Listing Details
| ID: | 2076 |
| Title: | Lotus Reads |
| URL: | http://lotusreads.blogspot.com/ |
| Category: | Entertainment: Books |
| Description: | Book reviews from a lady of Indian origin whose culture shines through her writing. |
| Behind The Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity by Katherine Boo - 2012-04-07 12:18:00 |
 Published By: Random House DOP: Feb7, 2012 Genre: Narrative Non-Fiction Helloooo Everyone! It's been ages, I hope so much you are all doing well. I'm really sorry I haven't been updating this blog, but life's been busy oft late and horror of horrors, I haven't been doing much reading! I think I've read all of 2 books in 6 months. A truly awful record for someone who used to read a book a week. Anyway, I have come to the sad realization that even if I make the time to read, I may never have enough time to write an in-depth review, so I've decided to introduce mini reviews, or maybe, just the title of the book I am reading or one I hope to read. This way, we can all still stay in touch. Like the idea? I sure hope so! A few weeks ago I read Katherine Boo's "Behind the Beautiful Forevers". To be honest, I wasn't really looking forward to reading one more book about life in a Mumbai slum, after all, I've had them as neighbours for years and I thought I knew everything about the folks that live there...but, I was happy to be proved wrong. Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, Katherine Boo spent three years( 2008-2010 )in a Mumbai slum called "Annawadi" situated on the fringes of the city's international airport. In 1991 labourers were brought in from the villages of Tamil Nadu to work on the runway and once construction was completed, instead of returning to their villages they decided to stick around in the city of dreams and thus the slum "Annawadi" came to be. Why anyone would want to live in “a sodden, snake-filled bit of brushland across the street from the international terminal"is a baffling question to many, but because rural poverty is bleaker than urban destitution, many rural migrants choose the latter. Over the years Annawadi has undergone many changes, not just cosmetically but also demographically and many of the Tamilian labourers, have since moved elsewhere leaving room for new migrants from all over the country making it a microcosm of India-on-the-margins. Through the lives of several protagonists the reader is able to get a glimpse into what life may be like in a Mumbai slum. Abdul Hussain, the bread winner of the only Muslim family in the slum is a garbage picker/sorter and seller. It's the only thing he has ever done and so naturally he is somewhat of an expert at it, and as a result of his long, daily slog his family is perhaps the most prosperous family in Annawadi. Abdul and his family are highly resented in Annawadi, not because they are Muslim, but because economically they are doing better than most of the neighbours. Caste may be the main cause for discrimination in rural India, but Boo finds that in the slums, economic envy is the new discrimination. Then there'sFatima,or "One-Leg" as she is better known. Because she is disabled and a woman, Fatima has virtually no standing in the slum but she is determined to have a good time, even if society deems she should not. While she may possess a couldn't-care-less attitude Fatima also has a violent temper and it's one of her rages that leads to some of the most riveting events in the book which allow Boo to access government hospitals, the criminal justice system and the enormous web of corruption that much of India is enveloped in. Another fascinating person character isAshawho is married to a good-for-nothing drunkard but thankfully she has enough ambition for the two of them. By latching herself onto a small-time politician she becomes a "fixer" (someone who is able to grant favours in the slum for a fee) and in that way, she is able to send her daughter to college to become the first female college graduate in Annawadi. And finally, there'sKalu, who braves the barbed wire of Mumbai airports to get at the recycling bins, the contents of which he sells to Abdul; andSunil,a smelly and courageous scavenger with a head for heights. It is in knowing these two scavengers that the reader realizes that no matter how tough the lives are the kids of Annawadi are, they never stop dreaming. Their dreams aren't big ones, many a time their dreams don't even involve leaving the slum for a better place, all they want is to better themselves, to climb that next rung on the ladder. And yet, despite the dreams, hopelessness is sometimes rife, the rate of suicide in a slum is quite high. It is through these remarkable protagonists that Boo manages to paint a lively,colourful and yet poignant (depressing too) picture of slum life. Sometimes I found the narrative read like Alaa Al Aswamy's "Al Yacoubian Building" where each resident family had a stand alone story to tell and yet contributed to the bigger story of Mumbai, but more fascinating to me was how globalization impacts the slum dwellers, their fortunes rising and waning along with the price of certain global commodities. Most of the people in this Annawadi slum rely on garbage as a livelihood. When the economy is strong, construction is booming and the demand for aluminium, copper, iron, steel etc. is high, so is the value of the commodity-related waste. Similarly, when there's a worldwide recession and builders run out of money forcing constructions to come to a stand still, it hits the rag pickers like a tidal wave. In this way Boo gives the butterfly effect of globalization a human face. This video above, filmed in collaboration with some of the children of Annawadi, gives a glimpse into the daily lives of the people she encountered there.  |
| Barcelona Diary (Sep 2011) Las Ramblas - 2011-10-03 17:25:00 |
