We often throw around catchphrases like ‘the language of dance’, but seldom do we understand their true meaning. The Centre for Writing and Communication organised a unique lecture-demonstration last week that explored the parallels between language and dance, and its relevance today. Thinking Body Dancing Mind by Srijani Bhaswa Mahanta explored these intricacies through her breathtaking performance. She brought out enriching perspectives, enlivening and educating the audience in unexpected ways.
The poster for the event | Courtesy: CWC
Srijani is currently pursuing a Masters in Political Science at Jawaharlal Nehru University. She has been practising Sattriya, one of the oldest Indian dance forms originating in Assam, since the age of six. It struck me how I had never heard of this dance form before I began my research for the interview. I learned that despite being practised since the sixteenth century, it had only been recognized by the Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT) in 2000. Sattriya, like most dance forms, has a particular form and style, but what stood out was the idea of ‘grammar’, which she suggested was innate in all styles of dance. Srijani introduced the idea of dance being a language, drawing parallels to the evolution of movement, the basic grammar that exists in each style of dance, and even a lingua franca and vernacular that was discernible when analysing how messages are communicated through dance.
The talk revolved around the creation of layers of meaning in various forms of communication, specifically dance. The choreography, performance and ultimately the audiences’ reception create new levels of what the dance might have meant; each is as significant as the other, and each informs the other in a cyclical pattern. Srijani incorporated a level of self-awareness in her lecture by informing the audience that she would ask for interpretations of her performance as soon as it ended, so as to understand how the final layer of meaning was formed.
Srijani Mahanta during the lecture-demonstration | Photograph by Samim Asgor Ali
I had the opportunity to speak with her about her performance, her life, and perspectives on dance. In our conversation, her personal relationship to dance became very evident and added yet another level of depth to my engagement with her performance as an audience member. Counterintuitive as it may be, by learning that I couldn’t speak the language of dance, I learned just how much could be said through it.
Kiana: Were you introduced to Sattriya as a child, and was art and culture very important to you in your formative years?
Srijani: I grew up in Barpetta Satra where my father used to practice Sattriya as a child, so it was a big part of my life early on. I would visit my ancestral place often, and I was drawn to all the people I saw rehearsing Sattriya. It was never something I was made to do, but I was interested in it very early on. And yes, my father was into filmmaking and my mother is a poet, so art and culture was always a very important part of my life.
Kiana: Often times, young adults are forced to make a choice between academia and performing arts because they are seen in opposition to one another. You are an MA student at a prestigious university and have managed to keep Sattriya a prominent part of your life. How did you not only strike a balance but find the intersection?
For me, it was never about finding a balance. These two fields weren’t in opposition, either to me or my family. And in many ways, both helped each other. I definitely studied better when I danced. In fact, as a child, when I did well on my exams, I would ask my parents to allow me to stage a drama or a performance as a reward.
In that vein, is there a close relationship between your understanding of what you study and your dancing?
Yes, absolutely. In fact, we have a course called Political Thought in MA Politics and International Studies. One of the units, Language, Reality and Representation, was concerned with concepts like the creation and reception of meaning, and coding of messages. My reading of those texts was always informed by my understanding of dance and its meaning. This talk, too, has been heavily influenced by what I learned.
You spoke about the creation of meaning and how it takes on something new in every stage of encoding and decoding. What does a piece mean to you — after it’s choreography and before it’s reception — as a dancer, what meaning do you derive?
When we perform with live music, the chemistry between the musician and dancer is something else. The scope of improvisation is higher, and I can extend it as long as I’d like. Today’s was a recorded piece and did not allow for any real freedom, but often I’ve improvised, and my guru has appreciated it. It is very intuitive, I might make a decision to deviate from what I have been taught and do something which I feel is more appropriate to the piece and the place. With every performance, something is different, the environment and my own presence of mind always change the piece and my experience of it.
When going through the process of choreographing a piece, do you find yourself restrained by the canonical texts and myths, or is there freedom to decide how you’d like a story portrayed?
I never sit with the texts. I always have an understanding of them and how they might inform a piece, and I’m aware of the grammar of the form, but I do not sit and refer to the actual text while choreographing. My guru and I sit together, he tells me the stories, we talk about the characters, and in that space, we will decide where a movement might fit in, or how best to depict a scene. But I’m not restricted and nor is the performance dictated by the texts.
Lastly, Sattriya is the latest of the major Indian dance forms to have been recognized. How do you view the relative lack of knowledge about North-Eastern culture, and how would you suggest it be addressed?
When I auditioned for the dance society in Lady Shri Ram College during my undergraduate years, the president did not know of the existence of such a form. She had never heard of it! It was recognized in 2000 and I auditioned around 13 years later, and I didn’t expect her to know the nuances or the details, but at least have some vague knowledge or awareness. But we cannot only blame those in the northern belt, but we as a community also cannot be complacent. We must make efforts to have our culture known and there is a level of activism which is necessary on our part.
Srijani Mahanta during the lecture-demonstration | Photograph by Samim Asgor Ali
Within the dance community in India, there is a sense of how the language of dance is understood and communicated. Questions from trained dancers in the audience, even though they might have never heard of Sattriya, were more informed than those of us who were outsiders to the world of dance. It was a live example of the close relationship dancers have with their craft, and how integral narrative is to a performance.
The idea of linguistic patterns emerging in dance can be applied across art forms and impacts the way we communicate and create art ourselves. Much of our experience with traditional art is rooted in the past, with seemingly little room for evolution or reinterpretation. As awareness of Sattriya grows, and I truly hope it does, maybe we can all learn to appreciate some classic stories with a fresher understanding. And, in the same way, form new narratives in the traditional styles that persist in each culture.
The author is a staff writer for the Arts & Culture column of the Edict.
This is the second in a two-part piece about the various food outlets on campus and the problems they face. Read the first part here.
Ankit bhaiya, the owner of the Ashoka outlet of Chicago Pizza, talked to us about a certain problem that seems prevalent for all eateries in the sports block food court — that of space constraint. Students often have to sit on the ground, and Vijay, the founder of Dosai also shared an incident of having to ask some students to vacate a few seats for a professor and his students. Vijay and Ankit bhaiyya, mentioned that they would appreciate if the administration could arrange for seating immediately outside the sports bock, which could also double up as a hangout spot for students.
