Painted Postcard : 3

For Poo, who will fly away to NY soon.

Kutcheri Hopping

This year, Shoo and I planned a mini kutcheri-hopping session.
(Our new year's eve kutcheri plan got cancelled though, I was looking forward to that).

The first kutcheri we got to was Sandeep Narayan singing at Krishna Gana Sabha, accompanied by Nagai Sriram (violin), Dr. Umayalpuram K Sivaram (mridangam) and Dr.Karthik (ghatam).  Gradwolf came along for this one. Highlight was having such a senior artiste like UKS autographing the drawing and showing it off to some people around!

I drew Sandeep a year ago (accompanied by Shoo, again), and Dr. Karthik early in 2011- this time I think I've managed to get the resemblance better. I didn't realise that until someone named all the artistes I drew without any prompting.

Sandeep's kutcheri was followed by Bombay Jayshree at Music Academy, but not before a quick stopover at the sabha canteen. Some day I will manage to get tickets/seats at Music Academy that will give me a better (closer) view of the artistes. Until then I will make the most of my balcony views.

~

List of songs from Sandeep's Krishna Gana Sabha kutcheri

Il Gatto Nero

He's suave. He's Italian. He wears a bow tie.
Meowr.

For cat-obsessed P, on her birthday.
Yes, he's related to the french fellow.

The Shape of Jazz @ Plantation House

Concerts and gigs seem to be the only places I draw at these days. There never seems to be much time otherwise to sit down with a book and colours.

Aman Mahajan and Mishko M'ba played us music inspired by Ornette Coleman. "It is...fr(h)ee jazz..." as Mishko said in his lovely accent. If I ever catch Mishko playing again, I am going to spend the whole time drawing just him and his long long long dreadlocks (ankle length if you must know).

And the next time, I'll manage a better panorama of Shalini's store. I'd love to just sit and draw only the clothes even!

Konarak Reddy @ Plantation House

A new (and biggest yet) book inaugurated at another gig at Plantation House. I never would have thought that PH could hold as many people as there were that day!

It's easy to drift off into a dream while Konarak Reddy plays. But it's definitely worthwhile paying attention to his hands moving across the guitar too. Aah, such beautiful music.

The Painted Postcards : 2

The return of the painted postcards.

Unlike the first time, these were sent by post (not courier) and received very promptly. My excursion to the post office actually left me quite giggly for the rest of the day. I have also restocked my supply of blank postcards now. Bwahaha.

Alexi Murdoch inspired nostalgia for Ming Chow. If a song could be a happy place, it would most definitely be this. And for Flora the cake queen, a red velvet tray of colourful cupcakes.

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More Painted Postcards here

Beach. Beer. Book.

100th post! YAY!

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A good vacation that met the essential requirement of being able to sit on a beach with beer and a book and endlessly waste time alternating attention from book to sea to sky.

Mossy masses of black and green sinking and rising from the sand, Devbagh Beach

A view of the woods from the room, Devbagh Beach

People moving between swimming and snacking, Palolem, Goa

Monsieur Lobster and pear shaped bottles of Pilsner, Palolem, Goa

Economicey Evening

This man. This talk.
Enlightening.

Dragged along by Why Shoe.

Aruna Sairam+Mandolin U Srinivas

After ages, I think, I managed to go for a kutcheri with the mother. The highlight of the evening (apart from the concert, of course) was a family, including a 3 year old child, that spoke only in Sanskrit! I haven't heard anything remotely like conversational Sanskrit since school. Just, wow. :O

Concert, amazing as expected. This was the first time I heard Mandolin Srinivas live in a kutcheri. Only encounters before this were cassette covers featuring a much younger him.

Animated Aruna singing 'Punniyam Oru Kodi'

A Big Fat Chettiyar Wedding

S, the original Chettichi of our lives, got married at her chetti hometown, Kanadukathan.

Juggling bridesmaidly duties and attempting to sketchbook-stalk discretely proved futile, so most of my time was spent ogling at Charming Chettinad and getting trigger happy with my phone. Some drawing time was sneaked in though, during brief intermissions while prepping the bride, distributing bangles, watching aachis, aayaas and ayyas gossip and remembering to leave food for cows*.

* While in Chettinad, one must always leave behind a morsel on one's banana leaf so that cows that feed on the discarded leaves don't feel cheated of food. True story.