No Honking : Let Art Show You The Way!

"Any form of art is a form of power; it has impact, it can affect change. It can not only move us, it makes us move." ~ Ossie Davis

Honking is one of the biggest causes of noise pollution. Once we hit the streets, all we can hear is the incessant honking of vehicles around us. It is not only annoying, but also very harmful for the health. The mind gets perturbed and anxiety increases. Moreover, it causes frequent headaches.

And it is not that the people horn only when it is needed. Honking has become a habit. Since I suffer from migraine, I remember having so many headaches when I am outside for a long time. The honking seems unbearable, especially during festivals such as Durga Puja.

Last weekend, I went with my friend to Acropolis Mall, Kolkata and I was pleasantly surprised to see that an exhibition on "No Honking" is taking place there.

All the paintings were done with the honest approach of making people realize how honking is affecting our lives badly. The paintings exuded honesty, intensity and brilliance. The message of each and every painting is profound, that can make a person think deeply.

Let's take a look at some of the paintings of the exhibition. 

This painting titled "Slavery" by artist Amaranth Sharma tries us to show us that our minds have become slaves of compulsive honking. We do not even realize when we honk. 

This painting "Sound of Life" by artist Nimisha Rao shows 2 comparatives: waves of horrible sound and tunes of music. The artist says that let music be our sound of life and not honking. 

The painting titled "Bau Honk Koro" by artist Prantik Chattopadhyay tells that gone are the days when we used to wake up with the chirping of birds. These days, we wake up with loud horns of school buses and vans. 

The painting "Talking to Buddha" by artist Rahul Mukherjee shows that there is so much honking these days that even Buddha would have needed ear plugs if he was here. 

This painting is known as "Ornamental Life" and is created by artist Sheetal Kaluskar. The artist says that it is not cool to flaunt who can honk more. There are far better things to flaunt.

This painting really moved me. The painting titled "Thinker" by artist Debasish Dutta questions "How will the thinker think if he is surrounded by continuous honking?"

This thought provoking painting titled "UnLove" by artist Thakere Naik says that human beings have fallen so much in love with horns that they have forgotten a beautiful world outside. This painting shows the strange love between humans and horns.

"Invite Positive" by artist Poorva Nimkar shows that in order to invite positive, we must say No to unnecessary Honking. 

"Pain" by artist Ananya Dalal shows the painful effects of honking. I could totally relate to the painting.

I am standing beside the painting called "Sound of Silence" by artist Debraj Goswami where the artist hopes for a day when we silence the sound of honking.

I had a great time watching the beautiful paintings and deciphering the message that the artists have tried to convey. However, I couldn't capture all of them due to the crowd. 

It was truly a great initiative to spread the message of "No Honking" through such brilliant paintings. 

Which painting did you like the most? Do you believe that spreading the message through art can bring some change?

The "Hamare Bus Ki Baat Hai" Programme

On Saturday, 23^rd July, 2016, I attended the “Hamare Bus Ki Baat Hai” programme, an initiative by Tata Motors at G.D Birla Centre for Education in Kolkata. The motto of the programme is to ensure that school children travel safely by bus to school and back to home.

Since it is such a noble initiative, I couldn’t stop myself from attending the programme. The sessions of the programme were very interactive and engaging. At first, a presentation was shown to the bus staff about how they should make sure that the school children are safe and comfortable in their bus. Through the interesting and simple presentation, the bus staff learnt how they should understand the needs of children and talk to them in a win-win approach.

The programme comprised of an interesting movie presentation, simple discussions and fun games, through which the bus staff were taught how to ensure safe travel of school children.

Movie presentation

The 5 things that were mainly highlighted in the “Hamare Bus ki Baat Hai” programme are as follows:

1.  The first thing that was talked about in the session was that the bus staff should be extremely responsible towards the school children.

2 . The second thing that was highlighted in the session was that the bus staff, including the bus driver must know the names of all the school children. This will allow the bus staff to communicate with the school children easily. 

Question/Answer session

3 . The importance of etiquette, manners and grooming was explained to the bus staff.

4. The next thing that was highlighted in the programme was how to handle emergencies and accidents. The bus drivers were told to check the condition of the bus before starting the bus. It was also told to the bus staff to carry a list of emergency phone numbers so that they can call for help, in case an emergency arises.

