d e

In si
1. The Changing Face of Radio Industry
2. A Cricket Tale
3. The 8th Color
( Kal, Aaj aur Kal - Truth or Illusion )
4. Kaamunication
5. What Love is Not!
6. A Picture
7. Rewind
8. Milestones - Mrinalini Sarabhai
9. Comfort in Culture
10. I give you my Word
11. khabar, khabar ki...
12. Galleria
13. Q’ suggests.
14. Et Cetera
15. Signing off.

Disclaimer:

‘the quëst’ is a sarcastic critique. It is a positive vision for the society. It does not in-
tend to target or hurt any specifications in case of gender, caste, religion etc.

‘the quëst’ does not endorse the views of its contributors or guarantee originality. The
contributions are carried in good faith.
The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6
The Changing Face of
Radio Industry - Manali Misra
D uring the time of Independence,
radio was an integral part of
everyone’s life. Due to the lack of
any other motion medium, all the
information about the national events
reached the people through radio.
Popularity of radio was widespread.
Since then, radio has seen many
seasons. From Hindi classical music to
English rock music, radio has moved
from its old box like look to the basic
feature in every cell phone.
Radio broadcasting began in India on
an experimental basis. In 1921, Times
of India in collaboration with Post
and Telegraph started broadcasting
a musical programme. In 1930, radio
broadcasting started under the Indian
Broadcasting Company. After three
years, the company was liquidated
and the Government took the charge
of broadcasting. In 1936, the name
changed to All India radio (AIR) and is
officially known as Akashvani. AIR is
one of the largest radio networks in the
world.
In accordance with its motto, Bahujan
Hitaya, Bahujan Sukhaya, benefits
and happiness of a large section of the
people, AIR has always concentrated
on information, education and
entertainment.
May, 2011
Vividh Bharti service of AIR was
started in 1957 to combat Radio
Ceylon. It presents a mix of film
music, skits, short plays and
interactive programmes, some of the
old popular programmes of Vividh
Bharati are ‘Sangeet Sarita’, ‘Bhule
Bisre Geet’, Hawa Mahal, ‘Jaimala’,
‘Inse Miliye’, ‘Chhaya Geet’ etc.,
are still distinctly recognized by the
listeners. Ameen Sayani is referred
to as the golden voice of Radio.
For four decades, the Government
of India did not allow private radio
stations to broadcast in India. In
1993, the Government allowed
private FM operators to buy chunks
on AIR, prepare programming
content, book commercials from
advertisers and then broadcast.
Within a short span of time, the FM
radio advertising and sponsorship
grew to millions of rupees.
The year 1999, changed the course
of radio industry in India. The
Government decided to allow
private sector participation in FM
radio broadcasting. One hundred
and fifty new FM channels were
to be licensed across 40 cities. The
focus was on the metros but many
players dropped because of the
01
 The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6 May, 2011
heavy license fee. This marked the it with a new vigour,” said Vineet Singh
Phase-I of Radio. Phase-II saw lesser Hukmani, managing director, RadioOne.
restrictions and discussions on Phase-
III which may lead to permission of Despite many hurdles, the radio industry
broadcasting news on private FM is excited to welcome the Phase-III. It will
stations, are still on. spur the popularity and growth of radio
even more.
At a time when radio nearly became
dead, life was resurrected in it by FM Steve Allen has aptly remarked:
stations. They brought music listening
Radio is the theatre of the mind; television
back into fashion. Radio One, Radio
is the theatre of the mindless.
Mirchi, Big FM, Red FM are few of the
big players of the industry.

“The irony with the radio industry

is that it has been the last one to
get liberalised. Even then, we are
extremely excited about the next
phase. It will be a huge advertising
opportunity as smaller towns and
cities will power it,” said Anurradha
Prasad, president, Association of Radio
Operators for India.With Phase-III, 800
new radio stations are expected to
start. 18% of all the private FM stations
are in the metro market. Advertising
is the sole source of revenue for this
industry.
Radio industry is yet to see even
greener shades of success. Youngsters
like radio because it matches with
the fast-paced lifestyle today.
Radio reaches about 99% of Indian
population. Internet radio adds to its
accessibility. However, the content
played on different FM stations is
quite similar to each other.
“With phase III, radio will become
larger than any other medium.
Advertisers will be forced to look at 02
The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6 May, 2011

