#Biryani Boys

[whileiamdying]

A Raga Renaissance Flowers in Brooklyn

From left, Shiva Ghoshal, Arun Ramamurthy, Jay Gandhi and David Ellenbogen of Brooklyn Raga Massive jamming at Pioneer Works in Brooklyn.Credit...Loren Wohl for The New York Times

By Vivien Schweitzer March 24, 2016

The jeweled raiment and serene kohl-rimmed eyes of Saraswati, the Hindu goddess of knowledge, music and the arts, were projected on a screen behind the stage one recent evening at Pioneer Works, the exhibition and performance space in Red Hook, Brooklyn.

With an ensemble that blended Western instruments and traditional Indian ones, the tabla and sarod, two vocalists — Roopa Mahadevan, wearing a glittery silver sari, and Haleh Kilmer, in dark jeans and boots — sang selections including a tribute to the goddess rendered by Ms. Mahadevan in the haunting melismatic style of southern India. The evening celebrated Indian female cultural figures as well as the female members of the Brooklyn Raga Massive, a dynamic nonprofit collaborative formed in 2012 with a mission to expose new audiences to Indian classical music.

Such weekly events, held in spaces around the city, highlight different elements of the raga, the backbone of Indian music, and conclude with lively late-night jam sessions in which any musician who observes the house rules is welcome to participate. The Massive’s free-floating operations are a vital part of a flowering of Indian music in New York.

On April 6, the collective will offer a birthday tribute to Ravi Shankar, the influential sitar player who collaborated with Western musicians including the violinist Yehudi Menuhin and the flutist Jean-Pierre Rampal. Mr. Shankar’s impact led The New York Times in 1966 to declare that the raga was “becoming a rage in America,” although it deemed it a “curious fad.” The Massive refers to its current contemporary movement as a raga renaissance.

Yet according to Par Neiburger, the artistic director of the World Music Institute, the Massive is unusual in that, in contrast to the top-down traditionalist approach of most Indian musical organizations, with fierce loyalty to individual teachers and a strict guru-disciple hierarchy, its structure is free-form and democratic.

“There is a lot of improvisation in Indian classical music,” Mr. Neiburger said. “But the basic forms lend themselves to a tradition that is kept intact and hasn’t really been modernized in any extreme way.”

Anoushka Shankar, the sitar-playing daughter of the renowned sitarist Ravi Shankar, who plans an American tour in April to promote her new album.Credit...Simon Scheuller

Recent events presented by the Massive at Pioneer Works, where the collaborative is in residence until April 27, have included explorations of the Hindustani music of northern India; Indian film and dance; a collaboration with African musicians like the Malian singer Awa Sangho; and a tribute to George Harrison and the Beatles. Coming events include an exploration of Carnatic music, the idiom of southern India, on Tuesday, March 29, and, on April 13, a lineup mixing Cuban rhythms with raga melodies.

The Massive has also explored the influence of Indian music on prominent Western classical composers like Terry Riley, performing his “In C,” a Minimalist work from 1964, last year at the Rubin Museum; a recording on the Northern Spy Records label is due out later this year. In a concert in September at Le Poisson Rouge in Greenwich Village, it will celebrate the birthday of John Coltrane, who was fascinated by Indian music.

As the central element of Indian music, the raga originated with the ancient Vedic hymns sung in Hindu temples and is intended to create a trancelike spiritual mood. (The word, derived from Sanskrit, translates as “passion” or “color.”) It is composed from scales with ascending and descending patterns that form a melodic framework for improvisation and is associated with seasons, moods and events. Ragas open with an introspective prelude called the alap (performed without percussion) that evolves into a rhythmically invigorating section with percussion that often features virtuoso solo segments.

Ragas are largely monophonic, incorporating drones created by instruments like the tanpura, a long-necked plucked string instrument.

A spellbinding concert presented in February at the 92nd Street Y by the World Music Institute illuminated the Carnatic genre at its most sublime. The violinist L. Subramaniam (whose father, V. Lakshminarayana, expanded the role of the violin in the Carnatic tradition from background to solo instrument) joined his son, Ambi Subramaniam, also a violinist, for a mesmerizing performance.

Gentle wisps of melody shared by the two men slowly unfolded over a drone before morphing into a flurry of imaginatively ornamented, virtuosic riffs. When they were joined by two percussionists (Mahesh Krishnamurthy on the mridangam and Ravi Balasubramanian on the ghatam), the music reached ecstatic heights.

Anoushka Shankar, the daughter of Mr. Shankar and a sitar player who both performs classical Indian music and a fusion incorporating other influences, said in an interview that the traditional music in its pure form is struggling in India, where Bollywood and fusion music promoted by the Indian television series “Coke Studio @ MTV,” are popular. “It’s hard to compete in a short-sound-bite-driven market when a form of music is by nature about a slowly unfolding genre,” said Ms. Shankar, who plans an American tour in April timed to the release of her new album, “Land of Gold.”

