What are young ladies looking for in their married lives? Madhu Jain creates an imaginary scenario that presents a succinct picture of couples today
SCENE ONE
It had to be Kerala. And it had to be December. That time of year when our diaspora desis come swanning in. The sea was a sparkling blue. The water in the infinity swimming pool was an even more sparkling blue. The champagne never stopped sparkling,as corks kept popping. This marriage was made in NRI heaven. Most of the guests were from NRI land — the Eastern Coast. Relatives had been kept to a minimum.
She was from Lady Shri Ram, Delhi and Columbia, New York. He was from St. Xavier’s in Mumbai and Wharton, Philadelphia. Their respective CVs and bios were sterling, sparkling if you like. Both were good-looking, athletic. What could be more perfect? They had met at a common friend’s wedding in Goa the year before. Both had good corporate jobs in the land of opportunity, paradise for clever desis. But, soon there was trouble in Paradise. The bride came back home.
SCENE TWO
Six months later, in a living room with fake Louis XIV chairs and a genuine, but small Raza, in a sprawling bungalow in South Delhi, with a lawn as smooth and green as a billiard table. Photographs in silver frames of the smiling couple taken during the wedding in Kerala adorn the little tables in the living room. She, one of those fair and lovely Punjabis, sits on a sofa with her mother. The latter holding her head as if in real pain; a turbulent tooth it would seem. The father, stoic, his forehead layered like a millefeuille, is slouched in an armchair facing them.
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Denne historien er fra September 2016-utgaven av Verve.
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Making Amends
This generation’s penchant for thoughtless consumption gets Madhu Jain roiled up, and she wonders if nature is getting its own back for our missteps…
Diamonds With Provenance
In keeping with the company’s commitment to environmental and social responsibility, Anisa Kamadoli Costa, chief sustainability officer at Tiffany & Co. and chairman and president at The Tiffany & Co. Foundation, enlightens Shirin Mehta on the efforts that make the jewellery giant an industry leader in transparency
SARTORIAL ECONOMICS
Sisters Tashi and Tara Mitra demonstrate to Akanksha Pandey how deviating from the mainstream can bend the way we think, live and dress
NOTES TO SELF
An anthropomorphized tiger’s perspective, a viscerally worded futuristic interpretation of loss, a critique of performative activism, a meta reflection on the earth’s crises. Told through different lenses, Janaki Lenin, Indrapramit Das, Keshava Guha and Roshan Ali’s stories — written exclusively for Verve — attempt to make sense of the fraught reality that we exist in today
The Eternal Optimist
As Generation X and xennials grapple with fully transitioning to conscious living, young millennials and Generation Z are leading the charge to reverse human-caused environmental damage. Sahar Mansoor, founder and CEO of the Bengaluru-based zero-waste social enterprise Bare Necessities, has a simple overarching philosophy: consume less and stay positive. Verve gets deeper into the mindset of the action-oriented earth advocate
Redemption SONGS
Indian music festivals have been demonstrating a refreshing sense of responsibility in terms of their ecological impact. Interacting with stakeholders who strive to make these large-scale events greener, Akhil Sood investigates the reasons behind the improved attitudes of audiences and the increase in corporate support.
earth hour
Crafted using nature’s elements, these dials draw inspiration from the many heterogeneous materials and hues around us.Verve turns its lens onto a mesmerising few
THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
Children are holding adults accountable for both the grim future they are facing and the toll this is taking on their mental health. Madhumita Bhattacharyya initiates conversations with families of young climate activists and observes the extent to which parenting has changed in the face of catastrophe
NATURAL JUSTICE
Most of us are only just waking up to the urgency of climatic action. When the stakes are so high, what can individual action solve? Mridula Mary Paul, an environmental policy expert, is proof of the tenacity needed to effect systemic change. It’s not glamorous, and the rewards are few and far between, but that doesn’t stop her from aiming big, finds Anandita Bhalerao
Along For The Ride
Navigating Indian streets as a woman is hard enough. But what is it like while riding a bicycle? Bengaluru-based Shreya Dasgupta, a regular cyclist, speaks to five urban women about the pros and cons of this increasingly popular means of transport.
