You finally sit down in a determined effort to try that meditation app everyone’s going on about but, somehow, you are now watching TV while masochistically scrolling through a fitness influencer’s feed and waiting for your laptop to charge so that you can switch to whatever web series you’re currently binge watching. . . .
This confluence is what the Entertainment Issue of Verve is about: the swift streams of content that flow into our everyday lives, converging towards a point of disruption. But, the kind of disruption that is a stimulus for ideologies reshaping, industries reinventing, and people readapting.
Entertainment is no longer confined to movie nights with the extended family or patiently waiting until 8 p.m. to catch your favourite soap opera. Whether it’s TV, movies, fashion, art, music or even the news — the ways that we consume culture and use our free time has radically altered. In the course of putting together this issue, we were confronted with recurring evidence of how technology, particularly the internet, is restructuring the domain of entertainment at an unprecedented rate.
Consumers have morphed into creators. And though this blurring of lines could be blamed for the overwhelming amount of ‘stuff’ that we are bombarded with daily (that, unfortunately, can include unsolicited oversharing by strangers), it’s forced a multitude of users online to be mindful about the world at large and the space they occupy in it. Socio-cultural hierarchies based on factors like age, sex, gender, class and caste have also prominently come into question in this updated era, with digital media gradually bridging the divide between the marginalised and the privileged. So, while exceedingly attached to our devices, we are consequently more connected to and aware of each other too.
‘Everything is copy’ according to Nora Ephron’s wise postulation, but as far as the Entertainment Issue goes, Verve declares that everything is content. Instead of resisting the digital (r)evolution, we find the way to its heart, which, much to our relief, is still human.
Indigenous cuisine is being given a new lease outside of its assigned boundaries by ‘food gurus’ who are using new digital platforms as well as social media to redirect viewers whose eyes are usually facing the West,
reports Sharanya Deepak.
The culinary swing towards mindful eating isn’t limited to cafes, bars and restaurants; cinemas are jumping on the bandwagon too — unhealthy snacks have been replaced by more diverse, wholesome and customised theatre foods. At INOX Insignia in Atria-The Millennium Mall, a thoughtfully curated and unconventional menu adds to the luxury movie-watching experience, and Zaral Shah samples the goods while chatting with the venue’s head chef, Vicky Ratnani and the COO of Inox Leisure, Daizy Lal…
Up
Living up to their moniker, smartwatches can track your heart rate and travel plans or pay for a cup of coffee while, of course, perfectly keeping time. Verve zooms in on a few of these up-to-the-minute multitaskers.
The 21st century’s countless opportunities for self-publishing content promise shortcuts to success, but brothers Devansh and Dhruvin Doshi understand that the road towards truly fulfilling their dreams is a long one. The acting-writing-directing duo bear the hallmarks of the post-Gen X breed – ‘wokeness’, creativity and an entrepreneurial spirit — and Shraddha Jahagirdar-Saxena bridges the generation gap during a pleasantly surprising and eye-opening chat with these new-age renaissance men.
Passing
Through
Portofino
Rymn Massand recharges her senses in this alluring Italian town and its surrounding wilderness while on
a relaxing solo getaway.
Directions
Six filmmakers, who have screened their movies at some of the best-known festivals across the globe, share how they made the most of their quick trips to the cities of Venice, Toronto, New York, Cannes, Hong Kong and Tel Aviv. . .
Mumbai-based Vanilla Miel is known for its tempting selection of entremets. And, the patisserie’s masterfully crafted Instagram images – which reveal each flavour encased in these classic French layer cakes – make them even harder to resist. Business partners and sisters Isha Shetty and Mansi Shetty Bafna treat Verve to
a special tasting. . .
Warp
India’s textile heritage gets a modernistic spin as Verve visualises the future of home-grown fabrics. Hand-cut weaves, hand-sewn ensembles and hand-knotted fabrics — with a focus on innovation and yarn revivals — break convention in an out-of-this-world sartorial line-up.
