Slumgods Pt II
Slumgods Pt II
India is a nation that’s going trough a tumultuous phase
A country led by politicians who dont stand for values but gain
Who dont even come close to representing the true identity of the nation
One has to look hard through the haze left by stories of their corruption and ignorance, to find the true infallible Indian Spirit
A spirit that holds onto its values, which perseveres for what it believes in, despite the odds
The good part is, that this spirit still does exist amongst the now generation of this country
The better part is, that its becoming stronger than ever before
The past year has been quite bipolar for India
We’ve experienced great highs and lows
Of a cricket world cup triumph (cricket is a religion in India)
And successfully pulling off the Commonwealth Games
To embarrassing stories of the corrupt and insatiable greed of our leaders
Rs. 1,76,000 Crore (1.76 trillion) gone in the ’2G Spectrum Allocation Scandal’
Rs. 70,000 Crore (700 billion) gone in the Common Wealth Scam
Thats more than 2 Billion of Indian tax payer rupees gone. Vanished. Kaput.
and thats just 2 scams
Quite alarming. Yes.
But the true essence of India, despite all of this chaos
Is the order within it
Where there is still the common man fighting the odds and, at times, winning.
Where, in-spite of the several disappointing stories that may hold one down
There are still a lot more stories to be proud and hopeful of.
And these Bboy’s and girls that Now Delhi was fortunate enough to be exposed to
represent the quintessential Indian Identity
Of being in a troubled spot in life
Yet, not stopping to believe in and pursuing ones dreams.
The Cypherholic Jam is a serial event that happens every three months. Organized by Bboy Bharat (B.R) and the Tandavaa crew with Slumgods Crew from New Delhi, it is a space for every Bboy/Bgirl and hiphop artist to showcase their talent and also get in touch with others practicing the art of breaking.
Open to breaking crews (groups/teams of bboy/girls) from all over the country, it has individual, freestyle and group danceoffs.
A competition at the core, it is more of an event to build a community around the art of hip-hop and breaking. A platform for under privileged kids to break from the harsh realities of their lives, to be free and express themselves creatively.
It stared 2010 when the first edition had about 70 participants
This year saw about 300 kids show up, from delhi, bombay, even jalandhar
Some of the youngest members of the crews were around 7 years of age..
Several crews showed up, with The Tandavaa crew being one which i talked to.
Bboy Bunny is a crew member of the Roc fresh crew and is actively involved in the Mumbai breaking scene, and has been a part of the previous editions of Cypherholic. He, like Heera (slumgods Pt I) has seen the evolution of the breaking scene in India, and has also been an instrumental part in it.
Now Delhi was witness to this 6th edition and found the numbers to be remarkable
Kids from all walks of life were there – the slums, middle class families, lower income families, the underprivileged..
All of them mixing, communicating, learning, competing, sharing, building – together
All of them believing in themselves and their art
The message they give us is essential
That our lives and our country may be lacking on a lot of fronts
But that itself presents an opportunity
to cause change and do something about it
And everyone can be part of that change.
That there is always lot more out there to do
that hard work and determination CAN be a passage to ones dreams
and that one can always strive to be better versions of themselves
The winners of this edition were the ‘Firing Shooz Crew’, with ‘The Fearless Crew’ as the Runners up
But they’re all winners if you ask me..
So here’s to our freedom,
and what we choose to do with it
Happy Independence day!
Crew Pictures @ Slumgods gallery on Now Delhi’s Facebook Page
Music Copyright:
The Jimmy Castor Bunch: Its Just Begun + Retrigger: Jamie and Caroline (Licensed under Creative Commons)
