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Category / Culture
July 23, 2017

Enlivening the faded

Kerala has never been scarce in the number of talented and skilled artists. Almost all villages in the State is being recognised by at least one artist it has produced. This artistic affluence is the reason why artists from Kerala are being known across the world time to time. Here is one young, spirited mural artist from Atholi, a village in Kozhikode district, who has recently been chosen for the annual young artist fellowship by the Ministry of Culture for the year 2014-15. Apart from being an exponent in mural artistry, V. M. Jijulal, 37, is also one among a handful of artists in India, who excelled in the art and science of art conservation.

“My passion for art was never stagnant. Even as practising as a mural artist, having worked at almost all the nook and cranny of this State, I always craved to do something more, something different. My foray into the art of conservation was the result of this craving,” Jiju, as he is fondly being called by his friends, reminisced.

Jiju kick-started his art conservation projects in 2003 with the mural works at Ananthapuram temple in Kasargod. The mural art inside the Sanctum Sanctorum had almost faded and the temple authority wanted to renovate. Jiju, who was trained in mural art at Guruvayur Devaswom Chumar Chitra Padana Kendram, took up the challenging work as he knew it was the apt job to test his expertise in the art.

Art, Culture, People
By Greeshma Neelakandan
May 12, 2017

40 years and Beyond: The Life of an Unofficial High Court Barber

The ring of a cycle bell announces his arrival. A 71 –year-old, the man is dressed in a half-sleeved shirt and pants, both carefully ironed. His innocent smile does not betray the simplicity of his heart, for he would never hold any malice against anyone. With an ever-welcoming smile, he would graciously invite you to his humble shop, a gesture which is difficult to ignore.  He is P. Sasidharan (pictured in blue shirt), the unofficial barber of many Chief Justices and judges of the Kerala High Court for the past several years.

Remarkably, Sasidharan has been in the business since the past 40 years. Years passed, but the dedication and enthusiasm with which he carries out every task doesn’t seem to have declined. “Happiness that I get from serving people, putting a smile on their faces is the one thing that keeps me going,” says Sasidharan. He is still willing to go to his customer’s house for a haircut.

Originally from Thiruvananthapuram, Sasidharan’s father Narayanan died when he was 8 years old. He shouldered the responsibility of his family and started working at a cycle shop where his work was of fixing punctures. He then went on to work in a tailor shop, the salary from which, however, was insufficient.

Culture, Life, People
By Bibin Raj
April 16, 2017

Vibe the Music School Wants its Students to be Performance Ready

Want to go out there and perform or know someone who is talented in music and could benefit from some performance guidance? VIBE, the music conservatory is the place to be. Founded by John Thomas, the drummer for Motherjane and David Joseph, his teacher. The school that believes in the ideology, “Tone is music’, also has Suresh John and Ani Varghese as directors.

John Thomas tell us more about wanting to introduce students to the music industry and getting them performance ready.

“There are few such music schools in India- none really in Kochi,” he starts by saying. “When youngsters learn music, they don’t get to know anything about the music industry- nothing about how to get started, make yourself head or learn to perform on stage.” Plus, the teacher-student duo who founded the music conservatory very much felt the need to try and give one on one attention to students of music. “Very few music institutes explore aspects like recording while teaching instruments. Also the idea is to create a shared experience of sorts between artists for better understanding of music.”

Culture, Entertainment
By Sumitra Nair
April 13, 2017

Malayalam Made Compulsory in Schools, a Welcome Decision

Yesterday, the government announced that all education institutions in Kerala will now have to compulsorily teach Malayalam until Class 10. Governor P. Sathasivam on Tuesday signed an ordinance to this effect. The law is applicable to all institutions under CBSE and ICSE boards from the next academic session.

And while students coming to Kerala from other states or countries to study will be exempted, the government can impose a penalty of INR 5000 if schools put a restriction on students speaking Malayalam on school premises. The government also has the right to cancel NOC of schools that violate this. Earlier, the Congress government too, tried to make Malayalam compulsory even at higher secondary level, but didn’t go ahead with the plan as it would face practical difficulties in implementing.

The decision comes after the government made use of Malayalam compulsory as the official language in government offices from May 1, in lieu of it being mandatory to know Malayalam to get government jobs in Kerala. This comes after a prolonged campaign to protect the vernacular language by literary critics, writers, among others. Schools are not allowed to even impose an indirect ban on speaking Malayalam in campuses by putting up notices on the display board.

