SUNDAY, MAY 04, 2014 (PAGE-4)

BOLLYWOOD BUZZ PERSONALITY "Villains have more longevity than heroes" Razdan's odyssey with Sacred Geometry With his trademark lascivious sneer and menacing voice, Prem Lalit Gupta Chopra established himself as the stylish villain of the '60s and Appearing in Jammu after a long hiatus, Subhash Razdan '70s. The veteran actor is now out with his biography Prem naam has certainly sprung a sur- prise with his works that hai mera… Prem Chopra penned by his daughter Rakita Nanda recently were on show at Rinchin bZangpo Art where he chronicles his journey of 50 years in Bollywood. Gallery, University of Jammu. Unlike contem- Sreya Basu in conversation with the 'bad guy' in Mumbai porary artists in the The itch in me never went away. When I decided country in perpetual to try my luck in Bombay for a second time, I told struggle with and against myself that I have to get a job there first so that even the norms of a hegemon- if nothing happens at least I will have some money in ic Western pattern of hand. We were a large family of five brothers and modernity, Subhash Raz- one sister, so I could not possibly be a burden on my dan, moved by internal inspi- parents. rations, has quietly taken the When you played the baddie, there was a tinge meditative route that locates his contemporary art practice in the local (Kashmiri) as well as of humour to your 'evil' side. Was that your idea or pan-Indian imagery of Tantrik Art. the filmmaker's? Razdan's latest Tantric-inspired black and white drawings In our times, our characters were not scripted in iso- are abstract visual approximations of philosophical princi- lation like today's time. The directors, writers and ples ingrained in the ritual practice of everyday life of Kash- actors - all used to sit down together, take each oth- mir Pandit families. With the result in his works the ancient er's suggestion and work on the character. So the char- and the modern have come together in a fluid mix where an acterization used to be a mutually created product. almost condition of classical music informs the sacred geo- You are considered as one of the best-looking metric visual rendering of the abstract principles. villains in the history of Bollywood. How would you For Razdan this artistic journey on the path already trans- react to that? versed by stalwarts modern artists since 1960s like Gulam ties for him in visualizing myriad shades and hues of Naad I love it when people give me such compliments. Rasool Santosh, P T Reddy, who saw in Tantra the possibili- Brahman. Praises always encourage an actor to do better. ty of another Beginning, has been a sheer act of destiny. As To understand philosophical basis of Subhash Razdan's Is it true that you became a villain by chance few years back, he had never ever imagined that a divine inter- imagery, it is important that the 'Sahirdya'- the initiated spec- while trying to fit in a hero's shoe? vention would bring him back from the world of commercial tator, to have some understanding of the Naad at different Everybody, who comes to this industry with starry world of advertisement visualization and designing to have a Levels of Consciousness, as espoused in ancient scriptures. dreams in his eyes, wants to be a hero. There is no brush with mystical continuum as envisaged in tantric philos- The various stages of the manifestation or the develop- denying the fact about it. And I was no different. But ophy and its cognate in terms of sacred geometry. ment of sound, right from the navel onwards, are known in now when I look back, I find it is better to be a charac- Looking at the unique turn of events which lead to the Sanskrit as Para, Pashyanti, Madhyama and Vaikhari. Para ter actor like a villain than a hero. artistic churning of Subhash Razdan, one cannot but take is a soundless seed, as it were, the very possibility of the Why? resort to commonplace fact ingrained in everyday Hindu production of sound. Pashyanti is a little more pronounced. You see, filmmaking is a commercial business. And world view that 'sanskaras', to greater or lesser degree do And the more intensified form is Madhyama; and the audi- if the film works, the hero feels like the king. But if the get transmitted from one generations to another. ble manifestation of it is Vaikhari. Often, these stages are film fails, it is the hero who is affected the most. But Linking his foray in world of images that seek to give 'rupa' identified, in the cosmic context, with the four metaphysical we character actors are assets of the film. We do our to abstract principles of Naad, Subhash Razdan says that it realities