When just a picture doesn’t tell the story

Mumbai, or for that matter, even India, is a vast land of travesties which has intrigued generations from the West and ignited the minds of people with a creative twist; photographers, filmmakers, writers, painters.



If there exists a mini India; a place that combines the good and the bad of the country; it is Mumbai city, its financial capital. Ending up here as a teenager has proved to be something that has left my feelings blowing both hot and cold, much like the city itself. It definitely has ignited my mind in my journey towards a substantiality of some sort.

Last week, reading through the DNA in the packed early morning Local, I read an advertisement of a photography competition – Mumbai thru your lens. Ideas started pacing through my head. There was so much that could have been done!

The first few ideas were the obvious choices – VT, Dhobi Ghat, Marine Drive etc. As ideas ran through my head, I saw a twenty something guy trying to escort his girlfriend/sister through the rush of the morning at Andheri Station. He probably unknowingly got into that compartment, a story that unfolds during any normal rush hour.

As I reached Bandra, the crowd in the slow train had become bearable to the point that people could easily stand. In came a five year old kid – tattered clothes, a blue plastic bag in hand, his skin dark with the accumulated dirt. “Paanch rupaiya mein solid cheez...” he went on shouting squeakily like any normal five year old. Ironically, he was selling toys.

After Dadar, wanting some fresh air, I moved to the door. Meanwhile, the kid still went on selling his booty. As the train chugged along, I noticed the person standing next to me. He was in a black suit with a Blackberry in hand, going through some documents. The kid passed by him, both ignorant towards each other’s existence, yet that picture definitely said 1000 words about Mumbai.

Meanwhile, outside as the breeze cooled my sweaty brow; we had reached Mahalaxmi, the race course visible, a symbol of Mumbai’s riches. Beyond that, the Mumbai skyline, the best of its buildings, the escalating bubble of our inflationary real estate, symbols of our 9% GDP growth rate.

I walked out of Churchgate Station onto Marine Drive, the 11 A.M. sun baking down on the concrete. A lonely beggar stared into the sea, a dog sitting next to him. Twenty metres down, a couple snuggled into each other’s arms, ignorant of the heat, the beggar, the world.

Each of these pictures said a 1000 words about life in this bustling, saturated metropolis. Yet, sometimes, for special cases, no word limit is enough.

The 'Come on wealth Games' !!

As I see it, there is nothing common about the much hyped and publicized Commonwealth Games that have finally kicked off in Delhi yesterday. The Commonwealth Games, if anything has only done good for our 'uncommon' bureaucrats and organizers of the games. The Commonwealth Games might well be called the 'Come on Wealth Games'!

The common man has not been involved in the Games in any way. Yes, the common man in Delhi has been inconvenienced with all the debris and dengue around. Yes, he has had to deal with hours of grueling traffic in the heat after a hard day at work while Kalmadi and Co. got a free passage on Delhi's roads.

Yes, the common man was involved as he in some way always is. He was involved through the tax he paid to get a pothole free road, an adequate water supply, a better public transport system and 24 hours of uninterrupted electricity; instead, he got a plethora of shame, disgust and mismanagement. He was involved through helplessly looking on at one media report after another which emphasized how his hard earned money had been manipulated to fill some already deep pockets. He was involved like he always is; as a mere spectator.

And which common man are we talking about here? 42% of the country still lives in abject poverty who wake up every morning not knowing whether they will get the two meals they need to survive. This means that around 50 crore people in the country suffer from problems of basic nutrition, lack of proper education, a lack of proper existence basically! Does anyone of them care if even the Olympics comes to India? I think their next meal is a more important issue for them!

And, these 42% are the people who have been accorded the Below Poverty Line Status. There must be at least 20% of others who live in just slightly better conditions who would certainly have other pressing issues plaguing their existence. They would rather have some water in their taps than a beautiful stadium they can look at rotting after ten days in the eye.

It is a different issue that the Commonwealth Games should have never come to India. It did seven years ago and, we just about managed to get the world class facilities we promised, finished two days before the event started. That too after having toilet paper rolls that cost Rs. 4,000 and the Games costing four times the estimate! It was estimated to cost Rs.767 crore and it was eventually more than Rs.3000 crore. I assume half of that going into the pockets of Kalmadi and Co.

Yet, after all this shame, mockery and disgrace, the Commonwealth Games did start off with a bang. Yes, it was a great ceremony and Facebook, Twitter etc. were filled with proud Indians! But, what most people forgot was that the gigantic balloon that was at the center of the spectacle was purchased at three times its cost. Also, what everyone forgot was that a whopping Rs. 150 crore was pumped into three hours of showcasing an illusionary image to the world. Some people thought it was the representation of the common man; it was a mere mockery of the common man!

The point behind all this is not whether or not to support the Games but the point is about the failure of public memory in our country. We forgive and forget too soon. The Commonwealth mess will be forgotten shrouded in the haziness of one committee after another which will be formed until we make a bid for the Olympic Games in maybe 2020. Then, the whole circus will repeat all over again!

There is a thin line between having the mindset of being an optimist and utterly ignorant. I feel most of us are being utterly ignorant as we are at most times. We are so blinded by the 8% GDP growth and a sudden shift in focus to being the third most influential economy in the world that we have forgotten what our priorities should be. Sadly, even the Government has! It just spends 3% of its GDP in poverty alleviation and of that 3% only 5% in employment generation. There are much better uses that this Rs. 3000 crore could have been put to.

