Flames of Hope

What a nice surprise to see that the current issue of Newsweek magazine (July 16, 2007 issue) carries a very nice story on the Ashok Gadgil’s Berkeley National Laboratory Darfur Cookstove Project, entitled “Flames of Hope.”

Yoo-Mi and I had the privilege to work in Darfur, Sudan in November and December of 2005 as part of Ashok’s four-person team doing the initial field research which would enable us to design a fuel efficient cookstove for Darfurians living in the refugee camps. Ashok and LBNL scientist Christie Galitsky conducted the research in the camps of South Darfur; Yoo-Mi and I did the same in the North Darfur camps.

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A Close Shave, a film by Rahul “Frenchy” Brown

I am pleased – OK, not all that pleased – to present A Close Shave, the latest film by celebrated international auteur, Rahul “Frenchy” Brown. This is an exclusive memestream world premiere.

The film, presented in three acts and a powerful epilogue, is a tragic-comedy of sub-epic proportions. It explores a variety of issues surrounding intravenous (and intramuscular) drug use, focusing principally on the devastating mental destruction that is an all-too-frequent side-effect of the high.

Click on the image below to download and view A Close Shave.

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A CLOSE SHAVE
A film by Rahul “Frenchy” Brown

Cast (in order of appearance)

MBJ as Appendicitis Victim, Stoner, and Furball
Rahul “Frenchy” Brown as Voice of God
John “Uncle” Sillyhead as Amused Onlooker
Archana Sankara as Telephone Caller
Yoo-Mi Lee as Nonchalant Family Member
Dr. Rajiv as Attending Physician
Dr. Randeep Wadhawan as Senior Laparoscopic Surgeon
Santos as the Butcher of Rockland Hospital

Production

Rahul “Frenchy” Brown: Director, Cinematographer, Editor, and pretty much Everything Else

Post-Production Sympathy

Mona Panchal
Sachi Maniar

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No animals other than me were harmed in the making of this film.

Getting in Touch with My Feminine Side

I’m glad to have grown up the lone male in a house of amazing women – my mother, sister and, for a short-but-significant while, two sister-like close friends. As a consequence, I have always been deeply suspicious of traditional designations of gender norms and have tried to develop a strong sense of myself without leaning too heavily on the easy crutch of normative male privilege. (You-all can judge how well that’s going.) More importantly, I am one of the few men who reflexively returns the toilet seat to the down position. No one has ever accused me of failing to “get in touch with my feminine side.”

Until last week, that is.

Fame

“Is she a model?” Lisa D’Costa with a fan.

All the world has a prurient, voyeuristic fascination with celebrity. In America, the process is so well-advanced that fame is self-reflexive and self-fulfilling. People like Paris Hilton, though lacking any talent or meaningful social value, are considered “famous for being famous.”

But India far outstrips even the American love of the famous. Americans thrill when chance allows them to brush-up against celebrities; Indians crave such opportunities. No event in India should take place without the “felicities” of a celebrity. And if the famous can’t make an appearance, the demi-famous will have to do.