Sirf Tum - Only You : A Unique Love Story

A friend recently shared a video of the old film song featuring Mala Sinha, dancing with a beautiful waterfall in the background. I advised him to look at a later day version ( a look alike of his old favourite song ) featuring Miss. Universe Shushmita Sen, from the film Sirf Tum.

The film has unique concept of long distance love. The boy worked in Kerala and the girl lived in Nainital - in Uttarakhand. They had never met - had never seen each other - had not even exchanged photos, hence they do not recognise each other when they meet later at New Delhi. .

Please do not loose heart, they will meet eventually before the film ends. Other than long distance love, that starts and grows through exchange of letters, there are few more unique things in the film.

It is perhaps one of the rarest films where 'Hero' is shown as a common male species who has to leave his job in Kerala because he picked up a fight with a goon and is now scared for his life. Later, he is seen plying an auto in Delhi (so does the super hunk and millions' heartthrob Jackie Shroff).

Also, the unmarried girl in the film, is wearing "sari" all the time as against the usual trend of the girls being shown in skimpy attire. It shows the film makers had done their homework and were being sensitive to the sentiments of "pahari" people, as the girl belongs to Nainital, in Uttarakhand.

Other than extensive use of the nature's bounty, both in Kerala and in Nainital, the film actually names the places. In a song, the boy is asking the girl to send some "chill" from Nainital to the warm Kerala. While Nainital is unmistakably recognisable in the film, I think the place in Kerala is Kochi (Cochin), and some place on Periyar River along the highway leading to Munnar.

The other girl, played so beautifully by the superlative Shushmita, is shown as a reasonable and a sensitive person too who has her own tragic story. She does love the boy but does not 'claim' him.

The film has no villain but for a goon in Kerala, who in a way actually helps the boy to meet his girl, by driving him away from Kerala and to shift to Delhi. But for him, the boy would stay in his job.

The other men in the film, as against what usually happens in such situations, do not crave for and do not pounce upon the young beautiful girl roaming around in the big bad city without an escort.

The brother in law of the girl, who is critical of her ways, does it out of affection, and real concern.

The scene where boy arranges a seat for girl in the train is so realistic and reminded me of old days.

The icing on the cake is the other boy, enacted so charmingly by Salman, too is an understanding guy.

Having come this far, I felt a strong urge to check if it is a remake of any Malayalam movie (in view of the Kerala connection) and find that it is indeed a remake but of a critically acclaimed and a much awarded Tamil movie named Kadhal Kottai. It won National Awards in several categories. Here, the girl is from Udhagmandalam (Ooty) and this may be the reason for her being in sari all the time.

Kadhal is boyfriend (thanks to Prabhudeva Nagma starer Kadhalan) and Kottai may mean anything from a nut (as in coconut) to as big and majestic thing as a palace or a castle. (One may go Nuts).

Chennai became Kerala and Ooty turned in to Nainital and the other curious difference is that the spellings of the name of the film's director changes from Agathian to Ahathian. Why ?

The all knowing wiki tells us that later Basu Chatterjee too made it in Bengali as 'Hothat Brishti', meaning "Sudden Downpour" - might be referring to rains during the concluding part of the film.

The difference they say is that in Bengali version the boy is said to be plying taxi and not auto.

One weak point I see is that when the girl goes to the former office of the boy, he could have and should have added two plus two four and could have easily recognised her. Next she goes to the home of the boy's friend (auto has to stop a little away due to traffic) but here too, he does not get any clue.

Later, he buys the rail ticket for her hometown but even then he does not talk about his girlfriend. He could have done so since his girlfriend hails from the same region - the place the girl was going to.

Anyways, coincidences and hits and misses, are essential to and integral parts of stories and films.

I watched the ending parts of both the Tamil and the Bengali films. The yellow sari is common in Hindi and Tamil versions but the girl in Bengali version is seen in blue sari (not in yellow) and also, she is sensible enough to disembark from the train with her bag. Other girls just jump out of train.

Also, while girls from Ooty and Nainital run to their boys, and the boys remain standing, waiting for the girls to jump upon them, to hug, to embrace, but the Bengali boy is seen running up half way.

After Bihar, What Next ?

BJP stands shocked due to the outcome of Bihar elections. Well, actually I also see it not so much as a victory for Laloo and Nitish but more so as a defeat of the strategy employed by BJP leadership.

As I see it, the people of Bihar have done a good job of reminding BJP as a political party in general and in particular to its lead characters like NaMo (Prime Minister), Amit Shah (Party President) and their few favourite chosen men and women that their main task is to carry out the responsibilities at the centre and that if they want the states to come under their control, then they shall have to identify, support, develop, nurture good leaders at the local level and that leadership and  that the winning formulae or guidance can not be imported in to states from outside (centre or other states).

As such, BJP was never a big force in Bihar and should not have made it a prestige issue, especially after the coming together of Laloo and Nitish, coaxed and cajoled by piggy back rider Congress. The symptoms were out when Amit Shah talked of Pakistan being happy at the defeat of BJP in Bihar or when someone else said that it is not a referendum on NDA / BJP govt at New Delhi or PM Modi.

The most astonishing thing about this is that certain Prashanta Kishor, who is said to have been the mastermind of BJP's successful poll campaign in 2014 LS elections, was allowed to cross over to the opposition camp, and that is a bad sign, since it shows that either they could not recognise or did not wish to acknowledge his contribution in LS elections of 2014. Even those who are against discussing politics must read about this Prashant Kishor since his team seems to have derailed the BJP's well oiled poll campaign in Bihar through use of a few simple tactics, and PM Modi fell in their trap.

However, Bihar elections give hope on two counts. One is that now onward no single party should dream of ruling all of India (centre and states) and each one must begin to respect and to learn to share power with other parties. The second and more important aspect is that now BJP, NaMo Govt shall have to perform in order to get over this setback and to consolidate their position. 

This means that the Govt and BJP will have to reach out to opposition and to coordinate more and more with other parties so that the pending legislation is taken up and passed. So, still the hope of Achche Din... remains alive.

AIRPORT SECURITY

Airport Security

One gentleman, identified as jattzp on youtube, was to fly from Amritsar to London via New Delhi. He faced some difficulty at New Delhi Airport regarding the alcohol bottle he says he had purchased at Duty Free Shop at Amritsar Airport. He recorded the happenings at the New Delhi Airport and has uploaded it on youtube. He has added a lengthy narration, a long story of how he felt that the police - CISF officers were trying to steal his bottle of whiskey. He says he had his wife, 2 children (under age of 4 years) and his parents with him and all had to face trouble due to bad treatment by CISF.

There has be some reason for the gentlemen jattzp having done so much and it looks like his hurt and anger is still on the boil. The behaviour of the policemen appearing in the video is strange in the fact that they allowed this gentleman to record it on his phone and they are also looking sheepish in it. 

I happened to see this youtube video and was unhappy to see the abusive comments appearing there. I tried to reason with this gent known as jattzp but he first abused me, then gave some explanation in somewhat decent language but again reverted back to rudeness the next time. Please see it here.