The violinist L. Subramaniam, who performed recently at the 92nd Street Y.

In the United States, Mr. Neiburger of the World Music Institute said, Indian classical music tends not to have “the broad appeal that some other world music genres might have, such as Brazilian music, fado and flamenco.” So the Massive teams up with others eager to attract new American listeners, like the Biryani Boys, a duo consisting of the tabla player David Freeman and the sitar player Mustafa Bhagat who also produce YouTube videos infused with hipster humor and featuring prominent Indian musicians.

On Saturday, April 2, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New Yorkers will have the chance to hear some of India’s most prominent musicians. Amjad Ali Khan will perform with his sons, Amaan and Ayaan Ali Khan, the seventh generation of a family of musicians who play the sarod, a long-necked lute prominent in classical northern Indian music.

Many of the Massive members perform Indian classical music in its pure form as well as experimenting with various fusions. An afternoon performance at the Met this month by the sitar player Neel Murgai and the tabla musician Sameer Gupta proved riveting, the soulful alap building in intensity to the colorful fast section called the jhalla.

In a contemporary music scene characterized above all by crossing and blurring genres, it’s possible to find all kinds of collaborations. Mr. Gupta and Mr. Murgai also perform with the violinists Arun Ramamurthy and Trina Basu, both trained in the Carnatic tradition, and the Western-trained cellist Marika Hughes as the Neel Murgai Ensemble. It performs what it describes as “raga chamber jazz,” a blend of Indian forms with everything from Tuvan throat singing to Roma tunes.

Ms. Basu also plays with the cellist Amali Premawardhana, the bassist Perry Wortman and the tabla player Roshni Samlal in the ensemble Karavika, which specializes in a soulful blend of classical and folk traditions from the United States and India.

The Massive members are proud of their open-minded outlook. “New forms are being created that are indigenous to Brooklyn,” Mr. Murgai said. As for the collective’s future goals, Mr. Gupta points out in a lighthearted Massive video that Pioneer Works is not far from the Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor.

“I have a dream,” he said, “that one day the statue won’t have a book and a torch but will have a sitar and a tabla.”

A version of this article appears in print on March 27, 2016, Section AR, Page 12 of the New York edition with the headline: A Raga Renaissance Flowers in Brooklyn.

[dandelionsandderivatives]

currently craving specifically the lunch that Shasta ate in a palace in Tashbaan

[fadingstarryskies]

hai biryani

[jayhoshow]

The Versatility of Actor Vijay Raaz and his career

Vijay Raaz - the name that spells versatility, has become a household name in Bollywood. From making us laugh with his impeccable comic timing to sending shivers down our spine with his intense roles, he has done it all. His journey from being a Delhi boy to a renowned actor and director in Bollywood is nothing short of inspiring. His love for acting, coupled with his hard work and dedication, has earned him over 90 films in his kitty. Vijay Raaz's journey is a shining example that with grit and determination, anyone can make their mark in the industry. To learn more about Vijay Raaz and other fascinating insights into the lives of celebrities, stay tuned to Jay-Ho.com.

[winterrrnight]

I had two requests but combined them together in one! I hope you enjoy <3 <3

soft!rafe x desi!reader <3 him meeting your family and trying home-made Indian food for the first time blurb <3 requested by @erwinsvow & @valeskafics

It is the mere start of your relationship, around two weeks, and your parents have asked you to bring your boyfriend Rafe to dinner at your place. You were taken by surprise by their request, but agreed nonetheless, and pretty soon Rafe is very lovingly welcomed in your home for a dinner night.

It goes on wonderfully, your father asking him questions he is able to answer well, and impress him too. Your mother doesn’t have a lot to ask him, her being quite satisfied with the answers he is giving to your father.

But the one who is impressed the most by him is your grandma. She thinks he is absolutely handsome, and can’t help but smile at him. She gently tugs on your shirt, pulling you closer to her.

“How did you get him?” She whispers jokingly in your ear. “He looks way too out of your league,” You only groan and roll your eyes at her.

Pretty soon it is dinner time, and you all find yourself around the dining table. Your mom is absolutely loading his plate with food despite him saying no over and over again.

“Oh take it! You need the nutrition,” your grandma says, telling your mom to put in some more, saying something about how he is a growing boy and needs it in her mother tongue. You giggle and place your hand on top of his from under the table, squeezing it lightly. He doesn’t say anything and just smiles, letting your mother top up his plate with the biryani she made.

A small silence falls over you all as you start eating, the gentle scraping of the spoon against the plate being the only sound. You enjoy the food quite a lot, as you also make small conversation with your family along with it. But Rafe, oh god, almost starts losing it.

