tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-44227374267810069032024-03-12T21:42:11.049-07:00still I RISE...stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4422737426781006903.post-6593193750521238122012-03-21T20:50:00.001-07:002012-03-21T20:51:44.866-07:00The countdown Begins . . .<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The wheels are in motion again, the minds abuzz with crazy ideas and we have put our heads together, yet again, to bring our readers the most interesting, chatpati, classic salted stories- with extra toppings of spice and fun! Now again comes the rush of meeting almost impossible deadlines, the last minute changes, the untainted excitement and the binges of adrenaline rushes we get hour-by-hour! </span><br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">With lots of 'OhMyGod's and 'Oh shit's, we spend each passing moment in a frenzy of multi-tasking. </span><br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">And of course, we have some very reliable companions throughout- some of them being endless cups of coffee and stealing snippets of gossip from all around us while "working"..!</span><br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">However, working for the magazine, for us, has never been 'work' in the sense most of us understand this much-hated word! - It is an experience, or more aptly- a journey we await every month- without really bothering about the 'destination', our journey is what we cherish the most.</span><br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">And the most crucial are the last 10 days of excitement before the deadline.</span><br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">so, to share our addictive journey, we plan to share these last 10 days with everyone. Another 'mean' reason for this ( ofcourse there has to be- me and Monisha being 2 extremely selfish people) is that we long to cherish this experience for ever.</span><br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Some people get high on Alcohol, some on drugs and some are simply high on life- but we- we are high on "RISE" .</span><br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span><br />
<span style="color: #c27ba0; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">So, let the countdown begin . . .</span><br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;"> <span style="font-size: x-large;"> <span style="color: white;">10</span></span></h2></div>stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4422737426781006903.post-85998205930138652792012-03-15T23:26:00.000-07:002012-03-15T23:26:08.759-07:00How sexist is Honey Singh???.. an excerpt from the magazine!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFwBhXoIiG-EPF3fNyJaAlmDIdpUnFbekX3w52MOmQ1PtDglcMIqvqXcldx3WrEv5xplnJlEd_hO6D3l42ITbWEfhaiwOtUIvHpNW3CBXMbRgxOYgiXQ-f6JTUlDshlO7MESKncMipmYtW/s1600/Final_magazine6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFwBhXoIiG-EPF3fNyJaAlmDIdpUnFbekX3w52MOmQ1PtDglcMIqvqXcldx3WrEv5xplnJlEd_hO6D3l42ITbWEfhaiwOtUIvHpNW3CBXMbRgxOYgiXQ-f6JTUlDshlO7MESKncMipmYtW/s1600/Final_magazine6.jpg" /></a></div><br />
</div>stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4422737426781006903.post-13433451009995540282012-03-15T23:16:00.000-07:002012-03-15T23:16:51.279-07:00Gupshup... an excerpt from the magazine!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1vUhhbaNnAqjxjLI8yf8rRLzea547gpuWjJEUluK9dqghkpCEFAW5v2VPasihzO8-kjmK8jxdRDGPZQxbSQxwjFUi4ldlhYvyUrlB6nUOiXFqPpF7EZW-bJTB3d-YuA5eTclM178Nbs8H/s1600/Final_magazine15.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1vUhhbaNnAqjxjLI8yf8rRLzea547gpuWjJEUluK9dqghkpCEFAW5v2VPasihzO8-kjmK8jxdRDGPZQxbSQxwjFUi4ldlhYvyUrlB6nUOiXFqPpF7EZW-bJTB3d-YuA5eTclM178Nbs8H/s1600/Final_magazine15.jpg" /></a></div><br />
</div>stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4422737426781006903.post-19503192440260982262012-03-15T23:06:00.004-07:002012-03-15T23:12:20.745-07:00Diary Of a Dreamer... an excerpt from the magazine!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #6fa8dc; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS', sans-serif; font-size: x-large;"><b><br />
</b></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcalo61koSiB9wWNr8Rgoo2T1Oi7OmJAVcVWVvjGBej1ulQNI08dCmXsO-m0ur80spDxgmTjjg5ADaxrQRxkk8D5lrTWLwce7R7g7BSNjuv2AUvMYquVS1WHYnzmktzXd0LUZ48zcRSVa2/s1600/Final_magazine11.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcalo61koSiB9wWNr8Rgoo2T1Oi7OmJAVcVWVvjGBej1ulQNI08dCmXsO-m0ur80spDxgmTjjg5ADaxrQRxkk8D5lrTWLwce7R7g7BSNjuv2AUvMYquVS1WHYnzmktzXd0LUZ48zcRSVa2/s1600/Final_magazine11.jpg" /></a></div><br />
</div>stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4422737426781006903.post-29005495460919306032012-03-15T23:02:00.003-07:002012-03-15T23:14:07.948-07:00OP-ED.. an excerpt from the magazine!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihpBlFaemRZKiH32wtr5NwGZJ3td-7Ilq6WOffk_2Ut3pcAjAFwR63djKjjF_u4qKZ2L7nWDQcHDWu2UPYHa-o9_aCzI8eg8Ezx39bjVOJ-rS7P6a-Ts1WP9mkbHDFIb3cG7BqTMXSGJI8/s1600/Final_magazine10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihpBlFaemRZKiH32wtr5NwGZJ3td-7Ilq6WOffk_2Ut3pcAjAFwR63djKjjF_u4qKZ2L7nWDQcHDWu2UPYHa-o9_aCzI8eg8Ezx39bjVOJ-rS7P6a-Ts1WP9mkbHDFIb3cG7BqTMXSGJI8/s1600/Final_magazine10.jpg" /></a></div><br />