For the ‘real South Indian cuisine’ cravings: Dosai | Picture by: Caperture
In fact, Samundar ji, owner of Rasananda — the juice bar, had asked the former head of dining and food outlets to allot the adjacent shop to him, for a bit more space. Items are regularly stolen from his shop, as he doesn’t has enough space to keep everything locked, leading to large, unnecessary losses. Tired of their lack of communication and negligence, he stopped requesting the admin. However, when the old head of dining left Ashoka, he went to the admin and this time Deboshruti Roychowdhury, the Dean of Student Affairs, assured him that he will be granted the adjacent space. Samundar ji is really hopeful that his requests will be considered this time.
Samundar Ji of Rasananda Juice Bar | Picture by: Caperture
However, those are not all the problems faced by the juice bar. Samundar Ji strongly believes that the Rs. 4000 that he pays as rent is proportionately more than what Chicago Pizza pays. Chicago Pizza is almost twice as big as the Juice Bar, and it pays merely Rs. 5000 as rent. Other eateries in the sports block — Chicago Pizza and Dosai — have started selling different kinds of juices and ice creams, which were the majorly selling items of Rasananda, further diminishing his profits He said that while starting his outlet, he had been assured that no other eatery would have the same menu as his, but now that’s not the case, which is unfair.
Kuldeep Antil, the rather famous owner of the Dhaba, has his own peculiar problems. The outdoor location becomes really problematic for him during monsoons, the bare ground turns into muddy puddles and his business is affected, . He repeatedly mentions that people slip often, and he’s worried anyone can get seriously hurt someday.. He had talked to Sachin Sharma, the registrar of Ashoka, about laying a layer of concrete on the bare ground. He was told that it would ruin the aesthetics of the campus if he did it himself, but the admin did nothing about it themselves. He also said that many admin members and professors eat at the dhaba regularly, and he could have talked to them easily. But he feels that no one will hear him, so he doesn’t say anything to them.
There is also the issue of the administration’s varying attitudes towards different outlets. Several owners feel the admin is biased towards The Hunger Cycle, because it is owned by a YIF alumnus. Further, Vijay, of Dosai, when asked if it was easy for him to set up an outlet here, said that he did get a lot support from the administration for being an alumnus. They were more willing to address his issues and concerns than they probably would have been otherwise. But it isn’t the alumni bias that concerns the eatery owners much. Many of them, hesitantly, told us that THC is in a more favorable position than most of the other eateries. It has a prime location and doesn’t needs to worry about seating as they use the mess chairs and tables. It must also be that noted Soumit, the owner of THC, never attends the meetings between the owners and the admin.
Vijay, especially, was very vocal about his concerns regarding this pertinent bias towards THC and ICS owned eateries. “They even have people cleaning up their tables for free!” he exclaimed, referring to the cleaners in the mess. He mentioned that the new Foodies may also be getting ‘special attention’ from the administration, as they have many workers who were earlier working with ICS. Vijay also thinks that this bias towards ICS owned eateries and THC could be attributed more to the friendly relationship they have with the vendors, than the desire for a share in their profits.
Amidst all these talks about their problems, all the owners agreed that the support they have received from the student body, and especially the Student Government has been immense. Shaina, owner of Hazelnut, which as old as as this campus, has different problems with the admin. She is the only woman who owns a food eatery on campus. In a rather vigorous manner , she spoke about her experiences of harassment at Ashoka. The former head of dining, had been rude and spoken to her in a condescending manner on more than one occasion. She thanked Arush Pande and Deep Vakil from the student government, who helped her share her concerns with the admin, and solve the problems she faced. Sandeep Bhaiya too, was all praise for the Student Government, even statinng that had it not been for the Student Government’s efforts, he would have left Ashoka two years ago. He thanked not one, but all the Student Governments formed at Ashoka, for hearing out and solving his problems. He feels that it is for their efforts that Fuel Zone seeks to continue serving the students as it has done till now.
Perfect drink for any time: chai from the Dhabha | Picture by: Caperture
The problems of the eateries need a solution. They have been struggling for a long time, yet serving us with a smile. The term ‘ Ashokan’ generally only refers to only the students at Ashoka. But all these workers in these eateries, and their owners spend a major chunk of their 24 hours with us. All of them are Ashokans too. Sandeep Bhaiya regularly takes part in the Ashoka Premier League and helped us when demonetization pestered us in our Ashokan bubble. Kuldeep Bhaiya’s smile and his famous “Aur bata”, brings a smile to our faces even when as we struggle to prevent crumbling under the workload at Ashoka. They are Ashokans in every sense of the term. Generations of students will come, and generations of students will go. But these outlets are the part of the culture of Ashoka. They will stay as long as these red brick walls.
Payal Somani (Class of 2021), Md. Faiz (Class of 2021) and Gaurav Nandan Tripathi (Class of 2020)
This is the first of a two-part piece about the various food outlets on campus and the problems they face.
Food has always been a popular topic of conversation in public and private spheres of Ashoka. Most arguments are aimed at describing the terrible quality of mess food. However, in an attempt to describe the lack of appeal around mess food, we take for granted the existence of a major component of Ashokan cuisine: the food outlets on campus. Keeping all debates in favour of and against mess food aside, this article presents to you the state of the food outlets on campus, examines their problems, concerns and the thoughts of the owner of these outlets about Ashoka and Ashokans alike.
When our team asked for an interview with the owners of the different outlets on campus, they were generous enough to leave their busy counters and give us their precious time. The reply to the question of “What do youfeel about the students of Ashoka?” was quite positive. All the owners are happy with the behavior of Ashokans towards them.
Fuel Zone has stood its ground from the start since Ashoka began in 2014. Sandeep Bhaiya, the immensely popular owner of Fuel Zone, feels that serving Ashoka students has been a great experience, because of the bonds which he has built with the students and their generally cooperative nature. He even said that the staff from other eateries have been quite cooperative. While the popularity of their inventive shakes and sandwiches have driven the sizable profit Fuel Zone reportedly earns, the true essence of this outlet’s public appeal is visible in the emotional bonds with students have made with it over time.
Chanchal Bhatti, the owner of the newly opened Foodies says, “I have had a marvelous experience at Ashoka so far. The students here are extremely polite, and this is something I haven’t witnessed even in my own college. They are co-operative, and polite to everyone, right from the owners to servers.” Such a feeling was shared by the owners of different outlets, and Shaina of Hazelnut even went on to say that if it was not for the students, she would have left Ashoka by now.
