The Diva

Rekha - India's Greta Garbo

 

 

A reluctant child star, Rekha is often described as a bit of an ugly duckling who turned in to a swan. Chennai born, she was apparently considered too dark and plump for the fashion of the day, but I've seen some of her early stuff and I call bullshit on that. Look at her in the video below, she looks divine. (Enjoy the marvellous moustachioed men heralding her entrance.)

 

 

She wasn't much interested in acting at the beginning, it was just a means of supporting her family but spurred on by the hurtful comments about her talent and her looks; she embarked on a strict diet and yoga routine, slimmed down, improved her Hindi and began choosing her film roles more carefully.

 

She starred in a lot of films with this guy and rumours did what they do and everyone started saying they had 'a thing going on,' which was super controversial because he was a married man... (gasp)

 

 

 

This culminated in a film that totally exploited the idea (way ahead of reality TV,) where Rekha played a character who was having an affair with the guy, popularly known as The Big B, and also starred Amitabh's real life wife Jaya, playing, you guessed it, his wife which enabled this deliciously tense scene of awkwardness to happen...

 

 

And they never made another film together again..

 

 But Rekha took her (alleged) broken heart and used all the FEELINGS to create the role that would become her most famous and define her in Bollywood hereafter. That of the beautiful, artistic but tragic courtesan Umrao Jaan 

 

 

She did a whole bunch of films after this, including a lot of independent and art house films.

Many subsequent leading ladies have claimed Rekha was an inspiration to them and her ability to sustain her career over the years has often been remarked upon. As has her seeming ability to resist the ravages of time....just by diet and yoga (naturally!)

 

 

 

Recently turned 61 #vampire

 

 

A true Bollywood icon. Her guarded privacy around her personal life gives rife to all sorts of speculations, like a continued devotion to Big B, and adds an extra aura of mystery about her. She's like a classic Hollywood star of old and is one classy lady.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Ten reasons why I fricking love Bollywood babe, Helen

A lady who exudes sass, sex appeal and seriously enviable dance skills.

Helen's family were poor and trekked from Burma to Mumbai when she was just a child, after her father died during the second world war.
 She was basically sent off to be a sexy dancer to support her mother and two siblings as they were penniless and starving; but she got her Bollywood big break at 19 years old, staring in Howrah Bridge.
 She was then a frequent sight on the Indian silver screen, one of the first big 'item girls,' women who primarily appear as dancers in films, rather than actors; although Helen did actually appear as an actor as well as an item girl in several films.

These songs are still great, as are Helen's performances, some of the images are a bit 'of their time,' though, which was generally the 60's in India...so a bit weird and inappropriate at times. Like the 1960's generally.

Here's a few extra reasons why she is FAB-U-LOUS............

The first - we've all been in the dumps where love is concerned at some point, (unless YOU are always the heartless cad we turn to drink over,) but we can't all rock it in a cage like Helen can! (Let's all just ignore the slightly creepy guy "Monicaaaa my darling-g)

The second - Can anybody else do wanton sexy gypsy lady better than Helen (I don't think so but I challenge you to find someone!) Those guys at the start are like "Oh yeeeah!)

The third - The woman is a party all by herself and can even make giant beach balls sexy, plus check out how she effortlessly skips over the jagged rocks! (clearly no health and safety on Bollywood film sets in the 60's)

The fourth - this should really be the first but oh well - not just a pretty face, the woman can dance! Four separate styles showcased here. Also four different languages, although that part is down to Asha Bhosle's vocal skills.

 

 

The fifth - say it with me..."Papaya Papaya Papaya!" ... "CocOnuuuut,"

 

 

 

 

The sixth - Only Helen could save this Bollwood meets Hammer Horror song and dance number. The song itself is surprisingly sweet considering the look of the scene. Look out for the cockatoo attempting to upstage Helen.