</div>stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4422737426781006903.post-27259917586091284532012-02-28T11:19:00.006-08:002012-03-03T02:46:01.349-08:00How Sexist is Honey Singh??<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: lime;"> by Monisha Dhingra </span></em></strong><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggDB5No5b7YRd_fi2blVh759pr85awxshHfXNSxJRGWglP2vWzCapg5wdfE-qa9Bi2fLrRZ96_bbbjdvlcaa0vpHfLYoYKPlXMjYbHLsROlWgzhyphenhyphen-PuKl6kkTs-y-DJ50fu4HILUU-XtAh/s1600/honey+singh2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEggDB5No5b7YRd_fi2blVh759pr85awxshHfXNSxJRGWglP2vWzCapg5wdfE-qa9Bi2fLrRZ96_bbbjdvlcaa0vpHfLYoYKPlXMjYbHLsROlWgzhyphenhyphen-PuKl6kkTs-y-DJ50fu4HILUU-XtAh/s400/honey+singh2.jpg" width="400" /></em></strong></span></a><span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em>Welcome to the land of Honey Singh,a land of punk-ed up Punjabi dudes and sexed up Russian dancers. A land where music is defined by unoriginal Hip-Hop beats and tasteless Punjabi music. A land that thrives on offensively meaningless and sexist lyrics...</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em> </em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em>Let me give you a few pointers on how to spot such nuisance. The absurdly pimped up Punjabi music would alert you, but rest assured just look for the following: <br />
Look for a Punjabi munda trying to unsuccessfully ape a Hip-Hop star (that’s Honey Singh). See closely he'll have disproportionally hot girls next to him i.e. either too tall for him, or too hot for him. Next, listen to the lyrics. The song will besung too fast to cover up the senselesslyrics. For example “Don’t do dope- shope and stare at men, don’t spoil your liver by drinking neat alcohol have some food along?” Now obviously making no sense what so ever isn’t enough for him. As it is the trend with fools, they tend to make maximum noise, and in this case “noise”, I assure you, is a rather polite word for his songs. Next up are lyrics about female genitalia, that borderline misogyny – splotched with women centric abuses. As is typical, the men in his songs are self-righteous Punjabi – Hip-Hop punks, with strong body and small hypocritical minds. The women show more variety they are either sluts wanting to be used for sex, or alcoholics who babble when drunk or better still, gold diggers with too many boyfriends. Sometimes brown and other time’s anorexic girls are also featured in his songs. <br />
If you still can’t identify the source of the stupidity you are being subjected to, listen carefully. In the middle of the mumbo-jumbo of dumb lyrics you'll hear a deep Punjabi voice owning up to this mental torture screaming “YO, YO HONEY SINGH!"</em></strong></span><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSaQe-3jsHwCxlplJuyXSbXklW_QVVjhSIl-H0jt4tHHTlPXYRCXhrSkWxdMEmwpueKFIJ1I_SAno9xEUe5hLVHFfekVx5HileO1Gxh9TPoqBpoUEy8KGYIPwr3jqLpEuwQIlJs-LLjjwv/s1600/hs2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSaQe-3jsHwCxlplJuyXSbXklW_QVVjhSIl-H0jt4tHHTlPXYRCXhrSkWxdMEmwpueKFIJ1I_SAno9xEUe5hLVHFfekVx5HileO1Gxh9TPoqBpoUEy8KGYIPwr3jqLpEuwQIlJs-LLjjwv/s320/hs2.jpg" width="320" /></em></strong></span></a><br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em> Now let’s analyse this man,and see why and how he got so (annoyingly) famous thatI am forced to write this article about him.<br />
Well for one, most of his songs are about women, and his sole object seems to be slandering them. The fact that this strategy worked for him brings out the question - Whether this strategy uniquely discovered and used by Honey Singh, or many a fools have tried it too? <br />
From where I look he is doing nothing but carrying forward the age old tradition of using sex and women as a means to sell products in the market. In fact he is not even being subtle about it! </em></strong></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em>This selling point rests on the idea that when say white is the norm ,then black becomes more attractive . White exists as an ideal and black exists as anti – thesis to that ideal , white is salvation black is the tempting distraction .Women who are demure ,subtle , disciplined are white and women who are bold , blunt and rebellious are black .White is normative and black is anti normative . Black exists to guilt women into white , and as a reminder as to what would it be like if all were not white . </em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em>The idea essentially is that when societal construct favours white then black assumes a position that is more attractive , by virture of it being anti normative and extreme .The white norm portrays women in a light of perfection, such that it’s unnatural and does'nt exist , Black on the other hand is an anti-norm, everything opposite to what society says. It’s a contradiction, and it guilt’s women into following what the society thinks is ‘Ideal’ and natural because if a woman chose to follow black or anything other than white she would be reprimanded .'Black’ despite being labelled “depraved “ gets more attention , it is a tempting distraction . </em></strong></span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em> That’s why you are able to recall the Axe Deodorant advertisement, better than the one for a Harpic. This is why movies like Agneepath uses song like ‘Chikni-Chameli’ for more publicity. The song for its own sake has no bearing or importance in the movie. Men like Honey Singh think it’s cool to sing about abusing women.Anything and everything to do with nudity and sex becomes a rage. </em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em>We hence come to conclusion that black works!