"LET SUCCESS REIGN"

I have come thine life, To soothe and To cherrish thy enthusiastic mood. I blow the breeze that wrafts, The paean of your merry victory, To the manfolk who denies your glory. and thus make thou bole, Out of the melee of the dolt.   As the mood of melancholy descends, Upon those who seeks my shelter, As if i bind them with tether. Why do they blame me? For i am only a reaction, They are the one who performed the action. But above all, I do carry positive vibes; For the one who tries  To recollect their slivered dreams And rekindle into his boulevard of success. You may say 'Let success reign; for failure pains'. But thou should remember 'I still remain the pillar of success.'                          S.W.Subhani                         B.Sc. Phy(H)1st year

What is a great book? Or How I learned to deal with Twilight.

For me it’s a book I just can’t put down… Sleep, food, (hygiene as a whole)are all forgotten as I feel compelled to turn page after page just to see what happens next. It is so well penned that you can paint a picture of things as they happen. It gives you that funny feeling of giddiness in your stomach. You identify with characters. You cry when they cry, you laugh when they laugh (cliché but apt). I go into a bookstore with the intent of buying something new, but everytime I go there I make a pilgrimage to the 12 book series by Robert Jordan (Akash & Manan are willing to testify) sometimes to read a favorite part mostly just to bring a smile to my face. Essentially that’s what a good book does it brings a big grin on your face when you remember the great time you had reading it. I look at my copy of the Half-Blood Prince and still remember how white knuckled I was when Snape killed Dumbledore (well if you didn’t know that by now, you must live under a rock). Sometimes you even find a book that lets you take away a little nugget of wisdom forever after (The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari, anyone?) which makes your life just a tad better. Mainly a great book is a window to happiness, a time to forget the world and get lost in a whole new one.
Good books just don’t pop out fully formed. There is a preliminary idea which must be slathered with well penned prose, a strong plotline and well sketched characters. (And this doesn’t happen over a summer in the Hamptons like Castle wants to believe). Most authors, Tolkien, Rowling, Jordan, Brown take years thrashing out the details and penning their fantastic stories.
A great book innate in its goodness is similar to listening to a great symphony, or watching a canvas painted by a master, they are all things of beauty (thank you for that one, Mr. Keats).
But we have progressed a great deal since 19th century when Keats lived in. And phrases such as “beauty is in the eye of the beholder” have been invented and must be kept in mind. So, I guess, the last and most crucial component for making any book or song or movie great are us, the recipients. A lot depends on how we feel about a book in our hearts, minds and in our stomach (remember the giddiness I talked about?). It could just so happen that you pick that one dusty copy of a book which the critics have thrashed and people have ignored; and you go home, sit comfortably tucked in your bed and start reading it and soon find yourself under the author’s spell. And as you re-read the final line you find that the sun’s up and it’s a brand new day, the hours having passed by unnoticed as you read enraptured.
So what if that book’s sales were dismal and critics called the author a “nincompoop”? If you loved the book and if it gave you happiness then at least as far as you are concerned it was a thing of beauty and thus a great book; and there is no one who has any right to force you to see otherwise.
This I guess applies for my feud with Twilight. Twilight provides joy to millions of readers world wide (readers or should I just say females?). And if they like it and it brings them happiness, then for them it is a great book and who am I to say otherwise?

Makarand Mahajan

B.Com (H) 2nd year

Voice Of The Undiscovered

People find it hard to digest that the state of Jharkhand can in itself be a huge diversity in art and archeology. For years, I have been observing people and lately, my friends sporting some authentic art pieces produced in their own states. The traditional 'gamacha' of Assam, Madhubani Paitings from Bihar, Shell works of coastal states etc. had left me with a question that would Jharkhand ever get a chance to produce its own art-form ever?

A sohrai painting

The art form was not technically produced rather it was revived. I'm talking about Sohrai and Kohvar paintings which are practiced hugely in villages deep in forest where a common pair eyes would fail to notice even a single colour. After a big struggle which lasted for more than five years, Hazaribagh has finally got a platform to showcase these art-forms to the world, The Urban Haat. Situated on the 'life line of Jharkhand' NH 31, the place offers many Hazaribagh based paintings, handicrafts, furnitures and other handloom materials. This initiative by the government of Jharkhand took a raher long time to show up but this in turn did two things- provided my answer and finally, made a way to those hardworking artists to earn some money to live and continue the tradition.

Sanskriti Museum

Recently, I had an opportunity to meet Mr. Bulu Imam. Mr. Imam is Convener,Hazaribagh chapter, INTACH, New Delhi and has published many books, journals and papers on the whole art-forms of Jharkhand. His little personal museum, Sanskriti is set in unadulterated nature plus, the whole area radiates the look of British grandeur. With little or rather almost no help from the administration and the state, Mr. Imam has managed to run the museum and popularize these art-forms in countries like Australia, Italy, Germany and other states of India. One can not help but notice the irony when I say 'other states of India' because the very reception of these arts in Urban Jharkhand is low and limited to the elite section of the society who can afford to purchase a single piece a Sohrai for a sum of 130 rupees. The high percentage of unprivileged section of the society makes it even harder for their reception. Another factor in this case is ignorant behaviour of the state government in this area. Mr. Imam doesn't forget to state a sad fact- the whole museum is run by his own pocket plus exhibitions where he showcases these paintings are also arranged and paid by him. A certificate of appreciation from Doordarshan is what he has got from the 'government'. But nevertheless, the old man feels happy if someone comes at his door to see his museum and that happiness is beyond anything. That smile and enthusiasm with which he explains about the cave paintings, sohrai, kohvar, rocks, megalithic sites shows a hint of success he has achieved in continuing his feat and justifying himself as a voice of the undiscovered.

