Sohanalysis

Hiatus

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Thu, 07 May 2015 20:00:00 +0000

Bit hectic with winding down here, moving to the US, and my first semester at MIT, so taking a break for now. Hope to continue blogging when things calm down.

Operation Opera at The Ivy

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Thu, 12 Mar 2015 19:06:00 +0000

With a breather weekend between stretches of seasonal schedule madness on my hands, I headed down to The Ivy at Jumeirah Emirates Towers for a little Thursday night live music break. And specifically this one, because of a chance to witness opera being performed in a far more casual setting than is typical for the genre, as well as the combination of two talented locally-based artists: friend and vocalist Paul Bester, and pianist/composer Dale Nichols. They made a great musical combination, expertly performing a mix of contemporary and classic operatic renditions, and taking a few requests as well. I and my companion enjoyed the performance immensely, with lovely English bites and drinks from the Ivy's menu rounding off a great Thursday night.

Short+Sweet Gala Final

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Sat, 28 Feb 2015 18:30:00 +0000

Short+Sweet's Dubai short play festival ended its three weekends of abbreviated theatre in a final face-off and award ceremony today. Unlike the past two runs S+S, in which I made it to almost all qualifying run events and skipped the finals, my February travel plans allowed me time to attend only the gala final.

The cast and director/writer of Treteau

Having not seen any of the qualifying runs this time, I don't know what the final plays were up against in their respective weekends. Each had their strengths, but I found some of them a bit lackluster as a result of specific writing tropes and production choices (e.g. melodramatic effects, plot twists lacking creativity, etc).

There were some indubitably good ones as well. Third Half Theatre's Treteau powered ahead with its tight stage work by an ensemble cast, sweeping up awards for script (tying with The Bronx Budgie, another play with some great lines), directing, and best play overall on both judicial and popular counts. I was also rooting for the other contemporary theatre ensemble play, Starry Little Stories, but it sadly could not make any of the categories. The power of the monologue reigned, however, as best actor and actress awards went very deservedly to Asad Raza in It's All The Rage, and Mina Kici Khattar in La Marie Vison.

What's on for Art Week this year

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Wed, 25 Feb 2015 08:30:00 +0000

Programs for Art Week 2015 were announced at a joint press conference today at Mina A'Salam, with days to go before March Madness. The event focused mainly on Design Days Dubai and Art Dubai, the anchor events of the week that kicks off Art Season.

Some of the more notable points mentioned there included:

Art Dubai IX will feature galleries from 40 countries -- the highest geo-diversity so far.
Art Dubai's "Marker" programme will shine a spotlight on Latin America this year -- definitely something I look forward to.
The Global Art Forum will set aside a day for the globe-trotting youth art project, 89plus (referring to the generation born after 1989).
The Artists-in-Residence programme this year will feature six younger (in terms of industry experience) artists, distinguishing it from the Commissions programme of more experienced artists partnered with organizations.
Some names to watch out for while browsing the 72 contemporary art galleries include Nikhil Chopra, Olu Amoda, and Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, while Farid Belkahia will be among the artists featured in the 15 modern galleries.
RCA Secret from the Royal College of Art will be a special guest exhibitor at Art Dubai.
Design Days will include its largest UAE and Middle East representation to date, with Sharjah and Ajman making their debuts.
Most anticipated for me at Design Days Dubai will be the return of ArtFactum, Crafts Council, The Fatima bint Mohammed Initiative, and Wiener Silber Manufactur. Others to put on the must-visit list would be Zumtobel and House of Today.

Poetry and paint at The Space

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Sun, 01 Feb 2015 16:00:00 +0000

Artist B'lu of Henosis today launched her grand solo exhibition, "Grandpa Says", in Abu Dhabi, with no less than the Ambassador of India snipping the ribbon. Spanning almost all of February and featuring a palette knife workshop run by the artist, works spanning diverse themes, sizes, and media adorned the display boards of The Space.

The artistic talent on display is evident in the attention to salient detail and the delicious harmony of colors, across works ranging from the very small to the very large. Some of my favorites were of the scenery perspectives: looking up into sky in a grove, or across a distant field at sunset, or down at reflections on a pond -- these are definitely her forte. A couple of paintings done in mainly grey, wintry tones stood out in particular.

Accompanying many of the paintings were short poems. Constructed mainly as narratives, these were notable for their simple flow and occasional colloquialisms that create a sense of intimacy.

Among other explorations of media, gold and coffee -- two among the most expensive commodities in the world, incidentally -- were used in a few works to very harmonious interplay of hue and luster.

Analysis of Dubai public space at A4 Space

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Sat, 31 Jan 2015 17:00:00 +0000

UAEU professor Dr Yasser Elsheshtawy delivered a presentation, "Slow Space", at the A4 Space in Al Serkal Avenue today, describing the methodology of and data from his studies on the usage of urban spaces in the Middle East.

He began the Campus Art Dubai talk with an introduction of his earlier Cairo project and mentioned his Abu Dhabi project with FIND, but the bulk of the presentation was about his work on public space usage patterns in Dubai -- specifically, of a street in Hor al Anz and a square in Deira, both in "old Dubai".

I thought the long-ish time lapse videos were kind of unnecessary, but I liked his data maps, his descriptions of the process of acquiring the data, information about the histories and functions of the areas, and various anecdotes from the study, some of which were also revealed during the Q&A session that followed.

Loom Ensemble brings Art Monastery performance to Dubai

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Fri, 30 Jan 2015 17:30:00 +0000

Loom Ensemble's Dubai-based cohort returned to the city this month after half a year away, to begin a residency of performance and workshops at thejamjar. The fruits of their Art Monastery residency in Italy during their time away, which they refined over an international tour, premiered at thejamjar this weekend as a contemporary theatre performance they call "Prime".

The central theme of the performance is a relationship that becomes increasingly tempestuous as one of the two characters, played by Neva Cockrell, finds herself unable to relate to her partner, played by Raphael Sacks. The tension and lack of meaningful communication in their relationship is portrayed using an array of visual, verbal, physical and vocal metaphors -- some with more than one dimension of allusion.