A Cricket Tale - Saahil Dama

As we have moved out of antiquity, Cricket - a
sport that is the religion of a billion people has
undergone a drastic alteration. Today’s Cricket
is merely a shadow of what yesteryear’s
Cricket used to be. From a gentleman’s game
it has met morphed into a maddening farrago
of big money, glitteratzi, cheerleaders and raw
entertainment. At this stage, the question that
begs to be asked is, do we prefer the Cricket
of the golden ages, or does the modern-day
onslaught enthral us more?
Originating in England, it wasn’t late before this sport
became India’s favourite adopted child. The movie
Lagaan beautifully captured the contrast between the
elitist British playing the game and the infatuation of
the poverty stricken Indians with it. The infatuation soon
developed into an addiction and it wasn’t long before
the sport was ensconced in the heart of every Indian.
While at the global level,
the likes of W.G.Grace, Sir
Don Bradman and Sir Vivian
Richards firmly established
their dominance over the game, and the sport saw its
first true legends. These men were made of sterner
stuff than half of today’s teams put together. Those
were the days when cricket was played, not for
victory, not for vendetta and certainly not for money
and greed; but to maintain the dignity and spirit of
the game. 1975 - the world bore witness to the
inception of a magisterial idea, the Cricket World Cup.
It provided a platform for minnows to compete with
behemoths and prove their mettle on a global level.
To no one’s bewilderment, West Indies took home the
first ever World Cup. India had its turn in 1983 and the
rest, as we know, is history. 03
The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6
The winds of change have blown
the game head over heels over the
past years and it’s still an enigma
whether this was for the good or
bad. Undeniably though, the public
entertainment factor has escalated
by leaps and bounds. The sport now
not only involves the men on the
field, but the spectators too feel
one with it with equal vigour. The
ebullience, gusto and excitement
that the game now radiates has
reached an unprecedented level.
The players have shed their white
overalls and donned their national
colours. The contrast between the
former and current bats is equivalent
to that between Mayawati and
Katrina Kaif. From a time when a
score of over three hundred was
considered a match won (remember
Ganguly’s shirt whirling act?), today
the same score has become child’s
play. The bowlers have fallen from
the pedestal of vicious vipers to
punching bags. The God of then, Sir
Don Bradman has been replaced by
a younger God - Sachin Tendulkar.
Gone are the days when Sunil
Gavaskar used to score a measly
thirty six from sixty overs. Sixty balls
are now enough to demolish the
opposition with a century. We also
witnessed the genesis of yet another
idea - the IPL. Cheerleaders gyrating
to hip-hop music, batsmen going
all guns ablaze, film stars followed
by their paparazzi and big money
May, 2011
are almost a sacrilege to Cricket. But
that’s the price you pay for absolute
entertainment. There’s no one to
blame for this. The Zeitgeist is at
work and the people love it.
Yet some things have remained
unchanged, filling us with the
nostalgia about the old days. The
spirit of the game still prevails
as rampantly in the hearts of its
followers as it did since one can
remember. India still has the same
spark in it as it did in 1983 and it was
proven by us winning the World Cup.
The players still respect one another
and the umpires, never forgetting
that Cricket it truly a gentleman’s
game. The game repeatedly teaches
us that no matter what the odds are,
no matter which teams have which
players and no matter how unlikely a
victory may appear, the game is not
over till it really is.
Cricket is a sport that has inspired
people, shaped lives and lives in the
hearts of people like a majestic king.
It is peoples’ religion, faith and belief.
Though it has experienced a number
of changes, it hasn’t lost its life. We
can’t predict how the sport will be
in twenty years; maybe there will
be eight runs a shot or five players a
team, but we can certainly ascertain
that it will always be loved. That was,
is and will be Cricket for you.
04
The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6 May, 2011

‘Kal, Aaj aur Kal’- truth or illusion?

- The Quantum

Ah, but my Computations, People say

Reduced the Year to better reckoning – Nay,
‘Twas only striking from the Calendar
Unborn To-morrow and dead Yesterday

Rubaiyat, verse #57, by Omar Khayyam (English by Edward Fitzgerald)

Today. When does this today start? At
12am? At 5am? At 8am? When? Some of us
might say what’s so confusing about when
a day starts and when it ends, of course it
starts at 12am and ends at 11:59:59pm.
Well, that is meant to be happening globally
but ONLY because the world has accepted
the Gregorian calender as the standard
calender today. Wow! Ever though the
calendar you look at everyday also has a
name and a type? There are more than one
type of calenders that the world follows or
had been following in past. Who will follow
which calender entirely depends upon
which part of world they live in and which
culture they belong to. That’s a reason why
everybody’s definition of ‘Today’ varies a
massive amount.
Ever thought why do Hindu fasts start from
sunrise one day and go up until 5 or 6 the
next morning instead of following 12-12
schedule? Well, that’s because our date-
time depends upon Hindu calendars and
in Hindu calendars the day starts with local
sunrise. So, if I am living in Pune and you are
living in Kolkata, my day will start probably
some minutes later than yours will! It’s
interesting with the cultural and generation
changes different people follow different
calendars. Two major types of calendars
are: Solar calendar and Lunar calendar
and then there are some calendars
which is a nice blend of both the types!
Even Hindus of different states follow
different calendars! Some examples of
the different calendars used across the
globe are : Hijri calender, Julian calender,
Persian calender, Ethiopian calender,
Fiscal calendar, Shak calendar, Jewish
calendar and it just goes on and on and
on!
All of us are like puppets of calenders
and watches today. Ever thought
what a calender is? How suddenly the
descendents of apes came up with the
idea of a calender? Is calenders what
we are gonna talk about in the rest of
the article?! :O (Alternatively you may
also ask “Whatcha been smokin?” / “Are
you retard?”/ “Are you gonna be blah
blahing about calenders?” etc or simply
walk away from this column) well, NO…
Anticipate!
Basically calendars came into existence
with the idea of organizing things around
us. Day to day activities like harvesting,
planting seeds, business or social
activities like celebrations, religious
festivities could not be done efficiently
without calendars. Just imagine what
would happen if you have to explain the
05
The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6
time of your birthday party without using
any ‘day’, ‘date’ or ‘time’. (Something
like ‘day after tomorrow after tomorrow’
or something like ‘15th sun-set from
today and exactly after the sun will set,
the party will begin’). So, to avoid the
complications and make things simpler,
we divided the time in things like ‘hour’,
‘minute’, ‘week’, ‘month’, ‘year’ and so
on.
All that our forefathers did was for theirs
and our convenience and that’s how
the ideas ideas of ‘yesterday’, ‘today’
and ‘tomorrow’ came into existence.
Basically these ideas are not natural
constructs and in fact they are social
constructs that change time to time as
per the users’ convenience. In fact if you
feel courageous enough you can create
one calendar of your own (‘Ekdum ghar
ka calender’) in which you may as well
have a day as long as a week of standard
calendars. How cool is that? In fact here’s
a small bit of information for the newbies
(in the town of geekness). There’s an
thought that’s being pondered on for
some years now which talks about
converting time into decimal. How we
have 60 seconds = 1 minute, 24 hours =
1 day and so on, decimal time will have
things like 100 seconds = 1 minute, 10
hours = 1 day, 10 months = 1 year etc.
How cool is that?! In fact super geeks
already have a decimal clock on their
desktops for years now. (For the curious
ones: Google ‘Decimal clock’ or ‘Decimal
time’)
However, I don’t completely agree to
any of these ideas. The way I see it,
everyday is today and today is a forever
thing. Wouldn’t it be interesting having
a today forever and living the entire life
as a wonderful ‘today’ or alternatively
have a today as long as a heartbeat. Live
May, 2011
a ‘today’ on every beat of your heart.
Every past beat is a yesterday and every
next beat is an upcoming ‘today’. How
wonderful it would be to live a ‘today’
as long as a heart-beat and as short as
a life! No, we don’t want to talk about it
in a boring way in ghise pite SMSes style
where they say ‘Yesterday is history,
tomorrow is mystery, today is a gift
and that’s why we call it present’(wow!
Even the 2nd standard kid knows about
it’s existence). The way we want to talk
about it here is by weaving both the
above case scenarios into reality and
trying to see the results of it.
If today was as long as a whole life nobody
would have to think of tomorrow ever
and yesterday would be non-existent.
A life as long as a dream it would be,
neither would it have pain of past nor
the tension of tomorrow. Whatever the
man would do, would be simply based
on what he wants to do and what he
doesn’t want to do right here and right
now. No decisions would be influenced
by his ‘future’ plans and there would be
no memories. No memories? Of course,
no memories. Memories are always
based of ‘yesterday’ but we don’t have
anything as such in this case! Everything
happens right now and today.
On the other hand what if today was as
long as a heart-beat? There would be
thousands of memories and that would
make the memories hard to remember
and each memory worthless. There
would be just billions of them memories.
At the end of the day man would be
better off ignoring all of them. Today
would be just so eventful that
06
The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6 May, 2011
thinking/worrying of ‘tomorrow’ would just make it highly difficult. That would result
the man constantly living in either memories (Yesterday) or consciousness (today)
or dream (tomorrow). Man would never know about the existence of the other two
states apart from the one he lives in. Every upcoming ‘today’ would be completely
new and surprising as ever and any task/decision would be momentary.

