The smell of Life – A background!
Some days back I attended an ideation workshop that involved engaging in little creative games. For one of these exercises we were given a list of random words, we were asked to combine any two and write up a pen-profile based on the combination. The words that I drew from the lot were ‘actor’ and ‘smell’.
As I started thinking about how I could associate these two words – a thought crossed my mind – we often classify things (and in this case would have done the same with ‘smell’) as being either ‘good’ or ‘bad’ - often ignoring the whole space that lies in-between these two binary opposites. That’s the way we are designed to think! We 'understand anything by first understanding the opposite of what it is' - so we know dirt because its not clean and we know darkness because it is the absence of light. (It is not possible to measure darkness / study it in physics - but it is possible to study light - refraction theory)
When I was trying to combine the two words - smell and actor - I found myself falling into the same trap. - Either combining actor and smell in a positive way - which was the obvious choice – going into the terrain of endorsements for perfumes etc - or combining the two in a negative way - an actor who smells bad - the typical struggler - but both sounded too clichéd. That thought led to a search for middle ground. And I thought about an actor - grounded in reality - a theatre performer - very makrand deshpande - very swades like – honest…hardworking…a little cynical…a little idealistic. If one would imagine a character like that and associate ‘smell’ with him – that would be the 'the smell of life'
Though it could be argued that smell per se has a negative connotation – the flip of which – would be fragrance, aroma etc… the smells that we experience in life many a time occupy a middle ground largely due to the emotions that surround a situation. Since we do not feel a sensation in isolation. We connect with past associations that we have formed of that situation as individuals or as a culture.
So when one walks down a field…the smells that hit us are not always pleasant…the smell of dung…and sometimes fertilizer…yet a field conjures up images of nature…purity…freshness…mother earth…leaving an overall feel good factor.
The stimuli that occupy the spaces in-between are interesting - since they are impactfull in a subtle way. ‘The Smell of Life – An Olfactory Ode’ will conjure up smells in your mind that you have definitely experienced – though by their very nature none of these you will actually be able to classify as ‘good or bad’!
Go ahead…give it a try!
The smell of the earth after the first shower of rain
The smell of a long lost friend…the smell of pain!
The first whiff of the salty sea breeze
The smells that envelope you as you walk down a field
The smell of a freshly painted room
The smell of the morning coffee brew
The smell of a mother’s caress
The smell of newly weds being blessed
The smell of a lover that lingers on, long after he is gone
The smell of a new dawn…the smell of morn!
The smell of sweat, the smell of toil
The smell of freshly washed clothes on the line
The smell of clear spring water…the smell of snow
The smell of a bee gathering nectar…the scent of a mow!
The smell of a dusty day…the smell of a silent night
The smell of a new born …the smell of life!