However, we received mixed responses when we asked if the administration has been cooperative in listening to them and solving the problems they face. Bhatti, when asked if he has faced any problems at Ashoka, answered in the negative. His short time at Ashoka prevented him from giving us a solid answer about administrative cooperation. “I haven’t interacted with them enough to know whether they are helpful or not,” he said.
Midnight caterer: The Hunger Cycle | Picture by: Caperture
The Hunger Cycle is often buzzing even at 2 am with midnight snackers. Started by YIF alumnus Soumit Saha, THC finds the Admin helpful in delivering a wide range to students.
The Supervisor at Chit Chaat, the outlet owned and managed by ICS, also finds no problems with the admin. However, this could be due to the fact that it is managed by ICS, the catering service handling the mess, its issues are always sorted easily by its two appointed managers.
The ICS-owned outlet: Chit Chaat | Picture by: Caperture
But this is not the case with all the eateries. In general, the eateries in the mess block benefit a lot more than the eateries in the sports block, as people are reluctant to walk a long distance for a shake or ice cream — this affects the business in a huge way. This has also led the owners of outlets in the sports block to ask for space in the mess block, but the admin, as usual, wasn’t responsive to their requests.
Club Atlas, a division of Odyssey, Ashoka University’s nascent travel society, organised its first trip in an ambitious subversion of the infamous Ashokan retreat to the Himalayas: a journey not to the mountains but to the quaint town of McLeodganj to attend the Dharamshala International Film Festival. “Each of the founders love travelling, but it was the very first time we would be taking the lead and taking a group of twenty plus along with us,” said Siddharth Goyal, co-founder of Club Atlas.
Photograph by Sarah Khan
The group of twenty-five students set out on 1st November on an overnight bus ride, across the lanes of Panipat, towards the hilly terrain of McLeod Ganj. Arriving at Hostelavie, a “backpacker’s boutique hostel,” Ashokans were, to put it mildly, ill-prepared to brace the chilly winds. However, the fresh air offered a welcome relief from the smog of Sonepat.
Photobombed: A curious visitor | Image by Rithupar Pathy (UG 21)
McLeodganj, a suburb of Dharamshala, is home to a mix of local Gaddis, Rajputs, Tibetan refugees, and foreign expatriates. The diversity of its inhabitants lends it a unique cosmopolitanism that inspired long-term residents Ritu Sarin and Tenzing Sonam to establish Dharamshala International Film Festival (DIFF). “Bringing independent cinema to the mountains” is how DIFF advertises itself. A two-minute trailer prefaced every screening; a cinematically mesmerising montage featuring Himachal Pradesh and beyond, ending with a glimpse of the playful side of Dalai Lama — all set to a contemporary rendition of Beethoven’s Für Elise — encapsulated the local theme yet global spirit of the festival.
Ditching festival heavyweights in favour of local talent, DIFF featured a wide, eclectic array of forty-six independent features, shorts, and documentaries. Apart from screenings, we attended Q & A sessions with filmmakers, masterclasses on film techniques including crowdfunding, editing and 4k filmmaking, and a panel featuring Manoj Bajpayee on the “Art of Acting”. There was also a panel discussion on the “MeToo Movement in India” that focussed on the ramifications of the movement on the indie movie circuit. The festival’s stance against sexual harassment was clear; they had no qualms about dropping their closing film, Ere Gowda’s Balekampa, after the filmmaker was accused of sexual assault. Instead, Aijaz Khan’s narrative feature Hamid closed the festival, winning hearts for its tale of a little boy’s search for answers in Kashmir.
At DIFF | Image by Arundhati Srinath (UG 21)
DIFF stood out from other film festivals for its unusual location: the Tibetan Children’s Village. There was something profoundly unsettling about watching stories about conflicts and displacement as children continued frolicking and springing about their daily school life. The modest but picturesque setting lent the festival an informal, intimate air, which is lacking in its lavish and large-scale counterparts. As rain struck, filmmakers and students, tourists and locals huddled around bonfires, discussing movies and life over music, tea, and cigarettes. “As someone actively involved with filmmaking, the experience of having a tête-à-tête with numerous filmmakers across the spectrum was incredibly informative,” said Madhav Singh, a first-year associated with Navrang, Ashoka’s film society. At one point, we found ourselves sharing a table with Ukrainian filmmaker Dar Gau, whose critically acclaimed Namdev Bhau: In Search of Silence was the festival’s opening film. Thus was the unique charm of DIFF!
Shiva Cafe’ | Image by Rithupar Pathy (UG 21)
The biting cold didn’t stop us from venturing beyond DIFF to explore the town. An early morning trek to the Bhagsu Falls allowed us to witness the lush twenty-meter waterfall. Connecting academics to experience, Anagha Natraj, a YIF, said, “We had a subject called Ecosophy earlier in the fellowship, and we could relate so much of what we had learnt to Bhagsu. We truly felt connected to the place!” Nestled among the hills was the popular Shiva Cafe. It exuded a bohemian vibe that calmed and catered for our circle of free-spirited college kids. Evenings were spent roaming the streets of McLeodganj lined with Tibetan craft shops and Indo-Israeli-Tibetan restaurants. Like everybody else, Arundhati Srinath, a first-year student, was in awe of the curios and enjoyed the cuisine: “The markets here are totally one of a kind. I got quirky decor for my dorm and absolutely loved the street momos.”
Prayer wheel: According to Tibetan Buddhist tradition, spinning the wheel clockwise brings wisdom and merit. | Image by Nayantara Violet (UG 19)
On the last day, we visited the Namgyal Monastery, home to the 14th Dalai Lama, followed by a stop at the Tibetan Museum. In 1959, following China’s invasion of Tibet, the Dalai Lama was offered settlement by erstwhile Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Scores of Tibetans undertook the long journey across hostile terrains to arrive at Dharamshala. Today, it serves as the capital of the Tibetan diaspora and houses the headquarters of the Tibetan government-in-exile. Manini Menon and Nayantara Violet Alva, both third-year political science majors, visited the Central Tibetan Administration. For them, the trip served as an opportunity to gain deeper insight into their academic interests. “We are conducting a research on Majnu Ka Tilla, known as Delhi’s mini-Tibet, and the relationship of its inhabitants to the “state”, whether Indian or Tibetan. We met with representatives of the Central Tibetan Administration, which went really far towards our understanding of the CTA’s operations and its role in the lives of Tibetans around the world,” said Menon.