Ever since the American sneakerhead subculture was co-opted by the mainstream and luxury fashion industries, global Instagram feeds have been filled with images of Nikes, Yeezys, Balenciagas, or whichever brand has dropped the season’s It shoe. But to sneakerheads, they are more than the latest fad. A number of women are in the vanguard of the burgeoning movement here in India, and Rushmika Banerjee speaks with five of them to get some diverse viewpoints on what makes this footwear staple an aspirational commodity.
In the wake of the #MeToo movement, the male-dominated comedy industry is transforming into an inclusive space. Anuradha Menon, still recognised for her iconic alter ego Lola Kutty, spends an afternoon with Prashasti Singh, the show stealer from last year’s Comicstaan lineup, and the two women pull back the curtain on inherent biases and the evolving scene. Between generous doses of laughter and nostalgia, Sadaf Shaikh has a frontrow seat for this unexpected yet synergetic interaction
In a compelling collaboration arranged by Verve, Puja Sarup, an actor pushing the boundaries of Indian mainstream theatre with her portrayal of a drag king, plays muse to Pulkit Mogha, a photographer who uses Instagram’s shiny grids as windows into stirring queer stories. Megha Shah discovers a common heart that beats in anticipation of a more accepting audience.
The perks of cyber popularity can undoubtably be intoxicating, but they are exponentially rewarding when you leverage the web to engage in constructive social criticism and open up dialogues. Verve’s follow list includes these eight prolific posters who are leaving a legacy that goes beyond the likes. . .
In a special photo feature, Verve separates urban Gen Zer Zuni Chopra and her group of girlfriends – Lavanya Raju, Ish Patil, Anjali Savansukha and Lameeya Bandukwala – from their gadgets for a day and transports them to a dystopia without modern technology. The teen author shares an exclusive poem in which she muses on an eerie reality while speculating with Huzan Tata about an analog life. . .
Her Instagram captions — wittily concise or an expertly selected emoji — present an intriguing combination of millennial insouciance with profundity that is beyond her years. The enigmatic yet instantly relatable Sobhita Dhulipala’s inner self emerges as Richa Kaul Padte peels back the layers of everyone’s new favourite ‘webtertainment’ celebrity, on the heels of the actor’s upcoming Netflix release, Bard of Blood.
Emojis, acronyms, memes, GIFs and other forms of internet shorthand are helping us express emotions and open up to each other in a hyperconnected world. Infusing nuance and personality, they transcend the limits of traditional speech and writing and add a level of intimacy, letting us communicate in a more uninhibited way,
says Ranjabati Das.
The creative gene runs strong in twins Meghal and Natasha Janardan. The New York-based photographers and video producers, who experiment with make-up in their downtime, dip their brushes into the dreamy hues of sunrise and sunset to envision an exclusive array of high-flying looks that take their eyeshadow game to the next level.
Madhu Jain looks back to a time of simple games and pleasures and compares these to the multitude of on-demand diversions available to all, in the present day.
The newest means to go viral, TikTok, has also emerged as a democratising desi alternative to homogeneous and exclusionary Western social media. Influencer and first ‘regular’ Indian woman to be ‘crowned’ on the app, Nagma Mirajkar, opens up to Akhil Sood about the exhilaration and fragility of being an online superstar.
The internet, especially its various gateways to self-empowerment, has proven to be a boon for a country as diverse and socially stratified as India, but its work is far from done. Mallika Khanna investigates.
Elevate your everyday basics with exaggerated silhouettes, statement-making tailoring and sharp cuts. Verve picks out four standout shapes – curved shoulders, elongated sleeves, boxy jackets and circular jumpsuits – and styles them on Sucharita Tyagi, the spunky film critic with an adventurous wardrobe, as she reviews her favourite fashion moments from the silver screen.
Former Country Head of HBO South Asia Shruti Bajpai’s insider guide to Beijing and emerging entertainment trends in China.
