‘I’ in Togetherness: A series of 52 photos in 52 weeks to understand the Journey of a couple together and as Individuals. The I in Togetherness. They are known as Jey couple together and as Mee and Jey individually. Here are the photos and Text from week 25 to 32
Week 25: Clothes
Cloths: When Mee and Jey met for the first time their choices of cloths were very very different. Jey used to wear oversized full shirts with cuff buttons. Dull colors, mostly dark blue or anything. Jey was not even aware of what colors to wear and what looks good on him. Mee was wearing white mostly but old cloths most of the time.
Jey fell in love with her black color and white cloths. Mee used to laugh at the oversized cloths of Jey. Slowly they began their journey of buying cloths. Strange enough Jey has a unique gift of picking really nice sarees. Before marriage Jey had bought 17 sarees for Mee and kept them in a Trunk. It has sarees from all the states. A pink baauchurri from calcutta, a matka sil from bhagalpur, silk from kanchipuram and a sambal puri saree from orissa but Jey couldn’t pick cloths for himself till he went to London.In London Jey understood the meaning of well fitted shirts and jeans. Jey still uses those shirt which he bought from London. after marriage Jey divulged into colors and now his collection is quite colorful. From yellow t shirts to pink shirts he has got all of them.Mee and Jey were never Brand fanatics. They always buy branded cloths only during a good sale or pick cheaper but good quality cloths wherever they find one.
In last few years they have started wearing same colors as well and when they noticed it, they got some cloths in pairs as well.
The journey of cloths continues. Jey is loud in terms of colors of his cloths. Mee is subtle with white, light green, grey and such colors. They experiment a lot with the cloths without spending much on them.
#I #Togetherness #Cloths #colorfulcloth #shirts#tshirts #brands #white #pieceofcloth #meeandjey#photojourney #journeyofacouple #Jeycouple#identity #travellingcouple #india #darkskin#oversize #greenMeenakshi Jey : Jey has a fetish for fancy clothes since his childhood, Mee wears sober dresses even for functions. Though Jey survived wearing his older brothers discarded clothes for years, Mee had a range of old passed-on clothes to choose from elder girls in her joint family.
Mee grew up hearing advices like ‘you are dark, so wear light shade clothes to look fair.’ Over the years instead of wearing light colored clothes Mee embraced colors that would attract no attention like whites, blues, and dark greens. She spent her adolescence feeling uncomfortable with her thin frame & darker skin among healthy and fair girls in her family, hiding her skin under long dresses covering most of her body.
In past 7 years, living with Jey, Mee has a wider range of colors in her clothing as she started loving her skin tone( thanks to Jey). Jey, who is highly experiential with colors, styles and fittings, loved to buy dresses and fabrics for Mee. Mee designs all dresses for Jey and buys all the fabrics from wherever she travels to. Eventually Jey bought textiles and dresses for Mee from almost all states of India.
In the photograph, the dresses on her left shoulder is her own purchases and dresses on right shoulders are all gifts from loving friends and Jey, of course.In fact Mee and Jey share and wear each other’s clothes on regular basis. #i #identity#skincolor #darkskin #dark #clothing #color #couple#artistcouple #photojourney #photooftheweek#jeycouple #meeandjey #artologue #travelingcouple #newdelhi
Jey Sushil Week 26: I in Togetherness. A series of 52 photos in 52 weeks tracing the journey of a couple named Mee and Jey.
Wine has been a fascination for Mee and Jey both. It was not about alcohol or the drunkenness but the forbidden joy of drinking alcohol as youngsters has been a priority.
Jey tried drinking in college and hated it. For a long time Jey avoided alcohol as he couldn’t tolerate the smell. Though he can drink the local tribal drinks like handiya, he was averse to whisky and other such drinks. Later in London Jey got exposed to wine and started collecting wine as well.
As couple Jey introduced wine ti Meenakshi who just tasted all of them to know the taste.
Mee always had a fine choice. She picked up rose wine as her drink and that’s too occasionally.
Drinking in India is still seen as Taboo but we decide to break it. We r not drinkers but we like drinking at times when we r happy and with close friends.
Though Jey had his drinking brawls but now he is a very very occasional drinker. Jey drinks less and collects more these days as he likes the bottles. He has got a small collection of wines from Europe and some local brews from nepal, vodka from Russia all coming from friends.