Culture, Politics
By Sumitra Nair
March 13, 2017

Sreebala Menon on Seeking Quality Books in a Time of Fast Reads

In an age of social media promotions, and fast books, Sreebala K Menon talks about getting unheard authors to the forefront. The writer- filmmaker tells us more about Read Me Books, a venture she started in association with Kerala Book Store in Trivandrum.

Read Me Books launched its first book ‘Nammuku Parayam Kathakal’ on 12th February. The publishing aims in making Malayalam books easily accessible, especially to those living abroad and in remote villages in Kerala. It launched an app for audio books, Kelkkam, to make Malayalam books accessible to the visually impaired.

“Me and a few others take care of the creative, the editorial side of things while Kerala Book Store takes care of the publishing and marketing.” The film maker noticed a shift in the whole scenario of books and reading. The process of releasing a book was very different in an age without mobile phones, social media and blogs. “I felt as though books nowadays released on the basis of a controversy or as part of a marketing strategy. I found writers self-marketing their work. And amidst all this noise, I saw some genuine writers getting left behind- some of them who are good, but are introverts and stay away from social media. I wanted to bring writers like these to come to the forefront and that’s how Read Me Books began,” says the director of Love 24*7 and Sahitya Akademi winner.

Culture, People
By Sumitra Nair
March 2, 2017

Ka Bodyscapes Denied Certification on Grounds of Glorifying the Gay Community

Director Jayan Cherian’s Ka Bodyscapes which has been in the news over certification by the Central Board of film Certification, was recently refused certification as it felt that the film glorified the subject of gay and homosexual relationship, nudity and showed Hanuman in a derogatory manner as gay. And this may create law and order problem in society. The Board also seem to have objection in showing a Muslim woman to be masturbating.

The film was reviewed by the board for the second time, as an earlier rejection was challenged by the makers via a writ petition. In the judgement passed in December last year by the High Court, Justice PB Sureshkumar had said that mere references to homosexuality and masturbation of women may not amount to obscenity or vulgarity.

Incidents like these make us think about the provisions in the constitution to think and act freely. Doesn’t creative freedom entail freedom of expression? That said, the society is bound to have different opinion on works of artists. But does that mean that a piece of art, in this case a film be denied certification. Why not give A or adult certification to films with objectionable content and make sure that minors aren’t allowed to enter the cinema hall projecting it?

Culture, Movies
By Sumitra Nair
February 23, 2017

HC asks Aluva Municipality to Ensure Safety Measures of Temporary Amusement Rides

Just as Aluva town gears up of Sivarathri, its biggest festival, a petition has been filed before the High Court seeking a ban on operation of temporary amusement park with dangerous rides.

Filed by a social activist and political leader, Gireesh MM of Thottumugham, it questions Aluva Municipality’s move to give tender for the mentioned rides on the vast extent of property lying adjacent to Siva Temple.

The order passed by the High Court dated 21 February, 2017 states, ‘Respondents 1 to 3 (State of Kerala represented by Chief Secretary, District Collector Ernakulam, Civil Station, Kakkanad and Aluva Municipality represented by its Secretary) are directed to ensure that the activities mentioned in the writ petition regarding the operation of temporary Amusement Park is not permitted to carry out by operating of equipments, unless all due clearances are issued in  terms of laws governing such amusement establishments.

Culture, Religion
By Sumitra Nair
February 21, 2017

Manju Sara Rajan on the Biennale Foundation and Art Awareness

Those who have made rounds of the Kochi Muziris Biennale this year might have noticed some of the interesting initiatives they’ve had with women and children. In an interview with The Kochi Post, CEO of the Kochi Biennale Foundation, Manju Sara Rajan tells us how the Foundation aims at making art more accessible and how work of the foundation goes on through the year.

“Most people don’t know much about the Kochi Biennale Foundation. They assume that there isn’t much work to be done once Biennale season is over. This is far from the truth. In fact, the Foundation works through the year, attempting to make contemporary art more accessible,” says the Manju who worked as a journalist close to 12 years. The aim of the foundation is according to her, keep conversations and discussions about art alive.