The Commonwealth Games have not been good for India's image or for the country itself and no matter what happens in the next ten days that will not change; not in my eyes at least. I am not a proud Indian when it comes to the Commonwealth Games and I strongly feel there should be an absolute boycott of the Games venues by the public in the next ten days.

India for me

“At the stroke of the midnight hour,
When the world sleeps,
India shall awake to life and freedom,”
With these words etched in memory,
A nation embarked on its ‘tryst with destiny’.

The destiny was skewed for a while,
A long while really,
And, now it seems to be clearer,
Yet, many would believe not.

As we celebrate yet another 15th August,
With at least a hint of pride in most our hearts,
I have a question to ask,
Are we free yet?

I see that hungry child on the road every day,
I see him run from this car to that,
But, today he was different,
The tricolour in hand and a smile on his face,
Yes, that smile made me believe we are free.

I see a mosque in the same street as a temple,
I see a church alongside a gurudwara,
Most would describe the attitudes as ignorant,
I would describe it as tolerant,
We do not realize the tolerance within us,
The day we do, all will be free,
As I believe I am.

I see riots happen every now and then,
Yet for the past 6 years,
I see a Sikh Prime Minister address a nation of 80% Hindus,
From a fort built by a Muslim emperor,
The day more people realize this as some do today,
Everyone will be free,
As I believe I am.

Everyone raises the ever so evident issues,
The sad part is most just do that,
The cynicism has rotten our population,
I believe I am not a cynic,
And, that is why I am free.

We criticize our internal problems,
Yet, we don’t realize our biggest achievement,
The achievement of this diverse existence for this long,
The day everyone realizes this,
I believe all will be free as I am today.

We see the commotion in Parliament every day,
Yet, we don’t tackle the commotion of the voting lines,
A charge even I am guilty of,
The day we accept that charge,
As I do today,
I believe all will be free.

India’s success story has amazed the world,
You just need to go to google.com today to see it,
Yet, most of us are still not amazed,
We still have students wanting to contribute to other GDPs,
The day that fire is eliminated,
A new one will light and everyone will be free,
As I believe I am.

I believe that there is a valid counter argument,
To all of what I have expressed,
But, I also believe that it can be tackled,
Along with a belief that it is being done.

The day all of us foster that belief,
There will be a change,
A change that all of us wish to see,
Yet, we don’t see it happening ourselves.

All we need is belief,
As we have done well enough without it,
It is time to firmly put us on the world map,
And, I believe all we need is belief.


Happy Independence Day
Anmol Singh Diddan

Small things that make big differences in Mumbai

Mumbai city is synonymous with a whole lot of names – the city of dreams, the financial capital of the country, the city of gold, the land of opportunity etc. According to official estimates the city houses in its bosom, 19 million Mumbaikars. That makes it the 5th most populated city in the world! But, unofficially the number is projected at a whopping 30 million! That would make it the 2nd most populated!

Mumbai has always captured the imaginations of artists, filmmakers and businessmen. It is but natural for that to happen when you get 22,000 people in one square kilometre!

I came to this city three years ago seeking a better education, fascinated by the image that Mumbai had woven around me through my adolescent years. The journey has been bitter sweet but there are a lot of things that the city teaches you in practice and through observation.

For any big idea to tick you need small bits of execution that churn the whole thing together. Every aeroplane built starts off with a few pieces of metal and some nuts and bolts. Likewise, the idea of Mumbai is kept alive through small things. These are the things that keep it afloat and sometimes even pull it down. These are just my observations and experiences through these years in this city which you can end up loving or hating but just not ignoring.

Ever travelled in a local train at 9 A.M. on a weekday? You feel a deep sense of triumph if you fend off the competition to get into the train. But, there are always the 2 or 3 people hanging out of the doors; dodging the poles next to the tracks. More often than not, however crushed people are inside, collectively finding space to get that person to safety is a small thing that makes a big difference every morning and evening.

If the trains are packed in the mornings and evenings, then the roads are not far behind. We are used to the potholes and in some cases craters too. We are used to a small little dug up section causing snarls for entire years. And then we are also used to an auto rickshaw breaking down reducing 10,000 cars behind to a snail’s pace; be it a top notch CEO in a Mercedes or some children in a school bus. The small little auto rickshaw is a small little thing that makes a big difference.

The humungous monsoon year after year turns the city into a swimming pool. Trains run slowly, buses break down, taxis enjoy a monopoly. The people are bothered about no one but themselves. But, that kind enough biker getting drenched himself offers a lift to someone badly stuck. That is another small thing that makes Mumbai big. It always comes together in adversity.

Politicians have their vendettas everywhere. Mumbai therefore is no exception. They try to divide Mumbai into Marathi and migrant. They try to enforce rather than influence. The people who support them are always a minority. Keeping that particular enforcing minority to not even influencing and a failing one makes a big difference.

There are a huge number of haves but the number of have-nots is three times more. Everybody wants to see the Taj Hotel, but most ignore the vada pav stall outside it; the stall that serves hot, fresh Rs. 5 vada pavs. Those two vada pavs are probably the only thing a kid on the street can afford after a whole day of begging or hard labour. That 10 Rupee meal is a small thing that makes a big difference. After all it saves the kid’s life.