5. Finally, difficulties faced by the bus staff in handling school children were discussed in details. Solutions were given to each and every problem that the bus staff have to face.

Fun games

Kudos to Tata Motors for this wonderful initiative! They have already conducted close to 800 sessions in schools all over India. Safe travel of school children is extremely important. We get to hear about road accidents so frequently and therefore, I feel that this program of enlightening the bus staff about the safe travel of children is the need of the hour.

Moreover, this program will also help the bus staff to interact with the children and their parents easily. When the parents will see that the bus staff is very friendly and responsible, they can be assured that their kids are taken care of, properly by the bus staff.

The children will also be able to travel to school and back to home safely. They will not have any problem in the bus because the bus staff will communicate with them properly. 

What I really liked about the “Hamare Bus Ki Baat Hai” programme was that, through fun sessions, so many things were explained and taught to the bus staff. I am sure that the programme was successful in enhancing the safety skills and communication skills of the school bus staff that day. I could really connect to the exercise and I feel that such sessions can create a very positive change in metropolitan cities where accidents are so frequent.

I am sure everyone will agree with me that the safe travel of children is very essential. As responsible guardians and citizens, we must support this initiative. Follow their Facebook page to know more about their sessions!

You can also visit the site of Hamare Bus Ki Baat Hai, where you can take the pledge for children’s safe travel. This is the first thing I did after attending the program.  

I've pledged for safe travel of school children. Have you done your bit too? Pledge now: http://www.hbkbh.com/safe-travel-pledge.aspx

Suicide is never a solution: The Story of a Suicide

Life, a wonderful enigma for some

A constant struggle for some others

A labyrinth that can suffocate,

Rob away all your dreams

Only if you let it happen…

Rekindle your heart with hope

Believe in miracles again

You say, it’s too hard

Well, witness a dawn

After a thunderous black night

Miracles happen every day!

Someone very dear to me had committed suicide a year back and I am still trying to cope up with the loss. I know the insufferable anguish, the stinging torture and the acerbic memories that she might have faced before opting for suicide.

After some time, a person who is suffering a lot cannot take it anymore and decides that only death can bring him or her ultimate peace. But no…the soul cannot rest in peace when it is mercilessly separated by the body through suicide. Suicide is never a solution. The only solution is fighting with the problem with courage and fueling the heart with hope.

Recently, I read a book “The Story of a Suicide” written by Sriram Ayer online. The entire book is available on the website http://www.storyofasuicide.com/ . At first, I was skeptical if I can read an entire book online as I have never read a book online. Either I opt for paperbacks or I read in my Kindle device. 

However, I did not have any problem in reading the book online. It was a fast and easy read. The website is designed in such a way that you can easily move from one chapter to another. The chapters of the book are accompanied by beautiful illustrations by Ghana that makes the reading experience amazing. The audio book is also available on the website.

The story

It tells the story of four characters: Hari, Sam, Charu and Mani, whose lives are entangled in a web of love, revenge and deceit. The story begins with a suicide note that really disturbs you. It is not revealed to the readers who wrote the note. You need to read the entire book to find it out.

“I am sad. I am tired. Helpless. Disillusioned. Paranoid. Unhappy.”

“Perhaps I am destined to be unhappy and unloved.”

These are a few lines of the suicide note. It was heart wrenching to read the note which clearly portrayed the feelings of a person who gave up on life. I was keen to know what the story of this suicide is all about and so I kept reading the book.

The four main characters

The readers are introduced to the four pivotal characters of the book one by one. At first, Hari is introduced whom we see attending a national seminar on the rights of sexual minorities. His father is preparing a special dish for him at home as he will be going to KIT, Madras for his studies. Hari comes across as a docile, confused and shy person. As the story unfolds, we learn that Hari was a victim of child sexual abuse. 

Next, we are introduced to Sam, a self-proclaimed tech geek who is also preparing to leave for KIT, Madras. We see him taking his girlfriend, Priya to a comedy show. Sam is constantly on twitter and Priya seems disinterested in the comedy show. After a while, Priya breaks up with him and leave. Sam is hurt at the sudden breakup, but also angry on Priya. He writes an insulting letter to Priya in his blog. Sam comes across as a self-absorbed, assertive person with a huge ego that can be wounded easily.