My  Comment : Not to defend rude behaviour but this man travels with 2 young kids (babies), wife and old parents and yet he buys booze and does not keep the receipt handy, which could have avoided some discomfort. Guys, do not abuse. India is beautiful and graceful.

jattzp commented like this :  your Gasti mom put it inside and sealed that's whst they do on Indisn airports...duty free is duty free anyway. fly and buy once before commenting

To this I wrote back : This shows your ugly attitude. You are rude and abusive yourself.

Meanwhile I had made another comment : Guys, please do not abuse. No airport will allow unsealed liquid bottle (that too alcohol) in cabin baggage. It is just not permitted anywhere. There seems to be no basis or any justification for the comment that police tried to steal the bottle. If you are not allowed to take something on board, then it will remain on ground. India is beautiful. Welcome.

After a while, I also added this comment : Please do not abuse India. Kindly see this video on youtube, "Border Security Australia 2011 Oversmart Indian couple". See how the Indian origin doctor and his wife had to pay fine for carrying home cooked food items. India is graceful and beautiful. Welcome.

At this point jattzp writes back : mr ............ bottle is sealed. Duty free is inside the airport and is open only for flights going abroad. Domestic Flight passengers in India are not allowed to buy duty free as they see your boarding cards and take copy of that and your passport to sell it to you. we bought that bottle on 4 passports. if you have been to Delhi airport and bought alcohol then you might know they put receipt in the bag and seal your bag from the top. customs if i have to pay i will pay in UK on arrival but that bottle was in allowed limit anyway. as i said before they stole bottles in front of me and all were duty free bottles. Thanks

Seeing his somewhat sober response, I wrote like this : Now you are being decent. Note that I am as old as your father, and you abuse my mom. She is over 85. Why did you use abusive words ? It can be seen that you faced some trouble but part of it was due to your own mistakes and due to not being well prepared for the journey.The day you can realise this, you will yourself delete this video. Next time, better not to buy booze or at least keep a scan of the receipt on your phone. If you are still angry and hurt, write to CISF HQs, New Delhi. God Bless you.

Meanwhile, someone commented like this : All those brainless bastards commenting on airport security in India. These same guys who quitely abide by security protocol in a foreign country tries to be smart in India. To carry a liquid content it must be in a sealed pack and not as shown here.

At this point, jattzp again went back to his rude manners, and said like this : .....(my name).....easy to preach others on YouTube. have you ever confronted any policeman for your Right in India?

My reply :  Yes my dear, I live in India and face all that comes my way and you know, all is not well all the time, but I will not abuse or ridicule my country on internet. One can see it easily that you are an unhappy soul. It is not preaching. Thank your stars that they did not arrest you for recording it.

He came back with this : if you read description it states i asked for permission and the three star guy said what will you do by putting on youtube. but it did work. lot of guys got confidence to record any kind if corruption happening over there. Now, airport personnel better as well as i visited in May this year. Therefore, i decided to keep it on. cheers!

look at comments how many people faced corruption on airports over there. its over 5 years i m waiting for the reply of my complaint to cisf? anyeays, Sokhs waiting for justice for last 31 years in that great democratic country..so my wait is nothing in comparison to them. do you call ridicule if someone expose corrupt personnel???

It is strange that though the incident relates to 2010 but he is still so unhappy about it, and has not yet been able to get out of it. I feel pity for the guy, but it is also to be seen that did not even have the decency of saying "sorry" for having used abusive words.

My last comment : My dear jattzp, I can see that you will not do all this without having some good reason. It looks like you faced some serious trouble that has made you so angry. I can not say if the police behaved well or not. You would know it better. See, as you first used abusive words and later you did not even show the decency of saying sorry for using abusive words, in the same manner, these policemen are also human beings like you, full of ego and sometimes having petty greed. My concern is that because of few policemen, all and sundry should not get a chance to abuse 'India'.

I have sent the link to this vedio and the entire conversation to CISF HQs, on the mailing ids of their 4 senior officers as seen on their official website, but have not received any response as yet.

The controversy is making businessmen unsecure

The ongoing controversy surrounding the topic of hate, intolerance, and award wapasi, etc., is making the county's businessmen insecure. They are worried about its impact on business environment.

Yesterday, some eminent persons from industry and business said something in this matter and the media published it with grossly misleading headlines.This is the headline in one paper and below is the main para of the article. "Now Kiran Shaw, Lord Desai voice concern over intolerance in India"

 

Sorry folks, the following lines (from that article itself) do not gel with the headlines given by you :

“Let us face it, investors want a sort of harmonious kind of environment to invest in. If they feel there is turmoil, there is unrest, that their investments are not safe, that’s what Moody’s is talking about... Therefore it is important that government actually act fast and corrects this image,” she said.
 

And here is an excerpt from my blog - a piece I had penned / keyed / typed on Oct 31 (early hours) :

"A free for all is not in anybody's favour, and must stop immediately. With the passing day, it is getting internationalised and our enemies are looking at it with glee. Already, the portents are not good since a purely financial body like the global credit rating agency named Moodys has come out with what can be seen as a political statement that looks like a repeat of the common accusations flying around. So guys, bury the hatchet now for the sake of Mother India and its millions of poor children, please."

So, as I have already said, "simple well meaning people are getting sucked in to it." Basically, these high level persons from fields of business are essentially concerned about the impact of this ongoing controversy on business environment. As may be seen above, flight of capital is their main concern.

Unlike, the liberals, business is not accusing the ruling combine of indulging in hate or of intolerance. They want the govt to get this controversial issued closed here and now. Same holds for liberals too.

Now, how do you feel when a person like SRK, darling of the millions across India and of the Indians around the globe, starts saying things that militates against any logic. Fellow was in a happy mood yesterday on his 50th B'day and now I am afraid that the guy who was almost a kind of mascot for secularism till yesterday might now become a hate target like his other counterpart 'Bhaijaan'.

Off course, despite the accusations of this or that kind, Salman Khan has always maintained (and rightfully so) that their family home is the perfect example of secularism and religious harmony.    

Regards

About intolerance of liberals -when will it stop

I am member of a forum comprising of professionals who were earlier working in one institution and were placed in certain geographical peripheries. Though most of us have since moved on but the bonds developed in those days, are still strong and we share our thoughts in a common forum.

As an aberration, I remember with deep regrets that sometime prior to the 2014 lok sabha elections, a topic featuring NaMo / BJP was banned in this forum. However, something cropped up today which appears to be critical of liberals and their award wapasi etc. Though I too feel that the liberals are overdoing it but then I had to ask the forum members of their conduct in the past and to desist from being critical of the said pseudo secular left liberals who are returning their rewards. In my view, most of these left leaning liberals are well meaning persons but misguided.

Well, it is not rocket science to see that some of them (not all, not even the most but only some) have received their awards and also a whole lot of patronage from the previous regimes, for holding and propagating certain kind of ideologies, and some of them (not all / not even so many / but some at least) do not expect to get the same patronage and preferences from the present ruling combine.

Well, like one can not expect Lalu Nitish Azam Owaissi etc to be friends of Modi, like wise any one who thinks on the lines of say Irfan Habib can never be a friend or well wisher of Modi and BJP.

I am at loss to understand and decipher as to why these so called secularists and liberals, mostly well meaning persons, are protesting against so much. Things are not bad at all and if there is still some tension in the air, then they are to blame for it, at least partially, for keeping it alive - in the news.