 



 

 

 

The seventh -  move over Coyote Ugly, can you balance a bottle of beer on a sickle? Our girl Helen can...

 



 

 

 

The eighth - need someone to just have a drink and dance with, Helen's got your back, check out the party pooper man towards end. Boo! You have no place in this scene, take your moody disapproving expression and begone!

 

 



 

 

 

The ninth - Helen's big break - mere naam chin chin chu shows off Helen's infectious dance style and versatile image, Howrah Bridge is a great film, style wise think Poirot but Bollywood.

 



 







The tenth -  I love me some Flamenco Helen and line dancing pirate men, what was Shammi Kapoor thinking though!! This one is a prime example of how hard the women have to work to compensate for the men often looking superfluous..

 

 

Basically - All Hail Helen - Queen of the Nautch Girls...



Comforting Crochet

The last few weeks have been very tough for me and unfortunately I haven't felt able to do many of the projects I had planned for my two weeks off work.

I did however manage to finish this crochet blanket I've been working on for my nephew's upcoming birthday.

 

I like the fairly simple repetition of crochet; unlike cross stitch, where you need to stay alert or risk a major error in the pattern; crochet allows you to relax and let your fingers do the work.

The Pirate King

I stitched this patch for my other half as he is a big fan of the One Piece manga and anime series. Straw Hat Luffy is his official favourite (I suspect buxom Nami is his real favourite though!)

I used soluble canvas so I could stitch it straight on to felt, it's fairly easy to use but you need to give it plenty of soaking time in hot water to dissolve the canvas afterwards or it ends up very sticky.

 

Yatta!

 

I plan to do a few more characters soon; if not the whole of Luffy's crew; at least Chopper as he's super cute and my personal favourite Nico Robin.

Divine Bathing...Lush Style

So Lush opened a brand new store in Oxford Street, London, a few months ago now; it's huge, has lots of exclusive products and a spa. (insert some kind of awe inducing sound effect here if you like, I am.)

Unfortunately, I haven't had the chance to go and see it yet (sadness,) but some of the exclusive products are beginning to come in to other Lush stores now (harumble! - you're only going to get that if you listen to 'Bleak Expectations' on Radio 4 - but never mind, I like it.)

Lots of stuff is still Oxford Street only for the moment so I was very grateful when one of my friends offered to pick me up some bits as she was making a pilgrimage of her own.

It was hard to know what to ask for as there were so many new things; more than I was even aware of to ask for; so I just picked a few of the cool sounding bath bombs and these are they...

 

Yoga Bomb, this is a beautifully warming and relaxing bath bomb that slowly fizzes away, revealing layer upon layer of bright colour and sparkling golden glitter. I used this in my hotel room in Glastonbury after an enjoyable but brisk climb up the Tor and back. I was more than ready for it, it was heaven. It's apparently good after exercise, like yoga, but also allegedly good for hangovers too.(You can get this one in other stores now - thankfully for those of us who don't live in London.)

 

The Sacred Lotus - This is a pretty but fragile bath bomb, designed to float in your bath like a lotus flower on an idyllic and clean pool, the sort you might see in a Bollywood song and dance scene, but rarely in real life. It has a heady floral scent, with a strong jasmine note, reminiscent of the Jasmin and Henna Fluff Eaze Hair Mask. This bath bomb hides a secret - silver glitter -  a lot of silver glitter. It looks very pretty, suspended in the lilac coloured water. The purple petals breaks off and slowly foam on the water while the yellow centre fizzes away, unveiling the sparkles. The overall effect is very calming and relaxing, creating quite a meditative bath.

Divination Reusable Bubble Bar - I haven't used this one yet, because, alas, I no longer have a bath, although I hope to rectify this in the future. I love the concept behind this one though, it's shaped like a pendulum and comes on a string so you can play with it like the real thing. The string is also very handy for holding the bar under running water so that you can get your bubbles. Reusable bubbles usually do at least three baths, often more, depending on how long you keep it under the water and whether you dry it out in between baths. It has a rose, amber and patchouli scent, invoking, appropriately, thoughts of incense and other mysterious magical things. Also, it looks really cool.