The play features beautiful choreography and appropriate pacing, with some particularly interesting motifs expressed through color and clothing. A keen observer will notice a few internal cross-references in the narrative, and see aspects of the broader themes in seemingly mundane actions or words. Much is also added by the tactical lighting and playback sound, which were technically executed very well.

The many questions and interpretations from audience members were addressed during the short discussion session that followed, in which the inspirations and process behind the project were also described.

Comedy arrives in the capital

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Tue, 27 Jan 2015 18:30:00 +0000

With a growing number of options for stand-up comedy in Dubai, and even one way up in Ras al Khaimah, it's about time the capital saw some action. And that's just what happened mid-week, as Abu Dhabi standup comedy pioneers, Yalla Laughs, kicked off a fortnightly gig series in the Barosa pub at Cristal Salam Hotel.

The pub, itself fairly new, had a cosy bar hall reserved for the event. There was plenty of parking (albeit the kind that consumes some AED 1 coins and spits out others) around the hotel when I got there, forcing me to cancel my set's opening joke about parking in Abu Dhabi. I still got in a couple of city-specific jokes, woven into my newer set along with a few older bits.

Yalla Laughs' Erik Thornquist and Jonathan Boulton (top right and top left) -- AUH-based comedians who thus far have had to drive up north for gigs -- took care of preparations this time, while five of us from Dubai drove south to join them for Abu Dhabi's first regular local comedy night.

To our growing relief, the launch event was blessed with a turnout that was not only sizable, but generally receptive as well. Tight emceeing by Erik kept the energy going for me (bottom right) and four other performers, climaxing in a side-splitting headliner set by Salman Qureshi (bottom left).

Comics workshop with The Animation Chamber

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Sat, 24 Jan 2015 15:00:00 +0000

The early evening scheduling of this comics workshop by Dubai's The Animation Chamber was very helpful in ensuring I would get to Maraya Art Centre in minimal time, given how thick traffic to Sharjah tends to later. The program plan was also perfect for me, since it focused on character design and strip development rather than drawing; I already took a course in comic drawing previously.

The workshop consisted of several short timer-limited exercises, beginning with a warm-up: each participant drawing one consecutive panel of blank strips being passed around in each turn.

Then came each participant's individual assignment: random selection of three descriptors each for two characters, prototyping each character, and reducing them to easily-drawn essentials repeated in different poses. It was a little tricky for me at first, as I only trained in the drawing of human faces, but I eventually adapted some of those techniques and kludged up something halfway decent.

After a much-needed break, we chose names for our characters (in my case, "Greta" for my wise hippo supermodel, and "Wilhelm" for my psychotic turtle psychotherapist) and got down to the final stretch of comic production: plot conception, storyboard planning, bordering, sketching and drawing. I was familiar with the idea of the one-page foldout format, but I had never actually created a comic using it, and was pleased with the result achieved in the limited time we were allotted. It was a fun workshop, considering how the 3 hours flew by, and I even got some practice in for my drawing hand after a long time.

50 Shades of Blues in Abu Dhabi

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Wed, 07 Jan 2015 19:00:00 +0000

Alivia and the Elite Blues Band kicked off my musical experience of 2015 in the sixth Rooftop Rhythms blues-centric musical venture, "50 Shades of Blues", at the Saadiyat Beach Club's De La Costa bar and lounge in Abu Dhabi. Blues being right up my musical alley, I was happy to find a dedicated local event for this genre (which seems to be even more rare here than jazz).

Alivia's powerful, broad-ranged vocals and engaging showmanship were backed by the Elite Blues Band's drummer Terrence and keyboardist Robert, the latter of whom also took over lead vocals now and then. Songs performed that night on the club's beachfront terrace ranged across blues, soul and R&B genres, beginning with some light, playful numbers like "Voodoo Woman" and "Meet Me With Your Black Drawers On". Later on, Robert showed us how it's done in Hammond mode when "Down Home Blues" came up in the playlist.

In the second set, audience participation began in earnest as Alivia took on a fan request and expertly rendered the Bobby Womack classic "Harry Hippie" -- a song that provided ample opportunities for a microphone pass-around. Closing a fun night of great musical performance with an enthusiastic crowd, the third and final set included popular hits like "I'll Be Around", progressively drawing people onto the dance floor, and pushing the night into the line dancing phase (obliging even bisinistrapedal me to give it a shot).

Yule love Scandinavian baking

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Sat, 03 Jan 2015 15:00:00 +0000

Christmas baking time again, and it's a return to Europe with a tea party of Scandinavian Xmas treats. Rather than do a pan-Scandinavian, I decided to do one of the most essential Xmas bake from each of the three Scandinavian countries: Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

Beginning in Denmark, I started with pebernødder (pepper nuts, literally). There's no pepper in them, but there's a hint of a spice or two, depending on the recipe. For mine, I used a teaspoon of ground cardamom, mixing it with 350g flour and a half teaspoon each of baking soda and baking powder. I then mixed 225g sugar with 80g salted butter, folding in an egg and then 100ml whipping cream. I combined this with the flour mixture to get a dough, kneading and adding a little flour until homogeneous and firm.

I pulled fist-sized blobs from this dough and rolled them out into long sausages on a floured board, using a greased knife to cut out inch-long segments to lay out on the baking tray for a 15 minute bake at 225C, until they got golden brown on top.

I got 48 pebernødder from this recipe. These were mildly sweet and subtly spiced, delicious eaten with hot tea, and kept well after as leftovers.

Moving on to Norway's sandkaker (sand cake). I mixed 200g butter into 250g flour to get a dense dough, adding in 100g almond flour, an egg, and 100g sugar to knead. The almond flour gives it a sandy texture to which the name refers. I refrigerated the kneaded combined dough for about an hour, covered.

I had bought special shell-shaped tartlet tins for this item; it is the traditional shape, although I could have used my regular flat tartlet baking tray had I not been able to find them. While preheating the oven to 175C, I pressed the cold dough into the tins (perhaps a little too thickly, in retrospect), and then baked them for about 15 minutes, until the edges of the tartlets became golden brown. After they were done baking, I let them cool for about 10 minutes before prying them out of the shell tins and letting them cool to room temperature. 24 sandkaker in all, and maybe half as many more if I had spread them thinner.

