Who is Sonia Gandhi? Or Laloo Prasad? Or even the oh! so smart, Rahul Gandhi? I definitely am not referring to their political parties but just as people who really are they? Citizens! Citizens who happen to be our representatives to run our country. We elect them either directly or otherwise because of their education, their sheer willingness to even come up and work for one’s country which most of us common people would not do. All agreed. But who would they be if it weren’t for us? Just another Sonia, Rahul, Prasad or whoever!
With the recent ‘austerity drive’ amongst many politicians, my mind began pondering. I pondered about perks the representatives of the country get to enjoy. Yes, they deserve it, but to what extent comes the next question. Perks, free time are all synonyms of a government job in our country for sure. I think we are still used to our grandparents or even parents advising us to take up a government job as it always meant to give us security and all the other ‘necessary evils’!
And the biggest gift of it all, at least here in Bangalore, HAS to be an easy breeze through the city’s horrendous traffic! I have experienced this is Chennai as well. The entire bandwagon is let through while the common man who actually made these ‘fellow common men’ famous, is made to wait whatever be the hurry. My question is, these ministers, politicians, their personal attendants, whoever are already known for being late to most meetings, functions et all. So what is the big deal of stopping citizens on the road and giving these guys all the space. They are already late, how does it matter if it is by 5 minutes or 50? They’d rather wait like any one of us and reach their destinations!
Last afternoon I was travelling by bus and all the vehicles including the one I was in were asked to stop for the obvious reason. I watched the little boy inside the bus pleading his mother to buy him a chocolate, a bus driver spitting out his ugh! chewable tobacco, a smart guy on his new Yamaha wiping a minuscule of dirt from his mirror. Twenty minutes passed by and there were no signs of the ‘VERY IMPORTANT PERSON’. People finally began getting restless. Initially the cops were in command. Now, the common men took over. One by one they began turning on their vehicles and honks began to pierce the cops’ ears! Lo! We were commanded to move on!
People in the bus did not hide their disappointment anymore. Obscenities were hurled at the unknown VIP and I couldn’t stop smiling! How I wish he/she were here in this bus I thought!
For those who don’t live in India and did not know about the incident involving the Prime Minister of the country himself, here it is:
Sumit Prakash Verma, who was 32, died after the vehicle carrying him to the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research could not enter the emergency area in time for treatment. The PM was at that time visiting the hospital for its 30th convocation. (Source: dnaindia.com)
Post this, the PM wrote a letter of apology to the family of the deceased. The article also went on to quote on what former heads and police commissioners thought about the country’s VIP security systems. Good our PM apologized, but the life lost can never be got back. However, clichéd it sounds, it is a fact alright.
Things do not change over night and definitely not in India when it involves politics. But then I think officials must think of a way to keep up the importance which the government servants have to duly get but without troubling us, the common men! It would not hurt our representatives to wait for an extra 10 minutes at the signal and get on with their work just as us. They are also the country’s citizens after all…
Friday, November 13, 2009
Saturday, November 7, 2009
Awesome reason to unite!
To begin with, I have read Chetan Bhagat’s first two novels, Five Point Someone and One night @ the call centre. The former impressed me quite a bit and the latter failed to. Hence I didn’t bother reading his third, The 3 mistakes of my life. However, his latest one, 2 states, the story of marriage, compelled me to read it because my story was similar, at least the guy and I come from two different states!
I managed to finish the book in 6 hours straight and I have decided to read his previous novel! Now for a review of the book though my previous sentence says it all, here it is.
The plot revolves around two smart, intelligent people, coming from opposite poles of India who study in the same B-School. The biggest difference one notices or which one gets used to with experience is that South Indians love their educational degrees while the North Indians sure love their food! One eats to live while the other, the other way around obviously!
The differences can be listed endlessly, but it is about how two clans, along with their virtues, thinking, looks and customs and tie the nuptial knot! It is not a knot just for the two people involved but for the entire family as is wonderfully described here, in the book. One, I come from the Iyer Brahmin community and hence could 200% relate to the entire book and since Mr. Bhagat claims his love to all South Indians in the section of acknowledgments, I can forgive him for all the ‘lovely’ things he had to say about us.
Instances of South Indian ladies dressed in their best Kancheepuram silks being termed as women coming out of golden drums, the famous Kashi Yatrai the groom takes in a Tam Brahm wedding where he takes an auto rickshaw much to the aghast of the bride’s father, the Mickey Mouse undie the protagonist wears and the eating of banana leaves are all very well written and I must say that Bhagat’s writing style is a sheer pleasure. By keeping it simple, he hits you right on and that’s a big boon for any writer.
Since Bhagat’s novels are now being turned to movies, he seems to be writing novel which make it all the more viable for directors. The book is filmy with romance, emotions with respect to both sides’ parents and families especially Krish, the male lead’s father. With 2 romantic numbers, and few more apt song sequences, this book is on its way to becoming another movie for sure.
Personally, I love the book because I had similar stories with my love story too. My mom’s shock when I told her that I had not chosen a Tam Brahm as my future life partner but a hardcore non-veg eating Mallu boy was my choice and that several tweaks in the wedding protocols which had to accommodate both styles of weddings can never be forgotten; one a two day affair (Tamil Brahmin) and the other a 10 minute scene (Mallu wedding). But I guess a love marriage comes with many strings which can never be cut away and that’s where lies all the fun.
