Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Thiruvananthapuram
Fusion with vision
|
The post-MTV period has seen Hyderabad adopt a fusion culture that has the best of East and West juxtaposed and reflected in food, fashion, music, movies and lifestyle. The geographical location and the history proves that the practice of diverse cultures in the city has given the place a unique identity, writes SOUVIK CHOWDHURY.
|
THE CULTURAL cauldron of Hyderabad is boiling over. It is in a state of fizz. The recipe is purely Indian although some of the ingredients in the logarithm are western. In the effervescence, the Indian elements settle down as sediments while the residue of western elements circulate inside the cultural melting-pot only to result in a perfect fusion of the East and West.
Fusion has always been a buzzword of the composite Hyderabadi society since long. Right from the days of the Nizam, the State has always been a confluence of myriad cultures from different parts of the country, which was even better facilitated because of its advantageous geographical location. The immigration, which started during the days of the Nizams, , gradually resulted in locality-wise concentration of the population who slowly integrated into the society. "This brought about an extensive exchange of culture and religion to which can be attributed the present day cosmopolitan outlook of Hyderabad,'' says noted academician and eminent scholar, Dr. Audesh Bawa.
It was only during the late Nineties, particularly, the post-MTV period when Hyderabad actually witnessed the nascence of a new genre - Indo-western fusion culture. And since the past couple of months, the fusion has been at its zenith reflecting in every aspect of the Hyderabadi life, from fashion to lifestyle to food-habits, to literature, movies, art and theatre, architecture to music and dance et al.
Observers feel that the boom in IT and incursion of western life in the city as more and more young people go abroad only to come back and "re-import'' the westernised lifestyle resulted in the fusion. Of course, the pervasive influence of the television and cinema goes without saying.
According to Central University's Sociology Head, Dr. E. Haribabu, one of the reasons why Hyderabad could actually exemplify as a true epitome of Indo-western conflux is because of the large Telugu diasporas living abroad. "It is basically the re-import from the West by the foreign-returned nationals who are trying to evolve a new culture by assimilating certain aspects of the West and mixing them subtly with our own contemporary traditions,'' he observes.
``Proliferation of elite private schools, which is a fairly new phenomenon, Ty and the clamouring demand for internationalism in studies is also a cause of the Indo-western mix,'' feels Oakridge International School principal, Janajit Ray.
A rather striking example of the much-hyped Indo-western fusion is the burgeoning existence of pubs like, 10 Downing Street, Spanish Fly and Dublin on one side and traditional Indian bars like Suprabhat and Urvasi, on the other. Says DJ and TDS events manager Shivaram Vishnubhotla, "the idea is to retain the best of the West and amalgamate it with the Indian elements to suit the varied tastes of youngsters.''
"The irony is that youngsters of today are lured by the hype and show of the West. Hence to preserve in them a love for their own traditions, we are experimenting with South Indian classical dance by incorporating in them subtle elements of the West,'' says noted Kuchipudi exponent Dr. Anuradha Jonnalagadda. Dr. Jonnalagadda is the associate professor of dance at Central University, Gachibowli.
``For example, a recent experimentation with Kuchipudi and western classical dance has resulted in genesis of `Matsya' - an abstract dance form, which has become very popular among the younger generation. The blend has been done specially keeping in mind the interest of the youths,'' Dr. Jonnalagadda adds.
However, the most intense example of the Indo-western mix is certainly in fashion, feels noted fashion designer Jagdeep Shokeen. Shokeen is the head designer of the city's most wanted haute couture outlet, Con'traditions. ``Con' traditions offers a variety of garments that present an irresistible fusion of eastern and western fashion trends.'' says Shokeen."In men's wear, I have designs of regular blazers and embroidered waist coats, contemporary embroidered short kurtas to be worn with jeans and variable components of the like, according to the demands.'' In feminine ensembles, the fusion is more visible with asymmetrical embroidery over the neckline and sleeves on short kurtas to be worn with capri-trousers or anti-fits. Echoing Shokeen's views, noted fashion choreographer Joseph Sunder says, "There is a definite shift towards more western than Indian in the latest trends available for even the Indo-Western diffusion lines from the designers.'' In music, too, the Indo-western fad is fast catching up. "The past couple of months has seen an alarming boom in the sales of techno-trance fusion cassettes. And with Rock bands like Prodigy et al chanting Sanskrit shlokas which have found a massive acceptance, fusion music is here to stay for sometime,'' feels Music World Customer Sales Supervisor Manju Nath. ``The success of this mixture of sounds has led to the creation of newer audiences besides the urban disco crowd,'' says Christopher Fernes, brand manager for the city music band Phase-I.
Even in food, there has been a marked fusion. Parallel to the existence of over a dozen American pizza stores and coffee pubs having a large clientele, tandoori and biriyani outlets also exist, with an equally large clientele. The paradox remains that westernised Indians are more consumerist, elitist, insensitive to poverty albeit being politically secularist in their outlook. "It is how we retain the secularist outlook in our westernised connotations that will speak whether the acceptance of Indo-western fusion culture has been detrimental for us,'' concludes cricketer VVS Laxman adding that prosperity lies in absorbing the best of the West while retaining the best of the East.
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Thiruvananthapuram
|