Lacking multe berries, I made do with raspberries to top, spread over with generous helpings of whipped cream to make a treat that appealed to the palate and eye alike.

The final baking destination was Sweden and its saffransbullar (saffron bun), also called lussekatt (after St Lucy's Day, which falls during Advent). In a mortar, I ground up 1.5g saffron with about a teaspoon of sugar, and cultured 25g yeast by mixing with 150ml warm milk and 100g warm melted butter, letting it sit for several minutes. I then added the ground saffron and 100g sugar, plus half an egg, half a teaspoon of salt.

Finally, I added 375g flour, kneading up a dough into which I mixed about 40g raisins. I let this springy dough rise, covered, for about 30 minutes in a warm place. I rolled lumps of twelfths of the dough out into small sausages, letting them sit covered for 10. Finally, I rolled them out twice as long, then rolling in the ends into double-spiral S-shapes around a couple of raisins, and letting them sit covered for about 90 minutes. Before baking for about 5 minutes each at 220C, until golden brown on top, I brushed the buns with a mixture of the other half of the egg and a couple tablespoons of water.

The buns were delightfully fluffy, sweet to the taste, and a gorgeous bright yellow color inside and out.

The Object as Mediator

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Tue, 16 Dec 2014 16:30:00 +0000

Flemish artist duo Robbert&Frank/Frank&Robbert brought their performance art piece, The Object as Mediator, to the city this week. It's rare to see something of this abstract level here, even deep under the dermis of Dubai's art world. I had to miss their show at the Mahani event on Dec 10th, but there was, fortunately, another opportunity to see them perform today at The Mine, along with an unexpectedly strong turnout.

One especially interesting dimensions to their 45-minute performance was the lighting. The performance began with the gallery lights shut off, and all the lighting from then on came from performance props, including a film projector and the headlamps of a MINI they drove through the gallery. Featuring no dialogue, their performance, as well as the occasional audience members' participation, took place silently, with an oddball music track mix playing in the background.

Employing such props as wooden blood pools, forensic brushes, and miniature pine tree cutouts, the artists' actions during the performance seemed to be portraying the construction of violence, and depicting as farce the process of investigating, analyzing, and assigning responsibility for it. Such themes could be particularly relevant now, given recent events in the US and in the Middle East.

Dubai International Film Festival 2014

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Sat, 13 Dec 2014 16:30:00 +0000

DIFF: the week in which I go to a film theater more than during the entire remainder of the year. And attending the biggest cinephiles' carnival in town is not just a way to see films that do not typically make it to theaters here -- it also means bumping into and catching up with many people I've not seen in a while.

I had to be particularly selective this DIFF, though, since my busy schedule that week meant I could take time off only during the weekend evenings. Looking back, I'd say I was generally pleased with my six choices, which encompassed documentary, comedy and drama in equal measure.

(clockwise from top left) Afia Nathaniel on the right, director of Dukhtar; Hind Shoufani on the left, director of Trip Along Exodus; Ali F. Mostafa on the far left, director of From A to B; Gautam Sonti on the left and Usha Rao on the right, directors of Our Metropolis.

Except Haemoo, all of my films had Q&As with filmmakers and/or cast afterwards. I was especially fascinated by the journeys of Ms Nathaniel in making Dukhtar (10 years, in her case), and of Sonti/Rao in making Our Metropolis.

Following are some of my thoughts on the films.

ABOOD KANDAISHAN

Whatever people may think of wasta, this Emirati comedy by Tent Pictures makes its titular character come out likable. The film is set in many locations viewers, Emirati or otherwise, would likely recognize, like Zayed Sports City, and the ADNOC on Sheikh Khalifa Highway, and otherwise avoids glitzy spots in favor of run-down freej alleyways, homely homes, and tranquil terraces. This, in addition to such sequences as the lingering shot of the preparation of the familiar-to-old-timers Oman Chips sandwich, establish Abood as "one of us". The soundtrack was very nice too, and I liked the guerrilla style (well, mostly).

Perhaps this film is about how people don't need wasta, and will be freed from insincere friends/crushes if they are kind and generous. In terms of plot, though, that results in subplot similarity to many "redemption of the good guy" type films, and therefore a good deal of predictability that's not helped much by the obvious Chekhov's treasure chest in the beginning. The deus ex moment that brings the film to a resolution is also jarring in how it does not clearly follow from the plot of film to that point.

I thought the lead actor, Abdulrahman Al Nakhi, was a good fit for the dorkwardly comedic Abood Kandaishan. The supporting cast, however, was mixed among those who did excellent work of it (such as the Indian housekeeper and the Emirati rooftop sage), and some others who seemed to be, well, just going through the motions. The grating perception of the latter was exacerbated by some of the dialogue that might look better on paper than it would in a spoken conversation.

Abood Kandaishan is still trailblazing in Emirati cinema in its genre, and I think this path of portraying the real lives of people who live here through comedy should definitely be explored further.

HAEMOO

South Korea is home to one of my go-to film industries, so I had high expectations. This one had a nicely gritty and realistic style, with good action scenes and dialogue, and good acting talent. The exposition scenes in the beginning were concise, and the tilt was implemented well. Much of the film was shot in nighttime outdoors or low-light indoors, and the scenography for this was done superbly.

Character development was a bit predictable, though, as the established archetypes' traits were simply amplified in response to the escalating horror. A couple of them were outright cartoon characters, and the film was overall very heavy on tropes. Despite these, Haemoo, which was based on a true story, did a good job portraying the perils of human trafficking and the high seas through drama.

DUKHTAR

Excellent actors and world-class cinematography made this film about a dramatized escape from child marriage one of the best I've seen this year. The writing was most commendable; although there were a few cliche bits written to very obviously drive the plot (telling a child to stay put is a good guarantee that they will scoot in a few moments), the filmmakers subverted a few tropes and played a couple of naughty tricks with timelines to spring tactical-level surprises on the viewers. The character development and plot complexity was outstanding too. The natural beauty of the tribal regions of Pakistan is also showcased in all its magnificence, rounding off a very satisfying film.