Portraits of Tibetan self-immolated martyrs at the museum | Image by Sarah Khan (UG 21)
Chilly nights brought together UGs & YIFs, otherwise strangers on campus, for (legal) drinks, laughs, and stories. “My favourite part about travelling is meeting new people. It’s bizarre how I made loads of friends here that I otherwise would have missed on campus,” said Swarna, a first-year. “Traveling puts people in a special bond.”
Twenty-five smiling travelers | Image by Nayantara Alva (UG 19)
The four-day-break in the middle of the semester scurried by, but left us enriched and enlivened. Anagha related, “As a YIF, with such tight schedules and heavy workloads, the fresh air and breathtaking views felt absolutely magical.” Back on campus, we returned to the usual grind of submissions and readings with renewed vigour. In its invitational email, Club Atlas described this trip as “a small step towards what the name ‘Atlas’ seeks to achieve.” A respite from ever-mounting work, impromptu getaways such as this should be on every Ashokan’s bucket list!
The Creators is a fortnightly series of artist profiles of Ashokans who are actively involved in different creative fields including music, photography, creative writing, and visual or performing arts.
The distinct throng of drums, energetic riffs and resounding lilt of ‘R U mine’ echoing through the atrium walls into the evening air got everyone wondering what exactly what was going on upstairs. Further inquiry introduced one to the aptly named ‘Apartment Upstairs’, jamming away diligently before their breakthrough performance at OP Jindal’s Biswamil. Ashokan music culture has proved conducive to creators of various genres, with Rohan Pai (UG 20), Shourjo Chatterjee (UG 20), and Angad Trehan (UG 21) offering an exciting new addition to campus culture, keen to flourish in the Delhi music circuit as well.
Apartment Upstairs | Credits: Shrishti Agrawal, Caperture: The Photography Society
An embodiment of young talent, Apartment Upstairs was initially founded in the previous semester by Rohan Pai, Shourjo Chatterjee and Bharat Srinivas. As first years, each of them recall being immensely inspired by fellow Ashokan band Shorthand. This spurred them to seek out fellow aspiring musicians, and eventually unite to form a medium of expression. Bharat left in the second year. However, the other two were quick to recruit a keen first-year guitarist, Angad Trehan. The trio became a close-knit unit relatively quickly, influencing each others’ music tastes and playing styles. This resulted in an amalgamation of genres coalescing to constitute their whetted sound- alternate rock. While snippets of their tunes on Instagram will invigorate rock enthusiasts, the band is focussed on musical variety and ideation. Their individual interests revolve around various orbits of the rock universe, ranging from John Mayer, Red Hot Chillie Peppers, and even Shawn Mendes – all affecting their artistry. We sat down with Apartment Upstairs to garner details on their personal backgrounds, experimental outlook, supposed rivalry with Shorthand, and the story behind their name.
Sumantra- Tell us a bit about your musical histories. When did you start playing music and how did it go?
Angad: I started playing in 8th grade and started taking it seriously from 9th grade. I began with the bass guitar to classical. Now, I play acoustic and electric as well.
Shourjo: I’ve been playing the drums for quite a while now. It started around the same time as Angad like around 7th grade. My parents knew the founders of my music school and that helped me start learning drums. However, it was a very on and off thing due to boards and it hasn’t been consistent throughout. Honestly, I didn’t think I’ll be playing the drums in college or would have much to do with music, but then I met Rohan and Bharat and that made me start thinking seriously about music.
Rohan: I actually started playing in the 12th grade and I started learning online. I started off with acoustic, but in college, switched to bass because that’s what the band needed. I prefer playing the bass now but there’s a lot more to learn and improve on.
Shoujo- I think it’s amazing how much Rohan has improved. He started playing bass in the beginning of second semester, and you wouldn’t be able to tell the way he’s improved this year.
Sumantra- What were your musical influences early on?
Angad: I have a lot of guitar influences. I listened to a lot of John Mayer and Steve Vai and Joe Satriani. I listened to Tarrega- not many know him, he’s a classical guitarist. Favourite bands? Green Day, Slash, Dire Straits, and Eagles are the ones that come to mind right now. I also listened to a lot of jazz. They’ve influenced making my own music as well.
Rohan: My influences have shifted rapidly since last semester. I mostly listened to a lot of mainstream music and indie, like Ed Sheeran and John Mayer, stuff like that.
Shourjo- (interjects) Shawn Mendes.
Rohan (laughs)- Yeah, I had a phase. After that, it has shifted a lot to bands like John Mayer Trio, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Vulfpeck. A lot of alternative music like Arctic Monkeys, Bon Iver, and Childish Gambino.
Devika- That’s quite a variety!
Rohan- Yeah. I’m mainly into alternative and funk right now. I think I encountered that mainly after meeting Shourjo and Bharat — the band wanted to take that route and considering that it was music that wasn’t like Ed Sheeran or Shawn Mendes. Red Hot Chili Peppers and John Mayer trio were what helped us forge a common interest.
Sumantra- I think as an alt-rock band, there are so many genres within it, like britpop, indie, grunge. Do you think you’ve figured out what your genre is?
Rohan- I think we’re still exploring how we sound as a band. Until we have three or four originals that we have jammed to, we’re going to keep working and see how it goes. For now, it feels like we’re moving towards an alternative genre — in between rock and a sort of a studio feel. I think we can’t classify that just yet.
Shourjo: I think a lot of the music that I was influenced by comes from the music I listened to before I started playing the drums which include a lot of classic rock, like 70s – 80s stuff. Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Dave Matthews Band. All of these bands have drummers that had the most impact on me. I’m also influenced by a lot of jazz drummers who I’m extremely influenced by. Jojo Mayer, Dave Weckl, They’re not old school rock drummers, so it’s a nice change to include them in the music I listen to. Love what drummers do for fusion jazz. Apart from that, it’s mostly rock, like Angad. I’ve recently started to include funk and alternative stuff, that’s impacted me.
Shourjo on the drums | Credits: Shrishti Agrawal, Caperture: The Photography Society
Devika- There’s often a distinct dynamic that develops between members as you’re playing together and making music together. So what’s it like practicing together, and what’s it like performing?
Angad: It varies a lot, honestly. Sometimes you have amazing practices and you come up with stuff like that (cue in energetic snapping sounds). Sometimes you have really really really bad practices, and you’re still recovering from them. Like, we just had a pretty bad one recently, but a good one a few days ago. But then the next day you will have a better practice. So it really varies a lot. I would say it’s a two way street — practices are affected by the way you interact with each other and the way you interact with each other affects your practice. Working with these two guys is so much. It’s way too much fun! Performing with them is even more fun. We just performed at Biswamil, and that was a really good one.