</em></strong></span><span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em>The next question that I ask myself is why it works? Why does an anti-norm attract us? When an external object attracts us, it represents an unfulfilled internal need, in this case an unacceptable object is vying our attention which means the existing norm has not been meeting certain needs that we harbour, since these needs are internal and hence natural. Could it be that existing norms are indeed unnatural and unyielding to our needs? In other words we are so sexually repressed that a slight sexually explicit stimulus excites us and that existing norms for women are so unnatural that a slightly contradictory idea thrives by virtue creating controversy?<br />
Is the image of pure virgin woman a myth represents nothing but denial and frustration? Image of perfect woman, the perfect wife, created in a way so to make women guilty for not conforming to it? But at the same time as I accept the fallacy of the norms, I also ask whether it is okay to exploit the dichotomy in the system and degrade women as sexual objects and portray them as playthings and sell anything and everything in that name, because if every woman is not Sister Mary Jane she is also not a use and throw sex machine as she is so often advertised.</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: lime; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><strong><em><br />
So whose fault is it? The society that formulates the norms? Honey Singh's songs that thrives on these norms, or the women who accept it?</em></strong></span></div>stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4422737426781006903.post-13215756192545981102012-02-19T05:30:00.000-08:002012-02-19T05:30:56.863-08:00Coming Soon!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE7UsIOyUDap-Ufxhknzegq8vr8hP3uk2Q_Y0cnuE3WFkOEcv3rJPdwpz6F7LtiDCKGpkhd_W2dwTr-7c3lMINxDT1n8qEB2Tf9lUgwGW9bQ2QKfy9U-SiW4uvDhcl7EiCRIK2o1-z7nTI/s1600/coming+soon!.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE7UsIOyUDap-Ufxhknzegq8vr8hP3uk2Q_Y0cnuE3WFkOEcv3rJPdwpz6F7LtiDCKGpkhd_W2dwTr-7c3lMINxDT1n8qEB2Tf9lUgwGW9bQ2QKfy9U-SiW4uvDhcl7EiCRIK2o1-z7nTI/s320/coming+soon!.jpg" width="234" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">a one-of-its kind endeavour!!</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">All of you are cordially invited on the launch of the magazine!</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">chief guest: Ms Rajni Abbi!</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">please be there to support me .. and our cause also!</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;">co-editors:</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;" /><a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=516995999" href="http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=516995999" style="background-color: white; color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-decoration: none;">Monisha Dhingra</a><br style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px;" /><a data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/user.php?id=1448430864" href="http://www.facebook.com/sentisana.angel" style="background-color: white; color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-family: 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 18px; text-decoration: none;">Safoora Zrgr</a> </div>stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4422737426781006903.post-8493373315527961982012-02-17T10:58:00.001-08:002012-02-17T22:42:38.870-08:00our inspiration ...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-top: 0in;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd;"><span style="color: #333333;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">It was the words of <u><span style="font-size: x-large;">Maya Angelou</span></u> that inspired the name of our newsletter. Words so strong and so courageously full of emotions that we were firmly enveloped in the scope of her idea. We found confluence in the words of her poem, as if what we feel and what she says are in essence the same thing. Hence at the commencement of our newsletter and this blog we wish to quote her poem…</span></span></span></span></div><span style="color: #d5a6bd;"><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">You may write me down in history</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">With your bitter, twisted lies,</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">You may trod me in the very dirt</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">But still, like dust, I'll rise</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Does my sassiness upset you?</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Why are you beset with gloom?</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">'Cause I walk like I've got oil wells</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Pumping in my living room.