advanced in the Vedanta Philosophy, namely Brah- work instead of worrying about the outcome of the film, was the spiritual countenance and unfailing daily ritual recita- ma, Ishvara, Hiranyagarbha and Virat. yet we are indispensable; the plot can't move forward tion of Brahamrupa Stotra followed by blowing of Shankha Chaman Lal, Ph.D, writing in the Razdan's exhibition cat- without us. Hence, career-wise villains have more by his nonagenarian father Shri Amar Nath Razdan, which alogue, opines that it is Pashyanti form of speech, that the longevity than heroes. triggered a deep seated yet unarticulated stirrings in him. artist, Subash Chandar Razdan visualizes in his works In today's films there are no separate categories But when he got associated with Bharatiya Yoga Sansthan through dots and dashes, circles, triangles, squares on the for heroes and villains. The heroes are very well in New Delhi, to attend Yoga classes and later Pranayama canvas/paper with a tactile quality of the sacred geometri- You are one of the few actors who have a career carrying shades of grey in their films. What do you exercises, the stirring fructified and the unique world of sub- cal figures. Brahmanda-the whole macrocosm of our spanned over 50 years. What can that be attributed think about this changing concept? tle experiences opened before him. Encouraged by guru at thoughts and actions is a projection of these sound vibra- to? Yes, you are right. Today's heroes love doing neg- the Sansthan, who asked him to paint what he saw in his tions, which are Vedic in spirit and Agamic in nature, that It's all about discipline, determination and devotion. ative characters. Leading men like Aamir (Khan), dream-wakeful state of mind, he took the wonderful path of prevail at different frequencies. Para is related to I wanted to be there (in Bollywood) no matter what hap- exploring the subtle realm of 'Naad Brahman', says Razdan. Vaani/speech is verily, the Supreme Speech. This is the pens. I faced pain and hardship. But that could not Salman (Khan) and Shah Rukh (Khan) have all done Born in 1952, Subhash Razdan grew up in Habba Kadal, innermost voice, hence the Bija of the Akshara, which exists deter me. grey roles. In a way it's good. The only difference is, Pushkar, Srinagar his basic education took place in Hindu within all of us. It is the inner vibration, the source of all sound. You came to Mumbai (then Bombay) from Shim- in today's time, there is a reasoning stated behind the Middle School, Zaindar Mohalla, and Hindu High School, For an artist, the physical tongue 'Pashyanti' represents the la, could not make it in Bollywood, went back and hero turning bad. In our times, on reasons were given Sathu Sheetal Nath, Srinagar. He actually grew up as an intellectual consciousness, which is drawn through the brush then again came back. What encouraged you to for our villainous traits. artist at a tender age under the guidance of late Girdhari Lal keep trying? strokes, based on the Madhyama --- the mental conscious- Trans World Features (TWF) in Middle School and High School under late Radha Krishan ness, and Vaikhari is the end result through art works--- the Raina, a graduate of Shri Amar Singh Technical Institute, Sri- physical consciousness of Subhash Chander Razdan. nagar. Razdan also incorporates at times his own writings in SCIENCE & TECHYNOLOGY After schooling he pursued non-medical studies at Amar Kashmiri with drawing/paintings which allow his works to Singh College, Srinagar. In 1972, he joined afternoon class- transform to the level of personalized yantras. Some of the es in Institute of Music & Fine Arts (IMFA), to hone his artis- expressions in original Kashmir and in English transaltion tic skills. Later encouraged by teachers at the Institute, he by the artists are: Akh OMkaar roopas roop aneekh gai, Phablet Craze joined Faculty of Fine Arts, M S University, Vadodara, for roop yi kiyah Bindu-roopa bovtham, osus chath moi kath training in Applied Art and in 1979 completed post-gradua- ba niyandre, gath yi kiyah baavtham....