InDepth

An average child takes around five years to fully develop the five senses; so, counting out those formative years makes this Christmas my absolute 28th. Back in my birthplace, today is "Boro Din" or "Bara Din" meaning that it is a day when the "day" starts to elongate itself. Indeed, it means many things on the subtext - among others, it means that more luminous days commence hereafter. In today's edition of InDepth, on the day of Christmas, let us dwell on some aspects of this eternal light. "And God said, Let there be light: and there was light." - the famous quotation from the Great Bible symbolizes a unique phenomenon. It is the phenomenon of light - the same light that is both peripheral, superficial as well as inwardly, spiritual. God wishes for light, transports His message to all, and finds Jesus to universalize His appeal. The small boy in me, looking at the picture of The Christ, on the very day of Christmas, once asked his ad...

I often get a simple question from my friends. They ask me what the most popular Swedish cuisines are. I usually take the easiest route. I list down a few of my own favorites. The list is not new. It has been the same since the first year I had started to explore food in this country. It might sound a little cliché but all my encounters with my favorite Swedish dishes were filled with a lot of curiosity and expectation. It was thrilling. Before trying the local stuff, I had been cooking and taking my own food to the office and eating it there with other colleagues. It usually works that way in the beginning. But then one day I decided to try something new. I went straight to the office canteen and ordered the non-vegetarian menu. Before this, I had never tried continental food. Baked Salmon: Salmon is a kind of fish that tastes very close to an Indian breed called Hilsa . For those of us that come from West Bengal (the eastern part of India) are, by and large, genuine fi...

The topic for today’s edition is "Subarnarekha" – an immortal creation done by the legendary filmmaker, Ritwik Ghatak, from Bengal. There are several subtopics that we can touch upon as we discuss about the film. These include – partition of India, post-independent chaos, Ritwik's glory and early success at IPTA (the Indian People’s Theater Association), his fascination for Communism and subsequent dissatisfaction, his failures, his own society's indifferent attitude towards his magnanimous talent, his own men betraying him and eventually crushing him in the most disrespectful way. As per records, the movie was released in 1965. Right from the onset, the movie takes off with a terrific clip. Two friends Haraprasad and Ishwar want to help a community affected by the terrible aftermath of the partition. Both are talented; however, one is seemingly selfish. One is flamboyant, he protests when the other wants to leave the place to start a fresh remunerative life. The ...

The famous Bengali actor Prasenjit Chatterjee once said – whenever a filmmaker like Yash Chopra stands behind the camera and directs a project he ends up making a beautiful film! A film that bears his signature and style. From breaking away from his brother's production house, producing films on his own, working with superstars, working with legends, working with the megastar, creating a new superstar – he has done it all. The millennium had just set in, the audience was getting matured, the deep emotional quotient of the boundary was still relevant, and a bunch of talents was coming up to showcase their brilliance.                                                                                      The filmmaker arrived once again; this time, with his son penning an ...

                            It is not so often that we hear about unusual therapies. How many times have we heard about a doctor prescribing "Song therapy" to a patient suffering from a psychological imbalance ? Or, has any of us heard things like "Snake Message Therapy" for removing body ache ? Likewise, have we ever been asked to visit a "Beer Spa" to rejuvenate ourselves ? Though some people might have heard about "Urine Therapy" for better health, has anyone heard about "Ear Candling" as some kind of solution to get tranquility in life ? However though, therapies are often weird. The topic for today is to take a look at one such unusual therapy. In the end, it might be so that it does not remain so unusual after all! Let us see! ................................................................................. ................................................................... ................................

Once an industrial and now a cosmopolitan, Malmö, the third largest city of Sweden has managed to nicely maintain its old-world charm. It has grown older for sure, parts of it have even got a modern look, still, somehow the heritage is intact. Drottninggatan is a street located in the old part of Malmö. It is like any other street of an old European city. It has a lot of parked cars, a bunch of shops and a few apartment entrances. Apart from the charm it is food that takes me to this part of the city. The restaurant in focus is a Chinese one. A Chinese restaurant in a Swedish town. From the very first look, the restaurant gives an impression of neatness and aesthetics. Well-decorated and well-maintained, it can easily attract the passerby. The first time I visited a well-known Chinese restaurant was way back in 2001. It was the traditional Peiping in Kolkata, India. A few college friends took me to the place and I really loved the food. Back in my home country Chinese f...

A landscape full of slopes usually makes an interesting composition for a painter. Kirseberg is no exception. Kirseberg is a city within a city. It is a century-old settlement on the east side of Malmö (Sweden), and is very beautiful. On one hand, it has got a lot of greenery around it. On the other hand, it has sprawling houses, shops and showrooms embracing the modern world. Somewhere in the heart of its history lies a small street bearing a touch of heritage. The street has a name – Korngatan . There is a small road by the name Kirsebergsgatan which leads to the very picturesque Korngatan . There is also another landmark building opposite to Korngatan – it is an old school by the name Kirsebergsskolan . Each step through the walkway leaves one mesmerized. First, a stone-paved alley opens a visually charming picture in front of our eyes.  The fenced houses are calm and serene. Almost all the houses have well-maintained gardens. Flowers and colors are in abundance. ...

