MORE, MORE ABOUT MODI

Of late, he's there everywhere - The Supreme Court said it was ok for the Gujarat state to investigate him first. Super entrepreneur that he is, he went into a P.R overdrive that read as - The Supreme Court finds no fault in the fact that I ordered the Police to protect all the crazy Hindu fanatics that killed any Muslim that came their way. He sarcastically declared that he would fast, and of course, that “God is great”! Both of us, I’m sure were stunned at the mass debates and headlines it brought on. A clear case of the media creating an un-heroic Hulk! If only a sarcastic comment could block prime time channels and have senior leaders debating on his every pause, he naturally zeroed in on the penultimate goal and tossed his ‘guru’ aside. Nothing personal, only business.

He's a thorough entrepreneur who has had enough of 'dole-outs'. He's the perform or perish type. No schemes for the backward, poor, the handicapped, sick etc, etc. He's had enough of ‘those’ type of people. All these un-necessary schemes, dont make the cash registers ring. Its all about profit. Not surprisingly, he wouldnt mind adding a touch of ‘private’ to ‘public’ sectors. Gujarat is one economic success story. Just dont ask why its got a hungry population even higher than that of U.P.

Just in case all this seems too materialistic (???!!!) he decided that he's a devout Hindu. Now thats a great combo - cash plus spirit. Throw in a pinch of patriotism, a dash of oratory skills, and he’s ready to be P.M.. Why, he even got himself a lot of Muslim votes too. Why bother with boring things like ‘Secularism’?? Such a waste of time. Those who claim to be secular have failed so many times. So he decided to be one up – Why be secular at all? Just cut it out. Mr.Smug believes in the “be like me, or live on the sidelines obediently while we allow you to, or get out policy.” He even thinks its macho. Hence the sparks between him and another macho man – Sanjay Bhatt. Only difference is that Mr.Bhatt took a ‘macho’ decision to do the right thing, while the other is regularly doing the ‘macho’ strut to flatten anyone who dares to disagree with the boss!

There’s just one tiny problem – I DONT BUY ANY OF IT ..................

Playing the violin while Rome burnt all around him is the ONLY thing people remember about Emperor Nero today. Someone’s going to be remembered just so, if at all.
Ordering the Police to protect murderers is worse than being a murderer. Its called being a cowardly murderer.
Thinking that he is superior to someone else because he was born into a certain religion that is numerically preponderous is absurd AND foolish.
Laughing at secularism only means that he’s laughing at tolerance and himself. Who hasn’t had to be tolerated?? So he mocks all those who tolerated him these many years, including his mother, poor educators, and of course, all of us who do so now. Clearly, He Who Must Not Be Named, thinks he epitomises the perfect human being!


................... & the best part is that I’m not alone. I guess, not a lot of people want to live a daily life where they would have to apologise and live hasty hesitant lives just because they are not Hindus, or laugh at people just because they were not smart enough to get ahead in life, or were dumb enough to be born handicapped!
Thank God for that and for sense.

TWO FACES

Kiran Bedi became famous because she was India's first woman IPS officer & because she towed away Indira Gandhi's car, which was parked in a no parking area. She famously spared no traffic offenders & started out (much like most other oficers in India) with a bang. She just happened to be attracting more attention because India had never seen a lady in khaki pants before!

Fame, they say is a difficult, if not tyrannical mistress. While, the impression that she gained as a tough, upright officer stuck, the lady didn't unfortunately, & she slowly but surely changed. The suave, media savvy Kiran Bedi you see today is a far cry from the gushing lady who first came face to face with the still nascent media in India.

Cut to the early 90s. Kiran Bedi was famous. Full stop. Everyone had heard of her & her honesty & the image stuck. Just as you think of Amjad Khan & Gabbar Singh, no matter what! Because Amjad Khan was always Gabbar Singh. She was however none too popular amongst her colleagues & since the Police force is a team & not a one man show or one woman show, she was rightly or wrongly shunted from Delhi to Mizoram.

She was certainly annoyed at the so called 'punishment posting', but put on a brave face & made all the right noises. Her only daughter came along & studied in the local school. However, after she cleared her 12th board exams, Kiran Bedi did the unthinkable. She claimed one of the medical seats meant ONLY for Mizos for her daughter, who I doubt very much, was interested, in the first place.