At the end of the day, the ideas of ‘yesterday’ and ‘tomorrow’ have made things
much more complicated on longer run in order to reduce the inconvenience that the
humans would have without ‘calendars’. Most of us live our whole lives being highly
influenced by these ides of yesterday and today and never even realize that. Just
because sun is set we force ourselves to sleep. Just because it’s 12 in the noon, we
force ourselves to eat even if we are not hungry and this starts literally with the 4 year
old’s schooling. Recess is at 10am so the kid can’t eat at 9 just because it’s against
the ‘discipline’. It’s 9 am so the kid has
to sleep because he has to go to school
the next day. It’s the kid’s year 12 board
exams and so she won’t go to ‘dandiya’
night this year even if she wants to. He is
25 and so he should get married. She is
27 and so it’s high time and she should
have kids. So many restrictions due to this
‘yesterday’ ‘today’ and ‘tomorrow’that
are time bound and at the end of the
day makes that day/year/life worthless!
Then there are some learned mad men
who live their lives in a constant ‘today’
and each today is as rich and content
as ever. To me ‘yesterday’, ‘today’ and
‘tomorrow’ are non-existent. It’s all one
unbreakable chain named ‘time’ made
of an infinite number of little ‘time-
segments’. A long chain which we have
decided to fold from in between as per
our short term comforts.

Cheat code:

Kal kare so aaj kar, aaj kare so abb,

Pal me parlay hoygi, bahuri karega

kabb?

