on carries cultural baggage bec

Asghar Farhadi is an Iranian film maker. I recently came across his films on IMDb and decided to watch them. The film A Separation won the Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards. The film is based on the themes of realistic mystery, religion, moral dilemma and psychological conflict. It presents a picture of familial relationships and the structure of Iranian society. Here is my impression of the film: A Separation is an Iranian film written and directed by Asghar Farhadi which explores the complexities of human relationships and the strings that bind them together. It is an intense representation of moral dilemma and internal conflict. The films presents a seemingly simple story of a couple, Nader and Simin who are divided on their opinions pertaining to their daughter’s future. Simin wants to move out of Iran to provide better opportunities to her daughter while Nader does not wish to leave home in order to care for his old father suffering from Alzheimer’s. The par

Social norms are unstated or unwritten rules about functioning in society. They are codes of behaviour which reflect or embody a culture's values. Norms either prescribe certain kinds of behaviour or they forbid it. They are also backed by social sanctions which reinforce socially expected forms of behaviour. Social control, therefore, differs from legal control. Social norms are a way through which age-old traditions and strongly rooted beliefs are propagated. On the other hand, they play an important role in enforcing values to maintain order in society.  Most of one's social identity and behaviour is shaped by social norms since they dictate how one is expected to function in social settings. Some common social norms include legitimising the caste system, conforming to gender stereotypes or something as basic as accepting everything spoken by elders to be true The concept of respect is important is any relationship or setting to maintain harmony and be accepting of others