Hamara Mela 2019
The back lawn was unrecognizable from what it usually looks like, when first viewed it on the day of Hamara Mela. Instead of being the huge sports field we’re all so familiar with, it was filled with multiple stalls, a stage and more people than you could count. The entire school was abuzz with a delightful and infectious energy.
Hamara Mela’19 is an event which had been in the pipeline for months, and it was clear from the outset that it would revolve around the students, be it a stall or a performance on stage. There were numerous stalls set up according to a particular theme, ranging from physical concepts like balance to countries like Japan. Children from Pre-primary to Senior School were involved.
The stalls aimed for – and succeeded at – achieving that delicate balance between being educational, befitting of a school, and being fun, befitting of a mela setting. Each stall, particularly those based on Indian states and countries, had a colourful aesthetic in keeping with their respective theme. To bring to life the culture of their respective Indian states and countries, the students performed local dances, a nukkad natak, and even a puppet show!
The performances on stage – or rather, stages, since there were performances on both the sports field stage and the amphitheatre, included everything from dances to theatre to band performances. There was a large variety of all three on display over the course of the day, with the children of playschool and primary school performing their dances and songs in the first three to four hours on the stage set up on the sports field. This was followed by the band performances of Classes IX and XI, which were songs borrowed from world renowned bands like The Beatles and Coldplay. These performances began during twilight and went on into the night, which created a magical atmosphere for everyone to listen to the music.
In the amphitheatre, the dances on display were both traditional Indian and modern Western, which made for a fascinating juxtaposition. Some performances traced the evolution of dance through the decades whilst also providing delightful throwbacks to eras gone by. The theatrical performances were either comedies or thought provoking, socially relevant plays or a combination of both. They ranged from the absurd yet hilarious tale of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet time travelling and finding themselves in 2019 India, where a comedy of errors ensues to the inspirational stories of figures such as Malala Yousufzai and Dutee Chand. There was also a play which, through the lens of comedy, highlighted the power of fake news and the damage it can do.
Our younger students from pre – primary and primary school also had their own stalls and performances, with each class having a particular theme. Class I and II, for instance, had material on mathematics, balance, and the senses. Games related to them were run ably by the children, which included a guessing game where participants had to guess which material they were touching with their eyes closed and another game where players had to balance pebbles painted by students to create a tower. Class III had taken up states such as Assam and Gujarat and performed some folk dances from these regions, as well as some art forms from other states: paper mache art from Kashmir and Kalamkari art from Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Class IV had chosen the theme of history, showing us how things have changed over the centuries with a ‘then’ and ‘now’ exhibit. Participants could also write in Egyptian hieroglyphs with the guidance of the students.
Hamara Mela was an endeavour into which the students, facilitators, administrative staff, housekeeping and security worked towards together. This spirit of togetherness and unity was what we hoped to achieve for Hamara Mela’19, and without it, it wouldn’t have been the success it was.
View Gallery
Collective Circle Time with Dr. Saif Mahmood
In the continuum of our practice of reconnecting (teachers, admin and auxiliary staff) after the winter break through a collective Circle Time, we had invited Dr. Saif Mahmood, who is an Urdu poetry and literature critic, commentator, translator and rights activist. An Advocate of the Supreme Court of India he holds a doctorate in Constitutional Law in South Asia.
Dr. Saif Mahmood is also the author of ‘Beloved Delhi: A Mughal City and Her Greatest Poets’ (Speaking Tiger, 2018). ‘Beloved Delhi: A Mughal City and Her Greatest Poets’ offers a window into the life, times and poetry of Delhi’s greatest Urdu poets from the 18th and 19th centuries, with witty and critical insight, in a conversational style. Focusing on eight poets, he allowed us to touch Delhi’s past and rethink its present through Urdu.
The theme of the session was ‘Dilli Jo Ek Shehar Tha’ and based on this book authored by Saif Mahmood. In his session he narrated stories from the life and work of the finest classical Urdu poets: Sauda, Dard, Mir, Ghalib, Momin, Zafar, Zauq and Daagh. He also painted a compelling portrait of Mughal Delhi by quoting few excerpts from their biographies and poetry–including their best-known ghazals.
It was a treat to listen to the work of the poets who loved and lived in Delhi. To connect with the Urdu Poetry that rules the cultural and emotional landscape of India–especially northern India and much of the Deccan–and of Pakistan.
An evocative session which left us with the thought and desire to explore Delhi once again…