Brownstars beamed down into 11372

The radical spoken word duo from Boston, spitting all things masala and Galactica, descended into the belly of the desi beast, Jackson Heights. Hailing from the South was Sathya a.k.a Southstar and representing the North was Pushkar a.k.a Northstar.

'We are born possessing extraordinary and dangerous powers......we are mutants born to a world that fears what it cannot understand' began the Southstar. Who knew? X-Men have everything to do with being desi in America! The hard-hitting expose Siren Song read as a manifesto and a prayer, based on Sathya's childhood indulgence in comic books and the X-Men whose special powers gave him a profound insight into a world in which outsiders can be both loved and feared.

'Though I am biased I must be a realist, the fecal wars have been won by a *@#&! imperialist' sang the hysterical Northstar, in his verse 'Ode to the Squat Toilet,' celebrating water as a cleanser of choice, to the colonial imposition of the flush. Interestingly, Wikipedia claims that the ancient civilizations of Mohenjodaro and Harappa used flush toilets.

The final piece Brownstar Galactica was a real treat for science fiction types. Captain Northstar and Ensign Southstar set off to the 'alcove of answers' to seek answers to life's big questions, such as, 'If there is a God, why did she create Sanjaya?' and "If God is humble, why does she use a capital G?" After clever wordplay, they return from the alcove with more questions than answers and the realization that truth is a journey.

Raised in the mid-west, the Brownstars were drawn to theater in high school. In college, they took up roles in plays by Shakespeare and Chekhov, because that was what was being cast. But something was missing. In a quest to find stories about their own experiences and being brown in America, they rose to the challenge of writing and performing their own stories. They define "revolution" as something that sparks a movement - and see their words, their art - as a powerful tool to get audiences thinking differently about the world - or at the very least, ignite new conversations.

The Brownstars return to the galaxy of New York City on August 14-15, 2009, for a performance titled UNIFICATION, in an artistic demonstration for peace, on the eve of India's and Pakistan's independence day celebrations.