TRIP ALONG EXODUS

This sorta-documentary presents a rarely-seen face of Palestinian nationalism: erudite, uncompromising, and secular. Its lead filmmaker and interviewer is the daughter of the focal character, the (recently) late Dr Elias Shoufani, and there is as much family album in here as there is political/historical content. This is just something one gets used to as the documentary progresses.

The interviews take place in unassuming, everyday, home surroundings in an apparently very candid, ex tempore manner, filmed unprocessed and crisp, usually with only ambient background sound. There is a lot of editing, as bits from countless reels of archival footage is played in background exposition montages set to electronic ambient music. An additional artistic element is present in overlays of sometimes cute animated drawings that illustrate moments in the interviews.

Other people in his then-present or past lifetime are also interviewed -- interestingly, with no title cards, bringing the focus to the content rather than to the relationships. Dr Shoufani's interviews themselves span several topics, including sometimes scathing analyses of regional political situations and figures. Much editing is therefore also used to splice together soundbites from different interviews into single-topic sequences. These reveal very interesting composite perspectives (some of them even coming across humorous) and together paint a comprehensive picture of a simple yet multi-faceted man -- one who made many hard choices, and of whose life the world should really know more, especially in these times.

OUR METROPOLIS

This documentary follows five years of conflict between human heritage and globalized visions of modernity, depicting the struggles of urban conservationists, entrenched residents, and laborers against metro construction, road widening plans, and stingy government bodies in Bangalore.

Our Metropolis started out uncomfortably kids'-show-like with the "time travel" intro, and is a bit dragged-out in some parts (mainly the protests), but it has overall good editing and shooting techniques, and tells some interesting stories. Especially commendable of the filmmakers was their emphasis on being in the thick of the action, and they mostly let the people and events do the talking live. It's a good documentary, and especially relevant to me, both as a resident of EXPO-bound Dubai and as a likely future frequent visitor to Bangalore.

FROM A TO B

You know it's a road trip film. Which means you have some idea of what's going to happen: misunderstandings, detours, improbable encounters, etc. Even so, Ali F Mostafa's second big feature is one of the best road trip films I've ever seen, as well as the one of the best films I've seen come out of this region, period.

Pay attention to the title sequence, as it includes some exposition details that are later referred to. The trip-bound trio -- a Saudi foil, a straight Syrian, and an Egyptian who straddles the two roles (Fahad Albutairi, Fadi Rifaai, and Shadi Alfons, respectively) -- are all fluently bilingual Arab expats in the UAE, written as novel youth characters in different interesting life stages and situations, and played by fresh but very impressive acting talent.

After the exposition and character establishment sequences are over, and the road trip actually gets underway, the comedic aspect goes through the roof, inducing genuine belly laugh after genuine belly laugh, using well-written and clever jokes that transcend culture and language. Many of bits took me by surprise, and it's not often that this happens. I applaud the writers, as well as the actors for their comedic delivery and timing.

The nice bilingual soundtrack spans a good range of music from classic hits to contemporary, and the cinematography is excellent. The road trip plot also affords opportunities for diverse scenic and interesting locations, of which full advantage was taken. While there were a few morality points, I'm guessing that because the leads were expats traveling through mainly other countries, the film included more bold topics, references, and traits, and was definitely less preachy than City of Life. An excellent supporting and cameo cast -- including some seemingly big names in Arabic celluloid -- ices the cake.

This brilliant comedy, with its themes of friendship and serendipity, is worthy of stocking for repeat watching, and I hope that we'll someday see as bold and as funny a film with a lead Emirati cast and local setting.

An Emirati feast for National Day

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Tue, 02 Dec 2014 13:30:00 +0000

It's been a few years since I began my culinary tour of the world through home-cooked theme meals. December 2nd of 2014, though, would mark the day I did some "adopted home: cooking, as I finally got around to putting together an Emirati meal, in celebration of the UAE's 43rd National Day. With some downloaded Emirati traditional music playing, and with flags and flag-colored balloons decorating my apartment, I welcomed my 9 guests to the most authentic Emirati feast I could muster.

First came procuring the essentials. Samen (ghee, or clarified butter), in the yellow jar, is one of the main fats used for frying, cooking, and garnishing in Emirati cuisine. For desserts and beverages, ma2 al ward (rosewater), here in the bottle, is frequently used. If you're doing anything savory, you almost certainly will be using the Emirati spice mix they call bezar, here in the silver packet with the green label. And last, but not least, I got those two bags containing sufficient quantities of loomi (dried lime), one bag of whole and one bag of powdered. These make a world of difference in giving that distinctive aroma and taste to many Emirati dishes. They are all available in major hypermarkets around here -- definitely in Union Co-op, which visibly markets towards the Emirati demographic.

As a light starter, I made Emirati street and snack mainstay, dango, by soaking 2.5 cups of dried chickpeas overnight with 1.5 tsp soda bicarbonate, and boiling the drained chickpeas with salt and 10 small dried red chilies on low-medium heat for about an hour, until tender. For such a simple dish, it's surprisingly tasty and hearty.

For my other starter, I made the Emirati comfort food they call harees. I had about 650g of lamb on the bone and 2 cups of whole wheat (sold under the name of harees itself) boiled with 6 cups of water and simmered for two hours, until the free water had evaporated. I then added a tablespoon of salt and another cup of water for a further hour of sealed simmering.

After removing the bones, I used a handheld blender to blend it all down to a thick puree, and served it the traditional way: warm, spread into a platter, and garnished with samen. A subtly flavored dish, with a unique texture.

I made two entrees of seafood, the first of which was the Emirati staple called jesheed -- a dish made with the meat of the local baby shark. Probably because it's primarily an Emirati thing, I could only find this in Union Co-op, and you need to buy a whole shark at a time, which they will skin, gut, and partially cut for you.