</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Just like moons and like suns,</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">With the certainty of tides,</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Just like hopes springing high,</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Still I'll rise.</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Did you want to see me broken?</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Bowed head and lowered eyes?</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Shoulders falling down like teardrops.</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Weakened by my soulful cries.</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Does my haughtiness offend you?</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Don't you take it awful hard</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">'Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Diggin' in my own back yard.</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">You may shoot me with your words,</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">You may cut me with your eyes,</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">You may kill me with your hatefulness,</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">But still, like air, I'll rise.</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Does my sexiness upset you?</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Does it come as a surprise</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">That I dance like I've got diamonds</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">At the meeting of my thighs?</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Out of the huts of history's shame</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I rise</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Up from a past that's rooted in pain</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I rise</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I'm a black ocean, leaping and wide,</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Welling and swelling I bear in the tide.</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Leaving behind nights of terror and fear</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I rise</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Into a daybreak that's wondrously clear</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I rise</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave,</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I am the dream and the hope of the slave.</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I rise</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I rise</span></span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><br />
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 18px;"><span style="color: #d5a6bd; font-family: Times, 'Times New Roman', serif;">I rise. </span></span></span></span></div>stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4422737426781006903.post-17294001004472599792012-02-17T10:17:00.000-08:002012-02-17T10:19:59.369-08:0016th February 2012<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<div class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="color: #0b5394; font-family: 'Juice ITC'; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Lights, Camera, Action!</span><span style="font-size: 20pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div><div class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-family: 'Juice ITC'; font-size: 20pt; line-height: 115%;"><br />
</span></b></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Only there’s no camera or lights! But still lots of action!</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">I reach college exactly at 8:30, all determined to complete and wind up the designing working for “RISE” by the end of the day! I take out my phone to call my partner-in-deed Monisha, and I see my Nokia 1200 flashing, ‘Goldilocks Calling’!</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">I press answer, and the sweet sing-sang voice goes, “heyy! M in the canteen! Where are you?” I look at her from the entrance of the canteen and smile and wave. </span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">She has bought coffee for me, and as usual forgotten to mix extra sugar. (yes, I do take extra sugar, and yes that too in JMC canteen, which is already extra-sugary!)</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">And then, after having our morning chat we open our laptops and go-</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">“mon, mail me the Honey Singh article”</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">“safoora I did, let me do it again”</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">“ok, also mail me, the diary one, one pretty picture of yours and the event reports”</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">“did you write, A to A? mail!”</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">“acha, lets sit and chalk out the final sequence of the articles k”</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">“no, this is looking too dry here”</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">“listen, let’s shift this on the 3<sup>rd</sup> page”</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">And this is how we keep firing at each other for the next 2 hours.</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">And then finally, I get up, at 10:30, to go receive the designer who is waiting for me at the gate.