- Sant Kabeer

07
***
Foreplay :
As far as science is concerned, it is a
myth that, other than humans, only
dolphins and some primates have sex
for pleasure. Pleasure itself is yet to be
defined properly may it be with social or
biochemical context. So, until the term
pleasure stays as vague as smile of Da
Vinci’s Mona Lisa, there are promising
scopes that many of the ‘activities’
may come under umbrella of such
‘pleasurotic’ emotions.
***
Human as a species have been using
many ways to attract opposite sex &
afterwards, to spice up love-making too!
Though it is not studied in depth, that if it
goes same in other species, but they do
show their intimacy in other ways - like
male birds making up a good nest and
then female bird would come to check
whose nest is ‘coolest’ (well, can’t use
that word literally, when it comes to -
Penguins!) which in turn becomes way to
make-up the pair. However, pheromones
serve the purpose in many species so
well, but humans are far less ‘nosey’
in this matter - except for fragrances,
mildest of which are even way stronger
than pheromones. Now that limitation
along with the complexity that has come
along evolution - in brain development
as well as in lifestyle - may have been
the reasons that we started having much
more inclination towards visual beauty
in compare to other things. No doubt
other senses also do play their part but
in limited role, specially when it comes
to societies like India. For example,
some peculiar type of voice (deep, in
case of males specially) is often a turn
on for females; another is to be (or not
to be) hairy (also, ‘where’ & ‘how much’,
regardless to sex or if you’re a bikini-wax
enthusiast) often becomes a “turning
point”. Obviously, all these vary more or
less person-to-person.
08
So where do all these go? To be honest, famous carvings of Khajuraho) oral/
homo sapiens didn’t do any great job anal sex illegal. However, erotic body
till before last 10,000 years or so. Only modification - painting like private tattoo
‘happening’ thing - during that tough and piercing specially those for stimulation
call of survival priority - was to develop like pearling - just like fetishisms - seems
a deep affection towards strong physic almost never-happening to India.
which often ‘overspills’ nowadays in terms
of “size does matter(?)” and “six packs”. So where do all these heading in general?
However, rise of “agri-cultures” and Well, on positive notes, condoms are
stratified societies, gave those now-settled not anymore “rubber ka rukha sukha
hearts and minds a lot of time devoted to tukda”, as been called in advert to
beautification. From cosmetic pallets used promote lubricated condoms. Vaccines
in ancient Misr (Egypt) to art of geisha and contraceptives are making pleasure
make-up; from use of rouge by Romans much safer for women. Same goes for
to sandalwood and rose-water (gulab-jal) hygiene during menstruation. If we talk
bath by Indians; times of fast-changing about men, they have become much
trends to seduce the opposite sex had more aware of their physique and hygiene
just been started. Over the time, clothing than ever before. In fact, the concept of
has been such a big game on what & how metrosexuality is bringing whole new
much to hide, that studies supporting charm to fantasy of women. Still, weird
“half-nakedness is more sensual than bare to see some brilliant ideas like femadoms
all” are with no surprise, adding fuel to the have failed to create enthusiasm unlike
creativity. As a result, it has already taken some others, such as food-&-sex. Bon
a full circle from Adam & Eve wearing a Appétit!
leaf (at lea st, in paintings?) to pasties
on beaches nowadays; only to cover- ***
up in between from corsets to g/v/t/c-
Afterplay :
strings, from jockstraps to and from burqa
to helluva types of bikinis, even Burqini! Any wildest guesses what you’ll find
Phew!! when you Google-image Search first
with (all without comma) ‘flashlight’,
Human sexuality has been being expressed
then ‘flashlight man’ and then ‘flashlight
in many ways from metaphorically in art
men’?!! (hey, your safe search setting is
(poetry, paintings, furniture etc) to much
ON?) #Caution: 16+
more straightforward ways when it comes
to body arts and modifications. If we talk ***
about India, sex toys are now slowly being
available (limited till metros though yet) For extra-timers :
still conservative society doesn’t seem
to show up openness like (surprisingly!) - Many words in this article has links for
china, where ‘sexpo’s (expo of items further reading. Few more are as below.
related to sex) are getting regular hit! - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_
On the other hand, Indian governments cosmetics and http://en.wikipedia.org/
are walking reverse by making (else wiki/History_of_perfume
everywhere dotted in Indian culture,
including ‘bible of sex – kamasutra’ & 09
10
The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6 May, 2011

What Love is Not! - Tejas Nair

An anecdote about four people entwined in an infatuation circle.
Prologue

A teenager was desperately finding ways to be with a girl after he broke up with his
previous love who he admired like she was a femme fatale. After almost four months
of singularity his needs grew, both mentally & physically. He was so desperate that
he never felt ashamed of proposing a girl which he once hated. Before he was bitten
by this love insect, he had some disciplined standards on selecting his love. He was
very choosy!

Chapter 1 – She is a killer!

In college a week back, he met Amanda, an extremely sexy girl high in her adventurous
spirits & her friend, Samantha with a smile that could kill.

Within days, he managed to somehow get their contact numbers & eventually the
chatting started. Amanda was a girl with a lot of sense of humor & a mind only a man
could have. She exposed her attributes, she revealed her spirits, she framed herself
as everything she wasn’t; she brought this guy in his knees until one day his heart
asked him to propose her.

Chapter 2 – Bad timing.

Five days ago, his first love, Rebecca, entered the scene with a broken heart. She had
turned down this lad’s proposal on seeing her best friend’s sheer crocodile tears.
She was in love with the guy at that time. Now, this friend of Rebecca was the main
reason why our desolate guy fell into desperation… & started finding ways to get
with a girl. Their relationship had erratically flowed for two years. Period.

Rebecca wanted sex. She stated an extra-marital affair with this guy. Her beau was
very much dominating & busy with his business, giving no time to make love, as she
explained. Now, Rebecca was voluptuous, modest & full of drug. Anyone would fall
for her.

But, our boy turned down her proposal because he thought he was in love with
Amanda; Rebecca was still living in hope, though.
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The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6 May, 2011

Chapter 3 – Samantha, go away!

Her smile, you know, was so much impressive & cute that anyone would want to kiss
her. Her sweetness knew no boundaries – a perfect girl material she was. Two days
back, not knowing about our guy’s love for her, Amanda inadvertently revealed that
Samantha was in love with him. Poor chap! Samantha used to message him, which
he apparently used to ignored expecting Amanda’s messages in his cell-phone. He
was so much in love. A girl has some limits… Samantha waved the white flag.

Chapter 4 – Is it the end?

Present time, he proposed to Amanda. Amanda got what she wanted – he fell for her.
“Isn’t this going too fast? You know, I have a boyfriend. Chuck it, let’s talk something
else…,” she messaged back. Tears rolled out from his eyes as he stood appalled by
his own mistakes. He had a thought upon his action…

“Isn’t this love?”

“No! kid.”

“Then, what is it?”

“Dear, they say love happens in a fraction of a second. But…”

“But what?”

“Love happens when I think it is. Your thing was nothing else but infatuation.”

“What the heck? Who are YOU to say all this? I know, this IS love.”

“One last thing, my dear boy… I’m God!”

We tend to fall in love pit many times, but it’s our own duty to understand the
purity… whether it is love or just a crush. It is not a crime to have crush on a girl/boy.
But you need to think twice on what may be the consequences before you pop that
question, a friendship might be at stake. So, think upon it & give love…

Chapter 5 – Buzz!

His Facebook status read, “Making a new start…”

& his relationship status… Single, again!