Shourjo: As Angad said, in practice sessions, we tend to fluctuate a lot but I think that’s true for anyone who practices music because every day can’t be good and filled with new ideas and great practice sessions. I think what helps us is that at a fundamental level we connect with each other really well and since we’re good friends. That really does help us with our band dynamic. It helps us concentrate on the music and not let anything else get in the way.
Angad- There’s also times wherein we’re just sitting in the room being like, “What do I play?” “What do I play now?” There’s literally ten minutes of silence, because we don’t know what to play then.
Rohan: Mainly, it’s the fact that our friendship is stronger than being bandmates right now. That pushes us a lot, gives us a lot of boost because there is no tension between us. We easily open up and we have no problems with what the other person wants to play. I think that’s rare in bands, because you often see the band members getting angry at each other for not letting them play what they want, and I think we’re sorted in that way. That’s quite impressive?
Devika- What’s your group dynamic like? Is there a leader?
(All shake their heads)
Rohan- There really isn’t, we don’t really let one person lead the band. I think that’s rare.
Angad- (indicates Rohan) Though the de facto logistics manager is this dude.
Rohan (laughs)- I mean, as long as booking music room sessions go. But what we do during practices isn’t affected by anything like that.I don’t think we follow any concept of band leader as such.
Devika- That’s interesting, especially since bands often have frontmen.
Shourjo: I think even though Rohan’s a natural frontman, there’s no clear cut leader of the band even in the music room. It’s very egalitarian, which I think is a good dynamic that we share.
Sumantra- How was your first live performance in Biswamil? How is it different performing live when compared to a studio?
Shourjo: Regarding our performance, it was our first live performance and it was relatively soon after we started playing. But as soon as we stepped on stage we weren’t nervous about it. It went well. It felt like we’ve been playing much longer than we have been- The way we knew each other and performed. Everything just fell into place and we didn’t even experience any first performance nervousness. That was a very pleasant experience and it was promising for our future performances, that we could have a good first performance like this, without any inhibitions.
Angad Trehan | Credits: Shrishti Agrawal, Caperture: The Photography Society
Angad: It was a great learning experience for me. We want to get there between the studio and the live vibe and see how that fits. This was a great testing ground for that. It did work, as we learnt that a few things that work well live may not work well in the studio. Great experience at Biswamil, overall.
Devika- What’s the story behind the name ‘Apartment Upstairs?’
Rohan- So basically we had performance coming up last semester, and we thought it would be the best opportunity to establish our name.
The three of us were watching our favourite show ‘How I Met Your Mother’, and we decided that we’d put one or two words that really fit together as a band name, and that would stick. In that episode, the name ‘apartment upstairs’ came up. We thought that was a great name, because when we say ‘the apartment upstairs’, it’s like we’re taking you to ‘our space’. The apartment upstairs is always making noise, always ‘out there’ in some way. It’s like we’re taking you from wherever you are, to our place.
Devika- I always thought it sounded quite mysterious. Gets me wondering ‘what’s going on at apartment upstairs?’
Shourjo- Come, find out at the performances!
(everyone laughs)
Devika- Many artists have some sort of mission statement that defines their creative purpose. Black Sabbath had one describing how they should be constantly pushing themselves. What would you consider you creative mission for the band? What sort of artistic goal do you hope to achieve?
Rohan- As far as I see it, we want to come up with as many original compositions as possible, while also working on covers and making an original setlist. This is so that we can perform at Delhi and play gigs. Other than that, we’d like to perform at Battle of the Bands competitions mainly for exposure, and see how we’d compete against other bands that are in the circuit right now.
Shourjo- As for our artistic and creative vision, again, since we haven’t had that many original songs come out yet, it’s very hard to set a specific direction as of now. In terms of originals, it’ll take us a while to figure out what kind of sound we aim for, and the kind of sound that comes out our playing. So currently, it’s sort of hard to say that we’re set on ‘this specific way’ of music making. I guess it’ll take some more time.
Sumantra- You guys had mentioned yourselves as a ‘Delhi band’ and follow many bands in that area. Are there any concrete projects you’re working on to impact culture in Delhi and Ashoka?
Angad- Honestly, I think that’s the aim of every band, to make an impact. That’s why you form a band.
Rohan- It’s a Delhi band mainly because we’re in Ashoka, that’s close to Delhi. So Delhi’s gonna be our biggest hunting ground, in terms of gigs. That’s why we want to call ourselves one, because most of gigs will be there.
Devika– (pseudo-serious) Not Sonepat?
(everyone laughs)
Rohan– (laughs) Sonepat? I hope!
Shourjo- (with some dry wit) Unless we start doing Punjabi music, I guess there’s more scope in Delhi.
Sumantra- Any concrete plans or projects so far?
Rohan- We haven’t planned that as of now. In the next four-five months, there’s gonna be a lot of battle of the bands, so we’re gonna prefer that over doing any gigs. That’s because they require you to do fewer songs than gigs. I think at an early stage when we have a smaller set, I think battle of the bands is a better
option. It’ll help us get used to performing on stage, and then we can professionally perform at gigs and stuff.
Devika- How would you describe your creative process as a group? What strikes each of you with ideas, and how do you write and compose? How do you go about putting it together?
Rohan Pai | Credits: Shrishti Agrawal, Caperture: The Photography Society
Rohan- We have one original completely composed. It came about in the summer. It was just a very simple bass line that I had over the summer and added vocals and chords over it. Once I was done, I took it to these guys and they transformed it completely. They added some amazing electric guitar parts, he [Shourjo] added some amazing drum parts. It took us just two-three sessions to get done with the verse, because we were still thinking of what sounded best. After that phase, we started thinking of which part comes next and started jamming in the music room and seeing musically what was cohesive, and what part could come after the verse. Stuff like that, and it just happened. We ended up with three and a half, to four minutes of a song.
Angad- We started the song off the bass and Pai had a melody. He used to sing it off the top with nonsense lyrics. After we were done with the song, he wrote the lyrics.
Rohan- We’re in the process of recording it in the studio, but we’re performing it at Jashn-e-Jazba. We might live-track it there, and see how it goes and if we can put it out.
Angad- That’s not the concrete structure though, its not always bass then guitar. The one we jammed to recently, I was just messing around with the amp and playing four notes, but sounded like I was playing sixteen. After that Shourjo started playing some drums and Rohan added something with bass. It sounded pretty cool.
