We had the opportunity to meet with Halley Laithangbam the successful male model from Manipur in the glamour Industry. It was a surprise meeting at Manipur Sangai Festival 2013 and he was very sportive to take a quick video clipping for FindingTheVoices.
Click here to catch up on his podcast.
It was really nice to meet up face to face with the family of FindingTheVoices. Thanks for all your support. Keep writing and tuning in to our show.
Wishing you a very Happy New Year 2014.
FindingTheVoices continues to bring insights into the lives of talented, amazing, interesting and inspiring people all over the world. It is a talk show presented by Monica Ingudam with the vision to promote and spread positive, hopeful, inspiring & entertaining stories in the violence-torn landscape of Manipur.
Thanks for all your support and contributions. This is your show to promote your talent & work, share your experiences and voice what you stand for, what you believe in, what you want people to know & talk about.
We are so touched with the amazing response we have received from all our listeners and viewers making FindingTheVoices your show, your platform.
Let’s get together and bring voices and story that Inspire, Empower, Educate & Entertain us from people all over the world.
Thank you and a Happy New Year 2014.
Sharing a picture which will remain in the history of FindingTheVoices, the very first recording for Video Talk show, we had the host, the Guest Speaker, the audience, the story told straight from the heart by the guest speaker bringing tears, laughter. It was a great way to step into the world of Video Talk Show. Please continue tuning in as we add more to FindingTheVoices.
I am wandering but am not lost
It’s a cold and windy day,
But that didn’t stop her from stopping by to see the river on her way,
She hurried and walked by the river,
She sat and watched the view.
Then continued with her walk,
Following where her feet takes her,
Soon she was on the bridge,
She stood on the bridge all by herself and watched the view.
It was getting colder with the winds from the almost frozen river,
But she continued with her walk,
Crossing the bridge,
And she walked and watched the view from the other side.
All the views was different and unique,
And it’s the view of the same river,
She continued walking back,
Rubbing her hands to keep herself warm.
Suddenly an old man sitting in the nearby bench calls out asking if she was lost and if she needed help,
She smiled and replied “I am just wandering but I am not lost”,
He points to a flask he is holding asking her “Coffee ?”
She couldn’t resist the invitation in the freezing cold,
She could use a warm drink before her walk back,
She nodded and sat next to him,
Unscrewing the cap he pours piping hot black coffee.
Sipping coffee they chatted about their favorite view of the river,
He loves his Miracle river from where he is sitting right then,
She loves the Potomac river when she sees from the middle of the bridge,
They spoke passionately about why they like what they love about each view.
They parted shaking hands,
She thanking him for the coffee and him thanking her for the company,
With a look they both knew,
What they spoke had deeper meaning than just the view.
She walked back hurriedly,
But stopped by in the middle of the bridge to see her view,
And waves to the old man still sitting on the bench,
And she continues back with her walk questioning if she is wandering or lost.
~The End~
Picture : Bridge across the Potomac River by George Washington Parkway, Washington DC.
An Experimental attempt to put thoughts in writing by Monica Ingudam.
This Album is dedicated to “Ruby the dog”, all dog lovers as pet and all dogs who went missing in Manipur landing up in people’s plate, without giving a chance to the owner to say Good bye.
STOP stealing people’s pet. STOP eating people’s pet. If you want to eat, buy it, raise your own and eat it but STOP eating by stealing people’s pet.
Ruby The Dog
Such an adorable little dog, With soft black and white fur, And expressive beautiful eyes, Winning everyone’s heart, The minute she walked in our home.
She guarded the house, Welcoming family and friends with her wagging tail, And barking notoriously warning us of strangers, She practically grew up with us, Witnessing every milestones of our life.
She gets older, bony and almost blind, And one fine day she went for a walk never to return back, Words spread that Ruby was hit by a truck, But no trace of her and no body found, And we never got a chance to say goodbye.
It’s a small community, Where you always know who is doing what, But no one will say anything about Ruby’s truck accident, Time went by, Searches continues without any success.
Mr. Mei fully drunk walks by our and his “Leirak” (road leading to home), Swaying and barely able to walk, As though he had the last ounce of guilt left in drunken body, He confessed that he ate one and only “Matum” (piece)of Ruby, As the others are gobbled up by the other drunks.
Thanks everyone for sharing these beautiful pictures of your dog and sharing about your dog.