(OM is one, but it Neeraj Dubey ing eyesight. Android 4.0 and subsequent releases were tion in Visualization. got manifested in many forms. What about the Bindu - the suited to large as well as small screen sizes. While many Afterwards serving as Instructor Applied Arts, in IMFA, Jam- eternal dot, which is to be shown to me. I was lost in my Phablet is a combined term and Tablet, handset manufacturers were jumping on the trend of mu for nine years, he joined Kashmir University as lecturer in deep sleep, but you woke me up in the conscious state of is a class of smart phones that has a screen size between larger screen sizes to suit all niches, Apple (under the Media Studies in 1988. Only after year, in wake of migration of mind.) 5 and 8 inches and is designed to incorporate or com- direction of ) had long refused to produce a Kashmiri Pandits from the Valley in 1989, he moved to Delhi Saru kar Shuiny baav Shinyah praavak, adu saar pravak plement the functions of smart phones and tablets. Tablet device larger than the iPhone's 3.5 inches or smaller than and got involved in the world of advertising. Sahasraar natsnavak, tati kati rozi Aham, SuHam pravak, is a gadget that has a touch screen interface, and usu- the iPad's 9.7 inches until late 2012. While Apple's iPad Living almost 30 years away from parents and kith and Satchit aanand vati zeri zeer pravak....(Try to understand ally measuring 8.9 to 10 inches. Examples such as iPad, heavily dominated the tablet market, the void in their line- kin settled in Jammu, the fast life style of Delhi was taken in Void, you will go through Shunya. You will dance in the sahas- Galaxy Tab, and the like. While up left an opening for intermediate-sized devices such stride by him as an inevitable consequence of his severance raar where there is no place for ego. You will alone under- smartphone or modern telephone, is to feature a Phone as phablets. from the of roots. But underneath the mundane but hectic stand, what is Soham which is the Satchitanand.) call, SMS, Web browsing and so on. Usually have vary- The Note used a 5.3 in (130 mm) routine in the national capital there was always a deep seat- Naad gav Shabad zaav Shan(6) tarfan draav, Shunyas ing screen sizes, from 3 inches to 5 inches. For exam- screen. While some media outlets questioned the viabil- ed yearning in Subhash Razdan for a substantial raison shro'ny gav Ro'ny-Damaan go'b gav, Shunyas lai karith ple Samsung Galaxy Mini, and similar ity of the device, the note received positive reception for d'être fore his creativity and artistic expression. khai(Rust) tsaj paansui, Dili-Aayeenas manz samith gai products. Phablet is a term commonly used to describe its functionality, the speed of its 1.5 GHz dual-core Thus the chance encounter with abstract symbology of samaan.....(Through Naad evolved the World: moved to the a gadget that combines the capabilities of processor, and the advantages of its high resolution dis- sacred Tantric geometry, emerged as just the right impe- six directions. Shunya absorbed in the eternal sound at the and tablets. Phablet usually larger than a smartphone, play. The Galaxy note was a commercial success; Sam- tus that not only suited his silent and brooding countenance tinkling bells of my apron. The rust was over, my heart but smaller than a tablet. The term "Phablet" was first sung announced in December 2011 that the Galaxy Note but opened a whole of world of unending artistic possibili- became a mirror to see my apparatuses got accumulated.) used at the site on technology and Forbes. had sold 1 million units in two months. In February 2012, Although larger than a smart phone, phablet tend to be Samsung debuted a note version with LTE support, smaller and thinner than the tablet, making it conven- and by May 2012 the Note received an update from HEALTHLINES ient to carry or bagged users. Phablet Android 2.3 to Android 4.0. By August 2012, the usually used for Note had sold 10 million units worldwide. The access and mul- 2012 Samsung Galaxy Note II employed a 1.6 timedia, GHz quad-core processor, a 5.55 in (141 Third Party Reproduction including mm) screen and the ability to run two appli- activities cations at once via a split-screen view. * It comprises of-Oocyte dona- that require a Sales of the Galaxy Note II reached 5 tion million units internationally in two large screen. * Sperm Donation months. In 2013, introduced In a series of * Embryo Donation phablets, the Samsung Galaxy * IVF with gestational carrier Note, phablet has and , both with 6-inch displays. (Surrogacy) special Surrogacy and its varied aspects- that allows the sty- Examples of phablets with screens sur- "Surrogacy", means an arrange- lus features sketch- ment in which a woman agrees to a es, and notes. passing 6 inch- es in size pregnancy achieved through ART, in Screen size varies which neither of the gametes belong between 5-7 inch- began appearing in to her or her husband, with the inten- es. Phablet also tion to carry it to term and handover has a feature that 2013; with the Chinese company the child to the person or persons for is owned by a smart- unveiling its 6.1 whom she is acting as a surrogate. phone such as voice in (150 mm) Ascend