Reflections of Passions

Rise In Love

2012-02-13T22:15:00.001+05:30

February is just one of those months where we see the power of consumerism in full swing. It is a month with a specific date dedicated exclusively to love. But wait! Said who? I leave you to ask these questions to yourself as I go ahead and explain to you the discovery of an awesome Indian character that surprisingly enough has a lot to do with love! There is a character in our mythology who is very similar to Cupid, I would even go and say that he plays a role very similar to Cupid... he is none other than Kamadeva. Have you heard of him?

The name Kamadeva can be translated as "God of Love". Kama meaning longing or desire and Deva meaning love. There are several variations regarding the birth of Kamadeva in different Puranas. One such Puranic story narrates his birth as Kamadeva arose from Brahma's heart and is always portrayed to be serving Lord Indra. He is characterized by a greenish or reddish complexion, decked with flowers and ornaments, armed with a bow made of sugarcane and strung with a line of honeybees. He is accompanied by his wife Rati who symbolizes desire, a parrot who serves as his vehicle and his close friend Vasanta, who is none other than the God of Spring! Does that ring a bell?

Kamadeva is assigned by Indra to help defeat the demon Tarakasur. The only one who can defeat this horrible demon is Shiva's son. But Shiva is in meditation and only Kamadeva can break his meditation. He sets the right mood and awakens Shiva with a flower arrow. Shiva is so furious on being disturbed that he opens his third eye and burns Kamadeva to ashes! Shiva notices Parvati standing by and asks how he can help her. Parvati begs of Shiva to resuscitate Kamadeva. Shiva agrees only under the condition of giving Kamadeva a disembodied form. The spirit of love is formless and spreads across the universe affecting even Shiva himself, who falls in love with Parvati. Shiva and Parvati's son Karthikeya goes on to kill Tarakasur. Thus, Kamadeva succeeds in his duty.

On the 14th of February, thousands of people celebrate love across the world. Thanks to the kitsch consumerist attitude, this day has become more of a commercial day where retailers take advantage of people's soft hearts and stuff them up with red and pink items and chocolates and hearts. It is a time of the year when everybody suddenly remembers the importance of love. But do you know what I believe? I believe love should be celebrated every single day. Over the years, seeing people around me obsess about one specific date has made me realize, "it's not about buying or giving... it's about giving and giving." And giving, not just things but giving of oneself--one's love, time, attention, care, a listening ear , a warm hug ... why wait for that single day in a year? Why not dedicate every single day to love? For sure, it would make a world of difference in our lives.

I shared the story of Kamadeva to some of the people around me and they were shocked yet interested in listening to the story of Kamadeva. Come to think of it, we aren't that different after all, isn't it? I guess it's time we recognized and realized that and rise in love.

Mere Saath Chalogi?

2012-02-05T18:56:00.000+05:30

The living room was slightly dark. Things were visible in their outlines but for 56 year old Nancy, it was difficult to see her reflection in the mirror. There was nothing wrong in her eyesight; she just turned her back on her previous self when she landed up in an old age home. During the past one year, everything associated with her family had been wiped off like the way a line drawn with a white chalk is wiped off a slate. Similarly, Nancy too had scratched her old memories alive and forced upon her an awareness of her old identity.

It had been on a Monday afternoon when her son Ryan and her daughter-in-law Diana informed her that they would be moving to Canada in search of better employment opportunities. Her son had smartly calculated his moves and made his mother to sign the legal documents of the house. To explain his point, he employed excuses such as the rising crimes being committed against senior citizens and the difficulties of living alone in a metropolitan city. In wake of such events, he suggested that she should live in an old age home for her safety and security. He also assured her that they both would be returning soon to pick her up once they are settled in Canada. It was because of this assurance that Nancy agreed to live in an old age home.

A year had passed since her son had moved to Canada. There had been no letters or even a phone call to ask about her. She had now given up waiting expectantly for the postman in the hope that there would be a letter in the mail. A realization dawned on her that she had been tricked into believing her son was genuinely interested in her well-being and welfare. Since she was 13, she was a pillar of endurance. While she earnestly wished to reconcile with her son, a sense of numbness swept past her every time she thought of this.

It was a Saturday when she accidentally bumped into yesteryear film actor Anand and spilled hot tea on his white kurta. She offered to wash the kurta for him but he politely refused. The former superstar Anand had appeared in nearly 90 films as the lead actor. Though he was a man of the masses, he wasn't fortunate enough to enjoy the same kind of overwhelming love from his family. Reality him hard when he realized that his life was not a movie and he was no longer a demigod and was just another human being like anyone else when his daughter-in-law meted out ill-treatment to him. His son couldn't help him either. Letting practicality lead the way, he decided not to subject himself to any more emotional torment and decided to move to an old age home with his self-respect intact.

During an evening walk, Anand informed her that he was not intending to get married to her since he loved his dead wife dearly. He made it clear that he was just seeking companionship from her end which she too lacked. Soon enough, they realized that soul mates need not necessarily be in a marital relationship always. As age and life demonstrated it to them, the best of relationships were platonic in nature and they decided to keep it that way. Of course, they would cherish it for the rest of their lives because it is not everyday when one comes across soul mates.

Vande Mataram

2012-01-26T05:30:00.000+05:30

As India celebrates its 63rd Republic Day, a new version of "Vande Mataram" was launched to infuse a feeling of patriotism. The new video has been composed by the tabla player Bickram Ghosh and the video has been directed by Girish Malik while the video has been conceptualized by J.K. Srivastava.

The new version of the national song brings in 21 eminent singers and musicians from different genres to create a fresh feel. The video infuses a feeling of patriotism as it features Sonu Nigam, Shubha Mudgal, Kaushiki Desikan and Ustad Rashid Khan, Amaan Ali Khan, Pandit Vishwamohan Bhatt, Niladri Kumar, Sunidhi Chauhan, Manoj Tiwari, Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty, Mahalakshmi Iyer, Indian Ocean, Roopkumar Rathod, Palash Sen, Kamal Sabri etc. The video also features Bickram Ghosh playing the tabla, kanjira and percussions.

India has one of the world's largest population of young people. The new video is an ode to India as a dynamic, vibrant nation and the India of the times we live in. The India of today is strong, serene and beautiful. Besides bring together a diverse ensemble of artists and music icons, the video has been shot in as many as 24 different sets across India which makes the video very vibrant and colourful. By bringing together the genius of various artistes cutting across genres, the new edition of "Vande Mataram" truly reflects India's secular spirit by celebrating the "unity-in-diversity" aspect.

Censoring Online Content (Part-II)

2012-01-22T07:00:00.000+05:30

Geeta Seshu,
Columnist, The Hoot

In subsequent hearings, Google India maintained that it was not a service provider but was a subsidiary of Google Inc. Moreover, it was a separate entity distinct from its holding US-based firm. Advocate Rohatgi agreed that articles that may seem objectionable do keep cropping up on the Internet. "There are probably billions of articles and it would be difficult to filter them all. But, if you do have a grievance, under the amended Information Technology Act, 2000, there was a procedure for registering abuse and making a complaint to all social networking sites about the matter that may be "objectionable", he felt.

"Some solution can be found but this remedy is far worse than the disease," he said, adding that he had never seen any government so proactive on any issue. Google India, he had explained to the court, was only a subsidiary and did not have the werewithal to provide filters or block content or sites. In criminal law, there is no vicarious liability for the company, he averred.

What is the genesis of the present fracas? Perhaps, it is in the objections raised by Union Information and Technology minister Kapil Sibal last December when he held meetings with the ISPs Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Yahoo! to screen online content. The move led to widespread condemnation, as netizens expressed fears of censorship of online content. The minister was forced to backtrack and clarify that he and his government were, in fact, committed to freedom of expression and were not in favour of censorship. (Interestingly, Vinay Rai has gone on record to state that he did not file complaints with the social networking sites and instead, pursued the matter with the IT ministry for over a year before the latter called for a meeting with the ISPs).

Perhaps the genesis of the current fracas is in the IT rules framed in connection with the amended IT Act. For long, online freedom activists have pointed out that the rules are draconian and open to extremely wide interpretation. The intermediaries are expected to take down content within 36 hours of receiving a complaint of "objectionable" material. What is deemed to be "objectionable" is anything that is seen to be:

"grossly harmful, harassing, blasphemous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, paedophilic, libellous, invasive of another's privacy, hateful, or racially, ethnically objectionable, disparaging, relating or encouraging money laundering or gambling, or otherwise unlawful in any manner whatever;

c) harm minors in any way
d) infringes any patent, trademark, copyright or other proprietary rights.
e) violates any law for the time being in force;
f) deceives or misleads the addressee about the origin of such messages or communicates any information which is grossly offensive or menacing in nature;
g) impersonate another person;
h) contains software viruses or any computer code, files or programs designed to interrupt, destroy or limit the functionality of any computer resource;
i) threatens the unity, integrity, defence, security or sovereignty of India, friendly relations with foreign states or public order or causes incitement to the commission of any cognizable offence or prevents investigation of any offence or is insulting any other nation.

It appears that the complainant, Vinay Rai, decided to bypass this provision under the IT Act and directly seek the removal of the content by filing a criminal complaint under the IPC and CrPC.

In this free-for-all, everyone gets to be censor and regulator--true democracy, anyone?

Censorsing Online Content (Part-I)

2012-01-21T15:34:00.000+05:30

Geeta Seshu
Columnist, The Hoot

A whole host of issues, from the definition of "offensive" content, the procedures to take down content deemed offensive and the responsibilities and jurisdiction of intermediaries are all at stake in the ongoing case against Internet Service Providers (ISPs) Google and Facebook. However, the crucial issue is how exactly a civilized society must tackle content that is seen to be "objectionable" at sites that poke fun at holy cows (political leaders included) and utterances or material that seem to be derogatory to different religions or castes or mischievous and defamatory, violative of privacy or hate-filled content that incites violence.

Print media has had a long history of battles over content that is problematic, with the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression being tested at every turn. In broadcast media, the struggle over self-regulation by the broadcast industry is still an open one, as the Indian government periodically speaks of the need to have stringent regulations but also affirms a commitment to self-regulation. The Internet has been a medium without borders, according a much higher degree of permanence to content, than say, broadcast media. Social networking sites and blogs on the Internet have been struggling to define the lines between the public and private domain and a good example of how Indian society has viewed this is the suspension of students who posted messages and status updates expressing their hatred for some teacher or the other on their own Facebook pages.

Clearly, each instance will only our test our commitment to freedom of expression and help us refine our own understanding of the limits to free speech or of the legitimacy of restrictions that are sought by governments at different points in time. The unseemly rush to initiate punitive action against Google, Facebook and other sites illustrates our systemic inability to deal with "problematic" content. Our laws only fossilize this intolerance. What is more essential at this stage is an open debate and discussion on these issues instead of rushing towards punitive action or privately sponsored agendas that smack of vendetta or seek to crack down on dissent. Do we have what it takes for an open debate?

The companies have challenged Metropolitan Magistrate Sudesh Kumar's summons in the Delhi High Court. The summons were issued on December 23, 2011 following a private criminal complaint filed by Vinay Rai, a journalist with an Urdu weekly "Akbari", that content on 21 sites, including Google, Orkut, Youtube and Facebook were objectionable and could promote enmity between different groups. The next hearing of the case challenging the summons is on February 2 in the Delhi High Court while the case in the metropolitan court is scheduled for March 13. The Delhi High Court has not given any stay on the summons issued by the metropolitan court.

Senior Supreme Court advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who is representing Google told this writer that the summons were violative of Articles 19 and 21 of the Indian Constitution. "We will not leave this matter. We are willing to go up to the Supreme Court if necessary," he said. Earlier, Vinay Rai had provided the trial court with "evidence" (in a sealed envelope) of content in 21 websites deemed offensive to Hindu and Muslim religious figures as well as Indian politicians. In his order, the magistrate maintained that the publication of these "offensive and inflammatory material which has a tendency to inflame minds' cannot be considered an expression of freedom of speech." The summons were issued under Sections 292 and 293 (obscenity and sale of obscene material) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code. Furthermore, the order said that prima facie the accused are also liable to the summoned for offences under section 153-A (promoting enmity between classes), 153-B (assertion prejudicial to national integration) and 295-A (insulting religion or religious belief of any class) IPC but due to an embargo under section 196 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the court cannot summon them under these offences without prior sanction of the Central or state government or district magistrate.

The petitions before the Delhi High Court from Google and Facebook challenging the summons received no relief in that no stay was granted by the court. Justice Suresh Kait, hearing the petition, has observed that there was no undue haste in hearing the matter and in contrast, it was urgent enough to be taken up promptly. The judge also expressed annoyance at the response of the company when asked for the URL of a website: "You are taking the matter very casually. When I have given you a website address, you are raising more questions. One of the articles shows a national leader in bad light. Such things could be posted about a family member of nay of us and maybe we will then act promptly." The Indian government also sanctioned for the prosecution of the companies for hosting obscene content and content that promotes enmity between ethnic and racial groups.

मराठी अभिमान गीत

2012-01-19T23:28:00.000+05:30

"Marathi Abhimaan Geet" is a song written by noted poet-lyricist the late. Suresh Bhatt and composed by Kaushal S. Inamdar. The idea behind creating the "Marathi Abhimaan Geet" was due to the diminishing respect for Marathi in Maharashtra. When I met Mr. Kaushal Inamdar at a college function, he mentioned two incidents which is why he took it upon himself to record this song. The first incident was about how he was ill-treated at a retail chain in South Mumbai because he chose to speak in Marathi. The second incident was when he was working on a jingle for a radio station and he asked the RJ why the station did not play Marathi songs. He was dumbfounded when the RJ replied that the radio station considered it "downmarket" to play Marathi songs. Thus began the concept of creating this music video in October 2009.

The video consists of nearly 450 accomplished singers with 112 professional singers like Ravindra Sathe, Suresh Wadkar, Sadhana Sargam, Arati Ankalikar-Tikekar, Sridhar Phadke, Swapnil Bandodkar, Hariharan, Devaki Pandit, Bela Shinde, Uttara Kelkar, Swapnaja Lele,Vitthal Umap, Ajay-Atul, Hamsika Iyer, Shankar Mahadevan, Vaishali Samant, Avadhoot Gupte, Hamsika Iyer, Mayuresh Pai to 10 year old Mugdha Vaishampayan, Kartiki Gaikwad etc. and 356 chorus singers. Interestingly, the chorus comprised of many non-Marathi singers as well.

The actual recording of the song took place over a period of 15 months across 3 different studios in Mumbai, Thane and Chennai. Music composer Murugan Mohan employed the orchestra of veteran music composer Ilaiyaraja to contribute to the song. Sound engineers S. Shivkumar completed the Chennai leg of the song while Avadhoot Wadkar completed the Mumbai leg of the recording.

The song instantly connected with the Marathi populace and became a huge hit upon release. The music video succeeded in creating an awareness and instilling a sense of pride and love for Marathi in the hearts of listeners. Following the success of the Marathi Abhimaan Geet, leading FM radio stations in Mumbai bowed down to public pressure and demand by beginning to play Marathi music on air.

Bhumika: The Role

2012-01-16T17:54:00.001+05:30

The 1977 Hindi film "Bhumika: The Role" is the journey of an actress named Usha/Urvashi (Smita Patil) which goes back and forth in time tracing her journey from childhood till she is in her late 40s. The film derives its inspiration from an actress called Hansa Wadkar from the 1940s. The English playwright Shakespeare famously remarked: "All the world's a stage and we are all mere players." Filmmaker Shyam Benegal was one of the few who understood correctly what Shakespeare said in entirety.

The film has a perfect title which documents the life of a film actor consumed by frustration. The film opens with a lavani dance sequence being choreographed and shot in a film studio. The film keeps alternating between the past and the present using black-and-white for the past and colour for the present. The past speaks on how the young Usha's childhood job was to learn singing from her grandmother, who was a famous singer in her times and to run between her alcoholic father. The past also speaks of how she entered the film industry following her father's demise and how the sycophant Keshav (Amol Palekar) brings Usha and her mother to Bombay and Usha beginning her journey as an actress.

To showcase the life of Usha as an actress, the filmmaker Shyam Benegal takes us to the sets of a mythological movie, period pieces, songs set among flowers, art films and adventure films. However, the real struggle for Usha begins when she gets married to the much-older sycophant Keshav who keeps reminding her of a childhood promise and how much he has done for her family in order to prevent them from falling to despair. There begins the actual struggle of a woman. I would personally like to view this movie as an essay of a woman who has been in pursuit of harmony in almost all roles she dons in her lifetime. Bhumika is an attempt to understand Usha's efforts as an actress and more importantly as a woman.

The screenplay and the crisp dialogues are brilliantly written by the late. theatre guru Satyadev Dubey. The use of background music efficiently, the use of folk drum beats to indicate the lavani dance sequence and the sound of news relayed by the All India Radio indicating a probable time frame proves that detailing has been cautiously worked since it traverses the period between the 1930s to the 1950s. No scene is irrelevant despite the film going back and forth in time.

Naseeruddin Shah as the rationalist film producer Sunil Verma speaks some of the best lines in the film like "Apne desh mein dimaag se koi nahi sochta. Dil se sochte hain sab." (In our country, no one thinks rationally. Everyone thinks emotionally). It is amazing to believe that the young age of 22, Smita Patil could play the remarkable role of an upright woman who believes in herself and also don the role of a frustrated 40 something film actress with the ultimate realization that she is the only person with whom she has to battle her loneliness.

Mumbai's Lost Relics

2012-01-11T00:26:00.001+05:30

Fountains have fascinated and soothed mankind since time immemorial. In India, the first fountains can be traced back to the Mughal era. Most of the gardens founded by the Mughals in India date back to the 17th and 18th century. There are two types of fountains which are predominantly found in India: ornamental and drinking ones. The practice of establishing ornamental fountains has been the legacy of the Mughal and Rajput princes, they have also been symbols of water charities. Water charity was once considered as a noble deed and often water was donated in the name of a deceased family member. It was believed that donating water would allow the soul of the dead to rest in peace.

The idea of drinking water fountains or pyaus, as they are locally known in Marathi, took root during the 1860s when the then Governor demolished the ramparts of the old fort and opened up Bombay. The popular Flora Fountain is a relic of that era. Sadly, there are many pyaus across Mumbai which are being demolished in the name of development and road widening. Pyaus were once the oasis of Mumbai before piped water reached the city. Most of these pyaus provided potable drinking water for the general public and animals. It is interesting to note how most of these pyaus were situated parallel among the erstwhile tram lines and crowded business districts not just for human drinking purposes but also for troughs, cattle and tram horses.

A systemic study of these fountains help us in understanding the social fabric of the city. In other words, thse fountains help in recreating an era during which they created their own space in the artistic space in the town planning of the city. In most pyaus, there are plaques related somewhere narrating the reason behind the establishment of the pyau. The plaques and the data collected from archival and oral sources become essential pointers to the information of various communities that immigrated to Bombay. While most of these fountains not only indicate the religious and cultural leanings of the donors but they also blend with the style of neighbouring buildings.

Due to a fast-paced and always-on-the-go attitude that Mumbai is now famous for, it would be nice if you could probably pause for a minute and pay a silent tribute to the person who decided to donate water as charity for the benefit of the general public the next time you come across a water fountain while commuting to work.

Dead Men's Path

2012-01-08T01:00:00.000+05:30

Chinua Achebe

Michael Obi's hopes were fulfilled much earlier than he had expected. He was appointed headmaster of Ndume Central School in January 1949. It had always been an unprogressive school, so the Mission authorities decided to send a young and energetic man to run it. Obi accepted this responsibility with enthusiasm. He had many wonderful ideas and this was an opportunity to put them into practice. He had had sound secondary school education which designated him a "pivotal teacher" in the official records and set him apart from the other headmasters in the mission field. He was outspoken in his condemnation of the narrow views of these older and often less-educated ones.

"We shall make a good job of it, shan't we?" He asked his young wife when they first heard the joyful news of his promotion. "We shall do our best," she replied. "We shall have such beautiful gardens and everything will be just modern and delightful ..." In their two years of married life she had become completely infected by his passion fir "modern methods" and his denigration of "these old and superannuated people in the teaching field who would be better employed as traders in the Onitsha market." She began to see herself already as the admired wife of the young headmaster, the queen of the school.

The wives of the other teachers would envy her position. She would set the fashion in everything ... Then, suddenly, it occurred to her that there might not be other wives. Wavering between hope and fear, she asked her husband, looking anxiously at him. "All our colleagues are young and unmarried," he said with enthusiasm which for once she did not share. "Which is a good thing," he continued.
"Why?"
"Why? They will give all their time and energy to the school."

Nancy was downcast. For a few minutes she became sceptical about the new school; but it was only for a few minutes. Her little personal misfortune could not blind her to her husband's happy prospects. She looked at him as he sat folded up in a chair. He was stoop shouldered and looked frail. But he sometimes surprised people with sudden bursts of physical energy. In his present posture, however, all his bodily strength seemed to have retired behind his deep-set eyes, giving them an extraordinary power of penetration. He was only twenty six, but looked thirty or more. On the whole, he was not unhandsome.

"A penny for your thoughts, Mike," said Nancy after a while, imitating the woman's magazine she read.
"I was thinking what a grand opportunity we've got at last to show these people how a school should be run."

Ndume School was backward in every sense of the word. Mr. Obi put his whole life into the work and his wife hers too. He had two aims. A high standard of teaching was insisted upon and the school compound was to be turned into a place of beauty. Nancy's dream gardens came to life with the coming of rains and blossomed. Beautiful hibiscus and allamanda hedges in brilliant red and yellow marked out the carefully tended school compound from the rank neighbourhood bushes.

One evening as Obi was admiring his work he was scandalized to see an old woman from the village hobble right across the compound, through a marigold flower-bed and the hedges. On going up there he found faint signs of an almost disused path from the village across the school compound to the bush on the other side.

"It amazes me," said Obi to one of his teachers who had been three years in the school, "that you people allowed the villagers to make use of this footpath. It is simple incredible." He shook his head.

"The path," said the teacher apologetically, "appears to be very important for them. Although it is hardly used, it connects the village shrine with their place of burial."
"And what has that got to do with the school?" asked the headmaster.
"Well, I don't know," replied the other with a shrug of the shoulders. "But I remember there was a big row some time ago when we attempted to close it."
"That was some time ago. But it will not be used now," said Obi as he walked away. "What will the Government Education Officer think of this when he comes to inspect the school next week? The villagers might, for all I know, decide to use the schoolroom for a pagan ritual during the inspection."
Heavy sticks were planted closely across the path at the two places where it entered and left the school premises. These were further strengthened with barbed wires.

Three days later the village priest of Ani called on the headmaster. He was an old man and walked with a slight stoop. He carried a stout walking-stick which he usually tapped on the floor, by way of emphasis, each time he made a new point in his argument.
"I have heard," he said after the usual exchange of cordialities, "that our ancestral footpath has recently been closed...."
"Yes," replied Mr. Obi. "We cannot allow people to make a highway of our school compound."
"Look here, my son," said the priest bringing down his walking stick, "this path was here before you were even born and before your father was born. The whole life of this village depends on it. Our dead relatives depart by it and our ancestors visit us by it. But most important, it is the path of children coming in to be born...."
Mr. Obi listened with a satisfied smile on his face.

"The whole purpose of our school," he said finally, "is to eradicate just such beliefs as that. Dead men do not require footpaths. The whole idea is just fantastic. Our duty is to teach your children to laugh at such ideas." "What you say maybe true," replied the priest, "but we follow the practices of our fathers. If you reopen the path we shall have nothing to quarrel about. What I always say is: let the hawk perch and let the eagle perch." He rose to go. "I am sorry," said the young headmaster. "But the school compound cannot be a thoroughfare. It is against our regulations. I would suggest your constructing another path, skirting our premises. We can even get our boys to help in building it. I don't suppose the ancestors will find the little detour too burdensome."

"I have no more words to say," said the old priest, already outside.

Two days later a young woman in the village died in childbed. A diviner was immediately consulted and he prescribed heavy sacrifices to propitiate ancestors insulted by the fence.

Obi woke up next morning among the ruins of his work. The beautiful hedges were torn up not just near the path but right around the school, the flowers trampled to death and one of the school buildings pulled down... That day, the white Supervisor came to inspect the school and wrote a nasty report on the state of the premises but more seriously about the "tribal-war situation developing between the school and the village, arising in part from the misguided zeal of the new headmaster."

You Know You're From Mumbai When....

2012-01-06T11:30:00.000+05:30

One of my friends was telling me that the contents on my blog are mostly serious. It got me to try and improve my sense of humour and I finally decided to work towards creating something. I thought I'd begin with Bombay for a change. The song "Yeh Hain Bombay Meri Jaan" from the 1956 Hindi film CID wonderfully captures the spirit of Bombay and the lives of the people here. Yet, you have these You Know You're From Bombay When... moments, so I thought of listing them out. Though this post is not something I'd like to claim credit for but these pointers are something which would resonate across with anyone who has lived or has had friends from Mumbai. If you know more mannerisms typically Bombay, please do add more in the list.. So, presenting the list I know:

You Know You're From Mumbai When:

* You take a taxi to get to your health club to exercise
* Your idea of personal space is no one is actually standing on your toes
* You have a minimum "worst auto/cab rides ever" stories and yet you travel by autos and cabs
* You speak in a dialect of Hindi called "Bambaiyya Hindi", which only Mumbaikars can understand
* You call a 8' x 10' clustered room a "hall"
* You have 14 different menus of "free home deliveries" next to your telephone
* Train timings like 09:06, 10:27, 5:17, 6:12 are really important events of life
* You actually care about trains
* You consider yourself as physically handicapped if trains stop working due to some reason
* Cabbies and bus conductors think you're from Mars if you call the roads by their Indian name as they are more familiar Marine Drive, Warden Road, Pedder Road, Altamount Road, Carter Road
* Stock market quotes are the only other thing besides which you follow passionately
* You love wading through knee deep mucky water in the monsoons
* You curse the monsoons but cannot get enough of the romantic appeal of the rains
* You call traffic policemen as "Pandus" or "Mamus" and expect outstation tourists to understand that
* You have eaten a Chinese Dosa and Jain Chicken at an eatery in Mumbai
* You have mentally blocked out all thoughts about the city's air quality and what it's doing to your lungs
* You spend more time commuting than spending time at home
* Your door has more than three locks.
* You consider beggars, homeless and hookers as invisible
* You compare Bombay to New York's Manhattan instead of any other city in India
* You insist on calling CST as VT and Sahar and Santacruz airports instead of Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport
* Your life's ideology "gheun tak"
* You look at the street and say, "Why are they digging the road again?" after every three months
* You know Amitabh Bachchan and Shahrukh Khan's homes are nothing less than landmarks
* Townies think they need a visa to go past Worli to the suburbs
* You say "town" and expect everyone to know that this means south of Churchgate
* You call onion as "kanda" instead of pyaaz and potato as "batata" instead of aaloo.
* When "chalta hain" is the most commonly used word
* You always count the distance between two places in terms of time instead of kilometers
* You land up at your school/college/office the morning after the city is ripped apart after a bomb blast
* You famously invoke the resilient spirit of Mumbai after every disaster
* You insist on calling Mumbai as Bombay despite the name change of the city.

Stars in their eyes

2012-01-05T17:56:00.000+05:30

Markandey Katju,
Chairman, Press Council of India

Bol ki labh azaad hain tere
bol zabaan ab tak teri hain
(Speak out for your lips are free,
Speak out for your tongue is still yours)
--Faiz Ahmed Faiz

Recently, a journalist asked me about my opinion on journalists in India. Instead of asking me, I told her, she should ask people selected at random the same question without disclosing that she herself was a member of the tribe. The truth is, the majority of opinions may not be very palatable to journalists. In a panel discussion on television, the senior journalist Madhu Kishwar said that journalists in the country are "bribable" and "manipulable" through freebies involving land, accommodation, etc. I don't agree entirely with Madhu. There are many honourable journalists doing their job excellently. But there is a different public perception about many journalists.

Traditionally, there were two roles of the media: one, to inform the public and two: to entertain. In the transitional "feudal to modern" period India is presently passing through, there is a third role of the media--to provide leadership in the realm of ideas. When it comes to the first two roles, the media, no doubt, should inform and entertain. But when 90% of its coverage goes into the entertainment zone and only 10% pertains to real, socio-economic issues, clearly the media is found to have lost its sense of proportion.

Some 80% of Indians are still living in horrible poverty with massive problems of unemployment, inflation and healthcare, education and housing shortages. Social evils such as "honour killings" and dowry deaths have not been wiped off. Yet 90% of media coverage, especially the television media, obsesses about filmstars, fashion parades, music, reality shows, cricket etc. If I had not raised a hue and cry earlier, I am quite sure that the recent birth of a filmstar's child would have been front page headlines in every paper instead of being relegated to the inside pages.

Millions of farmers lose their livelihoods and flee to cities for jobs that are not there. In Britain during the Industrial Revolution, the displaced peasants got jobs in the newly arising industries. In India, in recent years, there has been a manufacturing decline and many factories have turned to real estate. Many of these displaced peasants end up as domestic servants, hawkers, criminals, beggars and prostitutes. Farmer suicides due to indebtedness have crossed a quarter million over the past 15 years; 860 million Indians are living on Rs. 25 a day and 47% of our children are malnourished, a much higher percentage than in sub-Saharan African countries like Ethiopia and Somalia. The gulf between the rich and the poor has been dramatically widened in India in the last 20 years.

This being the sordid picture, is the media justified in devoting most of its coverage to flimsy issues? Is the media not deliberately seeking to divert the attention of the people from the real issues facing the nation? Is the Indian media not being like the Marie Antoniette, telling people to eat cake if they don't have bread? By promoting superstitious bunkum like astrology, instead of rational and scientific ideas, is the media not playing an anti-people role? As regards to the media providing leadership to the people in the realm of ideas, this is almost missing. During the European Enlightenment, the media had played a glorious historical role and helped in the transition from feudalism to a modern society. Great writers like Voltaire, Rousseau, Thomas Paine, Junius and John Wilkes attacked feudal ideas such as religious bigotry and despotism and propagated the (then) revolutionary ideas of liberty, equality, fraternity and religious freedom. I would like the Indian media to play the same glorious role in today's India.

