'So Sorry about Little India' - Evam's coming to Singapore!! :) :)

I love people who make me laugh. And it’s not too difficult to make me laugh if you know me. It’s something like this. If you can make me laugh, then you can be sure that we will get along really really well. I think it’s the best sort of an ice-breaker at any social do. Once you have gotten folks to laugh at whatever you have said you can be sure they will pay you attention! True Story! :-)

Actually, imagine that. Trying to make people laugh. And that too just by talking. That takes some guts. And it’s very difficult. Stand-up comedy is even more challenging. Leave apart stage fear, just standing there, with a mic in your hands, looking down at the crowd milling around, not knowing whether you might strike the right chord with them and not spout out anything too offensive that might work against you, that’s scary. You have no choice but to take your chances.

But if done right, and with some disclaimers at the beginning ;-) then it’s definitely fun! And it takes professionals to do that! To sense the pulse of the crowd and to rib-tickle them … Like Russell Peters. Or Vir Das.

And now Evam …  

‘Evam’ is an award winning theatre entrepreneurship which has the mission of “evolutionising India’s theatre“.  Founded in 2003 by two 26-year-old graduates from Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad (MICA) – Sunil Vishnu K. and Karthik Kumar who started their second entrepreneurship ‘Sideways Training’ in Feb 2011, ‘evam’ today is a 9 years young thriving organization with more than 25 plays and 450 performances to its credit.

Evam annually manages ’the Hindu MetroPlus International Theatre fest’ across 7 Indian cities, runs “Theatricals”, a young people’s theatre entrepreneurship inter collegiate competition and has a host of initiatives in Theatre Education, Theatre in Education and Arts management programs in schools, colleges and corporates spreading the message of theatre. They have worked extensively with brands to further their marketing communications and created entertainment/engagement for client networking events. Some of the brands include like HUL, HSBC, Airtel, Standard Chartered Bank, Nestle, Nippon, Infosys, Royal Sundaram and Sab Miller.

You can read more about EVAM at www.evam.in

And now they are going to be in Singapore.

And they are going to perform. And make us laugh. About everything. Until our eyes fill with tears. Until we grasp our tummies saying no more.

So who are these guys who are going to perform? And what are they gonna do to make us laugh??

They say that they are -- “So Sorry about Little India’ –

A stand-up comedy show that promises to make you laugh till you forgive. :) From Evam's stand-up comic ensemble, ‘Evam Stand-Up Tamasha’, which has 8 leading comics and has performed over 150 shows in just two years and is known as south India's funniest stand-up show. 

This show is a comic take on everything Indian - Cricket to Advertising. Banking to Film BANS and of course bargains, population and MUSTAFA. Evam Stand-Up Tamasha is flying to Singapore to make fun of Indians like only NRIs can.

A must watch laugh riot that promises to be Indian, For Indian, By Indian, Of Indian, through Indian, with Indian, Half Indian, North Indian, Anglo Indian, etc..

Book your tickets now. Don’t be cheap, there is no bargaining. J J

Tickets are available on SISTIC!!! Book yours now!!

For more information, check out these videos…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9sRAeJNM_c & http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FyCcVOU9PMc

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 And if you do catch it, come back and tell me how much you liked it! :-)  :-)

That funny thing called C.H.E.M.I.S.T.R.Y.

It’s that feeling of comfort when they are with you. That everything is alright in your world. At least for that moment. That everything you do with them seems so effortless. That as though it was always meant to be. That even when you know the entire world is against you, they will still stand by you and that you can depend on them.

It’s that feeling of understanding when you glance at that other person in the middle of a conversation and a silent message passes between you two that they get you. That they understand what you were trying to say. That they understand what you don’t want to say. That they can complete the sentence that you have been struggling with. That they know precisely how your mind works and what you were thinking most of the time, what to talk when and where to draw a line and where to stop talking.

It’s that feeling of contentment when you walk into a crowded room, and your eyes search for them and when they find them, your heart does a little flip-flop, a relaxed feeling settles over you that they are there to back you up no matter what. That when you are with them, even at two ends of the room, their presence radiates the room with gentle warmth.

It’s that feeling of something amiss when they are not there with you. You don’t know why but you feel unsettled. That you have been so used to their being there and their voice and their presence that mere absence of one of these leaves you feeling uncomfortable.

It’s that feeling of gladness that you are always connected to each other wherever either of you are. That you always know what they are doing and where they are. Not in a possessive kind of way. But in an attached sort of way.

It’s that feeling of surprise yet happiness to know how much you share in common with them. That you have the same taste in most of the things. That your mind works the same way. That you can talk to each other without judging each other by what you have done, by what you think or by what you want to do.

It’s that feeling of freedom that you share with them. That they let you have your own space when you want it. That you are independent as well as dependent on them. That they know where to draw the line between pushing you and encouraging you. That they have seen you at your best and your worst and they still stick by you.