Rohan- So it’s mainly when you’re in the music room and you’re jamming that there’s one small idea that you end up jamming to for 5–10 minutes straight without stopping. We always have our phones recording it so that maybe later we can maybe pick up the best parts for it later. I think that leads to some great songs.
You never know when the next new idea is gonna come. It’s also not like we depend on one person to do it. Maybe he can do something on the drums, and then I can think of something on the bass line, or he does something on the guitar, and we both can add to it. So it always starts with one simple track and adding tracks over a track is quite simple for us.
Devika- Quite an experimental process. So lastly, I wanted to mention — Ashoka appears to have a thing for bands. First there was Shorthand, now it’s you guys. What do you think Ashoka has that fuels this ‘up-and-coming band’ scene? And how can it affect the culture on campus? How were you particularly influenced by Shorthand and their releases?
Rohan- For us, Shorthand has been our biggest inspiration. I know a lot of people might think that we look at them as ‘competition’ and whatnot, but it’s really not like that. We really are close to all of the members. When I first came to college and saw them perform in my orientation week, I was really just shell-shocked and thought, “Yeah, this is what I want to be.” They were my biggest inspiration, I went to some of their gigs and watched them play at The Piano Man in Delhi. I didn’t know Shourjo that well, but the other guitarist who was with us earlier, we were in the same school. We watched them perform together, and thought that we should be in a band too, but were really not at that level yet.
We really wish we can compete with Shorthand one day, not in a competition kind of way, but in a friendly way. It inspires us a lot to go into the music room every day, and come up with better music and music that is not just technically good, but good to listen to for an audience. I think they’ve nailed that.
Shourjo- I think one of the good things about Ashoka is that it makes it quite easy to find other people they wanna play with, like how we started out. That’s how they influence band culture, the way you were talking about. Another thing is that, as musicians, they’ve always been very dependable, always willing to listen to our stuff, give us constructive feedback and help us out in any way they can. They been a great overall example for us, in terms of professionalism, hard work and even sound- They’re a model we’d like to follow. The path they’re taking now is also something we’d like to emulate in the future.
Devika- Musically as well?
Shourjo- Yeah, a lot of the times we find ourselves in the music room saying, “Oh, that sounds like something Shorthand might’ve thought of.” Musically we’d love, love to be like them, because we love their sound. Sounding like them won’t be a bad thing at all.
Angad- Yeah, it’s tough to break out of that shadow in way, because we’re in their shadow, right? Shorthand is a GREAT band, and we really don’t mind being in their shadow. We really do wanna come up to their level. See, you can’t jam with someone you’re not as good as. If you’re a shitty guitarist, and you’re trying to jam with someone who’s really good, you’re just gonna be there wondering, “What do I do next?” We want to reach the same level, so that we can sit in the same room, and talk music with them — jam with them.
Rohan- I think if there’s anything promoting band culture in Ashoka right now, for us at least, it’s how supportive shorthand have been. Our first performance at the club showcase, they were there, and came and talked to us about our performance and what we could have done better.
They’re the most humble people, really down-to-earth, and always willing to help. I think that this really helps you look past all this talk of competition- You see them as people who can help you break out into the music scene.
Sumantra- Thanks a lot for talking to us, and all the best for your upcoming work!
Catch ‘Apartment Upstairs’ performing their first-ever original song ‘In Pursuit’ at Jashn-e-Jazba next week! Grab more tunes on their Instagram and check out one of their performances on Youtube and subscribe.
The authors are staff writers for the Arts & Culture column of the Edict.
This is a weekly column summarizing the 10 best questions from the quiz held by the Quizzing Society of Ashoka University on 11th of October.
Q1. “On a typical dark, wet Glasgow night, a bus driver coming off shift came in and ordered a ___. He sent it back to the waiter saying it’s dry. At the time, dad had an ulcer and was enjoying a plate of tomato soup. So he said why not put some tomato soup into the __ with some spices. They sent it back to the table and the bus driver absolutely loved it. He and his friends came back again and again and we put it on the menu.” The origins of which popular dish are being talked about here, on which a play of words has become exceedingly popular in the sporting fraternity over the last year and happened to be the 23rd most common FPL name? Give me the dish and player.
Q2. Keshia “________” Chante is a Canadian singer, songwriter, television personality, actress and philanthropist. She started as a teen star, having released three albums exclusively for Canada. In in 2012 she rose to international prominence hosting BET’s 106 & Park. Chante was given a star on the Brampton Walk of Fame for her achievements in Canadian Music and Film. She grew up with famous rapper Drake in Toronto, with the both having dated during their teenage years — Chante is also said to be his first girlfriend. According to Capital Xtra, Keshia is in news again with her nickname. What is Keshia’s nickname or FITB.
Q3. It’s not that it isn’t in X, it’s just that it doesn’t exist, period. The list goes from one-one hundred twenty three, but skips numbers in between, likely due to various changes in boundaries, closures or mergers. While X does have nine four, but the next closest number is hundred. Based on a map shown in __________, it looks like the accurate location could be Prospect Heights or more likely, Park Slope. A more realistic number to along with X could be seven-seven or seven-eight but that really doesn’t have the same ring to it. Give funda.
Q4. X’s first and only appearance came in The Punisher #1 in May, 2009. The backstory for X is that he drops out of high school to pursue a career in hip-hop. Once he gains popularity he becomes a regular at freestyle battles. After a night at one such performance, X and his bodyguards are seemingly ambushed by the Punisher who kills all of X’s guards. X is then rescued by Barracuda, a childhood friend of X’s, who teams up with him to take the Punisher out. After an intense action sequence, Punisher tells X that he needs to pay a visit to The Parents Music Council so X tells Punisher to tell them “Shady sent ya”. X’s abilities as listed on Marvel’s Wikia are his shooting and ________ skills, the latter being something for which we actually know him. Tell me who is X?
Q5. The term X, a play on words on a substance very commonly found in nature, became viral on social media very recently (August). It originated from a speech given at the 56th Convocation Ceremony of the Indian Institute of Bombay. The speech, given after awarding 3 gold medals and 43 silver medals to IIT Bombay students in various categories, talked about how innovation was the buzzword for the 21st century — but it also talked about how tea could be made using gas from a nearby drainage. This caught the social media’s attention, prompting a flurry of jokes and hashtags on the same. Identify.