The Mizos, peaceful people in general, did not this like. As it is since Mizoram has no professional colleges to date, & all the Mizo students together had to compete for only 10 seats distributed all over India, they erupted in anger. They choked the streets & demanded justice. Kiran Bedi, who had taken the peaceful Mizos & her 'sterling' reputation for granted, was astonished & stunned at the riots & the chaos that ensued. So, in true survivor style, she RAN AWAY in the wee hours of one fine morning, without any information to, much less permission from, her superiors!

Kiran Bedi later changed her daughter's name & claimed that her daughter was entitled to the medical seat as she was a resident of Mizoram at that time - As in she was 'residing' in Mizoram at the time. Yay! Full marks to Bedi for her linguistic elasticity. She pushed the letter of the law around, & boxed the spirit of the law into submission!

However, none of the chaos and riots that broke out in Mizoram found a voice outside it, in those Doordarshan days. Hell, you have to fast for 10 years before people know you're alive, even in the days of 24x7 news right??

Kiran Bedi fled Mizoram, after stirring a hornets nest there & simply refused to go back! Delhi posted her in Tihar jail, which she did improve a lot, & which today, is a huge celebrity center! People don't change, however, & after a few natty skirmishes here & there, lo & behold, madam was demanding that she be made the Commissioner of Delhi because she was the senior most (?) officer & because she was a woman!!! Thank God, they didn't. So, she fled again - this time, by taking voluntary retirement.

Next thing I know, she's hugging Anna Hazare and shouting "Ye Dil Mange No More". Err.... madam, shouldn't WE be saying that?

CORRUPTION IS NOT IMPORTANT

Corruption is on everyone's mind. The hottest topic, so to speak. People who are BPL - Below the Poverty Line (According to the Planning Commission, those who dont earn even Rs.31 a day)are straining themselves over the Jan Lokpal Bill. I certainly hope it will put some food into their bellies, which, eternal realist that I am, I doubt it will. This, to me is the real tragedy.

The BIGGEST problem that India faces is POVERTY Yes, even though Corruption comes naturally to us, & is pretty high on the top ten problem list, the point is - when I have nothing, what are you going to steal from me? Corruption, after all is a grand theft or stealing in motion. & we all know that about 60% of India is rural; not that all city dwellers are well to do. For instance, India's slum population is estimated at 93 million by the end of the year - that's about 8% of our population which is already humongous. Also, cities don't make up all of urban India. There are the towns, nagar pallikas & so on.

I am educated, can read & write, am politically aware, am offended & so, shout out & protest about the injustice that is being done to me. What if I am un-educated, politically ignorant & have no idea how to express myself? What if I don't even know the difference between a ten rupee note & a hundred rupee note? (True story about how the government 'bought' honey from the tribals in A.P, told by a first hand witness, a social scientist who was around). I don't even know that I'm being cheated in the first place.

This is precisely why ALL the intellectuals & even sharp & shrewd industrialists all emphasise the importance of education. Amartya Sen cant stop talking about it, industrialists who need to earn points for C.S.R - Corporate Social Responsibility, like Narayan Murthy & Azim Premji, put all their earmarked money for it. Its the only way that I can protect a man from thieves. Only if he knows that he's getting cheated can a man protest. Naturally, education will not solve all problems, nothing will. We can only give people armors against thieves & cheaters. We can only give them locks, we cant prevent thefts, evil or natural calamities. We can only arm them. If they choose, they can move ahead. But first, they must be given the option of choice.

And of course corruption is important, education just happens to be important -er & hey! I needed you to read my blog right?

ADDENDUM

I recently came across two well-travelled guys, one a research scholar & the other a scientist, both young; the same day I chose to wear my brand new 'Benetton' tee shirt & favourite 'Guess' jeans. They struck up a conversation that obviously precluded me. I mean....
What would I know about the 'National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme' or God forbid 'phenotypes'?? Better to talk to me about Charlie Chaplin or Zindagi Na Milega Dobara.

