Nikita's blog

  FILM STUDIES WORKSHEET: MAHARAJA (2024) Introduction: In contemporary Tamil cinema, Maharaja (2024), directed by Nithilan Saminathan, stands out as a masterclass in editing and non-linear storytelling. The film invites viewers into a layered narrative where time folds and unfolds, revealing truths in fragments. This blog explores how editing techniques shape the narrative structure and emotional resonance of Maharaja, based on a film studies worksheet designed by Dr. Dilipsir Barad.  (Click Here)  Analysing Editing & Non-Linear Narrative   PART A: BEFORE WATCHING THE FILM   What is non-linear narration in cinema? Non-linear narration is a storytelling method where events are presented out of chronological sequence. Instead of moving directly from beginning to end, the narrative jumps between past, present, and future. This technique can enhance suspense, deepen character exploration, and reveal information strategically.   Example: In Maharaja (2024),...

Screening of short film “An Astrologer’s Day” based on R.K.Narayan’s “An Astrologer’s Day”. Recently, as part of a task given by Megha ma’am, we watched the short film adaptation of R.K. Narayan’s An Astrologer’s Day. This screening offered a fresh perspective on the classic short story, bringing its characters, setting, and themes to life on screen. It was an opportunity to reflect on how the film interprets Narayan’s narrative and to compare the cinematic elements with the original text. ( Click Here)  Pre viewing task Observe the setting, plot, character, structure, style, theme of the original short story.  Literary Elements of An Astrologer’s Day - Setting The story is set in a bustling Indian marketplace near Town Hall Park, alive with vendors, crowds, and flickering lights. The astrologer works under a tamarind tree, surrounded by magicians, hawkers, and auctioneers, all competing for attention. The semi-darkness—lit by gas lamps, flares, and cycle lights—creates an atm...

  Poetry and Poststructuralism: An AI-Powered Analysis This assignment from Dilip Sir requires a blog post covering: an AI-generated poem, study material on deconstruction/post-structuralism, our own deconstruction of the poem, and finally, a ChatGPT deconstruction for comparison. (Click here) Click here for CHAT GPT  First Poem : Whispers of Rain (Iambic Pentameter, Heroic Couplet) The gentle rain begins its soft descent, A balm from clouds, so cool and eloquent. It taps on leaves like fingers in a song, A rhythm steady, delicate, and strong. Each drop a thread that weaves the earth anew, In silver lace beneath a sky of blue. It stirs the scent of soil and dreams of green, And paints the world in shades it’s rarely seen. The sky now weeps, but not from grief or pain— There’s peace within the poetry of rain. Second Poem :Voice of the Wild (Iambic Pentameter, 12 lines) The forest breathes beneath the morning light, Its branches stretch in silent, leafy flight. The rivers s...

 Deconstructive Reading How to Deconstruct a Text : Deconstructive Reading of  four  Poems by Shakespeare, Ezra Pound ,William Carlos Williams and  Dylan Thomas  This blog is part of an analytical task exploring how to deconstruct a literary text using poems by Shakespeare, Ezra Pound, and William Carlos Williams. Drawing on the critical approach introduced by Jacques Derrida, deconstruction allows us to examine how meaning in a text is never fixed or absolute. Instead, it emphasizes the fluidity of language, the contradictions within texts, and the interplay between what is said and what is left unsaid. Through this lens, each poem will be unpacked to reveal the multiple, often conflicting layers of meaning embedded within the language itself. ( Click Here )    Deconstructiv Reading of Shakespeare’s  Sonnet 18 Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate: Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May, And summer’...