Finally the author’s thoughts on love marriages ending up with new generations being evolved as Indians and not as this state and that are definitely to be valued and put into use. All in all, this book is a must read even for those who generally do not read fiction. It will surely change your views!
I managed to finish the book in 6 hours straight and I have decided to read his previous novel! Now for a review of the book though my previous sentence says it all, here it is.
The plot revolves around two smart, intelligent people, coming from opposite poles of India who study in the same B-School. The biggest difference one notices or which one gets used to with experience is that South Indians love their educational degrees while the North Indians sure love their food! One eats to live while the other, the other way around obviously!
The differences can be listed endlessly, but it is about how two clans, along with their virtues, thinking, looks and customs and tie the nuptial knot! It is not a knot just for the two people involved but for the entire family as is wonderfully described here, in the book. One, I come from the Iyer Brahmin community and hence could 200% relate to the entire book and since Mr. Bhagat claims his love to all South Indians in the section of acknowledgments, I can forgive him for all the ‘lovely’ things he had to say about us.
Instances of South Indian ladies dressed in their best Kancheepuram silks being termed as women coming out of golden drums, the famous Kashi Yatrai the groom takes in a Tam Brahm wedding where he takes an auto rickshaw much to the aghast of the bride’s father, the Mickey Mouse undie the protagonist wears and the eating of banana leaves are all very well written and I must say that Bhagat’s writing style is a sheer pleasure. By keeping it simple, he hits you right on and that’s a big boon for any writer.
Since Bhagat’s novels are now being turned to movies, he seems to be writing novel which make it all the more viable for directors. The book is filmy with romance, emotions with respect to both sides’ parents and families especially Krish, the male lead’s father. With 2 romantic numbers, and few more apt song sequences, this book is on its way to becoming another movie for sure.
Personally, I love the book because I had similar stories with my love story too. My mom’s shock when I told her that I had not chosen a Tam Brahm as my future life partner but a hardcore non-veg eating Mallu boy was my choice and that several tweaks in the wedding protocols which had to accommodate both styles of weddings can never be forgotten; one a two day affair (Tamil Brahmin) and the other a 10 minute scene (Mallu wedding). But I guess a love marriage comes with many strings which can never be cut away and that’s where lies all the fun.
Finally the author’s thoughts on love marriages ending up with new generations being evolved as Indians and not as this state and that are definitely to be valued and put into use. All in all, this book is a must read even for those who generally do not read fiction. It will surely change your views!
Thursday, November 5, 2009
Sachin - my new God!
“Tch, but we lost wickets quickly in the middle overs”, said the little master even while he was being presented the man of the match today (Hyderabad ODI, 5 November 2009 – India vs Australia). The Aussies made a mammoth 350 but all eyes and faith rested only upon one man, no, God, Sachin!
I am not technically or statistically good to rattle out the number of runs, hundreds and all other accomplishments he’s made, records he’s created and broken himself. Today maybe just another one for all those die-hard Sachin fans, who’ve seen him fight it out in vain in many matches over his span of 20 years. But for me, it is this day that I truly bow down to this great man!
At 175 runs not out, he made India sit pretty on the wall of victory. Unfortunately the young guns in the team failed to fire when it was most needed. In this series, I noted, Bhajji either contributes in bowling or batting but not both together and today was his bowling days! When he went out for a duck right after Raina’s dismissal, I still hoped Jadeja and Munaf would help the master pull it off. What an offering it would have been to God?!
Man proposes and God disposes they say and to prove the same, God again denied his own ‘associate’, Sachin, his rightful offering. What more can he do? Even if he could not stay till the end, he made it all easy for the boys. 10 runs from 10 balls…8 from 6…was all too easy but for another guy in the name of Praveen who unfortunately dives only in a swimming pool and not in the 22 yards!
“Tch, but we lost wickets quickly in the middle overs”, said the little master even while he was presented the man of the match today.
Arun Lal, the presenter for the post match ceremony tried evading the topic and asked how he motivated himself to beat his own records even after 20 long years. “Passion for the game and I care about playing for India”, came the reply!
Today I have begun praying to another God – the only God cricket can have and will continue to have – SACHIN RAMESH TENDULKAR.
I am not technically or statistically good to rattle out the number of runs, hundreds and all other accomplishments he’s made, records he’s created and broken himself. Today maybe just another one for all those die-hard Sachin fans, who’ve seen him fight it out in vain in many matches over his span of 20 years. But for me, it is this day that I truly bow down to this great man!
At 175 runs not out, he made India sit pretty on the wall of victory. Unfortunately the young guns in the team failed to fire when it was most needed. In this series, I noted, Bhajji either contributes in bowling or batting but not both together and today was his bowling days! When he went out for a duck right after Raina’s dismissal, I still hoped Jadeja and Munaf would help the master pull it off. What an offering it would have been to God?!
Man proposes and God disposes they say and to prove the same, God again denied his own ‘associate’, Sachin, his rightful offering. What more can he do? Even if he could not stay till the end, he made it all easy for the boys. 10 runs from 10 balls…8 from 6…was all too easy but for another guy in the name of Praveen who unfortunately dives only in a swimming pool and not in the 22 yards!
“Tch, but we lost wickets quickly in the middle overs”, said the little master even while he was presented the man of the match today.
Arun Lal, the presenter for the post match ceremony tried evading the topic and asked how he motivated himself to beat his own records even after 20 long years. “Passion for the game and I care about playing for India”, came the reply!
Today I have begun praying to another God – the only God cricket can have and will continue to have – SACHIN RAMESH TENDULKAR.
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