How mythical creatures caught the world's imagination

Agencies
May 14, 2019

New Delhi, May 14: Propelled by fascination for the unknown, a variety of creatures, from the abominable Himalayan snowman to its North American cousin Bigfoot, often cross over from myth into reality even though there is little evidence to back their existence.

As it was last fortnight when the Indian Army rekindled the Yeti mystery with its tweet showing pictures of large footprints in the snow in the higher Himalayas and claimed they belonged to the abominable snowman.

Experts believe the possible reasons behind the enduring obsession with the beings that inhabit the nebulous worlds of legend and folklore and ever so frequently enter the realm of everyday life are many -- from human curiosity and the need to connect with the past to identifying threats to the survival of humankind.

Loch Ness, Unicorn and Almas... the list of such creatures is long, cutting across regions and cultures.

The correlation between imagination and imagined reality is once again under the scanner with the Indian Army releasing pictures and videos of footprints captured close to the Makalu Base Camp in Nepal in March.

In Nepali folklore, Yeti is a mythical bipedal ape-like creature taller than an average human and is said to inhabit the Himalayas, Siberia, Central and East Asia.

Nepali officials later clarified the footprints belong to the Himalayan Black Bear active in the area.

“As we get farther from the real wild, we seek talismans to connect us to the wild. A half-man, half-ape creature is such a symbol. It gives humanity an identity as an animal in a world where we are otherwise making everything ‘of human manufacture’,” said American conservationist Daniel C Taylor who has spent 35 years in Nepal's Barun Valley dispelling the Yeti myth.

“I researched from 1956, when at age 11 I saw my first photograph of the footprint so I knew there was a real animal, to 1983 when I explained scientifically that it was the Himalayan Black Bear,” Taylor, who is also the author of the 2017 book, "Yeti: The Ecology of a Mystery", told news agency.

Given the lack of evidence of its existence, the scientific community has generally regarded the Yeti as a legend.

Such creatures have also been found to exist in other regions of the world.

“Fantasies are something which always give immense pleasure to the human mind and that is the main reason why people enjoy the stories around such mythological characters,” said Shweta Sharma, consultant clinical psychologist at Columbia Asia Hospital.

“One reason may be that people are afraid and want to watch out for the unknown, since they are wired to keep themselves safe and identify threats for survival,” Sharma, who is also a counsellor at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Health Center, told news agency.

The second reason could be the basic human nature of curiosity which needs immediate gratification from a psychological point of view, she explained, adding that this also reflects in movies that are made.

Stories of the Yeti first emerged as a facet of Western popular culture in the 19th century.

Legends of hairy, oversize hominids lurking around the outer reaches of civilisation have been around for centuries and are part of the folklore of several cultures.

In North American folklore, Bigfoot or Sasquatch are said to be hairy, upright-walking, ape-like creatures that dwell in the wilderness and leave footprints like Yeti.

Depictions often portray them as a missing link between humans and human ancestors or other great apes.

“Living in cities and meeting the wild on TV screens, it is interesting that a Google search will reveal more Yeti (especially Bigfoot in US) sightings now than 20 years ago,” said Taylor, who is also president of the Future Generations University in the US.

The Almas or Alma, Mongolian for "wild man", is a purported hominid cryptozoological species reputed to inhabit the Pamir Mountains of Central Asia, and the Altai Mountains of western Mongolia.

Similarly, in Scottish folklore, the Loch Ness monster or Nessie is a creature said to inhabit the Scottish Highlands.

It is often described as large in size with a long neck and one or more humps protruding from the water.

Popular interest and belief in the creature has varied since it came to the attention of the world in 1933.

Evidence of its existence remains anecdotal, with a few disputed photographs and sonar readings.

“I think something like this has little to do with science and more to do with the human imagination and psyche,” noted T N C Vidya, associate professor of Evolutionary and Organismal Biology Unit at Bangalore's Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research (JNCASR).

“Perhaps when we are not satisfied with reality, we tend to come up with alternative realities to believe in,” Vidya said.

Closer home, the unicorn is a legendary creature that has been described since antiquity as a beast with a single large, pointed, spiralling horn projecting from its forehead.

The creature was depicted in ancient seals of the Indus Valley Civilization, covering parts of India and Pakistan, and was also mentioned by the ancient Greeks.

The unicorn is the most common motif on Indus seals.

Even in the 21st century, the unicorn holds a place in popular culture. It is often used as a symbol of fantasy or rarity.

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Agencies
January 4,2020

Mumbai, Jan 4: After the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur constituted a panel to decide whether legendary poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz's poem 'Hum Dekhenge' is offensive to Hindu sentiments, filmmaker Shoojit Sircar had a cryptic take on the burning controversy.

"Best time for the rich & small businesses to make money as most of the population are engaged with a revolutionary poet named Faiz," Sircar said in a tweet.