I wonder and would like to know as to what they are wishing for, and often feel constrained to think that their whole shebang is going to be counterproductive. If they are under some kind of illusion that this will impel people to vote for the so called self proclaimed secular parties (in 2019) then it is a pipe dream. Congress has no future - at least under this leadership, and Communists are now history - everywhere in the world. (China is a military dictatorship - they use the term 'communist' to hide it).

I hold a firm belief that India is secular solely because of its majority community holding true liberal and secular ethos and the world knows it. It is wrong to blame the entire community for few stray incidents. Look at the names of these liberals itself, most of them are from majority community.

Shallow character of so called secularists liberals is visible in their treatment of one lady from B'desh. What is her fault - just that she wrote a small story about the plight of minority community in her country of birth - from which she now stands banished for life - and some wish to see her dead, and yet, there is no protest, not even sympathy, from the self styled "liberal" thinkers of this country.

Besides, I often wonder as to why these people opposing Modi so bitterly and why they can not see that they have made him the PM of India (by carping about him constantly for the last several years).

It is so clearly written on the wall that NaMo became what he is today because the opposition feared him and kept criticising him all the time and that is what some clever people in BJP used (and they were supported by RSS). Otherwise Modi had little chance of even being raised to the top league in the party forums. He was much below in the ladder. The undue criticism made him what he is now.

In all this, I have few concerns. NaMo, despite being the pet hate object for some and an ordinary political leader for many more like me, still remains the only hope for India at this juncture and his failure means economic catastrophe for the nation. At least, he seems to be a good salesman.

Award Wapasi By Left Liberals

Award Wapasi By Left Liberals

The saga of award wapasi continues unabated and it would perhaps end only after the Bihar election results are out. Well, if BJP / NDA wins, then it may halt for a while, to resurface again a little later.

And if BJP does not manage to win in Bihar, then again the matter would go to background while the winners rejoice but then, it will be brought back with more force to destabilise the NaMo led Govt.

BJP/ NDA have to analyse and understand the situation with a lot more care and caution. After all, being in power, it is the responsibility of NaMo led Govt / BJP / NDA to maintain social harmony, and to combine it with political stability and economic growth. They need to see that the powers opposed to the present ruling combine are unfair, unjust, intolerant and arrogant, to say the least. BJP leadership must not fall in their clever trap. To begin with, the bayanbaaji of its few big mouths has to stop completely. Also, ministers must stop reacting to sundry statements made by opposition leaders. 

Besides, BJP / NDA / NaMo / Arun Jaitley / Rajnath Singh and all others in the ruling combine must recognise that the whole shebang is being played out to make them look like a failure. Hence, they have to work doubly hard to ensure that the message reaches the people and that can be done through mass contact on a regular basis. Prime Minister and his senior ministers must hold periodical rallies in various states, and they need to avoid the old practice of visiting people only during the elections.

More so, rather than talking of 'development' as an agenda, Govt needs to tell people point by point (and repeat it) the steps taken for welfare of people, and the steps taken for the said "development" agenda and to harp on 'how the opposition is thwarting the development' by their unreasonable criticism, highlight the non cooperation in the parliament, and tell / explain to the people that much of the accusations of the opposition are actually falsehoods, tell the people that opposition is actually spreading canards in the name of opposing the policy. You got to be vivid and clear and you must ensure that the language used is judicious, and is unambiguous leaving no chance of distortion.

Guys, you need to win in 2019 too and must ensure that 2004 is not repeated again (despite good work done by NDA under the brilliant leadership of Atal ji). India can't afford another UPA so soon.

Intolerent Indians

Intolerant Indians

Well, the ruling party members scoff at their detractors for manufacturing a protest and staging the drama of award wapsi. Some have gone to the extreme calling them sleeper cells of anti BJP forces.

It is also a fact that certain elements will continue to be critical of anything and everything that BJP and its leadership may do be it some of the so called secular leaders, the main opposition party that is presently deep in dumps, and most of die hard communists. It is unfortunate that despite their claims of being secular or plain and simple atheists or rather anti religion, communists are communalists of the worst kind. Also, one can not expect the darbari mandali of old regimes to praise NaMo and BJP.

Someone accused Nayantara Sehgal of starting it all and it prima facie appears true too and one can not rule out the allegation in entirety but then there is another facet which says that Nayantara Sehgal is more like her illustrious mother, who had an ambivalent relationship with her niece Indira Gandhi. Vijaylaxmi Pandit was never seen with Indira Gandhi as was the case earlier when her brother Pandit Nehru was in power. In those days, Ms Vijaylaxmi Pandit was once even seen in high chair at UNO. Nobody has ever seen Nayantara Sehgal taking sides with Congress or its reigning first family.

It is said that PUCL (decidedly one of the premier institutions fighting for civil rights and liberties in India), has a deep connect with both the mother and her worthy daughter. Still, one would like the lady and her ilk to come forward and initiate a dialogue with the parties she is opposing or rather, talk to them about the actions, and the policies that, in their view, needs to be opposed and stopped.

A free for all is not in anybody's favour, and must stop immediately. With the passing day, it is getting internationalised and our enemies are looking at it with glee. Already, the portents are not good since a purely financial body like the global credit rating agency named Moodys has come out with what can be seen as political statement that looks like a repeat of the common accusations flying around.

So guys, bury the hatchet now for the sake of Mother India and its millions of poor children, please.

Is it true that Modi is attacked for being "Desi" (not of privileged class)

A newspaper headline goes like this,"Modi is not privileged class, thus faces attacks: Chetan Bhagat".

If he (Mr Bhagat) has actually said what the newspaper website says he has said, then it may be a point worth considering. I wish to thank Mr Chetan Bhagat for speaking out what was in my mind for some time. Actually, I have mentioned this in few of my previous posts here in this blog itself.

Times Group too deserves praise for publishing the article and for baring the truth. It has been seen time and again that similiar or worse incidents have happened under the previous regimes and keep happening in opposition ruled states but somehow the blame is invariably and so incorrectly being directed at NaMo & BJP. Somehow, the idea of manufactured dissent raised by BJP seems to be so much true / genuine. Somehow, it will still make sense if one declines to accept an award but the very idea of dismissing an accepted award and honour earned by virtue of hard work makes no sense.
  

It has been a notable aspect of elections of 2014 that BJP fought and won under the leadership of someone who is essentially not a career politician. Mr Namrendra Modi had never been in the mainstream politics and never even contested an election before being anointed as Chief Minister of Gujarat in Oct 2001. Thus, it was people's wish that BJP rules the country for the next five years. 

Besides, to me it holds much higher significance that BJP fought and won this election under the leadership of an ordinary person, that is someone who is son of poor parents, who used to earn their livelihood through a hard days toil. His parents were no royals, no feudal landlords, no industrialists, no traders, no contractors, not even local advocates or even influential Sarpanch of the area. 

For the first time, people had a candidate who genuinely gave his entire life to social work and this enthused the  people. Besides, it is also seen that having no offspring of his own, he did not have the burden of securing the future of his heirs. This is seen as a really big plus point in our political scene.

Besides, in my view, what appealed to the youth was his unbelievably good health, high level of motivation and dynamism unseen till now, his ease with the computers, technology and the gadgets. His team came up with innovative uses of technology to reach out to maximum numbers of voters.