Q6. In 1924, the Commonwealth of Virginia gifted Britain a replica of a statue of George Washington, the first president of the United States of America. The statue, crafted by Jean Antoine Houdon, is seen holding a bundle of 13 fasces — which represent the original 13 states of the newly created USA. It is now kept in the heart of London at Trafalgar Square. However, popular legend has it that the statue would have broken a pledge Washington took, while fighting the British in the War of Independence — to avoid that, the US authorities came up with a creative solution. What pledge, and what solution is being talked about?
Q7. CrossFit is a branded fitness regimen created by Greg Glassman and Lauren Jenai in 2000. Promoted as a physical exercise philosophy and also as a competitive fitness sport, CrossFit is practiced by members of over 13,000 affiliated gyms, roughly half of which are located in the United States. Mumbai-born Dheepesh Bhatt started what is claimed to be India’s first crossfit gym — Crossfit OM Box in Juhu catering to some of the biggest names in the Indian film industry. Bhatt, also known as Shivoham, now works full-time as a celebrity fitness trainer and is known to have helped Aamir Khan achieve his look for Dangal. However we all associate Dheepesh with Bollywood for altogether a different reason. What?
Q8. The first time he did this, he was quizzed about the curious act in 2011, he said — “I felt like an animal. I wanted to see how it tastes. It tastes good and well kept! It just came to me spontaneously really — I didn’t plan to do it.” In 2015, he was wiser, having asked the concerned authorities, saying, “I was assured it was not processed. It was gluten free, so I could do it”.
In 2018, he reminisced back. “The first time I’ve done it, it was the sweetest dessert I’ve ever tasted in my life. That experience hopefully I’ll get to taste one more time before I finish my career.” “I had a double portion this year to treat myself.”
Who and what act is being talked about here, something which may earn him the moniker of “GOAT”, but in a different way than it is usually used?
Q9. Tourism, alongside finance, education and arts is one of the major contributions to the city’s economy with $8.8 billion. According to marketing and branding consultant Gordon Hendren, X is responsible for about 5% or $440m of the total income from tourism by representing a lot of city landmarks, the Toronto Raptors and various restaurants and clubs from around the city. For instance, tourists still swarm Joso’s Restaurant in the city after X’s artwork featured it in 2011. Even, politicians have gotten proactive about using X’s brand to attract foreign investment. Toronto City Councillor Michael Thompson described how he used X as a selling point to bring a $147 million tech conference to the city for the next three years. Identify Toronto’s biggest star attraction X.
Q10. After a week of hype and anticipation on the subreddit r/___________, over 350,000 users were banned by random selection — much to shock and dismay of redditors and internet users alike. When it was set up, it was suggested as a part of the merriment that it would be funny if at some point half of the subreddit’s members were randomly banned. The moderators of r/_________ had to get permission from Reddit admins to go through with the ban, and then they had to automate the process. As word of the upcoming ban spread, hundreds of thousands of Reddit users flocked to join r/_____________________ just so they’d have a chance to get ousted. By the time ban day rolled around, over 700,000 users had subscribed — making the culling by far the largest “dusting,” or mass ban, in Reddit history. FITB
Answers:
Chicken Tikka Masala, Mohammed Salah (Chicken Tikka Mo Salah)
2. Keke or Kiki from Drake’s summer hit In My Feelings
3. Brooklyn’s Ninth Ninth Precinct
4. Eminem or Slim Shady
5. Mitrogen, with the substance being Nitrogen and the cheif guest at the convocation being Prime Minister Narendra Modi
6. Washington pledged to never set foot on British soil — soil was flown in from Virginia to be kept under the statue
7. Dheepesh Bhatt played the character of Franky Ramdayal in the movie Kal Ho Na Ho
8.Novak Djokovic, Eating grass off the court
9. Drake
10. r/thanosdidnothingwrong
‘The BEST Quiz Ever’ was hosted by Aryaman Arora, an undergraduate from the class of 2021, on 11th October, 2018.
In conversation with Abdul Majid, Sports Minister.
Sonipat skies as the runners enter the campus
On the 21st of September, the Ashoka Run 1.0 took place, with more than 150 registering for the five kilometre run around the Ashoka campus. Organised by the Sports Ministry, the Ashoka Run was the first in a wave of events aimed at building an active sports and fitness culture on campus. The first 50 finishers won themselves medals, while the fastest 10 won cash prizes worth Rs. 27000.
Success Sibanda leading the rest of the competitors
Success Sibanda, Shantanav Rao and Shivam Sahu ended up on the podium(in that order), at the end of what turned out to be one of the liveliest events on campus in recent memory. The Cycling Club patrolled the Run route which went around the outside perimeter of the campus and ended at the Dhaba, which was a good introduction to the newly formed club for many. Runners were pleasantly surprised by the crowd that had formed at the finish line, with friends and acquaintances loudly cheering, and egging the participants on. At the end of the event, everybody spilled onto the cricket field where people listened to music arranged by the Cultural Ministry, before the awards ceremony presided over by Pro-VC Sankar Krishnan. The Run ended up being Sankar Sir’s last campus involvement, and he ran the 5 kilometres, gave out the medals and had a great time himself.
Former Pro-VC Sankar Krishnan with silver medal winner Shantanav Rao
The Run did indeed seem to have a big effect on the campus: Abdul reports that he’s been seeing some people in the gym every day, after they secured an unexpected top 50 finish during the Run. Along with the Run, the Sports Ministry has already organised a Swimming Championship, and a Chess tournament in a bid to get more people involved in sports. Along with this, there are plans to conduct snooker and pool tournaments sometime this semester, as well as football, basketball and ultimate tournaments.
As our conversation came to an end, Abdul wanted to thank his Sports Ministry many of whom were instrumental in organising the event, and generally wanted to applaud the enthusiasm that participants showed. Specifically, he wanted to point the dedication that Shivam Sahu and Shantanav Rao displayed. Shivam ran with a blister on his right big toe, but still did exceedingly well, and Shantanav followed up a stellar performance in the Swimming Championship with a second place finish in the Run!
This piece is the first amongst our newly instated theme for the month — Sexual Harrasment & #metoo.
— by Kristina Flour
Whisper networks are quite possibly the biggest open secret in modern culture. Women have been creating and sustaining these for decades, keeping each other wary of people in their workplaces, educational institutions — even families. They’re one of the best-kept secrets within the female community, allowing the network to thrive and inform; keeping women wary of men but not enough to move towards some form of due process prosecution. It’s tacitly understood that these networks are to keep women in a community connected with those who have sexual harassment stories related to the people they’re around. With the dawn of the #metoo movement, these unsaid and unseen whisper networks have turned into loud, powerful declarations and allegations, carrying forth the hesitancy of possibly fake accusations but remaining, at its essence, a system to warn and inform.
