My war has finally ended. I had been house-hunting for the past two weeks, and after much squabbling with brokers about deposits and following strange men down even stranger roads, hoping the house at the end of one of them would finally be the one, we found it. The one in question is, in fact, a house.
And funnily enough, the house is located just behind a road that holds many memories for me. During college, my roommate and I spent countless nights here, slowly getting to know the city together. Hours disappeared in that one café where we studied and desperately crammed for end-semester exams. Other nights were spent nursing our first glasses of beer, the kind that stuck stubbornly to the table and left traces on our elbows as we leaned in, confiding our deepest fears, vulnerabilities, and uncertainties about the future.
I never intended to find a house in this area. But the universe has a way of working in mysteriously random ways.
That randomness can feel confusing, even lonely at times. But it also surprises you, and somehow the surprise is always welcome — received with both open and frightened arms. As a friend of mine said recently, “I want to peek into the void of randomness and make meaning.” So, I’m choosing to take this house as a sign: to embrace both the unknown and the journey towards it as fiercely as I possibly can.
For this week’s curation, we spotlight artists and creators doing exactly that — diving deep to make meaning out of randomness. Whether it is Twinkle Hanspal and Doyel Joshi’s FORME, a collection that explores the relationship between mind and body, or Tribeni Rai’s Shape of Momo, a story of a woman navigating her own womanhood, through conformity and change, here's what we have for you this week:
Tribeny Rai’s award-winning debut feature, Shape of Momo, is a Nepali-language drama set in East Sikkim that maps the "invisible architecture" of patriarchy and loss. The story follows Bishnu, a spirited 32-year-old returning to her ancestral village to join a "house full of women". Despite the physical absence of men, Rai illustrates how patriarchal structures remain all-pervasive, policed by the women themselves through internalized habit. Read more here.
Abinash Bikram Shah’s debut feature, Elephants in the Fog, made history at the 79th Cannes Film Festival as the first Nepali film to win the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize. Set in Thori, Nepal, the film centers on the marginalized Kinnar community of transgender and intersex women. The narrative follows Pirati, a community matriarch whose life is disrupted when her daughter goes missing. The film explores the "uncomfortable dichotomy" of the Kinnar community, often revered in ritual yet rejected in daily life. Read more about the film here.
Indian-American artist KOAD’s self-produced single, “bollywood and hip hop,” is a cinematic exploration of diasporic identity. The Los Angeles-based rapper and producer blends trap production with South Asian folk, specifically sampling the Punjabi classic "Lathe Di Chadar" over hard-hitting 808s and garba rhythm. The track reflects KOAD’s experience growing up between Western hip-hop and Bollywood maximalism, despite having never visited his "homeland". By merging traditional symbols with modern rap, he creates a vibrant, larger-than-life tribute to his Gujrati and Punjabi heritage. Read more here.
Nirmik Fest '26 is a two-day festival in Mumbai, scheduled for May 30 and 31, that utilises theatre, film, music, and poetry to explore themes of resistance, identity, and collective imagination. The event is designed to create a shared space for dialogue that challenges dominant narratives and promotes social justice. By moving performances into communities and bastis, Nirmik Fest aims to turn art into a tool for assertion and community-building, making resistance visible through cultural expression. Read more here.
FORME, a collaborative collection by Twinkle Hanspal and Doyel Joshi, explores the human body as an emotional and physical structure. Inspired by Irish artist Francis Bacon, the collection adopts his view of the body as an extension of the mind, where internal tension manifests as physical distortion. Floral motifs are reimagined as metaphors for this interplay between emotional tension and softness. The garments feature intricate draping and knotting that highlight the body’s architecture, specifically its bones, joints, and natural pressure points, to evoke a sense of both control and freedom. Read more here.
Punchline is a new cocktail bar in Bandra, Mumbai, founded by Jeet Rana, Chirag Pal, and Chef Amninder Sandhu. The establishment pays homage to the history of punch, a drink with etymological roots in the Hindi word paanch, meaning five. Every drink follows this "rule of five," balancing five distinct elements to create unique concoctions like the "OG Punch". The bar’s philosophy centers on community and conversation, primarily through communal punch bowls designed for shared experiences. Chef Sandhu’s food menu mirrors this approach, offering thoughtful plates meant for sharing. Read more here.
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