“That’s… that’s spicy…” he mumbles, hissing as he quickly gulps down the water from his glass. He exhales deeply as he fans his mouth, his eyes a little wide.

“You okay?” You ask, raising your eyebrows at him.

“Yeah I just…” he mutters, taking a deep breath.

“Calm down white boy,” you joke, “you aren’t dying or anything,”

Your mother softly laughs. “Oh Rafe,” she smiles. “Today’s food isn’t as spicy as usual, I toned down on the spice and the masala,”

Rafe’s eyes widen at her words. “Really?” He mumbles. You can’t help but laugh, softly poking him in his ribs.

“She’s right,” you say, smiling. “I was about to say that actually; today’s food is a little bland,”

Rafe turns to look at you with an incredulous look on your face. “You’re kidding…” he mutters.

“If there’s one thing you’ll get from being a part of this family,” your grandma says, “it’s having a very high spice tolerance,” You laugh at her words and smile at him, softly pinching his cheeks.

“Man up boy, this is just level zero of spice.”

↶ೃ✧˚. ❃ ↷ ˊˎ-

some blogs who I thought might be interested: @runningfrom2am @chenslucy @luversgirl @lilghostiequinni @etfrin @brioffthegrid @rafecameronshoe @rafegirly (sorry if you did not want to be tagged, feel free to ignore!)

[lullabyes22-blog]

Dropping in just to tell you how much I LOVE your Sevika x Silco portrayal. I never considered Sevilco a ship before reading your fics but you make them work so well, and I really like that you gave Sevika so much more backstory and character development. As a desi girl, I also appreciate your Sevika giving us desi rep and making it so relatable and believable. The kavya, the payasam, the bidi, I can feel her being desi on my skin, lol.

And for Silco, you make him such a hot bastard, it's unbelievable.

As someone who's a huge Grishaverse fan, they're giving Kaz x Inej vibes. I think you mentioned reading Six of Crows so I believe you're familiar with the duo, but I can really see similarities between Kaz and Silco. They're both badass villains, they're both dark and twisted and have done questionable things, they both have an intense obsession with destroying a rich and corrupt society and replacing it with something better. Also Inej and Sevika are both poc women who can kick ass and they both have a complicated relationship with the men they love. I love Kaz and Inej to death but if they were a little darker and older, they could totally be Silco and Sevika.

I'm sorry, I'm rambling, but I wanted to share. Keep up the amazing writing! I hope you write a lot more Sevilco fics. You've become one of my favorite Arcane authors, and I look forward to your updates.

Thank you so much<333

I'm so glad you're enjoying Sevika and Silco content. They've been a weird 'sleeper hit' with certain pockets of the fandom (and horrified a few others) and I'm really happy the ship's being considered as a viable option.

I really did want to try and give Sevika a bit more depth re: her family, motivations and flaws, simply because there's so much (justifiable) thirst for her character as a hot mama, and plenty of 'yas queen'ing everytime she does something terrible - but not a lot of consideration for the human, complex, flawed person behind the muscle, and why she'd choose to throw in her lot with Silco and stake everything on Zaun.

I'm also so pleased the representation feels authentic - I'm basing Zaun on RL Manchester in some ways, and Queens NYC in others - both of which are very diverse, with a huge South Asian presence. If FnF was taking place IRL, Silco would've been a no-good-bounding English boy of working-class immigrant parents (probs half-French, half-German) growing up with his best friend Vander (also of German descent with a little Greek thrown in) and Sevika and Nandi would've hailed from the nearby South Indian community, all set in the 1980s. The boy would've known his way around a good plate of biryani, though I doubt Nandi would've let him within 100m of her kitchen, let alone into her bed.

Sevika, on the other hand, would've hung out with him aaaaaall the time, just so she could bum his cigarettes and booze, and snog questionable girls behind the local pub.

(He would've paid her a tenner so he could watch her and her mate snog at his twenty-fifth birthday party. She'd have agreed, and maybe tried to goad him into joining in…)

Roflmao I do remember reading SoC, but it was very long ago, and I was a bit old for the 'young adult' genre by then. I did enjoy Kaz x Inej, although the dynamics would be somewhat different, and in many ways, far less toxic: none of this 'let the monster out' nonsense as Inej wants Kaz to be a better person, not a more ruthless one.

But really, all things aside, this is all I can think of whenever I see the comparison made:

Also we fuck. A lot.