The poem, penned down by the iconic poet in 1979, came into limelight again recently during the protests against CAA and NRC in IIT Kanpur.

Earlier on Thursday, senior lyricist Javed Akhtar rejected the claims about the poem being 'anti-Hindu'.

IIT Kanpur on Thursday had set up a committee to look into the issue.

The move came after a complaint that the students who took out a peaceful march in the campus on December 17 against the Citizenship Amendment Act and in solidarity with Jamia Millia Islamia students, sung it as a mark of protest, which hurt the sentiments of other communities.

The CAA grants citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis, Buddhists and Christians who faced religious persecution in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh and came to India on or before December 31, 2014.

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Agencies
February 10,2020

Hollywood star Joaquin Phoenix finally ended his dry run at the Oscars as he picked up the best actor trophy for his performance in and as "Joker" at the 92nd Academy Awards.

The 45-year-old actor had earlier bagged a BAFTA, a Golden Globe and a Screen Actors Guild Award for his turn as a failed, unhinged stand-up comedian who descends into chaos.

In a lengthy and rambling speech, Phoenix touched upon racism, climate change and gender inequality. He also remembered his brother River Phoenix, who died of a drug overdose at the age of 23 in 1993.

"When he was 17, my brother wrote this lyric. He said, 'run to the rescue with love and peace will follow'," Phoenix said. At the Academy Awards and the entire Hollywood award season, Phoenix had emerged as an undisputed frontrunner even though he was up against the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio ("Once Upon a Time in Hollywood"), Adam Driver ("Marriage Story"), "Antonio Banderas ("Pain & Glory") and Jonathan Pryce ("The Two Popes").

An Oscar had eluded Phoenix for the most part of his career, despite his successful collaborations with Ridley Scott ("Gladiator"), James Mangold ("Walk The Line") and Paul Thomas Anderson ("The Master"), all of which had earned him nominations.

But as Arthur Fleck aka The Joker, Phoenix finally managed to break that jinx and became the second actor to win an Oscar for playing the DC comic book villain after the posthumous best supporting actor win to Heath Ledger in 2008.

As Joker, Phoenix took a deep dive into character, capturing its essence as well as maniacal spirit in both body and soul.

He lost 52 pounds to get into the physicality of Fleck and turned to a pathological disorder to get his distinct laughter right.

Phillips wrote the part keeping Phoenix in mind though the actor took some convincing to play the role.

Phoenix started the film's festival circuit tour on a positive note at Cannes last year that followed by stops at Venice and Toronto.

The film had also courted controversies, owing to its theme of gun violence in the movie as well as Phoenix's temperamental press tour that saw him walking out of an interview midway.

But critics and the fans loved the actor's riveting turn in the movie and his pointed speeches.

At the Golden Globes, he called out the industry for its insensitivity towards climate change and pulled up his peers for using private jets for travel, while at the SAGs, he joked how he would always lose a role to DiCaprio and asked Christian Bale to deliver a bad performance for once in his career.

In his acceptance speech at the BAFTAs, Phoenix acknowledged the lack of diversity in the nominations, calling himself a part of the problem. Phoenix's career most praised performances include "Signs ", "We Own the Night", "Two Lovers", "The Immigrant", "Her", "You Were Never Really Here" and "Inherent Vice".

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News Network
July 16,2020

Washington, Jul 16: Actor Chris Evans, better known as 'Captain America', made a six-year-old boy's day by sending him a personalised video message lauding his heroic act of saving his younger sister from a dog attack.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the aunt of the young boy (Bridger Walker from Cheyenne) posted on Instagram the story of how the boy saved his sister on July 9 and was horribly injured in the process.

She shared the story on the photo-sharing platform on Sunday and also posted few photos featuring the brother-sister duo as well as pictures of the injuries on Walker's face.

"After receiving 90 stitches (give or take) from a skilled plastic surgeon, he's finally resting at home," wrote the aunt (Nikki Walker).
"We love our brave boy and want all the other superheroes to know about this latest hero who joined their ranks," she added.

Moved by the young boy's story, Evans made a direct video message appreciating the boy for what he did, and how he is no less than a superhero.

He also promised to send the young kid an authentic 'Captain America' shield as a reward for his selfless, heroic act.

Evans' video message to the young boy was shared by the aunt on her Instagram profile.
In the video, Evans is saying, "Pal, you're a hero, what you did was so brave, so selfless -- your sister is so lucky to have you as a big brother.

Your parents must be so proud of you," Evans said in a video message that the family shared Wednesday. "Keep being the man you are, we need people like you. Hang in there, I know recovery might be tough, but based on what I've seen, I don't think there's much that can slow you down."

Towards the end, the 39-year-old actor told the boy he was sending the 'Captain America' shield to him, as the world needs more bravehearts like the little boy.

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