The Workspace @ Kamshet

I would like to begin by thanking people who share beautiful photos of green mountains. Law of Attraction saw to it that I reach there within a month of noticing some nice pictures on facebook.

It is called The Workspace, in a village called Uksan, at Kamshet a hill station in district Pune, Maharashtra… This dedicated space for theatre rehearsals and workshops is dream of every theatre practitioner… They refuse point-blank at even the suggestion of giving the place for shoots.

Pic. by Gaurav Kunwar Singh

Anyway, a place and hard work such as this is worth applauding. I got the pleasure of being there by registering for this two day workshop by Tram Arts’ Trainers. Seven of us participants, had the good fortune to travel together and discover that it takes 4 hrs to reach, not 2 as advertised everywhere on the internet.

Clicked by Prasad Dhend

You have to see the focus of the founders… Seen here, are the children of the school nearby who performed for us what they learned at the workshop organized especially for them under expert guidance.

Afterwards, we had lunch, some people swam also and then began our workshop. We walked outside to collect materials that caught our eye with their distinct colours. In the next session, it was about texture and pattern and observing with our paper lens. It was fascinating! 

The third session was mainly about collecting rocks; and keeping an eye out for any touching image…

Then finally the installation- A group activity, categorizing the different materials and setting them according to their sizes and ages…

The next day, brought more of theatrical exercises- speed walking, playing/imagining/creating narratives out of our favourite rocks and responding when new pieces of rocks were added to the first piece and then again when another participant and their pieces were grouped together.

Picture Courtesy: Manisha Korde

Lastly, it was a partner exercise of ‘play with sand’. After a while of reacting, responding and getting involved we were asked to remember five acts that interested us and string them together for a performance for everyone else to see. Later, we were asked to objectively describe only the striking images created by all other performers.

When describing about the immediate feelings or observations during each of the above sessions, the findings were very personal. A training of observing our own response to surroundings- it was more like meditation than anything else. Kudos to the team! We need to remind ourselves to seek out the child in us by reconnecting with nature and playing.

Words, Hindi Songs and Family

When our older niece Manya says, 'she does not want to wake up now', Vivek sings to the younger one also still in bed, “Aye pagli tu kyun ro rahi hai” (Altaf Raja’s) and the little one laughs silently with her face covered by her long hair that she’s growing- 8 yr old Diva… This was after I had called out to Manya by the name Vivek had given her at birth, ‘Strawberry’ and he corrected me, “Strawberry gaay ka naam hota hai”…

One morning, Vivek sang the second line also, “ke daag chhoRna hai mere muqaddar mein”… I pointed out that there has to be some other word, let’s listen to that song; this does not make any sense… My brother explained, ‘May be, it’s like the Bill Clinton thing’…

Another day he admitted, it must be “Ke gaanv chhoRna hai mere muqaddar mein”… Yes, it makes absolute sense. He also pointed out that when his friend (they were quite young at the time) Gaurav Tondon used to

listen to “tum toh Thehre pardesi, saath kya nibhaaoge”, Vivek used to find it very strange. Gaurav, perhaps, this will bring back memories… I don’t know… I hope my beautiful bhabhi teases you tooJ

Of course, Diva and my favourite song is “Let’s Nacho” from Kapoor & Sons.

At one point, to pressure her into resuming Sudoku for her holiday homework, Vivek used all the difficult Urdu words at Diva (we had learnt those while studying "Oedipus" back in Lucknow), like “tumko behboodi

ho rahi hai” and “belaus”. 



When Barkha, our elder sister asked what they meant after we had burst out laughing, bhai, (I suspect, must have forgotten the meanings) instead of explaining, with a sombre expression, turns to the other side, as if to rest and says, “Itni urdu sabko aati hai, didi”.

When we were dropping them off at the airport, since, Manya had announced she does not wish to hear about studies anymore...






 Vivek asked Diva to promise (to repeat after him, like ‘shapath-grahan’) that she would allow her sister to study without disturbance for the next three years. Diva did not promise any such thing.

Now, when I miss Barkha, Manya and Diva, can you blame me? I’m making sling bags for Diva and myself, just saying… will share photos… 
What started as a way to document the kids' sayings turned out to be that of my baby brother's, which has been long pending, a dream to share our good fortune:)