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• Nothing can beat   theStack                                  FEW TIPS MAY HELP

 cinema experience                                              SURVIVE CANCER
     THE RAINBOW ACRES
                                                                A Vital Journey is more than just an essential
     By Simrita Dhir; Om Books                                  The book Cancer, Your Body and Your Diet:
 Nothing can beat the cinema experience,                        guide for cancer patients and caregivers
 says Supriya Pathak, who has worked   Written by an academic brought up in Punjab and now based in   IN CANCER, YOUR BODY and Your Diet, Dr Arati
     California, “The Rainbow Acres” is a novel about migration, selfless
 in all the mediums of storytelling. She   • Do not compare   love, fortitude, friendship, and the quest for land and   Bhatia breaks down the latest research, and uses
 believes Web is the strongest medium   Janhvi, Sara: Karan  identity. It is set against the backdrop of old Punjab,   her own clinical and personal experiences to
 currently as it has the ability to reach   Filmmaker Karan Johar,   early California and revolution-torn Mexico. In 1916,   answer these, among other, pressing questions
 out to more people and engage   who has produced both   Kishan Singh’s village Noor Mahal in Punjab (then   about cancer. She explains the hows and whys
 viewers with interesting and layered   Janhvi Kapoor’s debut   under the British rule) faced heavy rain, destroying   of the cancer cell cycle, what to do after being
 stories. “When TV came, it was a   Dhadak and Sara Ali Khan’s   the crop, triggering influenza and leaving behind   diagnosed with cancer, and the crucial role that
 very strong medium. It reached out   second feature Simmba, says   dead villagers. The devastated protagonist sets out   food plays in the prevention and treatment of all
 to so many people and it could have   it is “unfair” to compare the   on a life-threatening voyage across two oceans for   types of cancers.
     an unknown land. On the other hand, Sophia’s idyllic
                                                                  The author, a medical doctor, is herself a
 made difference but we got into   two young actors. Janhvi,   world in Mexico’s Guadalajara, falls apart in 1919   cancer survivor and later, was her husband’s
 mundaneness of it. I think it will   daughter of late actor Sridevi   when she becomes a hapless victim to the ravages   primary caregiver in his own fight against cancer.
 not hopefully happen to this new   and producer Boney Kapoor   of the Mexican Revolution and battles hunger, poverty and near   Drawing on these experiences, she takes readers
 made her debut with the
 medium. It has lot of scope. I hope   Sairat Hindi remake, while   prostitution before embarking on a perilous night journey across   through every stage, from diagnosis to therapy
 we keep the momentum alive and   Sara, daughter of Saif Ali   the border. Will their paths cross in the land of opportunities that is   (chemo, surgery or radiation) to palliative care,
 keep it going strong. We as actors   Khan and Amrita Singh, has   overrun with racial and class barriers?  with a focus on the quality
 can help. In cinema, there are   two back-to-back releases —   --------------------------------------------------------------------------  of a cancer patient’s life.
 budget constraints and on TV, it   Kedarnath and Rohit        She applies her consider-
 has become a sad situation, so this   Shetty’s Simmba, which is   THE LONG MARCH  able medical training and
     By Namita Waikar; Speaking Tiger
                                                               experience to advise cancer
 medium has opened up new doors.   co-produced by Karan. When   patients, their relatives and
 We have been given opportunity   asked, who between the   This novel, written by the managing editor of People’s   caregivers, as well as the
 two would get more awards,
 to tell interesting stories,” a PTI   Karan told reporters, “Two   Archives of Rural India (PARI), weaves a story around   general health-conscious
 report quoted Pathak as saying.   girls, who are 21-22 years   Vidarbha’s farmer suicides, where yet another farmer   public who want to avoid
 The 57-year-old actor, however, does   old, if at this stage we start   commits suicide, and is survived by his son Vikram   cancer.
 not believe that digital medium “can   comparisons then it’s not fair.   Sonare. Vikram is, as he should be, devastated and   The book is more than