That’s the wine story.
#I #Identity #Togetherness #wine #alcohol #rose #lfe#meejey #meeandjey #brewery #beer #colourful#india #vodka #bottles #drinks #drunkyard #drunk
Meenakshi Jey : Week 26. Already half the way for this 52 week photo art project about two individuals growing together as a couple.
Mee and Jey have another common love that is wine. Though neither of they indulge in drinking unless to celebrate some occasions, they do love to collect good wines and other drinks from different parts of the world.
Mee is blessed to have a very friendly brother who gave her first basic lesson of drinking and about drinks. Later Mee came to know Jey and his best friend Tabrez. It is then that she had first taste of Ro`se wine that Jey had brought for her from London. It was the most elevating taste Mee had ever known. Though after a couple of glasses of wine, she began to laugh ceaselessly and danced around spinning on heels like she was flying. Mee was flying in her head courtesy to Rose wine, but thanks to Jey and Tabrez, she did not bang her head inspire of losing her balance quite a few times. And thus began Mee and Jey’s love for wines and particularly sweet wines.
#i #identity #togetherness #wine #rosewine #drinks#photojourney #photooftheweek #artologue#artforall #artistcouple #artforlife #art #jeycouple #meeandjey
Week 27 : Cold
Week 27: I in Togetherness. A photo series of 52 photos in 52 weeks tracing the relationship of a couple as individuals and as a unit.
Winter is something Mee and Jey has grown fond of. Though Jey is scared of winters always, Mee doesn’t feel cold at all which lead to amusing adjustments in their lives. From sleeping habits to the concept of coziness, everything got redefined. They got to know about their different reactions to cold after they started living together.
Jey wears layers and layers of cloths in winter and Mee is comfortable with one stylish jacket or a scarf. Jey is fearful of winter and always says cold will getting into my bones. Mee laughs and giver even her coat at times.
Though where they were dating, Jey tried to show that he is okay in winter mornings and late night walks in fog but no more. Though Jey loves the foggy night walks but then he wears 8 layers of cloths, muffler, monkey cap and what not. His life becomes a hard struggle in wi ter and Mee loves the season.
Last but not the least, their honeymoon was during the coldest period in kashmir where it snowed the first day they reached srinagar. Winter has so many memories of walking together and driving in the mist.
Jey still fight with his winter demons but enjoys those foggy night strolls with Mee.
#winter #night #fog #season #I #Together #Identity#lifelessons #meeandjey #jeycouple #cloths#travellingcouple #coolwinter #winterdressing #snow#colorfulwinter #chillywinter #artologue #artforall
Meenakshi Jey : Week 27. A 52 week online photo performance series about two individuals grworing together as a couple.
Mee is from Mars and Jey is from Venus. Mee is hot and Jey is cold. Winter makes Mee blush and Jey hide under layers of woolen clothes. It could be so because Mee was born in peak winters and Jey in scorching summer. Earlier Jey used to wear boring black and brown jackets that made him look sullen but the troubles of winter was turned in fun dressing when colors were intertwined in wools. Though dressed in several layers Jey looks like a colorful candy while Mee walks around in a layer or two enjoying ice creams. #i #identity #photooftheweek#photojourney #jeycouple #togerherness #winter #winterdressing #coolwinter #winterbaby#chillywinter #colorfulwool #meeandjey #artforall #artologue #travelingcouple #newdelhi
Week 28 : Friends
Jey Sushil : Week 28: I in Togetherness: a series of 52 photo in 52 weeks to trace the journey of a couple as individuals and together.
Theme : friends Mee and Jey are life partners but they consider each other their best friends though they have different criteria for making friends.
Jey is touchy Bout making friends and take some time. Once he make some friends he maintains the friendship to the end until and unless they hurt him badly. It happened to Jey a couple of times and he has gone wiser. Now he makes less number of friends.
Still he has a wide variety of friends as he has varied interests. He have a group of Book friends, another group of artist friends, one for masti, another for debates and few others for creative pursuits and last one of very close ones where he can open his heart.
That close group has few ones including Mee. No one can claim that they know Jey fully. According to Mee, Jey is a new man everyday and he changes so his periphery of friends but the core remains the same.