And then, in the end, it is his ease with words, that makes him a unique inspiring leader of masses. Fact is that he is communicator par excellence and even his detractors are forced to acknowledge this.

Hence, the opposition parties and the intelligentsia should refrain from too much criticism, or else, the critics of this regime will sooner or later loose credibility and it will turn out to be like the story of the shepherd boy and the wolf. Constructive criticism is fine but too much carping is not justifiable.

Talking of intolerance and returning of awards

Talking of intolerance and returning of awards

Much has been said about the rising intolerance in society and also about the act of returning of the awards by some eminent persons who are considered to be greats in their respective fields of work.

Before we move ahead, let it be clear that lynching by mobs was so far heard in parts of Bengal, and in some other pockets where poor old ladies were killed by falsely labeling them as chudail or dayan.

It is hard to see such things now happening in places like Dimpaur in Nagaland and Dadri in NCR. Also, it is heart rending to see that in both the cases, at least one member of the victim's family was serving with the security forces. While, one victim was labelled as 'foreigner', and the investigations seem to confirm that both the victims were falsely accused of the 'crimes' that they never committed.

Such is the guile and cunning of the perpetrators of these crimes that ever since the political parties and people worth a name in this society are indulging in mud slinging and bad mouthing each other.


Print media has already wasted paper worth several millions in discussing this topic and has still not reached anywhere. The issue is all over the television screens and can not be missed either on the net.

But what is the truth. Are these people really interested in what they seem to say or whether they are just the hit-men of some political parties who have lost elections but do not wish to give up as yet.

Being abused by opposition is not new for BJP and its present face, Prime Minister Narendra Modi. As such, some of the so called men of wisdom, self appointed champions of secularism, have always been critical of BJP and particularly that of NaMo. Both are anathema to some sections of the so called intelligentsia. The secularists just can not tolerate them both. Strangely, even some of their own people, usually estranged from the present regime, have been critical of their own government.
These days, it has become difficult to believe the written word, be it on net or in newspapers. Almost everyone seems to have an axe to grind and thus, a genuinely honest opinion is difficult to come by.

Hence, talking of intolerance and to comment on return of awards, by some authors, is a difficult proposition for an onlooker but one may also not ignore some points raised by BJP sympathisers.

NaMo came to power after BJP gained a simple majority on its own and this has happened after long long time indicating that people were fed up with the past regime and also did not want a coalition.

It is not if we have any dearth of eminent personalities who are genuinely disturbed at the growing chasm between the different sections of the society but it is also true that the last regime was the most corrupt, its leaders have cornered oodles of money that can easily buy some of the opinion makers.

What adds significance to the BJP's stance of it being manufactured dissent is the fact that it started with the lady named Nayantara Sehgal, and everyone knows her ancestry and the political lineage.

Despite doubts, let us assume they are all genuinely concerned but still, the question is whether they are going to achieve any tangible results by doing what they are doing. Let all of them think over it.

Why NaMo succeeded in 2014 and why should I think that he would do so in future as well, Part 4 :

This is in continuation with the other 3 older posts on the subject.

BJP / NDA Govt headed by Mr Narendra Modi has since completed more than one year on saddle, and we are discussing the good work done so far and the hopes and expectations for the future.

Though the main opposition party is far from from being cooperative (it is rather being combative, mostly on non issues) but the NaMo Govt still seems to be doing well. This is common perception.

People can see that it is difficult for some people to remain out of power, that too to a man who has no legacy of power. People love NaMo since he is neither a prince, nor a moneybag, not even a regular career politician. He was only a pracharak and has lived life of a mendicant for decades.
  
However, the washout of the current session of parliament and lack of progress on several pending  legislative matters is a cause of concern and it is high time that Team NaMo tries to learn the rules of achieving success in parliamentary democracy. Opposition, large or small, silly or sanguine, is also an integral part of the democratic process and simply dumping them out of the house is not sagatious.

A suitable beginning seems to have happened since reports suggest that govt is reviewing its stand on the much maligned land bill, and also that expulsion of opposition members is being reconsidered.

Nevertheless, these are trivial matters and the govt must concentrate on the agenda of nation building, taking along even its bitterest critics. The moot idea is that people should keep alive its expectations from the govt and only this will ensure that the same ruling combine comes to power in more and more states and its number deficit in upper house is managed. Also, govt should keep in mind that despite having done well under the leadership of legendary Atal ji, the BJP / NDA govt had lost power to combined opposition in 2004 and it must be seen that this ought not happen again in 2019.

NaMo being a simple man of humble origins who has risen from grassroots and understands the pain of poverty, I have faith that he would do everything to ensure genuine upliftment of the poor masses.  

Hence, I am hopeful and do not see why NaMo would not succeed again in 2019 and even beyond. 

 

Bajrangi Bhaijaan, some missing points

Bajrangi Bhaijaan has been hailed by the assorted critics for its good storyline and for several good points in its plot and sub plots. It is often seen that despite adverse comments by almost all critics, some films do well because of the qualities that are liked by common film viewers. In this case, since Bajrangi Bhaijaan has been appreciated by critics too, the box office success of this film was assured.

However, I have observed that almost all critics have failed to comment on a crucial issue highlighted in the film Bajrangi Bhaijaan, and I am trying to bring attention to the issue of human trafficking, particularly the heinous crime of child trafficking. I am sure the cinema viewers would have seen that under pressure from his would be father in law (sasur ji), the film's hero at one point almost hands over the child to human traffickers but good sense prevails and the possibility of a bad situation emerging is thankfully avoided. Thanks God.

Besides, everyone would have thought that the girl's mother is planning to come to Delhi for seeking some kind of medical treatment for the mute girl but all that she does in the film is to visit the famous dargah of a pious saint. Although nothing wrong in visiting a dargah to seek divine blessings for welfare of one's child but doing only that much is not enough and one should always try to seek good medical advice too. It is also difficult to digest that the cross border train was not adequately guarded and that the child could get down from it without being noticed. Also, how and why was a baby goat there on the railway tracks at that time in the middle of the night is not easy to understand.  

Film is being appreciated and beautiful comments are coming forth on the film from the other side of the border but it does not show that there is not a single person in that country who does not hate it. Although the motive of the film is to promote amity across the borders and it does seem to have done well in this regard as seen from its commercial success but they could have shown at least one or a few zealots who dart at Bhaijaan on seeing that he is an alien and has entered their county illegally. Off course, the good Samaritans would come forward to shout down the idiotic zealots and the hero then goes on fulfilling his mission uninterrupted.  This type of portrayal would have been realistic.

Lastly, in the last scene of the film, people gather in large numbers to see off the hero and are shown as forcibly opening the gates at the border post (named Narowal which actually exists) and they are able to ensure that the hero goes off to his country unharmed. More strange is the idea that the border guards go by the peoples' wishes. Easier said (imagined) than done. Still more strange is the part that one security services officer decides to defy the orders of his superior and escorts the hero to the border post and has the guts to argue with the border guards to let the man go across the border. This would not be possible even in an utopian land, forget about it happening in Pakistan of these times.

