Taking a leaf out of foremost modernist English writer of twentieth the century Virginia Woolf’s widely-read essay A Room of One’s Own, where she advocates buying a necessary breathing space for every single woman, men are too not reluctant to understand this importance of being an earnest hunter for a lonely planet where they could think, plan, introspect, ideate at ease and be creative in more ways than one. For who can deny switching off his stress-batteries to keep his pressing professional deadlines and personal headaches at bay! So either answer that evasive getaway call to hit the open-air horizon down a ribboning road or simply luxuriate in the leisurely activities you are most passionate about.
A male-centric space or a “man-cave” is increasingly becoming vital to a man’s daily roster. Even the raindrops seem personal when you want to hide your tears from the world. Like the legendary Charlie Chaplin had ages ago confessed to love walking in the rain so that nobody can see him cry. Men may be mocked as weak wimps when they wish to weep and lighten their hearts from the heavy burden of grief. “In our profession, ‘the show must go on’ adage fits the bill to the tee. Despite there being a family emergency or say you are devastated to the core, you still need to make people laugh with your humorous punch-lines. There’s no excuse to escape the call of the craft,” elucidates acclaimed stand-up comedian and writer Anuvab Pal. For the stage-performer, green room is the safest haven to wrestle with his internal conflict on a day he feels low and down before an act.
Don’t we know that sometimes even a staid figure, a pair of brooding eyes, reticent personality and sobriety can cut across a lady-killing image What are then cerebral sex-icons for! Aren’t all girls attracted towards The Thinker, a world-famous bronze sculpture by noted French sculptor and father of modernist chisel-art, Francois Auguste Rodin The gigantic nude male form sitting upon a rock with his chin resting on one hand in deep thought is often applied as an epitome of philosophy. And to nurture a thinking lady’s sex-symbol, a secluded niche is certainly required for that man who reasons on his own feet.
“Art is a private solitary pursuit”, many brainy intellectuals and creative people would align with this view. And to whet one’s grey-matter, a lonesome retreat is unarguably imperative.
Maverick film-composer Shantanu Moitra loves hanging out with his car behind the steering wheel. With a fixation for long trips in the wilderness and among lofty mountains, this scorer believes in continuous motion unless he is committed to stop by and park his vehicle. “I love the spurt of power that the automobile generates. It genuinely offers a harbour of isolation in this noisy hustle and bustle of life,” he affirms. Right from Mumbai in the west to Leh in extreme north to Kanyakumari in the southern tip, Moitra keeps climbing up and down the travel-graph. He is even fond of beach-driving with his bosom buddies and at least once a year, sets out on excursions to rejuvenate his tired nerves. Maybe somewhere in the midst of his junket on lazy weekends, he unconsciously plays his own melodies like Baawra mann dekhne chala or someday down the line, he would fondly listen to John Denver’s classic hit Country Roads.
Fashion designer Nimish Shah handles his creative craft from a neat, warm and cushy studio-suite. “I don’t agitate while working, for I don’t believe in taking tension. My work is my passion, so I never fret over its nitty-gritty,” he renders his logic.
Celebs from all walks of life treat their masculine-hubs as a stress-free lair. They go slightly footloose if not reckless to have a ball in the thick of some unbridled fun. Catching up with old friends, hobnobbing in like-minded circles, carousing with bum chums, bingeing over snacks and chit-chats, watching sports channels, playing snookers, riding horses for a game of polo, indulging in golf, photography, indoor amusements like card, board or video games on play-stations or simply listening to one’s own heartbeat are some of the recreational ways to keep themselves engagingly entertained inside their man-caves.
Model-cum-actor Abhinav Shukla is a self-proclaimed outdoor person with a nip of wanderlust at heart. He reveals to travel and camp on the holidays quite frequently. “Presently, I’m on my way back from Tower Hill, situated in Kamshet of Maharashtra. It is one of the most popular parag-liding sites, located near Pune. I camped there over-night and now returning. You know, my jeep with its wheels got stuck in the slush and I had to struggle hard taking them out. But that’s the fun part of any given journey. It is endowed with unpredictability!” he narrates his experience from the short vacation.
Recently, Hollywood actress Drew Barrymore was instantly awestruck to gaze at her actor-husband Will Kopelman’s plush and beautiful man-cave when he first showed it to her. According to agency reports circulated in the media, the high-maintenance shelter is filled with “art, books, family photographs and beloved keepsakes”. The actor found a “bubble of tranquility” inside his bathroom fitted with a tub and by his own admission; his most intimate cubicle is a real replica of his own aesthetic sense.
