The Peddler

Photographed at VT station. During the Cobra shoot. Not sure if he was a part of the shoot..but he was there.

A man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do.

“I was surprised, as always, be how easy the act of leaving was, and how good it felt. The world was suddenly rich with possibility.”
-Kerouac

Rashmi Alevoor

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27 years old…grew up in Pune but really grew up in Boston and Mumbai. Graduated in Economics. Likes to learn something new everyday…

What did you learn today? 
Well, I’ve been learning Spanish everyday. But I don’t mean you necessarily need to make that much of a commitment. I just learned how to cook Mexican Lime Chicken this evening.
And yesterday?  
Yesterday, I learned where the expression “Indian Giver” comes from. It’s fun to learn a little thing everyday – makes life wondrous.

Do you travel? Where all have you been?
I’m FULL of wanderlust. I have a special place in my heart for the north of India. My father is in the Merchant Navy and so I’ve also been lucky enough to tag along with him as a child to places like Australia, Korea, Japan. I studied in Boston more recently so I’ve done a bit of travelling in the U.S. I just got back this morning (3 AM) from the U.K. where I visited wonderful places like York, Runswick Bay, Whitby, the Lake District among the more obvious choices like Newcastle and London. I have a penchant for the offbeat.

How was NH7? 
I loved the atmosphere. It’s the closest event we (in India) have to a real music festival. I also like that folk artists finally have a voice in Indian popular culture. I was SO surprised to hear that King Creosote would be performing in Pune. Incidentally, I saw him perform with Jon Hopkins in Leeds on the 19th of February. I got to be on the guest list because we chatted while he was in Pune for NH7.

Who are your favourite artistes/bands?
The National. The Tallest Man on Earth. Bon Iver. Andrew Bird. Beirut. King Creosote. Sigur Ros. And many, many, many more.

Five films you suggest everybody must watch?
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Amelie. Annie Hall. Life is Beautiful. The Artist.

..and five must-read books?
Everything is Illuminated and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close by Jonathan Safran Foer. Animal Farm by George Orwell. Any book by Jane Austen. Atlas Shrugged. The Catcher in the Rye.

In life, what do you feel strongly about?

Music, honesty, respect for EVERYONE, nature, travel and exploration, awareness of the world we live in, reading, and most importantly LOVE (I’m a goofball.)

“Awareness of the world we live in.” Elaborate?
I guess what I mean by that is to keep your eyes and ears open. Read every chance you get – know what’s happening across the world.  Know a little about everything – politics, music, art, fashion. I guess what I’m suggesting is for people to have a healthy appetite and lust for life.

What does “being in love” mean to you?
This is a big question. Being in love is the most wonderful thing there is to experience in the world. I can only speak from personal experience of course, but for me, love is when you want to be better for someone else. When they inspire you to be your best. When you start getting very excited about the future. And when you want to fill the present with a lot of their presence.

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I met Rashmi briefly two years ago, on a semi-drunken night, post some show at LFW. She’d quit as a copywriter and was looking for work. I met her again this time in November at NH7 in Pune. We kind of recognized each other.

People. In stuff. And space.

Nina Manuel in Pia Pauro. Styled by Gary Wallang.

Kavita Kharayat in Siddartha Tytler.

Tamara moss in Soumitra Mondal Summer 12. More photos from her show to follow.

Aki Narula in a self-made collar.

Santu Misra in Mickey ears.

Mathieu Gugumus in Bungalow 8 scarf.

Nikhil D in Shivan & Narresh.

Vinod Nair in an M&S jacket.

Nidhi Jacob in Eina Ahluwalia necklace.

Pasham Alwani in hiding.

Jahnavi Tampi in her Mother’s jacket from Lagos.

Pig stuck in a Lego heart.

Ruchika Sachdeva in Bodice.

Sheena in Blur necklace.

Isha Bhansali in clothes from streets of Janpath & Sarojini.

Shruti Thacker in Bodice.

Suhani Pittie in Suhani Pittie necklace.

Bhavna Sharma in Anand Kabra top and Prashant Verma pants.

Everybody. In the front row.

All photographs from Lakme Fashion Week Summer ’12 & August ’11.

Cigarettes in a tin box.

David Bowie in a tin can. I think I’m going to be in one soon.

The Light Within.

“This collection is a gentle reminder that even though living can sometimes leave you bleeding, there is a place you can go to for all your answers and your strength. Deep within you is a place of magic, a river of gold and bliss. Dip your hands in the river and you’ll have what you need. Strength, love, happiness, contentment; all the answers and reasons…”
-Forgotten Jewel by Eina Ahluwalia, Conceptual Jewellery Artist.

“A big neckpiece of many doors symbolizes that there are many doorways that open up to different answers, but the door to your inner self is the one that leads you to the light.

There is a human heart full of blood, pain, and hurt. And another heart full of gold with light running through its veins.

There is the eye. The Mind’s Eye watches, judges, & feeds the ego. The Heart’s Eye loves, trusts, & believes. The Soul’s Eye looks beyond, finds the lessons in the experiences, & searches for growth. There are monocles with all three eyes-a reminder that you decide which perspective you choose.”

“From the cracks with peeks of gold in the eggs, to the wide open doorways leading to the light, to the light beginning to flow through the veins- as we grow, so does the light. Until it bursts out of the body, no longer willing to be contained….”

A collaboration & a curtain.

Sometime last year, I worked with people from Somesuch & Co. & BMB agency on a project for Cobra beer. They were shooting Cobra tv commercial in Bombay meant for UK television+making a city guide on fashion, food, and music for The Guardian website.

I was one of the collaborators along with B.L.O.T. & Vandana Verma(watch their films here & here). All 3 short films were directed by George Belfield & shot by Simon Pinfield.

The city guide on fashion that I worked on is here. Link. It has nervous me talking about what I do on this blog..+ shooting a lookbook for Nor Black Nor White in Dadar flower market, talking to Bandana Tewari & Little Shilpa..and just generally hanging out on the streets..

Little Shilpa’s work desk.
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Priyanka Bose in NorBlackNorWhite at Dadar Flower Market.

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Simon & George at Simon & George in Colaba.
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I also did street casting for the tv commerical(I’m also in it), & was helped by my friend Paloma(she knew all the ‘coolest’ kids).

Alisha Netalkar. Trey Munroe. Shreya Dube. Gitanjali Dang. Rahul Chhab.
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At the trials/auditions in Versova.

This boy is wearing his own stuff.

Daniel Wolfe filming AJ at the trials.
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On the day of the shoot. 6a.m. call time. This is at 7.

Kanakee.

Namita Sekhar.

Rachel Bayros.

Vandana Verma.

Amrita Bagchi.

Saurabh Saple.

Most of the TVC was shot at VT station, on a moving train, & at an abandoned station about 3 hours away from Bombay.

After 40 days of field work and two months of post-production, the video is finally up. It’s called The Train. Watch it here. Directed by Daniel Wolfe, ex-chef, also known as the “problem director.” Styled by Hannah Edwards, who also recently styled MIA’s Bad Girls video.

It’s too late to call this a preview. It was meant to be one.

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Lakme Fashion Week started today. I’m supposed to be at the venue. Instead, I’m sitting in my room and staring at this curtain.