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Driftwood ..... and the drifting sense of art

Many years ago when I read 'The Thornbirds' by Colleen McCullough-Robinson, a novel for those who loved to impose punishment on themselves, so to say, being penitent for misery caused to others, was a unique experience. Today we do see such persons (heroine of the novel) as Jain munis or cloister nuns? All for what? Is there a need to carry a cross or wear a crown of thorns just to invite sympathy.These days characters are not heavily laden with obligations towards society. The new rage is to be bare about your basic emotions be it a writer, a singer, a beggar or even a hand-cart puller as characters of your story. The last one is going extinct because in cities he needs a registered licence to pull a cart.He ought to sell his wares for little or no profit, then why the licence? So characters get defined by actions more not by words.

Books - To read or view 

Writers (sci-fi writers as well), struggle throughout their lives to churn out stuff that is read-worthy and even then the book doesn't sell, dare to bare the facts which appear like fiction but credible. Books can make the reader twitch his brows, snort his nostrils till they go out of shape, blush at the ear tips, drop jaws till the jaw gets hidden in the collar. These are the latest emotions - so trendy. If the words and characters are crisp, some movie-producer makes a film out of those insensitive words that crawl and then appear on celluloid. Oh - ho - oh comes a sigh not because  the book is written well, but the film is made. 

A/V Treat is treated as trendy

Why are our eyes near the temples below the brows (quizzical) - reason enough to lie low on the periphery of the brain. What? The contents of the book are prohibited entry into the intellectual realm of understanding so chalo, add some laughs and chuckles and droplets of tears and the book is ready for audio-visual playtime. Intellect takes a back seat. 

Books are meant to be relished? How many books were translated into films and have been relished? None. Some like Gone with the Wind, Ten Commandments, Godfather and Da Vinci Code were partly successful. That does not imply that the movies were relished by all.The books were a better vehicle to follow the writer's understanding of the world. 

When the (intellectual) gap between the author and the filmmaker is not wide then the film fructifies. If it is otherwise, then the idea (film) would not fructify. In the past, epics were made into films and movie buffs loved them as they were entertaining and they did sound moralising. Today books are churned out as scripts (like 'pappad' ready to be fried in hot oil).

Art has to be an expurgation of emotion said Aristotle but who cares about what he said. No art and no emotion should follow the latest trend. All forms of art evolve so also emotions but basic emotions do stand in good stead for humanity. 

Twiddle Thumbs for Literary Content

My sister and I were friendly to three Agarwal sisters from Ajmer who were crazy about some popular two-penny Hindi novels.My due respects to Hindi Literature. Then they would dish out the best ones to us to read. Oh Hindi? No you must read - why? A movie will be released next month based on this novel. Very diligently we nosed through the novel, finished it in a few hours as the Hindi was lucid. Not all of them were so praiseworthy (I mean novels) a few did manage to win our appreciation. Coming back to the rigmarole. Books into movies leaves one in an anti-climactic mode - a moron. 

A moronic drift

Finally if I end this piece by defining driftwood the purpose is served. Pieces, chunks, logs of wood when made to stay float over water for future use - what can we expect? Even the world's worst carpenter would call driftwood as soggy, prone to termites and fungus so unsuitable for making furniture. Has civilisation turned out to be a driftwood spectacle? Think! There lies ample scope for innovation and discoveries.We are happy with Issac, Galileo and aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaArchimedes ...the rest are just tangents harnessed to the initial discoveries.Besides exploring universal bodies do we have anything new to offer or savour or cherish ? No don't think as your head may explode--- you blockhead.


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