 

Finished and Framed (Finally)

After months of on off stitching and lots of pricked fingers along the way, I've finished my Goddess of Prosperity cross stitch kit by maia (anchor).

I fell in love with this kit as soon as I saw it, I'm a big fan of Chinese wuxia films (lush, epic, fantasy drama, usually with lots of death defying martial arts, magic swords and doomed tragic lovers,) and this image really brought those films to mind. In particular, a favourite of mine, I first watched when I was around 13, it's called 'A Chinese Ghost Story,' and the goddess here reminds me of the beautiful heroine, a tragic ghost spirit enslaved by an evil tree demon, seeking redemption (check it out, it's quite silly but very pretty.)

 Here are a few close ups of the work in progress, she's such a big piece that it's easy to loose the details when I try to take a picture of the whole thing. I was filling in the backstitch here, which in many ways is more fiddly than the cross stitches that make up the bulk of the picture.

Here is a close up of some of the lovely floral details which really came to life when I started on the backstitching..



Here she is just before I took her off the stitching frame and went to get her stretched and framed. It was the first time I've ever had something professionally framed, I usually just do it myself but the finished piece was long and thin and I couldn't find a frame that really fitted so I decided to take it to a framers as they could custom make the frame as well as stretch out the work and make sure it was straight etc...

I think with big pieces that take up a lot of time and that you want to last; it is worth the extra expense but I felt pretty nervous leaving her in the shop as the process took about a week and I was anxious about whether I would like the finished frame. Thankfully, I did.

The finished project on the wall...

 

 

 

 

Reasons why I love Glastonbury

Literally everyone has a dog..

Shops and cafe's, in accord, have no problem with you taking your pooch in to their establishments..

A man can walk down the street with an old fashioned bow and a quiver full of arrows and nobody even bats an eye..

You can wear whatever you like, however outrageous it might be perceived elsewhere and people still smile nicely at you when you pass each other..

Sunset up the Tor is a group event, sometimes strangers share snacks..

The chalice well gardens feel the need to have a sign asking people not to hold group ceremonies or drumming sessions inside the gardens...

It's totally cool to skinny dip in the dark and mystical pool of the white spring, as long as you arrange it with the elusive person who hold the keys to the gate..

Sunrise up the Tor is always memorable, whether you're watching a group of german ladies invoke the maid of avalon in rainmacks or being offered free champagne...

Overhearing other conversations while out for dinner; it's all astral projection, crystal cleansing and soul searching. Whether you're in to that or not, it's still more entertaining than the stuff you usually hear when you're not in hippy glastonbury..

I don't know if I believe in the power of the Ley Lines, but glastonbury is on one and it does have an atmosphere about it which you feel as soon as you get off the bus. A languid sort of feeling comes over you and it feels good!

Glastonbury probably has the largest collection of Indian and Tibetan stuff outside of India and Tibet...

It's so pastoral you feel like you're walking around in a poem..

Various religious and spiritual beliefs seem to rub along very amicably in a way that would be nice for the rest of the world to take note of..

The Tor, that big beautiful hill which once you're up there, literally takes your breath away and makes you forget the back breaking climb to get there..until next time anyway..

The Red Spring and it's surrounding garden, so beautiful, so peaceful and perfect to spend the day reading a book and feeding the blackbirds and magpies..

The White Spring, hidden inside a cave like building, echoing with the roaring sound of the spring bubbling up around you. A deep bottomless looking pool in the centre. You can feel myths coming to life in here..

In short, Glastonbury, I love your beauty, your history, your myths and spirituality. Your tolerance, your hippyness, your fearlessness and your craziness.

You're pretty awesome and I look forward to seeing you again next year.

Xxxx