aLL PRIMERO by Wendell Rodricks

Black Monk by Divyam Mehta

POSKEM - Goa’s Unspoken Children Of The Shadows

"Butterflies and bats flying at furious pace in my stomach" - Wendell Rodricks

A few thoughts behind Poskem. I promised Rosa this book. It stayed in my mind that I should write a book. This is my first fiction book. 

It took me about a year to form the characters in my mind. There were also two sticky areas that unnerved me. The intimate scenes essential to the book and the magic realism that I wanted in this dark book. I managed to hurdle over both eventually.

I wrote the book rather quickly. Passed it through a few friends for a reaction, edits & so on. Mario Miranda's illustrations, generously provided by Habiba Miranda and sourced from Gerard D'Cunha, filled in the gap of the non-description needed by the book. They enhanced the narrative perfectly. We now had the book and the illustrations laid out with blurbs from the contributors, and after three more edits, I signed off the book. Jerome ran through the book after printing and found six misspellings.

After 'sign off', preorders were pitched to Amazon.

Waited for a month when the book was finally in my hand. I held it in my hand with the emotion that only writers know. It looked beautiful. My baby Poskem arrived to a doting Dad. --

With his novel 'Poskem - Goans in the Shadows', Wendell Rodricks has brought the tradition from the shadows of the background to under the limelight. 

Of these children, Goa had its fair share, to the extent that a well closeted tradition called poskim evolved around them. Almost all the incidents in the novel are based on true stories he heard from his mother and relatives, he says. 

Talking about the catalyst behind the book, Rosa, a poskem who lived across the street from Rodricks in Colvale, he says, "She looked after a big house and always appeared dejected and alone. We would often talk about food." 

The writing is fluid and engaging and gently takes you deep inside Goa in a way which as a beach shack loving tourist you might not have had. It uses a fictional tone to talk about Goan history and culture without making it sound like a lecture. And there is lots of food talk for food lovers in it and this is woven in seamlessly into the narrative. Wendell's love for Goa comes through in every sentence.

The book is based on the tradition of children from poorer backgrounds who would be taken into affluent Goan families and the many shapes this relation would take. Such children were called Poskem.

If you read the book, you will realise why Poskem - Kalyan Karmakar -

This book is unlike anything I had read earlier, had no prior knowledge about this issue. It was an education to start with. Mario Miranda's funny illustrations and the double-spaced typeface give you a feeling that this is going to be a fun ride as a perfect read for a rainy afternoon.

Banish the thought, for what unfolds here will jolt you. Did these incidents actually happen? Apparently they did! Was it a well-kept secret outside Goa? Seems so, And those recipes coming at you every now and then, while the characters are going through personal hell? Makes you wonder; What genre is this? Is it a cook book with some dark local stories thrown in ? No. Is it a coffee table book about old Goa with some local recipes thrown in? No. It is a look inside a dark past and what you see isn't pretty at all. As the writer calls it, "a shameful practice".

Wendell Rodricks, this is a terrific piece of story-telling... demonstrates your usual encyclopedic knowledge of customs, practices, events and people, not to forget the culinary & language / narrative skills that you obviously possess in great measure!. Such a pleasure reading this one. "More strength to you", W ! - Manohar Duvvuri

-- "The next generation may not know about the poskim. I don't want to blame people for having them. It was something that happened in the past. Sometimes history can be a shameful thing. This is part of Goan history. It's not that it didn't happen. I wrote the book to ensure that these secrets are not consigned to the forgotten secrets of Goans," says WR.

T H E C U B I S T R O S E - Schulen Fernandes for Wendell Rodricks

Inspiration? Not really. "The coincidence is just a stroke of creative forces" says' Wendell Rodricks

"Cuekee"; that's what they call me. Cucumber Cool before a show...always. #TheCubistRose rehearsal a half hour away and yours truly a sea of calm in a frenetic fashion place. - WR

Schulen Fernandes presents The Cubist Rose for Wendell Rodricks in a path breaking collection that celebrates the rose in a new cubist avatar. In a symphony of reds, oranges, pinks and purples off set with teal green, nude peach and pale blue, The Cubist Rose cuts a striking colour palette for autumn winter. At the core of the collection is not just a rose but the various interpretations in cut metallic leather, layered organza, floating georgette, satin silk, structured cotton satin, silken linen, Bemberg slub weave, poly crinkle and lush pashmina wool. The garments reflect the art of Cubism in keeping with the geometric philosophy of Wendell Rodricks. To this minimalist design statement, Schulen brings to the collection an infusion of youth and modernity in a worthy successor interpretation. Playing volume against slim silhouettes, structured forms with fluid flow and layering with lined garments, the entire collection is subtly infused with rose gold and silver accents. Innovations in design include jacket dresses, Cubist petal collars, 3D elevated leather cutwork, Harlequin technicolour blocking, angled silhouettes and hems. 