</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">I get him in, and we go back to the canteen! Being in a girl’s college, walking with a guy right through the compound area, at the peak hour of 10:30 am, when the whole college is in college!, trust me, is “uncomfortable”. Well, becauseee, you undesirably become the “star of the day”..!!! The stares, the glares, the giggles and the whispers- are hilarious- when you look back- but certainly not at that time!</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">When I enter the canteen this time, I suddenly realize that the whole canteen is jam-packed now, girls rushing everywhere, exchanging pleasantries, in a definitely non- pleasant but very chirpy, giggly tone!</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">The humdrum feels really exciting and enthusiastic!</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">I approach our table, and smile to myself- the whole of our WSDC team is there- running here and there, firing instructions at each other, our president- Shreya, right in the middle of it, surrounded by a mixture of personalities! Working frantically.</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">And then, suddenly, I get all super excited and want to push myself right into the working hurricane of my friends, as fast as possible, and get absorbed in the electric enthusiastic vibes it is emanating. </span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Akki (aka Akshay Singh, the designer of “RISE”) and me, sit down at the already over-flowing table and get to work!</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Somewhere in between, I realized, the whole canteen was staring at us!</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">At 4, we realize, its 4:00 pm! And ‘OH My God!!! We have to rush home’ and so, we start frantically packing up stuff, which is strewn in the whole common room (somewhere during the day we had moved to the common room, because our laptops were screaming for batteries!)</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">We pack up, hug each other! Plant and blow kisses in the typical ‘JMC way’, and rush to the gate, where my cab is waiting for me, all other cab mates wearing bored, smug expressions (well, they had to wait till 4 for me, when they all got free by 2!)</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Finally, I sit in the cab- </span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Message 1- Goldilocks: “ we rOck”</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Message 2- shreya: “today was great, good work team. I am proud of you all”</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Message 3 – “we make a great team, yayy”</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">I reply- “yes sweatheart, today was an inspiration”, to all.</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">And then, I doze off for my daily nap in the cab!</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;"><br />
</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Although lights, camera, action happen, ‘Cut’ did not- we were not able to finalize the design, but that does not matter,</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Because, “today really was an inspiration”!</span></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><i>Safoora Zargar</i></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><i>Co-Editor </i></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><i>RISE</i></div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><br />
</div></div>stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4422737426781006903.post-64810004643449693742012-02-14T08:53:00.000-08:002012-02-17T10:18:07.920-08:00Forces of mind and Forces of change ..<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We are not men or women. We are a group of individuals who believe that gender need not be a primary highlighting factor of our identity. We believe in the person, in the mind of a human ,we believe that it should not be bound by gender. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">But the fact remains that gender today has encompassed the individual ‘s identity so completely that two concepts have become almost equivalent. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> We propose a school of thought that doesn’t judge , doesn’t label , doesn’t ask , doesn’t tell . We just want society to let us be . We don’t need stereotypes, false norms or induced guilt. We propose a gender less society where we humans can be what we want and develop a guiltless identity.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We hence come to you with an agenda to create awareness about a gender centric society , about a society that has snaked its way in our souls, engulfing our lives from the moment we were born. We believe it’s the cognizance of change that determines the change. In order to free ourselves from the oppression of a forced identity we first need to be conscious of that identity . </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Hence we are here to join the force of that change. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;"><br />
</div></div>stillirise..http://www.blogger.com/profile/04194053709464316240noreply@blogger.com0