There is competition in every corner of Mumbai. Your mother competes with other women to find a place in a maternity ward. You compete to even drop out into the world. Your friend pushes you to compete, your colleague pushes you, your family is pushes you, every stranger pushes you. The small contests are the ones that collectively make a big difference.

This article can be a never ending one as a city like this one never ceases to amaze. I say this even though I am not yet a lover of this city. The place squeezes you of the last ounce of energy but then it also replenishes that energy through deserved recognition. You are just another face in the crowd unless you do something about it. That is why I say deserved.

They say that love it or hate it, no one wants to leave. I say we see that on the streets, trains and buses every day. There is some magnetic energy around this place. What else would otherwise explain such an adamantly equal give and take relationship?

Our women really deserve some better treatment

One is a vamp, one a stupid old ignorant woman who is blind towards the good woman in her house and the good woman is a heap of tears ready to burst at the slightest bit of stimulation. The background music is dramatic and dragging; sometimes for days on the bounce.

Our daily soaps today are a tragedy of the women loved by the women themselves! It really seems that women love being miserable. Otherwise, why would such poorly tragic and drab reflections be taken to in such big ways?

I agree what they are showing might be relevant is some ways in our lives but you really don’t see your mothers and aunts with lines of water trickling down their cheeks all the time.

Our women are everyday, for days on the trot, being reflected as such tragic, sorrowful figures. That too at a time when women empowerment and equality has been at its peak!

Women are there everywhere in a big way. They are fighting out of the bracket of being just housewives. Mind you, there is a raging debate of a housewife’s services being included in the Gross National Product (GNP) of the country. GNP is the value of all final goods and services in a country. It basically is the basis of assessment for an economy.

So, even at a household level women are now able enough to contribute towards a nation. Gone are the days when women would be abused in the house and all that they would do is shed a few tears on their own.

But, what our daily soaps reflect is exactly that. They are regressive towards the progressive women of today. A tear is an omnipresent tool for the pathetic directors and script writers of our daily soaps. I sometimes feel their story idea is a tear and they then work on building a story around it!

Amongst all the humungous stupidity which literally is hilarious you hear comments from your engrossed mothers and aunts saying, “Bechari” or “Kitni buri hai!” I look at them in utter disbelief as these comments come from a generation who themselves are part of the progressive women brigade. They themselves are having jobs and contributing towards the betterment of their households. Such comments coming from a grandmother is still very well acceptable.

I am puzzled about the existence and success of such shows in a world or India like it is today. These shows do not reflect in any way the so called culture that we project. All of us have such conflicting thoughts on culture and are so lost. But, that is a totally different debate and can be taken up at a different time.

In all if you have a figure of why such soaps are running then please inform me as I am all ears! I really feel the women in our country have made enough name for themselves to deserve some better projections on national television.

Knowledge is optional

‘Knowledge is wealth’ – this is one phrase or anecdote that all of us are taught through our childhood. But, its realization is often attained after an opportunity is lost or a mistake made.

Knowledge is indeed one’s greatest strength but, it is also one’s greatest stumbling block. But, there is another age old adage that we totally ignore. Knowledge is indeed optional.

We choose what we want to know and the knowledge that we acquire over the years eventually determines our life. Everything in our life is determined by the knowledge we possess either accidentally or through our education.

The statement is so simple yet it eludes most of us. In all honesty, I was told about this during a lecture by one of my professors. He said three words, “Knowledge is optional.” And, yes it really was. So simple, yet so elusive for my whole life.

Three words set in motion a chain of thoughts which have eventually led to this article. I thought about what I had chosen to learn and what I had ignored. I had 500 students around me who were clapping in joy because of the knowledge that they had successfully, but out of choice, acquired over the past year. It was convocation time!

Sitting there in an auditorium hummed with the chatter of 500 joyous pairs of hands, I was in an absolute silence of my own. Most people might not have even heard the crazy old man on the dais. But, he knew what he was saying. The colour of his hair and the glint in his eye told me he was right.

I had chosen what I wanted to learn. I had chosen where I wanted to learn it. I was sitting in that auditorium because of the options that I had chosen. It was this knowledge that might eventually give me my bread, but it was just an option; a decision to let this knowledge lead me. So true, knowledge indeed is so optional.

Knowledge is optional

‘Knowledge is wealth’ – this is one phrase or anecdote that all of us are taught through our childhood. But, its realization is often attained after an opportunity is lost or a mistake made.

Knowledge is indeed one’s greatest strength but, it is also one’s greatest stumbling block. But, there is another age old adage that we totally ignore. Knowledge is indeed optional.

We choose what we want to know and the knowledge that we acquire over the years eventually determines our life. Everything in our life is determined by the knowledge we possess either accidentally or through our education.

The statement is so simple yet it eludes most of us. In all honesty, I was told about this during a lecture by one of my professors. He said three words, “Knowledge is optional.” And, yes it really was. So simple, yet so elusive for my whole life.

Three words set in motion a chain of thoughts which have eventually led to this article. I thought about what I had chosen to learn and what I had ignored. I had 500 students around me who were clapping in joy because of the knowledge that they had successfully, but out of choice, acquired over the past year. It was convocation time!

Sitting there in an auditorium hummed with the chatter of 500 joyous pairs of hands, I was in an absolute silence of my own. Most people might not have even heard the crazy old man on the dais. But, he knew what he was saying. The colour of his hair and the glint in his eye told me he was right.