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The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6 May, 2011

A Picture - Shruti Nanivadekar

I see it sitting quietly on my desk, a thin film of stubborn

dust tells me it’s always been there, in the spotlight of my
table lamp, but otherwise ignored.
 
A six-year-old me now locks her eyes with mine: hers shine
and sparkle, and do magical things, reflecting the jovial
summer of 2002; while mine- tired, half-open, ageing,
short-sighted and pained. I gaze at the picture with greed.
I’m wishing nothing more than to go back. I live in that
picture.
 
I die in this life.
 
She grins up at me, her cheek bulging with candy, an arm
around her best friend. I remember. What was her name?
Ah yes. We do not talk anymore. What happened between
us? I cannot remember. I am disappointed. I blink back a
tear, feeling loss as if for the first time.
 
Pointy party shoes. There is something so comical about
my blue polka-dotted frock. I was standing on one leg. I
laugh. For that moment, I am very much like her.

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The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6 May, 2011

A picture. It sings to me in silence. There is oceans and

mountains to be said about it, but all of it is silenced. That
little girl is who I was, and that little girl is who I want to
be. Happy. Grateful. Without care.
 
Look at it in silence, and you may hear the waves. And
laughter. Shrill. Jubilant. Fading.
 
The clock ticks. Monotony resumes. Distracted, I look away
from the picture and get back to my book.
 
The six-year-old continues to smile. Forever.
 

14
 - The Quantum
The clock moves almost a century
back to the remarkable year of
1914 in the world history. July the
28th when Austria and Hungary
declared a war against Serbia that
lead to the thing world never knew
of before called ‘The world war’.
Yes, it was then that the world was
introduced the idea of the worst
kind of wars of all times! Be it war
or peace no human could entirely
overcome their basic instincts
like sex and war at the end of the
day lead to multiple partners,
sexually transmitted diseases
and unwanted pregnancies for
pleasure of a night. There were
condoms as contraception but
they were made of vulcanized
rubber.
Charles Goodyear – the father of
vulcanized rubber was in fact the
first person to make condoms of
rubber in 1855. The earliest rubber
condoms had a seam and were
as thick as a bicycle inner tube.
Besides this type, small rubber
condoms covering only the glans
were often used in England and
the United States. There was more
risk of losing them and if the rubber
ring was too tight, it would constrict
the penis. Thus, making the condoms
more of a thing to avoid. Everyone
was witnessing the situation and the
failure rates of existing contraception
but one. He was in his early thirties
then, not merely witnessing what
was happening. He was studying
Chemistry then in Berlin spending
his life in slums with a parentless
family of 6 siblings. Since large-scale
factories were putting the hand-
made cigarette out of business, young
Julius took chemistry classes in night
school and dreamed of better times.
Julius Fromm was his name.
In 1906 Julius had to marry his
pregnant fiancée who beard him
three sons later on. It must have
been these awkward experiences
that would have given him the
idea that transformed the idea of
sex entirely. In 1912 Julius set up
a workshop in the Berlin workers’
district of Prenzlauerberg, where he
manufactured perfume and rubber
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The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6 May, 2011

items. He experimented for across Europe. He introduced his

months there with a new kind of
condom. After all the ponderings
and failures he came up with a
much better idea. He fashioned
phallic glass molds, dipped them
into a natural rubber solution, and
then vulcanized them in an oven,
creating thin and transparent
rubber sheaths with a nipple on
the end. He then hand-rolled
and packaged them for sale in
drug stores. In 1916, he patented
it titled ‘Fromm’s act’. He did a
roaring trade, with every packet
containing a folded slip of paper
on which was printed: “Please
discreetly hand me a packet of
three Fromm’s Act,” to be silently
presented to the salesperson.
This was exactly what we call
modern day ‘latex condom’.
first condom vending machine in
1928.
The rest as they say is history.
Latex had its dominance over the
world condoms market much up
and until 1994 when Polyurethane
came into the market. 70 years
of an extensive time period that
the whole world used it in exactly
the same form. In 2008 the world
was introduced to Polyisoprene
condoms and by now there are
all the different types available
including female condoms.

Fromm’s efforts got described as

‘a revolution in bed’ which just
like birth control pill “Reliably
separated lust and love from
reproduction.” “Fromm’s Act”
was “the right product at the right
time.” By 1919 his little factory
registered a daily production of
150,000 “Fromms,” as they were
already being called and in early
1920s he was marketing them

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Imagine where the world would have ended up after the Second World
War if the condoms didn’t existed then in its Latex form. It is that one
idea one passion to make the difference, one spark of anger that brings
the change the world had never seen before. It wasn’t only him who was
going through all he was going through. World had millions of people
then at that time going through the same as Fromm was going through
but it was only Fromm who was conscious enough to actually try and
come up with a solution with his existing knowledge!

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Sponsored Condoms | Google | Just for laughs!
The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6

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May, 2011
The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6 May, 2011

Milestones – Mrinalini Sarabhai - Prima Virani

She is a dancer, a writer, an activist, an environmentalist and so on. Wife to the great
scientist Dr. Vikram Sarabhai and mother to the dynamic Mallika Sarabhai started at
a very early stage of her life and came to realize that she is nothing else but a dancer.
Alumni of ‘Shantiniketan’ – Mrinalini Sarabhai says “Rabindranath Tagore was the
most wonderful person I’ve ever met. I think he influenced me the most than anyone
else in the world.” According to Mrinaliniji “art is movement and life is movement.
“ It’s such a beautiful way that the artist compares art and life and lives the idea of
‘change’.

