For The Bluest Eye

Beauty was not something to behold , it was something one could do .

But to find out the truth about how dreams die , one should never take the word of the dreamer.

Love is never any better than the lover. Wicked people love wickedly , violent people love violently, weak people love weakly ,stupid people love stupidly, but the love of free man is never safe. There is no gift for the beloved. The lover alone possesses his gifts of love. The loved one is shorn , nuetralized frozen in the glare of the lover's inward eye.


These are the rose petals from a fine novel called The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison. They are adequate to suggest how the novel is. Aren't they? They dig our psychology and bring out a truth from inside us . And this is what we expect from a good writer , to hold up a mirror to our life and mind also. 


The novel is actually a tragic poetry . And in her own phrase , "a patchwork quilt of reality". It is a maze and you must confuse yourself in order to not to lose the meaning.


Pecola , the ugliest girl among ugly Black people fancies to have blue eyes , thinking that it will make her beautiful.But author indicates at the end that none can make her beautiful than the will and efforts of her own self. She hallucinates herself and talks to that image as a friend,  feels happy about herself , now having blue eyes. But it is certainly not as tragic. What really a tragedy is that she gets pregnant by her own father. But to one's surprise narrative folds in such a manner that you are not at all surprised  by what has happened.


I finished the novel today and was eager to share it on FB . So I shared one quotable line from novel. And so came to discussion with one friend about how we felt after reading the novel . And this was my reply -


What makes me cry is ... we are not different from these characters ... our life is not different ... if they are pitiable so are we... if they are ugly so are we... if ... wat matters ... some people are born complicated and put in complicated situations ... others cant understand them ... what makes me feel awkward is that I wud have reacted / felt same way as they did , if put in that situation...
It was a tragedy ... with not the air of tragedy.

The book is psychologically true and technically beautiful. One can not miss one quotable line as there are many. Same about psychological truth. And technically speaking the novel is wonderful. It moves like soothing music. It is most sensuous prose work I have read. And it feels like amazing... 

I wont say I have understood the work completely . Sometimes less understanding is more understanding... as I think so :) 

Re-experienced a Second World : Banasthali Vidhyapeeth

Umm..amm... (sighs and smiles) !!! This was our first reaction upon seeing our old university , Banasthali Vidhyapeeth. I ask myself so many times - what's there in that place? Some magic? or Something else? It is so different from entire world - it is a world in itself. But this world , mind you , is a reverse world , wanna know how , let me tell you then - 

1. A place where a four wheeler strives for space as its a world of Walking Dolls. Excuse me for exaggeration. :P

2. Only place dominated by Females , they are superior , and no wonder if someday male minority would begin a fight for their rights , calling it , Malism , oopz ...sounds bad! :D

3. Umbrella is sold more in summer than Monsoon.

4. Everything colors Pink . :) No , it was just a joke :P .

5. And Guys are poorly treated and poorly stared and vulgarly commented so guys! don't dare to go alone there. :)

And so on ... 

Well , you cant get the  hold of the soul of Banasthali from few petty points , you need to experience it , you need to watch the beauty , feel the peace of solitude and breath its fresh air . Its a second world indeed! Petty things become great just like this Apaji ka Mela , but you wont understand why they become great because you have never lived in Banasthali.These things make Banasthali a second world , unique,different and unexplainable.

 We had stayed with our old friend , its always a pleasure to meet your old friends but it is dangerous if your stay is short. We stayed for two days in hostel (illegally) . And guess what? We enjoyed like hell ... thanks to her roomies also .. they were literally Fun to gossip with .. and yeah ... Ehsaas was always the center of our talk... :) :P shhh.. it is a girly secret! 

So , now when I look back and think , what we got from our Banasthali trip? I smile , and I know what's it - 

....

two pairs of open-toe sandals :P No Jokes this time ... our sandals had broken because of messy ground of mela and we had to buy new ones ... but it was very difficult and unromantic for Swati to walk with bare feet on a wet ground though I think it was fun too and I think Swati will also agree... it was a Romantic trip ;)

And wait wait wait... I forgot to share an important and beautiful part of this trip - I met with my seniors and Geeta Ma'am. Geeta ma'am was as usual cheery and warm . She is a wonderful teacher and an epitome of literature itself. And my meet up with Seniors was something like - ahem ahem... Unique ! They looked at me - and they didn't know who I am ... (by face , of course coz on FB we talk as if we know each other since a long time ) . 

By the way , don't you assume that I love Banasthali ... but how can you not love a place which gave you so many things .... and so called Friends !!! Miss them & Love them !!!  

Whatever However Anyhow Anyway Banasthali ROCKS!!!! :D

We are the Free Birds....

We are the Free Birds ... humming the tune since I came back from a superb youth program , Jashn - e - Jaipur , an annual event of PJI (Pravah Jaipur Initiative) . It was a nice song , we are the free birds... though we are not (most of the times) but tab bhi maanane ko dil karta hai that WE ARE .

Till yesterday night I was in fuss whether to go for event or no but then I decided I shall go. However I could only attend two hour's program and so I reached at 3 o'clock. Well at that time the event was on its peak.Everyone was enthusiastic and room was filled with the applause sounds , cheering and clapping sounds. A band was playing and it was amazing. But I was much impressed by another group which presented Rap with classical ie Fusion. In this fusion one moment came when I was transported into another world. This was inspiring as words started flowing in my mind for its appreciation. One side Rap poetry on other Classical raga - does it not remind of life? - parallels in life? - balance in life? - fast and slow - shallow and deep - or more properly , Material and Spiritual. When both together played at high pitch room filled with a strange positive feeling. It was some what mysterious also. And it was so powerful.  I think like me many people in that room could feel strong power of music.

Along with music , through poems , dance and plays participants touched many social issues for example , Blood donation , discrimination , rehabilitation and so on  . And thus the day was dedicated to Creativity , Oh! I mean Life. :)

Congratulations Mr. Cole!

 Mr. Cole , about whom I read in today's The Hindu , reminds me of Van Gogh. Though  Van Gogh was a Dutch post- impressionist artist and Mr Cole was a Black photographer but one thing is common between them and that is - they both found a way to express themselves in the world.

Mr. Cole created a moving pictorial record of what it was like to be a black in apartheid South Africa. The largest retrospective of his work , once banned , is now on display in Johannesburg. The photos clicked by him seem to be the photos of an another world , an unfamiliar world. Someone like me can not imagine the horrible lives of these Black people. No I can not ! Living in a perfect world where all is well and beauty is not hard to find and where one can do what one wishes - at least most of the times - it is unbelievable that such horrible things exist in the world.

There is one photo he clicked  of gold-mine recruits, who had been lined up in a grimy room for a group examination, after sneaking his camera into the mine inside his lunch bag.  

And in another photo  a child is clutching to his board in a hottest day at unfurnished school .

The people who visited the museum said that the room was full of anger. A kid wondered how could white people do this to them. The photos are full of different emotions . They are so moving specially one in which a black maid is holding a white baby who is kissing her forehead and she says "“I love this child, though she’ll grow up to treat me just like her mother does.” A maid quoted by Ernest Cole in his caption for this picture." 

Sometimes I think there are so many things happening in the world and how much we know of it? Most of us like to live in an Ivory Tower , isolated from the world around us . Then people like Mr. Cole inspire us , open our eyes and make us realize that we cant sit idle when so many things ; good or bad , happening around us. The world is a part of our eternal journey and we have a significant role to play here. We must choose a medium to express ourselves honestly and so contribute in the world. People like Mr. Cole and Van Gogh did it now it is our turn .

Congratulations Mr. Cole!