Also, I feel bad that the film makers could not think of arranging a meeting of the hero with the mother (and father) of the child. If they could think of the divine or medical miracle happening since the child does manage to get a voice and calls out Mama...Mama to Bajrangi Bhaijaan but the scene involving some kind of Rakhi being tied by her mother to our hero would have been wonderful. Imagine a scene involving the tearful but happy mother saying thanks and goodbye to her child's saviour. I am sure this would have done wonders. Hence, I fail to understand as to why the film's makers could not contrive a scene featuring the girl, her family, and the hero in one frame.

Guys, let me add that I did like the film, as it is, immensely, and my comments above are a result of a genuine interest in the film. Let there be more films like this and I wish the borders would actually truely vanish some day in future, may be it will happen someday long after the film is archived.

Bhar Do Jholi Meri....... Eid Mubarak

Bhar Do Jholi Meri.... Eid Mubarak

In one movie that I watched long back, a character is seen passing by a masjid or dargah and while he is there, a song is playing on loudspeaker.....the line that one can hear is ..Bhar Do Jholi Meri.. Tere Dar Se Naa Jooinga Khali...Once the character moves on from the site, the song also ends abruptly...

I was much young at that time but the one two line snatch of the song had left its imprint on my mind and heart, and I tried to find out more about the song but no one could tell me anything about it. Yes, all agreed that hearing those one two lines of song in the movie does leave a lasting impact.

Much later, I learnt from one Haji Saheb that it is a quawalli sung by Sabri Brothers of Pakistan who speciliaise in singing sufiana kalam, and that it is dedicated to a dargah located in Pakistan. Haji Saheb also told us about other popular spiritual songs of Pakistan like Dama Dam Mast Kalandar...

Haji ji informed us, a group of college going boys then, that the Bulleshah mentioned in famous song of film Bobby was actually a sufi saint of Pakistan and his songs are immensely popular in Pakistan.

Once I saw on tv, Gulzar Saheb was attributing the success of a song penned by him to sufi saint Bulleshah. Besides, we have seen our popular film hero dancing to the tunes of Chhaiyan Chhaiyan... dance number.. atop a train. This song was also an adaptation of the song written by Bulleshah. This song is addressed to God and originally worded as ..Tere Isq Nachaya...Karke Thaiya Thaiya...

Much later, after the advent of internet, thanks to you tube, I could hear the full song Bhar Do Jholi ... .. Dar Se Naa Jaooinga Khali... sung by Sabri Brothers and many more such popular sufi songs.

Other than Sabri Brothers, so many other singers have earned name and fame by singing sufi songs like Wadali Brothers, Reshma, Runa Laila, Abida Praveen, and now Kailash Kher is singing such songs. With Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Adnan Sami gets included to the list.

Bhar Do Jholi Meri.. has been included in the recently released film Bajrangi Bhaijaan. The sufi song gels beautifully in the film's plot and it adds continuity to the ongoing travails of the lead character. Besides, the singer Adnan Sami, who was known for his Lift Kara De..number..has done full justice to the song even in these days of synthetic sounds and cacophony of electronically created music. His voice comes out fine as the lead qawwali singer even when several instruments are playing and so much of clapping is going on. Even the melody queen Lata Didi was impressed and blessed Adnan.

As such, in the Indian sub continent, including areas now in Pakistan and Bangladesh, sufi saints have been accorded huge respect and are revered much after they depart from the terra firma. We have so many famous dargah like holy shrines of Ajmer, Fatehpur Sikri. Hazi ali and Nizamuddin.

It is seen that the song featuring in Bajrangi Bhaijaan has been shot at the famous jiyarat (dargah ) of Sheikh Zainuddin of Aishmuqm located between Anantnag and Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir. 

Why stock markets had a crash soon after Deepawali in 2010

Why stock markets had a crash soon after Deepawali in 2010

Have you ever wondered as to why the stock markets had a crash soon after Deepawali in 2010.

Yes, you may say that in 2008, it was due to global recession, failure of banks in western countries, beginning with financial giant Lehman of USA. The tremors of bank failures are still reverberating in the form of Greece Crisis, slowdown in America and Europe.

Coming back to the question as to why the stock markets had a crash soon after Deepawali in 2010. This is because the FIIs,who had been making a beeline to India in 2009 and in first half of 2010 simply decided to book their profits and to leave for greener pastures. No great rocket science here.

In addition to the contagion that may come to us through the now moribund China, we Indians should be worried deeply about the rampant decline in exports. Actually this should worry the powers that be the most but the authouities are somehow looking more concerned about keeping up the stock market index rather than the real genuine investments. 

Today, some foolish decision have been taken regarding removal of sectoral caps on investment coming in in the form of FDI and the funds invested by FIIs, and the markets bounced up.

One may wonder as to what makes the morons so happy about it. This is a recipe for sure disaster and may turn out to be very very damaging for retail investors. If this freedom is misused, there will be no stability in stock prices - giving rise to sharp volatility. 

FIIs are essentially fly by night operators and have no attachment with the companies or the scrips they invest in. When FIIs come in, stock prices jump and when they leave (like it happened in 2008 and again in 2010-11-12), the stocks fall like nine pins. Herd mentality of investors is also to blame, since they tend to invest in whatever is going up. 

Hence, for stability of markets, FIIs should be obliged to have a definite lock in period. Hello SEBI !

Exports are falling, and with the fall being regular and persistent, and hence, we should be seriously worried

Our exports are falling, and with the fall being regular, and persistent, and this should really have us seriously worried. This is a serious matter since our current account deficit has never been stable, and we are just looking up from a deep abyss. Moreover, it is also so much worrying since this comes at a time when our own currency is so highly depreciated.There is not much scope for more depreciation.

Besides, this comes at a time when our imports are still on a rise and the foreign currency inflows, particularly long term stable investments, instead of hot funds, are not coming in at the desired pace.

RBI Gov Rajan, (who had predicted the 2008 US financial collapse, before it actually happened), has been warning that global markets are at the risk of a crash due to the unhealthy monetary policies being adopted by the developed economies, with almost negligible or utterly low interest rate policies of US Fed, BOJ, and BOE, etc., by which they expect to stimulate their depressed economies.

Rajan has also warned that emerging markets are highly vulnerable to big shifts in capital (out)flows triggered by the unprecedented monetary accommodation prevailing in rich and developed countries.

One wonders if the RBI Gov Rajan knows so much about the world economies then what is he doing to address the threat emerging out of the falling exports even if we were to ignore his talk of the impending 1930 type doom in the global economies (that is if we were to use his own terminology).

Let us note that the crisis of 1990s came with negligible exports and the burgeoning debt. Presently too we are facing a stubbornly declining export performance, with the decline continuing unabated. Also, our total foreign debt has since grown many times more than what it used to be in the 1990s.

Export sector being significant employment provider, the decline in export revenues may end up with failures of not just some of the exporters but also that of several of their home based suppliers and the consequent fall in employment opportunities might be scary, even if there are no intentional lay offs.

Are we now getting bored with Lalitgate Part 2

Are we now getting bored with Lalitgate Part 2 :

We have already discussed a few aspects of this issue, that is "are we are now getting bored with Lalitgate". In Part 2, we shall look in to few more aspects of the issue.

The first question is as to why Mr Lalit Modi has been living in self exile and why he is not living in his own homeland.  Why and when did he leave and why is it that so far he has not been brought back despite his being available to almost anyone who wishes to meet him at any point of time. Some say that he has a threat perception from certain elements and hence his self imposed exile.