Mee on the other hand is extremely selective to connect to people. Mee has a very close circle of friends and she wants it to be like that though when you meet Mee, you will feel that she is your best friend but actually she takes her own sweet time to connect.
#I #identity#Togetherness#life #friends#friendsforever #meeandjey #jeycouple #childhood, #friends #partnersincrime
Meenakshi Jey Week 28. A 52 week online photo performance art project by Meenakshi and Jey.
Friends play very important part in everybody’s life including that of Mee & Jey.
Mee is bad at making friends though she is very friendly. She connect very deeply with select few and then they remain very close to her heart even though they may or may not talk for years. It is a very sacred connect that she nurses silently enjoying every bit of it.
While Jey is very talkative, very social and meets -talks to his friends very often. He tends to share different aspects of his life with different kinds of friends. From discussing books to arts, politics and work, spirituality and family like bond, from travels to crazy projects, Jey has varied groups of friends to share almost every occasion of his life. He is a rich guy.
While Mee tends to make friends who become part of her life and shares every joy and problem with them, Jey is her best friend.
In fact with Jey she does not miss having a buddy, a girl friend, a lover, a companion, a critique and an enemy 
😉 #i #identity #togetherness #friends#socialbird #photooftheweek #photojourney#photoartproject #couple #jeycouple#travelingcouple #travel #art #artist #artistcouples#artologue #artforall #artforlife #newdelhi #india
Week 29 : Money
Jey Sushil Week 29: I in Togetherness: a series of 52 photographs in 52 weeks to trace the journey of a couple as Individuals and as a couple.
Theme: Money.
Money was in our minds as a theme but then demonetization happened in India and it became more relevant.
Mee and Jey have very different approach towards money. Jey is lost without money and feels doomed. Jey feels money is very important and one should have enough to buy things but he also understands the fact that money can’t buy everything. He is not a money minded guy but he just wants to have lots so that he never ever have to ask anyone for money.
The tendency probably comes from his background where he saw his parents living and educating him in a debt trap, where every day was a struggle for his parents to borrow some money to eat, to pay fees. For Jey begging for money is one of most humiliating experiences in his life. He had borrowed money in his worst days and people have helped him a lot and that’s why he always try to help people in need.
Its his own insecurity towards money that leads him to keep money in his account. Recently when demonetization happened, Jey only had 400 rupees in his pocket and couldn’t get money. He was jittery for many days till he got some money. He doesn’t spend much but he just wants to have that control where he can spend when he wants to.
Mee on the other hand is quite philosophical about money. She ia more into collecting currency from different countries. She is immune to money as it doesn’t give her any thrill. During demonetization, she was calm with 150 rupees in her wallet and managed with that money. For her money is just a mean to an end.
Jey is learning that from her slowly. Jey wears his money as his crown as it gives him confidence. Mee treats money as a stranger which might help him when she needs it.
#jeycouple #lifeofacouple #money #demonetization#wealth #rupees #colourful #crown #atm#persimonious #miser #I #Together#travellingcouple #identity #Iintogetherness#meeandjey
Meenakshi Jey Week 29. A 52 week online performative art project about 2 individuals Mee & Jey, in a relationship growing together.
Money is funny when it comes to Mee and quentecensial for Jey. Mee has always been trusted with money even when she was a little girl for the simple reason that Mee is a true miser.
She used to keep the money but never kept and account of it. Just because she was famous for not spending money at all, she became treasurer of many of her near and dear ones. As rewards for her honesty/miserness 😉 , her own treasure kept growing. It is funny how she was obsessed about collecting money but never felt the urge to count the money.
Even till today she collects coins from different countries and currenties of different kinds. She treasures her small collections of coins from Hong Kong, Nepal, UK and India.
On the other hand Jey is very careful with money. Having lived in extreme crisis twice, his approach towards money is more like an important resource.
He earns and spends with equal enthusiasm but he keeps a near accurate record of all his spendings down to a riksha fare as well.
Among Jey’s very personal possesion there is a diary where he has nealy all records of money Jey has spent in last 13 years since he came in a steady job.
It is very convenient for Mee and Jey to be in each other’s company inspite of their very different approach towards money.
