Being in Surat, the recent terror blasts is a reality rather than the front page news; traveling to Ahmedabad even more so.
And I will tell you what hurt me the most. While on the Ahmedabad trip last week, I found umpteen billboards lauding communal harmony, steadfastness and bravery of the people of Gujarat. A few also preached the importance of non-violence in these times.
As a citizen of this state, this was the biggest farce I witnessed in the whole issue. I still can’t digest the need to put up a show of the qualities of the sufferers when the entire time, resources and energy should go in nabbing the guilty and punishing them! These billboards seem like an attempt to dwarf the gravity of the situation wherein one city witnesses terrorist bomb blasts and the other one two dozen live bombs.
Who are we kidding here Mr Administrator? By announcing that Gujarat is unaffected by such instances and will rise soon, we are actually making the whole issue too insignificant. I don’t say the police wouldn’t be doing anything to nab the guilty, but then why bull**** about all these and give a false feeling of bravado to the citizens? Admit that the going is not good and we are trying our level best to bring it back to normalcy; warn the citizens to keep vigil; strategize and act decisively and swiftly. But for the sake of a hundred hells – don’t tell me whatever happened was alright. BECAUSE IT WASN’T.
Didn’t I mention this to be the biggest farce! Now is the time for the biggest irony. The police have supposedly caught the people responsible for this and they have confessed. And half the people doubt police to have done some foul play to ease the pressure on it.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
This 15th August
The national holidays have always been important for me. Back in school it used to be the prestigious NCC parade; and after that a flair for patriotic films and music.
I didn’t expect 15th august 2008 to be so different in spirit. This unusual national holiday came to me thanks to the late train booking that saw me on-board Ahmedabad Passenger train from Surat to Ahmedabad. This was my first time on this kind and as usual I’d booked myself online and was carrying the sheet along as the testimony of my constitutional and legal right towards seat number 35 in S1. Constitutional rights - b**lls. Legal rights - ditto.
After claiming my seat from a man and a child (no poetry here), I was surprised when the kaka started to rant that it doesn’t matter who booked the ticket, the whole of train is a common one for all passengers. And finally I was awestruck when a couple of ladiez claimed my seat as well. I was in half-mind whether to fight and push them off from my seat or to bear their presence on the crammed seat. I found myself fighting them off and showing them the ticket that bore the number in question; with the lone support of a passenger in my coupe.
I couldn’t help but think how a fresh civil engineer would feel in presence of a toughened and experienced supervisor! Foolish is one way to put it. I know I was down ‘cause I didn’t dare to push them off my berth and so atleast managed to make them feel guilty (or so I believe) by emphasizing my right on the seat they were on. What was absolutely stunning was that the people around (which also included the usual nuisance pass-holders) assumed it their right to encroach upon someone’s seat rather than requesting and getting that leeway! As a result, on a seat of 2, we were 5 people crammed up – though I had had the best share of the seat!
I can’t still make up my mind whether I was right in feeling the disbelief cum anger cum frustration towards them or not! I still am torn between Ayn Rand and Jawahar Nehru…
I didn’t expect 15th august 2008 to be so different in spirit. This unusual national holiday came to me thanks to the late train booking that saw me on-board Ahmedabad Passenger train from Surat to Ahmedabad. This was my first time on this kind and as usual I’d booked myself online and was carrying the sheet along as the testimony of my constitutional and legal right towards seat number 35 in S1. Constitutional rights - b**lls. Legal rights - ditto.
After claiming my seat from a man and a child (no poetry here), I was surprised when the kaka started to rant that it doesn’t matter who booked the ticket, the whole of train is a common one for all passengers. And finally I was awestruck when a couple of ladiez claimed my seat as well. I was in half-mind whether to fight and push them off from my seat or to bear their presence on the crammed seat. I found myself fighting them off and showing them the ticket that bore the number in question; with the lone support of a passenger in my coupe.
I couldn’t help but think how a fresh civil engineer would feel in presence of a toughened and experienced supervisor! Foolish is one way to put it. I know I was down ‘cause I didn’t dare to push them off my berth and so atleast managed to make them feel guilty (or so I believe) by emphasizing my right on the seat they were on. What was absolutely stunning was that the people around (which also included the usual nuisance pass-holders) assumed it their right to encroach upon someone’s seat rather than requesting and getting that leeway! As a result, on a seat of 2, we were 5 people crammed up – though I had had the best share of the seat!
