Magazine Doodle by FN Souza and Agyeya's Jo Pul Banayenge

This week in Daak:

1. Magazine doodle by FN Souza

2. Jo Pul Banayenge / Those who Build the Bridge by Agyeya

3. A little delight for an indoors-kind of day

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1. A pen on magazine-paper doodle by FN Souza, 1963, Saffronart

How many of us have been guilty of “enhancing” photographs of people in magazines with moles, moustaches, horns or sunglasses? This surreal magazine doodle by FN Souza, whose art was characterized by geometric forms and grotesque distortions, evokes a strange sense of kinship. It reminds us that this child-like urge to add a pinch of our imagination to the seen reality, is perhaps universal.

2. Jo Pul Banayenge / Those who Build the Bridge by Agyeya

jo pul banayenge
ve anivaryatah
peeche reh jayenge.
senayein ho jayengi paar
maare jayenge Ravan
jayi honge Ram,
jo nirmata rahe
itihaas me
bandar kehlayenge.

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Those who build the bridge
Will inevitably
Get left behind.
Armies will cross over
Ravan will get killed
Ram will be victorious
Those who were the creators
In history
Will be declared monkeys.

In India, one cannot escape the mythology of Lord Ram and his victory over Ravan. In this grandiose narrative, Agyeya draws attention to the unsung heroes of any war, righteous or otherwise. He inverts the story of Lord Ram taking the help of Hanuman (who was part human and part monkey) to build a bridge that would take him to his sworn enemy and the villain of the epic, Ravan. While Lord Ram ultimately kills Ravan and attains immortal fame, what happens to the people who built the bridge for him to achieve this great feat?

3. A little delight for an indoors-kind of day

Games remind us not only of childhood, but of the importance of play in our lives! If it’s been a while since you’ve indulged in the serious pleasures of play, this madhubani-style ludo and snakes and ladders set will be the perfect way for you to spend an afternoon.