A decade ago, in a quiet corner of Mumbai’s Colaba, in the darkened gallery of Chatter-jee & Lal, a bright spotlight shone atop a solitary drummer. He sat there with absolutely no idea how to play the drums, and over five-hour sessions, every day, for five days in a row, the nameless player tried to ‘master’ the instrument. As his proficiency grew, he shed the anonymous black full-length bodysuit and slid into gold, silver and sequinned spandex. In turn, the performance went on to explore the transformation from obscurity to a fantastical sort of stardom, with Freddy Mercury meets Ziggy Stardust vibes in place. “How do you create zero, in terms of characterisation? The bodysuit defines shapes in my body that are not traditionally masculine, but I also have a hairy chest. And this allows me to create an androgynous figure without definition.
Man, woman, either, neither,” says Nikhil Chopra, as he looks back at Drum Solo (2010) and his experiments with the bodysuit, which has gone on to claim pride of place in his oeuvre. Each performance sees the artist transform from one persona to the next. Costuming (the bodysuit was made by his long-time collaborator and designer Loise Braganza) helps him navigate his chameleon-like personas that range from fading rock stars to lifeless maharajas.
Breathe In, Breathe Out
A powerful tool to help you master your nervous system or another biohacking buzzword? SIMONE DHONDY explores the inhalations and exhalations of breathwork
Red Pill, Blue Pill
India's nutraceutical industry is booming thanks to advanced technology, distrust of the medical system and rising vanity. With multivitamins becoming purer and more effective, NIDHI GUPTA finds out if supplements have become the new serum
Sign of the times
No longer do you need to have an answer to, \"What is the significance of this?\" when people point to your new tattoo. ARMAN KHAN discovers that everything is on the table when you get inked temporarily
Return to form
Watching the world's most elite athletes deliver the best performances of their careers rekindled SONAKSHI SHARMA's own love for sports
Dimple, All Day
YOU MAY HAVE WATCHED HER ON THE BIG SCREEN FOR OVER FIVE DECADES, BUT DON'T MAKE THE MISTAKE OF ASSUMING THAT YOU KNOW DIMPLE KAPADIA.
MUSIC, TAKE CONTROL
As someone who had always sought safety in numbers, ALIZA FATMA often wondered what her own company would feel like. The answer arrived unexpectedly when she attended her first-ever music festival, one of the largest in the world, all alone
Let it grow
When we think of hardworking farmers toiling in India's scorching heat, we often think of men, the sweat on their brow, the sinews in their arms. JYOTI KUMARI speaks to four women who are championing the invisible female labour that keeps these fields running
YOU'LL NEVER WALK ALONE
When armless archer Sheetal Devi set her sights on the Paralympic Games this year, she knew she had a tough journey ahead of her. Luckily, her mother was with her every step of the way.
Beauty and the feast
The appeal of Indian weddings has always been in a sprawling spread. For additional bragging rights, Aditi Dugar recommends going beyond designer tablecloths and monogrammed napkins.
Sweet serendipity
From a scavenger hunt-inspired proposal to a Moroccan-themed baraat, Malvika Raj and Armaan Rai's love story prioritised playfulness throughout their blended celebrations.