I 'dared' to ask them a question about Bt cotton. They glanced at my 'Week' magazine & smiled,
"You see Bt means ..."
"Bacillus thuringiensis"
"well..you see in our department we modify the phenotype of plants.... phenotype you see means..."
I couldn't believe it, so I replied "appearance, more or less; differing from genotype, where you REALLY change the organism"
At least he kept quiet.
Next guy - "You see the Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme is no good."
"I think its a pretty good thing" I added
"Did you know that the BIMARU states are not as bad as they are painted out to be? You see BIMARU means...."
I couldn't believe these two guys... "Bihar, M.P,Rajasthan and UP. Also, since your work revolves around NaREGA, that's what we call it in short", I 'informed' him, "can you please tell me more about the Pakistan team that came to study the NaREGA scheme?"
"What? Pakistan knows about our NaREGA scheme? I had no idea..."
"By the way, WHAT do you do?" he quickly asked
Hmmm... good question. Now, no ones looking thaaat much...
Anyways, we all ended up as buddies with promises to visit each other in Spain, Delhi etc etc...
And they're not all that bad.

ARE YOU GOOD LOOKING?

I dont know...... Supposing I am, would you be surprised that I am a dental surgeon?
a pretty good one at that?
from a college that only admits students through merit as opposed to Private colleges that take in students who pay for it,
that I am a serious civil service aspirant who passed a few exams that people consider quite tough?
that I KNOW whats going on around me?
that I'm politically aware?
Why, I've even come across a few kind people who called me intelligent.

But all of that wouldn't matter if you're only staring at me right??

When will we accept that a well turned out lady who can differentiate between a Versace and a Valentino can also differentiate between a Look East Policy and a North West Frontier Province?
Why cant a doctor know that Britney Spears worries that Katy Perry is taking over her kind of music? or
that Ranbir Kapoor is finally single post Deepika Padukone, post Katrina Kaif post Nargis someone?

There seems to be a subtle attempt to patronise a 'pretty' girl who can read the papers. STOP IT! N O W. I cant believe I was so stupid as to give my poor lip gloss a vacation. The ubiquitous 'they' pass on 'mores' that glorify 'simple' girls - whatever that means. And whoever said 'simple' girls are either good or homely? I know many 'simple' girls who are anything but 'simple' and 'homely' - not that all are.... you get the drift.

I once worked in a hospital with 2 other lady doctors who happened to be Muslims. One was in purdah, while the other wasnt and drove a car. I was as usual discussing this. Our usual audience was a young Muslim dental assistant. The one without the purdah told a stunned me that she admired them for wearing burkhas. The one in purdah (as those wearing burkhas are called) said she encouraged all believers to wear one as it prevented men from looking at them with 'immoral' eyes. I told them that this was hogwash. She tried to convert me to her point of view and educate "innocent" me on the wickedness of men saying that men were so bad, they actually misbehaved sexually in front of a hostel if they knew it was a ladies hostel. I pounced - all men are not alike. Those who are sick in their minds will mis-behave even if they dont see an inch of you. Its all in their mind. So, if you're within legal limits, please feel free to wear what you wish! My colleague? she never argued with me again! And yes, she's still in purdah and so is our dental assistant now...

The point is that as a society we must strive to give space to each other, keep open minds and try not to be too prejudiced. I stress on 'too' because as humans, I know its impossible not to have some form of prejudice lurking in our bosoms! If you see a hot girl in jeans, please don't think she's stupid or try to pull a fast one on her?? Puhleese don't. She might just end up giving you a lesson on the the origin of the word 'stupid' and why 'fast one' didn't make it to the dictionary! And for those attractive women out there - feel free to strut your stuff (er... not too much o.k? I'm a little conservative here!! - out of choice)

And yes, I know the diffreence between a fetuccini, a spaghetti and a penne. So there!

STRETCH....... FOR FLEXIBILTY

Stretching, they say is compulsory. Else your joints get tight and you become rigid; In life too, one is expected to be flexible; one must compromise an elderly person recently advised me, as I am lucky enough to live in India where complete strangers think nothing of asking you about anything under the sun, and where advise is always given free, asked or un-asked. He made me think a bit.....

I know a lot of people - young, old, medium, men, women, girls, boys... you get the drift. It naturally follows that I've also come across a number of personalities. Some flexible, some rigid, some in-between, some ambiguous etc etc.