“The territories of our rules and regulations have sometimes been very difficult for
new generation. My generation was brought up with certain kids of habits and I took
it for granted. It’s such a habit that I used to go to the temple and ring the bell and
pray and we never think that why do I do this and why do I do that? But, as we grew
up we began to question things, question religion, question our parents who were a
bit authoritative about things and my children question me even more. I have children
who themselves are thinking people and who have gone onto new path. I’ve often
had arguments with my children. I tell them this shouldn’t be done, they ask me why
and often I find I have no answer. In certain times in Gujarat it was wrong to dance
like ballroom dancing at all. They’d say why? Why shouldn’t we dance? “– Now, this is
exactly what we call open mindedness that comes from the idea of accepting change
for better.

Mrinaliniji belonged to a very westernized family and though Dr. Vikram’s family
was westernized as well there were still certain boundaries and expected behaviour.
Dr. Vikram used to study at Bangalore in Indian Institute of Science and he used to
love dance and music. He used to attend all the dance and music concerts held in
Bangalore and it was then when Dr. Vikram fell in love with Mrinaliniji as he saw
that sincerity in her about her dancing and whatever she did. There was quite an
agreement about dancing with the Sarabhai family but it was the surrounding of
theirs that was a challenge for Mrinaliniji. Guajarati people used to say “Oh Vikram
has married this ‘dancer’ girl from South!” in disgust. Mrinaliniji’s father-in-law used
to attend her dance shows to show his approval and Mrinaliniji used to say dancing
is like praying to god because she used to do Bharatanatyam performances full of
‘bhakti rasa’ and that’s when slowly people started accepting her.

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She says in her interview with ‘In conversation’ to Mr. Rajiv Malhotra that if she
writes her autobiography, it can be described in two gestures- initially disgust and
disapproval saying “Ooh! Dancing girl comes to Gujarat” and today with respect
“Amma, namaskaar” that’s it. The dancer used to be performing alone mostly but
then she started needing people to convey her messages even better and she couldn’t
find people to dance with her and that’s when Dr. Vikram had suggested if she wants
many more people to dance with her, she should train them from scratch and that’s
exactly the idea with which ‘Darpan’ started in the year 1949.

Mrinaliniji had started Darpan with a nice blend of Indian classical dances like
Bharatnatyam, Kathakali and Mohiniattam and yet she was open and welcoming
enough when her daughter Mallika Sarabhai brought the contemporary styles and
choreographies to the stage when she took over the administration of ‘Darpan’.
Mrinaliniji says “It changes its patterns and with every new generation it has to
change. After all Darpan is creativity, change and also tradition. From tradition the
tree grows and Darpan takes on new phases in its life perhaps even more creative
than when it had started.”

To me, Mrinaliniji is the

perfect example when we talk
about ‘Kal, aaj aur kal’. A true
Quintessential woman whose
life overall was all about change
and acceptance of change. Be
it as an individual by accepting
the next generations’ trends
or be it as one of the pioneers
of dance in Gujarati society
and changing the peoples’
mindset towards dancing or
be it as a global human being
contributing her tiniest bit
to bring about the change in
peoples’ approaches towards
nature and environment.

Mrinalini Sarabhai
Gordon Anthony (Photographer)
Black and White Photograph
21cm by 16.5cm
Location Unknown
Around 1949
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Comfort in Culture - Aditi Dharmadhikari

“Take time to think about whether you are living your own life to the full or
whether it has become a routine and less than satisfying. Goddess Freya can
give you inspiration! Imagine wearing her cloak of falcon feathers and travelling
wherever you wish!” Goddesses, by Dr Sue Jenning

A bold statement, but one that is true, nevertheless - India is a blatant oxymoron.
This is with respect to standards of morality, gender issues, sex, education,
corruption, politics and even nationalism. However, once one manages to get
their heads around this chain of slightly irrational contradictions, one finds that
India has left behind something very fundamental in the multi-layered waves of
its past, like a legacy lost to the Arabian Sea. A legacy of simple, uncomplicated
beauty which, if resurrected, could revolutionize those who are underprivileged
in our country – either in terms of finances, abilities or opportunity.

Arts-based therapy(ABT) is the sort of therapy which incorporates creative

activities like dance therapy, drama therapy, storytelling, singing, music
appreciation and drumming and channelizes them into improving the condition
of the those who are suffering from withdrawal symptoms during rehabilitation,
or those suffering from psychosomatic disorders. If at all a complete cure is not
medically possible, then ABT(Art Based Therapy) serves as what I would call a
creative cocoon – it a psychosocial palliative type of therapy which maintains
a positive outlook for the patient and in a strange and beautiful way allows
them to overcome their disability at least to a certain extent, through the use
of sheer will power. Dance, drama and music are three elements which are
ingrained in our cultural traditions in such an irrevocable way, that it is easy to
believe it is almost something that has been passed on from one generation
to another through genes. Psychologically, these activities are stress-busters
that serve the purpose of distracting the patient from his illness, disability or
infliction and just for a while, taking them away to a place that is only populated
by percussion, where it is the emotions of strangers that dominate your mind
or where you lose yourself to the beat that your feet move in.

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It is akin to a symbolic cure – a cure for the psychology and the mind, albeit the
physical illness’ persistence.

ABT is used to treat de-addiction, mental illnesses, eating disorders, cognitive

disabilities and other psychological or psychosomatic illnesses in which there
are no clinical cures or drugs available.

