My first impressions of Tiffinbox were good- I always think that blogs with black backgrounds look pretty stylish and this one is no exception. There is a cartoon logo in the corner which is groovy and also a little paragraph explaining what the blog is about. Apart from this, the sidebars are pretty much made up of links and blogrolls. Whilst these are extensive, they don’t seem superfluous either; most external links seem to be on–topic and useful for anyone interested in the blog contents.
As for the subject matter of the blog, I feel it is best left for the blog itself to explain itself- “Tiffinbox is a blog (for now) that is interested in exploring the cultural fabric of the South Asian diaspora through photography, writing, art and design.” I think this description pretty well sums up the contents found within. The author is currently living in NYC but spreads his entries between NYC and Indian cultural issues and often combines both. I found this use of Internationalism works very well with a medium such as blogging. Whilst the author’s primary interest seems to be photography and related exhibitions, there can also be found lots of interesting articles related to politics, music, theatre, film – in fact pretty much every creative pursuit. The entries nearly all have this Indian/ American theme to them and are politically aware and politically “right on” too – lots of anti – war links, references to poverty and how India fairs in the global economy. It was also refreshing to hear about how many Indians have made it in their respective fields and are successfully able to take on their Western counterparts.
Archives go back to November 2003 and are extensive – way too much to be read here in one sitting. I found that most articles contained something informative though, were relevant to the overall theme and of some interest. It would have been nice to see a few more photos amongst the entries though, especially considering the theme of the blog. I also found that the category archives were particularly useful in a blog of this size, allowing me to home in subjects that appealed to me particularly.
Whether this blog has long term appeal to those not strictly interested in photojournalism or Indian culture is debatable. However, for those wishing to open their minds and learn something new about these areas, there is plenty in this blog to keep them amused. Overall a well structured blog.
Tiffinbox