I can’t still make up my mind whether I was right in feeling the disbelief cum anger cum frustration towards them or not! I still am torn between Ayn Rand and Jawahar Nehru…
Sunday, August 3, 2008
Sunday spoilers - or more. . .
They shouldn’t do it you know! They shouldn’t jeopardize lazy Sundays of ordinary people like me. One moment I was happily flipping channels and another, I tuned on to India TV.
One of the widely accepted masala news channel was featuring an interview of representative of Shiromani Akali Dal. This religious outfit is the newest entrant in the Great Indian Moral Police League. They are reportedly against forthcoming Akki flick – Singh is Kinng.
Mr S A D (no I don’t expressly term him as sad, I’m just saving many a mouse clicks to write the complete Shiromani Akali Dal) said onscreen he’s not against the depiction of Akki as a Sardar. S A D has a problem with Akki dancing and monkeying around a little too much in the promos – that’s not how the Sikhs behave! He also says that the Sikhs have been mocked at in the film.
My brain had to observe a minute’s silence after watching it; but guess it ain’t required here. A minute hence I realized I was abjectly against the S A D representative. As far as I remember, my Sikh friends used to tell me they look out for the slightest pretext to break into a jig. Singing and dancing has always been an integral part of all Indian communities, including Sikhs. The splendid Bhangda and Gidda dance forms are unknown to none; neither are their wonderful music and folk songs. Speaking technically, the movie has not released yet and there’s no way you would know what all things are represented in the film.
The program also hinted that a committee has been formed to preview the film and ascertain whether there’s anything objectionable about it. But the S A D rep said his outfit doesn’t recognize any committee except for Shiromani committee and that they gotta see it first and pass it. Also, if it’s released without their consent, they things will get out of hands and they will take to streets on this issue.
I don’t say the water has gone above the head – because I think it has happened a long back. I can’t even count on my fingers how many such instances have already happened where one or the other group springs up with such petty issues and disrupts daily lives. It ranges from a ban on M F Hussain from returning to India to protesting n number of films to burning posters and computers in public. I don’t have the answer to the question about Freedom of Speech and whether or not these actions fall in it (or out of). But a mob wielding swords out on the street against a fun film is sure no definition of freedom of speech or thought.
A lot of people, it seems, are mistaking going far with going ahead.
One of the widely accepted masala news channel was featuring an interview of representative of Shiromani Akali Dal. This religious outfit is the newest entrant in the Great Indian Moral Police League. They are reportedly against forthcoming Akki flick – Singh is Kinng.
Mr S A D (no I don’t expressly term him as sad, I’m just saving many a mouse clicks to write the complete Shiromani Akali Dal) said onscreen he’s not against the depiction of Akki as a Sardar. S A D has a problem with Akki dancing and monkeying around a little too much in the promos – that’s not how the Sikhs behave! He also says that the Sikhs have been mocked at in the film.
My brain had to observe a minute’s silence after watching it; but guess it ain’t required here. A minute hence I realized I was abjectly against the S A D representative. As far as I remember, my Sikh friends used to tell me they look out for the slightest pretext to break into a jig. Singing and dancing has always been an integral part of all Indian communities, including Sikhs. The splendid Bhangda and Gidda dance forms are unknown to none; neither are their wonderful music and folk songs. Speaking technically, the movie has not released yet and there’s no way you would know what all things are represented in the film.
The program also hinted that a committee has been formed to preview the film and ascertain whether there’s anything objectionable about it. But the S A D rep said his outfit doesn’t recognize any committee except for Shiromani committee and that they gotta see it first and pass it. Also, if it’s released without their consent, they things will get out of hands and they will take to streets on this issue.
I don’t say the water has gone above the head – because I think it has happened a long back. I can’t even count on my fingers how many such instances have already happened where one or the other group springs up with such petty issues and disrupts daily lives. It ranges from a ban on M F Hussain from returning to India to protesting n number of films to burning posters and computers in public. I don’t have the answer to the question about Freedom of Speech and whether or not these actions fall in it (or out of). But a mob wielding swords out on the street against a fun film is sure no definition of freedom of speech or thought.
A lot of people, it seems, are mistaking going far with going ahead.
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