I boiled about a kilogram of shark meat chunks for about an hour, until they became firm enough to easily debone and shred. While I was doing the deboning and shredding, I fried 4 sliced onions golden in vegetable oil, then adding 2.5 tbsp loomi powder, 1.5 tbsp turmeric, 1.5 tbsp bezar and 4 crushed garlic cloves to fry and let the flavors mingle. I then stirred in 5 chopped tomatoes, followed by the shredded shark meat and a little water, and simmered it all under a lid for about half an hour.

I believe this was my first time eating shark, and I found the texture a bit strange at first. But once I mentally digested the fact that this wasn't regular fish, I came to quite like the mildly spicy, umami-rich taste of this dish.

My second entree was robeyann nashif, a spicy shrimp dish that's popular at Emirati dining tables, and the curry leaves in which might indicate some influence from my own home country.

I again fried 4 sliced onions golden in vegetable oil, then stirring in 2.5 tbsp bezar, 1 tbsp turmeric, 1 tsp ground fennel seeds, 5 crushed garlic cloves, 3 tbsp loomi powder, 1.5 tsp cummin seeds, 15 curry leaves, 1.5 tbsp tomato paste, and 2.5 tbsp grated ginger for a few minutes of frying. Finally, I added the cleaned, shelled large shrimp, and cooked on low heat for about 15 minutes.

Served with store-bought markouk bread (my attempt at making regag failed, due to my lack of a proper gas griddle), this dish, with its sharp, spicy taste, turned out to be an unqualified hit, and not a lick of it remained.

Then came the main course: fogga diyay (diyay being the Emirati pronunciation of dejaj, Arabic for chicken). A fogga, known also as machboos/makboos/kabsa, is basically a dish of rice cooked in a meat stock, flavored with loomi and other spices. The previous night, I prepared its typical accompaniment, daqus (center), by pureeing 4 chopped tomatoes with half a chopped onion, 4 fresh chili peppers, and a tablespoon of hot sauce.

Late in the morning of the lunch, I rubbed in pieces of chicken (mostly drumsticks and thighs) with some salt and a lot of bezar (top), cooking them in samen until they were slightly cooked (right). I then added 6 cups of chicken stock, 3 chopped fresh tomatoes, 8 chopped cloves of garlic, 5 whole loomi, 2 large sticks of cinnamon, and 12 bruised pods of cardamom, simmering covered for about 20 minutes (bottom). Finally, I added some salt and 5 cups of rice that had been soaked and drained. Without stirring, I let this cook, loosely covered, until the stock was absorbed and rice had risen, and then placed a tight lid on it to cook for 15 minutes.

I served it hot with the daqus and some cold yogurt that had been mixed with chopped mint. The chicken was so tender that it was falling apart, and the stock had imparted a wonderfully savory flavor to the rice, all enhanced with the taste of bezar and the aroma of the whole loomi. Next time, though, I would cut the quantity of rice to half, or two-thirds at most. Rice-heavy is apparently how it's done in the khaleej, but it's too much for my tastes.

And finally, for dessert, I prepared a quintessential Emirati pudding called aseeda bobar. While this pudding can be and is made without pumpkin -- which would be just aseeda -- the bobar version is more popular for texture lent it by the pumpkin flesh.

I first steamed 850g of local pumpkin flesh cubes, while roasting 400g of whole wheat flour (top). I then mashed and mixed these together with 350g date syrup (most recipes call for honey, but I used date syrup instead, for that really local taste), a teaspoon of saffron threads, and a teaspoon of ground cardamom (bottom right), moistening as necessary. After cooking for about 10 minutes, I added 3 tbsp of ma2 al ward and half a cup of samen (bottom left), and cooked it for another 10 minutes.

I served generous lukewarm scoops of the resulting fluffy pudding with plenty of brown raisins and almond flakes, and it went down a treat with everyone.

To punctuate the meal, I prepared some core Emirati beverages. First, I made a welcome drink of aseer tazza (right), a blend of 6 cups of orange juice with 1.5 cups of lemon juice, 3 teaspoons of ma2 al ward, and sugar to sweeten.

To help wash down the entrees and prepare for the main, I brewed some chai jerfau, a "tea" made by boiling 8 sticks of cinnamon with a little sugar and 1 tsp saffron in 5 cups of water (bottom).

Finally, to end our authentic Emirati meal, I brewed some gahwa (coffee) local style by boiling half a cup of freshly ground coffee beans in 5 cups of water, and steeping it with 1 tsp saffron, 1 tsp crushed cloves, 4 teaspoons ma2 al ward, and 2 tsp coarsely ground cardamom (bottom). Served in shot quantities, it helped get all the hearty dishes and eclectic tastes of the local cuisine settled in our tummies.

Recipes based on those in "The Complete United Arab Emirates Cookbook" by Celia Ann Brock- Al Ansari (1994)

A Funny Story from Dubomedy

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Sat, 29 Nov 2014 15:30:00 +0000

Dubomedy launched a new mixed comedy event series this weekend, at its now regular venue, Fraiche Cafe and Bistro in JLT. Held as it was in the early evening at a cafe, the first event of this "It's a Funny Story!" series had a significant youth demographic in attendance. Also, a nice raised stage.

The evening began with stand-up, as the lineup of comedians narrated humorous tales that may or may not be entirely true. I only got there in time for the last few, but well in time to see sets from some of my favorite Dubai comedians.

And after the interval, several definitely made-up funny stories were created by Dubomedy's Improv Revolution troupe in primarily short-form WLIIA-style improv games, including a couple of fun games I had not previously seen from the troupe. Mainly thanks to the more experienced actors, it was a generally enjoyable and engaging show.

Math, sociology, and a unified theory by Dr Guillermina Jasso

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Thu, 27 Nov 2014 16:00:00 +0000

Can social forces be quantified? According to NYU sociology professor Dr Guillermina Jasso, who discussed just such a question at this NYU Abu Dhabi public lecture, not only can they be quantified, they can even be figured into a mathematical "unified theory"of sociology and social psychology that can be used to make real-world predictions. I found this talk consistently fascinating, not in the least because modeling of social forces is of professional interest to me.

