Shayan maintains words have the power to inspire and destroy, not necessarily all at once. You might want to choose yours well. An MBA by qualification, a writer at heart, she believes everybody has a story worth telling and insists you tell her yours. Her petite frame belies her love for food. A voracious reader, Shayan can easily get lost on an unending trail of information and trivia while researching for her articles.
If she appears woolly-headed at the editing table, know that she is about to hit the nail on the head. A hopeless romantic, Shayan is dewy-eyed reading tales of undying love. In her own words, working with Soulveda has been a brand new departure for her as a writer. The sky is the limit, she believes.
A staunch believer of 'you are what you read', Mallika is never found without a book or any conceivable object that would allow her to read. In her own words, she is a traveller who is just passing by. And during the course of her chosen journey, her first instinct is to put on paper how she sees and hears the world. On a regular day at Soulveda, Mallika entertains rather generously all requirements 'internet'. A huge Jim Morrison fan, the only people for her are the mad ones. You might also find her wielding sarcasm as her weapon of choice when challenged intellectually. She believes in the uniqueness of every individual and can often be found fighting for it.
27 October 2016
The concept of peace can sometimes be incomprehensible to the common man and quickly be dismissed as a pursuit for those endowed with time and wealth. The common man has his own struggles. If it’s not getting up and going to work, it is finding work; if it’s not trying to lose weight, then it is scraping enough money for one meal; if it’s not looking for a better house, it is searching for a dry patch on the road to spend the night.
The bigger picture, however, is a world torn by strife. War, people displaced by the hordes, destruction and death are collectively changing the landscape of the world we live in, bit by bit, second by second. And while the common man’s realities may be far removed from it now, the bigger picture will soon be the only picture. It is not just important but imperative that we seek out peace.
A symposium based on the 2016 peace proposal by Daisaku Ikeda, president of Soka Gakkai International, a Nichiren Buddhist organisation, held at the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, called for individual transformation as a stepping stone to world peace. On the sidelines of the symposium, Soulveda spoke to Vishesh Gupta, chairperson, Bharat Soka Gakkai, on the concept of peace and its time-honoured relationship with Buddhist philosophy.
Excerpts from the exclusive interview:
In a world increasingly dictated by violence, how does peace find its place?
History of mankind has shown that when the world is plagued by natural calamities, war, conflict and tension, is when peace is required the most. During such harrowing times, achieving peace seems next to impossible. On the other hand, it is said that when the evil is at its strongest, the good surfaces once again.
The need of the hour is to make the 21st century the centennial of peace, as the 20th century was marred by wars. Though there was advancement in science and technology, it has not given the kind of appeasement the human race deserves. Sixteen years of this century have already gone by. Now is the right time to start talking about peace and striving to achieve it.
“It is ordinary people who create extraordinary things. Likewise, it is ordinary people who will bring peace to the world.”
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