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instep
overview
Wind of change
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With
the New Year upon us, Instep takes stock of the year that passed us
by and presents the ins and outs of 2009
IN Self-reliance and independence
OUT Dependency on Indian content as the crutch that
carries every iota of fashion, music or film forward
This is a good time to wake up to the realization that no industry
in the world can thrive on borrowed content, just as no country
can expect to survive on another country's funds. With Indian cinema
artistes including directors, actors and producers off the KaraFilm
Festival agenda and with Indian fashion designers and their glamorous
entourages out of the Carnival de Couture, let this be a good time
to build on our own resources and channel all fluid funds into strengthening
things that will stay with us even when peace flies out of the window.
IN Pakistani
authors
OUT
'South Asian' and Indian authors
For the past few years we've been in awe of South Asian writers;
Khaled Hosseini (A Thousand Splendid Suns and The Kite Runner),
Jhumpa Lahiri (The Namesake and Unaccustomed Earth), Aravind Adiga
(The White Tiger), Rohintan Mistry, Kiran Desai and Anita Desai,
all of whom followed Vikram Seth and Arundhati Roy have frequented
our drawing rooms as topics of literary discussion. But this year
has been good in bringing the appeal of the Pakistani author back.
We can proudly celebrate Mohammed Hanif's A Case of Exploding Mangoes
and Hanif Kureishi's Something to Tell You as well as the more recent
In Other Rooms, Other Wonders, by Daniyal Mueenuddin. All must-reads,
no doubt
IN
Those pioneers of the fashion world who are stepping into prêt
making it the next frontier of fashion
OUT Those from the new guard who are still focusing on how much
to sell the next bridal for
We've been overwhelmed by the latest collections from highly acclaimed
couturiers like Bunto Kazmi, Sana Safinaz, Faiza Samee and Rizwan
Beyg all of whom have wowed us with their 'luxury prêt collections'.
Bridals are no longer the Holy Grail of fashion and we thank the
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IN Musicians who rock with a cause.
Shehzad Roy's 'Laga Reh' and Ali Zafar's 'Aag' still continue to
be relevant, Ali Azmat's 'Tanha Hai Kyun' provokes thought and Laal's
revival of Habib Jalib's poetry via 'Main Nay Ussey Yeh Kaha' is
truly inspiring. We can hardly wait for their debut album.
OUT Everyone else – enough with the love songs,
already!
IN Shahrukh Khan with Billu. We'd take the glamorous
King Khan any day over Suri of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi. And the three
divas - Priyanka Chopra, Kareena Kapoor and Deepika Padukone - with
SRK only add more to the film's appeal.
OUT Aamir Khan with Ghajini. The film may have made crores at the
box office but the over hyped film was never that great to begin
with. And really, the 8-packs and Aamir do not go well together
at all!
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IN Roadside Café with its Pakistani music,
bonfire and delectable dhaga bun kababs.
No better way to spend winters than under an open sky listening
to Abida Parveen. And hey, it's a great place to spot celebrities.
Models, singers, musicians playing pool and fashion designers -
all have taken have made Roadside their go-to place.
OUT Espresso and the hike in its prices and the back breaking wait
for tables.
It may be the best coffee in town but it is too noisy in there to
even think straight these days.
IN Other
world actors
British actress Kate Winslet has proven her mettle this year with
two outstanding performances in Revolutionary Road and The Reader.
Meanwhile Spanish actress Penelope Cruz as the fiery ex-wife in
Vicky Cristina Barcelona was pulsating. Dev Patel and Freida Pinto
in Slumdog Millionaire cast quite a spell with their brilliant performances.
OUT Hollywood actors
Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Robert Downey Jr and Anne Hathaway may
have grabbed Oscar nominations but they are not even a slight patch
on their European and Indian counterparts. |
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