I had chosen what I wanted to learn. I had chosen where I wanted to learn it. I was sitting in that auditorium because of the options that I had chosen. It was this knowledge that might eventually give me my bread, but it was just an option; a decision to let this knowledge lead me. So true, knowledge indeed is so optional.

New beginnings!

Remember the first day of school when your parents smiled and you cried your way into a world, which you thought was devoid of their protection? Nah, how would you? You were too young!

Beginning, start, embark are all nice words to hear. My mind springs into action on hearing such words. Only some words have the power to make you feel something. Compare such words to a word like end or finish. Does not have the same effect, does it?

A successful life always comprises of beginnings that met their desired ends. Likewise, an unsuccessful life comprises of beginnings that did not meet their ends.

But, beginnings are refreshing. Beginnings are always enthusiastic; beginnings are always happier than endings; beginnings are always hopeful; hopeful of meeting its end.

For me personally, the morning is recharging. After the effects of a polluted, tiring day; there is hope that the comforting, cool rays of the sun and the fresh air will infuse you with the energy that will drive you. There is something about the light, about the freshness; there is a zest the morning offers; a hope for a better today; a fanaticism to help you make a new beginning.

So, if you look at life. What is the secret to a happy, purposeful life? That is a clichéd question with no clichéd answers. I feel life will only be purposeful if you make a new beginning everyday. I have been guilty of not doing that myself. Carrying excess baggage will never do you any good.

Life is what it is today. You will never repeat yesterday, whether it was good or bad. You need to make a new beginning today. The past and the future are illusionary; the present is what is; the present is when you have to make a beginning.

New beginnings are also nervy. You are weary of the new people; maybe weary of attitudes that contradicted yours previously; weary of giving the right vibes. But, the beginning is what lads you to an end. So go ahead and make your beginning!

Change IPL to IOL- Indian Ordeal League

Change IPL to IOL- Indian Ordeal League

Aren't all of us just actors?

The old, dusty fan that hung high above was creaking away. It was like a musical addition to the humidity which was beyond its reach. Sweat dripped from my forehead and my neck and slowly I felt my pillow getting wet. I looked helplessly at the fan. The humid silence of the night was pierced by a shrill phone ring.

Now, the call was my father's. The call lasted five minutes but got me thinking for a lot more. It got me thinking about the fact that we, all of us, are in this world to act. As Shakespeare had discovered then, "All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players." I have discovered it now.

My dad casually asked me the usual stuff. I replied in the usual, happy way. After all he was sitting miles away and could not do shit about anything, could he?

Even with our near and dear ones, we need to act. Whether we like it or not, we need to act!

So, aren't all of us just looking for excuses or cop outs? The world is a stage because we are all happily acting. Judging the mind of the other person is so damn difficult, be it anyone, someone you have known for ages. You can just get close but never fully map the responses of a human being.

We are all just living a life that even we don't comprehend. We are acting with this person and that and in the end we don't even know who we started out the acting with. We are a restricted species. Man's mind is his most powerful possession. With the power comes confusion and that is where we have ended up.

We are a confused species and we don't know what to do. Why would we have tailor made reactions to situations otherwise? Why would we try and live a scripted life otherwise?

There are codes set by society and all we do is follow them. We ACT in this way in this situation and in that way in that situation.

No wonder movie making is such a big business today! :)

Social Networking laying us bare?

The Facebook, Twitter, MySpace bugs have bitten the world and almost everyone is enjoying the bites. Most of the urban world now suffers from some more addictions in addition to the age old ones; the addiction of status updates, notifications, tweets etc.

For some social networking is an outlet to let out your innermost feelings, for others it is just a platform to connect, for others it is just time pass. But, what level of connectivity with 'acquaintances' is comfortable?

You often see status updates of people you barely know. The updates are about their relationship problems, their personal problems and just THEIR problems. You have got nothing to do with it. Even you, yourself often choose to let out your own frustrations through your status updates. Don't you sometimes regret it later? I do.

When someone seeing that depressing status of yours comments on it; someone with whom you would not be too comfortable having such a discussion in person. Don't you feel like, err, he knows too much when you meet him/her the next time around?

Social Networking has made snooping into people's lives cool and the in thing to do. People are snooping into your life and you are snooping into theirs, but all of us are enjoying the snooping. But, after a certain point you feel a bit insecure. Will we end up becoming a generation that knows too much, unnecessarily, about each other?

There are reasons why people take the social networking route. Even the deepest introverts who prefer to stay aloof and within themselves take the social networking route. I can vouch for that as I am an introvert and I am an absolute Facebook person.

There is an immense difference when you are writing a letter or typing something out as compared to talking to someone. Talking is direct, talking is judgmental, you know what the other person is thinking, you are totally conscious of it, you are uncomfortable with it. Meanwhile, typing something out is much easier. You type something and it is indirect. You feel you are not communicating with the world but in fact, you are sharing your innermost thoughts with people who you don't even know or are mere acquaintances with. Indirect is easy, indirect is comfortable. Ever wondered why texting someone is much easier than picking up the phone and calling?

All of us crave for acceptance. The people who don't get it in the real world now have a new cyber world to look forward to. The cyber world is easier with more people and of course the indirectness there. People find solace in the number of friends they have on Facebook and the comments they get for a status update.

These huge number of friends would be a sign of a full world but, in fact I feel it makes you even lonelier. The cyber world is after all indirect. Deep down you know all that is indirect and the human mind needs directness. It needs a voice to tell you to get up when you are down, it needs someone to shout into your ears or to pick you up and take you in their arms.

