ChaiTimeRadio

Children's Day is celebrated across India to raise awareness about children's rights, education, and welfare on 14 November every year. Today, it was our honor to celebrate it in our studio with Dr. Jagdish Vyom Ji, known for his remarkable contribution to children's literature. He has written many novels, stories, and poems for children. He is a pioneer in creating awareness about understanding child psychology and writing poetry to touch the cord of young readers. His poetry on children is prevalent and part of the school syllabus in many schools all over India. Today, he read some popular children's poems written by various Hindi poets and also talked about बाल साहित्य (children's literature) in detail. He also recited his poems along with his granddaughter Ayra. You can listen to all of this on Soundcloud:

On this Chatime, we talk to Dr. Pallavi Sharma, a poet, painter, professor, and dear friend… She paints with her pen, writes with her paintbrush, and makes her way to our hearts.
Pallavi is a multidisciplinary artist whose research interest concerns Asian American women's cultural production and activism. She is a board member of the Asian American Women Artists Association and founder and director of 'Inner Eye Arts,' a nonprofit arts organization working for the visibility of Asian American Artists in the SF Bay area. Pallavi's work has been exhibited in the US and abroad, including at the Queens Museum of the Arts, the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts, the Aicon Gallery in New York, the Bishop Museum in Hawaii, and the Taubman Museum of Art in Virginia, among others. Her works explore the theme of marginalization, patriarchy, and misogyny and examine the notions of memory. She has published two poetry collections, कच्चा रंग (Kachcha Rang) and कोलतार के पैर (Koltar ke Peir)। We talk to her about poetry, paintings, community and more. You can find out more about her work and get in touch with her at:

https://www.pallavisharma.com

आज अध्यापक, लेखक, कवि, संपादक, नवगीत एवं हिंदी हाइकु के विकास के लिए सतत प्रयासरत डॉ. जगदीश व्योम जी के साथ स्टैन्फ़र्ड यूनिवर्सिटी के KZSU 90.1FM पर बात करने का सौभाग्य मिला। सरकारी महकमे में कुशलता से बड़ी बड़ी ज़िम्मेदारियों का निर्वाह करते हुए भी सतत साहित्य व संस्कृति की सेवा में जुटे रहे जगदीश जी। अनेक प्रकाशन, अनगिनत उपलब्धियाँ, और बहुत ही सफल प्रवास है उनका लेकिन मुझे सबसे ख़ास लगा उनका सरल, विनम्र स्वभाव। आसमान सा व्यापक दृष्टिकोण लेकिन ज़मीन से जुड़ा हुआ नम्र, मृदुभाषी और सबमें प्यार से घुलमिल जाने वाला व्यक्तित्व। आज की ये मुलाक़ात हमेशा याद रहेगी। डॉक्टर व्योम जी का बहुत आभार, धन्यवाद और शुभकामनाएँ।

आप उनसे जुड़ सकते हैं उनके ब्लॉग के माध्यम से:

vyomkepar.blogspot.com

Rungmunch is a nonprofit organization founded by Smita Karhade and Madhaw Karhade in 2016 with a passion for theater with the desire to give back to the community. Within 5 years of its inception, Rungmunch has donated over $250k for various causes and helped raise $500k. GITPro awarded Rungmunch "Charity Organization of Year - 2016". It's a platform where driven actors, directors, dancers, musicians, singers, and playwrights of Indian origin come together to produce great theater to raise funds for a worthy cause.

Rungmunch operates with a philosophy that. "as an attendee or performer in any play, movie, or musical show, we enjoy every moment of it, and while doing so, if we could be the reason to put a smile on someone's face, then it will be more satisfying."

#For CommunitiesByCommunities

#EmpoweringArtistsForBettermentOfCommunities

#MakeADifference

You can find all the information about the cause, its events, and opportunities to volunteer at:

https://www.rungmunch.org

Please join them in their upcoming event, "Azadi ka Mahotsav" (Saturday, Sep 24, 2022

10:00 A.M to 7:00 P.M.

University of Silicon Andhra

1521 California Cir, Milpitas, CA 95035)

Raskhan Madhuri by Chai Time Radio

From the epic: Sakhi wo mujhse kehkar jaate - Yashodhara by Maithili Sharan Gupt

वह तोड़ती पत्थर;
देखा मैंने उसे इलाहाबाद के पथ पर-
वह तोड़ती पत्थर। सूर्यकांत त्रिपाठी "निराला"

Suryakant Tripathi Nirala’s “ Wo Todti Patthar” is one of my favorite childhood poem. Nirala Ji was well aware of hardship of life, and in these lines he explains same of a labor woman working on roads of Allahabad in a hot summer afternoon. अभी मई का महीना चल रहा है है।भीषण गर्मी और ऐसे में आप जब ये कविता सुनें तो आप उस औरत की मनोदशा, और उसके कष्ट शायद महसूस कर सकें।