Presenting the first part of the podcast (in Meitei-lon) of Romi Meitei, Director of Manipuri Movies, sharing his vision of Manipur Movie Industry. He is one of the eminent Manipuri movie director having more than 10 years of experience working in Manipur movie industry as a Director, script writer and even writing lyrics of songs (including one of my favorite Inga Nonglakta).
This was a very interesting discussion where Romi Meitei shared his experience and vision of Manipuri movie industry. Listen to his podcast to hear his thoughts on “Have the movies in Manipur Industry changed in the last 10 years ? How is the infrastructure ? Are we equipped with a studio ? Are there any government policy or incentives for promoting the movie industry ?
We spoke about the immense talents but lack of sponsors for quality movie production. The movies right now are more market driven to get back the investment.
Watch his short movies Noong Amadi Yeroom (Rock And Egg) and Kaangkhada Lin (Snake under the Bed)
We had the opportunity to meet and listen to what our listeners think about our talk show.
Here is Mr Nasir Ahmed and Mr Md Nasir Khan sharing their thoughts about FindingTheVoices. It was really nice to meet up face to face with the family of FindingTheVoices. Thanks for all your support. Keep writing and tuning in to our show.
It must have been during the Eighties,
The rains won’t stop pouring in Imphal,
Day after day flooding everywhere,
People gathered in dry houses for sleeping,
Days went by and there was no food to eat.
The water just won’t go down with continuous non stop rains,
Rafts were made with banana stem to commute,
It was a hard time for everyone,
The old priest who spoke less and observed more sent bags and bags of whole wheat seeing people going hungry,
Emptying his whole go down of food supplies.
There were lines, long lines in Kwakeithel,
People coming from many other nearby leikai (community),
Everyone in the line was given whole wheat until the last grain was over,
Without questioning their religion,
Giving us the extra gift to see humanity and spirit of giving,
Being a rice eater, whole wheat was new to us,
Mother made whole wheat pudding, piping hot and watery with a pinch of sugar and milk added with the remains after scrubbing the canister,
And that was the first and best taste of whole wheat on a very cold day,
Tasted with a dash of kindness, the gift from the old priest,
His deeds never forgotten even when he is no longer with us.
~The End~
An Experimental attempt to put thoughts in writing by Monica Ingudam. This post is dedicated to Late Father Mathew Planthottam, founder of St. Joseph School, Imphal.
Author’s Note: I wrote in 2013 dedicating to Late Father Mathew Planthottam, founder of St. Joseph School, Imphal, Manipur to remind myself and others of the humanity and love beyond ethnicity or religion. On that day, I was very saddened to read a generalizing thrashing comments against religious Institute from the very people who stood in the long lines to get the wheat distributed during such hard times of hunger and flood. At that time, it didn’t stop them from receiving the help, despite the difference in religion or ethnicity but conveniently forgotten the kindness and ganging up with such vicious generalization. I wrote a stanza reflecting the hypocrisy but deleted as I was not brave enough to voice that part.
Episode 057 FindingTheVoices Swar Thounaojam Playwright and Theatre Director sharing aboutsharing about sexual harassment and her own story as a victim (Part 3)
Presenting the 3rd part of Swar Thounaojam’s podcast where she shares details about sexual harassment and her own story as a victim. In this podcast, she talks in details about the incident that happened on December 5, 2012 in Bangalore, India following an accident in which her car was hit. She said in an article covered at The Hindu “I was assaulted by a traffic police constable. He barred me from entering my car and allowed a mob of around 40 men to sexually harass me. I filed two FIRs that evening — one for the accident and another for the sexual harassment and criminal intimidation I faced at the hands of the constable and the mob.” Listen to this podcast to hear her story in her own words of the trauma and difficulties she has to go through as a victim going through the legal process.
Catch up the first part of her podcast and second part of her podcast where she talks about her journey of being a Playwright and Theatre Director and her plays. Swar Thounaojam worked in Delhi, Mumbai, and Munich, and currently runs a Bengaluru-based theater company named FewerEmergencies.
Dedicating this album to photographers who have shared pictures with findingthevoices and the community of photographers capturing and sharing views through their beautiful capture.
Special thanks to the collaboration with Manipur Photography Club members who actively participate in contributing to picture theme and helping in showing the world pictures of Manipur.
Pass along and share pictures of photographing the photographer as our small way of saying “Thank you”.
FINDINGTHEVOICES 