So, is social networking making us a more connected world or a more lonelier, uncomfortable, insecure world where people are trying to find solace in things not even considered by our grandfathers? Life is becoming simply even more complicated and we ourselves don't know what to choose and what not to choose.

You probably ended up reading this because you saw the link on Facebook. These are my innermost thoughts and if I know you well enough and you think that I would share my thoughts with you, then good for me. But, was it worth it if you are a mere acquaintance and ended up knowing about these thoughts? I don't know. And, if you(an acquaintance) mention them to me, I will definitely be uncomfortable. But, I am bitten by this bug and will go ahead and post it!

Selfishness -- a virtue, a vice

Selfishness is that feeling which one would detest in others, but, perfectly accept in oneself. Selfishness is the force which drives an individual to achieve; for himself and in turn for society and mankind. Selfishness is bad; isn't it?

I have been thinking of this virtue or vice for quite sometime now. I see people looking out for their own interests everyday. Now, does looking out for your own interests qualify as selfishness or doing anything to safeguard your own interests qualify as selfishness. I think the latter does, but what is surprising is that the latter set of people are happy and unapologetic. They are cared for and appreciated.

I often wonder how that happens. Let us take the case of a normal family. There is often the case when there is one person who tries to keep everyones's wishes and adjust according to them. Then, there is the other who rarely considers the wishes of other members of his family and blissfully goes on treading his own life. But, the if the former fails to adjust on one occasion, he is accused of being selfish and changing. Meanwhile, if the latter adjusts even once, then, he is hailed.

So, my question still remains about selfishness being a vice or a virtue? We live in times where people do not give a f@$k about anyone else. Everyone is changing and so selfishness is acceptable. It sounds weird, but it is the way to go today.

So, from now on, 'Stay selfish, stay happy'.

IPL Foreign Players: Assets Or Liabilities?

Link: IPL Foreign Players: Assets Or Liabilities?

Lyon Steal Decisive Advantage

Link: Lyon Steal Decisive Advantage

Inter Milan Take Minute Lead To Moscow!

Link: Inter Milan Take Minute Lead To Moscow!

United Put Four Past Bolton

link: United Put Four Past Bolton

Was That The Mumbai Cricket Crowd?

Link: Was That The Mumbai Cricket Crowd?

The Death Of The Bowler!

Link: The Death Of The Bowler!

The deflated nationalism

Our country has lost it. Our country is definitely going to the dogs. We are becoming economically superior and our population is becoming patriotically inferior.

I am literally, sick of seeing people so reluctantly standing up for the national anthem. Before every movie, there is someone or the other who will not stand until it has started or will not stand at all. They need to be reminded that it is one of their fundamental duties to respect the national anthem.

I also think that we have lost the courtesy that our very own culture endorses and teaches. We are rude, frustrated people who do not like each other. We see competition in every one's faces. You take out your anger on the taxi wala and he takes it out on you. There are no exchanges of 'thank you' or a friendly 'hello'. People are just angry.

The entire anticipation of a good movie gets killed once you see someone disrespecting the national anthem that infuses pride in me. Why have the national anthem before movies then? Why forcefully making people stand for such a long time(52 seconds) and tiring them unnecessarily? Just do away with the practice altogether.

The quality of our population frightens me sometimes. Yes, it is our biggest resource, yet it might well turn out to be our biggest difficulty. Actually it also is our biggest difficulty. The quality of population defines the country and there are a lot of factors that build that quality. The media is one of the biggest factors and we know the state it is in. So, lets keep our fingers crossed for a miracle of sorts. I sometimes feel the entire existence of such a 'chalta hai' kind of a state is a miracle. We have survived for 62 years. So we are doing quite ok. lol

A Sach-Inspired Comeback By The Mumbai Indians!

A Sach-Inspired Comeback By The Mumbai Indians!

IPL: The Billion Dollar Baby Just Got Bigger!

IPL: The Billion Dollar Baby Just Got Bigger!

The Inadequacies Of Yusuf Pathan

The Inadequacies Of Yusuf Pathan

Royal Challengers Riding High!

Royal Challengers Riding High!

Inner world v Outer World

We live in a strange world. There is a huge internal world that lies within us. We fight it everyday. We fight our innermost feelings to carry on and do what we want to even though sometimes that inner world is restricting us. How difficult it is to fight that inner world that is sometimes so different to the outer world that we live in.

What I also find so strange is the fact that most of us know this outer world much better than our inner self. My own reactions to things sometimes startles me. Oh! Why did I react in that way? I really don't know. I think our brain reacts faster than it understands thus these reactions can just be termed as impulses but even impulses are so weirdly different in every one. We can't understand our own impulses.

It is often said that there are soul mates. What is a soul mate? How do you know that you have found your soul mate? I feel a soul mate is a being with whom your inner world coincides or coexists in a way that makes both happy. The outer world remains constant for both and thus I feel it is rubbish.

I feel that the outer world is all make believe. It is what it is but it also is how you want to actually see it. But, the inner world within us is something that is, it is not how you want to see it or how you want it; it is just the way it is. You can't control something until you can't understand it and I feel most of us don't understand our inner world. Mastering your brain is the most difficult task faced by man. Brainwashing oneself is the most difficult thing that I have come across.

