Go Green!!

The days after my siblings’ annual exams were over. My Sis has completed her 7th and Bro, his 4th standard.

"Hello...”

"Heylo Jiyachuchy!!! Occasion, occasion!!"
[Well the etymology of this particular word, termed by my little sis, still looks very strange to me. Nevertheless, Occasion essentially means vacation, the summer hols.]

"So happy now, eh? How was the exam? Which one was it??"

"Malayalam. It was good! Yo yo!"

"So what plans sweetie?"

"I am starting Go Green."

"You are what?"

"Starting Go Green. You must join ok. Admission fee is Rs.2. Fine is Rs.10"

"Fine for what?"

"If you throw waste around, if you use non recyclable plastic bags, if you cut trees, if you stamp on grass..."

Background conversation to our housekeeper lady: "chedathi, ini pipeile vellam leak cheythal patthu roopa fine vaangum ketto, go green!"
Translation: If you keep the pipe open and water leaks again, you will be fined for Rs.10.
I can only imagine chedathi's reaction: Gulp.

"Ok Ammu, What will you do with the fine?"

"With the fine? Oh, that we will collect.......

I'm so proud of my sister! How socially responsible today’s kids are....

...and divide among the other members!"

"What??? Aren’t you supposed to do something useful for the nature??"

"Then how will I get money for myself??"

Ok. Kids today are business oriented. Highly.

"Hmm Ok. So let’s see. Who all are the members yet?"

"Bro is already a member. njaan avanu nammude prasthanathe pattiyulla arivukal pakarnnu kodukkukayanu.

[Oops. Did she swallow a Malayalam dictionary?]

You are a member ok. You can be the vice president."

"No no Ammu, its ok. I'd rather be secretary. Make bro the VP."

"He doesn’t want to be VP. He just wants to be a dedicated worker."

Whoa!!!!! Are these my siblings themselves????? From the day both of them set eyes on each other, I have never seen such camaraderie.

"Great! So is mummy in??"

"You know what jiyachuchy!! Mummy is taking plastic bags to the shops every day!! I'll fine her ----- (an incomprehensible amount)!!"

"..........."

"And then, she is forcing us to eat chicken and fish!! (I don't like where this is heading to...)
Nammal bhakshikkan vendi konnodukkunnathu karanam ethrayethra mrigangalum pakshimrigaadikalumaanennoo lokathil ninnum illathayi kondirikkunnathu!!!!"

Gulp. Dumbstruck. Partly dazed by this onslaught of heavy Malayalam and partly by the glaring possibility of being a Vegetarian.

"Er.... Athe Ammu, does that mean we have to be pure vegetarians too?????"

"Well I am going to be one. Bro has informed that he can't be. So it's OK."

WHEW.

"So what is the Agenda? Are we not having some action plan?"

"Of course yes. First thing I am going to do is stick posters on the walls."

"Er.....Which walls?"

"Colony walls."

"........."

"And then I'll start a community in Orkut."

"That sounds good. Hmm.. But don't you think the posters idea might be too much...?”

"Why not??"

"Well, the owners of the walls MAY not agree you see."

"Oh.. !@#!@#@$"

"Hmm.. Never mind. We'll distribute fliers. I feel so proud of you Ammucha! So what should I do next??"

"You have to ask all your friends to join too. AND ask them to suggest a Malayalam name. Once they join, I will give them ID cards. Ok then Jiyachuchy, Go Green!!"

Cut.

Though I could not stop laughing that day, her enthu took me completely by surprise and I am still delighted.

So here we go.

Go Green!
Ammu aka my sister cordially invites you to join the Go Green
campaign by paying Rs.2 (Cheque/DD/Coin).
The manifesto is in the process of drafting and will be shared with you upon completion.
Interested members please contact the secretaries (yours truly) with suggestions of a malayalam name for the campaign.
GO GREEN!!

"How dare he call one of us a slumdog??"

"How dare he call one of us a slumdog??"

"Oh! But the story....where is it from???"
"Who cares, the matter is not his to judge!"

"Why but it swept the Oscars and Globes!"
"Bah! those are just capital plays!!"

"You mean to say the film is to blame?"
"Hmm...Ofcourse yes! It throws all the bad cues."

"But many of our people were at the world's stage!"
"Thats because they went and honoured that stage!"

