Kaiser-i-Hind

I was walking through Ballard Estate this morning and spotted a building called Kaiser-i-Hind. It's logo has a prominent abstract swastika in it which also forms an important part of the window grill designs. The swastika is based on the Hindu design and not the one used by the Third Reich. The building name does however suggests a connection between India and Germany, one that probably pre-dates the World Wars. The 'Kaiser' was a German term for 'emperor.' However, with a little bit of 'research' on wikipedia, I found out that, "The Kaiser-i-Hind was a medal awarded by the British monarch between 1900 and 1947, to civilians of any nationality who rendered distinguished service in the advancement of the interests of the British Raj." However, the medal was oval-shaped and not in the form of a swastika. This makes the building all the more mysterious. The building is currently owned by Nestle.

Drug Mosaics

I've been toying with idea of doing a series of photographs using prescribed drugs. A mosaic of sorts using these pills works on a couple of different levels. At the simplest, pills are pleasantly shaped, and by using a range of colours and shapes, one can create a striking design. Note the cute heart-shaped pills and green bottle ones in the adjacent photos. If one were to take things a little further, one can echo mandala patterns. Interestingly, one of the pills I used in the photographs reminded me of Shiva's third eye.

On another level, drugs are now part of most people's lives. We sometimes take drugs as often as we eat meals. However, medicine has obvious associations with poor health and hospitals. Then there's the commercial side with Pharmaceutical companies sometimes seen as greedy, heartless behemoths that make money from human pain by overcharging for their products. The debate about pharmas influencing doctors to prescribe their drugs by giving gifts and free trips is also now raging in India.

No Follow-Through

Here are two photographs of two different configurations of three iron balls that my brother and I used as a school-kids while learning tennis. I liked the idea of taking these tennis-aids out-of-context. Here memory and physicality collide.

Rock and Roll Jihad

Salman Ahmed, the leader of the once-banned Pakistani sufi-rock band Junoon, recently published his autobiography, Rock And Roll Jihad. The book is essentially about the struggles of a rock musician against close-minded Islamic society. It’s about man who fights for his rights to free speech and thought, while Pakistan goes through tempestuous political times during the doomed reigns of General Zia, Benazir Bhutto, Nawaz Sharif and General Musharaf. Salman practices a benevolent, open-minded form of Islam that he believes is the “real” Islam. Through his music he attempts to remind the world of the values that “true” Islam stands for at a time when most of the world has stereotyped Muslims as trigger-happy jihadis. At the end of the book you respect the man for standing up for what he believes in, and for walking his talk and music. Through grilled and derided on an American TV show, just after 9/11, Salman continues to remind us than only a few Muslims are terrorists, and most Muslims are peace-loving people.