#i #identity #togetherness #photojourney#photooftheweek #demonetisation #money#treasure #persimonious #spendthrift #miser#artforall #jeycouple #artistcouple #artologue #newdelhi #mee&jey
Week 30 : Violence
Violence is something Mee and Jey treat in very very different ways. Jey is scared of violence. He might look tough or talk tough, from inside he is scared of any kind of violence. Mere sight of human blood makes him sick and he can not stand street fights of any kind. The reason may be a childhood experience of seeing a tribal man walking with the severed head of his wife whom he caught with another man. OR may be when he saw his father beating up his mother once. During college years as well, Jey avoided fights most of the times and he still avoids any kind of violence. May be he is afraid that he too might become extremely violent.On the other hand Mee is not scared and she can take a tactical stand during violence. For her being violent at times is fun but her violence is of playful kind. She scratches and pulls hair. In a serious violence, she will always in a defense mode and can hit anyone if threatened. She is like a tigress. Jey is like a cub during violent fights. He shouts and tries to avoid fights.Till now we never had any violent fights between us but some funny ones. Once mee pushed Jey on a bean bag and Jey had no idea so he tried to catch her and in the process scratched her face badly.
Jey likes to see violent films. Mee hates them. That’s the balance in terms of violence. We had long chats about this human trait and decided to share it with all of you. *Jey’s makeup is inspired by a real life incident of well known author Gabriel Garcia Marquez and Mee’s makeup is inspired by real life incidents explained in the post.#I #identity#Togetherness #jeycouple #violence#fights #fisticuff #meeandjey #humantraits#blackeneye #scratches #violenceinlife #tough #softMeenakshi Jey Week 30. An online performative photo series about two individuals Mee & Jey, growing in a relationship.
This Saturday is about Violence.
Mee is fire, who stays silent in violent situations till there is no way but to fight. She is one who takes the fight head on instead of escaping. Being a very sport loving and physically adventurous, Mee becomes alert and defensive in case being threatened. Instead of being vocal, her energy is streamlined into her muscles to give a painful blow.
In the year 2003 Mee was physically assaulted by a group of men in India Trade Fair. She pulled back and gave the assaulter a knee kick between his legs, making him fall on the floor with pain. But after that incident she was never taken to a fair again.
It is not that Mee loves fighting or picks fighting but she is not a coward either.
While Jey reacts to violent situations by being vocal. He tries to scare his opponent by his anger, shouts and physically loud gestures trying to avoid physical contact. However within minutes his blood pressure shoots and he loses his cool and breaks down in tears. He hates violence and fear it equally.
Mee and Jey make a good fighting pair in violent situations. While Jey engages in verbal violence, Mee takes quick steps to put the opponent in disadvantageous situation. There are many situations to talk about but not today.
#i #identity #togetherness #jeycouple #violence#fight #fighter #coward #photooftheweek#photojourney #onlineperformance #saturdayseries
#meeandjey #artologue #artforall #artistcouple#newdelhi #india
Week 31 : Gardening
Gardening is one thing where Jey is clueless and Mee has all the ideas. Jey has no interest in gardening as such except the fact that he likes flowers. He is a nature lover but not a gardening man. When he was a kid, he tried to grow vegetables and flowers in his small garden for two consecutive years. He worked hard turning the soil, watering it in the summer heat but he failed miserably. After two years his mother explained to him that sometimes some people can’t grow things.
That line struck Jey somehow and after that day he lost all interest in gardening. When Jey Couple shifted to their small apartment, they had the luxury of a small garden again and Mee was ecstatic. She now grows flowers and various small plants. Jey never offer any help except watering it sometimes. Numerous flowers pots lay outside their house and Jey loves the small flowers but don’t understand the connection and joy mee gets out of gardening. Garden means green grass for Jey. Jey is a man of jungle, Mee is a girl of gardens.
#I #Togethernss #identity #gardening #flowers#jungle #lifeinapartments #metrolife #failurea #soil#meeandjey #jeycouple #color #travellingcouple#meejey #photoseries #photooftheweekMeenakshi Jey : ‘I’ in Togetherness. Week 31. A 52 week online performative art project by Mee & Jey about two individuals growing as a couple trying to create an equilibrium in their life.