Dr Jasso's introduced the leanings and engines of societies, and their permutations, and went on to talk about her "New Unified Theory" in terms of its constituent social forces: justice, status, and power. I don't have nearly as deep a background in sociology, but her descriptions of how these forces could be measured and their dynamics fitted to familiar mathematical functions seemed quite plausible.

Things got even more interesting when it came down to applications. Dr Jossa's portfolio of validated predictions based on her models was impressive, listing several predictions per slide about how the theory could be applied to model outcomes in matters of war, crime, family, marriage, politics, etc. It might be worth keeping an eye on related developments.

Two new books for Dubai poetry fans

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Wed, 26 Nov 2014 16:30:00 +0000

A busy season for the local poetry scene gave us book launches by two prolific Dubai-based poets: Frank Dullaghan's third title, The Same Roads Back, and Zeina Hashem Beck's award-winning debut title, To Live in Autumn. Following grand individual launch events, the poets held a joint reading session at DIFC's Bookshop readers' cafe.

After reading out a few of the most characteristic and/or popular poems from their portfolios, Frank and Zeina took questions from and discussed their art with attendees. Topics on the table included the characteristics of "good poetry", free verse vs. metre and rhyme, Zeina's peculiar but apparently effective multilingual composition technique, and some anecdotes and advice on getting published and getting feedback.

Zeina's poems lend themselves well to performance, specifically the creative punctuation and the repetition of words or lines for effect. It makes pleasant reading too, though. Generally more urban in context, the poems refer to colorful personalities, and paint you-had-to-be-there experiences, many of which seem tinged with nostalgia.

Frank's use of metaphorical flourish, combined with everyday language and attention to detail, paints lucid imagery of human and natural scenery, using such phrasing as "quality of light" and "green state of grace". One is easily transported one into the moment, into the perspective of observer or participant. The seemingly mundane is rendered intimate and significant.

The differences between the lived stories of a grey-bearded Irishman and a Lebanese woman who was a college student not long ago are evident in their respective books. There's also some overarching commonality in the use of free verse and vivid descriptions of personal observations. Both books will therefore appeal to fans of this style, while offering differences in content and delivery sufficient to warrant reading both.

Fanny Azzuro piano recital

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Mon, 24 Nov 2014 18:00:00 +0000

Keeping to its tradition of organizing quality musical programs, local Alliance Françaises brought a great French pianist to the UAE's audiences for two evenings of recital. Given my schedule for the week, I figured it would be more convenient getting to the Abu Dhabi program at Novotel al Bustan on the island.

AF Abu Dhabi director (and good musician himself) Jean-Yves Carnino introduced the event and the pianist, Fanny Azzuro. The event was held in a ballroom that had been set up with a projector and camera to ensure that everyone got to see her technique live.

Azzuro's recital began strong with Rachmaninov's Variations on a Theme of Corelli -- a dynamic piece that also did well to exhibit her skill -- and continued to impress with other early 20th century works of diverse style and mood, especially Ravel's Mirrors. And with my passion for the genre, I naturally loved Kapustin's jazzy Variations Op 41 at the end.

Horrible Histories Barmy Britain

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Sat, 22 Nov 2014 13:00:00 +0000

The Horrible Histories musical comedy theatre show returned to Dubai this weekend with Barmy Britain, a journey through British history. Although it was staged this time in the huge Madinat Theatre, and with more showtime options from which to choose, I nonetheless made a relatively early booking, as the show is immensely popular. I'm not sure how many other adult fans of the TV show were in the audience, as almost everyone else seemed to be accompanying children. Even I was the only one, though, who cares? As a history geek, I could not miss it.

No material from the TV series was used in the hour-long show, as far as I recall from the former, but the two-man cast still had some great sketches scripted and songs composed to bring alive British historical facts and figures, from Boudica to Charles I to Victoria. The HH TV show tradition of contrasting historical contexts with modern culture ad absurdum could be seen in some of the sketches, such as Queen Elizabeth going undercover, and the Dick Turpin story done in the style of a reality TV show. The actors did well for the number of very diverse roles they had to play, pulling quick costume changes between sketches, and delivering a very energetic performance all through.

So while the show was oriented towards a child audience (with a couple of sing-along games and such), I still found most of it engaging at my level, and certainly very educational.

Bahria on The Beach

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Sat, 22 Nov 2014 11:00:00 +0000

Just the day before I gave this place a try, I read a breaking post online about a lunch stopover by the ruler of Dubai. That kind of set the bar pretty high, I admit. I was about to tread in the footsteps of royalty.

Bahria certainly has the location going for it: the white sands and azure waters of the beach ahead matching the restaurant decor palette, the towers of JBR in the backdrop, the bustling open mall. The weather being what it is at this time of the year, throngs were thronging, and alfresco was the natural choice. Traffic at JBR is still awful, though -- it took me over 45 minutes to get to The Beach from TECOM. Next time, tram.

The pescetarian Arabesque fusion set sampling menu began with a seafood bisque (bottom right). It was not the typical bisque though, with the curry-like spices making it taste more like a laksa. Cold starters were generally good, especially the calamari salad (top right, right), the beetroot-shrimp salad (bottom left, center) and the dips. Among those the fish tajine (bottom left, right -- actually, strips of fish on hummus, not like the North African tajine) was the best, with the nutty house hummus coming in second (top right, top right). The shrimp fattet (top left) was interesting, but not really to my taste; shrimp with yogurt gave me a weird mouthfeel.

The only cold starter I could not quite take was the provençal (top); it was overpoweringly sour. The hot starters were great overall, though, and I liked the seafood kebbeh (bottom) the most -- perfect texture, inside and outside.

No complaints for the mains. The fish tasted fresh and cooked to perfection, and the sauces provided went very well with. The rice looked like it might be dull to the palate, but it was surprisingly good in its own right.

I had to skedaddle midway through dessert, but the ayesh al saraya I sampled before leaving made a perfectly sweet and creamy end to a generally very good meal.

Dubai Chamber Orchestra autumn concert

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Fri, 21 Nov 2014 18:00:00 +0000

The Dubai Chamber Orchestra held this season's concert today at a new venue: the Centre for Musical Arts at Gold and Diamond Park. The performance hall was fairly large, but extra seats had to be brought in to accommodate the turnout. Additional venue bonus: a metro station right next door.