“There needs to be continuous awareness of national and international art. And we try to do this on different levels like the Student’s Biennale, which is a curated collection of art work by students who are studying art through the country. Also, Art by Children, an initiative that conducts various art-related workshops for children,” she explains.

Culture, People
By Sumitra Nair
February 17, 2017

Laughing out Loud with Aravind

Get ready to roll with laughter at ChaiCofi tomorrow, 18th February with Aravind Subramanium a stand-up comedian from Chennai who takes a jab at the middle class life, women and other things ordinary or not. A part-time filmmaker, Aravind talks about the comedy scene in India, poking around ‘real’ topics and more.

Aravind SA, as he is known as in the comedy circuit, studied film making at the LV Prasad film academy and went on to assist director Jayendra Panchapakesa in the film 180 and Vishnuvardhan in Aarambam starring Ajith. “Stand-up started out as a part-time thing. More like a hobby,” Aravind says. He felt like the relatable middleclass urban stories weren’t being told enough. And that’s when he decided to give into his story-telling instinct and turned into stand-up.

Write Timing
“While doing stand-up, you cannot be moaning or nagging on about a small event. But the flair lies in creating enough drama around it,” Aravind reveals. He feels comedians need to be articulate and deliver the point home in a short time, say, 4-5 minutes. “One needs to make sure that your key points or thoughts are funny,” he adds. And while that may come from trained writing, Aravind says would try out new material for weeks or even months on friends and family to get it right. “Now that open mic nights have picked up, my friends don’t have to be scape goats to my material,” he laughs.

Culture, People
By Sumitra Nair
February 11, 2017

Shobhana to Enthrall Kochi’s Audience

If you are looking forward to an evening of colour, music, dance and most of all entertainment, then Kochi is where you ought to be this weekend.

Gear up for another unique fusion production by renowned actress and danseuse Shobhana Chandrakumar Pillai. It is in indeed to time to explore space and time in a most unique format.

Trance, a fusion musical production, by Shobhana and her team at Kalarpana presents some of the most popular tales of Indian mythology and from The Bible by means of various artistic elements.

Culture, Entertainment
By Gitanjali Diwakar
February 11, 2017

Festival Coordination Committee to Protest Fearing Ban on Festivals

Kerala Festival Coordination Committee is planning a protest march, fearing that the Government may ban temple festival celebrations. Organisers and festival enthusiasts are planning to march to the Thrissur District Collectorate on 15 February.

Valsan Chembakkara, General Secretary, Kerala Festival Coordination Committee confirmed the same. “Ministers have previously convened to remove unnecessary restrictions and iron out measures and protocol to conduct festivals in a smooth manner. Even then, there hasn’t been an absolute solution,” he says. “All the mandates stated by the Forest Department in Kerala Captive Elephant (Management & Maintenance) Rules 2012 circular are being followed. Then, why shouldn’t festivals be allowed to continue,” he asks.

As for vedikettu or fireworks at festivals, local firecrackers like kizhiminu, amitti and ola padakkam aren’t allowed. And to burst Chinese fire crackers, one needs to get permission. “There needs to be a clear explanation with regards to this. It is the responsibility of the officers in charge to bring clarity to the matter,” Valsan Chembakkara says.

Culture, Politics, Religion
By Sumitra Nair
February 9, 2017

Ashwin Sanghi on Writing History Fiction and Collaborating with James Patterson

Often referred to as India’s Dan Brown Ashwin Sanghi is known for books like Chanakya’s Chant, The Rozbal Line and The Krishna Key. The author known for mythological and history fiction is set to collaborate with thriller writer James Patterson after their novel Private India: City on Fire in 2014. In this conversation with The Kochi Post, the author tells us more about the collaboration, writers on social media and challenges in writing about characters from history.

Please tell a little more about your collaboration with James Patterson this time around, what can we expect?

I think that our second outing together has been more challenging than the first. The first book, Private India, had elements of mythology in it. This fascinated James Patterson tremendously. Private Delhi has none of that. It is much more like the other books in the Private series. Hence the contribution of James Patterson to quickening the pace and magnifying the suspense has been tremendous. The one area that both of us were fascinated by was the interplay between business, politics and media. That comes across very clearly in the plot.

Culture, People, Uncategorized
By Sumitra Nair
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