It is obvious that he is not trying to hide himself and that is not a symptom of a criminal or fugitive. The next question is that if he fears for his life, then he ought to be taking precautions and he should at least try to lie low. 

As the accusations are flying thick and fast, it may be inferred that he might have done some wrongs during the years when he was the administrator and had held immense power in a money spinning sporting event named as IPL.

But has anyone filed any complaint against him in any police station or in any court and if yes, then what was the progress of the case. Has any court of law issued summons for his presence ?

Yes, we hear about the cases under foreign exchange laws and certain such things which they say are not of criminal nature but only of civil nature ? Really, even if someone evades the investigators ?

As the plethora of cases related to cricket indicate, be it betting, involvement of funds brought from undisclosed sources, transactions done at unexplainable and unreasonable rates, and things like that, and these point towards the involvement of not just one but a lot more people in these wrong doings.

One perception is that Mr Lalit Modi was conveniently allowed to go abroad in order to avoid the possibility of any inquiry taking place, and as a result it was ensured that many more people will continue to rest in peace inside the country, while Mr Lalit Modi may enjoy his self imposed exile at the exotic locations of his choice.

The mystery might be resolved if Mr Lalit Modi is brought back and a meaningful inquiry is held in to the entire issue but as the portends indicate, this is not likely to happen anytime soon. It is sad to see that there is not even one honest person with a strong will who could unravel this gigantic scam.

So, the common people of India, need not bother much. It is a rich man's world and with the cricket lovers ready to shower money, crooks will continue to enjoy. Only their names will keep changing.

Are we now getting bored with Lalitgate

Are we now getting bored with Lalitgate :

Is it not terrible to see the same Lalitgate invading your house every time you switch on the tv set ?

It is often seen that when politicians make a mistake, the opposition makes a hue and cry and the ruling party stalls the issue till it dies its own death. This is when there is no criminality involved.

In case the issue refuses to die its own death, then the rulers may initiate an inquiry to assuage the hurt of the people and the matter gradually goes out of currency.

In case there is a criminal aspect to the accusations, someone or other goes to courts and gets the courts to order for the issue being examined and scrutinised by a suitable investigating agency.

In certain cases, it has been seen that the courts have taken cognisance of the issues suo motto and have ordered the relevant authorities to submit the matter for the courts examination.

It is seen that in the case of Lalitgate, there is too much discussion on the media but so far no one has gone to a court of law, and no court has taken suo motto cognisance of the issues so far.

Does it mean that there is no substance in the accusations and that at least there is no criminal aspect that may be taken up in a court of law that may lead to successful prosecution of the accused ?

If it is so then why are the opposition parties crying hoarse on this issue ? 

If the opposition is sure of its arguments, then why not haul up the accused to a court of law ?      

One Year of BJP's Modi Sarkar :

One Year of BJP's Modi Sarkar :

Without saying much, please see the list of the 25 major initiatives of BJP's Modi Sarkar as under :

1. Jan Dhan Yojana - bank accounts for poor

2. DBT - Gas Subsidy transfer

3. Make In India - more investment more jobs

4. Cleanliness (Swachh Bharat), Toilets for all

5. Social Security Schemes, Low Cost Insurance, Atal Pension Scheme

6. Mudra Bank - for small and micro enterprises

7. Beti Bachao Beti Padhao - save and educate the girl child

8. Initiatives on Black Money - SIT and new legislation

9. Price Control / Reduced Inflation - rate cuts by RBI and Banks

10. Smart Cities, Housing for all, Roads and Railways

11. Heritage Cities - the important cities of religious and tourism significance

12. Adarsh Gram Yojana

13. Skill Devlopment

14. Namami Gange - cleaning of rivers and interlinking projects

15. Gram Jyoti Yojana

16. Soil Health Card

17. Rural Infra and Urban Infra

18. Rural Irrigation

19. Augmenting Female numbers in Police Forces

20. Steps taken for ease of doing business

21. Foreign investment in insurance

22. Foreign investment in defense production

23.  NITI Ayog - More transfers to States / Greater Federalism

24. Revival of telecom sector - online auction of spectrum since completed successfully

25. Revival of Mining Sector - transparent online auction of coal mines - continuing

Why NaMo succeeded in 2014 and why should I think that he would do so in future as well, Part 3 :

Why NaMo succeeded in 2014 and why should I think that he would do so in future as well, Part 3 :

--continued from part 2...

We are discussing as to why BJP and NaMo succeeded in 2014 and why should we think that they would continue to do so in future as well. We have already discussed the issues like clarity of command and leadership, good communication abilities of Mr Modi, fine example of development that had taken place in Gujarat under his leadership, bad track record of the previous government, disenchantment of the masses as well as the business community with the previous dispensation, and more so, despite the rhetoric, it seems that the minorities too switched sides and voted for BJP. 

Now let us see as to what happened during the last one year after the victory of 2014 and what holds for the future. BJP has so far, under the leadership of Mr Narendra Modi, gone with small steps at a time and have avoided declaration of big bang reforms that the earlier regimes were so much fond of. 

Mr Modi started his innings with a nuanced change in diplomatic initiatives. After inviting all the SAARC nations for the swearing in ceremony, Mr Modi started his international visits with Bhutan.  Soon after, he went to Brazil to take part in the BRICS summit. Thereafter, he has visited Nepal twice, and has since visited Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh as well. In all, he has been to 18 countries, including Fiji, Myanmar, Seychelles, Mauritius, Mangolia, Singapore, etc..

On the other hand, with economic aspects in mind, he has since been to all the important nations across the globe starting with USA. He has been to France, Germany, Australia, Canada, Japan, China, Mangolia, Australia, South Korea, and there are few more visits scheduled in the near future including visits to Britain, Russia, Central Asia, South East Asia, Turkey, and to Israel and Palestine. 

It is noteworthy that the most important aspect of his diplomatic initiatives has been to have the US President Mr Barack Obama as the Chief Guest for the Republic Day celebrations.

Also, visits of NaMo to various countries brought out the humongous Indian diaspora in full strength.

 

----to be continued----

Why NaMo succeeded in 2014 and why should I think that he would do so in future as well, Part 2

Why NaMo succeeded in 2014 and why should I think that he would do so in future as well, Part 2

Continued from Part 1....

We are discussing the elections of 2014 and in continuity, we may observe that though unwittingly, the forces staunchly opposed to the candidature of Mr Narendra Modi, have contributed immensely to his victory. It may seem incongruous but let us discuss and try to see if this has some truth in it.

This is true that for over a decade the opposition kept on insinuating against BJP in general and against Mr Modi in particular accusing him of being somewhat like a man eating ogre. It is a fact that some people might have been swayed by this propaganda for some time but gradually people started seeing through the crap and decided to let the bygones be bygones and adhered with BJP & NaMo.  

It is also a fact that the previous ruling coterie was getting mired in one controversy after the other by each day and the series of court decisions that went against the actions of the sitting political parties and with so many of their leaders being accused in cases of big corruption, their fate had been sealed.

Of the alternates available to the people, BJP with its clearly defined leadership and relatively clean track record, the choice for the people was obvious and they voted for BJP and NaMo in droves.

One important and crucial aspect of this election was that a succession of court orders going against the actions / decisions of the previous ruling dispensation had its impact on the business / industries.  The economy and investment environment was at its nadir and there was a situation of hopelessness.