The Cubist jewellery/earings by Ayesha Accessories. Schulen Fernandes fuchsia and gold with purple heels, made by Stoffa Hersh Kolecha, Schulen Fernandes hand made the neck piece, Ambika Pillai makeup and hair 

This is Schulen Fernandes' second collection for the Wendell Rodricks label. As Creative Head, Schulen brings a refreshing creative expression to the two and a half decade old label from Goa. With The Cubist Rose, Schulen Fernandes proves a worthy successor to Wendell Rodricks and a formidable talent in her own right. 

The Cubist Rose collection by Schulen Fernandes for Wendell Rodricks unveiled at
Amazon India Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 2017/2018  on 17th March at New Delhi. 


www.wendellrodricks.com


 

THE VALLEY OF MISSING FLOWERS SR'17 - Dev R Nil

　

BEAUTY in itself is fragile. Something that is present and absent at the same time. A thought which one feels, that makes one react to itself while being seen through different hues. This world is in a state of chaos, where Beauty, in its truest sense is losing itself in the void. People are losing their homes, hopes, dreams. Regions are losing generations after generations to this outbreak and Beauty is being replaced by agony, despair and dead outcomes. It is the pathway between Beauty and the Dead that has been highlighted.

Dev r Nil's "The Valley of Missing Flowers" collection inspired by the picturesque - Conflict zones & the violence. Fraught with fragments of personal history, series is a revelation of the intimate stories that lie between the lines of conflict in one of the most violently contested regions in the world. - deeply evocative, powerful and persistent.

Treating its audience with different looks that included stripes, simple stripes, ikat feathers, metallics and meadows, 3D floral appliqué details and together made an exceptional combination. Shimmering zip down jackets with saris were seen on models walking the ramp. A black sheer outfit with a monochrome print lining and sequel detailing along with basic silhouettes, including shararas, kurtas, capes, kimonos, bandgalas, striped handloomed saris, trousers in hand and shaded machine embroidery, dominated with floral patterns with geometric lines and flower prints featuring embroidery.

Designs and surface embellishments inspired from the valley, enhanced by the surface details that were styled in a structured manner, contrasting with the fluidity of the silk, tissue and organza fabrics.

In colour range from Eckru to somber greys , muted greens to dusty blues contrasted with sudden hints of midnight blues ,reds and lime greens, almost as if hinting towards the bloom of an everlasting apriori state of Hope in the middle of hopelessness.

When violence becomes the only constant

The generations are lost

The flower gardens freeze…

It's white everywhere

The blanket of snow on a never-ending graveyard…

The spring which never came..

The flowers died before they bloomed…

"SUMMER RESORT 2017" Inspired by the works of Bharat Sikka on life and the aftermath of destruction in places where once beauty prevailed, where purity and serenity glowed brightly, aims to highlight this spectrum between the two gradients of Beauty and the Dead, in the hope that the natural priorities of the Human Soul be realized and treated in a manner ,as fragile as they are. Because, Beauty is fragile, Beauty is Omnipresent, Omniscient, Omnipotent.

In parts delicate and feminine;(frozen or dried in places) to be juxtaposed by the contrasting military like/ inspired styles. Fluidity is contrasted by the severity of structure. Using couture techniques in most part of the collection this collection is primarily targeted towards the Spring Summer couture and diffusion range.

　

The journey between two states of Being has been represented through the texture and prints showcased. The floral patterns lead into more rigid geometric lines. Likewise, floral prints and embroideries can be seen changing into more geometric printed curves and embroideries. Delicate thread work has been made to merge into more stark metallic shine, whereas glass pipe embroidery simultaneously has been used with the cutwork and appliqué to carefully show a contrast.

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