Also, the outer world is a clash. It is a clash of people with different inner worlds. We have different ideas, different beliefs, but all of us want to be accepted. Then, we choose to be politically correct until the inner worlds reach a point where the clash is imminent and the correctness then falls apart. It eventually might get resurrected but the clash happens and it happens everyday in every small way you can imagine.

I really want to understand the way my inner world works. What neuron ticks what reaction in me. If I can know that I can understand even other people better. Just imagine if you have mastered your own brain. You can bloody be Albert Einstein!

Why Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar is God.

God is often misunderstood as something that is not there. Most people are wrong on that count. God for me has certain criteria that he must fulfill. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar fulfills each and every one of them.

God should inject faith in your heart. Every time Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has walked out to his temple he injects faith into my existence. A faith that no matter what happens in the next few hours, I am going to be in a state of blissful joy.

God should make you rue not visiting his temple. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has made me rue at least ninety three times that I have not been in his temple to watch him.

God should make you feel secure. I remember watching Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar batting in 1997. I was a six year old kid back then. Curfew had been imposed because of apparent clashes between terrorists and the Police in the city. I remember my mother being so scared. She told me that a lot of bad people had come to the city and until they were thrown out we could not go out of the house. But, when I watched Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar in my Dad's lap I knew nothing would happen to me because my Dad jumped with joy at every roar when the ball hit a few colourful boards. The people on TV were very happy. The feeling of security was restored all over again in 2008 when I was a conscious seventeen year old worshiper. He made me feel secure after 26/11. He took India to 387/4 against England and chased the highest score ever in Tests in the subcontinent. No one could touch me.

God should make you willfully endure troubles to look at him once. I have watched Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar in his temple just thrice. I have waited in the queue for two hours each time. I have paid double the worth of the ticket once and thrice the price on another occasion(Rs. 500 was the ticket rate). The amount pinched for a long time but I had his image, the roar, the happiness I felt as he mesmerized. I was ready to pay five times the amount the next time.

God does not abuse or disown atheists. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has never disrespected his critics. He has just gone about doing his duty. He has converted the atheists to worshipers. God loves all his beings. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has dedicated innings after innings to all Indians; the same people that have burnt his effigies.

God is never proud or haughty. God never makes his worshipers feel that he is God. God lifts his followers from his feet; even though they are more than happy to remain there, and embraces them. He makes them feel that all of them are loved equally. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar sponsors his worshiper to every match in the country. He respects and patiently listens to teammates who took up the game because of him.

God always knows how to set an example. God always knows that you should have your priorities right. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has always had his priorities right. He has always remained a student of the game. He has never been in one controversy regarding an affair, a drunken brawl. He has set examples for the world to follow. He has set milestones for everyone to catch up to. He has raised the bar so that everone else can raise theirs and thus uplift all in the world. A term Gandhi described as Sarvodaya. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has inspired everyone, be it in any field to excel.

God sets envious standards that others just dream of emulating. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has set standards that no one among his contemporaries at least can even dream of emulating. There was once a Don Bradman, there is now a Sachin Tendulkar and there might never be another like him. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has 93 centuries, 31045 runs and records that can't be listed in over five sides.

God brings permanency in your life. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has brought this blissful permanency in my life for 13 years now. I started watching cricket when I was six and I am 19 now. He has been bringing permanency to a lot more for more than 20 years now. I rue that I was not born in 1983 because I missed seven years of permanency in my life. He is nearing thirty seven years of age now but I am just not ready to let go of the permanence and I never will.

God makes you feel desperate. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar scored 200 in 147 balls today. The first ever batsman to do so in one dayers. I cried because I missed it. I traveled forty kilometers the same night so that I did not miss the spectacle forever. I had a feeling of desperation until I saw how he got it. I will always feel the desperation as I did not see it live.

God makes you feel jealous when others see what you are ready to die to see. God often creates natural spectacles for humans to enjoy in various parts of his planet. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar today, made me feel jealous of all those people at Gwalior who saw what they saw.

God makes you feel privileged every time you visit him. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has made 22 yards in Gwalior feel privileged that he spent three and a half hours on it. He has made lakhs around the world feel privileged that they were born and conscious enough to realize what they witnessed today.

God transforms a little known place into legendary ones. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has transformed Gwalior into a place that will be remembered by everyone that has and ever will follow cricket. He has put a small town in Madhya Pradesh on the world map.

God has a lot of stories. God has stories that become legends and become driving forces for a lot of people through the morals they convey. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar is a living legend for all the morals that he conveys. He is five foot five inch of what God ever wanted to convey to his beings. I grew on morals that Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar set rather than those that Guru Nanak had. I am convinced that Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has followed each and every one set by people like Guru Nanak.

Most importantly, God fills you with joy. Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar has filled my life and the lives of millions with joy through periods of stressful exams, periods of sorrow. He has lifted the expectations and frustrations of a billion on his small shoulders. I cried because I missed the spectacle live. Tears of joy trickled down my eyes when I finally witnessed the moment that would drive me for a long time to come. God has all over again told me why he is God. He is God because he is what he is and he is what he is because God never lets you know that he indeed is God.

God is something you have faith in, it is something you love, it is something that inspires awe, it is something that you look up to, it is something that humbles humanity, it is something that makes you feel a mere mortal, it is something you can't describe as it is endless in its qualities. For me and a million more all this has been a man of five feet five inches whose name is Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar and he fortunately happened to be born in my country and I fortunately happened to be born at a time when I could witness him in his numerous temples.

