All posts filed under: ARTISTS

Explore Local Artists and Know Their Stories

RootsandLeisure_StoneArt

Turning Pebbles to Art by Iboli Zhimo

Published by Shweta Rao

Do you ever wonder about all the tales one would unravel if all the stones around us could start talking? Mother Nature has countless mysteries laid out around us. They’ve laid silently for a thousand years and more, and eventually us humans have forgotten to take notice of her. Except for a few artists among us – who take the time to pause, listen and create. Meet Iboli Zhimo who’s making random stones tell beautiful stories. Iboli is based out of the small town of Satakha under the Zunheboto district in Nagaland.  She works as a pebble artist for Regalia Entertainment in the state and is also pursuing a Masters degree in History. Zhimo fell in love with this unique art form because of its challenging nature. With sheer dedication and passion, Zhimo sets out to find the fitting pieces for her creations. And find she does. Take a look yourself. Also, you can buy her unique pebble arts on the R&L SHOP Elvis Etched In Stone Tree of Life Happy Stones – Music, Dance and Fun! Iboli Zhimo with …

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New Music Video by our Favorite Naga Artist Virie

Published by Roots & Leisure

Folks – the gorgeous and talented singer and songwriter Virie just released her latest single “My Summer” on YouTube. The video is as dreamy and magical as her voice – shot in the beautiful Dzulake Valley in Nagaland. And as though the song wasn’t enough to enchant the listeners, the beautiful backdrop takes the viewer to a fairytale land – where summer and winter come together in perfect harmony . . ♫ How, how long will I walk alone Thousand miles on my own Miles to go before I sleep  Those summer days is all I dream ♪ Will I ever see you on the other side? Will you ever sing to me and make my night? ♪ This video was shot on a winter afternoon (2015 winters, according to Virie). But by the looks of it, it appears that Virie was indeed able to summon the summers after all. Check out the beautiful sun rays blending in perfectly with the color of winter. Watch the official music video ‘My Summer’ by Virie Song written and composed by Virie …

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“Handmade by Soren” | Crafts Made with Love from Nagaland

Published by Roots & Leisure

Located in the heart of Kohima town in Nagaland, Soren Odyuo is a craft maker whose work embodies the sentiment that “local is lovely”. Each handcrafted item on display in her shop encourages viewers to slow down for a moment, to look, to touch, and to listen. Her handmade crafts celebrate the colorful and exuberant aspects of life and serve as a reminder that a hobby can be both joyful and productive. Soren shares that she started “Handmade By Soren” when friends and family encouraged her to make something worthwhile out of her remarkable gift for transforming ordinary materials into works of beauty. “Every piece of craft in my store is unique and made by hand with love.” ~ Soren of ‘Handmade by Soren’ R&L: As an interior designer with a passion for creating beautiful handmade crafts, how do you manage to balance these two full-time jobs? Soren: Yes, managing two full-time jobs can be challenging, but I enjoy both of them immensely. I work as an interior designer with Zynorique Consultants, an architectural firm based …

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The Lady Who Makes Cuddly Crochet Dolls | Ashibo

Published by Shweta Rao

Someone wise once said, “There are two kinds of people in the world – those who love dolls and those who don’t yet know that they love dolls.” A doll’s journey to being born in its maker’s imagination and then later in our world begins decades earlier. It begins with a gathering of a lifetime of seemingly unrelated skills, which then one day collide and end up in complete and total creative harmony. And then slowly and steadily, dolls carry millions of children across the world into a world of sheer happiness. Today we met up with one such talented maker, Ashibo who has been creating some super cute handmade crochet dolls. Cute and stylish (just like the lady who makes them), it looks as if the dolls await to tell us a story, and Ashibo is their chosen medium. Were we right or were we just making things up in our minds? We asked Ashibo to help us answer. What was the inspiration behind creating these beautiful crochet dolls?  Well, I have always loved knitting …

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Meet Muse – the All Female Production Crew from North East India

Published by Roots & Leisure

Here’s some promising news in the world’s ongoing quest for women to have their voices heard. We met a kickass production crew from North Eastern India that is in a pursuit to tell the world some beautiful stories. What’s more, it is an all-female team that involves professionals who are skilled in videography, photography, and edits. The crew that goes by the name ‘MUSE Team‘ came together only this year and is currently based in New Delhi.  “We are currently on our way to put up more videos (both fiction and nonfiction) on various topics on our Youtube channel ‘The Muse’,” said a team member. MEET THE TEAM The team members all come from different backgrounds and cultures. But, what binds them together is the love for telling beautiful stories that aren’t covered by mainstream media.   Lurei Kamei [from Nagaland]: Has been working in a film production company in Delhi as a producer and researcher for the last 3 years.  “Before I came to Delhi and started working officially, I never realised how beautiful our Northeastern states …