Thank you so much, and I'm very happy you're enjoying the story<333

[harmonysanreads]

A shower thought I have because of the current sumeru event and the hexagon polycule (I haven't started playing it yet) :

All the participants trying 90000% harder not only to win, but also to impress you while Layla and Faruzan are just

"🧍‍♀️🧍‍♀️pls don't hurt us"

Wanderer also ofc wants to impress and win but his ego took a heavy blow after being listed in as "Hat Guy"

Alhaitham can't really participate but that won't stop him from making snarky remarks over them ( *cough cough* Kaveh and Cyno * cough cough*)

I was waiting for this event like a kid for their favorite cartoon show to air no kidding and it DID NOT disappoint<33 (I want either Kaveh or Layla to win so bad ☹️) And by the laws, brainrot is unavoidable :)

spoilers under the cut! [ au masterlist ]

I was thinking about Reader being chosen as one of the Commentators for extra spice actually— imagine how much harder the boys work to get your approval, this is the moment they get to show off, after all. No one can question it, you have abundant knowledge and capability from your travels, are eloquent with words, well acquainted with every contestant and can generally keep everything in euphony ; Nahida didn't even find any room for a contrary opinion as Alhaitham and Hat Guy brought these points forth (separately) so matter of factly. Having you there will just make this even a little (no, a lot) bearable for them, is all.

Faruzan is amused to a degree, ho, youngsters these can be so passionate! Though there slowly forms a concern for your future as she realizes that their efforts aren't just simple courting tactics. Layla's just... scared. She may or may not have accidentally looked through your constellation and it may or may not have traumatized her a little.

The fact that Kaveh wants to buy a place for himself with the prize money?? *chefs kiss* The architect has come to the realization that he needs to iron his backbone if he's to court you officially, he needs to show you that he can achieve way more than that insufferable cabbage (soon to not be) roommate of his. And when Kaveh is serious about something, you better know you're not going to have it easy anymore.

Tighnari is such a showoff in the first round, creating that butterfly show not only to catch potential students but to impress you knowing you have an affinity for pretty things. He didn't entirely lose in the second round either, as you rushed to take care of him, he savored all that attention more than the water he passed out without :/

Cyno is, well, ... Cyno. Don't get him wrong, he most definitely wants your praises and he does get them in the second round. On a side note, based on the Biryani factor joke he made I have a new headcannon that Cyno regularly tells you food puns — now whether you enjoy them is purely up to you :)

Though, things with him really get interesting in the final round as Wanderer takes him head on (or I'm assuming something similar since it's not out yet). Even the densest person can tell they're ready to tear each other limb from limb here, but honestly, who has the guts to stop these two? Not like you aren't mildly entertained by their duel either.

You're surprised when you heard that Wanderer was taking part, you recovered quickly though ; squeezing him affectionately like you usually do and even jokingly adding what else he was doing behind your back (not missing the way he tensed up). Whatever his true motives are, it's apparent he's determined to prove something to you. He's trying to better himself, alright. But old habits die hard, how can these mortals even compare to him? If he can (and he will) establish the fact that he's obviously the superior choice —to you only, of course as he doesn't give a crap about what others think— then taking that dent to his pride will be worth it.

Alhaitham is the saltiest version of himself throughout the whole event (Nilou's sweating bullets throughout the whole time). Most of the actual commentary is done by you and Nilou as he just occasionally quips in to add a snarky remark or to do announcements. Doesn't waste a breath fleeing from the venue when a round ends and even whisks you along with him. At one point though, he asks who you support the utmost among the participants (no, ‘everyone’ isn't an acceptable answer), purposefully when they're gathered together. You aren't dumb, you know that despite the tone in which he delivered it, this is the pinnacle of this competition for everyone. If he was just fanning the flames before, he's poured out an entire barrel of gasoline in it now.

Oh, we cannot forget the Traveller and Paimon who are actually doing their job just...deadpanning by the sidelines as everything unfolds :>

(also, you're going on a date with dehya and candace sooner or later, no questions asked.)

[jester-lover]

Desi s/o making desi food for the Dorm Leaders

Requested by enbytomura (on AO3) Warnings- fem implied reader (but not really lol), food, fluff, brief mentions of dieting, bad dialogue courtesy of Jester

A short cute lil thing :) I hope this encourages y’all to try some indian food bc these are some very basic picks

Riddle

What you make him: Gulab Jamun

Rosewater?! In food?! He’s drooling already

The fluffy center, perfectly toasted outside, completely wrapped in a glaze of rose infused sugar syrup, Riddle is in heaven

He’s holding the spoon with his full, closed fist, elbows on the table, face covered in sugar syrup

His mom would be so upsetti spaghetti, but who cares lol

He’ll notice how messily he’s eating and just take a lil pause, and blushes super hard

Gives you a hug after eating, he’s very grateful

“Thank you so so much.”

Leona

What you make him: Lamb Biryani

He literally smells it from the kitchen and goes zoom

Man runs with purpose

Barrels in and asks for a plate (real respectful)

Tries so desperately not to show how deeply he just fell in love

Adores lamb above all, tender and practically falling off the bone, with the rice practically 

soaking up spices, he won’t even get upset about the vegetables

Expect him to act like it was mediocre, but with the ferocity of his eating, you know better

“The lamb was good, don’t expect me to tell you again.”