 overtake cinema”. “Cinema might have   Both of them are wonderful,   furious. His work with the Agricultural Technology   just an essential guide
 it’s share of ups and downs, it can’t go. It   beautiful and they work very   Centre and new-found knowledge of social media   for cancer patients and
 is a very major part of everybody’s life. It is a   hard... Awards will never   inspires him to build a network with youth across   caregivers — “the first of
                                                               its kind in India”, as the
 process like going to cinema halls, watching   matter. The work they do, the   India and start a silent revolt. He is joined by Mallika   blurbs say. Broken into
     Joshi, who works with an NGO in Mumbai, and meets
 love they get from people is
 films on the big screen.” She currently   every award.”  farming families neglected by the government and suffering under   three distinct sections — What is Cancer? Cancer
 features in Tigers.   the weight of increasing debts. The book unfolds the “epic mission”   and Nutrition; and Journey with Cancer — the
     they undertake to draw attention to the plight of farmers and other   book introduces to the reader, with deep per-
     underprivileged sections of society, and finally mobilise millions of   sonal knowledge but with clinical detachment, an
     people to march into the major cities of India. After the success of   almost taboo subject, even though, as she says,
                                                               “almost every family knows of someone afflicted
     the march, the group transforms into a revolutionary political party.
 • CONVENTIONAL GIRLFRIEND STILL ROCKS  DON’T WANT   -------------------------------------------------------------------------  by cancer”.
                                                                  Beginning with the history and etymology of
 TESSA THOMPSON IS NEITHER KEEN NOR READY TO PLAY ‘STEREOTYPICAL GIRLFRIEND’ ROLES  TO BOX    FREEDOM TO FAIL  the word cancer, the author takes the reader
 It is important for her to not surrender to   MYSELF ’  By Shabnam, Aggarwal; HarperCollins  through a very readable narrative of a “complex
 the idea of a conventional girlfriend in the                  disease” on which billions of dollars have been
 movies, says Actor Tessa Thompson. The   Raised in an immigrant Indian family in the start-up hub of Silicon   spent on global research but which still defies
 35-year-old actor, who stars as Bianca Taylor   Valley, Shabnam Aggarwal believed that every entrepreneur could   a definitive cure, though considerable progress
 in Creed franchise, said she was determined   be successful. So she left her cushy job at Merrill   has been made in stalling its devastating effect
 to see her character ‘’buck convention’’,   Lynch to take a risk, find her passion and make a   on the human physical and psychological system.
 reported Contactmusic. ‘’It was important to   difference in the world. She moved to India to start   In the US, it is said, there has been a 25 per cent
 me, from the first film, Ryan Coogler (writer   a company. In “Freedom to Fail”, she tells the story   decline in cancer deaths over the last two dec-
 and director of the first Creed movie) and I   of her brush with success: Raising her first round of   ades. The disease has even spawned a number of
 had so many conversations about that, and   venture capital; hiring a hardworking team of mil-  weighty tomes such as Cancer: The Emperor of All
 we really wanted to try to buck convention   lennials; growing her start-up to multiple cities... and   Maladies by oncologist Siddharth Mukherjee.
 in that space,” Thompson said. The actor   then finding it all come to a bitter end. Weaving each   Practical, informative and complete with diet
 reportedly said she finds the typical por-  chapter into a lesson in overcoming expectations, fear   advice and eating schedules, this is an accessi-
 trayal of female love interests in movies to be   Banita Sandhu  and self-doubt, she shows why failure is important,   ble and immensely useful handbook for fighting
 • Creed breed Tessa wants consistency  “obnoxious”.   (In an interview)  even imperative, in order to ultimately succeed.  against cancer and leading a healthier, fuller life.



 TEHELKA / 31 DECEMBER 2018  64  WWW.TEHELKA.COM  TEHELKA / 31 DECEMBER 2018  65  WWW.TEHELKA.COM


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