UNDER THE LAMP
By Bhavana R
Under the Lamp is a reading and writing club(or in conventional terms, a book club) where its members meet and review, discuss, create and explore various books, literary forms, and the written and spoken word. The inception of it was the result of a spontaneous idea that popped up in the flow of conversation in a weekend get-together of four friends, who became its founders.
The need for one, they explain stemmed from the romanticism of listening, voicing passionate opinions and feelings between people experiencing the wildly adventurous activity of reading a book. The intention was to encourage conversation, exchange of perspectives and stances, and all of this to be in real-time, in an 'offline' gathering. And the name, comes from a beautiful envisioning of a mellow village-like setting with quaint lamps and wooden chairs or perhaps a breezy evening under a great tree. This aesthetic is bound to invoke a certain yearning for romance and art and free-flowing expression, which further leads us to deeper, more meaningful and fulfilling human connections.
This idea and vision was realized with the first meeting on the fourth of February, 2018 in a quaint library assembled by a township community in North Bangalore. However, the current meetings are usually held at various WeWork spaces across central Bangalore. The basic format for the meetings followed is that one book is chosen for a month and is read within the duration of four weeks. And by the second week, a writing session is also organised. There is a lot of ownership in the way the club organises it's fortnightly meetings. Any member has the liberty to choose books to read and hold or facilitate writing sessions. In a lot of sessions, special guests are also invited to conduct or teach writing where many forms such as short story writing, poetry, critical interpretations, etc are explored and taught. These sessions are highly focused as they are of short duration and produce an output from each individual.
The book discussions however possess an entirely different atmosphere and are crackling with energy and moods. The books that have been chosen up to date have ranged from subjects such as spirituality, science, dystopia, crime and mystery, surrealism, mythology, non-fiction, allegory, and even fantasy and children's literature. There isn't a fixed format that is followed for these discussions, except for the facilitator, who is usually the one that nominated the book prepares and poses questions to the group. The discourses that these questions lead to a wide range of opinions, and viewpoints and discussions of characters and plotlines. Alternate endings and change in course of the story are also some ideas that are dabbled into. These sometimes also make for more current-relating, political and pertinent observations that are stimulating. The authors and writers also form a major part of the discussion, where writing styles are observed and personal preferences and inclinations to liking and disliking are expressed.
"The vision of the club was to create an offline space, when more and more things are moving online. We needed people to come together to talk about the books we read. We'd decided that even if we don't get enough members, we would not move it online. We'd try to get as many people to talk about reading and practice the art of writing but in person or nothing at all." says chandher shekhar, co-founder of under the lamp.
The most significant aspect of Under The Lamp is conceivably the staunch friendship and camaraderie shared by the members. Being slightly over two years old, the group has shared experiences over many social settings like Cubbon park, Blossoms Bookstore, coffee shops, restaurants and such. They have received a modest amount of media coverage and have a growing social media presence in Bangalore.