Azul

I’m gonna jump off what the requester said abt pakoras

Our boy Azul loves loves loves pakoras

Especially paneer and potato-onion pakoras

With the paneer, he loves how soft and fluffy the soft cheese is, along with the crispy, spiced coating, his favorite sauce for those is the minty cilantro chutney, he’s so happy

With potato-onion, the far crispier of the two, with unraveling layers of red onion and thinly sliced potato wrapped up in the same spiced coating, he’ll eat that one with a tangy tamarind chutney

Literally feed this man please

“It’s my cheat day today, perhaps you could teach me to make what you fed me last week?”

Kalim

What you make him: Gol Gappa

Pani Puri, Gol Gappa, call it what you want, its good and I’m eating it

He probably grew up eating the best of the best, that probably included desi food

Rich people desi food, yknow

This makes him super excited to eat street food

Loves the fun aspect of eating Gol Guppa, definitely swallows in all in one go, reckless abandon for the win

Jamil is so happy for the two hours off he’s getting

Loves the sour and spicy cold water, along with the crunchy hallow flour puffs, definitely loads them up with potatoes

“Wonder if he could add a little more spice…”

Vil

What you make for him: Dal Makhani

Vil probably goes on a vegetarian diet at some point, because of his fondness of salad and smoothies, this didn’t bother him much, but the repetition gets him bored

So of course, you help out your man!

When he finally sits down to eat, his senses are flooded with joy

Loves it so much

The creamy, thick soup, speckled with lentils and beans, green basil and a swirl of white butter, along with a side of roti, or naan to eat it with, he’ll never forget it

One that def loves having desi food regularly, esp during diets he’ll lean back on spices to make his food taste better

He will definitely make you some german food as a thank you, like spaetzle or apple strudel

“Liebling, your cooking is spectacular.”

Idia

What you make for him: Chai with biscuits 

He’s one of those people who forgets to eat during his game sessions

You get a little worried about your guy :( 

Ortho assists you in procuring biscuits as you make chai

Idia is a little startled when you show up with a thermos and a cute little plate full of biscuits

He's so appreciative!!!

Walks with a little pep in his step for a while after (around his room ofc)

Tries to make it for you, with decent results (man is good at following written instruction)

“This is so good, do you want one of the biscuits?”

Malleus

What you make him: Kulfi

We know how much our boy loves ice cream

You know how much your boy loves ice cream

So you make him the objectively best kind of ice cream

Its trial and error at first, and malleus gets a little curious about the mystery project your working on

When you finally present it to him, he's absolutely elated!

His child of man! Made him something with love!

Absolutely adores it so much, literally devours it 

The creamy ice cream on the stick, milky and sweet with a perfect texture, he’s falls in love even harder

Favorite flavor is malai, simplicity and richness is his favorite

“I absolutely adore you.”

[six-white-venus]

“all i want you to be is better than me”

my father went to Germany once. 

His tongue slithered and hissed at the food of the land the whole time he was there, for it had learnt to always fear new things. He ate boiled eggs and french fries and ice cream the entire time he was there.

I will never know how it would feel to be a foreigner so far from home, but this is how I see it: my father, clumsy german and english tinted so heavily with the words his mother first spoke to him, standing in a jewelry store aisle. I will never know, but his image haunts me all the same: my father, browsing through everything gold and glittering. His eyes scintillate brighter than any stone displayed. I would never understand it, but this is what he does: he looks at a ring of jade and thinks- mother would love this. He looks at the store clerk packing it up and thinks- mother would be proud of me.

(When he returns, his mother throws the ring back at his face. It seems to win her love, he needed 24 karats and he was lacking 6, the name of his elder brother and a degree from IIT.)

2. my father lost his job when he was 35

The man who read Mahabharata to me when I was in the womb now looks at amma with empty eyes when she says she can feel the baby kicking. The man who cradled my mother in the palm of his callused hands (carefully, carefully. For her, he was willing to learn not to break all that he loved) now misses all her appointments to the gynaecologist, sleeping in some random park bench with his resume tucked under his head.

My father is 35 and he wants to surrender himself to the sea but knows that just like all the others, it will chew and spit him out of its cruel jaws. My father is 35 and my sister is born. He holds her, but not for too long. When he turns to me, he tells me he’ll buy me all the biryani I want. He clutches my hand tightly as we walk out. 

He tells me he’ll stay.

3. i was 13 when I first remember hugging my father.

I am 13 and all baby fat is melting away with the unwanted emotions as I walk up to him one day and put my arms around him randomly. 

Broken shards and bandages, a heart that thinks and a brain that sings. I held him for the first time that day and discovered all over again: he has always been warm, my father. My hearth, my sun, my appa. And when he strokes my hair, my head almost fits the palm of his hand. The pressure is grounding and there is a father and a child, a boy and his mirror, a lonely god and his creation, in each other’s arms. Broken shards and bandages, a heart that thinks and a brain that sings.

I learn love from him all over again.

4. my father, he has always been hungry.

Hungry for the sweetest delicacies and the most scrumptious of meals (“More, more, more,” he asks. He is eight, twelve, forty-nine. father mine, I weep, do you think your plate can ever remain full?). Hungry for achievements and praises and glory (“I’m proud of you,” I tell him as he wakes up another day with me, “What for?” “I just am”). Hungry for love and money and the world (this globe has always been too small for his hands and yet, and yet, he can’t bear to hold it for even a second. It’s too heavy, he says, it has always been heavy.) Hungry for fulfilment, for peace and rest (more, more, more).

My father, he has never known what it means not to starve and so he says, ”all i want you to be is better than me.” He has never known to be enough, so he says, ”all i want you to be is better than me.”

But father, don’t you see? I am your daughter, your son, your child, and and and- see? I can’t even say who I am because I don’t know. I’ve never belonged and all boxes tear at the edges when they try to contain me. I’ve never known to smile without lying and to let my wounds heal without picking on them over and over again till they’re bloody. I hold my head high and wear the stilettos you gifted me even though my heels are cracked and my gait is faltering. My mouth always tastes like anger and it’s so tiring to hold all this bitterness in me.

Everything I do, it screams your name. Every poem I write, every tear I shed,screams and cries appa, appa look, are you proud of me?

Father, I’ve learnt to claw through scrapes to fill my belly and even though you’re giving and giving and giving me everything I yearn for my stomach still rumbles (more, more, more) and my claws are still unsheathed. Maybe some of us will never be sated, will never know peace. 

But I look at you, and I think: that’s okay. Father, you’ve taught me love and held me through my sleepless nights and brushed away all my tears. I am always filled to the brim with love, I think. Everything I create always comes down to those three words: I love you. Every word I utter sounds like I’ll stay, I promise I’ll stay.

“All I want you to be is better than me.”

But father, don’t you see? I am you. 

[cretinouswimp]

Last Friday a guy came by our office to get some stuff we were giving away on Craigslist and we shot the shit about work and mentioned his wife is Indian and we talked about Indian food and how I love curry and biryani and today he came by to give me some authentic biryani that she made specifically for me

Just absolutely insane, older Indian woman hears about a little white boy who love rice and spice and just can't help herself

[anonimusunnoan]

Me n the Bois after scarfing down 5 plates of biryani, on our way to get desert.

[andmaybegayer]

Last Monday of the Week 2023-10-16

Another year older. Stealing the Untitled Wednesday Library Series format from Morrak for an open Reading section and then we'll get to the normal post.

Reading:

Untitled Monday Wednesday Library Entry No. 0

Do you like a recipe book? Do you like an unbearably comprehensive and frequently incorrect recipe book? Well boy do I have an item for you:

It's Indian Delights, the de facto standard book of South African Indian cooking. Assembled in the 60's by the Durban Women's Cultural Group and in print ever since then.

The How

A birthday gift from my parents, who sent it from South Africa.

There are apparently places that carry this book outside of South Africa but I do not know what those are.

The Text

Dubious, but useful despite this. It was written in the 60's by a bunch of people who had never and would never again write a recipe book. You may note from the frontmatter that while it has had sixteen impressions since its first publication in 1961, there has only ever been a single revision of the book. There are numerous errors, omissions, and flaws. Recipes may list ingredients that are not used, call for ingredients in the method not given before, begin preparing components and never use them, or outright lie about the quantities of ingredients you need. A challenging exercise.

Any given individual's copy of this book is full of little pen notes, slips of paper, and scratched out experiments. I have a blank canvas.

It is absolutely stuffed to the brim with recipes from the then-almost-century of South African development on South Asian cuisine. It is intended as a one-stop-shop for cooking from a diaspora of extremely wide origins.

South African Indians arrived in South Africa as indentured labour for British sugar farms and could just as easily be from the relatively cold and mountainous North Indian regions or the low, rainy, hot coastal areas of South India. As a result you've had almost a hundred years of adapting to the locally available ingredients, intermarriages across wide geographic origins, and failing memories. There are frequently many duplicates of any given recipe, each with some unique variation of note.

It is also extremely dated. It still lives in an era where "adding an elachi (cardamom) pod to your rice" is a luxurious choice that requires financial considerations, and where meat was still expensive. It also has a delightful section on mass cooking, such as the above "Biryani for 100 people" which has an additional note on the ingredients for a "Biryani for 800 people" on the opposite leaf. These things come up sometimes, although the largest biryani I've ever been involved in was for about 60 people.