Some people say that the media should supply the people what they want. I disagree. The media is not an ordinary business that deals in commodities. It deals with ideas. Hence instead of pandering to the lowest tastes of the masses, who are still very backward and steeped in casteism, communalism and superstitions, the media should try to uplift their mental level by spreading rational and scientific ideas and thus make the Indian masses part of an enlightened India. This will win the respect of the Indian people for the media.

The Midnight Sham

2012-01-01T17:22:00.000+05:30

Discord, disruption, derailment--are some of the most prominent words which we have come to associate with parliamentary proceedings in the recent debates that take place in the Parliament. While we certainly witnessed an intense debate marked by rationality, dissent and even dialogue between Arun Jaitley and Abhishek Manu Singhvi on the floor of the Rajya Sabha which recently took up the Lokpal Bill for discussion. The impassioned debate rose up magnificently above the largely trivial cacophony of recent months, restoring a sense of respect in the highest lawmaking body which appeared to be manned by people of political acuity and intellectual rigour. The proceedings in Parliament brought back memories of a time when towering orators like Jawaharlal Nehru, Piloo Modi and later Atal Bihari Vajpayee who added lustre to debates and discussions through their reasoned arguments by engaging wit and humour.

However, by afternoon it could be foretold that the Government was not really keen on having voting as it realized that it lacks a clear majority to pass an effective Lokpal Bill. In the night, nearly two hours before the actual drama that unfolded on the floor of the house, CNN-IBN mentioned a possibility of having a "bitter exchange" which would disrupt the house and lead the proceedings to extend till midnight. It even mentioned Rajniti Singh by name.

While the Opposition was ready to sit through the night considering there have been instances in the past where crucial bills were legislated at 04:00 a.m. in the morning but the Government claimed almost on the stroke of the midnight hour that it needed more time to consider the proposed 187 amendments moved by the Opposition which eventually caused the house to be adjourned sine die without the bill being put to vote.

Indian democracy witnessed a new low with the adjournment of the house which confirmed the prophecy predicted by CNN-IBN. I believe initiating a few policy changes would not amount for a collapse of democracy but the actions of the Government showed that party interest takes a higher precedence over national interest. While Trinamool Congress MPs came out siding with the Opposition that the proceedings were "choreographed", if a government which cannot introduce new key measures if its own allies reject them, then it is probably is not a government that is fit to govern and nor is it its leadership fit to lead.

As the popular English saying goes: "Actions do speak louder than words" proved the accuracy of the saying. The buck must begin and come round to stop with the UPA government for choreographing a needless controversy which eclipsed the many hours of rational debate.When the hollowness of its confidence was finally exposed on the TV channel, it behaved with a complete lack of grace. There is no shame in losing a vote while it does show incompetence on the part to have strutted into the house without getting adequate support. A defeat in the Rajya Sabha does not amount to resignation and is not something which has long-term consequences.

When it became clear that the Congress could not get a majority for its bill, it should have behaved with grace and dignity with the Prime Minister rising up to the occasion and stating that there were differences and that he would withdraw the bill in order to bring other parties on board since it was a promise to the nation that an effective Lokpal Bill would be in place by the winter session of Parliament. It would have been graceful enough had he taken a lead by reassuring the nation that it is not difficult to forge a consensus and the commitment for an effective Lokpal remains undiminished and that it would have been the first bill to be introduced in the next session. I agree that we would have been disappointed but at the same time we would have appreciated the Prime Minister's sincerity because he is also the leader of the house. Instead, we saw the Prime Minister and Pranab Mukherjee slouching on the first row of the Rajya Sabha witnessing the drama like silent spectators.

It is not hard to recall the dubious means that the Congress had employed in order to win support during the Indo-US Nuclear Deal in 2008 and we had our MPs showing neatly bundled notes at the television screens. This time around we had the graceless spectacle of chaos at midnight. The problem as always is that this is a government in which the leading party deludes itself into believing it has a mandate. When the allies refuse to go along with the Government and its whims, it responds with the worst behaviour possible. Sadly, this was true in both the terms of the UPA Government as history repeated itself in 2011 the way such an incident occurred in Loksabha in 2008.

Free Speech: Look Beyond Content (Part-I)

2011-12-30T14:31:00.000+05:30

Padmaja Shaw,
Columnist, The Hoot

The year drawing to a close should be declared the Year of Free Speech, not just in India but across the world. The world has witnessed people's movement for democratic rights on an unprecedented scale. Starting with the elections in Iran, through Tahrir Square in Egypt, to the "Occupy" movements all over the world, individuals have chosen to wrench back the initiative from the oppressive governments and predatory corporations and they have done this primarily through those genuine marketplaces of ideas: the social networking sites. A few years ago, at any conference on media, Indians could be justly self-righteous for the apparent freedom we enjoyed for free speech even as in our neighbourhood as every nation-state was still grappling with dictatorial/theocratic governments. Indian democracy may well have been an inspiration for some of the uprisings in the world.

Then, in the last quarter of this year, two influential voices in India-- Justice Markandey Katju and Kapil Sibal--reminded us that "eternal vigilance is the price of liberty", once again. They raised controversies by calling for content control of legacy media and new media. While electronic media were in the cross-wires of the debate for sometime, print media were not really given a clean chit either. The worst, of course, was that the bastion of free speech, Internet, is now openly under attack. Openly, because it has been covertly under attack for sometime now in India and elsewhere.The free speech debate has two aspects to it. One is the debate around media industries--ownership patterns including cross-media ownership, licensing, taxation, exim policy for media technologies, anti-trust issues, action against predatory market practices and so on; the other is about the manifest content on these media.

Between these two areas of contest are the so-called stakeholders--the corporate media, the state and the citizen. When one looks at the debate on free speech, all appear to be labouring under a deep sense of moral ambiguity about the issue. Let us take the corporate media. Since the dawn of the era of liberalization in 1991, the corporate media have expanded in all sectors--newspapers, magazines, film, TV, radio, cable, net, mobile technologies--in all aspects: production, distribution and exhibition/reception/reach. The expansion was possible purely because successive governments have looked the other way when unregulated expansion was taking place, partly also because successive governments, after the lessons from the dark days of the Indian Emergency, have trodden lightly when it came to regulation of the media. The resultant opening up is something to celebrate, as the Indian media market today is one of the biggest, holding out the promise of the greatest diversity.

However, in the post-liberalization era, the entrepreneurial opportunities expanded leaving large accumulated surplus with the business houses. While the Licence Raj was pronounced dead by many a pundit, we have discovered lately that the liberalization juggernaut was rolling rapidly ahead not because of the absence of Licence Raj but because of the skimmed cream of corporate profits that was oiling its wheels. All it needed to self-perpetuate was to invest in a newspaper here, a TV station there, to manage "images" and to keep the reader/viewer enthralled through trivia.

During the early years of expansion, when regulatory frameworks could have been put in place, especially when there was ample international experience from other democracies on cross-media ownership, licensing requirements and transparency/disclosure requirements for promoters/investors, the Government of India did not act proactively with foresight then. Such a framework could not have been devised in neutrality as specific players were not in the market then and the regulatory framework could have been applied uniformly to all. If the government comes up with regulation now, there are entrenched interests already in the market and they are bound to politicize it, saying that it is an attack on free speech to control media entities opposed to the ruling party, even when they violate other laws of the land.

The corporate houses are happy having created a regulatory logjam. Being either subsidiaries or arms of major national/international business houses, media houses have acquired enormous clout in the political economy of the country and have learnt to use the clout to drive policy and control political fate of elected governments. Media houses are active players in pushing the liberalization agenda on behalf of their corporate bosses and advertisers. Not much unlike Fox News the Indian media houses set the agenda for national debate and can pressure the government over issues they deem important. The politicians have little choice but to fall in line if they want visibility and voice.

Free Speech: Look Beyond Content (Part-II)

2011-12-30T14:00:00.000+05:30

Padmaja Shaw,
Columnist, The Hoot

There is also a relentless process of mergers and acquisitions in the media industry which is resulting in large corporations straddling print, television, radio and new media and consolidating further. In the latest news about such mergers the multi-national corporations are making inroads into the regional space rapidly. So far, even though the nature of ownership, working conditions of the employees and the content left much to be desired, ownership in the regional space was dispersed. Beginning with the acquisition of Asianet in Malayalam, this process is picking up pace.

Without going into the much-debated issue of media monopolies and their implications for democracies, it is interesting to see that there have been no regulatory growls from either the government or other media entities such as the Press Council of India on these kind of issues. What role does the Competition Commission of India have in such mergers and acquisitions? This is just one instance of a substantive issue that needs more debate. Instead, the Government of India passes rules on showing smokers in movies; Justice Katju asks "Why Dev Anand?"; Kapil Sibal talks to Facebook and Google about cleaning up content; giving the corporate media a Free Speech issue on a platter to trash both the government and regulatory institutions. Having given licences to the media houses, should the government/regulatory bodies be telling the filmmakers and editors of newspapers how to do their job? Do either the government of the day or its regulatory arms inspire faith in the people that they will use their content control power only for the good of the people?

Under any political regime, censorship is a dangerous weapon to hand over to the state. Misuse is inevitable and it will most certainly be against political voices that question their wisdom. The justification for censorship always comes under the cloak of protecting people from obscenity and crime, but ends up as a weapon to be used against political opponents. Kapil Sibal's eagerness to sanitize the cyberspace to suit his finicky taste is being fought back with vigour by all hues of political and apolitical cyber citizens. The irony is that Mr. Sibal's enthusiasm, in one sweep, has legitimized the right of the worst neo-Nazi style propagandists on the net who have launched a sleazy propaganda blitz against the Gandhi family.

The propaganda is obviously in the run up to the 2014 elections, by when they expect to set up the net-using middle-class electorate to reject the star campaigners of the Congress party. One is amazed to see journalists circulating with this glee on Facebook. One does not know how many such appreciative Facebook friends actually vote. However, by stirring up the issue, Mr. Sibal also ensured greater interest and circulation for the very material he wanted to erase. Also, people completely opposed to the virulent ideologies of some of the groups on the net have shown no hesitation to defend the right of these groups to do what they do. The battle for ideas must be won on another level, not by the police state or the nanny state. Only if the content is abetting crime or criminal behaviour should the state intervene, that too under the existing criminal laws.

All things considered, shouldn't the government and the regulatory bodies concentrate more on the structural issues in the industry rather than its symptoms in the content? The failure to regulate the structure of the industry can in itself be considered collusion by the state to facilitate predatory practices. It has a long-term impact on the functioning of the Indian democracy. Let Shahrukh Khan now smoke in peace, let Dev Anand be page one lead; but let's concentrate on what is happening to the industry first.

Jana Gana Mana

2011-12-27T00:00:00.000+05:30

"Jana Gana Mana" is the National Anthem of India. The National Anthem is set primarily in Bengali, it is comprehensible to almost every Indian because of its strong Sanskrit flavour. While it is well known that the first stanza is a tribute to the astonishing geographical diversity of India, the second is a tribute to its multiple communities and the remaining are a salutation to India's undying spirit. Jana Gana Mana was first sung at the Calcutta session of the Indian National Congress on December 27 1911. Yes, you read that right, our National Anthem is 100 years today!! Jana Gana Mana was officially adopted by the Constituent Assembly as the Indian National Anthem on January 24 1950.

To commemorate the 150th birth anniversary of Sri. Rabindranath Tagore in 2010, the leading English newspaper The Times of India had launched a campaign called "Jaya Hey". The truth it is that not many know of the remaining four stanzas that make up the National Anthem. These four verses were set to music and produced by the music label Saregama. The music for the video has been composed by Soumyojit Das and Sourendro Malik. The music video was launched two nights before 15th August 2010 by the Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee.

The meaning of the National Anthem in this inspiring music video is narrated by Harshavardhan Neotia while it features 39 of India's best loved singers from across the country from Hindustani classical musicians like Girija Devi, Pandit Jasraj and Pandit Shivkumar Sharma to Carnatic singers like Dr. S. Nithyasree Mahadevan and Dr. M. Balamuralikrishna, from playback singers like Kavita Krishnamurthy to Sonu Nigam, from ghazal singer Jagjit Singh to folk singers like Lopamudra Mitra and Lakhandas Baul singing lines from the anthem.

Exchanging Times

2011-12-24T13:30:00.000+05:30

There still exists a Bombay that is distinct from today's Mumbai. No cars honk there and the sidewalks are as wide as today's suburban roads. Alongside the entire eastern stretch of our great city lies a deserted Bombay that has no nightclubs, no multiplexes, no shopping malls, no tall high-rises. Not yet, at least. A walk down its carefully planned avenues will make you eventually wonder at the level of city planning employed by the British rulers over a century ago.

The Cotton Exchange is a a relatively unknown heritage structure in Mumbai. The Cotton Exchange was constructed in 1844 and is located just a stone's throw away from Cotton Green station on the Harbour Line, which incidentally gets its name from the iconic building. The Cotton Exchange remains well-concealed in Cotton Green. The original name of Cotton Green derives its name from the Cotton Exchange and because of a series of warehouses which used to store grains. Hence, the name "Cotton Green" is derived from the two words: Cotton and Grains.

The first Cotton Exchange in the world was created in Mumbai. Mumbai was once the cotton capital of the world since it used to export cotton to Europe thereby meeting the gap in supply created by the Civil War in America when the Union Navy blockaded Confederate ports in the South cutting off their ability to export plantation grown cotton to Europe.

The Cotton Exchange in Cotton Green is an excellent example of Art Noveau architecture and is a sight to behold even today. It is washed in a pastel green shade and is three storeys tall with large windows and high ceilings, it towers over the neighbourhood. It also sports a V-shaped design--one arm stretches over 100 metres in length while the other is 50 metres long.

The building is nearly intact as it is not such a well-known building but nevertheless remains as an integral part of Mumbai's heritage. There are a few broken windows which are generally caused by local boys who play cricket near the open spaces near the Cotton Exchange. There is an immense sense of silence and peace in and around the Exchange since the roads at the back come under the jurisdiction of the Mumbai Port Trust. Looking for an angle to get an image of the Exchange, I bumped into 16 year old Manoj who told me that he regularly comes there to study at night under the light of the neon street lamps since it offers a very serene atmosphere. No matter the time of the day, you will always tend to find kids on the footpath with books in hand.

More Media Regulation? (Part-III)

2011-12-23T18:30:00.000+05:30

Anup Kumar,
Columnist, The Hoot

While there are no special privileges granted to journalists that are different from those enjoyed by ordinary citizens. The right of free speech and freedom of the press come from the same Article 19 (1A) of the Constitution. From a strict constitutionalist perspective every citizen, including those who hold power, is a potential journalist--an ideal that has come to its fruition with blogs and the social media. But it would be also naive to suggest that the news media do not have power, like the government, rather they have immense power to shape public opinion, which is a powerful thing. However, as the power of the news media does not come from exclusive privileges and discretionary provisions, regulating the media would also mean regulating the liberties guaranteed to the citizens by the constitution.

Importantly, the company laws already regulate the corporations that own the news organizations and journalists come under the purview of criminal laws and civil laws that impose "reasonable restrictions" on the freedom of speech and the press. Moreover, from the perspective of corporate laws and other laws Indian media is already perhaps one of the most regulated among the among the advanced democracies. According to the Freedom of the Press 2011 study, India ranks 79th and is categorized as "partly free". Any further regulation of the media would effectively undermine individual liberties that are so essential to a democracy.

So, what is the solution to the growing media malaise? What we have currently in Indian journalism is that the rules of the market, the TRPs and circulation figures, are influencing journalistic practices and news content disproportionately. However, this is not unique to India, similar problems are faced by market driven news media all over the world. The solution lies in exercising the freedom of the press with care. Journalists must exercise their power to shape and foster public opinion with humility and responsibility. In an otherwise vibrant field of Indian journalism, professional standards that guide the necessary gatekeeping functions and inform editorial oversight of daily routine operations of news organizations are either absent or deficient. Although the Press Council and the News Broadcaster's Association have codes, but they do not seem to have been internalized. What we need is the professionalization that comes with the codification of norms and values of a professional journalistic practice and reinforcement of them by the press clubs, editors and the educational institutions, especially by the schools of journalism.

For example, we in India perhaps need to go through what happened in America and Europe following the communication chaos of the antebellum years at the turn 20th century. Then, the professional norms and values of journalism evolved out of a similar debate that is now taking place in India. The professionalization of news workers to a large extent weeded out the worst forms of yellow journalism and the sellers of snake oil from the news pages. This period also gave rise to organizations such as Sigma Delta Chi fraternity, also known as the Society of Professional Journalists and the American Society of Newspaper Editors who came up with ethical standards for the practice of responsible journalism, which included the fairness doctrine and the norm of objectivity that included acceptance of official explanations at face value unless there was strong evidence to the contrary.

Thus, I think the solution lies in a better professional education, both in the skills required for what Lippmann described as transmission of fact-based information and the knowledge for what John Dewey described as public journalism that can give citizens resources to engage in a democracy. The improvements in journalistic quality through the elevation in the level of media discourse on contemporary issues can be achieved through a better professional education in knowledge, skills, norms and values of journalism. Self-regulation or government regulation cannot by themselves solve the problem of corrupt journalistic practices and the declining quality of media discourses, both in the organized news media and the growing field of social media. Professionalism founded on clear sets ethical principles must be inculcated in young reporters during their training periods in journalism programmes. Moreover, today we live in a media saturated society in which for all practical purposes democracy itself is mediated, hence we also require educational curriculums in the country to include the core course in ethical media use and criticism..

Finally, this means not only more investment and improvements in journalism and media education in India, but also calls for reforms that emphasize in liberal education that encourages critical thinking skills. Improvements in journalism education must be also supplemented with funding and support for empirical research in news media's performance and media criticism, which is currently very limited in a country like India.

More Media Regulation? (Part-II)

2011-12-21T18:41:00.000+05:30

Anup Kumar,
Columnist, The Hoot

Contemporary journalism is significantly different from the past when very few could read and most of the journalism was produced for and by the highly educated class. Although no specific empirical data on news consumption is available for India, yet the size of the Indian public sphere does suggest that an overwhelming part of the population is watching and reading the news on a daily basis. The news media's main role is to give fact-based information, which does not necessarily require great intellectual abilities. I think majority of journalists do not have the desire to be intellectuals, which is perhaps why they have chosen this profession. Most of the consumers of the news have basic education and in some cases, they are not even literate. In order to stand true to the democratic credentials, journalists working for thousands of newspapers and hundreds of news television channels have to produce and present news taking into consideration the lowest common denominator of comprehension skills so that the news can help all citizens engage in the democratic process and make reasoned choices.

Although, Justice Katju is right at one level, often reporting lacks perspective and insight that places the news in its larger historical, social, political and economic contexts. The news media in India present news in a decontextualized and largely episodic manner. Journalism research from across the world shows that this is not unique to India, everywhere in the world daily routine journalism is mostly episodic. A more nuanced and sophisticated interpretation and thematic contextualization appears in the elite newspapers, magazines and sometimes panel discussions on TV. The few media pundits, who have the training and education, play the role of intellectual journalists while undertaking political and social analysis and cultural criticism in their columns and television talk shows.

Justice Katju is also right about the quality of the media discourse in India, especially on television. Research on television content from world over has shown that infotainment oriented news shows, sometimes described as soft news, hog most of the airtime. Not surprisingly, electronic media in India devotes most of its resources to cover cricket, regurgitate content from the movies and exploit superstitions among parts of the population. Whereas, in comparison to infotainment and soft news relatively meager resources are devoted to original reporting on more relevant issues such as skewed developmental priorities of government, unrest in the hinterland led by Maoists, inflation, terrorism and other forms of social injustices.

The upside in all this is that the news media in India plays a relatively decent role in offering a platform for some of the most vigorous debates and news analysis on contemporary issues. Thus, it would be unfair to say that the Indian news media has not made any significant contribution in the area of social transformation. Indian journalism has performed admirably, especially when we compare the Indian news media to news media in other post-colonial countries. The news media has played a vital role in moving the country, slowly but progressively, away from a feudal society at the time of Independence to a much more egalitarian and democratic society we are today. In this regard, we must not fail to acknowledge the role played by the Indian language press. The limited scholarship on the subject has shown that Indian language press has functioned as a bulwark of democracy, especially outside the big cities and in rural areas. Moreover, the Indian news media that comes in multiple languages has done what scholars otherwise thought was impossible. On the one hand, it has sustained ethno-linguistic diversity in the Indian public sphere and on the other hand, it has projected the imagination of India as one nation and one nation with quite fascinating dexterity.

However, it is also in the Indian language news media, both in print and in TV, that we find most of the problems associated with illiberal discourse, professional standards and questionable practices associated with the phenomenon of "paid news". It needs to be pointed out here that in the more sophisticated English language media paid news appears in the form of "subsidy news" pushed by public relation agencies. Not surprisingly, many who favour stricter regulations have suggested that journalists cannot take a holier-than-thou approach to corruption, as they are part and parcel of the systematic corruption in politics and society. Even though it is a valid argument, I think it is not fair to compare journalists to the political class, bureaucracy and judiciary. Unlike them, the news media does not have monopoly power to exercise of lawful and sometimes also the discretionary powers that they derive from the blindfolded statutes.

More Media Regulation? (Part I)

2011-12-20T20:54:00.001+05:30

Anup Kumar
Columnist, The Hoot

Is the freedom of the press under threat in India? Not really. Some would argue that it cannot be a mere coincidence that the calls for stricter regulation of the media are coming at a time when the news media have been highlighting corruption in the government such as the 2G Scam and the graft in the organizing of the Commonwealth Games. The media advocacy, often questioned by some, for the movement led by Anna Hazare against corruption has also attracted criticism from the ruling party. Morever, it seems that the criticism of the government on social media is also making some in the government uncomfortable.

A few days ago, Kapil Sibal, the minister for Communication and Information Technology, called for stricter regulation of the chatter on social media sites to check hate speech and protect national security. Earlier, Justice Markandey Katju, the chairperson of the Press Council of India, in his widely reported interview with Karan Thapar and later in his rebuttals to his critics spoke on the decline in ethics and quality of journalism in the country, especially in the electronic media. He suggested perhaps media regulation from outside is needed as self-regulation has failed.

I agree self-regulation has failed but more regulation by the government might only stifle public debate and harm Indian democracy in the long run. J.S. Verma, the former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, recently stated that the media and the judiciary are two institutions in which people have faith and suggested that self-regulation must be encouraged. Despite all its failings, the Indian news media has functioned as a support mechanism to the Indian judiciary and other constitutional institutions in protecting and fostering India's democratic experiment for more than six decades, which is a rarity among post-colonial nations.

No one can be seriously against "reasonable restrictions" on speech and freedom of the press with the goal to improve the quality of journalism and raise the level of the media discourse, which are so central to the functioning of any modern mass mediated democracy. Although at the same time, no one wants the watchdog to become a lapdog. It is also imperative that the organized news media and millions of "citizen-journalists", on blogs and social media sites, engage in some self-reflection. The debate over regulation should be seen as an opportunity to initiate a public discussion on media reforms that not only addresses journalistic practices from the perspective of ethics and also look at the quality of the media discourse. Additionally, the purpose of any reform should be able to put in place a due process to discourage a few bad apples, rather than regulating media through executive fiats or a government monitor.

The irony is that everyone seems to be on the same side, i.e. improving the quality of Indian journalism and strengthening the empowering capacity of social media sites and the Internet. Though there are differences over how to address the problem of yellow journalism, I think the solution lies in professional journalistic practice and media literacy. Before looking at some of the solutions, let us recall some of the issues that were raised by Justice Katju as the detractors were quick to denounce rather than engage in a reasoned debate. There were three separate but related issues that were raised. I am paraphrasing here: 1) The decline in the quality of media discourse since journalists today lack intellectual outlook and have largely failed to play the role, unlike that of the past, in social transformation and cultivation of modern sensibilities. 2) The electronic news media devote a disproportionate amount airtime to cricket and Bollywood compared to more important public policy and social issues. 3) There has been a decline in ethical standards and proliferation in corrupt practices like "paid news" and lobbying for corporation (i.e. Niira Radia tapes).

Most observers of the news media have broadly agreed with the core elements in Justice Katju's criticism of the news media. However, the observation that Indian journalism is failing because, unlike in the past, today majority of journalists are not well-read or as he put it, they are not "intellectuals" is a misdiagnosis of the problem. I also think that the historical comparison by Justice Katju with "the age of enlightenment" in the 19th century Europe, when journalism was not necessarily democratic, is anachronistic. A better comparison would have been with the period when journalism in older democracies in the West emerged as a profession that was tasked with upholding public interest. The lamentation about the loss of intellectual journalists reminds one of the debates in the late 1920s America between Walter Lippmann and John Dewey. Lippmann had argued for a transmission model for journalism and Dewey called for public journalism that educated and raised critical sensibilities in public, although today media scholars understand that it is not an either/or case. Broadly speaking, the role of transmission is the function of news reporting and critical public engagement is a function of editorial and news analysis in the media.

Virtual Noise

2011-12-15T20:49:00.000+05:30

Sevanti Ninan
Columnist, The Hindu

There is no denying that 2011 has been a noisy year. It brought us Justice Markandey Katju, who alarmed, appalled and amused us in turn. To begin with, he was appointed as the Chairperson of the Press Council of India in the last quarter of the year and has been making himself heard ever since. His latest views, put out last week, relate to Internet offences. Before and after him, TV anchors have harangued and heckled and now it is Kapil Sibal's turn to utter first and ponder later. What do we get in response to his call for proactive screening of the Internet? More noise, unsurprisingly. A rising crescendo of free-spirited protests, though some of the offences can hardly be defended.

The noise has been at one level and succeeded at hogging attention while the action has been at another level. Two murders of journalists, 14 attacks on them over the year in different parts of the country, one Home Ministry circular asking for withdrawal of advertising to newspaper, a Standing Committee draft that proposes to bring the media under the ambit of the Lokpal Bill, lots of legal notices to media outlets and some doubtless justified. And a few hundred take-down notices issued by the government to Net intermediaries. Also, a stiff fine is ordered on one of them, Yahoo, for failing to disclose identities of users.

More telling than Kapil Sibal's bombast, one would imagine, is the fact that the Rajya Sabha was told in a written reply that the Home Ministry had asked the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology to "monitor" Facebook and Twitter. Has it complied? If yes, how precisely? Last week, there was more action: an amendment to the Cable Act, 1995 got passed in the Lok Sabha. It requires cable operators to transmit all channels in encrypted form and generally attempts to rein in the sector in various ways.

The old Act authorized the seizure of the cable operator's equipment if he/she violated provisions of the Act and limited the period of seizure to 10 days. The amendment says the seizure can be extended by an order of the district judge and there is no limitation on the period of seizure. The pattern since 1995 has been that the authorized government functionaries seldom used the powers of the Act. If that changes, the increased powers could be worrying.

Between the noise and the actions we have a public sphere increasingly open to both state interventions as well as cyber excesses. The same year that saw social media trigger the Arab Spring also saw digital media being employed to spread the locations of the London riots. Who is to rein whom? When does freedom become licence? There will be more noise in the coming year as we thrash these issues out. Since self-regulation is the debate of the season, can it apply more effectively to cyberspace? There are no media houses in the social media realm, only intermediaries.

Then there is the whole business of political thin skins turning on the media. As many as 255 of the 360 plus take down notices that Google got from the Indian government in the first half of last year related to the complaints by the government and the political class about criticism. It would be nice to get their details and be able to examine how justified the take-down requests were. Last week, a Maharashtra minister was complaining about press coverage that turned what he said was a minor defeat in the municipal council elections into a major one by virtue of the noise made about it!

So far, Justice Katju has taken it upon himself to periodically opine rather than act, so that we don't really know in what ways he is toning up the Press Council to respond effectively to complaints. Even passing strictures against media outlets or statements exonerating them, with regard to specific complaints, which is within its powers, is better than no action.

What action has the Press Council taken on the issue of the Herald in Goa being implicated in a paid news sting operation? Any investigation ordered? It would be nice if future press releases from Justice Katju could be about his institution's decisions rather than his views. In the meantime, the marketing manager of the paper implicated in the Goa sting has sent a defamation notice to Mayabhushan Nagvenkar who did the entrapment.

One year of noisy debate and dangerous living just went by and we can always be hopeful about the next one. It is necessary to identify who is to rein in whom? When does freedom become licence? There will be more noise in the new year as we thrash these issues out.

1857 Indian Freedom Struggle Memorial

2011-12-07T17:28:00.000+05:30

The role of Bombay in the 1857 Sepoy Mutiny can best be described as modest. The Mutiny originated in parts of Northern India which at a later stage in history came to be known as the first struggle for Indian independence. Bombay has always been associated with trade and commerce in its veins and it reacted in a very characteristic manner when the news of the Rising broke out: the stock market bucked.

The Indian Freedom Struggle Memorial is dedicated to the martyrs of the 1857 Sepoy Mutiny in the form of an obscure plinth located on a fence right outside the underground subway opposite the Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus. It is dedicated to two martyrs Mangal Cadiya and Sayyad Hussein.

As the superintendent of the police in Bombay Charles Forjett ordered two sepoys should be tied to mouth of cannon and be blown to bits. He was fluent in the local languages and an expert in disguise and often walked the streets to eavesdrop on conversations to get a sense of trouble brewing. The grassroots intelligence rarely failed him and during the months of the Mutiny, he was more vigilant than ever. It came to his ears that there was growing dissent in the infantry and meetings were being held in the home of a certain Ganga Prasad. Dressed up in a black native dress, Forjett is said to have reached a house in Sonapur (near Metro Cinema) and heard through a broken wall of a group plotting an attack on the Englishmen on the night of Diwali.