When Sam reaches KIT, he gets to know that a guy has tried to commit suicide. A girl is trying desperately to save him. Sam helps the girl and save the unfortunate boy’s life by taking him to the hospital on time. We get to know that the guy who tried committing suicide is Mani and the girl who was trying to save him was Charu, Mani’s best friend.

We learn that Mani committed suicide because he was unable to cope up with English as he has studied all his school in his mother tongue. Mani comes across as a sensible and quiet person who has seen a lot of pain in life. As the story unfolds, we get to learn about the suffering that he had faced all his life because of poverty and an evil father. Later, he befriends Hari, who helps him in English.

Charu on the other hand, is a very confident, cheerful and strong girl. She is so beautiful that Sam gets attracted to her immediately. However, as the story unfolds, she comes across as a very complicated girl with frequent mood swings. We can also see her fighting some inner battles due to a broken childhood. She sees weird dreams that disturb her. She is brave and a hardcore feminist. She is also vulnerable and longs for someone who will love her, without trying to control her. 

What I liked in the story

Without giving away any spoilers, I would say that “The Story of a Suicide” is a book that must be read by every youngster. The story shows the demons and painful memories that we all have to face in our lives. No one’s life is devoid of problems, but how you handle your problems make you a winner.

The book talks about serious subjects such as child sexual abuse, homosexuality, suicide, exam pressure, complicated relationships, cyber crime, etc. In this book, all the four characters are dealing with a problem that seems to overwhelm them at times. We can see Sam walking towards the abyss because his ego is so wounded. He knows not how he is destroying his life, in the garb of revenge.

We can see Charu totally lost and scared when she becomes the victim of cyber bullying. Hari and Mani’s lives turn topsy-turvy when they fall into the trap that was laid for someone else.

The book shows how problems can scare and wound us from time to time, but it is totally up to us whether we want to fight or want to quit. It also highlights the casual and carefree way that youngsters live their lives, which lands them in serious problems. It shows how we should not misuse Facebook to show our anger on someone and how it can bring us trouble.

Depression is lack of expression

Depression leads to suicide, in most cases. A person who commits suicide is often depressed for a long period of time. It is when the depression reaches to a very high state that the person feels suicidal. In the book “The Story of a suicide”, we see two suicide cases; the root cause of both of them is depression since a long time.

Depression is nothing but lack of expression. When a person is hurt, lonely or afraid, he needs to express that feeling either by confiding in a close person or through creativity. If a person suppresses feelings of hurt, anger, loneliness, fear and resentment for months and years, it will take the shape of depression which is a serious malady.

We can see how Hari, one of the characters of the book suppresses all his feelings of hurt, loneliness and resentment from childhood. We see the same thing with Mani.

Problems will always be there in life. Heartbreaks and tragedies will occur from time to time. The only way to cope with it is through expressing our feelings, not by suppressing them.

 My advice to all those people who are dealing with a painful phase in life right now is that please express your feelings somehow. Talk to your parent. Cry in front of them. Confide in a sister or a close friend.

If you feel no one will understand your anguish and problems, take refuge in creativity. Write what you feel. Paint and draw. Just try to take those feelings of hurt and resentment out of your system.

After every storm, there is a sunshine waiting for you. And if you manage to survive the storm, you will be a much better, stronger and wiser person. Don’t give up on life. Everything is temporary. Everything passes away. Suicide is never a solution!

Note: All the illustrations are sourced from the website of The Story of a Suicide

Affimity- the meeting point of passion and friendship

In this era of the internet, we cannot even imagine a life without social media networks. So we have accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Google plus, Instagram, Pinterest and LinkedIn to share our thoughts and moments with the world.

Gaining audience through social networks

If you are a blogger, then it is natural that you must be sharing your blog posts in all the above mentioned social networks to attract audience to your blog. It definitely helps, but are we bloggers satisfied with the amount and type of audience that we manage to attract through our social networks?

I don’t think so. I have been sharing my blog posts in my Facebook account for years and only a few interested people care to visit my blog. When I share it on twitter, I get a few retweets and a few visitors from the thousands of active followers. Disappointing, but true. However, there is good news for every single blogger and people aspiring to start their blog.