Conductor Barnaby Priest led the orchestra through a three-part program, consisting of Mozart's Overture to Der Schauspieldirektor, Carl Nielsen's Little Suite for Strings, and a beautiful Symphony No 99 by Haydn. A subset of the orchestra also delighted with a special performance of a collaborative artistic piece composed by Priest, featuring the littoral-themed video art and haunting countertenor talent of Janet Bellotto and Rodney Gilchrist, respectively.

Review of Bing Sheng: The Ultimate Master of War

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Fri, 21 Nov 2014 11:36:00 +0000

Bing Sheng (2008), a TV dramatization of the life of legendary strategist and Art of War author Sun Tzu, runs the length of the Wu state's power peak period. It gets a little slow at times - specifically when the human drama bits are going on -- but its production values and inclusion of a range of major historical characters make it a great watch.

The latter, in fact, is its main attraction, with the tremendous amount of "fan service" available for Chinese history geeks. It starts with a young Sun Tzu in Qi during the era of the legendary Yan Ying and Sima Rangju, when the Sun and Tian clans were locked in conflict against the Gao and Guo clans.

Simultaneously, the Wu clan is in trouble for standing up for righteousness in the state of Chu. The story then follows how Sun Tzu and Wu Zixu leave their respective states, and eventually end up in the service of ambitious King Helv of the Wu state -- a confluence of military, civil and political factors that leads Wu to dominate the south and gain hegemony.

The achievements of the Sun/Wu partnership for the Wu state, however, results in political over-confidence and jealousy-driven schemes against them, and these serve as the moral lessons expressed in various story arcs in the later part of the the series. Other characters from that period also feature, including wily Prince Fuchai, corrupt minister Bo Pi, legendary swordsmith Ou Yezi and his apprentices Gan Jiang and Mo Ye, Chu figures Fei Wuji and Shen Yinxu, and leaders of ascendant Yue, King Gou Jian and strategist Fan Li.

As usual, though, some additional characters and subplots get thrown in to put some fat on the historical facts. In the case of Bing Sheng, the machinations of a vengeful scion of the Guo clan, which the Sun clan eliminated in Qi, drive much of the first half of the series, giving a face and a name to the Chu enemy. There is also a slightly awkward fictional spy subplot thrown in towards the end, as well as a few liberties taken with having Sun Tzu also serve under Fuchai. The eventual fate of Sun Tzu in the series, however, was actually written well.

The series does well as far as battle scene production and the armory, which is pivotal for a series about the art of war. Probably not very historically accurate, but each nation has its own well-designed style. The strategies used by Sun Tzu are also depicted well; I doubt that there is enough of an historical record to have these considered as actual historical accounts, but they are clearly Art of War in spirit, and Sun Tzu explains them well too. Acting in the series is generally good too, with Zhu Yawen and Zhao Yi doing a superb job portraying the world-weary Sun Wu and the fiery Wu Zixu. But for a few fast-forward scenes, it's a good series with plenty to delight a Chinese history fan.

A Sandwich Tea Party

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Fri, 14 Nov 2014 14:30:00 +0000

The story goes that John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich, preferred to not interrupt his card games (or his paperwork, according to another version) with a sit-down meal, and asked his servants to bring him meat between slices of bread instead. His friends noticed this, and soon began to order "the same as Sandwich", which became The Sandwich. Of course, many bread-n-stuff consumption types previous existed, including stuffed buns, wraps, and folded or open-faced forms. Two slices of loaf bread with something between them, however, has always been the "true" sandwich, and this has even been backed up by a court case (White City Shopping Center, LP v. PR Restaurants, LLC).

Choosing the Nov 13th birthday of the Earl as the occasion to celebrate this format, I made one of my theme meals centered around his namesake: a sandwich tea for a party of 6. Few meals are as aristocratic as the sandwich tea, with the emphasis on delicate, refined preparations that are only fleetingly filling, and often contain little actual nutrition.

The savory menu consisted of four of the most classic tea sandwiches: the quintessential mild cucumber sandwich, the creamy egg sandwich, the sharp cheddar sandwich and the salty salmon sandwich.

I went shopping in the early afternoon to find the freshest fillings and bread. The only advance preparation was the mixing of the chopped dill and chives with lemon juice and zest into seasoned cream cheese, and the mixing of mashed boiled egg with seasoned mayonnaise. And the de-crusting of the bread, of course.

Another little prepping process I did was that of the two layers of sponge cake for the sweet "sandwich". I retained the classic sandwich shape here, by using a square baking tin. The preparation began with 200g caster sugar mixed with 200g butter, to which 200g flour and 2 tbsp baking powder was kneaded in, followed by whipping in 2 tbsp milk and 4 large eggs to get a smooth batter. I divided this in two, baking separately at 180C for two minutes to get two flat sponge cakes.

I assembled the sandwiches in two rounds: cucumber and egg in the first, cheddar and salmon in the second. For each cucumber sandwich, I buttered two bread slices on the inside, lay out freshly-cut thin slices of extra-long, seedless cucumbers to cover a buttered surface, and sprinkled on some finely-chopped mint leaves. I used similarly buttered bread to sandwich a dollop of the egg mixture topped with some loose arugula leaves (I could not find watercress anywhere, so this was the closest available substitute).

For the second round, I sandwiched a thick-cut slice of cheddar (had the cheese guy at the supermarket do it to my specification) with a spoonful of Branston pickle between buttered bread, and a generous amounts of smoked salmon between plain slices of bread that had been spread on the interior surfaces with the cream cheese and herb mixture.

I cut up and arranged the sandwiches, garnishing each plate with a few sprigs of the herbs/leaves saved from the preparation stages of the corresponding sandwiches. While the smoked salmon and the egg were received well, the cheddar elicited especially good feedback, and the cucumber was the surprise hit of the evening. All of it went down well with a few cups of hot Earl Grey tea (Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey and the namesake of this tea, was, for part of his life, a contemporary of Sandwich, which made this choice of tea all the more appropriate).