Mr. Imam in his office

In coming days, I'll be visiting Isco, a site which harbours a rock art gallery and also when I'll return, I'd be visiting Sanskriti again in order to know more about the man himself plus to participate in this whole movement which he has initiated.
____________________________________________

Mihir Vatsa
(Off. Mihir Kumar Jha)
B.A. (H) English 2nd year

IT’S NOT A CLICHÉ

Do you sometimes feel that you are alone,
In this ocean of people,
Nobody to call your own?
Do you sometimes need to hurt yourself,
To stop the tears from flowing?
Or tell someone you are totally fine,
When actually you are hurting?
Have you ever walked into the rain,
And called your tears raindrops?
Have you ever cried so much,
It makes you feel like your heart stopped?
Do you ever feel neglected and all alone,
No one to speak too, no one to call your own?
Have you ever felt so unhappy,
That your tears are not enough?
Have you ever swallowed a sob,
To show the world you are tough?
Have you ever bought a friendship card,
And kept it as your own?
If you have, let me tell you,
YOU ARE NOT ALONE...

P.S.:

It may sound a cliché that you are not alone. But its true on the other hand that there is someone looking up at you and caring for you.

In this world, everything inspires everything. You just need to find it.

-Shwetank Jain

B. Com (Hons); II year

Welcoming all, again!

This post is, perhaps, a little late in the year than it should have ideally been, but nevertheless, before we begin posting anything else, it seems only right to let our new members know something about The Literary Society, Ramjas College.

As we enter our fifth year as a Society, we can feel justifiably proud of ourselves, of what we have been, what we are and what we plan to evolve into. Five years may not be much, but they’re still a landmark and so we wish to make this year as special and enriching as can be.

But something on the Society first. To our freshers then, welcome: our society, the Literary Society, affectionately the Lit Soc, is officially an autonomous entity under Expressions, a conglomeration of societies under our ECAC. We deal, as our name suggests, with all things literary. That covers a whole range of activities: from reading and writing sessions to film screenings, from spell-a-thons to panel discussions, there’s an entire gamut of events at once exciting and enriching that fall under the aegis of a literary society. Our Lit Soc is a platform for both budding creative writers as well as aspiring critics to air their opinions and discuss a wide range of issues in a manner as free from bias and prejudice as is possible. Innovation, creativity and ingenuity are encouraged and are in ways more than one quite the hallmark.

What’s more – and which, as far as I know, is just in Ramjas – we’re also a bilingual society, which means that we’re open to Hindi along with English and as such carry out activities in both. These activities, as I’ve indicated, are varied and are organized throughout the year as separate inter and intra college events and also as part of our annual, inter-college fest Wordsmith, an event which is the culmination, but not the end, of our efforts as a society. This covers a variety of our most appealing events, including literary quiz, spelling bee, paper presentation and movie review, all of which are centered on a specially chosen theme.

Besides Wordsmith, the other, sort of year long exercise, are our journals. These, published till now as a monthly, four page newsletter, offer not just society members but also the student community at large in Ramjas, and, if need be, abroad, the opportunity to be read and reach out to a wider audience than usually available. Works submitted can be in either Hindi or English and can be in any form or genre, poetry, prose, et al. Further, the journals also act as a medium for us to announce our forthcoming events and so act as a much more effective interface between us and the student community at large than the usual word of mouth grapevine. Considering this, and the importance of the journal as a free and unbiased medium of expression to all students, we’re planning to increase the number of pages we currently have to around six or eight. We can’t vouch for that yet, but let’s hope for the best!

Moving on, just as Wordsmith is the climax of our organizational efforts, so is our annual magazine the apex of our literary and creative talents. The Annual Literary Society Magazine comes out towards the close of the academic session and as such attempts to present the best of the society’s talents. There’s no theme to this, or at least hasn’t been till now. Whether we have one or not would, of course, depend on us.

Which brings me to my next point, that as a Society we function pretty democratically, in a fashion that’s as flexible and inclusive as can be. Of course, some of us might at times seem a tad dictatorial, but we’re nonetheless a consensual, open community with no written rules and policies which change every year in accordance to members’ wishes. There is, of course, a framework and certain typical things we do, but even that framework is quite open to change and alteration and as such takes different forms with different people. In that sense, the Lit Soc is what those who’re with it want it to be, a society yours and mine in perhaps the true sense of the word. That, if I may for my colleagues in the ECAC, applies I think to all of us here in Ramjas in a way seldom observed in DU, a way which I hope you will, in the three years to come, makes yours for life: open, inclusive, serious and fun.

Welcome, then again, to the old and new, the experienced and not-so-much, and all and sundry!

Hope you all have a great year ahead!

Kriti Sharma

The Literary Society

Ramjas College