Cherry Blossoms sans celebration
The pink blooms have not disappointed us. Al though they appeared late, but the city skyline
and its suburbs are now adorned with beautiful pink hues. The 2020 version of the Cherry Blossom Festival, if all had been well, would’ve had us bid adieu to it until next year. Alas, we missed the fun and gaiety with its myriad facets of music, food and merry-making associated with the Festival! Well, we have missed out on a lot of fun and frolic in 2020 but the Cherry Blossom was missed especially by the youngsters. Past editions of the Cherry Blossom Festival have been a huge hit with the plethora of activities ranging from live music gigs to beauty pageants besides food stalls showcasing a variety of cuisines. Some youths who were part of the previous editions told the SJ team that they sorely missed the Festival this time and are eagerly looking forward to the 2021 edition. For now, the least we can do is take a moment and appreciate the pink blooms across the city and post those pictures on social media.
Festivities come knocking
And then just as the pink Cherry Blossoms fade away, here comes the season of Poinsettias. It’s not just the city of Shillong but every corner of Meghalaya will look cheery with bright red Poinsettias in nearly every garden. They come in different shapes and hues, some bright read, others a delicate shade of pink. The Poinsettias (Euphorbia pulcherrima) are here. Poinsettias are associated with the Christian festivity – Christmas. Incidentally the Poinsettias this time have appeared earlier than usual. Call it climate change or whatever but at a time when most flowers have gone into hibernation the streaks of red do bring a cheer. With the red leafy flowers beginning to spread their colour across the town, Shillong will be slowly gearing up for its biggest celebration of the year which is just a month away, although Covid is expected to play spoilsport here too.
Netflixed and chilled enough?
From Mirzapur 2 to Pataal Lok to Asur to Axone to Class of ’83 to the final series of Dark, web series and movies on various OTT platforms have indeed played an all-important role in helping us tide over the COVID-19 lockdown. Despite its share of fun, a section of people still miss the big theatre and movie screens. The SJ team spoke to a movie buff who said, “I am eagerly waiting for theatres here to reopen. From the goose-bumping moment where people stand in unison as the National Anthem is played to cheering during the climax, and the popcorns and Pepsi during the interval, I miss everything”. Another said, “I will book first-day-first-show tickets for any movie that hits the theatres after the reopening of cinema halls.” “A-N-Y!” he reiterated. Another, however, contradicted both, saying, “I find OTT platforms better now and I have nothing to complain about my transition from the big screen to the small one. The reopening of cinema halls won’t make much of a difference for me now”. Well, to each his/her own but cinema hall owners and film distributors are a worried lot. Apart from movie buffs there are others too who are eagerly waiting for the cinema halls to reopen — the theatre employees, the canteen salesperson and the ticket seller. They are all looking to getting back to work and earn a decent living.