In this Chaitime, we talk to Sujit Saraf about Naatak's Annual Musical Buddha, which is currently being performed at Kelly Park Open theater and tickets can be purchased here: https://www.naatak.org/buddha/

Written and directed by Sujit Saraf, produced by Soumya Agastya, music by Nachiketa Yakkundi. The musical is set in the sixth century BCE and portrays the life of the Shakya prince Siddharth which eventually alters the course of human history. With a giant mural for a set, colorful costumes, and imaginative props, the play is a visual treat and a unique outdoor experience in the shade of lush maple and oak trees.

In this interview, we talk to Sujit about his vision of creating the play, Sujit's background, and the brief history of Naatak, the premier Indian theater company in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Sujit Saraf received his Ph.D. from Berkeley. He works in Palo Alto, Calif., where he researches space missions and satellite control. Sujit runs Naatak, the premier Indian theater company in the San Francisco Bay Area, when not being a geek. He is the founder and artistic director of Naatak. Sujit is a recognized author, and he wrote his first novel "Limbo" in 1994. His 2007 book, "The Peacock Throne," was shortlisted for the Encore Prize in London. His third novel, "The Confession of Sultana Daku," is will be made into a motion picture starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui. Saraf was nominated for the DSC Prize for South Asian Literature 2018 for his fourth book, "Harilal and Sons." He has also tried his hand at independent filmmaking with two feature films in his bag.

Wiki gives a simple definition for the word friendship. Friendship is a relationship of mutual affection between people. So simple yet so profound. There are no words and no bounds to describe this bond, this connection. There are relationships, there is love, but beyond all the layers is something boundless, infinite, and soul-soothing, and that is friendship. There can be many friends, but there is the only one which makes us think who is she to me, or who is he to me. Radha has the same question for Kanu, for her Krishna, and Dr. Dharamvir Bharati has expressed it beautifully in his poem, Kanhupriya...Tum Mere Kaun Ho?

प्रेम, प्यार, विवाह, भाई, माँ, पिता, बहन, गुरु, बेटा बेटी ये सब शब्द किसी ना किसी रिश्ते को परिभाषित करते हैं लेकिन, एक ऐसा रिश्ता है है जिसे किसी नाम, शब्द या परिभाषा में बांधा नहीं जा सकता, जो देश, दुनिया, मर्यादा, बंधन, नाते, रिश्ते, संयम, सही, ग़लत सबसे परे है। दो आत्माओं के बीच का एक अनकहा लगाव, दो दिलों के बीच एक गहरा बंधन, दो हृदयों का अटूट जुड़ाव जो अलौकिक होता है। क्या है वो, क्यों है वो आख़िर कौन है वो हमारा जो इस तरह से हमको अपने में डूबा लेता है कि मैं और तू से अलग होकर हम एक अलग ही धरातल में आ जाते हैं, बहुत क़रीब लेकिन फिर भी ये जान नहीं पाते की आख़िर वो हमारा कौन है। ये सवाल राधा के मन में भी आए और अपने अंतरंग कनु यानि कृष्ण से राधा ने पूछा तुम मेरे कौन हो कनु? राधा की जिज्ञासा, राधा के प्रेम, राधा के समर्पण को डॉक्टर धर्मवीर भारती ने एक बहुत ही सुंदर कविता में बांधा है जिसका नाम है "कनुप्रिया" और उसका एक अंश है जो मेरे दिल के सबसे क़रीब है - तुम मेरे कौन हो। राधा के कनु को पूछा ये एक प्रश्न हर कनु हर राधा के लिये है

Flute Credit - Rakesh Chaurasia - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9cefe-xD04

In today's Chaitime, we interview an inspiring community leader Usha Sundar and hear her incredible story of building the Hi5 youth foundation. Founded in 2015 by Usha and her husband R. Sundar, the Hi5 Foundation(https://www.facebook.com/Hi5youthfoundation) serves underprivileged children to help them develop life skills through the basketball game. She shares with us various stories that highlight multiple challenges she had to tackle over the years, including the COVID pandemic, the socio-economic situation of underprivileged children, and the social stigma attached to allowing girls to participate in sports. Hi5 started helping disadvantaged children in the Mumbai area; the organization has since expanded to Hyderabad and Kolkata. Hi5 foundation is currently serving 2100 children with a 50:50 ratio of boys and girls via their 20 centers and 25 coaches. The foundation also supports children from tribal areas.

Usha Sundar's work is making such an impact that the NBA just featured Hi5 on their platform, and cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar has taken a particular interest in this program and has become one of the significant donors to the cause.