Although nothing can be said definitively in absence of information in this regard, but it is a common perception that this situation might have prompted the big guns to prefer BJP and NaMo. As such, it is often said that though the masses vote in elections but it is the classes that make the governments.

Also, the extra ordinary track record of development seen in Gujarat, under the leadership of BJP and Mr Modi, was an inspiration for the people across the nation, and they voted for him with hope.

Let us hope that BJP, under the leadership of Mr Narendra Modi, will keep the hopes alive.

----to be continued----

Why NaMo succeeded in 2014 and why should I think that he would do so in future as well, Part 1

Why NaMo succeeded in 2014 and why should I think that he would do so in future as well, Part 1.

General elections of 2014 were unique in many ways like it is for the first time after 1984-85, that any single party has gained simple majority in Lok Sabha, the popularly elected house of parliament. 

Besides, it is for the first time that a sitting Chief Minister was elevated to the rank of Prime Minister.

Thirdly, unlike the past, voters were not swayed by the rhetoric of so called secular and non secular forces. We may say so since winning 73 seats out of total 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh would not have been feasible without the minorities voting for BJP. We may recall that minorities have very strong presence in almost 27 seats - that is 33% of total seats. Of the 7 seats that went elsewhere, 2 were won by mother son duo of Congress, and 5 seats went to SP supremo Mulayam Singh and his close family members. Results were almost similiar in some other states with higher minority populace.

Also, notably, unlike in the past, BJP had openly declared Mr Narendra Modi as its Prime Ministerial candidate. Remember, this was not the case even when Late Indira Gandhi was at the helm of affairs. Although it was known to all but she never declared herself as the Prime Ministerial candidate. Even Late Rajiv Gandhi contested elections without being declared as the Prime Ministerial candidate. 

 

Another notable aspect is that BJP fought and won this election under the leadership of someone who is essentially not a career politician. Mr Namrendra Modi had never been in the mainstream politics and never even contested an election before being anointed as Chief Minister of Gujarat in Oct 2001. 

 

Besides, to me it holds much higher significance that BJP fought and won this election under the leadership of an ordinary person, that is someone who is son of poor parents, who used to earn their livelihood through a hard days toil. His parents were no royals, no feudal landlords, no industrialists, no traders, no contractors, not even local advocates or even influential Sarpanch of the area. 

 

For the first time, people had a candidate who genuinely gave his entire life to social work and this enthused the  people. Besides, it is also seen that having no offspring of his own, he did not have the burden of securing the future of his heirs. This is seen as a really big plus point in our political scene.

 

Besides, in my view, what appealed to the youth was his unbelievably good health, high level of motivation and dynamism unseen till now, his ease with the computers, technology and the gadgets. His team came up with innovative uses of technology to reach out to maximum numbers of voters.

 

And then, in the end, it is his ease with words, that makes him a unique inspiring leader of masses. Fact is that he is communicator par excellence and even his detractors are forced to acknowledge this.

....to be continued....

For India to gain speed, it is imperative that NaMo succeeds at any cost

I had last written on the crisis faced by the people of Greece, and how we too faced similiar situation in early 1990s when we had to pawn our gold and later we overhauled our entire economic system.

Although I remain optimistic for various factors giving rise to our expectations of better growth in the coming years but there are reasons that give rise to the fears of the repetition of 1990s like situation.

Let us recall that even after the complete overhaul of the economy under the dictates of the international lenders, the initial hoopla generated in first half of 1990s had evaporated by 1998, and the Atal Govt had to initiate mammoth programme of building up roads and bridges to bolster the economy. As foreseen by the great visionary Atal ji, this had a cascading effect an the economy and growth and development had come back on track by the early years of the new millennium. 

However, due to the lack of similiar vision and foresight by the then rulers, this positive trend of growth did not sustain for long, and a couple of years later, in mid 2000s, the downfall started, and then, the global meltdown of 2008 had its damaging impact on our economy as well. Later, the successive major actions being quashed by the courts leading to crisis of faith and there were hardly any fresh investments worth the name, and our economy is yet to come out of the spiral of decline.

Like I have said about Greece, one decision of its pompous politicians, though well intentioned, has crippled the economy and the people of Greece are today facing a hopeless situation, with no solution in sight, God can only tell as for how long they will continue to face the misery, may be for decades.

Let us remember that the crisis of 1990s came due to our negligible exports and the burgeoning debt. Presently too we are again seeing a strongly declining export performance and it continues unabated. And we must remember that out total debt has grown many times more than what it was in 1990s.

Hence, if we want our economy to embark on the path of assured growth, it is imperative that NaMo succeeds at any cost, and for this even if he has to take any harsh decisions, we must support him.

Hope we do not meet the same fate as people of Greece

Today, our economic pundits, along with the rest of the world, are discussing the fate of Greece.

One friend asked me to explain the cause of the grave financial problems faced by Greece, and he was flummoxed to hear that it was because of the decision of certain pompous political masters of the time to hold the centenary Olympic games in Greece, to which the international community agreed.

Let us note that the massive earthquake of 1999 had devaststed Greece, particularly the capital city Athens, and Greece had borrowed a substantial sum for reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts.

In this backdrop, it was a bit risky to hold the Olympic games as it was more of an emotional issue. Other than the historic significance of holding the Olympic games, the idea behind the proposal was the expectations of giving a boost to the tourism which was expected to bolster the nation's economy.  

It so happened that due paucity of funds, just like India, coupled with lack of financial discipline, the venues for the games were completed in the last minute. The games were held as usual, passed off without much hindrance but the delay in completion of sporting venues and facilities, which was visible to all, failed to encourage the sports lovers and the games turned out to be a financial disaster. 

Despite all this, the economy of Greece was moving on with it being a member of the Combined European Union, and with full support from the international financial bodies, donors nations, etc.

However, the economy never picked up the desired speed and the or the global meltdown and recession since 2008 has only accentuated the situation, with other nations like Ireland, Portugal, and even Italy, being considered among the category of failed economies, by European standards.

Thereafter, while Ireland has stabilised a lot, and Portugal is limping up to regain normalcy, and Italy is no more seen as a problem case, but Greece continues to teeter on crutches.

The austerity measures endured by the populace for nearly a decade is harming the economy more and the lenders are adamant on recovering their pound of flesh ( as in a popular classic drama). 

Nearer home, we too had come much closer to a similiar situation in early 1990s and we had to first pawn out gold to raise funds to meet the impending loan payment crisis and later we had to engage in complete overhaul of our economy to stay afloat, including inviting foreigners to invade our markets. 

I do hope that we do not meet the same fate as the people of Greece, and let us remain optimistic.

Do we have any defined ethical standards in our political discourse

In view of the issues emerging in context of one self exiled former sports administrator, and the constant flow of accusations and counter accusations, and the likely impact thereof upon the political and social environment of the country, it is time we decide to have certain well defined ethical and moral standards in our political system so as to have some reference points for any proper discourse.

Like we should know what makes a guilt, and when one can be seen as guilty, or when it is just an impropriety and not a crime, and when it may just be a minor breach of ethics but neither a guilt, nor a crime, and not even an impropriety either. Looks like we need to go to primary school once again. 