But he definitely is God because of what he said after the match, "I was striking the ball and timing the ball well, it was coming on to the bat nicely. Yusuf came and changed the momentum and MS really struck the ball well; it was due to their big hitting that we were able to put up such a big score. It was only when I got closer to the score that I realised that I had an opportunity and I could take the singles to give MS the strike." After getting 200 in a one day International; a feat that has never been achieved, he bestows lavish praise on his team mates. Need I say more? I salute you God. I hope you never retire.

An image out of boredom

 

This was a pic I clicked out of sheer boredom. I had nothing to do at college. Went for a walk down Marine Drive and clicked some nice pictures. It rid me of the boredom.
This pic is a classic example of the co-existence of the urban life. The lonely guy is like a dukhi aatma and the two couples are busy romancing completely ignorant of the lonely guy and each other. lol!!!

The creativity of boredom and negativity

There are often a lot of thoughts that go through my head when I am bored. There are a lot more thoughts that go through my head when I am sad, frustrated, stressed and surrounded by negativity.
It is strange why I am writing this today. I don't have a particular objective to attain. I am just bored and out of boredom the subject of this article crept into my head.
I had quite a bad day yesterday. I was irritated with a few issues. But, what outcome did the irritation have?
I wrote a poem which I consider as one of my best. I wrote an article which I thought was pretty good. I did some self introspection which I thought was necessary.
It is often said that life is a bittersweet symphony. We often are so engrossed in the moment during the sweetness that we don't realize just how fast it passes by. The bitterness lasts because its taste lingers. Try just one or two drops of lime on your tongue as compared to a rosogulla. Most people will want more of the rosogulla than the lime. Just endorses the fact that bitterness lingers on; even a small bout of
it.
The human race is known to be a pessimist as well as an optimist. The optimist built Titanic, the pessimist designed the life jacket. In this scenario the pessimist won. A balance of both is needed. Being over optimistic is not good whereas being over pessimistic is disastrous.
It is difficult to remember the sweet more than the bitter because the bitter is what pinches; the bitter is what sours. But, the bitter can also spark that array of creativity. It does for me and eventually rids me of the bitterness.

The politics of life

Are all of us not politicians? We plot, we conspire, we misunderstand, we interpret, we get hurt and then hurt others. Is it all not just a game?
Life is just a game of a complex web of relationships. There is no course that teaches you to be a relationship manager or to handle the politics of various relationships. Now that would be an interesting line of study.
Coming back to the politics of life, think of instances when you have been betrayed by someone dear, think of instances where people have manipulated and used you. Doesn't it give you that sickening feeling all over again? It does to me.
Manipulating others is quite an art in today's times. I have always found it hard to understand and permeate it into my daily life. But, I say that you would rather have it than be good, innocent and thus manipulated.
We criticize our politicians, we burn effigies, we hate them. But, have you ever put yourself in their shoes. If we can be so manipulative in our daily lives for minute personal gains then just give a thought to what they have to gain and lose. The margins and numbers are huge!
Now, I am not saying that they are right but all I am asking is that in today's world who is? Are we right ourselves?

Fightback!!!

We are a fighting species(pun intended). We fight, fight and fight. Everyone is a victim and thus wants to victimize who he/she can. The taxi driver, the rickshaw driver, anyone you can afford to mess with.
I just wandered into that thought. My objective of writing this is not to criticize our times and the people inhabiting these times. My objective is to underline the power of fighting back.
Our hospitals, our sporting grounds, our existence and our repeated successes and the stories of repeated failures before the sweet success echo the power of fighting
back.
A wise man once said that corn and iron civilized man and ruined his humanity. As society developed man naturally became competitive as he needed to compete to survive. Competition is good. It frustrates but also builds characters and makes us fight back.
The power is an awesome one to possess. It reminds me of those weird toys which no matter how hard you hit would not go down. It would keep coming back up. They have a low center of gravity. Even we humans have a low center of gravity; its just mental. lol!!!!
I have fought back in 3 months. I have fought back with some pain in the wrist and a scar and the occasional swelling but I have fought back.
Life expectancies all over the world have risen. It is primarily because of better medical facilities, higher incomes etc, etc but have we not evolved to become mentally tougher?
Our daily lives pose some serious challenges and overcoming them frustrates us but also increases endurance. We keep fighting back.
So keep up the spirits and live your life and even if you go down, go down FIGHTING!!

Subjectivity of the human mind

An article I read the other day informed me that medical research has only been able to get to the bottom of 13% of the human brain! Even though I had no way of confirming its authenticity it did ring a bell.
In economics there is a popular assumption which has been used in countless theories, i.e. that man is rational. New research has suggested that every human is rational in his own way. This means that rationality is also a subjective term, its different for you and me.
We all learn our moral values in school. Those values, in the innocent, ignorant childhood seem to be divine and supreme. There is also that belief and fear that there is someone, somewhere called God who punishes the bad and rewards the good. But, as we grow older we form our own beliefs and thoughts. The morals are straightened and bent as the individual wishes.
I feel that there is no right and no wrong for adults. For children, yes there is absolute right and absolute wrong but not adults. For adults there is only relative right and relative wrong. The relativity can also be stretched to the convenience of right or wrong.
Adults can think, reason and come up with the weirdest of scenarios about them being right or wrong. They can come up with bizarre justifications. The entire judiciary is based on that. What appears in black and white to even a child is invariably grey to the judge. Isn't that the reason why Kasab is still alive?
The complexity of the co-existence of us humans perplexes me. We have so many people and so many minds and thus so many opinions. Agreeing with your family is also an issue. How do we agree with so many others who we meet everyday? Or even agree enough to peacefully co-exist? Well do we?