It’s that comforting feeling that you share with them in chatter and in silence. That you always have something or the other to talk about. That you can also sit for hours without talking anything as long as you are together. That you are not compelled to fill that silence. That you don’t get bored with them around. That you can be with them however you want and they will not judge you but accept you the way you are. That they let you be and they don’t force you into doing something you don’t want. That you do something for them because they like it that way.

More than anything else, it’s that feeling when you realize that your destinies are linked together no matter how or where you are. That you know they will always be a part of your life and you theirs. In some way or the other. Even if you may not be together. It’s the realization that you are the happiest when you are with them. That your day starts and ends with them. And that it feels right. Absolutely irrevocably right.

I am a firm believer of the fact that unless you share a wonderful chemistry with someone you can never ever get close to them or even have a close friendship with them. It’s an important factor.  In any sort of relationships.  In some form or the other. Friendships, Relationships, Family, you name it; it has to be present there in some way at some level. It’s something that I look for personally! And something that is very very important to me in any sort of a relationship.

That click!

Those vibes!

Has to, Got to be there! :-) :-)

 

Ps: An edited version of this piece is also published at http://www.glad2bawoman.com/category/friends/funny-thing-called-chemistry

 

Enthusiasm is Contagious!! Very much so! :) :)

Like most days, I took a cab to office today. Now, me and cabs we share a love-hate relationship. Much like Murphy’s Law! When I want one, I don’t get one! But me and cab drivers... now there’s something interesting there. I have met my fair share of all sorts of cab drivers. The grumpy ones, the chatter-boxes, the presumptuous ones, the polite ones and the couple of them who actually asked me out (Yes! That happened too! Some other time folks, some other time! Sigh!). … More or less the entire gamut. And more often than not, I chitchat with some of them since I love talking, making random conversation and finding out about their life and such. I am very curious like that! ;) Some of them are mostly in a mood to talk, considering they just go up and down Singapore’s roads. And I enjoy most of these snippets of conversation. :) :)

So coming back to today, I booked a cab well in advance … I did not want Mr. Murphy to take advantage of the timing, it being peak hour. My cabbie for the day was an Indonesian man, easily in his late sixties. He came to pick me up and soon started chatting with me on how I did the wise thing by booking a cab and that there were loads of people waiting for one all along the way. I was in a mood to talk as well (nothing new there!) and soon we started chatting.

I must tell you, the man was a chatter-box. But what was more endearing was the way he kept the conversation flowing. In the span of the 10-15 minutes that was the drive, we discussed umpteen topics. And what a variety of topics. :)

I learnt that he was a retiree, he was from West Sumatra, and he wants to settle down with his wife in India and that too in Coimbatore because he was tired of the city life. Coimbatore of all places! Can you believe that! :) What a coincidence!!! :D :D He said that he has half a million savings in Singapore that he wants to invest in a house in Coimbatore, grow a vegetable patch with Karuveppilai, Murungakkai, and also have Tulsi plants. :-). Yes he used the Tamil words for them. He made it a point to mention that he did not want to outshine his neighbors and all he wanted was a simple house where he can spend his time occupied with gardening and walks. He complimented me on my very famous name (Sigh!) and asked me where in India I was from. He told me about Indonesia and how people were very religious there and how similar the customs are to Indian customs. I asked him his name and he said it was Kamal, just Kamal and not Kamal Hassan :). His wife’s name was Rohini and his brothers were Surya and Rustam! He said that his elder brothers were very handsome. He said that they were all teachers and that his subject was History. He mentioned how much he likes Indian food, especially murungakka sambar, dosa and chutney. He told me that he was a good cook and that he loves making thengai chutney and the murungakka sambar. :) He even threw in a bit about how he went to Anandha Bhavan for dinner yesterday and had Rava Masala Onion Dosa as that was his fave. He asked me if I cook and told me that whenever he makes sambar he always adds perungayam and that it is the most important ingredient :P. We discussed Indian movies, and he said that his favorite Tamil movie is Mouna Raagam and that the heroines these days are all only show-offs and nothing to beat the legends like Savitri and the like. He spoke all the Tamil words in a very cute mixed accent. :) Yes! He spoke Tamil. He said that he watches Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalee movies :P

And the highlight was, when I was about to pay and get down, he said that whenever he gets bored, he strums the guitar and that his favorite song was “Baar Baar Dekho – China Town” which we both sang with full gusto for a full 2 mins inside that cab!! … :-) I sang a song with this man, whom I did not even know until today morning. :-) :-) Beat that! Such fun it was! :) We were both laughing at the end of it.

He wished me all the luck and blessed me and told me to have a good life and then we parted ways.

He left me with a smile on my face, an upbeat mood and a spring in my step. I can only admire the zest the man has for life and the amazing quality of keeping people entertained in a way that doesn’t encroach into their personal space. :) Loved the start to the day today! Such a sweet man!

Whoever said enthusiasm was contagious was right! :) Wanna borrow some from me? ;)  I got a truckload of it today ;) ;) :) :)