| Las Ramblasin Barcelona is a large pedestrian street lined with restaurants, cafes, souvenir shops, flower kiosks and bustling with tourists, locals, hustlers and performing artists from almost every genre. Depending on whom you ask, you will be told that the promenade is either a "must-see" or "to be avoided at all costs". I tend to fall in the former category. While Las Ramblas abounds with pickpockets, Pakistani men wanting to sell you their Chinese-made toys and over- priced restaurants with bland food, it's a MUST for people-watching! And that's not all, Las Ramblas is dotted with some beautiful turn-of-the-century buildings like theLiecu Opera House (our apartment was right next door to the Opera) and theBoqueria Open Market,it also has some amazing art deco sculptures.  The very crowded Las Ramblas, tree-lined Las Ramblas, the nerve centre of Barcelona. At one end of Las Ramblas is the huge Place de Catalunya and at the other end, the old port. It would take you no more than 20 mins to walk the entire length of the promenade from end to end.  As I mentioned, some old and beautiful buildings line Las Ramblas. This patisserie here is called "Escriba" and every morning I would step inside for an almond croissant for breakfast, although Escriba is better known for their life-size chocolate models of famous personalities!  Human Statue 1 - Las Ramblas  Human Statue 2 - Artist - Las Ramblas One of the highlights of Las Ramblas was its open air market,Mercat de la Boqueira. After I was done buying my croissants at Escriba I would dash into Boquiera for some fruit juice. Boqueira is home to every conceivable fruit, sea food and ham and is an absolute feast for the senses. And if you understand Spanish it's an ideal place to eavesdrop on recipes! I was watching people buy mussels, it was so funny how everyone seemed to have his or her own way of cooking the mollusc!  Boquira photos courtesy my good friend, Anjum Poonawalla.  Remember when I said a walk down Las Ramblas yields unexpected surprises? Well, here's one! A modernista dragon designed either by Joan Miro or Gaudi ( I can't remember) for a former umbrella shop. Las Ramblas is full of little gems like this one...but you have to look for them...a veritable treasure hunt!  Modernista Dragondesigned for a former umbrella store. Las Ramblas is full of excellent finds like this one.  Another interesting building on Las Ramblas, the Eglesia de Betlem ...notice the beautiful green-capped portals and relief.  La Riera Baxia, El Raval. El Raval is a neighbourhood bordering Las Ramblas. Unlike Barri Gothic or the "Old Town" which still maintains its medieval charm,El Ravalis an edgier neighbourhood with artists and immigrants from Pakistan, Indonesia, East Europe and Morocco filling the apartment blocks down its streets. La Riera Baxia (image above) is a street in El Raval well known for its vintage stores. I was lucky enough to buy a Valentino bag here.   The streets of El Raval are very colourful both literally and figuratively. Throw a stone and it's bound to land on a graffiti-splattered facade. This is a really great neighbourhood to explore if you enjoy street art!   Housing project El Raval El Raval, because of its proximity to the City Center is destined for greatness. Infact, it's a district in the throes of transformation. However, at the moment, it is a barrio of great contrasts. Turn in to El Raval from Las Ramblas and you're suddenly accosted with high end boutiques, restaurants,cafes and art galleries..but walk to the other end and you see crumbling housing projects or dilapidated buildings in narrow alleyways.  Barri Gothic Square. Close by and housed in five adjoining medical palaces isMuseu Picassowhich is well known for its collection of Picasso's early works. The image above is a reprint of Picasso's "Self Portrait with a Palette" from 1906. (Unfortunately, you don't see the palette in this print )   |
| Barcelona Diary (Sep 2011) Bullfighting - 2011-09-26 14:33:00 |
Yesterday ( Sep 25, 2011) more than 600 years of history came to an end in Barcelona as the city hosted its last ever bullfight. It delights me to know that after this, no Spanish fighting bull or "toro bravo" as the breed is known, will be killed in the name of sport, art or tradition again, at least in Barcelona. The Catalonians are understandably proud to be the first region in Spain to ban bullfighting. Supporters of the sport claim that they (Catalonia) did it just to have one more thing to differentiate them from the rest of Spain, but activists insisted that it was voted out because it was a barbaric sport and had no place in an enlightened society.   Above: Barcelona's only remaining Bullfight arena, thePlaza de Toros Monumental. A very striking building made of bricks in the Mujedar (Moor) and Byzantine style. The ban will only affect "bullfighting" and not other sports in which the bull is involved, like"correbou" where the public chase bulls through narrow streets, or "bouembolat" where festivities involve attaching mini fire torches to the bull's horns.  Correbou (not my own picture)  Bouembolat : is a tradition that was first started in the Valencia region of Catalonia. In days of old it was not uncommon for people to be fatally charged by bulls as they walked along poorly-lit streets. To prevent accidents like that from happening, it was decided that bulls would be fitted with fire torches and that way, not only would they light up the streets but it would also warn people to their presence. Nowadays the lights aren't necessary but the tradition continues. Photo courtesy: Josep Llouis Sellart  Arenas de Barcelona, with its beautiful neo-mujedar architecture, used to be a bullfighting arena but has now been converted into a shopping plaza which houses an excellentDesigualstore. For the uninitiated, Desigual is a Spanish clothing store, known for their colourful, ultra-urban fashion with their headquarters and flagship store in Barcelona. More on Desigual when I post about shopping in Barcelona.   |