Playing smart.....some can't!!

In today's world playing smart is much more important than playing hard. And I am not talking about playing on the field.
People are shrewd and they can get out of situations; be it at work or at home. The people who are not are reduced to a barrage of misunderstandings by even their own loved ones even though they might not be in the wrong. They just don't know how to play smart.
These people are slow learners; they are often lost. They need an outlet but can't get one. There is often a fear in them; the fear of getting targeted. They can't get their point across.
So, they just start to pretend. Often they are pathetic actors. It shows on their faces. The pretending is grossly misunderstood for selfishness, aloofness and disinterest in the same people for whom they are pretending in the first
place. They start being miserable.
They need to learn how to play smart. They start to try but they get lost in the smartness of the people around them. It seems that these people around them are getting smarter by the day. They feel even more lost because they are not themselves anymore.
This creates a viscous cycle that leads to the self destruction of these people. They need to talk to someone but often can't communicate correctly.
So where do these people go eventually?

The day I realized I was an Indian

Often there is an enigma that westerners associate with India. What pulls them to this mystic land? It is our diversity that amazes them; how a land of such diverse cultures, beliefs and practices has survived through the times and is now flourishing and prospering.
I have been lucky to be born in a country where there can be a mosque where a maulana sings praises of Allah in the same street that houses a temple singing praises of Lord Rama and where a Sikh procession could be taking place all at the same time. A lot of other Christians, Jains, Buddhists etc could be feeling inconvenienced because of this but they just join the ruckus because this is what India truly is. I am proud of being born in a country where I can witness such freedom of expression and religion. This is what others around the world find amazing and this is what we Indians sometimes don’t realize. We don’t realize that being an Indian means trying to look for the evading similarities in the evident differences.
To most today, India is just another word in their vocabulary. After all most ‘Indians’ are Marathis, Punjabis, Gujaratis, etc, etc. and their religious or regional identity is supreme as compared to the national identity.
I read an account of India by an American tourist on the internet the other day in which he narrated an incident when on returning to the United States was asked how his trip to India was. He replied saying, “It was good, except that I did not meet any Indian there.” To the perplexity of the questioner he answered that he met a Gujarati, Punjabi, Bengali but nowhere did he meet an Indian. It left a deep impression on me.
Sadly but very correctly this is what our country has been reduced to. The ideals and sacrifices of Gandhiji, Bhagat Singh and hundreds others that yielded such uncompromising levels of national integration have now been reduced to shreds.
I am a guy who has seen almost the whole of the country. I have been brought up in Shillong which is the capital of Meghalaya in the North East.I have frequented the Northern plains and am now staying in Mumbai for the past three years.
I have experienced such vast differences in culture, lifestyles, language, food and also looks if you compare the people in the North east to the ones in mainland India. I have experienced vast differences but also seen a glimmer of hope through the never ending circus of being Gujarati, Marathi, Punjabi; of also being an Indian before all that.
There are often events of such magnitude that force you to stop in your tracks; events that bind you to the country and make you think of it as a whole; they make you think about the India that is not just spoken of in newspaper headlines and International conventions. They make you think of the India that you experience around you every day.
One such event was surely the 26th November 2008 attacks in Mumbai. Until that day I was of the impression that only cricket and Bollywood had the ability to bind the country together. That belief of mine was shattered when I saw ten gunmen from Pakistan bind the country together for at least a week. The whole of our country was shocked, concerned, angry.
That was probably the day which made people across the country realize what the terrorists had come after. They had not come after a Marathi, a Gujarati or a Punjabi. They had come after the vibrant image of INDIA. They were out to tarnish India’s image and tarnish it they did. They wanted to send out an image of a weak India; not a weak state in India; but India as a whole.
The terrorists did not spare any Marathi, any Punjabi or Gujarati. It was enough for him that he was killing an Indian. He wanted to kill an Indian and that was the only qualification one needed to die.
That was the day that made me realise that I was an Indian before being anything else. I cried and felt livid looking at landmarks of a city burn that I had known for just a year. I saw the Mumbai Police, the army and the NSG from Haryana fight a common enemy. I saw a major from Bangalore die in Mumbai. I went out onto the streets with thousands of others to protest the attack and incapability of us; of India to deal with it. I felt a fire in my bosom that was fuelled by hatred towards a common enemy.
Yes, we did realise our Indianness, or rather we discovered what being an Indian felt like collectively. But, that sense of ‘Unity in Diversity’ in its true sense was something that sadly did not last for a long time.
The dirty politics of caste and religion came back to entangle us in its vast mesh. The mesh that had its thread firmly fastened around us for a long time but it seemed for some time we might be able to finally break free.
People who play games of regional and religious politics need to realize that we are all Indians first. And that will happen only when there is a realization amongst all of us that we are Indians first.
Ten men from Pakistan on 26/11/2008 with AK-47s made me realize what being an Indian was. We do not need another 26/11 to wake up to being an Indian. When are you realizing that you are an Indian?