"Isn't it a pleasure to have our men honoured?"
"Right but those sadists; laughing at our plight!"

"You think they really keep thinking about us??"
"Oh yes always yes. We are the real focus."

"What if one of us, had made this one up?"
"Might all these crowns, to Button, have gone!"

"So what really got us the fame and fortune?"
"Packaged poverty, beggars and more!"

"Isn't it all about love, hope and resolve??"
"The slums!! they keep showing those slums to the world!!"

"Isn't it a real picture, what truly is?"
"Why can't they show some good realities??"

"Reality? Now when did that start to matter?"
"Oh always we need to focus on real life!"

"Why then no uproar over K series?"
"What who.. Oh I... hmm.. don't have no time!"

"Don't you think the marketing's really what matters?"
"But see he shouldn't have called one of us a slumdog!!!!"

"Always look on the bright side of life"

Interesting name, isn't it? Well my first experience watching a play was so overwhelming that it is impossible for me not to write about it and so! Here I am, going to end my sabbatical.. ;)

My friend was so smitten by Evam's 'Five point someone' that every now and then we would 'plan' a great evening watching a play... And like all other great 'plans' of ours, it remained a 'plan'. Well, I suppose that's what plans are meant to be. ;)

Anyways, last week she sends us info about this new play by Evam, "Always look on the bright side of life". A few online searches and many interesting reviews later, 6 tickets were booked for the 14th of January, 2009. There, the first live professional play of our lives...! (Well, for most of us! :) )

The venue was RangaShankara, The troupe, Evam and on stage, a bunch of extremely talented actors and dancers.

Eventhough the play was due at 7.30, we reached the venue almost an hour and half early. One look at Rangashankara and boy, I was smitten. A great building, which is more of an artwork, welcomed us. Spiralling staircases, a beautifully laidback Cafe, an outlet of Sankar's and a vast hall exhibiting curios about the latest plays and their authors. My roomie was so inspired that she wanted to join the troupe then and there; And she could have been recruited for her 'historical drama histrionics' immediately, but they were not conducting any audtions. :( (Thank God! ;) )

Evam volunteers were everywhere - selling the Muchos brand (A corporate gift idea venture by an Evamite), making us play dartboard and throwing loops! We didn't have anything much to do for about an hour obviously, so we played and I got a smiley ball!! :) (Well, i.e. after an extremely 'enthusiastic' elderly gentleman was done with the arrow and the loops.. :) )

Little did we know that most Bangaloreans knew the following fact:
If
Start of play : 7.30
then
Stand in queue by : 6.30!

Merrily playing, we did see some people forming a long queue...
"What a long queue, isn't it!"
"Oh! poor guys, they won't get any tickets now would they?"
"No no... Lucky we came early.. smart, aint we...?"
"Yeah, yeah... I wonder where the entrance to the theatre is..."
".....er......"
"Do you think......"
"Oh my! thats the queue for the entrance!!!!!!!!!!!"
"Oops..Come come..... Lets join them.. Thank god..! The queue is short.. Just round that corner....
and that.....!
and that....?!!
whaaaaat the????!!!"

It seemed the queue was endless. Even in a movie theatre I haven't seen a longer queue. Anyways, once we were allowed inside, we did get a good seat unlike what we expected and very soon the play started.

3 pretty girls danced to the tune of a foot tapping song and suddenly, the 'cultural police' comes in!
"Hey hey hey! what the bloody hell is going on here...?? !"
(That was the only line he chanted during the whole play.. ;) )

And then 3 mavericks entered the stage. (Now I know one is KK, the other Sunil and the third.. Dunno! :( ) They were the main actors throughout and I must say, extremely witty and talented. No wonder they were nominated for the MTV youth Icon awards.

They discussed at length about what to stage (I loved the Drrrrrrrooooona part) and finally settled on Monty Python. And true to it, the play was full of tiny snippets of wacky situations from everyday life...

The best one was the Pope ("Poppy.." :))) ) and the flowery Michelangelo with his Last supper featuring 28 disciples, Kangaroos, a circus and 3 Christs!! The ones about the forgotten German musician, the abuse and argument departments et al were extremely hilarious.

Some of them were a bit boring though; for instance, the ruthless Principal and the grieving parent, the Murder mystery... But on the whole we thoroughly enjoyed all of those 76 minutes.

As Evam quotes, it was one hell of a funny wacky crazy comedy! :)