A couple of years back Mee &Jey shifted their home to a green corner in a metropolitan. Mee always wanted to have a home with neem , banyan, golden showers, gulmohar, harsingar/parijat trees in her lawn. Though her dream did come true (almost) when they shifted to their new home with a small park that came under their care. This little green corner makes Mee smile even in difficult times. She often engages in watering, turning the soil, manuring, and trimming the plants, an art she learnt from her father.
Though the soil is dull and rocky, for Mee this garden is her contemplative zone where she spends her evenings and mornings. At times painting the walls, the twines locks of Pakad tree and small white pebbles.
Jey steps in the garden often when Mee is turning soils. He is not much interested in gardening as he has a bad luck with gardening as a young kid. He walks in to help Mee so that she ought not hurt her already injured right thumb.
He likes when flowers bloom, when Mee shows him new sapling, a new fruiting plant, but he stays away from emotionally attaching to the whole process. He stays away to not get pained again in case the plants don’t survive in the poor soil, or dies when we are traveling. Though he does ensure that the garden is taken care by gardeners and Mee.
#i #identity #gardening #jeycouple #artologue#artforall #gardening #greenery #plant #nature#photooftheweek #photojourney #meeandjey #mee&jey #artistcouple #onlineartproject #newdelhi #india
Week 32 : Music
Music is something in which our connection developed very very slowly may be because of different choices of Music. Mee has always listen to folk music and revolutionary songs at her home. Jey has listened to bollywood and never had a chance to create a collection of his own. He was a big fan of Michael Jackson as a kid because in his town everyone use to do the moonwalk. Later in Delhi, Jey started listening gazals but never got connected to them.
Then came the phase of abida parveen, nusrat, bulle shah and all that sufi music which prompted Jey to make his own collection. In London Jey decide to make a collection of english songs and learnt about Bob Dylan, Beatles, Elton john and his favourite Tracy Chapman. Jey still couldn’t understand Beatles but he knows stuff about them. He started listening to country songs, jazz and rock but except Dylan and Tracy, he couldn’t relate much to them.Later someone gave him the music of Tipanyas, artists from MP who sings kabir and from there the love of folk music grew. Now Jey has a collection of Rajasthani, kutchh folk and in recent years he developed a taste for classical though he is still in learning phase, he can make out Bhimasen joshi, kishori amonkar, anushka shankar and few others.
The playlist of Jey includes punjabi foot tapping music and bauls too. So he is a bit complicated in that sense. He also likes to listen to his music alone with his headphones, which is changing slowly.
Mee can sing a bit and she engrosses herself in the smooth melodious songs from Bollywood, classical and folk songs of any place. But she hates headphones. She always likes her music on a speaker so that music changes her space.And if there are speakers and any foot tapping music comes. Both of them starts dancing..that’s our growing music journey.
#I #Togetherness #identity #music #jeycouple#photojourney #meeandjey #mee&jey #musicallife#weekend #saturdayseries #travellingcouple#artwallelog #couple #musicandlife #popmusic#countrymusic #instrumentalmusic #sufimusic#musicallife #rhythmMeenakshi Jey: ‘I’ in Togetherness. Week 32. An online performative 52week project on relationship by Mee&Jey.
Music is soothing, it is meditative as much as energising.
Mee has grown up on a steady dose of classical music performances on Doordarshan (national television channel) and on Vividh Bharti radio and limited interaction with Bollywood music and almost nil with English songs.
The childhood musical experience dominates her choice of music, though with little knowledge about musical varieties and musicians.
When Mee came to know Jey, she heard Tribal and Nagpuriya songs from him and would not stop giggling. Later Jey introduced Mee to Country songs, pop music and Folk music.
Having listened to all kinds of music Mee prefers instrumental music and Folk music while Jey has fallen in love head over heels with Classical and country music.
Over the years music has become an essential part of life for Mee&Jey. While Jey loves listening to music with headphone as rhythm of daily life, Mee loves a low volume of Instrumental surround sound music. For her it is more like air than sound. A musical air stimulating her creativity.
#i #identity #togetherness #photojourney#photooftheweek #jeycouple #music #popmusic#classicalmusic #countrymusic #tribalmusic #instrumentalmusic #rhythm #sound #artologue #artforall #couplelife #lifestyle #newdelhi #india
Your posts are entertaining. Great entertainment blog. Thanks!
Thank you Piyush Gupta.
Creativity at its best with entertainment.