So what's your poison?? Most people find it easy to class so and so as flexible, rigid etc but find it difficult to accurately class oneself. I'm no different. I found that flexible people, the kind whose thumb you can bend so far back it goes flat, are the easiest to spend time with. But I also found that most of my friends DO NOT fall into this category and that most of my ACQUAINTANCES do fall into this category.

I suppose in the larger scheme of things, it all boils down to depth. One really doesn't need or want too much of reality everyday everywhere. That's why we have movies - the ultimate escape from reality. And we all know what a resounding success the movies have always been from the moment go, from Rudolf Valentino to Robert Pattison.

On the other hand we have our item girls and now-a-days boys. Must the men confer equality to women ONLY in these dubious categories? If a certain status for women is bad, is the solution to bring it up or bring the other sex down to that status? Clearly we seem to be in a rush toward the latter. Anyway, the point is that while an 'item' number is used only as a relief for the content of a movie's story so it is with flexible people.

A yes man is good for people who lack egos and for people who need an unreal prop to face themselves. For everyone else, a yes man is a pleasant man to have around as a decorative piece much like those beautiful wedding props that have no place outside the wedding venue. They in fact look ridiculous in real life. Imagine putting that prop in your clinic or office!!

The balance methinks lies in the middle approach - too much flexibility only highlights the fact that you don't have a mind of your own and cannot think. Too much of rigidity on the other hand shows an insecure mind, afraid of change and a lack of confidence to face an unknown and thus, in oneself.

Lets celebrate the Middle Path. It was good enough for the Buddha, its good enough for me!! Life's good! So laugh a lot........

WHY IS MY LIFE CHEAPER THAN YOURS???

The Armed Forces Special Act, AFSPA initialled in 1953 is a huge burden to the North East of India, and just a vague mnemonic or at best acronym to the rest of India. I write this in the time of Anna Hazare and of late, Baba Ramdev. Both ceased to eat for a few days, in a country where half the population goes on an empty stomach to bed at night and the other half are malnourished. Recent studies have shown that India’s ‘Hunger Index’ is higher than Sub-Saharan Africa, with Bihar, M.P etc being the usual suspects.

Anyway, India got MAD and angry when these two fasted – I mean, they’re nice people, you know, “acchha” log. Whose bothered about the servant’s unmarried sister not having enough food to eat, or the famous widows of Varanasi? much less the Dalits of M.P who regularly fast for no cause at all? These are all regular everyday stuff “yaar”. Now, Anna and Baba, they fasted for a cause that they believe in – something to do with corruption. One wants a paper to work magic and erase corruption from India, the other, a billionaire with a TV network of his own, wants the billions of black money stashed away abroad by other people to be brought back to India. And so they fast….

This fast, made portly politicos move at lightning speed to the ‘fasters’. Either ways, the newspersons are on to this news and cover it at a speed faster than the speed of an Ambassador car, at least. Whether you like it or not, there it is – in your face. Anna ‘topis’, Baba’s concave sternum from a profile view, why you even have Anna as a guest editor for a day!! The next guest editor, by the way, was Yuvraj Singh, a 29 year old who makes a pretty decent living by throwing balls, chasing balls, catching balls and last but not the least, whacking balls as best he can.

I’m not trying to make light of what all these stalwarts are doing. I adored Yuvraj at the World Cup. But to another person, and factually, he is just that – a guy who plays around with a small ball. How light these fasts seem when you have been fasting for TEN years. The newspapers make a hue and cry when even as I write, Baba is on his 6th day of fasting. The government is actually nervous and Anna politely and truthfully says that the Government would’ve collapsed if he had not ended his fast at Jantar Mantar.

And yet, no one gives a damn when Irom Sharmilla has been force fed for TEN long years. The same government jumps up when DMK stalwart Karunanidhi ‘fasted’ between breakfast and lunch for the Tamils in Sri Lanka. When people fast from Delhi to Tamil Nadu, from the North and South of India, it makes a difference. But when a helpless lady from the North east fasts for ten years, no one cares. Why??? I’m not saying that whatever she believes in is right, but just ignoring it is cruel and inhuman beyond description.

Is her life cheaper than theirs? Is the North East blood cheaper than the rest of India’s?
Is blood spilt in the Nort East of no consequence, while even a hint of blood ‘threatened’ to be spilt elsewhere is of urgent consequence??


11/6/11