The story of 2018

UN Did Not Give A Special Cause To 2018, But Amitians Did That

Every year the United Nations, since 1959, dedicates each year to a cause that needs attention. Year by year, we steadily work towards a better world. 2016 was the International Year of Pulses. 2017 was seen as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. 2019 will be observed as the International Year of Indigenous Languages, so on and so forth. You might think that we missed 2018. No, we didn’t. The United Nations did. Surprisingly,  year 2018 doesn’t have any cause associated with it. But what if there was? What should the cause have been? We asked students of AIS VKC Lucknow the same question and this is what they had to say.
 
2018 for CancerAwareness
“So far in 2018, about 9.6 million deaths due to cancer have been reported from around the globe, making it the second leading cause of death worldwide. The saddest part is, the number is only growing with each passing day. Nobody would want to see their dear ones losing lives to such pain. Let 2018 be the International Year of Cancer Awareness so that, this global epidemic can be fought with knowledge as well as strength.”
– Khyaati Rajpoot, AIS VKC Lko, XI Science

2018 for Employment Generation
“Unemployment has taken a toll on people everywhere. The unemployment rate varies from 3.7% in the United States of America to 27.2% in South Africa. For more than 8 billion individuals these small numbers matter a lot. A lot of qualified people are either deprived of opportunities or are going through ‘disguised unemployment’. It’s high time somebody came up with a solution to this. So, let 2018 be the International Year of Employment Generation to spread awareness about disguised unemployment and providing them with better alternatives.”
– Harshita Srivastava, AIS VKC Lko, X A

2018 for Masculism
“For so long people have been fighting for women rights, we have such historic movements with such remarkable leaders from around the world. But, amidst all of this, we have forgotten about our men. For those of you who disagree, society has put tremendous amount of pressure on them as well, and we have to tell them that it’s okay to not go by the book. We have to put an end to this misandry while dealing with misogyny; we have to tell them that it’s okay to shed tears, it’s okay to share your feelings and it’s okay to let go of a lot of things. Let 2018 be the International Year of Masculism and talk about them.”
– Anushka Singh, AIS VKC Lko, XI Science

2018 for Cyber Security
“With the world jumping on to an era of online indulgence, it would only make sense if we put our trust in the security arrangements of our online data. Sadly, this technology has also given rise to uncountable cybercrimes. In fact, 2017 saw more than 200 thousand computers in over 150 countries affected by WannaCry malware. Data leak has become so infectious that right before France’s presidential runoff, hackers leaked 9 GB worth of emails from Emmanuel Macron’s political party. Here, safety becomes a serious matter and cannot be compromised with. Therefore, let 2018 be the International Year of Cyber Security.”
– Saumya Rai, AIS VKC Lko, XI Humanities

The next generation

Getting Candid With The King Of Expressions Pandit Deepak Maharaj Ji

Karan Dhall, XII D; Sanya Goel, XII B & Samriddhi Agarwal, XII C, AIS Gur 43

Filling in someone’s shoes is a  tough task, and it becomes a herculean effort when they are of a legend. Pt Deepak Maharaj ji, son of the  legendary Kathak maestro Pt Birju Maharaj ji, however, is not affected by this though. Despite being burdened with set benchmarks and expectations, he carved a niche for himself in the world of Kathak. Known in the dance community as ‘King of expression’, Deepak Maharaj was born into the eighth generation of ‘Kalka-Bindadin’ Gharana. During his visit to AIS Gur 43 for a SPIC MACAY event, he interacted with GT reporters. We bring you excerpts.

Foundation and beginnings
Dancing has been the prized heirloom of our ancestors in Handia. I’ve grown up with musicians and dancers, and my childhood was filled with lively beats of tabla and ghungroos. Till my twenties, I was interested in cricket as I was an excellent fast bowler. However, my innings came to an end when I injured myself. A few days later while performing at ‘Sahitya Kala’, I got a tremendous response. It was at this moment when I realised that my true calling was in dance and that was the beginning of my professional journey.

Learning from legends
The biggest source of inspiration for me is my father, Pandit Birju Maharaj ji. Our relationship is more like a guru-shishya. He takes immense pleasure in my performances and always sees some scope to improve. Apart from my father, I am also a huge fan of the king of pop, Michael Jackson.

Moments of glory
Once while performing in Pune, the audience sat in utmost silence. As an artist seeking people’s reaction, I mistook the silence for boredom. It was later when people thronged backstage to meet me, I realised that they were awestruck. One of them compared my performance to that of my father’s. Hearing those words of praise was a moment of pride for me as a dancer and as his son.

Make way for future
I wholeheartedly support and promote the interests of SPIC MACAY (The Society for the Promotion of Indian Classical Music and Culture Amongst Youth) as it has been instrumental in showcasing those aspects of Indian culture which were shrouded in the mist of Western culture. The good thing about SPIC MACAY is that it has helped in retaining the originality and classical notions of Indian performing arts. I have seen many students get inspired to pursue Indian classical art forms after attending a SPIC MACAY session.

Message for youth
The fast-paced life of today’s youth has had an adverse effect on their patience levels. I seek to address this issue. To be successful in life, one must possess dhairya or  calmness and tranquility in body, mind and soul. One also needs to note that times are dynamic in nature. The slightest of successes and failures must not over-excite or dampen one’s spirit, these are all parts of learning and living.