Kusum Choppra

Kusum Choppra: Deja Vu: July 2014

Kusum Choppra: Deja Vu: July 2014

Deja Vu: July 2014 A sense of Deja Vu is inevitable, with spectacle of  opposition MPs waving newspapers in the House, shouting about an incident of force-feeding with communal overtones, reminiscent of the Partition excesses.  This was in the august Maharashtra Sadan in the capital itself, host to a number of parliamentary and other official bigwigs.   What purpose did that vandalism by 'august' MPs serve?  to show people how their betas conduct themselves -- set an example of how to get things done by officialdom? The Deja Vu continues, with the ruling members perhaps forgetting that they were no longer in the Opposition and rushing into the well of the House, to the acute embarrassment of the seniors on the front  bench.  Since the present ruling party was noted for rushing into the well of the House in the last decade or so, to inhibit parliamentary debate and passage of innumerable bills, their own members resorting to the same now that they...

April 11, 2014 The BJP started out as the Ram party with the Maryada Purshottam as its mascot; held responsible for escalation of community disharmony;  while one elder statement Atal Bihari Vajpayee preached Raj dharam but did not implement it;  another elder statesman, L K Advani presided over the destruction of an aged mosque to spark off riots all over the country and perhaps became a tool to blackmail him forever more. In 2014, the BJP made a huge national hulla over the fact that no other party had announced a Prime Ministerial candidate --- only the BJP had.   It quietly swallowed the fact that all other parties had released their manifestoes (for whatever paper and ink they are worth), while the Ram party chose to release its regurgled version after the elections had actually begun.  Once again it has trotted out its commitment to build a Ram temple to add to the dozens of such ram temples at Ayodhya – a feat it conspicuously failed to do durin...

I have just finished reading an amazing book Zipporah, by Marek Halter.   It tells the story of the Cushite wife of Moses, the grand old man of the Old Testament and mother of his two sons. Zipporah grew up in the household of Jethro, a sage/ high priest of the Midian kings, an abandoned baby who grew up with his own children, apple of his eye for her dark skinned beauty and wisdom beyond her years.    In her adopted tribe, she is not accepted as a possible bride, but for the refugee from Egypt, Moses, Zipporah was the wife he felt was made for him. The story of Zipporah follows the evolution of Moses from a refugee Eygptian prince to a leader of the Hebrew slaves of Egypt, prodded by both Jethro and Zipporah. The trip across the desert to Eygpt was a revelation for her: accepted as Moses’ destiny by both his adoptive and biological mothers, she is rejected by his brother Aaron and sister Miriam; animosity against Moses’ dark-skinned wife is instigated and ev...

Kangana Ranaut's Queen was a wonderful experience.  How deeply ingrained are our prejudices against ourselves?  That aspect was brought out so well in the beginning with Kangana's reaction to her rejection and her first day in Paris.  How did she find the courage to go for her dream honeymoon by herself? to make friends with the Chamber maid and then make a buddy of her? to go off on her own and made friends across the board and yet retain her own innate dignity? discover her own sense of fun and capacities. It was a mind blowing experience.  Thank you whoever was the director and Kangana for that performance. Perhaps the piece d' resistance was her so very dignified insistence that "we'll talk about it later" and then finally quietly handing him his rang and walking out so full of poise and confidence in herself. Full on Kangana.  five stars.

March 2014 Tucked away in the lanes of the inner city of Udaipur is this gorgeous little restored haveli.  Paintings on the walls, floral and other stencils on the ceiling that reminded me of the pictures my son Mehirr had brought back of the ancestral havelis at Eminabad, now in Pakistan. Lots of steep stairs to be negotiated, but worth the climb, from the first floor bedroom to the lounge and kitchen on the third floor --- awesome breezes and views of the Pichola lake, its palace and the city all around… a true roof top experience. All the basic amenities were there --- not the clinical ‘nicety’ of a hotel, but cheery interaction with Caroline and Vikram who run the place and the motley fellow guests, from Delhi and Surat, from Sardinia, Hungary, England and elsewhere --- lots of views and experiences to exchange. Perhaps best of all was a raucous Holi celebration, right at the doorstep, with a fire whose embers continued well till the morning of Duleti, plenty of c...