30 things that make me smile! :) :)

I like today’s prompt … it makes me feel all nice, warm and fuzzy when I think about these things and trust me it was no easy task to think up of things that would make me smile… I am sure I would have a lot more if I dredge up the energy to think, but some of these materialistic and not-so-materialistic things should do for now…

And therefore, in no particular order ...

“Traditions that I have formed or those that have been followed for ages at home. Going back home for a vacation and checking out each nook, cranny and corner for familiar smells and things. Black and white photographs. Random hugs from the back. Dancing and sweating it out and having an ‘endorphin’ high! A very well made cup of coffee with just the right amount of milk and very little sugar. Drizzles on the face while taking long walks. Songs, places, things that bring back bitter-sweet memories. Surprises when you least expect it. A long road trip. Bike rides or car drives where the window is open and the breeze is on your face bringing with it those stray droplets. The smell of old books. Road-side tea and samosas. Visiting temples just in time to see the deeparadhanai and listening to the legends of what made these temples special. The smell of chembakam flowers that brings back memories of Kalam and elaneer! Soft cotton sarees which fall just-so-right. Vatthakozhambu and potato fry. Babies and that baby smell that pervades the room when they are around. Sunsets and sunrises (whenever I get a chance). Subtle word plays. A good book that keeps me thinking about it for the next couple of hours or days. Walking barefoot on morning dew filled grass! Early morning quiet. Big furry dogs. Adventure sports and the high that comes with it. A feel-good movie or a well-choreographed dance performance or a well-sung song! Unexpected compliments. Traveling to a new place, soaking in the sights and the culture. Decade old friendships and the memories associated with them. 

A post well-written.”

Summer's here!!! So is Evam's Workshop for Kids! :) :)

What did summer vacations mean to you? The months of April, May and June… To me, it was all fun, trips, mangoes, get-togethers, lots of sleeping, eating and driving the parents up the wall saying that we were bored :P Today though, there are so much more options, I say! Kids these days have a lot more options than any of our generation or the ones before us had… and I mean that in a good way!!

Have you seen what the kids of today are capable of?? They are street-smart and are much more adept at using technology and gadgets while we still sometimes struggle with our smart phones… they dance like they can give stiff competition to the world’s best … they sing effortlessly and put many a talented singer to shame and some of them are so advanced for their ages that they give the older generations (including me!) a huge complex…  

Bunch of talented youngsters we have I say… It’s heartening to see the expanse of talent that is both explicit as well as hidden in most of the kiddos today and it is to hone these very talents that some of the biggest names in the field are flying down as facilitators for a summer workshop conducted by EVAM.  

Yes people!

Evam’s back in Singapore….  :D 

This time with SUMMER WORKSHOPS for Kiddos…

Looking for details… Here you go!!

About the courses:

	5-7 yrs		8-9 yrs
	9 am to 11.30 am	11.30 am to 2 pm	2 pm to 4.30 pm	4.30 pm to 7 pm
10-16 June (Venue: Pangdemonium)	Theatre (pinty)	Music (sudha)	Music (sudha)	Theatre (pinty)
17 - 23 June (Venue: NUS PGP function room 4)	Music (vedanth)	Theatre (pinty)	Theatre (pinty)	Music (vedanth)

Each of the above courses runs for a week (2.5 hours every day) and is charged at SGD250/person. Logon to SISTIC for registering - http://tinyurl.com/dxnhc3r

For further details:

Call: +6593886994 Email:  mailsgp@evam.in

About the facilitators:

1. Dr. Sudha Raja holds a doctorate in Indian Music from the University of Madras.  She has been training school groups and communities in choral singing & Indian Carnatic Music for the past 2 decade.  

Name of course:  The Harmony Project

The workshop introduces us to harmony, and its various forms. What we understand as sound, music, rhythm, silence and how it all comes together to create magic. The participants will learn songs in many Indian languages, and how harmony adds texture and colour to music.

2. Vedanth Bharadhwaj is an accomplished singer, composer and guitarist. He composes for top musicians in India, films, theatre and ads, and is a virtuoso performer. Guitars, banjos and just about any stringed instruments come alive in Vedanth’s hands.

Name of course: The Young Composers

Music is in all of us and in everything around us! In this workshop, learn the concept of harmony and rhythm. Try your hand at writing lyrics, give it a tune and perform your very own first song!

3. Padmavathi Rao - For the last ten years, Padmavathi (or Pinty akka as children fondly call her), has been doing theatre with and for children. Padmavathi conducts storytelling, puppetry and conducting summer theatre workshops in Bangalore as she has done over the last ten years on a regular basis.

The structure of the workshops will be flexible in order to work with the realities of the workshop and children’s individual and group processes.

Name of Course: Collage - Category:  Theatre (5-7)

This workshop aims at moving from a 2-D collage to a collage of emotions as it were. The children are taken through a journey of exploring their realities, their likes and dislikes, the obstacles they perceive in expressing themselves.

Name of Course: Drama of Things - Category:  Theatre (8 to 9)

The workshop aims at finding strengths that lie within so that children can find joy in what they do. It endeavours to put children in touch with the blocks they encounter and at least begin to take the first steps towards overcoming them.

So what are you still waiting for? :-)

Get going and register your kiddos now…  

Have fun and let me know how it turns out to be!! J J J

HERE’S TO A ROLLICKING SUMMER AHEAD! J

Why this kolaveri ... kolaveri... kolaveri di..!!! :) :)

There are songs that make you think.

There are songs that transport you into another world.

And then there are songs that bring a smile instantly on your face when you listen to it.

This is one such song.

What works for it…

1.    Simple lyrics, interspersed with Thanglish. (English spoken like Tamil)

2.    The video of the song recording.

3.    Dhanush.

Come to think of it, Dhanush should be number 1 reason. It’s just the way he sings, and the manner in which he manages to bring out the expressions required for the song into his singing that works primarily for this.

I was never a huge fan of Dhanush. I agree he is a very good actor, but he was never in my “never-miss-a-movie” list of stars.

But this song makes me want to watch the movie – 3.

Directed by Aishwarya.R.Dhanush and with Shruti Hassan and Dhanush acting, it has evoked enough curiosity with just this one song.

The song has gone viral and how!!!

Maama notes eduthuko, appidiye kaiyila snacks eduthuko... ;-)