For a long time I have not posted. This is not because I have not been involved in writing. Instead, I am writing all the more. I was very busy writing my personal statement and research proposals for various places. In this process, I had to really really think hard on myself to understand my interests. I think I have achieved a great extent of clarity on my trajectory now. Although it's not completely clear. But every time I think of a new project or research, I clarify my theoretical position. Thus, this process has been quite enriching. For a long time, I thought of uploading all such work on my blog, but I finally refrained, because I just wanted to keep all these things to myself.
On the other hand, I have been manually writing a lot of things - since the computer is a tool which makes me dwell too much on perfection. So i end up losing a lot of ideas. When I write manually, I am not thinking about the correctness of language or the use of words. I mix and match, and mostly I am translating from Hindi to English. So such write ups are really crude. But they help in vomitting a thought out. I take time later to refine them and make these ideas crisper. I have accumulated pages and pages of such text.
There were some other writings which started off really well and were interjected by circumstantial events. The link is lost, and so, once I reconsider them, I will be able to produce a lot more writings at once. Subjects come and go. Strong ideas and thoughts pass across the mind. Sometimes, student work in nascent stage makes me think a lot, and I am able to give a good feedback to a lot. But later, I feel all that thought must be recorded. Lectures must be transcribed. A lot of times, after I finish my lectures, I sit in my room and write what I spoke...It makes so much sense. Students ask questions which help to clarify concepts.
I will take time to collate all such writings and scribblings into tangible output. For the time being, I have made a good compilation of my earlier works into a portfolio, which I really like to gaze at. I keep flipping and feeling the pages and writing all the time. I hope it makes the same impact on others who see it. It's called "Idearchive" - a hint Siddharth (Nadkarny) gave me during an informal chat...
I want to write about the nature in which my phone has gone out of order. It has started behaving weirdly. Being a touch screen, 1/3rd of it has become insensitive. the middle 1/3rd is partially sensitive and the right most part is intact. So I have to constantly be very informed to press at the wrong place to press the right button and execute the right information. For example, the "yes" and "no" button are on right and left on the touch screen. But I end up saying "no" to every thing that occurs with the phone. The key pad types absolutely absurdly. If I have to say, "Sorry to have missed you", it writes "Sorry to have kissed you"! Messages are completely going for a toss!! It's really funny and I am looking forward to theorize it...How? Imagine a skewed phone - like a man looking crooked, performing unexpected operations and landing you up in imaginary landscapes! One could construct an interesting story out of that! Of all unintended things one did, which opened up a new perspective of life...
Of all "no's" that became "yes" and vice versa. Of all messages that went to wrong people and did interesting connections. Of all unwanted cancellations, of all numbers you dialled wrong...It could be revealing...
I have always imagined such an exercise with archaeological space. When at the Sun temple Modhera, where we saw the intricately carved temple stone blocks numbered and lined up to be reset on the facade, I wondered if all those numbers mixed up, would it change relationships between people? Wouldnt it challenge our whole belief systems, mythology, and all those narratives...An exploratory exercise in challenging history could be fictitiously constructed.
However, there are other things going on. The vertical studio where we have too much to explore and only a few sincere, interested students. I could just indulge in writing about all the 10 areas that have been selected - there are so many stories out there, so much to learn and also produce knowledge. We just have a bunch of extremely lackadaisical students who do not want to do any thing. Either their futures are set, or they do not have futures. It's as black and white as that, perhaps...
I am handling the visual culture group and there is so much to talk about it that I can't contain within myself. I am just waiting for students to bring up some amount of enthusiasm and eagerness to work. Then, I am sure we will achieve something. So, finally, writing is going on. soon you will see a lot of it. It is in the process of cooking up, and it will be served soon. The application process is already over and I can get back to attack this space again!
On the other hand, I have been manually writing a lot of things - since the computer is a tool which makes me dwell too much on perfection. So i end up losing a lot of ideas. When I write manually, I am not thinking about the correctness of language or the use of words. I mix and match, and mostly I am translating from Hindi to English. So such write ups are really crude. But they help in vomitting a thought out. I take time later to refine them and make these ideas crisper. I have accumulated pages and pages of such text.
There were some other writings which started off really well and were interjected by circumstantial events. The link is lost, and so, once I reconsider them, I will be able to produce a lot more writings at once. Subjects come and go. Strong ideas and thoughts pass across the mind. Sometimes, student work in nascent stage makes me think a lot, and I am able to give a good feedback to a lot. But later, I feel all that thought must be recorded. Lectures must be transcribed. A lot of times, after I finish my lectures, I sit in my room and write what I spoke...It makes so much sense. Students ask questions which help to clarify concepts.
I will take time to collate all such writings and scribblings into tangible output. For the time being, I have made a good compilation of my earlier works into a portfolio, which I really like to gaze at. I keep flipping and feeling the pages and writing all the time. I hope it makes the same impact on others who see it. It's called "Idearchive" - a hint Siddharth (Nadkarny) gave me during an informal chat...
I want to write about the nature in which my phone has gone out of order. It has started behaving weirdly. Being a touch screen, 1/3rd of it has become insensitive. the middle 1/3rd is partially sensitive and the right most part is intact. So I have to constantly be very informed to press at the wrong place to press the right button and execute the right information. For example, the "yes" and "no" button are on right and left on the touch screen. But I end up saying "no" to every thing that occurs with the phone. The key pad types absolutely absurdly. If I have to say, "Sorry to have missed you", it writes "Sorry to have kissed you"! Messages are completely going for a toss!! It's really funny and I am looking forward to theorize it...How? Imagine a skewed phone - like a man looking crooked, performing unexpected operations and landing you up in imaginary landscapes! One could construct an interesting story out of that! Of all unintended things one did, which opened up a new perspective of life...
Of all "no's" that became "yes" and vice versa. Of all messages that went to wrong people and did interesting connections. Of all unwanted cancellations, of all numbers you dialled wrong...It could be revealing...
I have always imagined such an exercise with archaeological space. When at the Sun temple Modhera, where we saw the intricately carved temple stone blocks numbered and lined up to be reset on the facade, I wondered if all those numbers mixed up, would it change relationships between people? Wouldnt it challenge our whole belief systems, mythology, and all those narratives...An exploratory exercise in challenging history could be fictitiously constructed.
However, there are other things going on. The vertical studio where we have too much to explore and only a few sincere, interested students. I could just indulge in writing about all the 10 areas that have been selected - there are so many stories out there, so much to learn and also produce knowledge. We just have a bunch of extremely lackadaisical students who do not want to do any thing. Either their futures are set, or they do not have futures. It's as black and white as that, perhaps...
I am handling the visual culture group and there is so much to talk about it that I can't contain within myself. I am just waiting for students to bring up some amount of enthusiasm and eagerness to work. Then, I am sure we will achieve something. So, finally, writing is going on. soon you will see a lot of it. It is in the process of cooking up, and it will be served soon. The application process is already over and I can get back to attack this space again!