When we were done and ready for "dessert", I spread clotted cream and raspberry jam over the top of one of the (now cool) sponge cakes, placed the other one on top of that, and sifted icing sugar on top of the upper cake. This "Victoria Sandwich", named after Queen Victoria, was a delightfully indulgent end to a lovely tea party, despite being exceedingly simple to prepare.

Quoz Art Festival and a spot of ISEA

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Sat, 08 Nov 2014 15:30:00 +0000

The Quoz Arts Festival returned to the neighborhood this year, with a new branding, a wider audience, and a lot of food. Literally, one lane of Al Serkal Avenue, turned into a food street. A satellite attraction was the upcoming expansion of the Avenue, the construction for which was now looking much closer to completion in the plot next door.

Before taking a look around the galleries, though, I dropped in at the Fridge for the final performance of ISEA 2014: Maziar Ghaderi's Dissolving Self, featuring Vrinda Bhandula's dance performance visually augmented with a live projection behind her, controlled by her movements. It's not the first motion-controlled rendering in the world, but the simple bi-chromatic star field, coalescing, expanding and spining with her was beautiful in execution.

I only had the time to look at a few galleries. One I liked a lot was FN Designs and its exhibition of pop art, especially the long panorama of iconic aspects of Dubai life, pixelated and colored in a style reminiscent of retro computer games.

At Grey Noise, Michael John Welan's Lupus consisted of works in the metaphorical vein typical of the gallery, using different media and/or cultural symbols to wistfully allude to the demise of the Irish wild wolf.

Further afield, Mottahedan Projects' multi-artists exhibition, The Other Side of Visibility, featured a diverse and mostly interesting array of art, with my favorites including the works of Tala Madani (right), Maryam Hoseini (top left) and Habib Farajabadi (bottom left).

When in Romania, Eat

noreply@blogger.com (Sohan Dsouza) — Fri, 31 Oct 2014 14:00:00 +0000

Romania has an unfortunate association with foreboding castles, vampire legends, and the Numa Numa song. Okay, the latter one can at least be technically ascribed to Moldova, but the whole Dracula thing still gives off undeserved creepy vibes. That is why I chose Halloween as the perfect day to have a party of six and celebrate the non-scary side of the country through its food, with some downloaded Romanian folk music to set the mood.

First up, an essential soup for a Romanian meal: ciorba de perisoare, a pork meatball soup cooked in a sour beef and vegetable broth.

I added two each of chopped peeled and chopped medium parsnips and large carrots (one of the parsnips can also be replaced with a parsley root, if available), a sliced onion, a chopped bunch of Dutch parsley, and about 300g of stewing beef to 6 cups of boiling water (I used 5 cups of water and one of sauerkraut juice). Once the boil resumed, I let it simmer covered for about half an hour, using the time to make the meatballs.

I made the meatballs by mashing 300g of lean pork mince with about a cup of breadcrumbs, a chopped onion, 2 tbsp uncooked rice and a dash of warm water, adding a little salt and pepper. Bringing the soup back to a boil, I hand-molded small meatballs of the mash and lowered them into the soup one by one. After the boil resumed, I once again let it simmer for about half an hour, before stirring in 3 tbsp tomato paste.

I seasoned it with a little salt, adjusted the sourness with a little vinegar (one can use just vinegar for the sourness if one does not have sauerkraut juice), and garnished with a little chopped parsley before serving with sour cream on the side.

I started the dish by draining off the juices from about 750g sauerkraut (using some for my sour meatball soup), washing the sauerkraut, and then draining and squeezing it of any running juice. I then stirred it in a hot pan with 50g of melted butter until thoroughly coated, adding 2 tsp black pepper and 1.5 cups tomato sauce before bringing to boil.

I then simmered it for nearly an hour, stirring every now and then, and adding a couple pinches of salt, a tablespoon of paprika, and half a cup of white wine, before the last 15 minutes of simmering time. This dish, verza calita, went really well with the starch, especially moderated with a little sour cream.

I also made mititei, a sort of kebab or "skinless sausage". 800g ground beef mashed in with 2 tbsp each of olive oil and water, 4 chopped and crushed garlic cloves, a half teaspoon each of thyme, red pepper and paprika, and 2 tsp each of salt and ground black pepper. I also added a little breadcrumb and uncooked rice to help bind the mash and absorb excess moisture, respectively. I formed these into sausage shapes on a greased pan, and baked at 180C for about 20 minutes.

For the starch, I made mamaliga, a sort of polenta. It's a simple one to prepare: I gradually added a cup of coarse yellow cornmeal to boiling water into which I had melted 2 tbsp butter and added 2 tsp salt. I let it cook for about 45 minutes, whisking often, until I got a thick cornmeal slurry, into which I stirred half a bunch each of finely chopped dill and chives, and 2 tbsp feta cheese.

I may have let it sit warm for too long, so it lost a little more moisture than I would have liked. In any case, it had a rich, herbaceous taste, and the grainy, mashed-potato-like texture made it a good base for the other main dishes.

I served the mititei, mamaliga, and verza calita with a dollop of sour cream and roasted chilli pepper. A most excellent combination of tastes, textures and colors.

And for dessert, I made cozonac, a Romanian Easter cake. This was a bit more complex.

I first needed to get the yeast culture (top left) done, by stirring a mixture of 4 tbsp milk and a packet of yeast into 1.5 tbsp flour that had been whisked in hot milk, also 4 tbsp.

After allowing the culture to sit and bubble, I mixed it with 2 tbsp warm milk, 2 egg yolks, half a cup of caster sugar, 60g raisins, zest of a lemon, and 225g flour, kneading with some butter to get a standing dough. Finally, I added a tablespoon each of rum, vanilla extract, and vegetable oil, kneading again, and letting it rise for about an hour.

Finally, I brushed on the yolk of an egg, sprinkled on a handful of crushed walnuts, and baked at 180C for about 45 minutes.

It did not rise as much as I would have liked, but it was baked through properly, and served after cooling, was a delicious finale to our Romanian meal.