On October 15 1857 at the Esplanade Cross (now Azad Maidan), the two conspirators, the strapping Drill Havaldar Sayyed Hussein of the Marine Battalion and Sepoy Mangal Cadiya of the 10th Native Indian Regiment were trussed with their backs to the cannon. The execution of these two officers took place in front of packed crowds, both of Indian and European origin which was Forjett's way of broadcasting the message that any dissent would be dealt with in a similar fashion. The findings of the Court read out with the order delivered as: "There was a sharp report, a sudden flash of fire and when the clouds of smoke blew away, there lay scattered the bloody remnants of the two men."

History came round a full circle a whole century later, when in Independent India, the Esplanade Cross was renamed as the Azad Maidan to memorialize the numerous freedom speeches that Mahatma Gandhi and others made during the freedom struggle and to signify the importance of the ground in the Sepoy Mutiny. The plinth dedicating a memorial came up in 2007 to commemorate the 150 years of the Sepoy Mutiny which began in 1857 and to honour the sacrifice of these two martyrs.

Types of Love

2011-11-26T02:00:00.000+05:30

Swami Chinmayananda

No activity in human life is taken up with so much sincerity and elaborate preparation as is man's search for the joy of love and yet, no enterprise of man fails so constantly with such regularity, as his quest for love. He helplessly waits to receive love and yet everyone is always disappointed.

In a nutshell, the love that leaves us with agitation is lower love and the love that leaves us with profound peace and joy is higher. In true love, every action and sacrifice you make towards the object of your love reduces your egocentric desires and calms the agitation in your mind. When love is directed towards a Higher or Nobler object or person than yourself, it is called prema. When it is towards a lower object, it is called sneha. Higher love alone can help us come out of our sense of incompleteness and alienation.

The lower type of love called sneha is an escape from a person's sense of loneliness. Without this protection the person feels lonely, isolated and helpless. Some people demand love, they need to receive it--they cannot give love. Such an individual depends entirely upon other objects and beings for his existence: his home, work, money, friends and relations. With these, he makes a prison for himself and ever willingly suffers in it. This refers to both passive and aggressive type of sneha. They are both unconsciously seeking freedom from their sense of loneliness.

The higher kind of love is called prema. Here, love is dynamic. The lover is not waiting to be loved by others. He is not a beggar of love. His dynamic love floods forth from his heart and in its irresistible onward dash, it breaks all walls around others, storms into their hearts and therein seeks and discovers a blissful fusion of oneness. In this dynamic love, the lover ennobles the beloved and at the same time retains his own individuality. In such a blessed lover relationship, the two become one and still neither dominates the other. In dynamic love, it is a willful "dashing on" to love, rather than an unconscious accidental "falling into" love. It is a consistent passion to give, not a meek persistent hope to receive. True love is not a passive taking, but a dynamic giving.

This idea of giving is often dreaded and misunderstood as a giving up of something--a painful renouncing--a state of being deprived of everything pleasant and sweet. But actually, it is a giving up of all the anxiety to enjoy the fruits of actions. Love, when it is true and unconditional, is its own regard. Very few realize it, none dare to live it. Some of us love only if we are loved in return. That is, we give love in payment for love received. This is a very commercial attitude, a shopkeeper's mentality. To give love is freedom; to demand love is nothing but an example of pure slavery.

The human mind always runs in the direction of His love. The object of love reflects his vasanas, his tendencies. It is important to fall in love when your piece of mind is gone and your abilities are distracted. Similarly, it is equally important to rise in love to any ideal, profession, art, science or person that makes you integrated and created. Devotion gives you more intellectual capacities, abilities improve. You become dynamic--a person to be reckoned with.

Hence, if you want others to love you, be lovable. Love cannot be lust. In lust, there is abject dependence upon the physical object. In lust, there is a subordination of one's personality to the enchantment of the object; while in love, the personality of the lover is tuned to the personality of the beloved. Love brings an expansion of being, while lust ends in an existence loaded with darkness and exhausting fatigue. Love is the victory of the spirit, lust is the cry of the base flesh and low mind. Love lives the joy; lust only seeks it.

Very few are indeed rich in love. How can they love, who have none in themselves? Love transforms work into inspiration with efficiency as its result. Love is the heart of all religions, the theme of all classical works of art and literature, the song of all devotees. Scientists know only what love does--not what love is. Love can indeed empty our asylums, perhaps all our prisons, maybe all our hospitals. People suffer in life due to the lack of love. Love is, therefore, to the human heart what the sun is to flowers!

Harnessing Potentials

2011-11-22T23:36:00.001+05:30

Swami Tejomayananda

Most of us will agree that we are born rich and yet somehow we are unable to truly realize and harness our true potentials. In order to harness the great potential that lies within each one of us, it is important to manifest it and for that it is necessary to have a great goal in life. Our potential lies in the body, speech, mind, intellect and also through external means. Indeed, the treasure that we possess is vast and invaluable. It is due to this reason that psychologists would agree that we are not entirely using the true potential of our brains which is why we remain as extras in our own movie.

Much of our potential has been manifested out of necessity to survive or thrive. A police officer once tried catching a weak-looking thief who escaped. When asked why the thief outran him, he said, "I ran as part of my duty. He ran to save his life. His motivation was greater." Great potential may at times manifest out of sheer necessity but usually if your goal is only to survive, you work enough only to survive. If you just want to pass, you study just enough to scrape through.

If we have to lift and carry six bricks, it is common knowledge that that we need more strength which is needed in order to be utilized completely. We can also our increase our ability to lift heavier and heavier objects by practicing. But why should we practice, when, for most of us the heaviest object that we need to lift is just ourselves? A singer who aspires to sing in front of the President would have to practice immensely before achieving that level of perfection. Similarly, a weight lifter who decides to win in the Olympics practices day and night in order to lift the gold medal! For he is aware that the aspiration of his countrymen lie in him. The higher the goal, the greater is the potential that we manifest. Goals enable us to perform to our potential.

Sir Edmund Hillary said, "I did not conquer Mount Everest. I conquered myself." When the great mountain stands ahead of us beckoning us, it is important that we take notice of that call. We can more easily overcome our moments of weakness. Therefore, the higher the goal, the greater is the ability we manifest overcoming the obstacles within and without.

Control Freakery

2011-11-17T18:03:00.001+05:30

Arun Jaitley

The chairman of the Press Council of India, Justice Markandey Katju, lost little time after his appointment to make known his contemptuous views about the Indian media. The obvious danger of talking out of turn in order to crusading is that one ceases to be objective. You only have to tabulate the weak points of the target institution and emerge as a reformist yourself.

While doing so Katju overlooked the fact that despite many weaknesses, the Indian media is a key protector of our democracy and does not need to be regulated. The argument that every institution in a democracy needs to be regulated is not a valid one. It is this mindset that produced the Indian Emergency of the mid-1970s. Has anyone dared to suggest that the Supreme Court is unregulated and hence needs to be regulated? This "control" psyche is destructive of democracy.

The media, both print and electronic, is today judged by the readers and viewers. It is for this reason that some newspapers and channels manage to consolidate while others are marginalized. The viewer is the king. He has a remote in his hand and the viewer is the best regulator of a channel. I would rather trust him than a retired judge seeking more powers. Freedom of choice and rejection to the unacceptable is a preferred option to a Big Brother who watches and intimidates the media.

As an active participant in politics, I have no hesitation in admitting that besides one's own ethical preferences, a vigilant media is an additional deterrent in the conduct of public and private affairs of a public person. The possibility of being exposed by an intrusive media may be an irritant for a politician, but it has played an important role in keeping politicians on their toes.

The media surely has its own share of problems. Its campaigning zeal leads to a lynch mob mentality. It has tended to create an environment of prejudice against media targets and influence free and fair trials. The remedy for this can be greater editorial control or, in extreme situations, even judicial intervention. However, the remedy cannot be government intervention.

The past one year has seen several ministers carry on a campaign accusing the media of being hostile to the government. The recent move of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to renew a licence to operate a channel depending on the number of violations of the broadcasting and advertising codes was the result of this governmental irritation with the media. Media licensing is repugnant to press freedom. Thankfully, the move was short-lived. Institutions like the legislature, the judiciary and the media must adopt an attitude of statesmanship while dealing with each other. There is no place for an attitude that entails teaching the other a "lesson" in order to establish its own primacy. In this context, the recent judicial order of a court imposing Rs. 100 crore as damages against a news channel and its editor in a libel section raises serious questions.

The channel in question, Times Now, was telecasting a news report relating to the involvement of a retired judge of a High Court in the provident fund scandal in Ghaziabad. It correctly pronounced the name of the judge, who has since retired from the Calcutta High Court. The operator of the channel's database was asked to provide a photograph of the judge that could be flashed on the TV screen. He erroneously pulled out a photograph of a retired Supreme Court judge whose name was phonetically similar to the judge whose photograph he was searching for. Instead of Justice Samantha, a photograph of Justice PB Sawant was flashed for a few seconds after which the retired judge's office protested. An apology was carried on the scroll, though belatedly. A Pune court awarded Rs. 100 crore as damages in favour of the former Supreme Court judge for loss of reputation.

As someone having familiarity with the quantum of damages Indian courts award, this order appears to be somewhat unusual. Observers are still unable to come to terms with the quantum of damages awarded even in cases of death or disability caused by Union Carbide in the tragic 1984 Bhopal Gas Tragedy. The quantum awarded in various death cases, be it an accident or otherwise, in India, is normally modest. The quantum awarded recently in the 1997 Uphaar Fire Tragedy is a case in point. If a former judge is entitled to Rs. 100 crore for his photograph being flashed erroneously on account of being mistaken with another phonetically similar name, will this precedent be applied by Indian courts to other ordinary mortals who complain of loss of reputation on account on account of far more serious allegations? I am not aware of a single case where even 1% of this amount has been awarded to an ordinary citizen or a public person for loss of reputation. There is no better way of shutting down Indian media than by awarding punitive damages against journalists, newspapers or TV channels that are completely disproportionate to the value of money in Indian society.

Each media organization is expected to exercise due care and caution. Errors, however, will take place on account of the very nature of the news circulation business. If channels or newspapers are to suffer such an order, on the assumption that Rs. 100 crore are to be the normal damages awarded to a citizen, we may in the next 10 years become a nation without media organizations.

Citizens deserve a free and fair media. We cannot have a free and fair media by having the Press Council act as the Big Brother, or with the government threatening to de-license news channels, or with the judiciary imposing unreasonable punitive damages on them. We just need an independent and a vigilant media as much as much as we need an independent judiciary.

Movie Review: Traffic

2011-11-15T18:09:00.001+05:30

The 2011 Malayalam film "Traffic" is a multi-narrative thriller that intertwines multiple stories around one particular incident. The narrative of the film has been told in the hyperlink format dealing with plot twists, interwoven storylines between multiple characters. The film follows the life of six main characters--an aspiring journalist Raihan (Vineeth Srinivasan) and his friend Rajeev (Asif Ali), who are travelling in a bike and are fatally hit by a speeding car at a signal, a superstar Sidharth Shankar (Rahman) who is getting ready for the release of his new film, a young cardiac surgeon Abel (Kunchako Boban), City Police Commissioner Ajmal Nazar (Anup Menon) and a traffic constable Sudevan (Srinivasan).

The story takes place on a certain September 16 at a crowded traffic junction in Kochi. It has been an inspired from a real-life event that happened in Chennai. As the film follows the hyperlink format, an accident changes their lives forever and how they tackle with it is what the story is essentially about. I'd like not to spill the beans here by furthering the story here.

As a film by itself, it is a complete edge-of-the-seat thriller movie with the screenplay which progresses really fast. If you tend to deviate a bit, you lose track of the film. It completes hooks you in by almost taking you to the middle of the action in the screenplay. Every character in the movie has an equal importance as the story moves ahead and they are etched out quite well. The film progresses in a very brisk manner. The interval punch is brilliant which makes you keep guessing till the end. The positive trend in the movie is the absence of a regular hero and an actress since everyone has been given equal role.

The brilliant background music by Mejo Joseph does wonders for the movie as it helps takes the story forward and also accelerates the level of tension in the film at the right places. The cinematography by Shyju Khalid deserves accolades for so capturing the intricacies of a busy traffic junction and then following the journey. Traffic is a brutally brilliant film in which the filmmaker lends colour to coincidence and unveils before us a cognition on the dynamics of chance. It is a strikingly crafted film which is raw and genuine, it crawls right under your skin and stays there.

Summing up, there is an inherent sincerity about it which makes Traffic a genuine movie of recent times. It is a perfect entertainer which provides the thrills at the right places and instills a sense of fear and does not fail to amuse you as a viewer. Though the film has average production values, it is an overwhelming experience. If you like edge-of-the-seat thrillers, don't miss Traffic!

Movie Review: Ananthabhadram

2011-11-10T14:44:00.000+05:30

The 2005 Malayalam film "Ananthabhadram" concerns ghosts, black magic and spirits. The film begins with little Ananthan hearing a folk tale from his mother Gayathri (Revathy) telling him that his family comes from a line of powerful magicians and that they are responsible for protecting a "nagamanickyam", a jewel on a serpent's head. The jewel, she narrates in the ancient village of Sivapuram in a house guarded by snakes, including a tiny snake called Kunjootan.

Years later, Ananthan (Prithviraj) returns to Sivapuram with his deceased mother's ashes. His mother wanted him to light the lamp at Shivakaavu, a dark and mysterious temple of Lord Shiva. During his stay in Sivapuram, he meets his cousin Bhadra (Kavya Madhavan) and encounters the local black magician Digambaran (Manoj K. Jayan). Soon enough, we are shown that Digambaran is not a friendly character as he opposes the lighting of lamps on the grounds of local superstitions in order to get his hands on the nagamanickyam. Digambaran has serious issues with Madambi "tharavadu" (family) which spans generations as he is in pursuit of the nagamanickyam and is resolute in his quest.

Digambaran has an enemy in Chemban (Kalabhavan Mani), a blind martial arts expert who stands in the way of Digambaran's hunt for the nagamanickyam. The evil Digambaran manages to remove Chemban from his way by blinding him and leaves a trail of blood. Digambaran also lures Chemban's sister Bhama (Riya Sen) into black magic. He repeatedly boasts about the fact that he has the power to perform the parakayapravesam (the process of transferring one's soul into another body) to attain the nagamanickyam using Bhama.

The highlight performance in this film is by Manoj K. Jayan as the evil black magician Digambaran. No one could have essayed the role with dignity and panache the way he has done. Kalabhavan Mani also has done a wonderful job. Prithviraj irritates a bit with his English dialogues but acting wise, he is efficient. Kavya Madhavan looks beautiful but needs to slim down a bit. Riya Sen appears to be the most confused actress in the movie as there is no clarity on what the role demanded from her. As far as casting goes, the film sticks to the formula of a regular Malayalam film.

Visually, the film is a treat as it draws heavily from the local myths and tales. Certain aspects of dance used by the choreographer Aparna Sindoor draw inspiration from the Theyyam and Kathakali dancers of Kerala making it evident that we have a rich visual culture. The film also uses Kalarippayattu, the traditional martial arts of South India, for the fight sequences between Digambaran and Chemban choreographed by action director Arash. The director also pays a tribute to legendary painter Raja Ravi Varma by using three of his paintings as an inspiration to film the song.

The sound recording of the film is very good but the screenplays tends to progress in a hurried manner as though there is an urgent need to finish the story somehow. As the pace increases towards the second half, it becomes a bit difficult to follow the story. Nevertheless, it is a sincere effort by cinematographer Santhosh Sivan. Watch the film for its high production values and its folk tale which seeks inspiration from the rich visual culture.

The Decline of The West

2011-11-09T14:14:00.003+05:30

R. Vaidyanathan
IIM Bangalore

Ten years ago, America had Steve Jobs, Bob Hope and Johnny Cash. Now, it has no Jobs, no Hope and no Cash. Or so the joke goes. Only, it's no joke. The line is pretty close to reality in the US. The less said about Europe the better. Both the US and Europe are in decline. I was asked by a business channel in 2008 about recovery in the US and I mentioned 40 quarters and I was never invited for another discussion. Recently, another media person asked me the same question and I answered 80 quarters. He was shocked since he was told some "sprouts" of recovery had been seen in the American economy.

It is important to recognize that the dominance of the West has been there only for the last 200-and-odd years. According to Angus Maddison's pioneering OECD study, India and China had nearly 50 percent of global GDP as late as the 1820s. Hence, India and China are not emerging or rising powers. They are retrieving their original position. The dollar is having a roller coaster ride at present. In 1990, the share of the G-7 in world GDP (on a purchasing power parity basis) was 51 percent and that of emerging markets 36 percent. But in 2011, it is the reverse. So the dominant west is a myth.

Similarly, the crisis. It is a US-Europe crisis and not a global one. The two wars--which were essentially European wars--were made out to be world wars with one English leader commenting that "we will fight the Germans to the last Indian". In this economic scenario, countries like India are made to feel as if they are in a crisis. Since the West says there's a crisis, we swallow it hook, line and sinker.

But it isn't so. At no point of time in the last 20 years has foreign investment--direct and portfolio--exceeded 10 percent of our domestic investment. Our growth is due to our domestic savings which is again predominantly household savings. Our housewives require awards for our growth not any western fund manager. The crisis faced by the West is primarily because it has forgotten a six letter word called "saving" which, again, is the result of forgetting another six letter word called "family". The West has nationalized families over the last 60 years. Old age, ill health, single motherhood--everything is the responsibility of the state.

When family is a "burden" and children an "encumbrance", society goes for a toss. Household savings have been in the negative in the US for long. The total debt to GDP ratio is as high as 400 percent in many countries, including UK. Not only that, the West is also facing a severe demographic crisis. The population of Europe during the First World War was nearly 25 percent and today it is around 11 percent and expected to become 3 percent in another 20 years. Europe will disappear from the world map unless migrants from Africa and Asia take it over.

The demographic crisis impacts the West in other ways. Social security goes for a toss since people are living longer and not many from below contribute to their pensions through taxes. So the nationalization of families becomes a burden on the state. The European work culture has become worse with even our own Tatas complaining about the work ethics of British managers. In France and Italy, the weekend starts on Friday morning itself. The population has become lazy and state-dependent.

In the UK, the situation is worse with drunkenness becoming a common problem. Parents do not have control over children and the Chief Rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregation in London said: "There are all signs of arteriosclerosis of a culture and a civilization grown old. Me has taken precedence over We and pleasure today over viability tomorrow." (The Times: 8 September).

Married couples make up less than half (45 percent) of all households in the US, say recent data from the Census Bureau. Also, there is a huge growth in unmarried couples and single parent families (mostly poor, black women). Society has become dysfunctional or disorganized in the West. The government is trying to be organized.

In India, the society is organized and the government disorganized. Due to the disorganized society in the West, the state has to take care of families. The market crash is essentially due to the adoption of a model where there is consumption with borrowings and no savings. How long will Asian savings be able to sustain the western spending binge? According to a recent report in The Wall Street (10 October 2011), nearly half of US households receive government benefits like food stamps, subsidized housing, cash welfare or Medicare or Medicaid (the federal state health care programmes for the poor) or social security.

The US is also a stock market economy where half the households are investors and they have been hit hard by bank and corporate failures. Even now, less than five percent of our household financial savings goes to the stock market. Same in China and Japan.

Declining empires are dangerous. They will try to peddle their failed models to us and we will swallow it since colonial genes are very much present here. You will find more Indians heading global corporations since India is now a very large market and one way to capture is to make Indian sepoys work for it.

A declining West is best for the rest and also for the West, which needs to rethink its failed models and rework its priorities. For the rest--like us--the fact that the West has failed will be accepted by us only after some western scholar tell us the same. Till then, we will try to imitate them and create more dysfunctional families.

We need to recognize that Big Government and Big Business are twin dangers for average citizens. India faces both and they are the two asuras (demons) we need to guard against. The Leftists in the National Advisory Council want all families to be nationalized and governed by a Big State and reform marketers of the CII variety want Big Business to flourish under crony capitalism. Beware of the twin evils since both look upon India as a charity house or as a market and not as an ancient civilization.

Nee

2011-11-01T22:24:00.002+05:30

The song "Nee" is certainly one of the well-composed non-film songs in recent times. The lyrics for the song have been written by Aisoorya Vijayakumar and sung by my childhood friend Jaya Vidyasagar, a talented and classically trained singer from Mumbai who has lent her voice for this song. It has been composed by Rishi S. for an independent music label called "Sonore Unison".

I imagined the song as an expression of a young girl waiting by the window as she was disillusioned and depressed since the boy whom she was in love with had moved to the city for higher studies. However, it was on a rainy morning, when her lover returned as a true gentleman from the city, it was as though the young girl almost received a new lease of life. On the joyous occasion of his arrival, she breaks into this song and sings it as tears roll down her eyes as she welcomes him back into her life. The song is a wonderful tribute to her lover's arrival back into her life.

The rough meaning of the song would read something like:

The pain residing in my eyelids ended because of you
The sprout residing in the seed has reached the sky
Did my heart spring back to life because of your arrival?
My eyes broke into sweat because of our relationship

The pain residing in these eyelids
That feel of shock, laughter and admiration with a mild tremble has ended because of you
The solitude that existed in the scattered mind stood behind a veil here.

Frozen moments moved fast
The days of depression disappeared,
The pain residing in these eyelids
The feeling of shock, laughter and admiration with a mild tremble
Partially due to joy and partially due to warmth
Has ended because of you.

Song Name: Nee
Singer: Jaya Vidyasagar
Lyrics: Aisoorya Vijayakumar
Music and Mixing: Rishi S.
Label: Sonore Unison
Illustrations: Krishna Kumar Kandi

Steve means success

2011-10-18T12:00:00.002+05:30

MN Kundu
Hindustan Times

If I were to define success, I would say it means "Steve". By changing the digital world and thereby bringing a revolution, Steve Jobs, who died last week, changed the approach and lifestyles of people all over the world. He dared to rebel and walked the untrodden path. His stress was: Be different and see the difference in your life. Steve was not only different but made it possible for the rest of mankind to think that they too can be different and agents of change.

I found the best tribute paid to Steve in a tweet: "Three apples have changed the world. One seduced Eve, the second awakened Newton and the third one was in the hands of Jobs." Steve wanted us to always follow our inner voice but give a damn to dogmas and tradition. As if he knew the imminent end of his journey on this planet, he said, "Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogmas. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your inner voice."

The man who made the world of technology richer with his iPhone, iPad, iPod and desktop PC, saw to it that the worlds of computing, music and mobile phones were no longer the same. Steve was a dreamer who could convert and shape his dreams into reality. His passion bordered madness. Until he succeeded in achieving something different and new, his search for new ideas made him ruthless and restless. He used to say, "innovations come from people meeting up in the hallways or calling each other at 10:30 at night with a new idea."

Steve was a prisoner of hope. He was the kind of man who, in the words of Emerson, would hitch his wagon to a star. The lesson we get to learn from his life is: do not vegetate and dare to be a little bit of a rebel. Open up your mind and the whole world will open up for you. Steve Jobs did that because he knew that "without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible"--Khalil Gibran.

Headlines you will never see...

2011-10-12T23:09:00.002+05:30

Sevanti Ninan
The Hindu

Last fortnight, a new documentary screened in Delhi had a packed hall in thrall. Called "Brokering News", it glided effortlessly through a succession of sound bytes and TV news clips to suggest a range of unethical practices prevalent in the media. The existence of election-time paid news, of complicity between stock market experts and the TV channels that feature their tips, of cosy deals that enable each newly released film to get varying degrees of prime time pre-release exposure, of increasingly political ownership of channels, of seductions to journalists, abundant "reviews" of new gadgets and automobiles and so on.

This documentary has been made by Umesh Aggarwal for the Public Service Broadcasting Trust and will be shown on Doordarshan, which will doubtless be delighted to air it. It was a brisk film built largely on circumstantial evidence and assertions of a general kind. Business journalist Sucheta Dalal saying for instance that: "Every single aspect of news is for sale," or filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt saying that the publicity a film gets is what it negotiates, not what it deserves. Or sports journalist Pradeep Magazine revisiting the cozy relationship that existed between media houses and the Indian Premier League until things that went sour for the IPL. The documentary had a compelling case study and specific accusations were levelled by a journalist who said he quit in disgust. The audience loved it.

In a country consumed with the issue of corruption, the discussion on degrees of ethical deficit in the media never moves beyond first base. Noteworthy, but unsurprising. Media corruption is not an issue that the State wants to tackle seriously for the same reason that corporate corruption is not an issue for the media until it becomes impossible to ignore. You need each other. Where would a politician be without publicity of any kind, where would a media house be without corporate advertising?

There is also another reason why the State will not stick its neck out on this issue. When a media house is raided, the community shrieks about the violation of press freedom. This has happened in some notable cases since the late 1990s. During the Anna agitation, the Law Minister Salman Khurshid asked on Headlines Today why Team Anna's draft of the Lokpal Bill had not called for investigation of corruption in the media and the NGO sector? The anchor asked him in turn why the government had not chosen to investigate those who figured in the Niira Radia tapes. And the good Minister said that if they did so the government would be criticized. "Now you are asking why the government has not investigated. If we go ahead with the investigation, we would be accused of being insensitive. If we do, there would be a mass movement for the media."

The major difference between corruption in public life and corruption in the media is that one has become a raging issue and the other not enough of an issue. To the extent that you need the media to make corruption an issue, media corruption will never become a big ticket item on the national agenda. And the interesting thing is, to the extent that civil society cannot fulfil any of its own agendas without using the media to ride on, it will leave media corruption well alone. In the list of problems Indian NGOs work like gnomes to address, those involving media abdication or transgressions are very hard to find.

We did not invent media corruption, nor do we have a monopoly on it. Trawl on the Internet and you would find journalists from Kenya, the Philippines and Nepal speaking on the subject. The Philippines too has paid news.

And then corruption is not sufficiently nuanced word to describe the problem. Paid news and journalists, big and small, on the take are the relative uncomplicated face of it. What of journalists not doing their job and going only after soft targets rather than big corporate or government fish because their owners need advertising from them? At the bottom of the pile, corruption exists because journalists are not paid enough, at the top it is at the management level and because the advertising the channel or paper is able to summon is not enough to cover costs, particularly since the cover price is low and no costs are covered at all. You sell a newspaper that costs Rs. 15 to produce at Rs. 3.

Desperate measures to finance escalating costs of production are also happening because hordes of players enter the media sector for a variety of reasons. There are no less than 40 news channels across the country financed by political parties or families, according to the aforementioned documentary. A highly fragmented market that shows no signs of consolidating.

The more expensive news gets to produce and the less advertising there is to go around, the more shows you will get on gadgets and cars and movies. And fewer news crews going off the countryside to report what is happening to ordinary people. Not reporting is not a cognizable offence, but it undermines the reason for the existence of journalism in a free society.

So, who will bell the cat? Not civil society, not government, not the corporate sector, not the media themselves, not the political class. We should look around at other societies to see what mechanisms they have come up with and pursue a variety of solutions. Until then, we will titter every time the Niira Radia sound bytes are played, but nothing will change on the ground.

Thank You, Steve Jobs

2011-10-09T00:28:00.001+05:30

The death of Apple founder and former CEO Steve Jobs, as tragic it was, brought back some hope for aspiring journalists like me that it was possible to find positive stories amidst death. For probably the first time, I learnt not to be boggled by the scams and the brain-numbing figures associated with each scam. Though it was a tragic end for Steve at the young age of 56, it rekindled a hope that it was possible to find and unearth positive stories even during adversities which could find a mention on the front page of a newspaper.

He, of course, left behind a legacy which is tough to replace. He created one of the world's best companies, Apple and led the company to a towering success with his inspiring leadership qualities and a unique vision. What he left behind is far more important was that he left the world as a role model for many people. He left behind the possibility that one person can make a huge difference. He proved that even school or college dropouts had the potential in them to dream big and make it large. At this juncture, it is interesting to note how school and college dropouts often emerge successful as architects of a better future than the ones who spend years studying in IITs or IIMs.

Steve proved many experts wrong by his sheer conviction and his high vision. He demonstrated beyond doubt that clarity of vision and a passion for that vision which settles for nothing but the best and an unwillingness to compromise on principles, ethics or on the need for excellence, one can achieve much more than what is actually unimaginable.

As the Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw once stated: "All progress depends upon the unreasonable man." Steve was the best example to prove this point. He was unreasonableness personified. It is often said that reasonable people do only reasonable things. Starting from the basics in a tiny garage, he succeeded in building the Apple empire with a vision and a demand of nothing less than the best which has given us the Apple we know of and love today.

He loved doing what he was doing which explains why he emerged successful. In a philosophical angle, doing something which you love is known as swadharma (self-duty). Swadharma is the basic quality in man who has the ideas and potentials. As also, there is always something which a person loves doing which does not seem to take much effort. It is generally believed only self-realized people can live up to the standards of following their swadharma but it is not the case. In this case, Steve personified grit and imagination applied to technology. As a writer once said: "To computer jobs, he brought simplicity. To an industry known for its geeky/ugly functionality, he brought beauty." The day Steve resigned as the CEO of Apple Computers, the Oscar winning music maestro AR Rahman said: "A true master knows when to quit. We will miss you, Steve."

In his impactful Stanford Commencement speech in 2005, he said, "Remembering I'll be dead is the most important tool I have encountered to help me to make the big choices in life. Because almost everything--all external expectations, all pride, fear of embarrassment or failure--these things just fall away in the face of death; leaving only what it is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to close. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart." Such great words coming from a college dropout and more importantly, a cancer patient can only make us stand up in awe of the greatest innovator and mass communicator of the 21st century.

He surely had an enormous impact on the modern life and the changes he initiated in the field of computers and technology will roll through our lives for decades. But for millions, he will epitomize the man who stood for encouragement, belief in one's self and being a role model who could exactly demonstrate how much of an impact is possible by a single man.

Ek Shaam Shammi Ke Naam

2011-08-26T00:52:00.004+05:30

Every childhood hero takes away a little bit of one's life along with him when he dies. In the India of the 1950s and 1960s, when Indians were just learning to enjoy freedom, Shamsher Raj Kapoor or Shammi Kapoor, as he was more popularly known, became the most obvious symbol of freedom. Nearly forty years after his iconic movie "Junglee" released, it is easy to be dismissive about that yell which rose from the belly, filled the throat and then knocked your head off: "Yaaaahoooo!" It was the roar of liberation from the silly boredom of convention.

Shammi Kapoor entered the Hindi film industry when Dilip Kumar was still going strong and Rajendra Kumar was bowing out of the race for the best actor. Shammi Kapoor, who came as a breath of fresh air and became India's first youth icon with his sea-blue eyes, chocolate boys and a man with a colourful personality and an amazing sense of rhythm and dance. In a very boisterous way, Shammi Kapoor encouraged the youth to go find our voice, even if it that turned into screaming. He always seemed to promote the message to be brilliant even if it would mean being around like a fool and be authentic in a special way.

Shammi Kapoor's singing voice is Mohammed Rafi, who actually went to sing almost all his songs, which were very youthful in nature. As human beings, they seem to be miles apart from each other but the magic of crossing the bridge does the trick. In fact, it was because of the songs that Mohammed Rafi sang for Shammi which made me believe that Mohammed Rafi had a life and he could sing even cheerful songs which hinted at sex in subtle undertones. Shammi and Rafi almost resulted in the fact as important as the voice for the body. Listening to a Shammi Kapoor song today would mean instantly waking up from the seat and swaying to the rhythm of the song as easily as one could four decades ago. The indebtedness for Rafi was visibly evident when Mohammed Rafi passed away in 1980 when Shammi Kapoor remarked: "It is a sad day since I lost my voice."

Despite the fact that Shammi Kapoor started gaining weight and started hamming in the Hindi movies, he was graceful to bow out of the Hindi film industry in 1971. Though, Shammi Kapoor lifted love from familiarity and hinted sharply at sex in subtle undertones, we could simply forgive him for being India's first youth icon in the post-independence era who taught the youngsters back then to find their own voice. In his later years, he taught us to live to the fullest without a sense of regret or self-pity. In a very subtle manner, he taught us the lesson we need desperately: a colourful and youthful attitude to a situation.

Instead of mourning his demise, his life is an example of how life should be celebrated and the power of being in the now.. Truly, we lost a priceless gem in the Hindi film industry who left leaving a space which is irreparable. Tally ho, Shammiji!!

The Guru Principle

2011-08-09T19:11:00.001+05:30

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

The Guru tattva is the principal and the wisdom of a Guru is a tattva (an element), a quality which is present inside each one of us. The Guru tattva is confined to a body or form. There is a story that Lord Krishna once Uddhava, his close friend and a very wise man, to the gopis and gopans, who were full of devotion. Uddhava went to give them wisdom, to talk about liberation but none of them was interested in listening to that. They all echoed: "No, tell us about some story about Krishna, tell us what is happening in Dwarka, where He is. We don't want to hear this wisdom; you can keep that to yourself. But tell us what news you have of Krishna? We don't care about wisdom; we are happy with longing and we are happy with love. So, let us sing and dance."

That's all they wanted to do. This is how love makes you crazy. That's when all the boundaries drop and you feel one with everyone around and one with the whole universe--and that's called the Guru tattva. Devotion is the inherent nature of man. When you rest in your own nature, there is no conflict. But usually, we feel a conflict and then we feel about a negative quality we have or something that we did.

A Master is one who lifts these burdens from you that you yourself cannot carry--and kindles in you devotional love. Offer everything to the Master--your anger, your frustration, all your bad feelings and good feelings. Your negativity pulls you down. Your positive qualities bring pride and arrogance in you thereby making our life becoming a big weight. When you offer it all by dedicating it, you become free. One ends up feeling much lighter like a flower. You can once again smile and rejoice in the moment. What remains in you is pure love. Since ages, all the knowledge and wisdom have been passed on.

In India, we continually express our gratitude to the guru-shishya tradition. The festival of Guru Poornima is the day to celebrate the knowledge and love. India has been rightly called "Bharata" in our scriptures. The Sanskrit word "Bha" refers to "Bhaskar" which means light while "Rata" signifies chariot or land. Hence, the name "Bharata" could translate into the chariot of knowledge or the land of knowledge. Our mind is connected with the moon and the full moon is a symbol of completion, celebration, a pinnacle. The highest desire is to ask for knowledge and freedom. Ultimately, happiness cannot be brought by money. Comfort is a small thing. But there are only two things that will be asked which make life more fruitful--how much love did you give? And how much knowledge have you acquired? What gets imprinted in the consciousness is knowledge.

Knowledge is not what you read in a book; it is derived from awareness. Knowledge is like the ocean, which cannot be measured. Some people take a walk along the beach while they receive good oxygen, fresh air and they are happy with that. Others would put their feet in the water and feel the scintillating impact of the ocean. A few more adventurous souls would go for surfing or scuba-diving and they find precious things. So, it's up to you--if you want to take a walk on the beach, swim or go deeper. Every single person on this planet is a spiritual seeker since everyone is looking for peace, love and happiness. This is precisely what the "spirit" comprises of.

JRD: A Class Apart

2011-08-04T19:40:00.001+05:30

Sudha Murthy

There are two photographs that hang on my office wall. Everyday, when I entered my office I look at them before starting my day. They are JRD Tata and Jamsetji Tata.

It was a long time ago when I was young, bright, bold and idealistic. I was in the final year of my Master's course in Computer Science at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc.) in Bangalore, then known as the Tata Institute. Life was full of fun and joy. I did not know what helplessness or injustice meant.

It was probably the April of 1974. I was the only girl in my postgraduate department. I was looking forward to going abroad to complete a doctorate in computer science. I had been offered scholarships from universities in the US. I had not thought of taking up a job in India. One day, while on the way to my hostel from our lecture hall complex, I saw an advertisement on the notice board. It was a standard job-requirement notice from the famous automobile company Telco (now Tata Motors). It stated that the company required young, bright engineers, hardworking and with an excellent academic background, etc.

At the bottom was a small line: "Lady candidates need not apply". I read it and was very upset. For the first time in my life, I was up against gender discrimination. Though I was not keen on taking up the job, I saw it as a challenge. I had done extremely well in academics, better than most of my male peers. Little did I know then that in real life academic excellence is not enough to be successful. I decided to inform the topmost person in Telco's management about the injustice the company was perpetrating. I got a postcard and and started to write, but there was a problem: I did not know who headed Telco. I thought it must be one of the Tatas. I knew JRD Tata was the head of the Tata Group; I had seen his pictures in newspapers (actually, Sumant Moolgaonkar was the company's chairman then). I took the card, addressed it to JRD and started writing.

To this day, I remember clearly what I wrote: "The great Tatas have always been pioneers. They are the people who started the basic infrastructure industries in India, such as iron and steel, chemicals, textiles and locomotives. They have cared for higher education in India since 1900 and they were responsible for the establishment of the Indian Institute of Science. Fortunately, I study there. But I am surprised how a company such as Telco is discriminating on the basis of gender."

I posted the letter and forgot about it. Less than 10 days later, I received a telegram stating that I had to appear for an interview at Telco's Pune facility at the company's expense. I was taken aback by the telegram. As directed, I went to Telco's Pimpri office for the interview. There were six people on the panel and I realized then that this was serious business. "This is the girl who wrote to JRD," I heard somebody whisper as soon as I entered the room. By then, I knew for sure that I would not get the job.

The realization abolished all fear from my mind, so I was rather cool while the interview was being conducted. Even before the interview started, I reckoned that the panel was biased, so I told them, rather impolitely, "I hope this is only a technical interview." They were taken aback by my rudeness and even today I am ashamed about my attitude. The panel asked me technical questions and I answered all of them. Then an elderly gentleman with an affectionate voice told me, "Do you know why we said lady candidates need not apply? The reason is that we have never employed ladies on the shop floor. This is not a co-ed college; this is a factory. When it comes to academics, you are a first ranker throughout. We appreciate that, but people like you should work in research laboratories."

I was a young girl from small town Hubli in Karnataka. My world had been a limited place. I did not know the ways of large corporate houses and their difficulties, so I answered, "But you must start somewhere, otherwise no woman will ever be able to work in your factories." Finally, after a long interview, I was told I had been successful. So this was what the future had in store for me. Never had I thought I would take up a job in Pune. I met a shy young man from Karnataka there, we became good friends and eventually got married.

It was only after joining Telco that I realized who JRD was: the uncrowned king of Indian industry. Now I was scared, but I did not get to meet him till I was transferred to Bombay. One day, I had to show some reports to Mr. Moolgaonkar, our chairman, who we all knew as SM. I was in his office on the first floor of the Bombay House (the Tata headquarters) when, suddenly JRD walked in. That was the first time I saw "aapro JRD". Aapro means "our" in Gujarati. This was the affectionate term by which people in Bombay House called him.

I was feeling very nervous, remembering my postcard episode. SM introduced me nicely, "Jeh (that's what his close associates called him), this young woman is an engineer and that too a postgraduate. She is the first woman to work on the Telco shop floor." JRD looked at me. I was praying he would not ask me any questions about my interview (or the postcard that preceded it). Thankfully, he didn't. Instead, he remarked: "It is nice that girls are getting into engineering in our country."

He smiled and started a discussion with SM. As for me, I almost ran out of the room. After that, I used to see JRD on and off. He was the Tata Group chairman and I was merely an engineer. There was nothing we had in common. I was in awe of him. One day, I was waiting for my husband, to pick me up after office hours. To my surprise, I saw JRD standing next to me. I did not know how to react. Yet again, I started worrying about that postcard.

Looking back, I realized that JRD had forgotten about it. It must have been a small incident for him, but not so for me. "Young lady, why are you here?" he asked. "Office time is over." I said, "Sir, I'm waiting for my husband to come and pick me up." JRD said, "It is getting dark and there's no one in the corridor. I'll wait with you till your husband comes." I was nervous. Out of the corner of my eye, I looked at him. He wore a simple white pant and shirt. He was old, yet his face was glowing. There wasn't any air of superiority about him. I was thinking: "Look at this person. He is a chairman, a well-respected man in our country and he is waiting for the sake of an ordinary employee." Then, I saw my husband and I rushed out. JRD called me and said, "Young lady, tell your husband never to make his wife wait again."

In 1982, I had to resign from my job at Telco. I was reluctant to go, but I really did not have a choice. I was coming down the staircase of Bombay House after wrapping up my final settlement when I saw JRD coming up. He was absorbed in thought. I wanted to say goodbye to him, so I stopped. He saw me and paused. "Sir, I am leaving Telco." "Where are you going?" he asked. "Pune, Sir. My husband is starting a company and I'm shifting to Pune." "Oh! And what will you do when you are successful?" "Sir, I don't know whether we will be successful." "Never start with a diffidence," he advised me. "Always start with confidence. When you are successful you must give back to society. Society gives us so much; we must reciprocate. I wish you all the best." Then, JRD continued walking upstairs. I stood there for what seemed like a millennium. That was the last time I saw him alive.

I consider JRD a great man because despite being an extremely busy person, he valued one postcard written by a young girl seeking justice. He must have received thousands of letters everyday. He could have thrown mine away, but he did not do that. He respected the intentions of that unknown girl, who had neither influence nor money and yet gave her an opportunity in this company. He did not merely give her a job; he changed her life and mindset forever.

Close to 50 percent of students in today's engineering colleges are girls. And there are women on the shop floor in many industry segments. I see these changes and it reminds me of JRD. If at all time stops and asks me what I want from life, I would say I wish JRD were alive to see how the company we started has grown. He would have enjoyed it wholeheartedly. My love and respect for the House of Tata remains undiminished by the passage of time. I always looked up to JRD. I saw him as a role model for his simplicity, his generosity, his kindness and the care he took of his employees. Those blue eyes always reminded me of the sky; they had the same vastness and magnificence.

Dhobi Ghat

2011-08-01T00:25:00.002+05:30

The Dhobi Ghat is a unique feature of Mumbai. It is situated near Mahalaxmi station near the Saat Rasta roundabout. It can be easily seen from the bridge of Mahalaxmi station.

Dhobi Ghat is where chaos, colour, activity and sounds mix together in a freakish blend. The name "Dhobi" refers to a person who is specialized in washing clothes and a "Ghat" is the name of the place where they wash clothes and hence "Dhobi Ghat".

The Dhobi Ghat in Mumbai has row upon row concrete wash pens, each of them fitted with a concrete flogging stone. There are nearly 700 washing platforms, each of them being nearly a century old. It is currently the world's largest open laundromat. In most cases, the ancestors took up the occupation of washing clothes evolving over time, who are bound by rules of endogamy. For some dhobis who wash clothes here, it runs down as their family business.

A dhobi is traditionally a laundryman who collects dirty clothes, wash it and return it neatly ironed to your doorstep for a mere pittance. The dhobis here generally work in the open and wash dirty and soiled clothes, bedsheets etc. which are predominantly collected from the housekeeping departments of Mumbai's hospitals and hotels. The dhobi marks a unique symbol or character on garments belonging to a particular. This is generally marked in black indelible ink to prevent it from being washed off. On an average, half a million clothes are sent for washing.

The clothes are soaked in sudsy water, which is generally covered with lather, then it is thrashed on the concrete flogging stones, then tossed into huge vats of boiling starch and then hung out to dry. Next, these clothes are neatly ironed and piled up into neat bundles. In spite of the fear that clothes might get lost or get exchanged with others, surprisingly, none of the clothes is mixed, misplaced or exchanged with each. Washing and the dyeing of clothes, giving stone wash look to jeans are the major chunk of work here.

Dhobi Ghat recently fell on the tourist map of Mumbai, owing to the Hindi film made by filmmaker Kiran Rao. The Dhobi Ghat is strangely popular with foreign tourists who generally look for a piece of quintessential "Indian-ness". It is physically difficult shooting in the winding lanes due to the lack of space. The place is naturally so beautiful that there is no way one can shoot it badly. You can shoot the Dhobi Ghat from any angle and you would go home smiling. It is like a picture postcard. The clothes line, the loops, the narrow lanes, different colours and its proximity to Mahalaxmi station makes it an amazing canvas for photography.

Not the end of the world

2011-07-26T07:40:00.004+05:30

Simon Jenkins
The Guardian

Britain has gone mad, or at least the tiny patch of Britain round Westminster. The Pentagon would call it a cluster-fuck , an all embracing, uncontrollable chain reaction that appears unable to cease. The new ecstasy theorists call it "whooshing" when reason loses out to passion and thought to imagination. As after the death of Princess Diana, every politician and commentator cried: "The world will never be the same again."

The world usually is. On Tuesday, Rupert Murdoch and his son were summoned before Parliament and gave an eerie performance as an ageing father who had vaguely heard his son had done something regrettable in the family woodshed. Meanwhile British Prime Minister David Cameron was forced to return from a foreign trip, like a tottering dictator called home by the politburo. The country's top policeman and top counter-terrorism cop were forced into resignation. Two government judicial inquiries have been set up. Two Commons committees are in continuous sessions. The police are everywhere. Journalists and MPs are lying on the floor,, kicking their legs in the air with glee.

Has anyone been murdered? Has anyone been ruined? Is the nation gripped by financial crash or pandemic, earthquake or famine? Are thousands homeless or millions impoverished? A squalid surveillance of the sort long conducted by the tabloid press went beyond what in this business is laughably called good taste and constituted a crime.

That everyone knew journalists and the police were engaged in petty barter does not make it acceptable, let alone legal. Nor is it edifying to know how far politicians and editors are in and out of each other's houses. But it is not the fall of the Berlin Wall or the Nuremberg trials. The downtrodden are not marching against their great satan, Rupert Murdoch. They are more likely mad at losing their favourite paper. There is a limit to how much significance any event can carry without imploding into daft hysteria.

There are some silver linings to these eruptions. The death of Diana maelstrom pulled the royal family out of its introversion. The Iraq war revealed the alarming corruption of intelligence by politics. The News of The World affair has dragged those who owns newspapers to answer for their custodianship before a parliamentary committee. There is no harm in those who dominate the media being called to account. Nor is the commercial rivalry that has driven this story inherently bad, if acknowledged. It is unsurprising that Murdoch's fiercest critics should be also his fiercest competitors, notably The Guardian and the BBC.

Already the cock-a-hoop Labour and Liberal Democrat parties are calling for statutory curbs on media ownership. Labour leader Ed Miliband wants to break up Murdoch's News International, presumably to stop owning two daily papers. He might also have to tackle the Lebedev family, which has two titles and The Daily Mail, which on one definition is now Britain's biggest newspaper group. It is hard to see what real purpose is served in, for instance, taking the Times from Murdoch. Its losses are reputedly so large it might close or be butchered by a new owner. Others may have suggested a ban on papers being run for vanity rather than profit, being cross-subsidized or foreign-owned. Any such proposal would more likely see titles close than open.

Newspaper ownership has always been crazy and eccentric, dominated by the ego and a yearning for glory. It seldom has to do with profit. If it had, the recent history of British newspapers would have been a miserable one. Murdoch's influence on tabloid journalism has been dire, though he is hardly alone in this. His influence on the media industry in general has been that of a serial innovator--confronting unions, lowering production costs, pay-for-view TV and now paywalls. All newspapers have benefited from this, loathe though they may be to admit it.

None of these excuses misleading Parliament or hacking phones. But today's storm-cloud of hysteria is a poor prelude to what could emerge from this, not a sensible attempt to redefine journalistic ethics but a back-handed attempt to restructure an industry.

A wife like Wendi

2011-07-24T19:18:00.002+05:30

Why can't you be like her?
You want me to dye my hair flaming red?

No darling, not like Rebekah Brooks, but like Rupert Murdoch's wife Wendi Deng.
You want me to be 38 years younger than you? But you're just 40 years old yourself?

Oof! All I'm saying is that you've never defended me like Wendi defended her husband on Tuesday when she sprung to action and landed a blow on the foam pie attacker.
But I come to your defence! Remember that day when you banged against the car in front...

Yes, dear, you did shout at the driver but maybe you could given the chap a left hook.
But unlike Wendi, I never played volleyball.

Now you're just looking for excuses. Never mind. I shouldn't say anything.
Don't be silly. You must be just stressing over your bhujiya empire going through some problems.

Yes, that must be it. Sorry. So can we now watch that scene again from Kill Bill Volume 1 where Lucy Liu as the vicious gang leader O-Ren Ishii chops the head off a dissenting monster?

Do say: Some media barons have all the luck.
Don't say: James Murdoch has one hell of a Tiger Mother.

Quiet a while

2011-07-23T18:37:00.002+05:30

Barkha Dutt

For those of us who still believe in the political process and the idea of India, these are lonely times. On one hand, sundry and smarmy interlopers have hijacked the political discourse and trivialized it with their hyperventilation. But on the other side, the absolute surrender of the robust, honest leadership by the government--and the fact that it appears to have totally lost its way--has thrown open the highway for freelancers and self-styled Robin Hood figures. The problem now is that no matter who you hitch a ride with, you end up in a place that isn't your choosing.

So yes, while we can--and do--cite the huge voter turnouts in the recent Assembly elections to make the point that the sweeping anti-politician sentiment is still an elitist, urban phenomenon, the bare truth is that the UPA has not done anything to restore the country's sense of confidence. So, if you an Anna Hazare acolyte and you are exasperated by the lethargy of this political leadership, who do you turn to? And what do you believe in any longer?

Why is it--I asked former Congress spokesperson Jayanthi Natarajan--that though the UPA has secured the resignations of more ministers and high-profile politicians than perhaps any other ruling coalition, the overwhelming impression is still one of paralysis and ineffectiveness. She conceded that at least part of the problem was being on the losing side of the perception battle. And yet in a week when the world's most powerful politician just wrapped up his first "Twitter townhall", the Prime Minister's team continues to regard the very notion of direct communication as an airy-fairy, new-age concept that has no real relevance, except to the English media.

Sophocles first warned that silence only strengthened the "accuser's charge". But it was French philosopher Jean Jacques Rousseau, an inspiration for the French Revolution, whose words captured the depth of its damage when he wrote "absolute silence leads to sadness. It is the image of death."

Indeed, two years into its tenure, the UPA has begun to resemble a drowning man who is barely managing to come up in air. The Prime Minister, despite his essential decency, has come to be perceived as a sad and listless caricature of himself. When the government did accept the overwhelming criticism of being seen but heard, it reacted in an extraordinarily tepid manner that took the shape of the Prime Minister meeting a handful of senior newspaper editors. Quite aside of the botch-ups that made their way into the official transcript released after this meeting, was this mediated and controlled interaction really the best way to reach out to the people of India?

All right, the Prime Minister may think Twitter is banal and TV even worse. But across the world, leaders have other ways of reaching out. The use State of the Nation broadcasts or regularly drop in on their favourite radio show, or better still, work their way into a crowd, clasping the hands of their constituents in a perfect Clintonian moment of communication.

Here, culturally, politics remains trapped in a "Mai-baap" template of patronage by the powerful for the poor. Our leaders sit aloof on a stage that stares down at an impoverished but eager sea of people, kept at suitable distance from them behind wooden barricades and gun-toting, safari-suited security officials. Rahul Gandhi's padyatra politics is finally a more informal and friendly attempt at mass contact. But even he restricts himself to the villages of Bharat, ignoring for the most part, the ordinary of Middle India. However, even by Indian standards of stodgy communication, the Prime Minister is bewilderingly silent. Even inside Parliament, his interventions are irregular and mostly triggered by political crises or assaults by the Opposition.

It was agricultural expert YK Alagh who first famously called Manmohan Singh an "overestimated economist and an underestimated politician," a line that self-described "loose cannon" Digvijaya Singh would repeat in the course of several TV shows. But where is the political dimension to the Prime Minister buried today? Does he appear unassertive because he is invisible? Or is he invisible because he does not have the freedom to be assertive? Is the sense of disarray his government conveys a losing his control or a by-product of the intrigue within his team that has pitched minister against minister in barely disguised turf-wars? It's probably the combination of all three.

But the Prime Minister--known to be a reflective man--must ask himself a tough question. During his first tenure as the head of this government he was willing to resign than see a nuclear deal he had invested his legacy in all by the wayside. If he is unable to come out and take charge of an unravelling situation, are the reasons to preserve his legacy not far more crucial now?

While we are on the subject of America--why can't the PM borrow a lesson or two from President Barack Obama? Come and talk to us--your citizens--and admit that mistakes were made. Concede as he did that you have got a "shellacking" or two and promise us that you will now lead from the front and not hide behind the opaqueness of coalition politics. Do not be a stranger to your own people.

Otherwise, Manmohan Singh needs to remember that tears in a fabric can be held together by safety pins only for long. After a point, when the threads start coming loose, it's sometimes best to get yourself a new set of clothes. The problem with the UPA is that it doesn't seem to want to fix anything, unless it is broken beyond repair.

Exit: Red Riding Hood

2011-07-22T22:53:00.003+05:30

Janine Gibson
The Guardian

Since she was made editor of the News of The World 11 years ago, there has been almost no briefing against Rebekah Brooks. Before she got the big job there were some attempts to dismiss by reducing her to ambitious woman cliches but afterwards the shutters came down. She was tight with everyone, everyone wanted her favours and she circled every administration, every agent, every rising star, every imploding career.

That is, until Thursday (14th July 2011), when her close friend Elisabeth Murdoch was quoted telling friends that Rebekah had "fucked the company". Rebekah Wade, as she then was, was Elisabeth's friend from the moment she arrived in London. They holidayed, worked, played and networked for more than a decade. News International is an empire built on personal loyalty and clannish defiance. As an indication that it was all over, it was brutally efficient.

By now plenty has been written on Rebekah Brooks, her hair, her hippie-like charm and her husbands. But the key to her rise and fall is none of these things. It's her membership of a very select group who have nothing to do with Chipping Norton. She is the archetypal red-top tabloid editor. People who have known her very well for a long time, whose relationships with her began professionally and developed into friendship are baffled. These are not blind loyalists--they describe a warm, generous, "good" person who they cannot reconcile with the crimes committed. But they don't believe she could have not known either.

The thing about Rebekah is that she may have looked very different from those who came before, but you can draw a connecting line through two generations of tabloid editors and see the evolution of the species. Kelvin MacKenzie, Piers Morgan, Andy Coulson and Rebekah Wade. Tabloid editors are ruthless and funny, arrogant and sometimes breathtakingly empathetic, monomaniacal yet inspiring leaders---and form cults around their personalities. MacKenzie essentially raised them all: puppyish Piers, Andy the professional and Rebekah the velvet glove. They were a generation of editors who grew out of the Sun's Bizarre column and the ability to work both sides of a story--be snapped with your arm around a celeb while simultaneously stitching them up.

We have been so busy exorcising the culture of fear and corruption that we have forgotten that while politicians and celebrities have always been scared of tabloids, they were often enthralled by them. At their best these editors were fantastically intuitive, but the fatal flaw of the tabloid is overreaching. Morgan tried to be a City whizzkid, played the markets, got caught and ended up the subject of a DTI investigation into insider trading. It was allegedly fake photographs that brought him down, but it was the Viglen affair that put him in the last chance saloon.

Mackenzie, oddly, was felled by his own ambition to be a mini-Murdoch. After a brief stint in management at BSkyB and the Mirror Group, he wanted to be the proprietor and tried to achieve mogul-dom with Talk Radio. Now he's back in the tabs, a voice of the people columnist.

Rebekah Brooks had ambitions to run the show. Her supporters were pitching her as Les Hinton's natural successor as News International chief executive almost from the moment she became editor of the Sun. But, having got the job, she was out of her depth. Tabloid editors aren't strategists, they are instinctive; they don't run businesses, they run campaigns, or feuds. The only truly successful one with longevity is Paul Dacre of the Mail and he's never ventured anywhere near the share price.

Rebekah Brooks was not brought down by innate evilness, nor fragility, nor some dreadful father-daughter dynamic with Rupert Murdoch. She wasn't even brought down by the crime, however thin the "I-knew-nothing" defence is wearing. She was brought down, like many a chief executive before her, for bad handling of the crisis. For failing to anticipate a public mood. Which, for a tabloid editor, is the worst sin of all.

Media Matters

2011-07-20T04:36:00.002+05:30

Sevanti Ninan
The Hindu

The last fortnight has been a fresh learning in why media morality and media power have become progressively incompatible. It has seen a reinvoking of the famous Citizen Kane fable. Two media scandals unfolded in different parts of the world--here a Minister resigned after the Central Bureau of Investigation said they had enough evidence on how he had used his office to help his family's media empire. In London, the Murdochs, father and son, tried hard to contain the damage after their hugely successful tabloid News of The World stood accused of sustained criminal activity--hacking private telephone records. They shut down the newspaper.

Can morality afford to matter for a big-stakes media player? You do not become really big, influential and seriously wealthy by being a stickler for rules and regulations. At least not in a business like media where tickling the popular imagination is your ticket to success and the bigger your canvas and the more daring the experimentation, the better. Notwithstanding existing regulations. Spectacular success requires an imagination that is not limited by boundaries. Such boundaries as are created by law, fairness, propriety and ethics come in the way of imagining a soaring media empire.

Neither Rupert Murdoch nor the Marans got where they are today by thinking small. One began in Australia, with two inherited newspapers and has subsequently founded a $33 billion empire, going across continents and a range of media technologies. When his citizenship came in the way of further ownership, Murdoch smartly changed it. Across the world, partnerships were entered into and gotten out of, governments influenced by lobbying or placated by dumping an irksome news channel or the publication of a book. If acquiring control of BSkyB is denied today, other ways of getting there will surely be explored.

Kalanidhi Maran founded Sun TV when regional satellite TV was an idea waiting to be executed and quickly jumped into cable when it became evident that carriage was crucial. Once he was in carriage and also in politics, the family wasn't going to let propriety stop them from leveraging one for the other, so Sumangali became a powerful political tool. Once you are in media with an appetite, you don't stop at one kind of media. If politics opens up other possibilities, you grab them. Conflict of interest is such a stuffy notion, no one--neither the giver of ministries (the UPA) nor the seeker (the DMK)--was going to let it come in the way of a pragmatic partnership. As one said before, media morality and media power begin to diverge when the stakes are high. So you go from TV to cable, to radio, to newspapers, to film production and DTH till your founder has a net worth of $3.5 billion. A bigger canvas requires more investors and if you have to make some not-so-nice moves to get them, you make those moves.

Sometimes though and here is where the twin fables converge, you meet your match. Dayanidhi Maran as Communications Minister was accused of trying to pressurize the Tatas and Murdochs to give the Sun Network equity in the Tata Sky DTH venture. And did not get his way. (Ratan Tata referred to this history in April this year when he deposed before the Public Accounts Committee.)

In the UK, Murdoch operated in a regulated environment but until now that did not cramp his style. The Marans can merge politics with media because this country's laws permit it. Britain limits political ownership of media, but that only meant politicians needed Murdoch more and were happy to use him.

A media empire acquires scale when it has both entertainment and news. The first to rake in money, the second to garner clout to protect interests. Neither Sun TV nor Murdoch's Star TV (or his other media properties) have got themselves audiences by giving people what is good for them. Media success brooks no rigid morality. Because the consumer is equally relative in his or her morality. Both the ones who devoured salacious stories the News of The World put out and the ones who lapped up the raunchy videos of a frolicking swami that Sun TV telecast.

Nor is the shareholder governed by any absolute morality. Shares fall when there is bad news. Then they bounce back when it looks like the company will ride out its troubles. In the case of Sun TV Network and one of Kalanidhi Maran's companies, SpiceJet, the shares fell when Dayanidhi Maran resigned, but bounced right back.

Though Carl Bernstein was predicting darkly last fortnight in Newsweek that Murdoch's current crisis could see his interests in other parts of the world begin to unravel, that is unlikely to happen. Just days after Dayanidhi Maran quit in disgrace, Sun 18, a distribution partnership between the Sun TV network and Network 18, was announced.

Hence, the moral of the story is those who get to the top by fair means or foul have built truly diversified empires which will keep going, criminal charges notwithstanding.

Breaking News, Breaking Lives

2011-07-16T21:54:00.001+05:30

Much has been written about the inevitable and impending demise of the newspaper, "News of The World", especially in the West. None of those oft-repeated reasons for going out of business will, however, apply when the 168 year old News of The World shut down after its last edition on July 10th. A weekly tabloid whose infamy and fortune have always depended on its muck-raking skills, the Britain based newspaper sold 2.6 million copies every week and was generally regarded to be the parent company News Corporation's most profitable venture.

The end of what was undoubtedly a dream run, given these tight times, came from the newspaper's rapacity for bolder, raunchier scoops that led its journalists to outsource the hacking of voicemail messages on mobile phones to a private investigator. The revelations of the identity of these targets shocked all: a teenage girl who was murdered in 2002, relatives of British servicemen killed in Afghanistan and Iraq and survivors of the July 2005 terrorist attacks on London.

The propensity to get mileage out of other people's misery caused widespread revulsion and disgust, with advertiser pulling out as a mark of censure and a reader's boycott on the cards. Given the predatory, ruthless and avaricious reputation that NewsCorp CEO Rupert Murdoch has earned over his life and career, it was expected that he would bear much of the ferocious backlash. And yet even while he was being accused of pulling a fast one by closing the paper instead of fixing the guilt and responsibility where they lay, sending his staff as the proverbial lamb to the slaughter, other British tabloids remained largely silent, almost as an admission to their complicity in using similarly dubious methods to unearth new sensations.

The market craves an endless supply of sleaze, longing for a vicarious peek into the bed-chambers of the rich and famous and these were but ways and means of satisfying that insatiable appetite. And yet the means employed by News of The World to stay commercially afloat--phone hacking, covert filming or using agents provocateur--are disturbingly similar to what unfolds all around us under vastly different circumstances.

In 2010, Tyler Clementi, a Rutgers University student who was secretly filmed by his roommate during a sexual act, jumped to his death, unable to bear the public spectacle that an intensely private moment had become. Closer home and earlier that year, Shriniwas Ramachandra Siras, a professor at the Aligarh Muslim University, was hounded out of his job and eventually committed suicide after being caught on camera, having sex with a rickshaw-puller. Long ago, the prying eyes and ears of modern technology had deemed our lives and actions to be fit fodder for public entertainment. Through our mass acquiescence, we have precluded all possibilities of settling that account.

Mumbai's Yesterday, Once Again

2011-07-14T06:31:00.002+05:30

The evening of 13th July 2011 brought back a strong sense of deja vu for the people of Mumbai and for most of us in India as the news channels beamed gory visuals of three blasts which took place at diamond district Zaveri Bazaar, Dadar and Opera House. The shocking blasts once again bring us to the fundamental question, "Are we really safe after 26/11?"

The morning after the blasts, news channels showcased the cliched and famed resolve of the residents of Mumbai who do not dwell on tragedies and their will to continue with their lives in spite of the adversities, to commute, work, party, shop etc. It is not really the resilience that works all the time. The residents of Mumbai are resilient by force and not by choice. As I write this on a rainy Thursday morning, the city is agonizingly limping back to normal. A city trying to find feet on the ground. The resilience has not died down but is under massive duress. The city of Mumbai cannot afford to shut down and the recent blasts are enough to shatter the confidence in the system.

For an ordinary layman, terror and its consequences of heightened security and a sense of fear come on top of daily horrors that they have internalized as a way of life. Violence being one of them apart from having to claw their way into overcrowded commuter trains, to steel themselves against wading through filthy, flooded roads, to drink contaminated water and to live with squalor and stench.

I have never been in a war zone or in the scene of a terror attack. The whole idea of a terror attack takes me back to a scene in Mani Ratnam's Tamil film "Bombay" where the main protagonists Arvind Swamy and Manisha Koirala frantically search for their twin boys as the city burns in the wake of the 1992-1993 communal riots. The hypnotic background music by AR Rahman silences their helpless voices.

The failure to detect movements of suspected terrorists as well as terrorist organizations before their diseased minds could execute their dangerous designs is the greatest tragedy. It essentially points out to the failure of basic policing and to the utter destruction to the network of informers. The Mumbai Police lost their strong network of informers' after the 1992-1993 communal riots and did not bother to build it again.

On a rational note, we need to be realistic and make our proposed sea links less ambitious and make high-speed as well as elevated rail corridors a dream that best remains on paper. Instead, we should concentrate on paying attention on paying more attention to our policemen by giving them more facilities and a better pay package so as to make the job lucrative. At the same time, we must also try and fill up the existing vacancies and improve their self-esteem. In this critical juncture, we do not really need high-speed rail corridors but a shared sense of purpose.

Second-hand Death

2011-07-01T18:26:00.004+05:30

Ritika Narayanan

I've heard it whispered,

I've heard it said aloud,

I've heard it passed around
a thousand times.

I've heard it in my mind,
Dissolving all sense of reality.

I've heard it repeated,
Echoing hollowly.
The subject ceased existence.

It hurt me, every time I heard it.
It hurt me more, when I feigned relaxed.
Gut-wrenching pangs, not of grief nor anger,
Hurt me every time I remember
That sweet face that now sleeps tranquil.

But my pain is second-hand
-it doesn't belong to me-
It's owner and bearer
Is hurt more than I can imagine.
I have tried and failed to imagine, though.

I do wish this pain had never come,
Not to the bearer, nor to the sharer.
(And may it not happen to the sharer in actuality.)

Coward, I am, who cannot face the fact
Of death, all pervasive intruder
Into normalcy.

Though I grieve as the one no more
was one of my own,
Nothing could compare to the grief of the one
Who grieves because it was one's own.

My grief is second-hand as is the death.

The Emerald

2011-06-26T22:24:00.002+05:30

Rabindranath Tagore
Nobel Laureate

The emerald became green in the hue of my consciousness.
The ruby became red.
I opened my eyes to the skies.
And light broke from East to West.
I looked at the rose and said, "How beautiful".
And the rose became beautiful.
You will say, "These are philosophical truths,
These are not the poet's speech."
I say, "These are truths,
And what is poetry but truth?"

My conceit is here,
A conceit on behalf of mankind;
On the canvas of man's conceit is drawn
the masterpiece of universe--
The creation of the Artist.

The philosopher reiterates at every breath
Counting his rosary
"There is no emerald, no ruby, no light and no rose,
Neither you nor me',
While He who is infinite came to realize Himself
Within the boundary of man,
And this is named "I".

In the density of that "I", a conflict arose
Between shadow and light.
There appeared form, the awakening of sap.
The "no" became "yes" at an unknown moment
In line, colour, grief and joy.
Do not tell me these are philosophical truths!
My heart fills with delight
As I stand with brush in hand and paint,
In the creative ground of the universal "I".

The Pundit has said...
That old moon,
It has a cruel and cunning smile.
It is creeping nearer and nearer to the heart of the earth
With the message of Death.
A day will come when it will strike
A final blow to her rocks and seas.
In Eternity's new recording book,
There will be a cipher covering the page of this planet.
It will blot out the totality of her days and nights.

Man's deeds will lose all pretence of immortality,
Man's history will merge into the ink of eternal night,
Man in his farewell glance will take away the colour of the universe,
Man's mind on that final day will leave no trace
Of a fulfilling seed.

The tremor of power will rage from sky to sky,
No light will shine.
In the great concert-hall without a lute,
The performer's fingers will move in the rhythm of a dance
But with no music.

That day God, losing all poetry, will alone
Seated under a blue-less sky,
Bent on a mathematical calculation devoid of personal element,
When in this vast universe
No voice will rise amongst countless people,
From life to life, far or near,
To echo, "I love you", "You are beautiful".

Will then God once again sit in ageless contemplation?
And repeat His prayers from amid night's devastation?
Saying, "Speak, oh speak!"
Uttering, Say, "you are beautiful."
"Say, I am in love?"

TV News: A Zero Sum Game?

2011-06-21T13:40:00.004+05:30

Rajdeep Sardesai
Editor-in-chief, CNN-IBN

24 x 7 media is an amoral beast and the camera is Shiva's third eye. It sees the positive and the negative and it doesn't blink; it is indeed a double-edged weapon. Television magnifies sound and images, but it can also be used to completely distort them. An artful government will recognize the power of the media, but will harness it to its advantage. An under-confident government will allow the media to dictate the agenda, petrified by the media's power and then merely react to it. The UPA-II is a prime example of what happens when television becomes the Pied Piper and the government then desperately plays to catch up. Ubiquitous TV images will show up an absentee government in high definition every day.

In recent weeks, as the images of Baba Ramdev and Anna Hazare have played out relentlessly across television screens, the government has appeared to panic. Four cabinet ministers rushed to the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi to mollify the yoga guru Baba Ramdev. In Anna Hazare's case, a fast at Jantar Mantar was enough to hasten the government into issuing a formal order appointing a Lokpal committee without any consultation process.

In both instances, the government blames the media for forcing it to act in an unwise manner by giving disproportionate coverage to the street agitations. Such an accusation stems from a failure to recognize the nature of contemporary media. 24 hours news television, in particular, is like a carnivorous animal that needs to be constantly fed. The likes of Baba Ramdev and Anna Hazare have realized this only too well while staging "made-for-television" events in the heart of Delhi. A hunger fast as a colourful spectacle that taps into rising public anger against corruption is a perfect recipe to draw in the cameras.

In a stark contrast, the government hides in the shadows of the forbidding walls of power. The Prime Minister mumbles a few words occasionally; Rahul Gandhi is seen sometimes in well-choreographed meetings while Sonia Gandhi seems to have completely retreated behind the barricades of 10, Janpath. When the three most powerful people in the present UPA-II dispensation are not available to the media, who will feed the appetite of the 24 hour news cycle? So, every night on prime time television, hapless Congress spokespersons have to answer for the government's sins. With no real mandate, the spokespersons have little option but to attempt to filibuster their way out of difficult situations.

It could well be argued that news television, especially English language TV, doesn't really have any impact on political electability. A Mayawati, for example, has consistently contemptuous of all media, refusing to do any interviews or take on any questions from journalists. She is firm in her belief that her Bahujan Samaj voter will not be influenced by media perceptions. At least, Mayawati is consistent in her disdainful attitude towards the media.

The problem with the UPA-II is that it wants greater media approval at one level and yet remains suspicious of it at another. You cannot have it both ways. Either the government must embrace the media like a Barack Obama, where the US President misses no opportunity to play the media, be it in an intimate chat or an Oprah Winfrey show or a hard talk interview on network television. Else, it should be prepared to allow high-decibel television to set the agenda for it. Television abhors a vacuum. If the government for whatever reason won't fill the black hole of information, then it will be filled by noisy news anchors and equally loud arguments.

Take the debate on corruption. Through his public life, Dr. Manmohan Singh's calling card has been his personal integrity. And yet, how often have we seen Dr. Singh take on his critics on corruption? In the two years of UPA-II, he has done just two live press conferences and not done a single one on one interview. Perhaps, Dr. Singh's image makers fear that the television lens will expose his limitations as a public speaker. Since he is a soft-spoken individual, the fear is that his voice will not be heard in the cacophony around him. Once again, this is a misunderstanding of the media. Just as the camera captures the noisy, it also zooms in on sobriety and decency. At a time when the viewer seems to be tiring of the constant barrage of zero sum debates, the Prime Minister has an opportunity to set himself as a voice of reason and rationality. Yet, by staying silent, he almost confirms his critics of being in office, but not in power.

Sonia Gandhi's approach to the media is equally mystifying. In the run-up to the 2004 general elections, her roadshows established her as an astute and charismatic political campaigner who could use the media to her advantage. Now, by virtually refusing to engage with the media, she gives the impression of a leader who wields power without responsibility, who is unwilling to be held accountable for any of the mistakes in the government. As for Rahul, have we ever heard him express his views on matters of national importance? Or does he too, like a Mayawati, believe that the media is a pestilence best avoided?

P.S.: It's not just the power elite, but also we in the news business who need to introspect. Why is that we cover an Anna Hazare or a Baba Ramdev with such intensity, but barely touch the story of an Irom Sharmila, the Manipuri activist who has been fasting for over ten years for revoking the Armed Forces Special Powers Act? Or is Imphal simply too distant and complex for the country's 180 odd news channels to report on?

The Relevance of Religion

2011-06-17T02:49:00.003+05:30

Swami Tejomayananda
The Speaking Tree

Man has made remarkable progress in the fields of science and technology. Technology has made it possible to travel faster than the speed of sound. New avenues of communications have opened up with the advent of computers. The advances in the field of medicine have produced wonderful results. All these changes have affected the pace of life.

Man is forced to think of various issues in the light of these new discoveries. Issues that were unimaginable a few decades ago such as euthanasia, cloning, morality and ethics are demanding immediate answers.

It appears that there has been progress in various avenues, but paradoxically on the other hand one sees so much of destruction and violence. The old value system is degenerating. Families are now breaking down giving rise to a lot of mental discomfort and distress. People are becoming more unruly and violent. Nations are itching for conflict at the first opportunity. At this, what will happen in the present millenium?

It is a known fact that the world is changing rapidly and this is not something new. Change is the changeless law of the world. History shows that every time there was a massive change, the great phenomenon influenced the lives of millions. However, the fundamental principles of living have always remained unchanged. Religion has played its role in the past. The question is whether religion will be of any consequence in the coming millenium. What will be its position? Will it have any relevance in the future way of life? If it has any relevance, then what form will it take?

The relevance of a thing is determined by the need and purpose it serves. Man is not just a physical being. He has thoughts, emotions and has a keen sense of aesthetics to cling on to. Hence philosophy, along with science, art, music and dance will continue to be relevant. When one thinks in this way, one will understand that religion will also remain relevant for all times. The fundamental question is what is religion? What role does it play in one's life and what is its need?

Religion has the following three aspects: Philosophy means the vision of the Truth. It is the vision of the entire life. This aspect will be relevant for all those who are the seekers of Truth. It is observed that everybody is not merely interested in food, clothing and shelter, vain entertainment or sensual pleasures. There have been many seekers from time immemorial who renounced all material objects and went in search of Truth. The seekers came from different backgrounds of society. These are the people who have an intense longing for knowing the Truth. Religion fulfills this demand of such seekers at the highest level. The purpose of religion is to enlighten people is to enlighten people about their own nature and the nature of the Absolute Truth. Hence, as long as there are seekers of Truth and a religion that fulfills their demand, religion will always remain relevant.

This is a very important aspect of religion. These values keep the society integrated and in harmony. The health of a society that is made up of individuals depends upon the quality of education. Education not only involves gaining knowledge and the skill to apply the knowledge into life, but it also includes the understanding the purpose of applying the knowledge. After the completion of a medical course, even doctors take an oath that they will use their knowledge to serve the society. All knowledge that one gathers should be used to enrich and serve the society. Earlier, the idea of business was how to make profit for oneself, but now people have realized that one cannot make profit without taking care of the consumer's interest. In the beginning, there was management by force and authority but now it is slowly changing to management by love. This is an aspect of religion. For all moral and ethical values, the basis is the vision of oneness of the self, which is gained through religion. However materialistic a society may become, it will have to abide by the principle of "live and let live". As one looks upon one's own happiness, one will have to look at the other person's happiness too. When one deceives someone else, one is deceiving one's own self.

Therefore, one should have these moral values of life. Otherwise, one's own existence will be in danger. These values will always remain relevant. Without this aspect of religion, there cannot be any peace, harmony and integration in society.

Rituals are a demonstration of the philosophical vision. Customs and traditions are also derived from the same vision. There is a great deal of potential for changes, variations, addition and subtraction in this aspect of religion. All cannot understand the vision theoretically. They require demonstrations. Many rituals came into existence to demonstrate the vision. When people follow them, they will of course want to know what they are doing and can thus slowly turn their mind towards the highest Truth. The ritualistic aspect of religions differ a lot from one another, giving a feeling that one religion is totally different from the other. Even in a single religion, there are numerous denominations. These denominations start competing with each other. Then comes the sense of superiority and inferiority. The wars that are fought in the name of religion are not prompted by religion. The tendency to consider one's religion superior and an insistence that others should join that religion are the cause for most of these fights.

Looking back into the history of religions, as far as Hinduism is concerned, one does not know when it began or who the founder was. In the case of other religions, there is a particular historical period when they were established and they upon a specific founder. One can find vast differences between a religion as it was at the time of its formation and as it is today. Many new denominations come up in the name of the same founder. This is inevitable because people are changing and their appreciation of things is also changing. Industrialization too has brought about many changes in society. The form and nature of religion have to change. But the vision of Truth and the values based on it will remain permanent. The religion that understands the ever changing nature of this world and is able to mould itself at the empirical level, keeping the essence intact, will survive. Those religions which become very rigid and are unable to change will perish.

One thing is certain--religion was there in the past, it is present now and it will always remain. Even those governments or countries which tried to do away with all religions by closing down temples and other places of worship had to reopen them. The spirit can never be killed. The voice of that spirit may sound very feeble and the number of seekers may decrease, but their power will remain unshaken. Religion can never become irrelevant. What form it will take in the future, one does not know. Sometimes it appears that there will be a kind of synthesis of the various aspects of different religions, giving birth to a new religion for all. There were inspired masters who tried to bring synthesis among religions, but they succeeded only in adding a new religion. Every religion in a way has taken some aspects of other religions, but still they continue to maintain their individuality. This is a strange phenomenon.

We should understand the true essence of religion as the oneness of the Self. All the moral and ethical values should be founded based on this understanding. Furthermore, based on these values if we lead our lives, then the world will become a better place. Many wrong notions and confusions may arise, some people may even try to destroy the foundation of religion, but those who understand the Truth must abide by it, become stronger and proceed further. This is the best way to approach the future.

Movie Review: Shor In The City

2011-06-14T19:54:00.003+05:30

The 2011 Hindi film "Shor In The City" produced by Balaji Motion Pictures is not one of those regular entertainers that Hindi cinema keeps churning out with amazing regularity and insult the intelligence of the viewers. On the contrary, "Shor In The City" is a film that keeps you totally on the edge, but at the same time is a very entertaining film. As a film, it absorbs you into its world in no time. It is slick in nature and has a lot of nervous energy and also has its share of fun moments. It actually stands out from the clutter of Hindi films because of its unconventional plot and the brilliant execution.

"Shor In The City" revolves around three stories in the midst of the noise and grunge of Mumbai. It has the gangster backdrop, without making the film dark or depressing as well as the thriller quotient that keeps you at the edge. The three stories run concurrently--the characters are not at all connected with each other, they don't cross paths and nor is the film episodic in nature. It's not like watching one character/story first, followed by the second and then the third. The beauty of the film lies in the fact that the characters do not meet till the end but there is a sense of cohesion which cannot be disowned.

"Shor In The City" revolves around three loosely interconnected stories set in the midst of the noise and soot of Mumbai during the Ganeshotsav festival. Abhay (Sendhil Ramamurthy), an NRI who is forced to come to terms with the fact that he is alone in an unwelcoming city, which he thought was home. Tilak (Tusshar Kapoor), an honest bootlegger who pulls out scams with his unruly friends Ramesh (Nikhil Dwivedi) and Mandook (Pitobash). They chance upon a rare loot on a commuter train, which opens up new, dangerous avenues for them. Sawaan Murthy (Sundeep Kishan) has one goal to enter into the Mumbai Junior Cricket team. In a city where corruption is almost a way of life, the goal comes at a price--he needs to find the money first.

The filmmakers Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK deserve brownie points for their unconventional choice of the subject and most importantly for handling it so deftly. The situations in the film are simple and the tone predominantly serious, the film does offer a few laughs in patches. Direction apart, the film possesses a taut screenplay by Sita Menon, Krishna DK and Raj Nidimoru which leads to an explosive, stunning, nail-biting finale. In fact, the penultimate moments are pure dynamite and any misgivings or shortcomings vanish into thin air when you watch the finale explode right there in front of your eyes. The exceptional cinematography by Tushar Kanti Ray is too hard to overlook and some truly wonderful dialogue. The film does not offer much scope for music nevertheless the two songs "Saibo", a romantic duet by Shreya Ghoshal and Tochi Raina and an infectious "Karma Is A Bitch" do catch your attention.

Shor In The City clearly belongs to the men while the women take a backseat. All the men: Tusshar Kapoor, Sendhil Ramamurthy, Nikhil Dwivedi, Pitobash and Sundeep shine in their respective roles. In this film, Tusshar Kapoor displays a humane side which is sure to win hearts. Pitobash is outstanding and without doubt, the new discovery of the season. Sendhil is efficient, displaying helplessness and anger with remarkable ease, while Nikhil is striking. Sundeep showcases vulnerability with natural ease. Amit Mistry is remarkable while Zakir Hussain is excellent.

Summing up, Shor In The City is a film which even the ardent moviegoer will like. It is not your standard Hindi entertainer and nor does it have the customary flippant and trivial humour, it prides itself on a certain distinctive Indian appeal with elements of adventure, thrill and drama with its understated and minimalist humour which makes it out stand out in the crowd. Too bad that this released during the IPL season which is why it went unnoticed. I would sincerely request you not to miss this one.

Jao Pakhi

2011-06-10T00:29:00.004+05:30

Go, fly bird sing, breezes blowing
Misty the window's glass...
Have I lost me or could it be
A fairy tale at last?

Here and there fireflies spark,
Golden moon lost in waters dark.
In the window, piled clouds above.

Go cloud go, keep an eye on my love...
Go, fly bird sing, breezes blowing
Misty the window's glass
Have I lost me or could it be
A fairy tale at last?

Here and there fireflies spark
Golden moon lost in waters dark
In the window piled clouds above
Go cloud go, keep an eye on my love...

Go, fly bird sing, breezes blowing
Misty the window's glass
Have I lost me...?

Lonely Night

2011-06-08T00:19:00.002+05:30

Night, O ambassador of black,
Night, O envoy of dark.
The moon's mate, O night,
You come to me forlorn.

An era has passed and yet,
You come to me alone?
The mood is solemn...
... Only the crickets mourn.

The moon's mate, O night,
You come to me forlorn.
Where is your friend, the elusive moon?
Why do you come alone?

Extinguish the twilight, eclipse the dark...
... I only wish to speak
To the pitch in black.
The night is sad...
... It's heavy with grief...
.... Sitting in its own dark shadow.

The moon's mate, O night,
You come to me forlorn.
An era has passed since we met last,
And yet, you come alone?

Extinguish the twilight, eclipse the dark...
... I only wish to speak...
... To the pitch in black.

The darkness is maddening
Opaque and dense.
It pricks, it stings;
It's a welcome offence.
I seek its lap,
To end my day...
... I join its embrace...
... To veil my dismay.

Like my black renegade kohl,
It streams down my face.
The moon's mate, O night,
You come to me forlorn.
Where is your friend, the elusive moon?
Why do you come alone?

Extinguish the twilight, eclipse the dark...
... I only wish to speak...
... To pitch in the black.

The night is sad...
It's heavy with grief...
Sitting in its own shadow...

Rimjhim Gire Saawan...

2011-06-05T15:30:00.003+05:30

My brother in London has learnt all about the British predilection for discussing the weather--was about how the rains were going to make a complete wash-out of September. The summer there was effectively over, according to the weather forecast officials, from now on it was going to be rain all the way.

The sadness and disappointment on the faces of the Britishers was almost palpable, as everyone glumly seemed to agree that it was indeed time to put away those sundresses and shorts and bring out the brollies and boots (not that you can ever put them away in England, which is famous for showing you all the four seasons in the course of a single day). The days of the balmy sunshine were over; from now on it was going to be wet, wet, wet.

As I nodded along sympathetically at my brother, I couldn't help marvelling at the very different attitude the Britishers and we Indians have to the rains. In India, we crave for it during the long summer months when temperatures climb into the stratosphere. We count the days down to the arrival of the monsoon on our shores. We get rather stroppy if it doesn't arrive on time. We measure every inch of rain to make sure that we have got our entire annual quota. We keep a jealous eye out for other cities, which may have got a little more of the downpour. A bad monsoon can make us very bad-tempered (not least because of its effect on the economy).

Yes, we love the rains--about as much as the Britishers abhor it. You could well say that this is because of those poor souls have too much of good thing, with it drizzling down every single day (at least, it certainly feels that way). Since we have to suffer through a long, hot, dusty summer, we long for the relief that the rains bring along with them. In a sense, perhaps, for all our new-fangled urban ways, we are still an agricultural country by heart. The sight of the rains is an indication that we will have a good harvest this year. Remember the rain song "Ghanana Ghanan" in Lagaan, as the whole village turns out to celebrate the advent of the first monsoon clouds in the village?

In India, our attitude to the rain is much like that of a small child looking out eagerly for a much-awaited treat--and then jumping with joy when it finally arrives. No matter how old you are, if you are an Indian, there is a sense of joy and abandon attached to the rains.

As a kid, I remember stripping down to my vest and running down to the compound when the first rainstorms hit. All the children of the building would congregate at the compound, yelling and screaming with excitement, as they were soaked to the skin in the downpour. Once again, the rains had accumulated in puddles, we would make little paper boats and sail them, having impromptu competitions to see which one of them lasted the longest in water.

Even now that I am all grown up, there is still something irresistible about the idea of going for a walk in the rain, quite unprotected by an umbrella or a raincoat. Nothing quite matches the feel of rain water as it drops down in tiny droplets on your face or streams down your head or even gathers around your shoes making them squelch so satisfactorily.

This probably explains why rains are such a staple of romance in India--both in real-life and in the movies. Young lovers walk along the beach in Juhu as raindrops pelt down; honeymooners book themselves a cottage in Goa during the monsoons; and Hindi film heroines all the way from Madhubala to Zeenat Aman, Mumtaz to Sridevi to Katrina Kaif obligingly slip into see-through chiffon sarees before dancing in the rain with their co-stars.

Of course, it's not all about young love alone. Rains have a special significance for families as well. Some of them drive down to the seaside or by a lake to watch the rain come down. Others hunker down time to play antakshari or dumb charades. Some spend time listening to the many songs that celebrate the season. Then, there are those who make the most of rainy days by snuggling down in bed with a good book and a piping hot cup of tea (much as the English would make the most of sunny days by basking in the gardens, with a glass of gin and tonic or a tumbler of Pimms within reach).

Needless to say, a whole school of cuisine has been built around the monsoons. In the north, the first sign of showers has the matriarch of the house setting on a pan of oil to deep-fry some pakodas. In Bengal, the rain is the signal to cook some hot khichuri with lots of ghee floating on top. In Gujarat, it's time for some dal vadas with chillies and salted onions for added oomph. In Maharashtra, they bring on the "gavathi chaha" (grass tea) and sabudana vadas.

As for me, the rains are the perfect excuse to take a day off, sit well back on the window sill and simply stare at the sky pouring down. The cup of tea is mandatory though I wouldn't decline if someone asked me for a plate of pakodas if someone asked me politely. :)

Lessons of love and life: An Education

2011-05-28T17:46:00.004+05:30

The English film "An Education" is based on a true life memoir which documents one girl's attempt to make it to the university and the long tangle she finds herself in with an older man, in her final year of school.

The film follows the story of Jenny Mellor (Carey Mulligan), who is safely middle class and lives in Twickenham, a suburb in London. Her parents, much like Indian parents, have grand dreams of her making it to Oxford.

At sixteen and wide-eyed, top of her class, Jenny falls in love easily--with books, music, ideas and new experiences. She falls equally easily in love with the rakish and much older David (Peter Sarsgaard), whom she first meets on a rainy evening.

That encounter lays the ground for a months long affair of fine-dining, adult conversations and expensive trips. The world that David lays out is infinitely more dazzling to the impressionable Jenny than her current one. David's arrival also presents her family with a choice: Life at university or the comfort of marriage to a wealthy man.

"An Education" wonderfully combines school lessons and life lessons with school exams and a character test, putting its protagonist through the wringer. The film also offers glimpses into one girl's preparations ahead of entering university, which is a topical issue currently as the college admissions are about to begin. The luminescent Carey Mulligan gives a memorable performance that earned her an Oscar nomination.

Connecting With God

2011-05-25T15:07:00.005+05:30

Swami Tejomayananda

The Asian Age

In my last article, I dealt with the existence of God. Once we know and accept that He exists, the next question is how do we "realize" Him? Each one of us is endowed with three powers--the power of knowing, the power of desire and the power of acting. It is only when we become aware of our potential powers that desires arise and we want to possess, create or become something. Knowledge creates the desire and this in turn becomes the motivating power behind all actions. The source for all this is the infinite potential within us. Our scriptures refer to this potential as "God".

Once we understand that God is the support and substratum, the Self and the infinite potential in all beings, how can we deny His existence? People are happy when God is far away because His proximity poses a problem. Whether we know, we believe or we understand it or not, God is the power that exists in us. So there is no question of not realizing God; we just have to shed certain notions about ourselves. We talk of realization without the understanding the true meaning of the word "realization". We imagine some strange experience like seeing white or ethereal lights. Also, realization is not an idea that we have to understand later. Neither does it have to materialize nor manifest. We have to accept that it exists.

There are different stages to realization. The first is to accept the existence of God and know that He is there within us. The second stage is an appreciation of His nature, which becomes clearer through the words of the scriptures and the teacher. At the third stage, you realize that God is your own self. We need to understand that God is not some material thing or person, it is our very existence. This is the realization of one's own essence (tattvabhava).

So we can and must realize God or our own true nature and rise from being miserable and complaining individuals. Having established the need to realize God, we must know how it is to accomplished. Krishna says, "Fix your mind and intellect in Me, then you will abide in Me, dwell in Me; there is no doubt about it."

The nature of the mind is to entertain thoughts and the nature of the intellect is Viveka (discrimination). If the mind and intellect are aligned and work together, we can reach our goal towards realization. People say, "if I can realize my dream that is enough. Who has the time to realize God?" We are unable to realize our dreams because we have to stay awake to realize them! The mind entertains various thoughts which by themselves can lead us nowhere without the decision of the intellect.

So, the first step in the thought is to entertain the thought "I want to realize God". The intellect must decide and whatever the obstacles or contrary advice, there should be no wavering from the goal. With such an attitude, other things follow naturally. The mind is the seat of emotions and love. When we love something, an understanding develops. The Lord says, "Where both love and knowledge come together, there will be an abidance and realization of the nature of God." In The Bhagavad Gita, Lord Krishna tells Arjuna, "Anyone who dedicates all his actions to Me, considering Me as the goal of life, loves Me and has no enmity towards anyone, comes to Me."

He is infinity, the supreme goal of life. An unemployed person seeks employment. Once in a job, he is anxious for a pay raise. He then has visions of becoming a millionaire, billionaire and soon a zillionaire. The search never ends because finite things cannot satisfy us. Knowingly or unknowingly, our natural tendency is for the infinite. We want immortality, even though we are aware of the temporary nature of this body. We do not want to be bound by the limitations of time.

In conclusion, let us remember the words mentioned in The Bhagavad Gita: "Having known this, nothing remains to be known". In this state, even mountain-like sorrows cannot disturb you. You attain a state of indescribable and inexplicable peace. So we must know this Truth, here and now, without any further delay!

The Existence of God

2011-05-24T13:45:00.001+05:30

Swami Tejomayananda
The Asian Age

The existence of God is a very popular and fascinating question and has been asked from time immemorial. Various people over the ages have conclusively tried to answer this timeless question but it still keeps coming up. To answer this question conclusively, we will have to examine this question from various angles.

In the present day and age of the Internet, with the advancement of science and technology and an information explosion, it may interest one to know that there is even more information on one topic--God. Even God would be surprised and amused at this!! God reigns supreme, whether or not we believe in His existence. The atheists endorse it by not believing and the believers by surrendering to God. The former do it by disproving His existence and the latter by trying to establish it.

The question that therefore arises is, "Does God really exist?" Believers take the knowledge in the Vedas or the scriptures of other religions, as their support, whereas the non-believers are sustained by their own logic. But logic is a peculiar thing--it can be used for both to support and nullify and is, in the end, inconclusive. Even in a court of law, mere arguments are never entertained without supporting evidence. People generally have an idea or a concept of God, which may or may not be commonly accepted. It is this notion that they refute and hence their arguments cannot be accepted. A systematic approach would be to refer to the scriptures or books that refer to the word "God" and check its use and then find out how it has been defined.

The Upanishads refer to the word "God" as Ishwara, Bhagavan, Brahman and so on. They explain the concept and if after studying these works, we conclude that we do not believe in God, it is acceptable. Both the believers and non-believers need to have clarity of the concept.

The Taittirya Upanishad says, "That from which all beings are born, That by which all beings are sustained and That unto which they merge back is Brahman." This beautiful statement means if there is a creation, a product or effect, the effect must have a cause. Everyone has to accept this at some point of the discussion. There may be a dispute about the nature of the cause. Something cannot come out of nothing. So, if the whole creation is the effect, there has to be something in the origin, the cause. Something exists and That self-evident being has to accepted. It is this existence or pure being which is perceived as God--the fountainhead.

Let us examine this point without taking recourse to the Upanishads. Take the example of government officers, ministers or secretaries. Each officer has the power to do so many things. They are all part of the collective government power. The government is not seen but its decision are implemented through these functionaries who function because of the total power of the government. Even a peon in the office wielding the powers allocated to him, proves the existence of the government.

These days, we have several workshops and seminars taking place with very interesting and catchy titles. One such title which is drawing much interest is "P to P" (Performance to Potential). Most of us will agree that we have infinite potential. Despite this, we find that some of us fail while some succeed. The reason is that they do not work to their maximum potential. What is this potential? Do we know the potential of the earth, the water, the sun or other energies? Their potential cannot be described in sentences and hence we can conclude that their power is infinite. That infinite potential is called God.

Now that we know He exists, the next logical question is--can I realize God? A better way to ask this question would be by rephrasing it and asking: is it possible to realize or manifest my infinite potential? We are continuously manifesting some of our potential and therefore we are able to achieve what we want. So the answer is--Yes, it is possible to realize God! If one is able to, the true end of all human ambitions and aspirations is gained.

Get A Life:

2011-05-22T23:22:00.004+05:30

Swami Tejomayananda
The Asian Age

Man has always craved happiness. All material sciences and fields of activity are geared towards achieving this one goal. Whatever we do, or even what we renounce, is meant only for happiness. But despite the goal being one, happiness still seems to elude us. It is not that we lack comforts in life, we do have moments of happiness; all is not misery and sorrow. Despite experiencing and knowing moments of happiness, there is no contentment, peace or fulfilment in life. We say that we have pleasures and comforts, but something is missing and not knowing very clearly what we want, we go through nameless sorrows.

If we want to be happy in life, the first prerequisite is good health. If we are unhealthy, weak or suffering from some pain or disease, any joy of life means nothing. Then there are our addictions, whether smoking or drinking. People drink to someone's health and destroy their own! Can we say that such people really love their bodies or care for them? The Bhagavad Gita says that the practice of yoga or meditation becomes a happy experience for a person who is moderate and disciplined in his habits of eating, sleeping, exercising and work. Such a person becomes a happy man.

We know prevention is better than cure, but generally we destroy the body first and then reach out for all kinds of medicines, cures, psychiatric help and so on. They say, "please take rest". It means that nobody will give you rest. The world is bent upon making you restless. You have to find the time for rest on your own. We need rest, but we also need work. We require feasting, but we also require fasting. There has to be discipline, moderation and the understanding that I alone am responsible for my own health.

The second important thing in life is wealth. However, in India, earning money is considered as a sin. Everybody wants money, but they think it is immoral. Without money, how can you live in the world? If you lead a hand-to-mouth existence, can you really be happy? You will be worried all the time. But that does not sanction making money in any way-- corrupt ways will end only in sorrow, not happiness. We must understand the importance of wealth in life. If we ourselves are poor, how can we help others? So, wealth is required. Do not ignore it, but let it not become an obsession.

In order to acquire health and wealth, discipline is required. People erroneously believe that discipline is bondage. When we are punctual and disciplined, we have more time to achieve what we want. Indisciplined people are always busy, catching up with or finishing pending work. They are unable to do anything on time and are often under stress. There are some people who have a wrong notion that they function more efficiently when under stress. They only end up having a nervous breakdown.

Krishna emphasizes in The Bhagavad Gita: "The one whose mind and senses are under his control, meaning, who is disciplined is a happy person." He then talks about a person who is indisciplined and disintegrated. Such a person has no peace. Where is happiness for the restless man? These two things cannot go together. He is one whose mind, intellect and sense organs re not integrated with each other. Our intellect is convinced of something great, but our mind has different cravings. The senses are extrovert and this conflict is going on in our life between what we know and what we do. In this world, there is sorrow, not because we lack knowledge, but because we do not put it into practice.This is disintegration.

There are some who have oneness in thought, word and deed, but they are wicked through and through. We are not referring to such people. Here the reference is to how our thinking, words and action should be full of sweetness. This is called oneness of thought, word and deed. He who has this is peaceful and happy and other people around him are also at peace and happy with him.

Happiness: A Serious Matter

2011-05-20T00:52:00.001+05:30

Swami Tejomayananda
The Asian Age

At an informal gathering, someone asked me: "How do we have fun in life?" "By being serious," I said rather seriously, because the pursuit of happiness is such a serious matter. A superficial approach to anything leads one to trouble. So, the philosophy of "eat, drink and be merry" is a very shallow view of life. Only deeper enquiry will take us to the truth.

Life is constituted of perception and response. We cannot help responding to people, situations and events. A response depends on individual perceptions. Everybody sees the same object but how each one sees it makes all the difference. Perceptions, therefore, can be called as the vision of life and response as an action or reaction that depends on this vision. We consider what we experience with our sense organs as real. No wonder, we find the world enchanting with its infinite variety and matchless beauty. But when we try to understand the same world a little deeply, it becomes very mind-boggling.

This proves that the visible is immaterial and the invisible is far more significant. What is visible is only an appearance and we all know that appearances are deceptive. The one truth that is not visible is subtle and it is this truth that will solve all problems. To see this truth, we need a pure mind and a subtle intellect. This is why we need a noble (sattvik) vision. It helps us perceive that one *TRUTH* which pervades the multiple and diverse world of names and forms. Such a vision can make the difference. It can help us see oneness in the midst of variety; it can protect us from the face of temptation, frustration and fear. Great souls who have attained this vision have worked for unity, integration and happiness of all. Therefore, this answers the question of what fun or happiness is. It is nor in merely gratifying our senses. The happiness experienced as a result of such a noble vision alone can be called true and lasting happiness.

Sadly, many of us lack such a kind of vision. We are stuck either with an extroverted outlook (rajasic vision) or a dull approach (tamasic vision) to life. Lord Krishna in The Bhagavad Gita explains the pitfalls inherent in these approaches. For example, a person with a rajasic vision sees differences while perceiving the world and he considers those differences real. The actions performed by him, therefore, are born either of attachment or aversion. He is happy as long as everything runs according to his tastes and preferences. The moment something goes awry, he becomes agitated and troublesome. A person with a tamasic vision is worse. He is deeply, fanatically and exclusively attached to a particular object, ideology or cause, with the result that even the happiness he experiences reflects his conflict. His happiness is attained by unhealthy means such as fight, addiction, sleep and indolence.

In life, we get mixed results because our vision is noble, in that all of us desire happiness, success, harmony and peace. But our conviction is not ripe and that is why we are not clear when it comes to actions and results. Suppose we are informed of a crime committed by someone in some place, we immediately cry for justice, but the moment we are made aware that one of our own relatives is the culprit, we change our response saying: "No one is perfect". We can observe this pattern at an international level too.

A person with a sattvik vision is praised as someone with a balanced view of life as he has eliminated sorrow, delusion and hatred. All of us are seeking that happiness. But we end up with something else because there is a wide gap between we seek, what we do and what we get. That is why the pursuit of happiness is a serious matter. How wonderful it would be if we looked at the vast world as having human beings rather than dividing than on the basis of nationality, creed, regions, race, religion and colour.

A narrow vision is divisive and a broad vision is expansive. But the supreme vision is all inclusive. It alone helps us to transform and transcend.

Why Good People Suffer?

2011-05-18T12:08:00.005+05:30

Swami Tejomayananda
The Asian Age

"Why do good people suffer or why do bad things end up happening to good people?" This question seems to be very common these days. It seems as though the good people end up bearing the brunt of all sufferings while the evil doers seem to enjoy life. But if we observe closely, we see that everyone undergoes suffering in some form or the other. Keeping this in mind, our question becomes meaningless. Just because a person is good does not mean that there would be no suffering in his/her life.

But how exactly do we define "good"? In Sanskrit, "sadhu" is the word used to define a good person. The Sanskrit word Sadhu is derived from the root word, "saadh" which means "to accomplish". If we work for ourselves and achieve great things, there is nothing laudable about it but if we help others to achieve their goals then it becomes an accomplishment. It is courtesy to return good for good. But if someone harms you and despite that, you continue to wish that person without expecting anything in return, that is real goodness.

A sadhu bathing on the banks of the river Sarayu once saw a drowning insect. He saved the insect from drowning and was stung on his neck in return. Again, the insect fell back into the river and the sadhu pulled it out of the water and placed it under a shady tree. On seeing this, a bystander asked the sadhu, "Why did you do that?" The sadhu smiled and replied, "The insect did not give up its nature, so why should I?"

How can we achieve this goodness in our lives? To reach any target, we must first have a high stand and then know the goal. Similarly, for achieving goodness, we have a standard of goodness which is known to us because only then can we rise up to the required levels. As long as we see differences in the world around us, true goodness will fail to manifest. This can be achieved only when we become aware of the sama (oneness) with others.

An example will be better to further illustrate this point. Every part of my body is one whole. If the finger accidentally pokes the eye, there is instant forgiveness because of the complete identification with the finger. Now that we have an idea of goodness, let us now see what suffering is. Objective suffering befalls all people, good or bad. Situations leading to suffering could have their roots in their past actions. Objectively, the existence of pain or any other physical handicap cannot be denied but the degree of sorrow this leads to is entirely subjective.

Riches or positions of power do not alone guarantee happiness. People feel miserable about tiny matters. If a person claims that he is good and is suffering while the dishonest person is flourishing; we can be very sure that the person is not good. For a good man, the real suffering is to do something against his convictions. Imagine, a pure vegetarian is faced with a situation of remaining hungry or eating beef, the chances are that the former option would be more acceptable.

All our spiritual practices cannot eliminate suffering but they protect the mind and make sufferings acceptable, just as during the monsoons, we cannot stop the rains but we can protect ourselves from getting drenched by an umbrella or a raincoat. Sarathi, the charioteer says: "A good person never suffers."

By some strange logic, we end up feeling that suffering and enjoyment is related to our past actions. If we observe more closely at the subtle level, we find immediate results of our own actions. The moment a good thought enters our mind, we feel elated and similarly, a wicked thought causes agitation. The real suffering occurs when we lose our goodness. Compromising with goodness is the greatest suffering. Even though superficially, it may appear that the evil doers are flourishing, it should not serve as an excuse to compromise. The problem arises when one does not have an ideal or when one is unable to live up to one's ideals. But the greatest sadness is when one believes that the ideal is not worth living up to and has lost its utility.

Ultimately, a good man will stand by his convictions because, "if you do not stand for something, you will fall for everything."

Rationalizing Greed

2011-05-12T16:17:00.007+05:30

Anonymous,
The Economic Times

Kubera, the Lord of wealth and the king of Yakshas, is the treasurer of the Gods. One day, he paid a visit to Mount Kailash, the abode of Lord Shiva, the hermit-God, where he met Lord Shiva's elephant headed son, the corpulent Ganesha. He thought to himself, "Ganesha clearly loves food and Shiva can clearly not afford to him to his heart's content." So as a favour to Lord Shiva, Kubera offered to feed Lord Ganesha one meal. When Ganesha accepted the invitation and entered Kubera's kitchen, the Yaksha king said, "Eat to your heart's content."

Kubera regretted these words. Ganesha's appetite was insatiable. He ate everything that was available in the kitchen and still asked for more. Food had to be bought from the larder and then from the market. But Ganesha was still hungry. "More please," he said raising his trunk. Kubera had to spend all the money in his treasury and buy all the food in the world to feed Ganesha but still Ganesha was not happy. Finally, Kubera fell at Ganesha's feet and begged him to stop, "I apologize for I don't have enough food to satisfy your hunger. Please forgive me." To this Ganesha replied, "You really think food will satisfy hunger?" The difference between you and my father is that you seek to provide more food while He seeks to reduce hunger. That is why I sit in His house and not in your kitchen."

The corporate world is all about increasing the availability of food and not about reducing hunger. It happens at all levels. Rishi is a team leader at a leading BPO. His boss pulled him up after receiving complaints from his team members that he was overworking them. When asked why, Rishi declared, "I need to stretch my bonus." Why? "Because I want to buy a car. Other team leaders had bought cars without overworking their teams. The average bonus was clearly not enough. "I know that, but I want an SUV." When asked why he could not be happy with a smaller car that was easily affordable, he replied cockily: "It does not suit my status. Besides, if the company can have stretched targets, then why can't I?"

The only way to go up in the corporate world is by generating more food. It begins with B-schools where success of both the B-school and its students is measured by the value of placement offers. It continues as rainmakers get faster promotions and demands of shareholders keep rising. A good company is ultimately measured on the basis of its balance sheets and its market capitalization and by the cash it generates to the satisfaction of the shareholders. Naturally, every executive who works in such an organization believes his paycheck should have the same growth rate. Talent retention often involves paying more money and offering ESOPs. It is only a question of time before greed and growth become synonymous.

But food only fuels hunger. We want more and more because there is always a greener pasture out there. We want more and more because of our peers in other organizations, our batch mates in other companies, are earning more. It is through wealth that we value organizations. It is through wealth, we value individuals. Modern industry has created a world where hunger is celebrated, which is why no compensations will ever be fair or adequate and no revenue or profit will ever be good enough.

Rishi's desire for an SUV cannot be explained or controlled rationally. His killer instinct and his demand for more, will sooner or be later be rewarded or encouraged, because that is the value that we are imparting across organizations. Contentment remains a dangerous anti-growth concept in the present day corporate world; it's seen as complacency. The management of a company wants employees to be content with the compensation that is doled out but the management is never content with the revenue earned. Next year; we always want more. This is why, unless a leader takes a firm stand, no matter what Ganesha says, organizations will continue to invest in Kubera's kitchens and no one will seek the wisdom of Lord Shiva.

Crossed Wires: The Conversation

2011-05-05T00:00:00.001+05:30

The 1974 English film "The Conversation" directed by Francis Ford Coppola is an atmospheric gem of a movie, which for some strange reason is not as well-known or widely seen as it should be. Between directing the cult classic The Godfather-I and The Godfather-II, filmmaker Francis Coppola filmed this movie. Although the film was released shortly after Woodward and Bernstein broke their legendary Watergate story, it wasn't inspired by that scandal involving wire-tapping. The filmmaker had written the script well before the story that brought President Nixon down hit The Washington Post's front page.

The film tells the tale story of an experienced and skilled private detective, Harry Caul, who bugs rooms, taps, phones and eavesdrops to earn his daily bread. Played persuasively by Gene Hackman, he is a taciturn loner obsessed, ironically, about his own privacy, perhaps because he knows how easily it can be breached.

While on a seemingly routine assignment to tape the conversation of a couple wandering about in a public square in San Francisco, where the film is set, Harry and his team overhear them saying something that suggests that their lives might be in danger. The assignment, then, turns out to be not only technically difficult but also sinister. So, besides feeling the usual thrill of having pulled it off, Harry, after a lifetime of trying to remain aloof from all his assignments, begins to feel he should find out more and warn the couple.

It gradually becomes clear that the woman whose conversation he taped is the wife of the corporate boss who gave him the assignment that she is having an affair with the man she was talking to in the public square. It also gradually becomes clear that Harry Caul is harbouring some guilt from a previous assignment in which the information he uncovered led to several deaths. But as he gets sucked into the lives of the characters in the assignment, he also realizes that, shorn of context, snatches of conversations are misleading and things are not what they are made out to be.

The film must be watched in today's time particularly because India's biggest scam in recent times, the 2G Spectrum scam involving Rs. 170,000 crores came to light largely through tapped phone conversations. Earlier in April 2011, another such conversation threatened to discredit lawyer and India-Against-Corruption crusader Shanti Bhushan. The lawyer said it was fabricated. Behind all those conversations lies that anonymous wire-tapper. Watch this movie told in the format of a taut thriller.

The "Sathya" among us

2011-05-02T17:28:00.003+05:30

Some people took notice when Sachin Tendulkar, who remains, admirably reined in on the cricket turf, got visibly overwhelmed at Sri Sathya Sai Baba's Samadhi in Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh. Some woke up to eminent writers and columnists running amok with their pens and their social responsibilities. But, millions, in India and abroad, Indians and Indians-at-heart have been praying, hoping and grieving for almost a month now.

To them--this is a huge loss. A mortal blow. Mortality--in this case Sathya Sai Baba's mortality--has made a tribe of detractors (like me) some of them, plainly vituperative, negate and ridicule his spiritual stature. The question though, is not whether he was an incarnation of God or just Godly. Surely, one can argue that being Godly-in-deed is actually being an incarnation of God. Universally, in fact, creeds extol the existence of God in man. Established religious systems, as well as those derived from them.

Likewise, a large majority of religions endorse the presence of spiritual Gurus. Guides, saints or pirs who are canonized as navigators in our spiritual journey, exist as part of our common religio-social legacy. The real loss therefore, is that an extraordinary man, who was successful in shepherding so many people by one simple message--service to all. In action too--schools, universities and hospitals were built and have sustained. The multiplier effect of "service" is beyond that, though. In a land where we constantly grapple with sectarian divisions and religious divides and prejudices, people like Sathya Sai Baba foster a creed of universal humanity--or a religion without barriers. It is extremely significant for a country that has been a cradle to some of the greatest religions of the world. It is also significant for a country that has nurtured, imbibed and accepted so many variant religions, with open arms. That is our Truth--or Sathya.

For a rationalist like me, he was always awful and for the believer, he was nothing less than an incarnation of God. The tribe of people belonging to the former will always dismiss him by saying he was simply a magician or a miracle man. For most of his believers of Sathya Sai Baba, he was the faith-healer. He treated them or their kin of incurable diseases where the medical sciences failed.

The most compelling reason for the rationalist to be a Sathya Sai bater has been the holy man's miracle-making process. Didn't Lord Krishna show his omnipresence to the doubting Pandava prince Arjuna when He revealed the "brahmaand" (the universe), by opening up His mouth. The rationalist may dismiss this also as a gimmick. And the rationalist is entitled to his opinion. In my case, I don't dismiss the case as a gimmick. Perhaps, this is one of the reasons why Hinduism is considered more as a philosophy than as a religion. Therein lies its beauty.

A rationalist to the core, Narendra became the great Swami Vivekananda only after he met his philosopher-guide Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa and his wife Smt. Sarada Devi. But he never ceased to explore beyond the realm of existence and abhorred blind faith and bigotry. But, why do the powerful men and women such as prime ministers, presidents, including the men of letters and those with a scientific bent of mind, let alone hoi polloi bow before spiritual entities? Perhaps, it is somewhere the fear of losing what one loves the most, argues the rationalist.

Now, more than ever, we have to hold on to that thought. Those of us that are following a different belief system--and happy being limited to it--shouldn't be limited by it. Lack of empathy, scepticism, criticism can all find place within the parameters of dignity. How we relate to those in harmony with us, says something about us. How we harmonize with those who we cannot relate to, says everything about us.

A Failed Oracle

2011-04-27T11:58:00.004+05:30

I have to begin writing this piece by making an honest confession that I never viewed Sathya Sai Baba as an incarnation of God. I even refuse to elevate him to the level of a saint. With his demise, Sathya Sai Baba leaves behind more than three million devotees spread across the globe. As a modern day guru who helped transform lives through institutional means, his influence is unparalleled.

In a long-established practice in India, a sacred person often takes the name of a deity or a former sage. At the age of 14, he proclaimed he is the reincarnation of Sai Baba from Shirdi, Maharashtra. The original Sai Baba was a roving mendicant who lived with lepers, shared his supper with stray dogs and at a time, when it was considered dangerous to do so, he actively worked towards reducing the prejudices and misperceptions Hindus and Muslims had towards each other. His teachings never recognized boundaries and he didn't have a scripture or an ideology to guide him through.

In India, we are known to have great respect for the mystic sages and gurus who meditate in the snow-clad Himalayas and we surely cannot deny the popularity of Godmen in a society like ours. Of course, we have had self-styled Godmen who are also known as tricksters like Osho or the more recent Swami Nithyananda. Osho's output of the "interpretation" of Indian texts specifically deviates towards a generation of disillusioned westerners. On a more personal note, reading his commentaries on "philosophy" simply doesn't cut through.

It is indeed ironic that when our philosophy teaches renouncement, our philosophy is manipulated and used by people like Osho and the likes as way of getting attached. In the case of Sathya Sai Baba, I always considered him as a magician who knew the art of drawing crowds towards him. The spiritual legacy he leaves behind is open to debate. His proclamation that he will answer the call of death in 2022 and his death at the age of 85 in 2011 proves that no one can ultimately predict death. While I do not question his credentials as a samaritan who worked relentlessly getting Puttaparthi on the worldwide map from an obscure village in Andhra Pradesh, we also have to acknowledge the fact that he managed to bring water to the parched Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh.

The other day I heard a devotee saying, "Sri Sathya Sai Baba is not dead. He just left his mortal body to fight his evil forces and detractors and he will be back in the next forty days." While I do not question the faith people have in him, I just believe that faith must arise after a round of questioning. For now, let us please eulogize his charitable work and stop at that.

Movie Review: The Great Indian Butterfly

2011-03-24T09:15:00.000+05:30

The Great Indian Butterfly is a typical arthouse film in Indian English which is far removed from the standard Bollywood fare. Though it doesn't have any of the usual exotic dance, drama or action, yet the evocatively titled film possibly has more relevance than most of the other films today. The Great Indian Butterfly tracks the turbulent married relationship of a young, upwardly mobile couple as they battle the usual problems most urban couples would identify with. The film is well-paced, the acting is realistic and the debutant director Sarthak Dasgupta keeps the screenplay flowing briskly, with the story jumping back and forth smoothly.

Sandhya Mridul and Aamir Bashir are a DINK couple who work in corporate jobs, own a fancy car and an apartment but have lots of stress. To take a break and resolve their problems, they decide to take a vacation. Except that Aamir messes up again and they miss their flight, which immediately leads to scrap. Thus, in this foul mood, they end up driving and bickering to Goa. During the journey, we learn of Aamir's quest for the great Indian butterfly, mentioned in the Mahabharata and the Puranas, which is supposed to bring "love, peace, luck and happiness" to whoever sees it. It is supposed to float in the "Cordiguez" valley and the couple decides to look for the butterfly, in an elusive search for their own inner peace. Ah, metaphors. Unfortunately, the director stresses the metaphor once too often in the form of Barry John, who keeps popping up in the film at regular intervals, delivering expert diatribes on the great Indian butterfly. Extremely irritating.

Then, there is Koel Purie, Aamir Bashir's former flame, with whom he still has some kind of relationship. As the couple reach Goa and begin their holiday, their life in Mumbai keeps intervening. Sandhya has troubles at work, while Aamir seems to be disturbed by something even as their aborted child returns to haunt them. In the midst of all this, they try and find their lost intimacy, but the atmosphere is badly strained. A misunderstanding leads to Sandhya walking out, while a distraught Aamir sets off alone to find the elusive butterfly.

The Great Indian Butterfly doesn't have much of a story to tell and tends to get clever and intellectual in parts. However, what keeps the film going is a sharp screenplay and the chemistry between the lead actors. Sandhya Mridul is kickass as the modern Indian woman, firm and sexy to boot and makes no bones about displaying her bare back in a scene. Aamir Bashir puts in a nuanced performance as a metrosexual husband, the mamma's boy trying to be brave. Koel looks sultry and bohemian and except for the Barry John bits which tend to get ponderous and philosophical, the film makes for an easy viewing. The one big problem with The Great Indian Butterfly is, however, the entirely English dialogue, which seemed a bit artificial to my Indian ears. However, it is worth a watch because it's worth a watch, especially if you're a Sandhya Mridul fan.

Angry Cabbies

2011-03-21T20:44:00.001+05:30

Mumbaikars would vouch for the fact that the city's landscape is incomplete without the taxis. More so because it is a known fact that Mumbai cabbies are an institution by themselves. Mumbaikars would be lying if they say they don't prefer the city's new taxis over the battle-weary yellow-and-black Fiat taxis.

Recently, my friend ran into a cabbie of one such Fiat who looked on bemusedly after a bevy of beauties rejected his taxi in favour of an Alto. The rejected cabbie spoke with apparent hurt about the "phoren taxi" craze. He mentioned a man with two children and wife preferred to wait at the Marine Drive promenade at around 1 am on a December night than hail the only two Fiat taxis at the stand. As an hour ticked by, the man ventured into the angry cabbie saying he wanted to go to Bandra and the cabbie flatly refused by citing that he had a prior booking.

To cut the long story short, the cabbie said his passengers, who trooped out at around 2:30 a.m., offered to take the family along to Bandra. At the drop spot, the man held out a note of Rs. 100 as "baksheesh" for the driver, who rejected it. "I told him that I could afford to do charity worth that much," he said.

My friend made sympathetic noises against the ageist society that was edging out spacious Fiat taxis as well as the mannerless hitch-hiker. But then again, who wouldn't be a wee bit happier when given the option of zipping a wee bit faster in a newer machine?

The Sins Catch Up

2011-03-19T13:16:00.003+05:30

Anonymous
The Hindu Business Line

Given its size and diversity, not to mention the complicated nature of its federal arrangements which make coalitions unavoidable, India surely is not an easy country to govern. Even in the more mature democracies, apart from the technical requirements laid down in the Constitution, two intangible ingredients play a major role. One is credibility and the other is moral authority. Unfortunately, the UPA-II Congress government appears to have lost both. The credibility disappeared when it was repeatedly caught being "economical with the truth".

Now, after the WikiLeaks expose in The Hindu of a cable sent by a US Diplomat describing how some MPs were bribed when the Indo-US Nuclear Deal came up for a vote on July 22nd 2008, the moral authority has also gone. As a result, the Government is ruling only because of the technicality that it has a majority in the Lok Sabha. Indeed, in that sense it is not unlike Mr. P.J. Thomas, who was recently removed as the Central Vigilance Commissioner--technically everything was fine, in that he had not been convicted of any crime but the fact that there was a chargesheet against him suggested that he was unsuited in every other way.

Likewise, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee is no doubt technically right when he says that the sins committed in the 14th Lok Sabha cannot be discussed in the 15th. But surely, the sins committed by the Congress then can be visited upon it now? Mr. Mukherjee and his party are also right when he says that there is no evidence admissible in a court. But why does no one take his argument seriously? The answer lies in the stoic silver silence of the two Congress "innocents"-- the party President and the Prime Minister. Both are supposed to lead the party at least, if not the country. Neither of them address the nation sending out a feeling like Indians are not worth talking to. They leave it to the Finance Minister, who must now hold a record of sorts when it comes to rescuing the lambs from slaughter.

But even he is now flagging. Such has been the damage to the Government's reputation that even repeated assertions by the Prime Minister that his is not a lame duck government, moral authority diminished, Dr. Manmohan Singh, who has made a fine art of looking forlorn, today merely cuts a sorry figure. The Indo-US nuclear deal is beginning to look like a pyrrhic victory, something bought at too great a cost to the country, its institutions, the Government and the party.

Had all this happened a year or so before the next general election, it may not have mattered very much. But there are still three years to go before the next general elections. A Government under seige for such a long time cannot govern--as was seen during 1987-89. The consequences for the economy can be very damaging, not least because, when the Congress gets into trouble, it turns populist and starts raiding the fisc.

Umrao Jaan: A Poetic Portrayal of Pain

2011-03-18T00:50:00.007+05:30

The presence of courtesans which are deeply entrenched in popular culture has been time and again fascinated Bollywood filmmakers and it has been reflected in the movies as well. "Umrao Jaan" is a stunning piece of art which beautifully captures the time period of the 19th century Lucknow. The story of Umrao Jaan is adapted from the Urdu novel "Umrao Jaan Ada" written by Mirza Hadi Ruswa which was first published in 1899.

The Hindi/Urdu film "Umrao Jaan" tells the story of a courtesan set in Lucknow of the early 19th century. The film begins as a young girl known by the name as Amiran in 1840 when she is kidnapped and sold to a brothel in Lucknow. Amiran is brought to Madam Khanum Jaan's brothel in Lucknow, where her name is changed to Umrao Jaan. Umrao Jaan (Rekha) now grows up to be a very talented singer, an exceptional dancer and a brilliant poet. She becomes a much sought-after tawaif (courtesan) known purely for her dancing skills and poetry.

The movie follows the tragic life of the courtesan Umrao Jaan who is uprooted from her family and brought into a completely different world where her only purpose is to make others happy. She assumes the role of a lonely soul in a crowd and poetry becomes her channel to express her pain, love, longing and disappointment. The ghazals by the Urdu poet Shahryar are beautifully penned to express these emotions and have now been marked as fine examples of Urdu literature.

Rekha simply takes acting, dancing and expressiveness to a level which only she can create. The film truly deserved her. Rekha comes out with flying colours while expressing joy, pain, love or any emotion embodied in the film. Her phenomenal acting dwarfs even Naseeruddin Shah as Gauhar Mirza comes to look like an average role and a talented actor like Farooque Sheikh touches the heart with a controlled performance as the Nawab.

The film is a ghazal on celluloid and it beautifully expresses the pain, loneliness and passion without touching the extremes. Urdu mehfils, timeless ghazals, eloquent shers, hookahs, dazzling costumes, elaborately done houses and brilliantly choreographed Kathak performances take you back to the 19th century Lucknow. A lot of credit goes to the art director, costume designers and make-up artists for recreating that time period so wonderfully.

Umrao Jaan will make you leave with a very heavy heart. The hypocrisy of the society which uses prostitutes for satisfying carnal pleasures but refuses to acknowledge their presence and feelings which is sensitively and subtly depicted in the film. Umrao Jaan is one of those few rare movies which will survive even after a million years. It is a movie that takes art to a celestial level. It is a movie that will leave you with a very heavy heart without a trace of melodrama. If filmmaker Muzaffar Ali were to recreate the movie again, I doubt if he would get it as close to perfection as he got it the first time. Umrao Jaan has a right blend of poetry, pain and pleasure. If you haven't watched this movie, you're definitely missing a classic.

The "Wrong" To Die

2011-03-14T20:09:00.005+05:30

Anil Dharker
Columnist

The case of Aruna Shanbaug in the Supreme Court, which has brought the subject of euthanasia into public debate, is in one way typical of such cases and in another way, not typical at all. It's not typical because her family is not involved in any decision-making process on her behalf; apparently members of her family (sister; niece and so on) stopped visiting her four years after she was admitted to hospital in a vegetative state; since then none of them have been to see her any time. In a sense, therefore, she has been dead to them for the past 33 years.

Who can blame them? Her closest relative seems to be an older sister who ekes out a meagre living her for herself. Would she be in a position to pay for Aruna's hospitalization? The answer is no. So if KEM Hospital--and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation--weren't willing to foot the bill, how would Aruna be kept alive? The particular circumstances of her tragedy--she was a nurse at the hospital, the criminal assault on her was by a KEM staffer, she was assaulted in the hospital premises--has compelled KEM to continue paying for her treatment. There is another special feature in the case, which is the extraordinary dedication of the nursing staff at the hospital that ministers to her every need day and night and has done so selflessly for the past 37 years.

But is this particular combination always possible? Discussions on euthanasia seldom take into account the people around the patient. Are they in a position to pay for life-long care? If they are not, which would be true of most families, does the debate on euthanasia then centre around only on well-off patients, or those under State care?

Apart from the financial aspect, there is the even more important emotional question to be considered: When the patient is in a vegetative state, he or she does not feel any kind of emotional trauma; it's only those taking care of the patient who feel the daily emotional burden of watching a loved one reduced to a vegetable. What happens to their quality of life? And remember, we are not talking of a trauma lasting a few weeks, but one that can go for years and years, without any interruption or let up. Yet, these important questions, questions which affect whole families engaged full-time in the business of survival are considered irrelevant.

So, what is considered as relevant? The most often invoked sentiment from doctors and others involved in such cases is that they do not want to play God and decide who lives and who doesn't. Yet, are they not playing God in keeping alive someone unable to look after themselves by feeding them through tubes and by constant medication? As medicine evolves and newer and more effective treatments become available, would doctors say they are not playing God by extending the vegetative state of a patient even longer?

Pending legislation on the subject--which the government has now promised to look into--the Supreme Court has formulated an important guideline: "passive" euthanasia is permissible. The court has elaborated that this means that keeping alive a brain-dead patient by artificial feeding is no longer necessary; doctors can simply stop the treatment and feeds and the already comatose patient will quickly fade away. But this applies only to brain-dead patients. Therefore, euthanasia in the case of Aruna Shanbaug was ruled out: she was not considered brain-dead. (Apparently she responds to physical stimuli, reacts to sound and even to changes in her feeds).

This ruling of the court has been hailed as a ground-breaking but on reflection seems to be only a small tentative step in resolving the question of euthanasia. If a patient's brain has stopped functioning, but his or her heart and other bodily organs still work, that patient is incapable of living in any real sense: the body is a mere shell ticking away to no purpose. Euthanasia in cases like this raises no ethical questions at all.

But they do in cases like Aruna Shanbaug's whose brain shows a flicker of life, though her body is completely immobile and incapable of supporting itself. The court has shirked dealing with these questions completely by decreeing that she should be kept alive. Why? At whose cost? Most important of all, to what purpose? If a patient--and here I speak in general, not of Aruna--had a brain which were functioning like a normal human brain, even say, a brain with reduced IQ, you could make out a case for keeping the patient alive in the hope that advances in medicine would enable the patient's physical state to improve at a future date. But if the brain is functioning only in the most rudimentary way, how different is that entity from a low life form, say a crustacean?

These are uncomfortable questions and which, if we are lucky, we will never have to personally deal with. But someone, somewhere, will have to face them. It's the duty of the courts and our law-makers, to think of them.

A Time to Live, A Time To Die

2011-03-11T14:57:00.006+05:30

Harmala Gupta,
Founder President, CanSupport

In the wake of the Supreme Court's judgment in the Aruna Shanbaug case, the arguments have moved from the "potential to be misused" argument to that of "I-have-the-right-to-choose-when-and-how-I-wish-to-die". So it's no surprise that euthanasia is being viewed as a pre-emptive strike that it will prevent the "loss-of-control" or becoming a "burden" on care-givers.

The World Health Organization (WHO) maintains that "governments should not consider the legalization of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia until they have demonstrated the full availability and practice of palliative care for all citizens" (WHO Recommendations, Cancer Pain Relief and Palliative Care, 1990). This is a position that has been reiterated by practitioners of palliative medicine worldwide. They have argued that countries which have legalized (or have sought to legalize) euthanasia and/or physician-assisted suicide have inferior palliative care services. The inference is that because of inadequate care, the suffering of the terminally ill is not relieved and hence, the demand for assisted dying.

Published data also seems to support this position. A US Study of physician-assisted-suicides in Oregon suggests that 46% of patients who have received substantive palliative care changed their minds as compared to the 15% who weren't offered palliative care (New England Journal of Medicine, 2000). This was also supported by the evidence presented by the other palliative care physicians from Britain, the Netherlands and Australia.

On the other side, economic factors such as the cost of treatment, the subtle cocercion from carers--were recognized as parameters that can tip the balance in favour of opting for an assisted death. But there are basic questions that beg to be answered:

* Would offering euthanasia or physician-assisted suicide as a therapeutic option further add to the burden on patients as well as signify a deleterious shift in clinical practice currently focussed on saving lives?

* Who has the right to decide if and when a life-prolonging treatment be started or stopped or when suffering has become unbearable? The patient, the family, the physician, the lawmaker or the society at large?

* Is it justified in a situation where there is limited access to palliative care to deny a person the right to end his suffering by euthanasia or physician-assisted-suicide?

* With people living longer and with diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer's and dementia on the rise and with reduced family and community support, is it realistic to expect people to continue to live with dignity when no outside support is available?

* Is it not better to legalize euthanasia and thus bring it under closer control and scrutiny rather than allow it to operate clandestinely?

* Do laws regulating living wills or advance directives that exist in only a few countries now have any place in this debate?

* Does moral responsibility and personal beliefs count in a discussion on euthanasia and palliative care?

The debate should not be seen in an either/or paradigm but as a step-by-step approach with euthanasia, offered only in the rarest of cases where it can be proved beyond any doubt that there is unrelieved suffering.

Aruna Shanbaug: A Life In Hell

2011-03-08T14:26:00.004+05:30

On Monday, the 07th of March 2011, the Supreme Court of India struck down a verdict against active euthanasia referring to the case of Mumbai nurse Aruna Shanbaug filed by writer-activist Pinky Virani. Dismissing the euthanasia plea for Aruna Shanbaug, the Supreme Court spelt out the guidelines distinguishing between active euthanasia and passive euthanasia thereby revealing its ambivalence on the issue.

Aruna Shanbaug, a former nurse at Mumbai's KEM Hospital, Parel, Mumbai who was sexually assaulted by Sohanlal Valmiki, a ward boy at the hospital on 27 November 1973. He choked her with a dog chain and sodomized her. The asphyxiation cut off oxygen supply to her brain resulting in a brain stem contusion injury and a cervical cord injury apart from leaving her cortically blind which in turn led her to lead life in a vegetative state for the past 37 years.

Aruna's case opens up the floodgates for a healthy discussion on euthanasia or mercy killing. The euthanasia debate is an extremely sensitive issue which needs to be discussed in the public domain and the Parliament and the Supreme Court should not make laws on hearing the recommendations by five or six panels. Instead, the Parliament and the Supreme Court should use cases like hers as an opportunity to spell out a clear framework under which euthanasia can be sought.

The society needs to be sensitized to the issue of euthanasia. The need of the hour is educating people at the law and what medical science has made possible in terms of prolongation of life though not necessarily of consciousness or a pain free existence which prepares us to make a decision ourselves. A considered decision by a person whose life hangs in the balance needs to be backed by medical and legal consent in cases where euthanasia is permitted. Building these principles into humane legislation is called for now.

Instinctively, we might find it unacceptable to give a person the right to decide when someone's life should end. Yet, we would just as readily accept that to keep a person endlessly alive in a vegetative state is also inhuman. The humane way of dealing with it would be to allow mercy killing but in very limited situations and under strict safeguards to ensure it cannot be misused. It should be allowed only in two types of situations: One would be allowed where the person whose life is to end is not in a position to decide and where doctors and medical experts agree that there is a no hope of ever recovering to a state where he/she can take a decision. The other situation would be where the person takes the decision himself or herself and is suffering immensely and doctors agree that there is no hope for recovery.

Aruna Shanbaug has been subjected to 37 years of indignity that now even the right to die with dignity has become as hollow as a shell in her lifeless life? What does the idea of right to life, to die with dignity or even justice mean in the context of Aruna Shanbaug? The Supreme Court needs to ask itself many big questions and not forget the most important one: if Sohanlal Valmiki, the guy who sodomized her with a dog chain was allowed to walk free after just seven years in jail, doesn't his savaged victim have the right to be set free after 37 years of incarceration far, far worse? What do you think?

Movie Review: The President Is Coming

2011-03-05T18:04:00.003+05:30

The world shall eternally be thankful to the former American President George W. Bush. Not for his botched up policies, ideas and ideologies, but for opting to don the role of the First Joker rather than the First Citizen of the United States. Never mind, we have laughed enough so much on the crazy antics he has performed during his tenure as the President, he was certainly one of those few world leaders who chose to be goofy even in America's bleakest hours. Remember 9/11 and how he held the children's story book "My Pet Goat" upside down, while the airplanes pounded history?

George Bush may no longer be the President of the United States but there was no other way to bid him farewell than celebrate his Bushisms with a dash of Indianism. The President Is Coming directed by Kunaal Roy Kapur is a shameless, amateurish and funny satirical comedy that not only lampoons Bush, but also takes a rib-tickling dekko at the stereotype of the Indian youth.

Set against the former US President's visit to India in 2006, the film is a behind-the-scenes of the US Consulate which has been given an arduous task of selecting one suitable Indian who will shake hands with the former US President. Needless to say, this fortunate (read: unfortunate) Indian will be the sole representative of India's burgeoning youth population and has the responsibility of showcasing the mantra of "India Shining-Rising-Rocking", all in a matter of a second.

Enter Samantha Patel (Shernaz Patel), the quirky PR agent who must select the chosen one with her assistant, the second-sexed Ritu Johnson (Shivani Tanksale). Enter the participants: an odd assortment of twenty-something Indians who have to pass a test of their physical and mental skills before they have their tryst with history. It's here the real fun in the movie begins, as the wannabe Booker winner Maya Roy (Konkona Sen Sharma) tries to outwit the rest with her snooty pseudo-intellectual airs. Of course, she's no competition for the casteist-communal swadeshi MBA pass out, the Yankee-fied accent trainer, the bimbette desi Paris Hilton (Ira Dubey), the gay geek who wants a good wife and the earthy stock broker who believes money can buy everything, even a handshake!

The film has a raw look and lacks finesse when it comes to production values. But there is a delightful tongue-in-cheek tenor running through it, which makes you overlook the unpolished feel and the loose editing. While George Bush himself is reduced to a bunch of raucous snores and a disembodied flick of the hand, India's famous Generation X are themselves a bunch of nerds who think Colin Powell is Nelson Mandela and Osama Bin Laden is Osho Rajneesh.

But in the end, despite their foibles, they're all lovable and recognizable, including the "communal" wannabe entrepreneur who ends up befriending the Muslim security guard and applauding his Urdu poetry. Performance-wise, it's the uptight and complex-ridden Konkona Sen Sharma who walks away with laurels and laughs even as the film takes a healthy snigger at the desi self.

Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation

2011-03-01T23:44:00.000+05:30

The Brihanmumbai Mahanagar Palika or the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) or the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) are the few of the names that the civic body that governs the city of Mumbai is known by. It is India's richest municipal corporation which also has the distinction of being the largest organization. It's annual budget is more than the annual budget of the small states in India.

The main motto of the BMC is the Sanskrit sentence is "यतो धर्मोस्तुतो जय" which roughly translates to "Where there is righteous, there shall be victory". The motto is inscribed in the Coat of Arms. The Coat of Arms is a four panel shield supported by an intertwining floral border in gold. A lotus in bloom, an emblem of purity and beauty is at the bottom and a lion surmounts it. The panels inscribed as the Gateway of India which signifies the position of Mumbai as a gateway to India, a symbolic factory inscribed in a cog wheel which signifies the industrial importance and the fast-paced nature of Mumbai, the three sailing ships which denote Mumbai's pre-eminence as a port while a symbolized diagram of the building depicts itself as the seat of local self-governance in Mumbai.

The Corporation Building is a Grade-II "A" heritage building situated opposite the Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus at the junction of Dadabhai Naoroji Road and Mahapalika Marg. The Municipal Corporation of Greater Bombay was first created in 1865 and Sir Arthur Crawford was its first municipal commissioner. The Municipality was initially housed as a modest building at the terminus of Girgaum Road. In 1870, it was shifted to a building near Azad Maidan, located between Watson Hotel and Sassoon Mechanics Institute where the present Army and Navy building is situated. On December 9 1884, the foundation stone for the new building of the Bombay Municipal Corporation was laid opposite the present Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus by the then viceroy Lord Ripon.

If city historians are to be believed, two designs were considered for the building; one was the Gothic design done by the British architect Fredrick William Stevens and the other in the Indo-Saracenic design presented by Robert Fellowes Chisholm. The Gothic design was finally selected. The building was formally completed in 1893. The building is known for its 255 feet tall tower and the chief architectural feature is the central dome which rises to a height of 71.5 metres . Records also support that at these environs where the MCGM proudly stands today was once a "Phansi Talao" or Gallows Tank, where hangings took place in full public view.

Sir Pherozeshah Mehta and Sir Dinshaw Wacha were two prominent citizens of erstwhile Bombay who were members of the Municipal Corporation. At the entrance to the BMC stands an impressive bronze statue of Sir Pherozeshah Mehta who silently now watches over the roads, the Victoria Terminus and the traffic silently witnessing the growth of Mumbai. The entrance of the BMC gives a picturesque view of the roads and the buildings in front.

Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus

2011-02-27T00:59:00.000+05:30

The Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is one of the best known heritage buildings in Mumbai. It is a world heritage site classified and recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Today, it is almost a cinematic cliche to represent Mumbai by using an image of Mumbai CST. It currently serves as the headquarters of the Central Railways.

If city historians are to be believed, the site at which the station stands today is associated with the very origin of Mumbai as a city. The city of Mumbai originally derives its name from the Goddess Mumbadevi or Maha Amba. The earliest temple dedicated to Goddess Mumbadevi is believed to have stood at the very place where the station now stands. It was demolished by the Persian invader Mubarak Shah and was reconstructed in 1317. It was again demolished by the Portuguese in 1760. To save the temple from further destruction, it was shifted to its present location in Kalbadevi.

The Victoria Terminus derives its name from Queen Victoria because the station was formally inaugurated in 1887 to commemorate the Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria. The name of the station was changed to its present name in honour of the Maratha prince Chhatrapati Shivaji in 1996. Its abbreviations CST and VT are still popularly used by commuters and locals. It is the busiest station in India presently catering to a large number of commuters and as well as a terminal for long distance trains terminating in Mumbai.

The Mumbai Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is an outstanding example of Victorian Gothic Revival architecture in India, blended with themes deriving inspiration from Indian traditional architecture. It is designed by the famous British architect Fredrick William Stevens and the free Gothic feeling is remarkable for the excellence of the carvings with which it is covered. The work on the station began in May 1878 and was completed exactly ten years later in May 1888. The offices housed in CST alone cost Rs. 16,35, 562 and the station cost Rs. 10,40,248 excluding the railway tracks. The original plan for the Victoria Terminus was intended to accommodate just the offices and the main station. Since 1887, additional buildings at adjoining sites have also had to be erected. One of the buildings "Annexe" opposite the main line station was used as a hospital during the World War-I. It now houses the headquarters of the Central Railway.

The new mainline station which caters to long distance mail and express trains was built with very simple decoration at a cost of Rs. 10 lakh which took nearly two-and-a-half years to complete. The additions were so designed as to harmonize with the architectural magnificence of the building constructed in 1887 and to create a composite budget. The architect of the new building was Percy Wilson, an associate of the Royal Institute of British Architects.

As the then General Manager D.S. Burns quoted: "He (Percy) has designed a building which is pleasing and satisfying in its appearance, meets fully the modern requirements of a mainline station and which, while in style entirely different from the famous old Victoria Terminus building, yet in no way clashes with it." The Victoria Terminus has been consistently described in literature as the jewel of Mumbai in different contexts. As The Wonder Book of the Railways notes: "In India, some of the stations are almost like palaces, notably those of the East Indian Railway at Howrah in Calcutta and the Victoria Terminus of the Great Indian Peninsular Railway." Jan Morris in his travelogue "The Spectacle of Empire" wrote: "... And the imperial railways were most of all in India. The grandest of the Indian Railway stations, Victoria Terminus in Bombay, was thought to be by connoisseurs to be the grandest station anywhere."

The British writer Gillian Tindall in her book "The City of Gold: A Biography of Bombay" eloquently described VT as: "First came the venetian secretariat, then the Gothic university library and the French university hall, between the great clock tower--the white pinnacled law courts follow, then the post and telegraph offices in miscellaneous Gothic. But the jewel of Bombay is the Victoria station."

The man driving a rattling taxi or the harried commuter probably has never wavered in his appreciation of these massive and iconic buildings in Bombay which are admired as if they were ancient Mughal palaces. Perhaps, to the man on the street, they are!

A Roman Drama

2011-02-23T16:58:00.004+05:30

Compared to chaos of Mumbai's suburbs, Navi Mumbai's neatly divided into nodes and sectors. But these too need some getting used to, as was evident in this case. At Belapur CBD, a middle-aged man in distress was recently seen asking every other passerby for directions to an address in "Sector 2" to deliver a fairly large parcel.

Apparently, he had spent a better part of the morning literally going around in circles in the sector. Finally, he approached an autorickshaw driver for help. After looking at the address, the driver immediately said that he must have confused "11" as in the Sector 11 for the Roman numeral II.

Such confusion is routine in Navi Mumbai, shrugged the seasoned driver. The man hopped on to the auto and in a few minutes, the parcel was delivered to the right address.

Paid News and Journalism

2011-02-21T08:40:00.005+05:30

Rajdeep Sardesai
Editor-in-chief, CNN-IBN

We live in the age of institutionalized corruption. From politicians to judges, from senior bureaucrats to policemen, from corporate tycoons to petty officials, everyone it seems has a price. As journalists, our profession demands that we enquire, interrogate and expose corruption. So, when an A. Raja resigns we rejoice that the resignation came about due to media pressure. When an infotech czar is punished we're hopeful of improved standards of governance. But what happens when the camera turns inwards, when news itself has a price tag attached to it?

A corrupt politician can be jailed, so can a business leader. A former chief minister can resign, a bureaucrat can be tried under the prevention of corruption act. But what happens to the editor and the correspondent who brazenly endorses cash for news? The recent controversy about "paid news" since the Niira Radia tapes became public that is undermining the very foundation of journalism strikes at the heart of a concept that we swear by: the principal of accountability. What moral right do we have in demanding action against the other pillars of our democracy when we wink a the gathering storm in our own profession?

Journalists as a tribe tend to be cynical and self-righteous in equal measure. The cynicism leads us to believe that the glass is always half empty. Our self-righteous streak drives us into spasms of rage when we are accused of lowering ethical standards. The "paid news" crisis calls for neither an overdose of cynicism nor another bout of self-righteousness. What is required at the moment is a robust pragmatism that accepts the problem confronting the profession of journalism, but also sees it as an opportunity to restore falling credibility.

The first step is to understand what "paid news" is. Some recent articles have tended to confuse legitimate "advertorials" with the unethical "sale" of news. The key lies in setting disclosure norms. If a politician or a corporate house wishes to "purchase" editorial space or airtime, they can do so, but only if they adhere to rules of disclosure. It is when the political or commercial brand is plugged in a non-transparent manner, when an advertisement masquerades as news with no distinction being clearly made in form or content to the reader or viewer, that the sanctity of news is violated.

Secondly, we need to realize that "paid news" is not some overnight phenomenon that began with election "packages". Film and sports journalism, for example, has been forced to blur the lines with public relations for some time now. Corporate India has also been a step ahead of political India: "private treaties" by which a newspaper enters into agreements with business groups to ensure favourable coverage in return for an equity stake in the company has been in existence for several years now. A political candidate who pays for favourable media coverage is not guaranteed victory, a corporate house through a "private treaty" is almost guaranteed lasting immunity against journalistic "objectivity".

Thirdly, we must recognize as to why there is a growing temptation to opt for "paid news" by all entities involved. In the case of elections, it is no secret that the Election Commission's attempt to control excessive expenditure by clamping down on rallies and publicity material has only led to political funding going "underground": like liquor, paid news is part of this "parallel" election machinery. With many regional politicians controlling cable networks and newspapers, the local media in particular is easily compromised.

Moreover, the nature of the news "business" has fundamentally altered in recent years. The news space in television and to an extent in print too, is increasingly cluttered and the financial pressures have only heightened in a competitive market. While the advertising pie has grown, it is an offset by the growing expenditure. Newspaper cover prices or channel distribution revenues are still well below accepted standards. In this difficult external environment, "paid news" has almost become a survival option for some, especially in regional markets. In the process, the "Chinese wall" that existed between a journalist and an advertiser, between news and marketing has almost evaporated.

And yet, to blame the sharp-suited sales and marketing teams for "legitimising" paid news would be to shirk our responsibility as journalists. The imprint of a newspaper carries the byline of an editor, not the proprietor or the marketing guru. It is the editor who is legally responsible for what is carried in a newspaper or telecast on a channel. A sales and marketing professional is to paid to enhance revenues. An editorial professional is paid to improve the quality of content. A journalist is meant to add editorial value to the content, not peddle it to the highest bidder. Critical to this value addition are the notions of integrity and credibility, neither of which can be measured through hard cash. Unfortunately, with the declining role of the editor as the watchdog of news and the emergence of fly by night owners, a vacuum has been created that has led to a near-total breakdown of rules and standards.

If editors have been accomplices in the debasement of news, they must now take the lead role in restoring its sanctity. If every editor in this country agreed to follow a strict code of conduct in dealing with "paid news", if there was an insistence on disclosure norms, there is everybody that the cancer can be checked. Most right thinking news organizations will realize that "paid news" will eventually erode their brand and it is for editors to put sufficient moral pressure through every available media forum to shame and isolate those who refuse to fall in line.It maybe a slow process, but one whose success is critical to the future of the profession.

P.S.: At a recent editors' guild annual meeting, one venerable editor from old school of journalism was asked what he would do if he was forced to carry "paid news", "Pack my bags and do something else!" was the blunt reply.

Power Play

2011-02-19T11:31:00.005+05:30

The intensity of the debate about the forthcoming cricket World Cup that kicks off from today reminds the coffee houses within the community of a simple truth: as far as the wider public is concerned, a World Cup determines the world champion. Never mind that 50 over cricket is not the highest form of the game. Never mind that one day cricket is notoriously fickle--though it has seemed quite predictable in the last few World Cups.

Such niceties are lost on the crowd as it sits agog in the stadium or as it huddles around a TV set in remote villages. Indeed, they are lost on the players. To win a World Cup is the ultimate dream for all countries participating. For a while, winning a World Cup overwhelms the problems of daily life. Of course, they cannot cure them. Sports need champions and emphasizing on world champions. As much can be told from the response of the athletes upon winning gold medals. It is quite something to be the best in the world in any capacity. Sports offer that promise. In most of walks of life, these things are a matter of opinion.

In sports, it is often a proven fact. The craving for sports for champions stem from that opportunity. Of course, it serves several purposes, gives the young a chance to prove their courage without unduly harming their rivals, spouses a little time away from their beloveds and allows the age-old to debate about strength and speed and skill to be settled in the ring or on the field. Alas, the settlement is only temporarily for the terrible truth is that sporting success is fleeting. As every gunslinger knows, there is always another person emerging who thinks he is a fraction faster. Sooner or later, he is right.

World Championships provide testing grounds where players, teams and nations can prove their nerve and ability. The pomp and ceremony of the opening and closing help to set the tournament apart from its peers, tells all and sundry that the time has come for those seeking glory and convinced of their capacity to stand up for themselves. As the fallen angel called out in Paradise Lost: "Speak now or forever hold your peace". World championships serve another purpose. They provide an arena in which truly great cricketers can assert themselves. In that regard, it's easier in cricket with its man-against-man aspect. It is a raw game with a civilized surface, an individual game in the guise of a team activity.

Clive Lloyd's innings in 1975 set the pattern. Even now, the lithe ferocity of his stroke play lingers in the mind. Sir Viv Richards came next, with his awesome and controlled attack in 1979. Richards used to walk on the balconies in the early rounds, urging his comrades to take him to Lord's. He was aghast when Somerset dismissed Nottinghamshire for a paltry score in a domestic final in 1983. How was he going to score a hundred? Only great players can think along those lines and those heading for a fall. Although his intervention was brief, Kapil Dev's stunning catch to remove Richards in the 1983 final was another instance of a great player seizing the moment. Javed Miandad, Wasim Akram, Aravinda de Silva, Ricky Ponting and Adam Gilchrist are few examples who have imposed themselves in finals.

Now comes the 2011 edition in India, anything can happen in lesser events. As a rule, though, World Cups and Olympics for that matter, produce the right winners and inspire the best players. The early rounds might not tell us much but the semi-finals and final will tell us all we need to know. That is the harsh reality. It is the moment of truth.

Rajabai Tower

2011-02-10T00:28:00.000+05:30

The Rajabai Tower is a majestic clock tower ornamented with oriental figures. It is located in the precincts of the Mumbai University campus, right next to the Bombay High Court in South Mumbai. It is modelled on the lines of London's famous clock tower the Big Ben.

The Rajabai Clock Tower was designed by the English architect Sir George Gilbert Scott. Since it is elevated to the height of 85 metres (280 feet), the construction for the tower began in 1869 and was completed nearly nine years later in 1878. During its time, the Rajabai Tower was the tallest structure of Mumbai. The total cost of construction was borne by a Bombay based stockbroker Premchand Royachand, a successful stock broker who also founded the Bombay Stock Exchange. The construction cost then was Rs. 200,000, a princely sum in those days. The clock tower owes its name to Rajabai, the blind mother of Premchand Royachand who was also a staunch follower of Jainism and it is believed that she was supposed to consume her dinner before twilight. Thanks to the bell of this tower, she did not require anyone's help in knowing the time and consumed her dinner before evening, on the word of her religion. During the British Raj, it played tunes of "Rule Britannia", "God Save the King", "Home! Sweet Home!" and "A Handel Symphony", amongst the sixteen tunes that changed four times a day. However, the glockenspiel repertoire currently plays only "Big Ben", after every fifteen minutes.

The Rajabai Tower presents a wonderful fusion of Venetian and Gothic styles of architecture. The tower is constructed out of the locally available buff coloured Kurla stone. The tower has a spiral staircase, which is sadly now closed to the visitors due to past instances of suicides and the stories of doomed lovers. The Rajabai Tower houses the library of the Mumbai University, which has some brilliant stained glass windows in the continent of Asia. It was recently treated by the British conservationists who reinstated the grandeur in these exquisite windows.

Summing up, the Rajabai Tower is a spectacular structure which stands testimony to the transformation of Mumbai as a city and the growth of the Mumbai University from a tiny classroom to a full-fledged campus. It is worth visiting on a Sunday afternoon when you are most likely to find local boys playing cricket in the maidan opposite the iconic tower.

Movie Review: Dhobi Ghat

2011-02-07T18:16:00.007+05:30

Dhobi Ghat literally means an open air laundromat. The washers or dhobis generally work in the open and wash the clothes from Mumbai's hotels and hospitals. It is located to Mahalaxmi station near the Saat Rasta roundabout. There are rows of open air concrete washing stands, each fitted with a flogging stone. It is currently the world's largest outdoor laundry.

The film Dhobi Ghat has an acquired taste which means you'll simply enjoy the film or it will be downright boring. Filmmaker Kiran Rao's deeply personal Dhobi Ghat has an atmospheric feel to it. By naming it "Mumbai Diaries", one can make out that the film has been primarily made for a film festival audience.

The film, as such, does not have a story--except four random lives which connect in Mumbai. An investment banker-cum-photographer Shai (Monica Dogra), the dhobi Zohaib/Munna (Prateik Babbar), the reclusive artist Arun (Aamir Khan) and homemaker Yasmin Noor (Kriti Malhotra). There are fleeting moments of happiness, pain and the eventual realization that the journey never ends. The struggle to survive and to connect is eternal. These people intersect in different spaces across the city--art galleries, bustling Mohammed Ali Road markets, sea-facing bungalows in Worli, the sunset at Chowpatty and Marine Drive, the narrow gullies in slums, the dhobi ghats and under construction high-rise apartments.

The fifth character in the film is Mumbai, a city bursting at its seams with migrants who remain anonymous, alienated, brutally indifferent and harshly helpful. Kiran Rao and her cinematographer Tushar Kanti Ray brilliantly create the scenes across Mumbai. There are few places in the film which overpower the presence of actors like Prateik Babbar and Monica Dogra at Mohammed Ali Road at the iftaar party during Ramzan.

The music by Oscar winning music composer Gustavo Santaolalla, though largely instrumental, playing mostly as background music is underutilized though it blends well with the placid pace of the movie. The film could do with some editing at a few places nevertheless that shouldn't rob the movie of its artistic merit. The costumes are realistic and the sets are well chosen.

At a running time of 95 minutes, filmmaker Kiran Rao shows us a different side of Mumbai which has rarely been seen in the movies despite most of us living in the city. The film is more like a video diary since it films rat killers, the gentle rumbling of commuter trains, the unrelenting Mumbai rains, the crowded markets, the disappearing Irani cafes, the city during Ganesh Chaturthi visarjan.

It wouldn't be wrong to say that Mumbai finally gets a film that actually represents its true hues and tints. Though it follows the pace of an atmospheric portrait, part video diary and Mumbai is the centre of the film's attention. It is probably the only city in the world where so many classes so closely amalgamate into a common river of sorrows, beauty or hope.

Summing it up, the film is worth watching once despite having a bunch of relatively unknown faces.

Gateway of India

2011-02-02T23:56:00.000+05:30

The leading English newspaper Hindustan Times had recently come out with a campaign called "No TV Day" where the intention was to ditch the television and explore the city. I have always lent my support towards the campaigns the newspaper does primarily because they concern the larger interest of the general public. As always, the No TV Day was a rewarding experience. It made me feel like a tourist in a city where I lived for the past 18 years.

The Gateway of India is one of Mumbai's most famous monument and is often the starting point for most tourists who visit the city. The Gateway of India is important as it serves as a transit point for a cruise around the Bombay Harbour in luxury boats. Opposite the Gateway of India stands the Royal Taj Mahal Hotel and the Taj Towers, which serves as an example to the resilient spirit of Mumbai after the tragic 26/11 attacks. There is also a statue of the Maratha prince Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in front of the Gateway of India.

The Gateway of India was built as a triumphal arch to commemorate the visit of King George V and Queen Mary to Bombay in December 1911. The Gateway of India is intricately carved with four turrets and latticework carved into the yellow basalt stone. The foundation stone for the Gateway of India was laid on March 31, 1911 by the then Governor of Bombay Sir George Sydenham Clarke and the final design submitted by the Scottish architect George Wittet was sanctioned in August 1914. Between 1915 and 1919, work proceeded on the reclamation at Apollo Pier for the land on which the Gateway and the new sea wall would be built. The foundations were completed in 1920. The construction was finally completed in 1924 and the Gateway of India was inaugurated on December 4 1924 by the Viceroy, Earl of Reading.

The Gateway of India is built from yellow Kharodi basalt and reinforced concrete. The stone was locally obtained and the perforated screens were brought in from Gwalior. The design together is a combination of both the Hindu and Muslim architectural styles. The arch is in the typical Muslim style while the decorations placed outside are in the Hindu style. The central dome is about 48 feet in diameter and 83 feet above ground at its highest point. The whole harbour front was realigned in order to come in line with a planned esplanade which would sweep down to the centre of the town. The cost of the construction was Rs. 21 lakhs, which was borne mainly by the Government of India. However, due to the lack of funds, the approach road was never built and the Gateway of India now stands at an angle to the road leading up to it.

The colonial rule ended in 1947 and the colonial symbol also became a sort of epitaph while the last of the British troops to leave India, the First Battalion of the Somerset Light Infantry, passed through the Gateway in a ceremony on 28 February, 1948.

One With God...

2011-01-26T01:22:00.009+05:30

It is a widely accepted fact that music has the ability to soothe, calm and make a tensed person relax. Medical sciences have referred to it as a therapeutic way of reducing the impact of stress in our daily lives. It creates a relaxing atmosphere for any type of activity. Creative expressions such as art, literature, music etc. have the ability to cut across manmade boundaries and unite people.

It is one of those frozen moments. In the space of a few years we seem to have lost most of the artists who shaped a national cultural consciousness over the past six decades. Artists who drew the very contours of musical traditions, theatrical and performative practices and visual lexicons. And now, with Pandit Bhimsen Joshi's demise, over eight flourishing decades of the Kirana Gharana initiated by Ustad Abdul Karim Khan and Ustad Abdul Waheed Khan has finally returned to "sama"(tranquility). An entire musical legacy has folded into itself.

To the people who do not listen classical music, will remember the legend as the who opened the cult national integration song "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara" aired in Doordarshan. It is commonplace to lament the passing of great artists and events that usher in the end of an era. In the case of Pandit Joshi, this is true for more reasons than one. Not only he was a legendary singer par excellence, but also because he was probably among the last in a line of musicians who gave a new direction to the history of Indian classical music in the twentieth century.

The maestro was unsurpassed in his brilliant interpretations and renditions. He was the one who initiated me to listening to classical music. My earliest recollection of devotional music was a Marathi abhang by him titled "Majhe Maher Pandhari". Even today, one can imagine some boy or girl, in some corner of the country, hearing Bhimsen Joshi for the first time--on the radio, on a record, on Youtube--that slow, sonorous thunderclap of an alaap washing across the sound landscape, a mid-tempo bandish cutting through the traffic snarls and the cawing of crows, the quarrelling of neighbours and the cricket commentary; the higher edges of that timeless voice cutting through the brilliance of Lata Mangeshkar, Mohd. Rafi, Asha Bhosle, Kishore Kumar and RD Burman, through all the mediocre composers such as Bappi Lahiri at one end and the musical geniuses like AR Rahman and Amit Trivedi on the other end.

It is deeply unfortunate, but no less telling, that Pandit Joshi, did not leave behind many prominent disciples. He is believed to have attributed this failure to the lack of devotion and discipline that he noted among the current breed of youngsters. Indeed, it may not be entirely unfair to read into this symptoms the sign of classical music has, over the last few decades, gradually exerted a stronghold over the cultural life in India.

The decline of robust classical tradition of learning, especially in the arts, has finally come a full circle in the country. One of the effects of such a phenomenon is perceived in the palpable waning of standards of excellence in performing arts. It is unlikely that anyone among the current or aspiring artists would ever be able to scale the sublime heights that the doyens of the past managed to scale. With the globalization of music and its entry into the market, the stress has inevitably shifted from the need to acquire, preserve and develop a knowledge base, handed down to us by the great masters of the past, to the more attractive packaging and gimmickry. Now, with Pandit Joshi's demise, the flickering embers of that tradition of classical music have been finally extinguished.

Kamzor Pratidhwani (Feeble Echoes)

2011-01-21T14:47:00.002+05:30

The newspapers recently carried stories and pictures of veteran character actor ninety five year old AK Hangal. I must admit I was shocked to see the condition he is in. It feels really sad to learn that he has to literally now choose between food and medication. In his days, he has played everything from an uncle to a grandfather in the staple Hindi films of the 1970s and 1980s. For a man who entertained us as the unforgettable Rahim Chacha in the blockbuster "Sholay", it is unfortunate that he now leads a life of penury.

It is always been disturbing to read and learn of such occurences. There have been enough number of instances in popular culture of individuals who were idolized and revered in their prime and now remain stuck in the catacombs of anonymity. Life's stories have been overloaded with vivid descriptions of unfortunate circumstances. Well, life as they say, has the ability to equate the powerful to the level of a common man. There have been cases where circumstances have brought the most powerful to their knees.

To begin with, we have never had any forum where actors speak as one voice in such circumstances. The famed "My Name is Khan" debate is an example in itself. It is in such situations where the industry gets split into camps. We also don't have an organization which looks after the needs of such actors. His frail condition reminded me of Nalini Jaywant, one of the top leading ladies of the 1950s, who passed away recently as a loner. A very tragic end for a lady who was voted one of the prettiest actresses of the 1950s. It is unfortunate to note that many yesteryear actors today live life like a recluse.

It is sad that in a diverse country as ours, we leave actors to fend for themselves in their twilight years. Part of the problem arises from the fact that actors never plan their careers in a way that will look after their needs once the cameras desert them. As a society in general, we do not give them due respect they truly require. It is absolutely unfortunate that we tend to recognize the contribution of an artist posthumously. The 1957 Hindi film "Pyassa" is one example where the poet Vijay's greatness was recognized after his death. Real life imitated reel life in Guru Dutt's example. Dhrupad exponent Asgari Bai, who lived on a government stipend of Rs. 1500, to be repaid in installments, took the extreme step of returning back the awards conferred to her by the Madhya Pradesh Government. Barring a few artists, other artists have to bear with the peanuts they receive.

Bollywood has been replete with one-film wonders and actors disappearing into the catacombs of anonymity. To be really honest, I grew up watching Sadhana walking aimlessly on a snow-clad hillock in a saree singing "Naina Barse Rimjhim Rimjhim" but I even didn't even know she was alive till the time the news came out that a top builder threatened her and it appeared as a front-page news.

The present state of actor A.K. Hangal reminds me of an incident which was chronicled by film journalist Rauf Ahmed which is one of the most heartbreaking stories I have read. In 1938, Rauf Ahmed said, grand celebrations were underway to commemorate the silver anniversary of "Raja Harishchandra", India's first full-length feature film. A hall was booked and important dignitaries were invited to deliver talks of significance from the dais. The only glitch: no one thought of inviting Dadasaheb Phalke, the man who made the film. Nobody thought of inviting him to sit up on the stage where positive words were being showered. Suddenly, filmmaker V. Shantaram spotted a decrepit old man sitting on the last rows of the hall where the function was being held. It was indeed Dadasaheb Phalke. A deeply embarrassed V. Shantaram led Dadasaheb Phalke to the stage.

Four years later when Dadasaheb Phalke died, he was alone, poor and forgotten. Today, I wonder how many of us even acknowledge his contribution apart from having an award named after him and a Marathi film showing us how he struggled to make Raja Harishchandra. It's heartbreaking that he died a tragic death.

The New Lifestyle Problems

2011-01-17T20:24:00.003+05:30

We live in a world where change is a major player and change is rapid. It is happening in and around us by making our lives more interesting and challenging. I have, over the couple of years, noticed many interesting things that have arisen from this continous change and some of it is definitely worth sharing. So, here it goes the list of top six lifestyle diseases:

* Mobile-ites: Mobile-ites is a disease that has knowingly or unknowingly inflicted a large majority of the human population across all ages. The symptoms of this lifestyle disease are fairly recognizable and evident... constantly looking at the phone, the itch to dial and to text.. it's endless.

* Twitter mania and Status Message Generation: There is surely no denying in the fact that we are citizens of the "Status Message Generation". It is a double whammy. It is more like a virus that spreads rapidly and we're most definitely not immune to it. The virus-cum-obsessive compulsive disorder takes over the brain completely and compulsively update across all social networking platforms on a minute-by-minute basis. "Woke up... had coffee... driving... it's raining.. fought with boyfriend and then cab driver... crying... preparing to die... Please RT!"

* Beverage-holics: I have to admit that I need a cup of tea every morning. Statements such as "Caramel Macchiato with a double shot of espresso, decaf, with soy milk, extra foam and no sugar!" are so common. I also cannot survive without water. Let us not forget the Nilgiri or Assamese versions of Green Tea, sports energy drinks, diet versions of all beverages and the long list of healthy alternatives to everything mentioned above. We are Indians, we love our beverages and how!!

* Stress: I agree that this sounds fairly simple enough but there seems to be just one solution. We work so hard and hence we deserve a holiday and not just any kind of holiday but an extreme one. An extreme holiday which will see us bungee jump off a cliff or just vegetate on the couch the whole day. Going to places such as Matheran, Ladakh or Leh is passe, New York or Australia is the new thing. Extreme options for extreme situations.

* Click-upload-share syndrome: A recent development as to the moment someone clicks a photo which is presumably of yourself or anything abstract, it has to be uploaded on Facebook or Twitter. It doesn't matter whether if you are just eating dinner or licking an ice-cream but it's necessary for those photos to land up on Facebook or Twitter. Privacy and intimacy be damned.

Reality Bites: No One Killed Jessica

2011-01-08T01:38:00.003+05:30

No One Killed Jessica, the first movie release of 2011, is a film that unleashes a myriad emotions in you. The hard facts of modern India's most written about case are well-known by almost everybody but the director Rajkumar Gupta's dramatic handling of the crime, the criminals, the crusaders and the victim creates a storm.

The film makes you feel angry, sad, frustrated, bitter about the umpteen flaws in our administrative and legal machinery. But more than all this, it fills you with hope and confidence. No One Killed Jessica reaffirms the power and the efficacy of the ordinary man who can--and must--make the difference in a dismaying world. Unlike superhero sagas, the film doesn't just showcase two feisty women--Sabrina (Vidya Balan) and Meera (Rani Mukherjee)--who take on the might of the powerful. Instead, it throws light on the fact that the whole nation came together, joined the "Justice for Jessica" crusade and displayed how power actually resides in the hands of the people than politicians and their puppets. That's the heartening message the film throws out loud and clear at a time when the nation is scam-tainted which isn't edifying.

The pitfalls in making such a film that draws its drama from real life are many. The film could have easily been unspooled like a soulless documentary that cuts and pastes newspaper headlines in cardboard collage fashion. But kudos to the filmmaker and the actors for infusing whole lot of soul and the body in the film which races across like a hard-punch thriller. From the first phone call which informs a sleepy Sabrina of her sister's death to the candle-light vigil at India Gate, No One Killed Jessica is a racy crime drama that relentlessly draws you in. When its not the rivetting screenplay and dialogues written by Rajkumar Gupta, it is the actors who grab eyeballs with their power-packed portrayals.

Rani Mukherjee's rendition of the bitch Meera Gaity--a balsy, cuss word-spewing newshound--is sure to give you an adrenalin high. Newcomer Myra's Jessica act is full of life and endearing. But it is Vidya Balan's subdued performance as Sabrina Lall who steals the show with her quiet courage, her absolute ordinariness and her complete disbelief at how someone with a pistol in his hand and power in his head could shoot down somebody for a mere drink. Vidya's body language and her aimless commutes in Delhi's blue-line buses, cycle-rickshaws etc. and you will understand how the common man survives in India; against all odds, albeit with courage and dignity. Rajesh Sharma's cop act is poignant and brilliant. He's the cop who unabashedly takes a bribe for not beating up the politician's son in custody and yet does any and everything to fight for justice.

Everyone in the film puts in an impressive act. Rani is impeccable as the hard-talk journalist and Vidya's common girl act is stupendous. The rest of the ensemble cast fit in perfectly in their respective roles. Rajkumar Gupta has taken newspaper headlines and added heart and soul to them. It is a typically Delhi-centric film with the betel-stained police station walls to the high-heeled social circuit, the lingo has no false ring. Delhi looks beautiful, ominous, heartless and all-heart thanks to the amazing cinematography. The heavy metal tracks form the right tone to the hard-hitting film. Rani Mukherjee's garb as a fiesty TV journalist and Vidya's ordinary dress sense are totally in sync with the story.

The film has an impeccable first half and could do with some editing in the second half. But the high drama, the arresting performances and the spunky audio track by Amit Trivedi make No One Killed Jessica a memorable viewing.

Sedition Scam

2011-01-05T18:17:00.004+05:30

We have to hand it to the Indian government. Cocking a snook at critics who have accused it of being a soft target for terror attacks and insurrectionary militias, the government and the laws have demonstrated just how tough it can be when it wants to. It has struck a mighty blow for democracy and in one stroke symbolically put paid to the so-called Naxal menace which reportedly has affected over 160 of the country's 600 districts. The Naxal menace been described by the Prime Minister as India's biggest single threat to national security, more so even bigger than the Pakistan-inspired terrorism.

The Indian government and the judiciary achieved this by arresting and giving a life sentence for sedition to a frail, ailing, 61 year old doctor-cum-social activist who has dedicated all his life to the welfare of tribal communities and other marginalized people who are too small and insignificant to be noticed by the Indian from the remote and lofty perch that it occupies.

Despite appeals made not only by 22 Nobel laureates, including economist Amartya Sen, but also by numerous human rights organizations across the world that the detainee, Dr. Binayak Sen, be released but the Indian government and judiciary have stood its ground with admirable firmness. Dr. Sen had been found guilty by a court of law for his "connections" with the Maoists, whose avowed agenda is the violent overthrow of the Indian state. As such, under Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code, Dr. Sen is guilty of sedition , a crime which carries life sentence. That the case against Dr. Sen is based on a highly questionable police report, which, among other anomalies, contained a "typographical error" regarding the exact locations where the alleged "linkages" took placehas not deterred the course of justice. Nor does it matter whether there is no evidence whatsoever that the accused has himself ever committed or instigated acts of violence. He has been found guilty by association; of being a Maoist sympathizer if not an actual Maoist. That is enough for the Indian judiciary and government which, tired of being called a soft target, wants to show to the world, but most of all wants to project itself, just how tough it really is. Throw the guy in jail and while you're at it, throw away the key.

Dr. Binayak Sen is not the only one on whom the Indian state recently demonstrated its toughness. Arundhati Roy and Hurriyat SAS Gilani both have had charges of sedition slapped on them for espousing the cause of Kashmiri azaadi. The Indian judiciary and government--which appears to have 100% tolerance for scams and swindles of various kinds--has zero tolerance for sedition. As interpreted by the state, sedition seems to mean not just any attempt to overthrow it but to in any way show sympathy with those who question or rebel against the legitimacy of its actions.

Dr. Sen's imprisonment has in no way helped quell Maoism (indeed P. Chidambaram recently admitted that the Naxals still had "the capacity to strike at will, giving them the upper hand over security forces") does not matter. Nor does it appear to matter that, even as the Home Minister was making his statement about the undiminished Maoist threat, Pranab Mukherjee said that the spread of Naxalism in backward areas was a "reflection of our failure in meeting the expectations of the local people." Is the minister's admission of "failure" itself liable to the charge of sedition in that it undermines the authority of the judiciary and government?

Dr. Binayak Sen's imprisonment will not in any way help in tackling the Naxal "menace". The sedition charges against Arundhati Roy and Gilani will not in any way help in tackling the 62 year old Kashmir problem. But perhaps, the real purpose of such measures is not to solve these deeply entrenched problems--born out of the chronic weakness of the state's policies--but only to show the selective toughness of the government and the judiciary. Perhaps the reality of weakness is not important; the perception of toughness is.

If this is indeed so, "sedition" is the biggest scam of all, sponsored by the judiciary and government.

News We Can Use

2011-01-02T14:25:00.006+05:30

For the Indian media, the past year 2010 has been almost Dickensian: it's been the best of times, but also possibly the worst. A Chief Minister resigning due to media pressure, a Union Minister stepping down, senior politicians being raided: when was the last time the Indian media could claim so many "victories" in a single year? Yet, just as we were rejoicing at the return of hard, uncompromising whistle-blower journalism, along came the Niira Radia tapes to throw journalism into a new spin. A couple of months ago prior to the year end, the media was being congratulated for taking on the political establishments. Now, it is being accused of cosying up and being co-opted by the power elite. The truth, as often is the case, lies somewhere in between.

In a sense, the rise and fall of the Indian media was almost inevitable. Over the past two decades, the Indian media has grown exponentially. In 2000, the government cleared just one news channel. Today, there are now more than 500 channels being beamed into several homes across the country, one third of which are news channels, with over a hundred more waiting for permission. Add over a 100 million newspaper copies that are sold on a daily basis, more than 8 million Internet users and the image of a news-driven society is complete. When consumption reaches such mammoth proportions, the media is bound to play a larger-than-life role in our lives.

At a public discussion with a veteran journalist two weeks ago, a student from a rather angry audience: "Do you people in the media think you're God?" The senior journalist hastened to emphasize his mortality, but realized that he had little chance. At one level, the viewers expect the media to solve problems plaguing the nation today: from uprooting corruption, ending terrorism, to even clearing the garbage in the neighbourhood. At another level, the same media is being asked to be a little more humble, less opinionated and less caught up in their new-found celebrity status. A new God of the masses or a faceless slave to the vast multitudes of news viewers? That's the uneasy choice which is being thrown at the new generation of media today.

Some journalists have fallen into the trap which these contrasting expectations now pose. Every night, it is not unusual for television news anchors to play judge, jury and executioners. From being neutral and detached observers of the news, journalists have arrogated to themselves the right to speak for the "nation", never mind if there are others who might have differing views. The guru of chat shows, Larry King, put the new mantra of television news rather succinctly: "If you look at the media now, all the hosts of these other shows are interviewing themselves. You see, the guests are a prop for the anchors."

Once the media wears the garb of self righteousness and begins speaking from the news pulpit, then the media is asking for trouble. For when the "media-as-God" fails to deliver, then a backlash is inevitable. Which is precisely what has happened in the aftermath of the Niira Radia tapes. The anger one senses in the blogsphere and beyond is partly a sense of feeling let down by those who were seen to be the conscience-keepers of the nation. After all, if the media is speaking for the anonymous masses, then the same audience believes it has the right to hold the media accountable. No matter then that most of us would be embarrassed in varying degrees if our private conversations were made public. The media, which holds the rest of the society to a higher standard of accountability, is expected to adhere to those same rigorous standards.

In a way, this is a positive development. During the media revolution in the past decade, there is little doubt that rules and norms of journalism have been cast aside amid the frenzied competition. Loose allegations, often made without even basic verification, are broadcast and published with little fear of defamation. When today's news is the next hour's history, then truth can lose out to sensationalism with worrying consequences for media credibility.

We sometimes need a media trial, if only to shake a corrupt system out of its deep slumber. But if the media trial becomes an end in itself, if news becomes an expression of personal biases and reversing the basic jurisprudential principle of being innocent till proven guilty, then we again run the risk of shrinking our long-term professional integrity.

Which is why some of the criticism of the media that has followed the publication of the Niira Radia tapes forces a course correction then we must welcome it. The rise of the media has almost made us starry-eyed and disconnected with ground realities. The media even forgot their institutional responsibility: that they are nothing but servants of the institutions known as the free press and they exist to further its cause, not their individual ones and certainly not those of political or corporate India.

Yet in this connection it is very important to note that although there are several ills that can be laid at the media's door, the media as a whole must not be judged by the flawed behaviour of a few. The media is made up of hundreds of committed journalists, reporters and news gatherers all of whom do a tough honest day's job in bringing the news to the ordinary Indian without fear or favour. It is they who have brought down the mighty 2010 and it is these unknown faceless people who uphold the spirit of journalism.

Post Script: A recent poll conducted by the Hindustan Times-Cfore survey suggested that 97% of those polled did not trust journalists in the aftermath of the Niira Radia tapes. Another poll conducted by The Week ranked the media just above real estate agents and politicians in the trust factor. Restoring the trust deficit must become our new year resolution for the year ahead.

A Resolve against Resolutions

2010-12-31T00:00:00.003+05:30

Happy New Year!! It is that time of the year when we spend hours deciding the factual lies we are going to say to ourselves, family members, friends and basically to anyone who cares to listen to the ineffectual lies we generally end up saying at the start of a new year. It's that time when we resolve to make promises, we haven't a hope in hell of being able to keep. Statements such as "I'll lose weight", "I'll put on weight", "I'll not make people wait", "I'll join Alcoholics Anonymous", "I'll stop feeling sorry for myself" etc!

I'm sure you must have realized that I'm talking about the infamous "New Year Resolutions!" All of us make them, break them a few days into the new year. Well, I say, if we have to break them more like an obligation, then why make them in the first place? I can proudly proclaim that I have achieved that very few individuals to have survived on this planet, since time immemorial, have! I have managed to keep up to the last resolution I made--to never make a resolution again. I refuse to set myself boundaries or curb the flow of my destiny by a set of self-imposed shackles!

I know I might sound wounded, pessimistic and wary at the dawn of the new year but maybe because it's because of a constant barrage by various media channels and publications down the years which predictably have the same question to ask us each year which winds up. "What is your new year resolution?" Initially, I was a guinea pig, completely ignorant about the repercussions of innocently stating my resolutions in good faith. But then, I realized that each time a resolution bit the dust, it became subject to ridicule.

It is not that I judge people who make New Year resolutions. I respect them equally for trying to instill discipline into their lives. I wish them best of luck in keeping upto their promises. I wait to welcome them over to the dark sides when they fail. So once more, I have decided I'm not going to make a resolution! Oops... was that a resolution? On that note, Happy New Year!!

Silence as sedition

2010-12-30T00:11:00.005+05:30

A true measure of being democratic is not the cycles of elections--it is the dignity given to disagreement, to dissent. Why must we dignify dissent? There are the arguments that we hear everyday: so that the views of the majority cannot silence the voices of a few; so that no one can view or institution may become so dominant as to become authoritarian; and the value of freedom of speech and expression in and of themselves. Any memory of the Indian Emergency in 1975-77 is testimony to why any of these are important. Yet there is a more fundamental reason why dissent is the cornerstone of a democracy: it is the action of a free citizen.

Speech is an action. An action within a democratic framework--an action that simultaneously shows a continuous faith in the polity, the State and the people even as one (often virulently) disagrees with it. An action that keeps a democratic system alive. You dissent as a citizen, in the name of the Constitution. You dissent because you have the freedom to do so--not a freedom you have been "given" but one that you possess because you, as part of the people, are sovereign. This is more important than what we are taught in our school and college textbooks--being able to voice our disagreement is as central as the ability to walk to a ballot box and cast our vote. This is a freedom we give to each other as democratic citizens and that we must protect, especially when we disagree.

There is no more fundamental understanding of what makes and sustains a democracy. Speech and engagement are the antithesis of apathy, of a people who have lost their sensitivity and ethical compass. You don't have to like what people say--indeed it is when what they say makes your blood boil that you must defend their right to speak even as you exercise your right to vocally and fiercely disagree with them.

Dr. Binayak Sen speaks. Through his actions and words, he protests, he engages, he dissents, he disagrees. His weapons are words, ideas and actions. Everything he does represents a strained, challenged but surviving faith and commitment to non-violent, democratic dissent though everyone around him should and must have given him so many reasons to lose that faith. His actions represent what makes India democratic and his conviction shows the deep fragility of our democracy today. If you wish to protect the nation-state, it is Dr. Binayak Sen you must protect.

Dr. Binayak Sen could have remained silent. Like so many of us, he could have been "safe" and not facing a life term in prison today. All he had to do was to shirk his duties as a citizen and an ethical human being and choose the easier way of remaining silent. The rest of us do so everyday in a country that is home to some of the most-entrenched and deepening inequality in the world. In our everyday lives, we stand by multiple exclusions and everyday acts of violence, homelessness, hunger, the removal of social benefits and a new India that measures its growth by its richest rather than its poorest. Why the poor do not revolt in arms is anyone's guess. They have no reason to wage a war against the rest of us who tolerate, sanction and reproduce their exclusion. So when those excluded and those that speak in favour choose to still speak and to engage democratically despite these violent exclusions, there can be nothing more important for our democracy to listen.

Those who (ab)use sedition often claim that the actions of people like Dr. Sen and Arundhati Roy are 'anti-India'. Let's agree to this claim for a moment and think in terms of 'defending India'. When we are silent in the face of rampant press censorship and collusion, when thousands die of hunger though grain rots in granaries, when the country celebrates its miracle growth even as agriculture stagnates and even contracts, when farmers commit suicide, when our own leaders make the word 'scandal' an everyday joke, are we not 'anti-India'? Is our silence not the greatest betrayal of every idea of India worth defending? If sedition is such a crime, is our silence not the greatest enactment of it?

Dr. Sen's conviction represents a crossroads for our democracy. It will no doubt be challenged in court and hopefully overturned but no legal victory can or will be enough. The conviction must be challenged by us as citizens. We must refuse to be silent. We must act--through protests, conversations, petitions, writing and pushing the government, our elected representatives and the media to take a stand. Whether we agree or disagree with Dr. Sen's world-view or his politics, we must speak up to defend not just his freedom to dissent but, crucially, our own right to be democratic.