I had mentioned before that India is an oxymoron. This statement is relevant

to ABT, as this amalgamation of creative expression, healing and education is
actually a concoction that was initiated in India before anywhere else in the
world during the Vedic era. The concepts of chanting “Om”, and the idea
that the positive energy of the universe could be immersed with merely one
word, ‘Shaman’ drumming and sound vibrations are all ancient secrets of our
soil, which were neglected in the era following the Vedas. They were later
discovered by the West and popularized in their cultural and social contexts.
This is a serious matter as it is popular knowledge that various ancient Indian
indigenous traditions and methods are being adapted and even patented in the
West(like the medicinal uses of haldi, which gave rise to the Indian Patent Act).

Art Based Therapy is very popular in the West now and there are entire
colleges dedicated to it, wherein there is a certain population that can acquire
a degree in it and reap benefits to last a lifetime. However, there is no such
facility available in India for the citizens to benefit from. ABT is a process of
“consistent therapeutic work” – it is something that involved initiative and then
persistence, and without either it would be dysfunctional. For anyone who is
interested in working for this course, he/she would have to go to the West
to acquire a degree first (something that grants credibility in a field) before
returning to India to impart what they have learnt.

There are plenty of dance instructors or drama teachers in our country but
using these creative means of expression for the purpose of education is very
different from a stereotypical dance class or drama workshop – the creativity
needs to be channeled with a very tangible sort of goal, keeping in mind that
the primary aim is to impart something invaluable – be it a lesson, or just a
positive outlook.
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One must not forget that even after the candidate has returned to India with
a degree in ABT, there still remains the issue of cultural adaptation. These
therapies are inherently culture-based, and need to have a very well-defined
basis in one’s own cultural identity. Hence, whatever has been learnt in the
West regarding ABT, has then to be adapted to an Indian cultural context. For
instance, an elderly person in the West will be asked to sing a Stevie Wonder
song(as a part of Improvisational Music Therapy – IMT) while someone in India
would be asked to sing a Ghazal or maybe an old Bollywood song like “Ajeeb
Daastan Hai Yeh”. This is a seemingly incongruous technicality but it is actually
very important as it is important for the patient to relate to the cultural identity
of the therapy.

WCCLF (World Centre for Creative Learning Foundation) is a Pune-based

NGO which is a pioneer in this field. It believes its own models and research on
IMT(Improvisational Music Therapy) and DT(Drama Therapy) with patients
who have had strokes, movement disorders and degenerative disorders. They
have had 10,000-plus direct client contact time and have some 20 trained arts
based therapists working in NGOs and institutions in Mumbai, Delhi and Pune.

WCCLF saw the day of light when three individuals – namely Zubin Balsara,
Aanand
Chabukswar and Asha Pillai – gave up their different careers and decided to
work on arts-based
Therapies right here in India, something that was 50-years old in the West but
new to us.

I would now like to focus on the three main types of Art Based Therapies that
are conducted in WCCLF, Pune and shed a little light on their origination and
evolution:

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1) Drama Therapy (DT)

DT is a form of expressive therapy that involves the use of expression to promote

health and personal growth. In WCCLF, Aanand Chabukswar pioneered the
cause of DT. Chabukswar’s passion was experimental theatre. He was struck
by the way in which it could affect emotions and even grades, to a certain
extent. He happened to stumble across a book by Dr Sue Jennings at that
point that enthused him and in 2000 he met her in the UK. She assured him
that what he had felt about drama was actually an instinctive understanding
of Drama Therapy, and invited him to work with her. It includes working and
playing methods are used to facilitate creativity, imagination, learning, insight
into oneself. Upon his return to India, he worked with Bulsara at the Kripa De-
addiction centre and they proceeded to take this cause further.

He elaborates, ““We move from telling stories, to making them and enacting
them. Engaging with the imagination is a significant part of drama therapy but
we make the distinction between dramatic reality and real life reality. Therapy
happens when there is a bridging of the real life with the dramatic reality. We
experience lightness through the enacting.”

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1) Improvisational Music Therapy (IMT)

Improvisation Music Therapy (IMT) which has grown out of the drum circle.
Therapist and client try to relate to one another in which the client makes up
music while singing or playing, extemporaneously creating a melody, rhythm,
song or instrumental piece. IMT recommends instinctive musical instruments
like drums, percussion, voice, harmonicas and Q chord that can be played by all.
This model is for those who have completed the ABT course and have exhibited
certain musical skills.

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1) Drumming Circles
Drumming circles was an idea pioneered by Ms. Mactavish, who herself is a
patient of Parkinson’s and she explores how rhythm and percussion combine
to heal an ailment. This has been adapted in WWCLF, Pune by Zubin Bulsara.

A performance – oriented therapy with a difference, ABT primarily aims at

character building in an intriguing and holistic manner.

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I give you my Word - Deepa Chary

Humans being the most intellectual ones in living beings, we have the
capability to weave our thread like thoughts to give a shape known as
word. It is the smallest free form in a language, but becomes a complicated
form when it starts loitering around.
Every generation has its own perception towards it. An era when our land
used to be dictated by the Kings, they firmly used to believe in “Pran jaye
par vachan na jaye”, which means that I would die but not alter the word
that I had given. In those days keeping a word was like an unobligated
devotion towards self, taking an ownership for maintaining self respect,
a deep care upon other’s feeling, sacrifice with dignity. Sometimes the
unspoken words would lead to lifelong promise between a couple. On
the contrary it was also a different ball game in that rigid atmosphere,
where expression of feelings on the path of “Love Marriage” was just
unacceptable. The fear of consequences forced them wrap their emotions
and preserve them as mummies.
Coming back to this era’s bubble gum generation, commitment is as per
convenience. The feeling of trusting someone is diluting as you never know
when the person may retaliate and say “I never meant that”. Diplomacy,
manipulation and playing around with words have become a new way to
climb the ladder of success. Without understanding or experiencing the
true essence, commitment is perceived as an obligation, a cage where
you are stuck forever with no escape. The fear of being transparent
is becoming so obvious that the sensation of coming to a dead end
dominates the cluttered and impatient mind, which motivates to choose
a convenient option - “Break up”. There is always a lame excuse followed
by “After all who cares”. This generation is lacking the patience to enjoy
the sweetness of being committed which only comes after tasting the
bitter part. Everyone in this Gen – X would say they are different, with
their “X” factor compromised.
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Every generation has something in common …Challenges. If the previous