It is not really for beginners but it does have a lot of introductory matter, in part because it has to contend with the mishmash of languages and loanwords that exist. You don't know if the reader uses the hindi word for cumin, or the tamil word for cumin, or makes a formal distinction between roti and chapati. As a result, there are extensive opening tables of translations.

The Object

Big, blocky hardcover recipe book. Cheap but hardwearing coated pages. I have seen these in every imaginable state of disrepair, unfortunately I do not have a photo on hand of my mother's which is completely beat to hell.

I mentioned that there have not been many updates, and this continues to the outside. Not a single impression has, for example, corrected the misalignment of the spine and the cover that means it stands out on any book storage system.

Some damage to the cover from the rigours of air travel. It'll recover, or rather, it'll get beat up in ways that make that negligible.

The photography is antiquated, having been taken by a photographer who was certainly good but was operating a) with 1961 camera technology, b) 1961 photographic sensibilities, and c) no real experience in food photography. As a result the images can look somewhat alien if you're familiar with more modern food photograpy. Colours are not accurate, framing is flat, and composition is often packed.

In addition to the colour glamour plates, there are black and white instructional photos, which are much more timeless.

The Why, Though?

Indian Delights is a very important cultural reference for the South African Indian population, and it's a pretty standard leaving home/getting married/leaving home and getting married gift. I've bought a copy for many friends and now this one is mine.

Will I actually use this much? Certainly not that often. My mother and her sisters learned to cook from this book, so it is the root of my personal culinary tradition. That means I already know a lot of what can be distilled from this for day-to-day recipes. Where it is handy is for more technical dishes, which require some guidance, or as an ingredient reference for something new you want to try.

In particular Diwali is coming up and while both my mother and I are staunch atheists, we will also take any excuse to make a ton of sweets for friends. If you are in Prague in the week of the 12th of November you can probably hit me up for something.

Listening: Acheney is a shockingly talented synth designer for the niche softsynth tracker sunvox, available now on windows, mac, linux, windows CE, android, and iOS. I was tooling around with their Guitar synths and decided to check out their music, which is a couple albums of very high concept EDM inspired ambient and/or noise stuff. Here's Euler Characteristic Zero

Watching: @humansbgone is an animated sci-fi series about intelligent giant arthropods and their attempts to deal with invasions of pesky little humans

Big spec-bio focus with a lot of end notes on the arthropods in question.

Playing: Played the Trans Siberian Railway Simulator demo, which I recorded and put up here, with crap audio because it's authentic to what I had lying around after I forgot my headphones at work.

Also: the digital version of the D&D themed agent placement game Lord of Waterdeep with my family, which works quite well. It's weird to have the game handling the admin of moving points around and automatically deducting resources, but it does make the game go very quickly, even if your parents are still figuring out the interface.

Making: Big cooking experiment with a slow roast lamb shank. Came out very well. Lamb shank definitely one of the more animal parts of an animal you can cook. Smells intensely of lanolin and other hair smells. Real greasy. Big honkin' bone. Smooth and fine but sturdy musculature. This thing used to be a very specific part of something alive and that thing lived the kind of life that develops the very particular smells of the insides of a sheep that are very close to the outside of a sheep. You will find some wool fibers in your pan from where the follicles reach down close to the bone and sinew.

Tools and Equipment: Easyeffects is the successor to PulseEffects and is a very complete set of audio tuning and manipulation tools for Linux. You can use it to process incoming and outgoing audio with basically any plugin you care to imagine.

[ghoulishundertakings]

@samuhelll

The benefit of Oblivion as a patron is learning their tricks. She finds the dark fits her easier than any of the muddy skin she has formed since her return. For the best, her chat with Brendan left her discombobulated and bodies were too hard, she had even left her bones home. So she sits, a dark human-esque shadow in the corner of his office, the shape of her bleeding into the corner.

It is later than she expected that he came back and she fiddled with a pen on his desk, spinning it this way and that.

“I’m ordering Indian,” she states as he walks in, her voice ringing around the room like a poorly wired surround sound system, not bothering to wait for him to settle in for the day. “Do you like biryani?” It is a lonely night, her home empty of her boys and even Ornias hadn’t darkened her step for food tonight like the stray he is. So, Sam is the beneficiary of their absence.

