A for Armani, B for Burberry.....

Forbes Magazine has come out with a list of ‘Hollywood’s Hottest Kids’, ranking them according to the designer clothes they wear. Tomkat’s 3 year old daughter Suri Cruise tops the list, followed by Brangelina kids. Forbes coming out with such a list is unnerving. Rating little children on their ‘hot’ness quotient and fashion statement is vanity in its crudest form. Creating such lists will only lead to kids being treated as ‘objects’ of beautification and create complex among children from average income groups. Parents will make fashionistas out of their children before they even learn to say ABC.

A for Armani, B for Burberry, C for Cavalli, D for Dior.. .that’ll follow next!

The hollywood tots who made it in the list are-

Sam Alexis Woods, daughter of Tiger Woods and his wife,

Cruz Beckham, son of David and Victoria Beckham;

Matilda Rose Ledger, daughter of Michelle Williams and the late Heath Ledger;

David Banda, son of Madonna and Guy Ritchie;

Sean Preston Federline, son of Britney Spears and Kevin Federline;

Sam Sheen, daughter of Denise Richards and Charlie Sheen

SEX SELLS!

Juno, Shinchan, F.R.I.E.N.D.S, south park,Sex in the city, video games like- resident evil,God of War ....and many more to be named
Do kids these day have a choice to select what they want to see or what not?

Few weeks back I was forced to ponder.

Sex Sells!

Browsing through books in our college library I stumbled upon this title 'Sex Sells' by Rodger Streitmatter, and boy! I got to know that almost everyone in our class had read it! I picked it up, partly to be in the league with my classmates, and partly curious to validate Ms. Neha Dhupia's thoughtless yet true quote --Sex and SRK sells.

This book is an interesting insight into the dubious nature of media when it comes to the tabooed topic of Sex. Though written with reference to the American media's dealing with this topic from early 1940s to the millennium, the scenario fits pretty well in the Indian arena too.

How it all began?

Queer, but true. It began with the invention of oral contraceptive pill! This gave women the freedom to plan their family life and be more focussed toward their career. This was a major step towards female empowerment and decision making.

The era of rebellious sixties had Hugh Hefner’s Playboy magazine blurring the boundary between obscenity and aesthetics while rockstar Jim Morrison pushed the limits of ethos and morality by scripting seductive lyrics and performing them even more erotically on stage. Gradually, American motion picture brought Bond girls to life thus triggering an era where skin show would be as normal as having dinner with family.

What followed..

During 1980s and 90s, cable tv came into picture, internet was then a luxury and media was getting sex obsessed. Whilst nudity in movies became common in 1980s, the next decade targeted gays and showcased Afro-American sexuality.Media began to challenge the obsolete social norms. Issues of homosexuality, crime of incest, education about STDs and abortion were taken up. Newspapers slapped Bill Clinton’s sexual escapades on the front page and the words like semen and oral sex came to be accepted in mainsteam print media.

Media was backed by socio-cultural factors during this seismic shift. Just to think of it, in 1940s, even mentioning the word "pregnant" was banned onscreen!

How much of it is too much?

This brings me back to my initial question which the book forced me to ponder. Have media gone too far regarding sexual content? The answer could be given as affirmative. Media over the period of time has increasingly trivialized sex. Infidelity, polygamy and live-in relationships are depicted as a modern way of living. Sitcoms like FRIENDS, Sex and the city, Will and Grace, and films like Juno, American Pie have influenced the generation Y into believing in these newfound norms.

I'm not saying that these notions are entirely wrong, but they are being watched by children as young as 12 years old. Media is not giving an option for the children to choose. It is just feeding them content- sexed up content. Be it then sitcoms or cartoons!
Give childhood a break!

Save Water Mumbai!

This is my 3rd attempt with camera. This ad was made as an attempt to sensitize people towards the water-shortage problem that Mumbai is facing. Hope all of you guys would take something from this and contribute in controlling the problem!





Many thanks to Rosh who ran for like 100 times to give me the best shot and Kirti,to you too, for taking care of my stuff while I was running with Rosh (:P) and stepping in at the right time to play the part! Hugs n kisses

The scattered pages on the table,
Last glass of wine,
Those pages tell a fable,
My suicide night I design.

Red is the colour in my eyes
Black is my soul
Cheerful colors ain’t for me
dejected is my soul.

Scattered, battered, ripped apart
Is it an ending or a new start..
Glass of wine catches my eye
the creature in it fights for life
Hapless, tiredly aiming the rim
Its in pain, tough luck
Wine swallows it again

Pain is good, I tell myself
The noose hangs behind
Pain kills pain, I tell myself
Pain is divine

My suicide night has come, as I planned
Time to let world go..
Hatred, betrayal, humiliation
Time to let that go.

It’s dark, just before dawn
perfect time to be dethroned
gloomy, ghostly, grim, gray
Oh it feels like home.

The time has come, my suicide night
from my desk I rise
for the noose that awaits me
in my room, dingy and quiet.

On the stool, I alight myself
forward my neck and put it around
closing the eyes, I breath deeply
and let go off the ground.

Yes, this is it, the time has come
I'll be happy in my rebirth
Everything blacks out..
Every bit was worth.

THUD! Oh the pain, the eternal pain
No, not in my heart now
but hell yes I'm slain
I think I broke my hipbone, as I crash to ground
Stupid noose, I damn
can't embrace me around!

As I try to get up , cast a look about
sunshine fights its way through blinds,
At bay, a rooster screams aloud.

It had dawned a new day
I glance at the noose that broke
Another glance ,this time sways
to the wine glass lying ignored.
I'm surprised, as I lay aghast
that creature in it had made its way
Up to the rim...at last!