gen had challenge of expressing then this gen is having a challenge of
accepting, if that gen had challenge of making a decision then this gen
has challenge of maintaining the decision, if that gen had challenge
of getting along with rigid superstitious principles then this gen has a
challenge of having a principle. The comparison list is endless…
Can we imagine how the coming Gen - Y would be in terms of
commitment? I see this word coming in the category of extinct species
especially in the relationship shared by humans known as a MAN &
WOMAN. Like we have sanctuaries to conserve “would be extinct”
animal species, we also need to do something to conserve the essence
of this emotion.
No generations can be compared, and we cannot go back to our older
generation to rectify them. The best possible way is to learn from the
mistakes of our older generation & to grab those essential ingredients
to cement our own fundamentals of being a simple yet efficient human.
Let’s not see word as a MS office tool, its much beyond that. Respect
your own words…Respect yourself.

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The quëst - Vol 1 | Issue 6
khabar, khabar ki...
Remember those good old days when
everyone at home would wait for the
newspaper and then glue themselves
for hours till every word was read. Yes,
Those good old days when news in the
newspapers made sense and news was
actual news; had depth to it and not just
random shit like we read today. I wonder
what went wrong; was it lack of “ethics”
or were “responsibilities” forgotten on
the part of journalists or was it the rise
in the yellow and tabloid journalism or
perhaps were “WE” responsible for all
this.
I remember my dad saying “Back in days,
we read news reports which had in-depth
analysis of the whole issue. There was no
opportunity to question. ” I wondered
how true it is. I recently went through
original works of Bob Woodward and
Carl Bernstein, Investigative journalists
from “The Washington Post”, online. I
was shocked to see how detailed and
organized the investigation of the break
in of Democratic National Committee’s
Watergate building was not only
done but reported. These journalists
uncovered information suggesting that
the knowledge of break in and cover up
led deep into the justice department,
FBI, CIA and even White house. This
eventually led to resignation of the then
US President Richard Nixon.
May, 2011
- Sanjay Deshpande
Think about it. A reportage which was
well organized, analyzed and in-depth led
to resignation of the country’s president.
Now THAT’s the power of Journalism.
Let’s take an example which is closer
home. Remember the “EMERGENCY” of
late 1970’s in India? The emergency which
lasted for 21 months. The then President
of India Frakhruddin Ali Ahmed upon
advice by the then Prime Minister Indira
Gandhi declared a state of emergency.
Elections and all civil liberties were
suspended, including Free Press. Did this
stop the “Real” Journalists? Hell no. They
still wrote discreetly; reported events
secretly; gave important information to
public. All this with no exception in the
analysis or depth of the story.
Look at the print media today. We have
news articles. Oh yeah, We certainly
do. So- called “News” articles. Let’s ask
ourselves a few questions.
a) Did the article make sense?
b) Was the article “newsworthy”?
c) Was reporting it necessary?
d) Was it well analyzed?
e) Did it have depth to it?
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For most of the “news articles“, the and fair. It’s their responsibility to make
majority of answers are a big NO. I first sure the journalists’ reportage is well
thought it was just with Tabloids like analyzed and the topic of discussion is
Mumbai Mirror which report really not random.
queer stuff. Who’s dating whom in
Bollywood, the most grotesque incident
from your neighborhood, scientific facts
which are really interesting but hard to I wonder if this is the condition of the
find sources. Tabloids are famous for news media today, what it would be
such stuff. Why shouldn’t they be? After tomorrow?
all, we love to read such stuff! Right?
I am pretty sure that “ETHICS” and
“RESPONSIBILITIES” would be almost,
if not completely, erased from a
The “Real” journalists today are writing journalist’s dictionary.
shallow, most of them, with almost no
depth in their work. The reporting is very If so then, God only can save us from
superficial and sensationalism is the the impending doom.
new trend. They write about politicians
and politics, actors and cinema, food
and wine, love and relationships. But,
where is the “Depth”?

Like I mentioned before, I could all

blame it on two factors – “Ethics” and
“Responsibilities”.

“Ethics” is what most journalist lack

today. Although most of the journalists
who come from journalism schools are
taught “Media ethics”. But, then what
about the rest, they too have ethics
right? Lets just say, we all are slowly
losing our so-called “Ethics”.

Next comes “Responsibilities”. Yes, the

journalists have responsibility towards
the society – report events as they
happen, unbiased and untouched, with
thorough analysis and dept to it. But, it’s
not just the journalists’ responsibility.
It’s also the responsibility of the
common man to make sure Press is free 30
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Q’ Suggests:
Harishchandrachi Factory is a 2009 Marathi film, directed by Paresh Mokashi, depicting the struggle
of Dadasaheb Phalke in making Raja Harishchandra in 1913, India’s first feature film, thus the birth of
Indian cinema.

The film is the story about the beginning of the Indian film industry, set in 1913, when two business
partners fall out resulting in one leaving the company. As the family struggle to survive Phalke (Nandu
Madhav) decides to make his own silent motion picture along with the support of his family.He travels
to England to learn about the new medium and after he returns brings together a team of actors and
technicians to produce his first film about the story of Raja Harishchandra. Through all the hard work
the movie becomes a hit thus marking the beginning of one of the world’s biggest film industry
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