From stationary to monsoon fashion: Recommendations by Team SMD

Representation Pic

Curated by Junisha Dama, Arpika Bhosale and Sanjeevni Iyer

Come rain, and monsoon woes are here. You have to cover your roof with tarpaulin, get a waterproof bag, and carry plastic Ziploc baggies to keep your phone, earphones, and other gadgets protected. The folks at Daily Objects saw the tarpaulin, and thought, why not combine and use its strength to better protect everyday items we carry around, too? The brand's Tarp Collection is a lifesaver in the monsoon. Designed in street-style fashion, the Tarp Collection has everything from totes to slings, and even wallets - all made of tarpaulin. And, don't worry, it's not all blue. Their sleek designs are cool and urban, as do the bright colours - blue, orange, yellow, and even green. The tarpaulin material ensures every bag is water-resistant, keeping all your items well-protected from the rains.
dailyobjects.com

Test your typing skills

Tick-tack, tick-tack. Some people simply type fast, and others don't. If you fall in the latter category, there's a way to improve your typing speed. Considering all we do lately is type e-mails, reports, and whatnot at work. There's no harm in being quick at it, no? LiveChat allows you to take a free typing test. So, take a deep breath, relax your fingers, and type away. The key is to focus instead of being annoyed about your speed. While the average typing speed is 38 to 40 words per minute, there's no harm in learning to improve if you are already there. This is also a great tool for those looking to join a customer service job or are in industries that require fast typists. Once your results are in, LiveChat has ample guides that will teach you how to type faster. There are tips and hacks to follow that are easy. And keep in mind, the only way to speed up is to type more.

livechat.com

Sand is Art

You no longer have to envy the talent of sand artists. As they continue to create delightful landscapes and sculpt sand in ways one could only imagine, you can do the same digitally. Sand is Art is a mobile app that allows you to create landscapes using sand or gravel. The latter can be used if you want to make your art more textural. The app lets you make sand art in contrasting hues, and is easy to use, quite like those drawing apps. With a steady hand, you can paint your imagination in digital sand. The light hobby may take time to develop but practice away to create emerald green rolling hills or even simple valleys of flowers. Better this than doom-scrolling on social media, no?

Available on Google Play

Arz kia hai

Are you a shayar or a poet who enjoys penning down those romantic jitters and the monsoon blues, but finds it difficult to find a platform where you can do so? YourQuote is an Indian poetry and writing app that offers young and booming writers a platform to express their thoughts and creativity online. Started by two IIT hostel's next-door neighbours, Adarsh and Harsh back in 2007, YourQuote today fosters a community of more than 3 million creators online. Levying the option of getting paid for their stories, it helps authors publish their books and anthropologies for as little as R1,499,. What makes them unique is their daily writing prompts, expanding across different genres or topics, that help writers come out of their writer's block. Providing them with an array of background wallpapers for sharing their content online ,YourQuote is truly the next-gen platform for all the booming writers, shayars, and poets.

yourquote.in

Is life that cheap?

Maran Swasta Hot Aahe (Death is Becoming Cheap) by the one of the greats, Baburao Bagul, was translated Manav Kambli recently. The book was first published in 1969. But the recent English translation brings to the readers Bagul's forthright storytelling that indulges less in theatrics and more in the crude harsh realities of Maharashtra's caste dynamics.

There are 11 chapters, each divided by emotion. The book has been rebranded as Lootalloot/Plunder. The book starts off with the dynamics of sex-workers and their madam (pimp). The author uncannily weaves scenes of mutiny and desperation - a sex-worker's rebellion against her abuse, as opposed to her companion and co-worker's acceptance of fate - as the story unfolds. We move on the other chapters like Hard Labour, Hunger Mother, The People in the Field and finally Death is Becoming Cheap.

The stories of assault, poverty, helplessness and exploitation is not for the faint-hearted. Bagul's writing about the Dalit plight is vivid and unapologetic. His takes into account both in the urban and rural aspects. The anguish of characters like Fernandes brings to the fore the horrors of India's disparity. The book serves as a grim reminder that very little has changed for the Bahujan community in the last 55-years, when the book was first published.