The other day my coworker invited me to attend a play. I hadn’t yet experienced much of Bangalore’s art scene, so I thought I would give it a shot. I didn’t even bother to ask any details about the show since I was really craving a little culture.
As I sat down in my upper-balcony seat at St. John’s Auditorium anxiously awaiting the orchestra to strike their first note and the curtains to open, the thought went through my mind that I was about to witness some of the best material for a blog post since coming to India. Why, you may ask? Because as it turned out, I was about to see a Bangalore High School’s performance of “Yo Sista,” an adaptation of Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit. Armed with my canon powershot (yes, it has video taking capability), I was prepared to fully document the 200+ cast of kids singing dancing, and of course, rapping.
Okay, so there was no pit orchestra and the curtain was broken, but there was a synthesized soundtrack and some sweet sets. They were nothing though compared to the pure entertainment that the kids provided. The nuns and priests knew how to shake it, and the cast of students did their best to replicate the American ghetto’s lexicon and fashion style.
All of this was much funnier, of course, because I went to see this play completely unaware that it was a high school production. So, if you can ignore my unsteady hand, sit back, relax, and enjoy a little taste of Indian theater at its best.
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Let the Holiday Season Begin
Just as Thanksgiving and my birthday have been grouped together for celebration purposes in the past, I shall combine the telling of their stories into one blog post. If you’ve been following my blog at all, you are probably aware that my roommate and I had been planning an extravagant Thanksgiving dinner for a while. With all of the hype we had no choice but to go all out and bring classic Thanksgiving fare to Flat 110 of Raheja Residency’s Ebony Block.
Preparations began at 10 AM on the Saturday following Thanksgiving, and involved lots of shopping, running around, chopping, boiling, mashing, cooking and reheating. By the time everything was finished and my roommate picked up the delicious guest of honor, people were just beginning to arrive. I mustered up my last bits of strength to serve our 25 plus guests their food and keep their glasses full.
The meal included humus, guacamole, cheese, crackers and veggies for appetizers; turkey, stuffing (veg and non-veg), mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, green beans, creamed corn, carrots, gravy and bread for dinner; and, apple pie and homemade brownies for dessert. All in all it was delicious, and hopefully my Indian coworkers were able to enjoy a taste of classic American cooking (despite its lack of spice!).
After the meal I set up a video chat over skype with Mom so she could wish everyone a happy Turkey Day. It was pretty neat.
A few days later, I celebrated my 24th birthday. It was a low-key day, which is exactly what I was hoping for. After work, I made some phone calls to family and headed off for dinner at MTR. This is a landmark establishment in Bangalore, that has been serving classic South Indian meals since 1924. They actually package their food and sell it all over the country, as well as in the U.S.
Dinner was followed by a drink at the Guzzlers in, which is a local pub that tends to play good music (relatively speaking, of course). On the ride home we happened upon a rickshaw driver with Christmas lights imbedded into his auto’s ceiling, and a full speaker system that blasted bollywood music. The whole day was a truly “Indian” experience.
Preparations began at 10 AM on the Saturday following Thanksgiving, and involved lots of shopping, running around, chopping, boiling, mashing, cooking and reheating. By the time everything was finished and my roommate picked up the delicious guest of honor, people were just beginning to arrive. I mustered up my last bits of strength to serve our 25 plus guests their food and keep their glasses full.
The meal included humus, guacamole, cheese, crackers and veggies for appetizers; turkey, stuffing (veg and non-veg), mashed potatoes, mashed sweet potatoes, green beans, creamed corn, carrots, gravy and bread for dinner; and, apple pie and homemade brownies for dessert. All in all it was delicious, and hopefully my Indian coworkers were able to enjoy a taste of classic American cooking (despite its lack of spice!).
After the meal I set up a video chat over skype with Mom so she could wish everyone a happy Turkey Day. It was pretty neat.
A few days later, I celebrated my 24th birthday. It was a low-key day, which is exactly what I was hoping for. After work, I made some phone calls to family and headed off for dinner at MTR. This is a landmark establishment in Bangalore, that has been serving classic South Indian meals since 1924. They actually package their food and sell it all over the country, as well as in the U.S.
Dinner was followed by a drink at the Guzzlers in, which is a local pub that tends to play good music (relatively speaking, of course). On the ride home we happened upon a rickshaw driver with Christmas lights imbedded into his auto’s ceiling, and a full speaker system that blasted bollywood music. The whole day was a truly “Indian” experience.
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