Poetry and music Jhilam Chattaraj
Mekong Review » Southeast Asia
by Mekong Review 2
1M ago
Photo: Dinesh Khanna It was early morning, and the air was heavy and humid in Auroville, Pondicherry. In the distance, the gilded Matrimandir radiated an unmatched spiritual aura. The banyan trees were still, the parrots frolicked in the bluest skies and I waited for the poet Sudeep Sen. Over the years I’ve journeyed through Sen’s map of poems—one that has eventually led me to an insulated place of self-discovery, recognition and beauty. The rush of a literary festival was ahead of us—dressed in a typical black kurta and white pyjama, Sudeep Sen cheerfully made himself comfortable on a bench ..read more
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The braves Desmond Sham
Mekong Review » Southeast Asia
by Mekong Review 2
1M ago
Protest in Hong Kong, 2019. Photo: Joseph Chan / Unsplash Among the Braves: Hope, Struggle, and Exile in the Battle for Hong Kong and the Future of Global Democracy Shibani Mahtani and Timothy McLaughlin Hachette Books: 2023 . In 2019, a controversial bill that would allow extradition to mainland China sparked year-long citywide protests in Hong Kong. While the bill was ‘withdrawn’ in October that year—more than four months after the city’s first major demonstrations—it was already too late; the protests had developed into broader pro-democracy movements. The citizens of Hong Kong had witness ..read more
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Fact in fiction Radhika Oberoi
Mekong Review » Southeast Asia
by Mekong Review 2
1M ago
Arundhati Roy. Photo: Vikramjit Kakati A dung beetle named Guih Kyom, one of many in The Ministry of Utmost Happiness’s crowd of characters, performs a mammoth task. He lies on his back in a graveyard, holding the heavens up with his legs. The idea that one might examine the writings of Arundhati Roy in an article with a prescribed word count is perhaps as audacious and absurd as Guih Kyom’s bid to save the world if the sky comes crashing down. How can one attempt to describe—or is ‘discuss’ the less sleepy, more spirited verb here?—her oeuvre in a page or two? Is it possible to embark upon a ..read more
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Monogatari David Wills
Mekong Review » Southeast Asia
by Mekong Review 2
1M ago
Haruki Murakami graffiti in Tbilisi. Photo: White Demon What is it about the novels of Haruki Murakami that have captivated millions of readers around the world? Why do his depictions of apathetic young men in urban Japan translate so well across languages and cultures, making him one of the world’s most popular authors? His work is often criticised for being repetitive, overly ambiguous and occasionally misogynistic, yet his legions of fans look past these shortcomings and obsess over his books, impatiently waiting for the latest one to be translated into their language. Perhaps the answer ca ..read more
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Dyeing art Adil Hussain and Owais Gul
Mekong Review » Southeast Asia
by Mekong Review 2
1M ago
Ashiq Hussain Posh dyes wool and silk yarn at his ancestral dyeing unit in Old Srinagar. The workshop is said to have been used for dyeing fabric and threads for around two centuries. Photo: Adil Hussain Almost two decades ago, the ancient practice of dyeing yarn in Indian-administered Kashmir was the source of livelihood for hundreds of families across the region, but modern techniques and tools have slowly pushed the people associated with the trade into the margins. Dyeing yarn is a major industry associated with Kashmiri handicrafts. This ancient practice began in Kashmir around 781 AD whe ..read more
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Forging identity Martin Laflamme
Mekong Review » Southeast Asia
by Mekong Review 2
1M ago
Lee Teng-hui. Photo: Lee Teng-hui Foundation On the morning of 7 June 2007, a large crowd gathered on the grounds of Yasukuni shrine in central Tokyo. Some people waved flags, others held up colourful cardboard signs with slogans. Near by, a gaggle of journalists were setting up. This was not unusual. Though Yasukuni is a private institution, it bills itself as a national war memorial for the repose of the souls of nearly 2.5 million soldiers and civilians who died fighting the wars of Imperial Japan. It thus attracts a daily stream of visitors, from ordinary citizens who come to pray for a de ..read more
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In-hale ex-hale Tae Song
Mekong Review » Southeast Asia
by Mekong Review 2
1M ago
Photo: Zero Take / Unsplash The End of August Yu Miri, Translated by Morgan Giles Tilted Axis Press: 2023 .. Though untranslatable, the Korean word ‘han’ (한) can best be described as an intergenerational feeling of sorrow, anger and grief. It is a heaviness that exists in the body of every Korean person, due to years of war, colonialism and unrest on the Korean peninsula. As Yu Miri writes in The End of August: “The sorrow of the han that permeates you is endless, and that han, which pierces through the earth to the heavens, may be grieved, but it cannot be undone.” It was han that made me fee ..read more
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Change Peixuan Xie
Mekong Review » Southeast Asia
by Mekong Review 2
1M ago
Cheng Chau, Hong Kong. Photo: Peixuan Xie Cheung Chau, Hong Kong I arrive in Hong Kong in the damp heat, feeling sulky. In the taxi from the airport, the driver curses his fellow drivers loudly in Cantonese while I howl silently inside—I need to stay in this place for some time. I never expected the move, nor was I pumped about it. My impressions of the city were built on old Cantonese films, sad pop songs—the kind I’ve always sought refuge in after break-ups—and very brief encounters. As a mainland Chinese kid, I saw Hong Kong portrayed on TV as the epicentre of capitalism and sophistication ..read more
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Funny tongues Dan Koh
Mekong Review » Southeast Asia
by Mekong Review 2
1M ago
Big Times for the Crazy Bumpkins. Photo: Celestial Pictures Limited Retrospective: Wang Sha & Ye Feng Various directors Shaw Brothers, Celestial Pictures, Kay’s Productions, Mei Ah Entertainment: 1974—82 . It is hard to overstate the multimedia sway that the late comedians Wang Sha and Ye Feng held over two generations of Chinese Singaporeans. From the 1960s to the 1990s, they reigned over Chinese television, radio and film; released comedy and music albums; and performed on stage in revues, theatres and Chinese operas, even fronting ad campaigns for brands like Fujifilm. The reach of this ..read more
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Jangan buang current Carolyn Oei
Mekong Review » Southeast Asia
by Mekong Review 2
1M ago
Photo: Marc Nair The bicycle is  ’s preferred mode of transportation. Cycling is a great way to keep fit and it’s environmentally friendly, though it isn’t always safe or easy on Singapore’s roads given its few bicycle lanes. Similar to walking, cycling can be meditative and a way to notice and know a city. Also like walking, it is labour. Propelling the bicycle forward, wending through traffic, getting lost, finding one’s path again. In the subcutaneous layers of things that appear to be spit-shiny and aspirational are mess, chaos, tension; and it is these deeper spaces of discomfort tha ..read more
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