Whisper networks have never been completely devoid of dubiosity — the possibility of false allegations or inflated accounts was just as real then as it is now. However, the restriction of the network to the women who were directly concerned by it kept those apprehensions buried. It wasn’t a question of who was falsely accused, but instead of who’s left to trust: a question that remains at the crux of today’s movement. Ultimately, though, the #metoo movement is a public whisper network, complete with all of its advantages and faults but massively inflated. This inflation is what has led to the creation of the dangerous yet firm ground on which the movement stands. It benefits most out of the expansion of the network, and yet is susceptible to mis-narration and mischaracterization by virtue of this large base.
Public whisper networks are fundamentally different from private ones because of their politicized nature. They are warped into questions of falsity and ethicality, yanking the narrative away from the widespread abuse of power in nearly every single industry to instead the cases that are innocent until never proven guilty. The solidarity of the network is now lost because those involved within it cannot be trusted to keep the information to themselves and disseminate it only to those who need to know; Twitter becomes a platform where the network dies a brutal death in the arms of a keyboard warrior who would rather fight for the (few) unsung heroes it finds in men who rise above their accusations, than fight for the (many) women who get buried under the weight of their unaccepted truth.
This line of thinking leaves me with one haunting question — can Ashoka sustain its whisper networks in this age of #metoo? Or will names slowly begin to trickle out of the community, leaving no choice but mass public declarations?
It would be foolish to assume that Ashoka doesn’t have its whisper networks — the rooms of SH2 and SH4 have seen and heard conversations laced with secrecy and caution, but more importantly, have experienced the anxiety and fear that comes with telling your story. Ashoka, as a community, is quite possibly not equipped to deal with its own #metoo movement; this campus, as small as it is, is also not enough to contain the sharp tremors that would be felt in our social fabric. Admittedly, there exists distrust around our own internal due processes, and the entire purpose of this public movement is to shake things up where due process was unable to and where laws and policies failed to protect its people.
However, are we equipped enough as a community to even fathom the true impact of this movement seizing Ashoka at its infantile stages? This isn’t a question about how many people may be involved, or which people are involved — it runs much deeper than that. As a community, we have never dealt with something that would run as dirty as the exposition of this university’s whisper networks. But will there ever come a point where these networks can no more serve us in the way they’re meant to? The biggest downside to whisper networks is that they aren’t political enough — they keep stories and accounts contained amongst women in private conversations. The political whisper network is one that is public, and it is one that comes from an ineffective private network. In essence, that’s where the #metoo movement sprung from — the inefficacy of private whisper networks led to the creation of the biggest, most public and political one ever, one that stretches across countries and industries, professions and age groups.
Can a public whisper network at Ashoka handle the onslaught from a community that is small enough for you to be whispering about the person sitting next to you every week?
Halloween is when people of all colours (red, green, and blue), species (ghosts, aliens, and centaurs) timelines, and alternate universes come together to party. This is what happened at the fang-tastic party thrown by the Cultural Ministry in the Atrium. The decorations were beautiful, especially the cute spooky pumpkins. A huge bonus was the pots of candy the Ministry provided; people (including me) went mad after the Jolly Rancher lollipops.
Photograph by Rithika Abraham (Multimedia Department, The Edict)
Simultaneously, Mad Batter held a Halloween Bake Sale featuring a tricky game (there are slips named “trick” or “treat” under the goodies. If you pick “treat” then the price of that treat is reduced by ₹20; if you pick “trick”, it is increased by ₹10) and delicious treats that everyone was goblin’. There was also the promise of competition; Epigraph held the Terribly Dark Tales Contest, where partygoers could vote for their favourite terribly dark tales from five shortlisted entries. The winner of this contest was Saransh Ahuja, (UG 2021).
The Cultural Ministry’s costume competition showed that Ashokans truly believe in the wise saying, “if you’ve got it, haunt it”. People went all-out with the costumes — painted faces, light sabres, horse masks, and pink bathrobes. As the clock ticked closer to the time of the party, floor Whatsapp groups were filled with messages asking for paints, lipsticks, a particular colour or type of t-shirt. Brooklyn Nine-Nine characters were the most popular. I counted at least four Rosas, a couple of Amys, and a few Jakes. Some costumes brought back childhood memories with cartoon characters like Velma (Scooby-Doo) and Ashley Spinelli (Recess). The winner of the competition was Siddharth Goyal (UG 2020), and the runner-up was Esther David (UG 2020).
Here are a few costumes that I saw around campus that stood out because of the effort put into them and how creative they were. The costumes were so realistic, it was uncandy. This is not an exhaustive list, but just the ones that I spotted.
Rangarajan Kaliyur busted out a BoJack Horseman cosplay because “it holds emotional value and is important to me”.
Aninthitha Nath as Darth Maul because “it Siths well with me and it’s all about the Smaul pleasures in life”. | Photograph by Rithika Abraham (Multimedia Department, The Edict)
Aditya Banerjee as Sexy Smog because “nothing says sexy like toxic particulate matter”. | Photograph by Rithika Abraham (Multimedia Department, The Edict)
For me, this party was a break from all the midterm stress, a night of just dancing and having a good time. I didn’t want the party to end and neither did anyone else, as a lot of boos issued when the ministry decided to wrap up. In the beginning, I couldn’t decide between going as an undercover cop (zero effort) or the girl who takes “On Wednesdays, we wear pink” too seriously (pink hair, fluffy pink bathrobe, and pink slippers). Then, I looked into the mirror and realised that the answer was staring me in the face all along: I could just go as Hufflepuff icon Nymphadora Tonks! I had pink hair, and all I needed were black clothes. Sadly, no one recognised who I was; although after I told them, they could totally see the resemblance — because of the pink hair.
This Halloween was really special for me because this was the first time I actually celebrated it. I grew up watching Disney and Nickelodeon shows, and each show had a special Halloween episode. When I came to know that Ashoka where we celebrate Halloween, I expected the party and dressing up but I didn’t expect the trick or treating and the Jack’o Lanterns. The night was really really gourd, wicked awesome and filled with skele-fun! I can’t wait for next year’s Halloween to see what crazy, fun and innovative things people come up with. Although, next year, I will probably show up in my pyjamas with my laptop. I won’t be an enthusiastic, carefree first year anymore.
The author is an Arts & Culture staff writer for The Edict.
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