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Guitar Passion at Play – Toshimoa Jamir

Published by Roots & Leisure

Alright, it’s been a while since we featured some awesome musicians here. And what a great way to get back on it! Today we bring you the story of Toshimoa Jamir – a young guitarist from Dimapur who has already made a name in the Nagaland music circuit. Jamir’s exceptional musical talent has led him to share the stage with the legendary Neil Zaza at this year’s World Music Day held in Nagaland. Toshimoa started playing guitar at a very young age. Toshi’s parents began nurturing his guitar skills right from his childhood and, amazingly, supported his decision to take his talent more seriously when he grew up. Eventually, he passed Grade 8 with merit in Guitar (Rock School, International Rock Music Exam Board London) in 2012 from Taaqademy, Bangalore. He then went on to work as a music teacher in DE SALES Music Academy and ICFC School for two years in Bangalore. Apart from the long list of awards Toshimoa has won, he was recently conferred with the prestigious “Young Achiever’s Award 2016″ in the field …

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We Found the Instagram Page You Fashonistas were Looking For!

Published by Roots & Leisure

Don’t we all love fashion icons? And we can’t help keep looking for that little bit of fashion inspiration on the internet every now and then. Naturally, when we stumbled upon a treasure of an Instagram account (@nagasstreetstyle) we figured we must share it with you! Why? Because this page’s feed takes that natural curiosity a step further by capturing the divas that walk our very own streets and features them on its feed. @nagasstreetstyle is a favorite among its young fan following for its creators’ love for fashion and an extremely good sense of style. Meet the sisters – Kuku Lungalang and Lungzeu Lungalang Longchar – from Nagaland who are the masterminds behind our current favorite Instagram page. “We’ve always wanted to start a blog, but it never quite kicked off so we decided to start an Instagram account instead. We started posting pics of people whose style we dug when we met them on the streets. We were pleasantly surprised when our page started growing rapidly at the rate of more than a hundred …

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Nagaland Street Art | Art Meets Fashion

Published by Shweta Rao

We met up with the funky team at Nagaland Street Art, a brand where art meets fashion with a focus on promoting the rich diversity of various Naga cultures through design. At the beginning of this year (2016), three designers Cynthia Kolakhe, Imjung Longshiri and Muzung Yimchunger decided to come together to bring a bold idea to fruition. The plan was to create products that justified their brand’s tagline ‘Dare to be different’ – a style that blended the diagrammatic figuration from folk to urban design. And that’s how Nagaland Street Art was born. The brand believes in creating unique products that are truly designer made. Which means all designs are exclusive, hand painted, and made in Nagaland. But most importantly, all of them are unique and will never be recreated to be sold to someone else.What’s more commendable is that the Nagaland Street Art has already reached some notable client base. “We have designed tee shirts for world boxing champion M.C.Mary Kom, the Tetseo Sisters, Alobo & The Band, Yakuza Solo for his world tour, and Opang Jamir …

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The Man Behind NAJ Cosfest’s Brilliant Video Coverage – Sanen Jamir aka The Skid Reviewer

Published by Roots & Leisure

Meet Sanen Jamir – the guy who shot a fun video covering Nagaland’s vibrant Cosfest that was held this month at Kohima. While looking up for people who could tell us a bit more about the event, we hit gold when we discovered Sanen’s brilliant YouTube channel where he uploads great stuff under the pseudonym The Skid Reviewer. Turns out Sanen is an avid follower of comics, movies, games and all things geek! We just had to know more! “I have tremendous respect for the Nagaland Anime Junkies (NAJ). In a society that is as divided and fragmented as ours, an event like this – where we can come together despite our differences and have conversations on art, literature, and creativity – is always positive and needs our support.”   So tell us a bit more about yourself?  I hail from Dimapur and presently work as a part of the editorial team in the Morung Express. For years, I wanted to create a YouTube channel about the things that I enjoyed, you know, things that made me a little less …

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Meet Hopong – The Photographer Behind the Exclusive Cosfest Photos

Published by Roots & Leisure

Meet Hopong Chang – the guy whose coverage of the wonderful Cosfest that was held last week in Nagaland has brought the event tons of publicity. We caught up with Chang to find out more about his work. “I am actually not a full time photographer. I work for the forest department here in Nagaland but I try to find time for my hobby. Ever since I was a kid, I walked around with a camera and shooting subjects that were intriguing to me. But I started taking it more seriously only in 2013 – that was when I bought my first DSLR camera. People inspire me. So shooting portraits, weddings and a little bit of fashion photography comes natural to me.” Nagaland Anime Junkies (NAJ)4th Annual Cosfest July 2016, Kohima | Cosplay-Ciel &Sebastian Michaelis (Black Butler) Cosplayers-Meyidem Yaden& Tiajungla Here are a few more pics from Hopong’s fashion and wedding photography portfolio: