What is India House at the Paris Olympics?

Ok, so I was scrolling through Instagram, and guess what popped up? Nita Ambani’s announcement about India House at the Paris 2024 Olympics! Trust me, this is something every Indian should be super excited about.

What is India House?

So, what exactly is India House? Well, it’s a dedicated space at the Olympics where Indian culture, heritage, and sports will be showcased. Think of it as a mini-India right in the heart of Paris. From arts and crafts to culinary delights and sporting events, India House will have it all. It’s going to be a vibrant, bustling hub where fans, athletes, and visitors can immerse themselves in the rich tapestry of Indian culture.

A Peek into the Future

Nita Ambani, the powerhouse behind this initiative, shared her vision in such a passionate and heartfelt manner. She talked about how India House is not just a place but a symbol of our country’s progress and aspirations. She highlighted that this is a step towards fulfilling the dream of hosting the Olympics in India someday. How cool would that be? I mean commonwealth games was good, but Olympics?

Cultural Extravaganza

One of the most exciting parts is the variety of experiences that India House promises to offer. There’s going to be everything from yoga sessions and traditional dance performances to delicious Indian food. Can you imagine watching a live Bharatanatyam performance while munching on some spicy samosas in Paris? It’s like taking a quick trip back home without leaving the Olympic grounds!

A Home Away From Home

For the Indian athletes competing in the Olympics, India House will be their sanctuary. A place where they can feel at home, celebrate their victories, and share their stories. It’s such a thoughtful gesture to create a supportive environment for our athletes who are miles away from home. And for the fans, it’s the perfect spot to cheer on our heroes and experience the thrill of the games together.

Celebrating 100 Years of Indian Olympics

Another goosebump-inducing fact is that India House will commemorate 100 years since India first competed in the Olympics under the IOA. It’s a celebration of our journey and achievements in the world of sports. It really gives you a sense of pride and makes you realise how far we’ve come.

Bringing the World to India

Nita Ambani mentioned that the logo of India House is inspired by the jharokha, which is a traditional Indian window. It’s symbolic of opening a window to India for the world. I absolutely love this concept! It’s like inviting everyone to peek into our vibrant culture, our traditions, and our way of life.

Building a Sporting Legacy

What’s even more inspiring is the broader impact of this initiative. By setting up India House, Reliance Foundation and the IOA are not just focusing on this one event. They are committed to empowering young athletes and supporting them with world-class infrastructure and opportunities. This move is all about building a legacy and ensuring that India continues to shine brightly in the global sporting arena.

Seeing this announcement filled me with so much pride and excitement. It’s not just about the Olympics; it’s about showcasing the best of India on a global stage and making our presence felt. Nita Ambani’s vision and dedication to this project are truly commendable. I can’t wait to see India House in action at the Paris 2024 Olympics, and I hope it brings India one step closer to hosting the Games in our own incredible country someday.

I will try and post more aboutit as things progress. 

Today India Lost Her Voice - Lata Di is Gone

This is a useless post, nobody is waiting to see my reaction to the momentous event in Indian history, nothing will change, no awareness is needed, no conversations need to be started. She who is gone will not be affected by it, those who remain already know what there was to know about her. Still, I am writing because this blog is my public diary and I want to express what's inside me even if not a single person reads it. As I said, it won't change any lives. 

Lata Mangeshkar, lovingly called Lata di or Lata didi (Sister Lata) by all Indians was, on paper, an Indian playback singer but those who know her or even know of her, know that she was much more than that. She was a wonderful human being, so kind-hearted, gracious and sweet, such a beautiful soul that I cannot find anyone to compare her with. If you ask an Indian who their favourite male singer is there can be a few different possibilities but there is no other choice except Lata Di if you talk about female playback singers. The reason is not just her talent, she was extremely talented, there is no denying that but the person she was matters more. 

Indians are obsessed with their celebrities and love to read anything and everything about them. In a country where there are lots of star tantrums, scandals and unseemly episodes, Lata Di was one who was always an example to uphold. 

When she started her career she was rejected by All India Radio because of her voice. At that time, playback singers with heavy voices like Noorjahan were ruling the film industry. But soon there came a time when Lata di rose to the heights of playback singing and became such a shining star that she used to get all the awards for singing every year. After a couple of years, she withdrew her name from the running so that other people could get a chance. I don't know a single artist alive today who would have that kind of superlative talent or a big heart like that. 

The list of the titles and awards that received is too long to put in this blog. She was awarded Bharat Ratna, the highest civilian award of India. 

For me, Lata Di the singer is always admirable in her supreme talent and the success she had in her career but the person she was goes beyond that. 

A couple of years ago she put one short video post on social media which was just her speaking to the camera for a couple of minutes. Her voice was sweet because her heart was full of love. Every word she spoke was so full of gratitude and humility that it brought tears to my eyes to just watch her say that she was going to try and connect with her fans on social media. 

When comedian Kapil Sharma had an incident where his studio burnt down and he suffered heavy losses, Lata Di called him and asked what she could to do help. I adore Kapil Sharma, he is a very talented artist and a genuine person but compared to Lata Di...if she were the Queen of the country, he would be a poor farmer. But she called him and offered her help. Just a word of support from a person like that can give someone inspiration and motivation to carry on in the face of the most dire circumstances. 

Another Indian comedian Sugandha Mishra plays the character of Lata di in comedy sketches and she is very talented herself. As far as I have seen she does not do anything disparaging towards Lata Di when she mimics her but some people took offence at it and Sugandha was mercilessly trolled for it because every Indian loves Lata di. The matter was put to rest when Lata di herself saw it and said she didn't mind. 

The loss that Indian film and music Industry has suffered today as Lata di passed away at age 92 is irreparable but she was also such a shining star, such a celestial presence in Indian history that she will always inspire everybody who knew her, knew of her or will come to know about her. 

While there will never be another Lata Mangeshkar, Lata di will never be gone from our hearts! 

Pressure of the Cooker

I was lying on the cot in the outside room which had a door open towards the street. My mind was blissfully empty of any productive thoughts when my mom came over to me from the street side “This one or this one?”

 “What?” I had to get up to see what she was on about “Wow, they are pressure cookers?”

 The two items she was holding looked like miniature versions of alien spaceships but in fact were pressure cookers. Not surprising then that they were the new Hawkins model – sleek black bodies with curves in the right places.

 “How much is this one?” I asked.

 “Five litres.” Mom said.

 “And this one?”

 “Two litres.” She said “Take this one.” She pushed the five litre one at me.

 “No, this is too big.” I objected “Two litre one is fine for me.”

 “Are you sure? Or come and see more. Pammi has more options.”

 Pammi is our neighbour, wonderful guy, worked in this kind of merchandise for years.

 “No, this is fine.”

 “It’s not too small?” Mom asked “What if you want to make pulav?”

 Have you ever noticed how mothers are obsessed with the eating? They feel like their kid is just going to starve himself to death if they don’t force the issue. But you can’t blame them, they have seen you in that phase when you used to prefer playing in the dirt to having a proper meal. Maybe you grew up, but she doesn’t believe it.

 “No, mom,” I declared “two litre is enough for pulav also. I need space in my suitcase to carry this.”

 And that was that. Two days later I flew back to UK with the pressure cooker safely wrapped in my clothes.

 That was twelve years ago.

 Since then I have kept this trusty little pressure cooker with me every time I moved. It has been doing a good job of feeding me well. Kind of like my mother. May be my mother made it promise before I left India. I have made pulav in it, and mutter-paneer, chana masala and lots of other dishes.

But then last week, while performing its duties on the hob it started leaking steam. I quickly guessed that the gasket was gone. I had a spare gasket (the rubber ring that seals the lid to the body) so it was no problem. Only I could not find it. It was in one of those “safe” places where you store everything. I have seen it 10,000 times when I didn’t need it but not now. So, I looked at the lid again. No, the gasket seemed fine. But there was a hole under the handle. Oh, that’s that thingy...er....yeah, the safety valve. Correct. That hole didn’t use to be there so obviously it was blown. Fine.

Normally, when something goes kaput I am happy because I can buy a new one. But this was a different case. I lost my mother eight years ago and this pressure cooker has been my connection with her even when she’s physically not in my life. Yes, I know, it’s stupid, but I am a sentimental fool.

These days everything is available on Amazon. The safety valve must be there as well. It was. I could buy a Hawkins safety valve for a couple of quid. Great. It arrived the next day. Out comes my toolbox (Yes, I have one, I am a macho man.). But the nut holding the valve would not budge. Well, as I mentioned, I am a macho man. I keep WD-40 in the house (machine oil). I took it out and sprayed some on both sides of the nut. After two applications and some wait, the nut moved, but now, it moved on both sides. Drat!

I tried holding the inside nut with pliers but it just slipped out of the grip. The message was clear, it was time to become super macho. I went on Amazon again and ordered a set of spanners. That arrived the next day. After that it was simply a matter of finding which one fit the nut. Using a spanner and the wrench I was able to get the safety valve off. Replacing it with the new valve was a piece of cake. Funny enough, the new valve was bigger and needed a bigger spanner but it fit perfectly in the hole left by the old valve in the cooker lid.

Once the replacement was in place, I put the handle back on. Then I put some water in the cooker and tested it. It worked perfectly.

So, what’s the moral of this story? Well, there isn’t one. Or may be we can say something about perseverance. Or you can’t solve everything by brute force, get the right tool for the job. Or don’t replace it, if you can fix it.

Do you like to replace things or tinker with them until they work?

 

[Note: The links in the post are affiliate links. They will not cost you any more but if you anything from those links it helps this blog.]  

 

What I learnt from my father

I learnt a lot from my father. Some things he taught me consciously, some he taught me by example which he didn't know he was teaching me and some he taught me that even I didn't know I was learning!

But learn I did!

My father was a simple man! If I have to define him in one word it would be that. He had no pretensions, no delusions that he was a very wise man with a lot to teach, no, nothing like that. He simply was!

Much of his life was spent in earning a livelihood for himself and then later in life for his family. This he did with remarkable success. I say remarkable not because he left us a business empire but because of the distance he covered in his life. He started as modestly as anyone could, at the age of 10. And he learnt and improved himself and made a life for himself. And for us - me, my mother and my siblings.

I will try to keep this brief as I have so much I can put in here that it will become a book. In fact, I did at one time decide to write a book about him. I was not diligent enough. Even before that, when I was just a boy I had started collecting quotes, things that he just said, but sounded like pearls of wisdom to me.

They still hold true today.

Simplicity is very powerful. This I learnt from his example. My life and desires are not as simple as he kept his but nevertheless the learning is there, rooted deep in my mind. Simple, is beautiful!

I can describe his life philosophy in this couplet from poet Rahimdas.

रहिमन इतना दीजिये जामें कुटुंब समाय
मैं भी भूखा न रहूँ साधू न भूखा जाय

[God, give me as much in which my family should be covered.
May I not stay hungry, and may I not need to turn away hungry a beggar (saadhu, fakir, saint, sanyasi) who comes to my door.]


I learnt from him the strength of truth. No matter how poor or weak a man may be, if he has truth on his side nobody can touch him.

That was his word and that was his life. I have seen him turn down material temptations that any other man would jump at, with no effort, without even considering them as temptations.

I learnt that money has a purpose. I always saw him care about money only insomuch as it was his livelihood and the daily bread for his family. He never ran after money, never compromised his principles, never compromised his family life for money.

Quality is important in everything you do. That lesson he taught me without saying anything. But everything he did, he put all of himself into it. Anything less than perfect quality was never even a consideration for him. It was always achieved by the sweat of his brow but he did the hard work as a matter of course, nary a complaint on his lips. Ever.

There are many, many other things that I learnt from him.

To this day, I often pause and think "What would dad think if I did this?" and it guides my choice.


It has been 6 years. Today.

Noise, Noise, off the wall..

An interesting read by Purba.
http://www.purba-ray.com/2016/09/dj-wale-babu-zara-volume-badhaa-do.html

She is quite right though. We do love our noise. It doesn't even have to be music, but usually we need something that can masquerade as music. I have even heard truck drivers on the highway honk their horns in short bursts of their homemade "melody".

While you do run into pubs and clubs which are too noisy for conversation the same thing is not so common in restaurants. Although, there are restaurants that have very loud music playing, the more classy (read expensive) ones have only subdued, soft music that is a good backdrop to conversation without getting in the way. I know some of these, but I have also been known to ask the management to reduce the volume if I go to the other kind of restaurant. I eat quite often in mall food courts during my India visits anyway.

The thing that drives me up the wall is the incessant hoking! During my recent trip, I had the pleasure(!) of being stuck in many traffic jams (Delhi traffic is off the charts right now!) and people honk for no reason at all. They are all stuck in traffic and everybody is moving as and when they can. But these people would still honk. Seems to me like they are clutching the last dregs of sanity by venting their frustration with their horns. Or they have gone crazy and think that the horn is a video game. I can't decide which!

One thing I thankfully did not run into this trip was a "mata ka jagran" near my house. They play what seems like a fake-bhajans, i.e. songs engineered from latest movie songs with religious words pasted on them. The only "mata" they would remind you of would be Katrina Kaif or Sunny Leone! And volume would be loud enough to rouse the whole neighbourhood, which I think is the idea. It's not limited to any one religion or god though. During Ramzan you can hear the azaan and the call to "sehri" just as loudly.

But coming back to music, it can sometimes be a real nuisance. During one of my India visits I had a young boy in a shop opposite my parental house who liked the song "Main tera boyfriend, tu meri girlfriend, tu mainu kehndi na na na na" a little too much. He put it in a loop and played it at top volume morning, noon, evening, non-stop. Normally, I am a "live and let live" kind of guy but that did get my proverbial goat. Finally, I went there and told him "Dude, change the song or reduce the volume! Or else!" It worked for a while!

You would find the same 5-6 songs playing all over the place - on the radio, in weddings, parties, discos and on TV channels. But new songs have a burnout time of about a month. They get phased out by other equally meaningless, blase songs in due course. Only the most obnoxious, loud and obscene ones would be remembered past 3 months, example Sheila ki jawani and Munni ki badnami.

Musical Memories

Today I was watching this Indian movie award show #Filmfare2015 recording on my train journey home. It's old, from early 2015 and I have seen it before but I like it because one of the comperors was my favourite comedian Kapil Sharma. And then this song came on in the nominees for the Best Music...and the memories came flooding back! No, not the memories of shooting that song...lol..I wish..but the memories of my last trip to India when I took so many road trips with #mykids and I DJ'ed in most of those journeys using my tablet.

I remembered falling in love with this song during that visit. Not when I Dj'ed but on my own I did loop-played it almost all the time. I think my kids might have become sick of it that time.

Hearing it again today brought back the memories of that legendary trip and of course, I miss my kids!

So, yeah, I played it on loop on the walk back from the station, instead of my usual audiobook. :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmWL-JxUGZc

Of course, the song was the winner of the Best Music category. Hehe.

The movie is called "2 States" and the music is by Shankar Ehsaan Loy. I can't do justice to the song but loosely translate the chorus of the song means "My crazy heart keeps repeating your name. Can't forget even it tried."

WakeupIndia: Story - The Real Story

I have decided to write a series of short stories on this topic. I wanted to write so much on this topic but I found that every time I started to blog about it or even planned a post I felt that onrush of frustration, rage and sorrow that I had felt when I read that Nirbhaya died. I was unable to write at all.

After a lot of thought I decided that instead of writing a post which is "real" I could write a story which would be "fiction" thus allowing me the distance I need in order to be able to write without giving up in despair.

These stories are not meant to be literary masterpieces but simply meant to illustrate a point or allow me to vent my frustration at the current system in which a girl is India is blamed for being a girl.

I have some other initiatives in mind as well, which I will tell you about as they take shape. Right now, I am planning and organizing.

For now, here's the first story in the series. You are welcome to share your thoughts.

The Real Story

Inspector Kiran Prakash entered the police station with a civilian in tow. The civilian was carrying a notepad and pen and looked generally like the stereotype of a journalist.

“Actually, reporter babu,” said the Inspector, “your news is little bit true. There are really many cases of rape reported in this area.”

Journalist Jyotiramaya nodded, encouraging the other to talk, which he did.

“But they are not real rapes.” said the inspector.

“They are not?” the journalist asked in his usual alert manner.

“No, no, not even half of them. Most of these cases are reported by prostitutes.”

“Prostitutes?” the reporter was genuinely puzzled now.

“It’s not so strange as you think, sir. These prostitutes carry on their illegal trade, and when a customer does not pay them, they cry ‘Rape!’ to involve the police and harass the poor guy.”

The inspector took a seat behind his desk, inviting the journalist to sit in front of him with a gesture.

Jyotirmaya sat down and asked “How many of these cases are registered by these prostitutes?”

Inspector said with contempt “Arre all of them, yaar! I know these girls. Bloody whores! They think they can fool the police!”

Hawaldar Jagtap Singh approached the inspector’s desk “Jai hind, saab ji!”

Inspector nodded “Haan jai hind. Jagtap, this is journalist Jyoti babu. He is writing an article on rape situation in India. Send someone to bring 2 coca-cola. And bring today’s cases.”

Jagtap left and came back with bottles and a file.

He placed the bottles on the table and handed the file to Kiran Prakash, “Saab ji, main case is only one, a girl has come to report a rape.”

The Inspector looked at Jyotirmaya, “Your lucky day! You will see with your own eyes how I do ‘justice’ to these cases in 2 minutes.”

Jyotirmaya only nodded, with his pen poised over his notepad.

The inspector faced the Hawaldar again, “What is the case?”

“You know our MLA saab’s elder son Bunty...this girl is saying he kidnapped her from her college and raped her in his father’s house.”

The inspector turned to give his comments to the journalist again, “Bunty is a bit naughty, but I don’t believe this girl at all.”

The journalist, against his habit, commented with astonishment, “But you haven’t even heard her story yet!”

Inspector Kiran Prakash took a sip of his Coke and gave a derisive grin, “Oh, Sir ji, I don’t need to hear her story. I know the real story. Just one of those whores I was telling you about.”

Jagtap contributed readily, “Reporter babu, our saab ji is fully right. I knew it as soon as I saw her. She is beautiful but characterless!” Then he turned to his superior, “Sir ji, I have put her in the lockup with the other prostitutes. Imagine her nerve! Accusing the MLA’s son, hain ji?”

The inspector looked at the journalist as if to convince him, “You will see yourself, sir ji. Jagtap, le ke aa saali ko. Bring her in!”

Jagtap left and re-entered a minute later, herding in front of him a girl that had clearly gone through a violent and traumatic experience. Her face and clothes were all dirty and damaged but her eyes held a grim determination.

Inspector Kiran Prakash’s chair collapsed on the floor as he got out of it explosively, his eyes wide as he looked at the girl.

The single word came out of his hoarse throat in a mixture of horror and disbelief. ”Rashmi!!”

The girl looked up at his voice and tears ran down her cheeks in streaks, “Bhaiya!” (Brother!)

Wake up India

The recent 16th December incident has shaken me, not just by its brutality but also by the facts that have come out to show how prevalent this evil is in our country.

As a common man, there is not a lot in my power, but one thing is well within my power and that is to raise my voice against the current state of affairs and demand a change! I was sorry that I was not in India to partake in the protests that followed the outrageous incident but it occurs to me that there are more ways than one to take part in a revolution.

I may be less than a drop in the ocean but drops have a habit of joining together and becoming the flood that cannot be stopped. To that end I am starting this series on my blog tagged as "Wake up India".

And I am reminded of the old expression from pre-Independence India -

खींचो न कमानों को न तलवार निकालो
जब तोप मुकाबिल हो, अखबार निकालो

[Do not bend the bows nor unsheath the sword.
When faced with the cannon, use the printed word.]

Why Indians give advice?

Suddenly it occurred to me yesterday that unlike English we don't have that many expressions for showing sympathy, formally, to someone who's sick or hurt. In English you just hear someone say they are in a bad way and you can let loose with a multitude of platitudes.

"Oh, so sorry to hear of your accident, mate!"
"Aww, I am sorry!"
"Oh, may he rest in peace!"
"Get well soon!" (that one sounds more like an order).

We have none of those. I mean we have the words and sentences in Hindi, but they are not in use so much in real life. If you start saying those things in real, it sounds phony and dramatic.

I remember a line I read long ago - हिन्दुस्तान में राय  और चाय हर जगह बिना मांगे मिलती हैं।

(In India, you get advice and tea unasked everywhere.)

Maybe that's the reason.

We don't want to sound phony like a politician by quoting platitudes so we show our compassion and sympathy (of which we have an abundance) by giving advice.

As soon as you say, "I am feeling a bit of fever.", Uncle Ji would say, "Arre beta, you must take care, this season is not very good. Take two of ..." and so on. Some people would show off their knowledge of off-the-counter medicines while others would advise herbal remedies. Those who don't possess any specialized knowledge would at least tell you to see a doctor, or even recommend their doctor to you.

What I am saying is that, despite the lack of formal concern-showing phrases in daily use, we have our ways of showing genuine concern and compassion for a friend in distress. Where a Western woman would say, "Oh, get well soon, dear!", an Indian woman would say, "मैं अदरक की चाय बनाकर लाती हूँ आपके लिए।" (I will make some ginger tea for you.)

Of course, this a very generic and very subjective picture of both cultures and exceptions exist on both sides but....I am just dumping my thoughts on paper here and I would love to hear your thoughts on the subject.  Click that comment button.

Yash Chopra - The King of Romance - Passed away

Yash Chopra, prominent Indian filmmaker, passed away this Sunday evening in a hospital in Bombay.

That single sentence is easy to read but it’s not easy to digest! The impact of this one fact is immense! Yash ji was not your normal run-of-the-mill film director - he was a creative genius and a bold trend-setter.

Some of his great films included Deewar, Kabhie Kabhie, Trishul, Veer-Zaara, Jhoom Barabar Jhoom,....the list is long. So many of these are in my all-time favourites list.

He made more than 50 Hindi films and most of them were extremely successful. I think his genius was in his style, he could portray any subject in a larger than life manner and still connect with the common man. He was a true merchant of dreams.

Yash ji sold many dreams to the Indian audience worldwide over his 50 years long career. I don’t want to type out the list of filmfare awards and the honours he won in country and internationally, the internet is full of those facts. I didn’t know they had named a railway station after him.

All I want to do is pay my tribute to the great dreammaker and tell you that he was a great inspiration, definitely to me, and probably to a huge number of filmmakers all over the world.

He will be greatly missed!

Shut up about Lokpal already!

Indian people need to shut the fuck up...about corruption!

What was it that Jesus said - "He who is without sin shall cast the first stone!" or something like that.

Lately there has been a lot of discussion and shooting of mouth about corruption what with the Lokpal bill and Anna Hazare's movement and everything. It surprises me how little common sense is there in the world and how otherwise sensible people can be idiots. Yes, I am going to say "idiots" because I am pissed off right now.

Let me ask you something, you, who is sooo dead-set against corruption and cannot curse the corrupt politicians enough..who do you think you are?

When you are stopped by a policeman on the road, why do you say "Sir dekh lo kuchh ho sakta ho to.." instead of simply paying a challan like an "honest" citizen should? You don't even want to go to court and challenge it because you'll have to take a day off work. It's much simpler and easier to slip a 50 Rs. note to the constable on duty with your driving licence and be on your way.

When you need a ration card, do you go and stand in the queue for half a day or you pay an "agent" to deliver it conveniently to your house?

When you got your driving licence, did you really take the tests or did you "ensure" that you passed?

When a family member is sick and you have a chance to bypass the queues because the nurse on duty lives down the street from you, do you NOT take it because it would be unfair to others?

When you get a parking challan, do you go and pay it or do you find a way to "get it settled"?

When you have to pay "donation" to the private school to get your child admitted do you think even for a minute NOT to do it because it's corrupt and admit your kid to the government school?

When you buy something expensive do you waive the receipt because it'd mean paying 2% sales tax if you took the bill?

Have you ever lied on your expense account to the company?

Is your income tax statement 100% accurate?

Then who the hell gave you the right to talk about other people's corruption? 

The politicians are blamed because they are caught, and they do it in such horrendously large amounts but isn't that the only difference between you and them? A small thief and a big thief? They are both thieves and you know it.

So what is it? What is this big devotion to the Lokpal or any anti-corruption movement? Isn't it you trying to quiet your conscience about your own corruption by pointing fingers at the bigger thieves?

What I am saying is that it MIGHT be possible to find an honest policeman in India but it would be next to IMPOSSIBLE to find an honest member of the public!

I have no knowledge of the Indian politics, never did, never will, but if Anna Hazare is a politician, I would doubt IMMENSELY that he is without reproach. It just means that he hid it well.

And what would happen if the Lokpal bill was passed? Do you think it's LEGAL now for cops to take a bribe? Tell me in which department it is legally allowed to take a bribe and then tell me in which department bribe system is not in place!

Do I need to list out the activities that are 100% against the law and still each one of them flourishes in every city in India? Prohibition only drives the activity underground and drives the price up. Corruption is already underground, so what do you think will happen when one bill is passed?

In a country where a corrupt politician can get out by bribing the right people, it is absolutely stupid to pin so many hopes to a piece of legislation.

The law doesn't fix a problem, the culture does, at present we have a culture of corruption and it's not going away any time soon. So wake up and shut up!

'nuff said. 

Happy Children's Day!

This is the risk in reading other people's blogs. Bikram has done a great post on the Indian youth who took part in India's struggle for freedom and it inspired me to write something as well on the occasion of Children's day.

Not that I can talk from a grown up's point of view, never having grown up myself. I have grown older but still a child at heart.

Since I have lived in the western world for a few years, and I am quite immersed in the western culture by way of movies and books, I have wondered more than once how my life would have turned out had I grown up in the US or UK. It would have been different!

For example, I would not turn pink every time I talk to a pretty girl since social life even in school days is quite mixed in this culture! But alas, I went to a boys-only high school. There are a lot of other things too, like Indian schools have hardly any extra-curricular programs. Or so it was when I was in school. These days with the sprouting of private schools everywhere and the evolving curriculum things are changing a little.

Then there are other things like learning to drive before you are 18, learning to dance, learning to throw a party etc. etc.

But then there is the flip side. There is no doubt that we had a hard life living in India and in a middle-class family. But that same condition taught me so much that I cannot begin to describe how much it contributed to the development of my character. The adverse conditions and hard life made me stronger physically and mentally. And even at that I cannot use the words "hard life" for my life without feeling a bit ashamed. My life was a patch of clover compared to what my dad started with and what a lot of Indian children didn't have and don't, even today.

Plus, I don't forget the things that I didn't learn not growing up in US. I didn't learn to drink beer, I never learnt to smoke, weed to me is still a form of vegetation that you need to root out, MJ for me was only Madan Jain. Those are some mighty important things never to learn.

So, on Children's Day I just wants to wish all the children in India a happy, healthy life and help them realize that they are really lucky to be growing up in one of the best, probably THE best culture in the world.

I am back

So I am back from India. It was a good trip, longest I have had in a while- 4 whole weeks! But it was all fun.

Most importantly, I am free to write about the one topic that I had been keeping for surprise for my India trip - my guitar! I have been learning guitar for last few months and didn't want my kids to know that from my blog before they saw it in my hand.

That was done, and they were duly shocked and now I can continue to share my guitar-learning related experiences here, as and when.

More later...

Mughal-e-azam

This is one of my favorites scenes from one of my favorite movies. This movie was made way back when, in pre-Independence India, in black and white. Recently, it was colored and the music was improved to the current technological standards. No, the movie was not re-made, could not even if they tried, so much of the cast, including the heroine are dead, but they colored it, using technology and a truckload of dedication and patience. That's what we do in India these days! And people still ask me if it's true that it's possible to come across an elephant on an Indian road.
Well, that's true too!

Mile Sur Mera Tumhara

You know how sometimes governments try to propagate their own agenda with er...propaganda (pun intended)? There was such an effort a few years back by the Indian Government, and the agenda was to promote national unity and broadcast a message of goodwill and cheer among the diverse masses of India. Yes, it was a good agenda.

As part of this they got some musicians together and created a video clip. The clip was both simple and profound (most times you will see this connection. There was a two line well, song or couplet or whatever you may call it, that was sung throughout this presentation, but in different languages, using the same tune but varying the instrument based on the culture/language being represented on the screen. I am not going to describe the whole thing since that's why I am uploading the original video but I'll translate it for those of my readers who don't understand any of the languages in the clip. I myself understand only a couple of them.
They are singing, literally translated:
My note (musical note, not banknote hehe), when merged with your note (again musical note) becomes our note.
The rivers of notes, from every direction, flow down and merge into the ocean,
they turn into clouds and fall gently down as rain.

That's it. But the musical composition is quite haunting (not in a scary way) and recently when I downloaded this clip, purely on a whim, I found that I still remembered some non-Hindi parts of it, the parts that had been etched in my memory without an effort because I had seen it so many times between TV programs as a filler.

But on the whole, I liked how it presents a nice message with nice music. Simple yet profound.

Watch it if you have the patience for most people, even most Indians won't understand most of it, but it's still watchable. Do tell me if I am wrong.



Oh one more thing, prominent personalities of India appear throughout the presentation, mostly, I suspect with the langauge of the region they belong to.