[kaiserkisser]

Questions 1, 6, 26, 39 and 70????????

thank u for asking hehe <33

1- um- tbh im mostly chill with my dad bc he rarely ever gets mad but when he does- anyways, uh ig my mom tries??? doesnt excuse some stuff but its only a matter of two yrs sooo 🤷‍♀️

6- huhh i havent actually thought abt this- i think i wanna die with smn around me, who actually cares, i think thatd bring me peace. hopefully from old age, and NOT sickness or smth idk (id be fine if i created a huge stir with my death too tho lol)

26- hmm im craving biryani, romantic and platonic love, being accepted by those i care for, some sprite or other soft drink, and sleep :pp

39- .... i cant believe im saying this..... i havent had my first kiss yet lol bc i havent rly found smn irl nice enough to crush on haha (i live in my delusions, plus most of the boys here are mehhhh)

70- yeah, id die no hesitation for all my besties ( @damyoujackson + 2 irls) and those i really really care for (including most cousin siblings despite how troublesome they can get lmao)

[maitaiwiththecorpses]

(Headcanoned) Spotify Playlists For All The Aru Shah Characters

had a stroke of inspiration while scrolling through @namesarehard123's blog, and armed with (probably expired) lemonade, I had at it.

Plant Stalking Skillz- playlist by spider_shah

Royals by Lorde

All You Had To Do Was Stay- Taylor Swift

Everybody Talks- Neon Trees

There Are Worse Things I Could Do- Grease

Interlude: I'm Not Angry Anymore- Paramore

Adhd- Truslow

Dead Girl Walking- Heathers

All The Single Ladies- Beyonce

Carnaval Del Barrio- In the Heights

Dandelions- Ruth B.

Gorgeous- Taylor Swift

Mr. Brightside- The Killers

History Hates Lovers- Oublaire

The Dumb Song- AJR

U Wished U Were This Emo- playlist by shadowfaxnotprinter

Lover- Taylor Swift

Yellow- Coldplay

Producer Man- Lyn Lapid

Boy Bi- Mad Tsai

Numb Little Bug- Em Beihold

Overwhelmed (Ryan Mack Remix)- Ryan Mack

Mad At Disney- Salem Ilese

Riptide- Vance Joy

Detached- Lyn Lapid

Cruel Summer- Taylor Swift

Until I Found Her (Em Beihold Vers.)- Stephen Sanchez

Dancing With Our Hands Tied- Taylor Swift

Still Into You- Paramore

Romantic Stylz- playlist by prince snekkyboi

Happier Than Ever- Billie Eilish

Come And Get your Love- Redbone

Bad Dream- Stellar

Dancing Queen- ABBA

Kiss Her You Fool- Kids That Fly

Don't Blame Me- Taylor Swift

Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go- Wham!

Here Comes The Sun- The Beatles

God, I Hate Shakespear- Something Rotten!

Therapy- Tick, Tick, Boom!

The World's Smallest Violin- AJR

Grace Kelly- MIKA

Freaks- Jordan Clarke

Times Are Hard For Dreamers- Amelie

Denim On Denim- playlist by eat-the-rich-and-good-biryani.

Sweater Weather- The Neighborhood

As It Was- Harry Styles

Gloria- The Lumineers

girls- girl in red

Teenager In Love- Neon Trees

Radio-Friendly Pop Song- Matt Fishel

Line Without A Hook- Ricky Montgomery

Turning Out- AJR

Take Me To Church- Hozier

Space Girl- Fraces Forever

Pink Triangle- Weezer

Jolene- Dolly Parton

Boy In The Bubble- Alec Benjamin

I Will Follow You Into The Dark- Death Cab For Cutie

Tear In My Heart- Twenty-One Pilots

Fuck Me (I Didn't Know How To Say)- Crawlers

Delicate- Taylor Swift

Bathe In Sanitizer, Elmo- playlist by YaKaMeLo

Someone You Like- The Girl and the Dreamcatcher

As The World Caves In- Matt Maltese

Fade To Black- Metallica

Wildest Dreams- Vitamin String Quartet Cover

In Case You Don't Live Forever- Ben Platt

The 30th- Billie Eilish

I Did Something Bad- Taylor Swift

Queen Of Kings- Alessandra

Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy- Queen

Enemy- Imagine Dragons

I Write Sins Not Tragedies- Panic! At The Disco

London Boy- Taylor Swift

Brain Damage- Pink Floyd

Hiding In Your Hands- Dear Evan Hansen Bonus Track

Uptown Girl- Billy Joel

The Man- Taylor Swift

Dismantle The Sus- playlist by here?AHHHHHH

Ordinary- Alli Grace

Dress- Taylor Swift

Stairway To Heaven- Led Zepplin

The Takeover, The Break's Over- Fall Out Boy

Wake Me Up When September Ends- Green Day

we fell in love in october- Girl In Red

Material Girl- Madonna

Green, Green Dress- Tick, Tick, Boom!

Warriors- She-Ra And the Princesses Of Power Theme Song

American Idiot- Green Day

You Need To Calm Down- Taylor Swift

Family Line- Conan Gray

We Didn't Start the Fire- Billy Joel and the Fall Out Boy cover

Question...?- Taylor Swift

Devil Doesn't Bargain- Alec Benjamin

Away We Go- Bad Suns

Misery Business- Paramore

pt. 2 coming... eventually. add in the tags any songs that I might have missed