Mate at Although the treatment process is calling, although the Consumer Electronics Show, and in it self straightforward, surrogacy screen size of the tablet Samsung introducing the Galaxy Mega, has brought with it very complex eth- resembles. The device was a phablet with a 6.3 in (160 mm) version (how- ical, legal and moral issues first recognized as a ever, unlike the Galaxy Note line, it does not use a Aims- To build and complete a fam- phablet is coming out in the 2010s. stylus). While unveiling the aforementioned Ascend ily to bring joy of parenthood even in In January 2013, IHS reported that Mate, Huawei CEO Richard Yu considered the phablet Human is a social animal and to family is an impor- desperate situations where no hope is 25.6 million phablet sold in 2012 and estimates that num- to be the future of smartphones due to their "all-in one" tant part of our life and society which is not considered left ber will rise to 60.4 million units in 2013, and 146 million nature. As a matter of fact, phablets are commercially complete till we have a baby. But all couples are not for- Indications of surrogacy- in 2016. In the analysis of 2013, Engadget saw a price gaining some acceptance where stylus comes handy. tunate enough or when biological clock has crossed that * Women with absence of uterus drop screen, display increased energy efficiency, Stylus makes it life-like when it comes to put a signature time phase, then science of ART(Assisted Reproductive * Women with hysterectomy for various reasons increased battery power and value change or simply note down stuffs. Techniques) is there to help to bring smiles on face of * Women who suffer repeated miscarriages is a major factor in the popularity phablet. Samsung's Industries like Logistics, restaurants and retail can be * Repeated IVF failure - due to non receptive Galaxy Note series (Original, II, and 3 pictured) were the couples and to bestow them the best feeling of the world thought as a few of the targeted niche industries for the uterus first commercially successful "phablet" devices. While they deserve. phablets makers. With not much to differentiate a phablet * Women with certain medical conditions - severe Samsung's Galaxy Note (2011) is largely credited with In the emerging world of test tube baby, there's a New heart disease, kidney disease pioneering the worldwide phablet market when launched yet from a bigger smartphone or a smaller tablet with Player, formally called a "THIRD PARTY" who can facil- * Women for whom the prospect of carrying a in 2011. In a 2013 analysis, Engadget identified drop- calling feature, it ends up being a personel choice in the itate ways to conceive, or carry a pregnancy and give ping screen prices, increasing screen power efficiency, hands of the buyers. birth. baby to term is very remote increasing battery life and the evolving importance of But still Phablets pose not much threat to the Tablet WHAT IS THIRD PARTY REPRODUCTION ? The options available through third party reproduction provide many couples the opportunity to make their multimedia viewing as critical factors in the popularity of PCs yet. Tablets have their own matchless stature, when Third party reproduction refers to a process where the phablet in 2012. another person provides sperm or eggs or where anoth- dream of parenthood a reality. The comprehensive it comes to utility. In various corporate structures, edu- er woman provides her uterus so that a woman can have nature of the screening and counseling.Ethical, moral Phablets were originally designed for Asia and other cational institutions and professions ( like doctors, engi- emerging markets where consumers could not afford a child. Thus the reproductive process goes beyond the and legal issues involved. Ultimate goal of physicians, both a smartphone and tablet as in North America. How- neering college professors and architects) where they traditional father-mother model. However, the third par- Psychologists, Fertility guides, and attorneys specializ- ever Phablets became successful in North America too require books and presentations up and ready all the ty's involvement is limited to the reproductive process ing in reproductive law- to enable smooth process and for several reasons. Many older consumers preferred time; Tablets still make to the most favorite resource. and does not extend into the raising of the child bring joy of parenthood and complete the family . larger screen sizes on Smartphone's due to deteriorat- (The author is Sr. Asstt Professor GCET, Jammu) Party Reproduction & Parenting, HOW? (The author is IVF consultant Bournhall, New Delhi)