First, there was a writer; then, there came a character; and at last, there was a creative mind. All of them contributed towards the creation of the world of Apu - the protagonist, and Apu - the legendary common boy of World Cinema. Neo-realism, artistic perception, hyper-linked narration - all those were discerning outer influences to be seen during that period, across the cinematic world. But the abject poverty of Bibhutibhusan's own life was the inner realism, the slow and steady growth of the filmmaker germ inside Satyajit Ray was the true realism, and the life-sketch of Apu through the prism of Apu Trilogy was the ultimate realism of the-then India.                        Candid interview of Satyajit Ray on his visions, his art and his films So, who exactly was this Apu ? Where did he come from ? Was he an unique character ? Let us take them one by one in our endeavor to find his true self. Before the chapter when Ray...

The topic for today is very emotional; since, it deals with none other than the "Nightingale of India". The topic requires vivid sewing of thoughtful words; since, many a narrator has already penned many a word. The topic needs a little deviant path; since, many a reviewer has already covered it in many a beautiful way. Does this mean I am jittery, or hesitant, or shaky to get going ? No, certainly not! Because, beyond anything else, this is a topic that is very close to my heart! My heart, which has had the fortune of being drenched by the pure, soothing voice of Lata Mangeshkar, in a concert!                       Dilip Kumar introducing Lataji with his poetic speech! Scene one starts when the thespian, Dilip Kumar, introduces Lataji through his serene speech and greets her as his sister. Scene two starts with Lataji walking down the alley towards the stage and exchanging pleasantries with the legendary actor. The stage gets ...

Among all the tactical games played throughout the world, the game of Cricket is undoubtedly one that stands out where the captain matters a lot, especially when it comes to tactics.  Taking the statement a bit further, it would not be wrong for me to say that Cricket is as much skill-based as it is tactic-based. Unlike Soccer or many other team games, the coach of a cricket team cannot take or make quick on-field decisions. There are several counter-opinions  to this statement, but my long experience of following the game forces me to stick to this point of mine. The little bit of the game that I have played myself, the comments and analysis I have read and heard from experts, and the countless matches that I have watched over the years compel me to say that the captain plays a huge part in the success or failure of a side. On that note, let us go back a bit on the time radar - I take you all to the summer of 1992 "Down Under", when the stage was set for the fifth edition o...

It was either "Rangoli" or a similar program on Indian TV channel, Doordarshan, where I first heard Sahir Ludhianvi's timeless creation "Woh Subaah Kabhi To Aaayegi", roughly meaning "The Morning Will Arrive Some Day". The topic here is to look back at this classic piece of writing and spend some thoughts on the underlying concept of universal hope. Based on the classic novel "Crime and Punishment", a movie by the name "Phir Subaah Hogi" was made in India and the song was used in it. Sahir was a deep social thinker. His worldview was clear – he was driven by the idea of equity mixed with hope, justice, and progress. All his works bear a stamp of humanity, tolerance, social justice and social benevolence. Penning this song was not that difficult in that case! Let us start the journey with the first few lines of the poem. The poet starts by declaring that all the past decades have been nothing but dark. Darkness symbolizes f...

Before migrating to Sweden, I knew very little about the concept of Day Care. Having a relative living abroad I had heard about crèche, which is a typical British day nursery. A Day Care, in my understanding, was a place where babies can be left during the day-time in case both the parents are working. When my turn came to get my daughter admitted to a Swedish Day Care (in Swedish it is called Dagis ) the first thing I did was that I started comparing my own childhood days with that of her. For me, my “Kindergatan” or “Pre-school” year was a compulsive extra year which I had to spend before I started my real schooling. Did I enjoy going there? Well yes, I did. I made a few good friends who are still in my contact-network. What did I learn there? I can still remember to have learnt a bit of drawing and then we even did a stage show together with the teachers. So, I started with the belief that my daughter’s case would be a similar one. But I was mistaken. Her journey was differen...

They had quite similar breaks. One started from theater, one started with art-house cinema, the last one started with a family-oriented movie. None of them had a resounding debut. Their first films were not reviewed by multiple film journalists. Their profile pictures were not splashed across various newspapers. There were no social media or online forums during those days. As a matter of coincidence, all three were born in the year 1965. Aamir Khan's debut film " Holi " was released in 1984, Salman Khan's first movie " Biwi Ho To Aisi " was released in 1988 and Shahrukh Khan's debut film " Deewana " was released in 1992. Their respective arrivals into the Indian film industry were thus separated by exactly 4 years. All of them had quite distinguished family background. Aamir Khan is the nephew of the eminent Producer-Director Nasir Hussein. Salman Khan is the eldest son of the legendary script writer Salim Khan and Shahrukh Khan'...

    Let me start with an honest confession that I am not the one who follows league football that happens across the globe. My footballing sense and love come from some amount of Euro, little amount of Copa America and a major amount of the World Cup. Playing for a nation is a matter of pride and this “Beautiful Game” often becomes an ambassador of a certain nation. The two aspects are definitely interconnected.                                                             Football, being a team-game, have produced many teams over the years. These teams have been created, dismantled, re-created and re-destroyed. Who can argue to the fact that all the World Cup winning teams of the last five or six decades have been "teams". We have known of "The Brazilian Team", the "Argentine Team", the "Italian Team", the "French Team" and, of...