The dream destination of every blogger

Affimity is the largest social blogging platform that lets you share your content with passionate people all over the world. Affimity is the meeting point of passion (affinity) and friendship (amity).

If you are a travel blogger, the best audience for you is people who are passionate about travelling. Now, how will you find so many travel enthusiasts who will be interested in reading your blog or content? The answer is Affimity. 

You can find channels in affimity, designed for people sharing a common passion. So you just need to go to the travel channel of affimity and post your content. And voila! You would get plenty of likes and comments if your content is interesting. At the same time, you would also be able to connect with like-minded people who share your passion and make some good friends.

My experience with Affimity

I am saying this only after using affimity since six months. Within a short span, I have gained more than 2500 followers. You can follow me (Purba_PC) on Affimity. I mostly share about travel, books and movies. In every post that I share on Affimity, I get a lot of likes and comments, followed by visits in my blog. 

Therefore, if you are a blogger, you should definitely take full advantage of the features of Affimity to build your fan base. If you can share interesting content, Affimity is your guaranteed ticket to instant stardom. And that’s what we bloggers want, right?

How is Affimity better than the other blogging platforms?

Affimity has an international user base and provides an easy blogging experience. It is simple and user friendly. You can easily share your content on Affimity compared to the other blogging platforms such as Blogger, Wordpress and Tumblr. Moreover, you get an audience as soon as you start sharing content, which is not possible with the other blogging platforms. So if you want to start a blog and share interesting content with your readers, you should start it on Affimity today.

You can also take the advantage of Affimity if you already have a blog on Blogger or Wordpress and want to attract genuine readers. You just need to post your content to relevant channels and you will surely get good results. Affimity has a variety of channels such as book club, travel, Bollywood, movies, music, food, fitness, parenting and many others.

Don't think any more! Check out the website of Affimity and create your profile. You can also download the App on your Android or iOS phone. 

Be famous, stay passionate and keep blogging!

Blogging gets better and exciting with Affimity!

Have you ever wished for a social media platform that could drive some enthusiastic readers to your blog? Well, I have. Innumerable times! Facebook is a great platform to stay connected with friends and acquaintances, but it has never been very useful to get authentic readers for my blog.

That’s because most of my Facebook friends do not share my passion. Then, why will they care to check out the latest book review I posted or the App that I reviewed? Twitter and Instagram are better, but even they cannot satisfy the readership that a blogger wants….readers who will share the passion of the blogger.

The even more annoying part is when your news feed gets cluttered with status and links that don’t interest you even a bit. There have been so many times when I felt weary checking out the news feed on my Facebook profile. So I really wished of a social media platform that can drive some enthusiastic readers to my blog as well as inspire me with some great content.

And my wish just came true…with Affimity!

Affimity is an awesome Social Media platform that bloggers can use effectively for Social blogging. I have been hearing recently a lot about Affimity from my blogger friends, but when I checked it out, I was absolutely thrilled with the result.

Affimity consists of channels, based on a single interest such as books, movies, music, travel, food, etc. The channel is like your home where you can go to share your content, to get informed and to make friends with people who share your passion.

I am an author and I have a book blog. Therefore, the channel ‘book club’ got me interested the most. I went to the channel and posted about my new poetry book and the latest book that I reviewed. Within a few hours, I got more than 40 likes and a handful of genuine and eager comments. At that moment, I realized that this is the perfect social media platform that I was wishing for.

You don’t need to be a blogger to enjoy the cool features of Affimity. If you are a movie enthusiast or a food enthusiast, you can have a great time basking in the community buzz of the movie or the food channel.

Joining #Affimity will help you to connect with people who share your interest. So if you are a travel blogger, you will get to interact with people who are passionate about travelling through Affimity. The same applies for book bloggers, movie bloggers, fashion blogger and food bloggers.

Once you explore Affimity, you can’t help admitting that blogging gets better and exciting with Affimity. So, what are you waiting for? Sign up in #Affimity to enjoy #SocialBlogging and don’t forget to follow me (Purba_PC) there. 

You can enjoy #AffimitySocialBlogging in your phone now.

Download the app on your Android and iOS phone.