Please do not laugh, since these questions are in the air constantly for the last few days and are not likely to go away in a hurry. It may even impact the working of the next session of parliament unless some suitable solution, acceptable to the opposition parties, emerges in the intervening period.

This is essential if we need to progress and for that we need a functional parliament and not the kind that gets mired in controversies and hardly has time for discussion on the important issues. Like, this time, even if much postponed land bill is not passed, it is necessary to pass the GST Bill.

 

Will Narendra Modi allow Indian Politics to prevail over his own ethical standards ?

Will Narendra Modi allow Indian Politics to prevail over his own ethical standards ?

Usually I avoid writing on politics and would prefer to discuss anything good other than the subjects revolving around politics. No doubt, politics happens to be the most preferred choice of discussion in any gathering or in the mass media but most of you readers would agree that it is often just so futile.

However, this is not to deny the fact that politics happens to have the most significant impact on the fate, the lives and the histories of the individuals as well as the communities and the nations. Besides, it is also to be noted that all those known and revered as great statesmen were essentially politicians. 

In the past few days, the hot political topic is the controversy involving the link between few politicos and one self exiled sports administrator. The events suggest that he used his proximity to the politicos to make things easy for himself in the nation of his present domicile. Here, we may skip the details.

In this backdrop, it is seen that the single point agenda of the opposition happens to be to embarrass the top leadership of the ruling party and to besmirch the reputation of the present rulers. We can not expect them to be in any way bothered about the thing called corruption. After all, politicians are expected to be corrupt and if someone is not, then either he lacks courage to exploit the situation or may be that he just did not have an opportunity. Remember, this equally applies to all human beings.  

It remains a fact that the opposition should have no face to face the people in this case or in any such case since it is the same ruling clique which first gatecrashed the sports bodies, then made situations which allowed corruption to permeate the nooks and corners of sports arena and has since created such stranglehold over the sports bodies that even a superhero would not be able to untangle the grip.

Here, I see no use in discussing it further since any amount of discussion, with the best of intentions, will do precariously little to throw out the politicians from the various sports bodies. And yes, please do not expect one CWG or a Lalitgate to usher in a new era of cleaner and more ethical sports bodies.

My worry is simple, and that is centred around the man at the helm, Mr. Narendra Modi, the PM. The moot question is whether he will act and get rid of the persons with questionable integrity or that he too will allow himself to fall prey to the political games and will get dwarfed like any other politico.

I am watching keenly and expect him to cleanse the party and the government, and all sports bodies, of all the corrupt elements. Otherwise, he too would be facing the same risks and the fate that befell his predecessor, who was seen as an educated, honest, sincere, and well intentioned person, but who, ironically presided over the most corrupt administration for a full decade, as is proven in court cases.

I do not want Narendra Modi to face any similiar ridiculous situation and wish he begins to act now.

Why are the stock markets seeing a free fall ?

Why are the stock markets seeing a free fall ?

There has been a decline of over 1200 points in BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty fell by over 350 points in last 3 days (June 01 to June 03). What is worse is that this has happened soon after RBI announced a cut in Repo Rate. Why is it so ? No one seems to know the real answer to this sharp decline though there are hundreds of self styled experts offering their comments and opinions on a routine basis.

While trying to analyse this from the information readily available and have observed a few issues :

1. RBI cut the Repo Rate by 25 basis points but made some undesirable comments like front loading, adding hints that there will be no further rate cuts in near future, etc., which were seen as unpalatable by the industry and the players in the stock markets. RBI followed up and aggravated it by saying that why should a growing economy need the crutches of rate cuts. This took away the joy out of the cut.

2. It is also seen that markets had fallen sharply even after RBI had cut the Repo Rate the last time. It seems that the players in the stock markets had already taken long positions in anticipation of the rate cut by RBI and decided to book profit soon after the announcement was made by RBI.

3. It is also true that despite the positive vibes created in the last few months, the actual results of the companies were not so heartening. It is also seen that there are hardly any new projects coming up and the exports of the country have been falling on a regular basis. This is acutely worrisome.

4. It may also be observed that the new dispensation at the centre just completed its one year in power and perhaps the markets were expecting some cheering news and big announcements but none came. This too could have disappointed some of the investors and disheartened they decided to book out.

5. One disturbing fact that comes to mind is the announcement regarding the possibility of lower than average rainfall this season, and as it came during trading hours, it created panic in the markets. 

6. It is also a fact that after the advent of the online trading, there is a huge spike in the numbers of short term traders, as against the long term investors, and they react quickly to every market move. This aggravates the situation manifold and the move, up or down, gets accentuated within minutes.

7. Also, it is seen that the investors, and mainly the foreign investors, flocked to the markets during and after the run up to the last general elections. It may be seen that the markets have seen a huge spike in the last one year and some of these investments have now crossed a period of one year. It may be noted that stocks must be held for a period of one year is mandatory for availing the benefit / concession under capital gains tax, and now since the time is ripe, investors are now booking profits.

And lastly, it appears that all the good work done by the ruling party so far has not been enough to enthuse the investors to continue to hold the stocks and they might be booking out for now, to return as and when they feel that the time is good for making a reentry in the markets.

So keep the hope alive. All the investors are not going to run away and the markets will soon revive.         

Perils of being Amitabh Bachchan and Madhuri Dixit : They are being hauled up for endorsing Nestle's Maggi 2 minute noodles

Perils of being Amitabh Bachchan and Madhuri Dixit : They are being hauled up for endorsing Nestle's Maggi 2 minute noodles

Maggi, the 2 minute noodles, manufactured and sold by Nestle in India is in the news these days for all the wrong reasons. It is being alleged that the scrutiny of samples has revealed unduly high level of MSG, a salt / chemical, and potentially dangerous level of harmful material Lead in its packages.

Honestly, it is shocking for me personally since I and my family have been consuming it for decades, and have never ever thought that one day we shall hear something like this about Nestle and Maggi. My children, now grown up, rustle up Maggi every now and then whenever they need a quick bite.

Even today, as I write here, Nestle seems to be sure of the product, and its contents and ingredients, and they aver that there is nothing to worry about. It is noteworthy that while it was decidedly one of the worst days for Indian stock markets, the share price of Nestle witnessed an upswing, after having seen some sound thrashing in the last couple of trading sessions. The anchor on one news channel was saying that Nestle has reportedly got its products tested at home and also at third party labs and have stated that they did not find anything wrong. I shall be happy if it is actually this way but...

On the other hand, authorities across the nation seem to have woken up suddenly and officials from various states are falling over each other collecting samples and sending them for testing. It looks like there is fierce race going on. Some have already declared the product as harmful and dangerous and some have also asked for recall / withdrawal of the products from shops and assorted market outlets.

The moot question is whether Nestle is actually so callous and has been profiteering out of the simple non suspecting people of India. If so, then it needs to be banned and should be asked to pack its bags.

Another and more grave question that arises is as to why and how have the officials across the nation been allowing such thuggery to continue. It may be noted that almost every district has one officer responsible for ensuring food safety, particularly with regard to the contents and quality of packaged food items. Why is it that the officials responsible for ensuing safety of food items never collected samples of Maggi and why nobody is being punished for being careless, rather outright irresponsible.

Now, in India, we are used to and may always trust the spin doctors to twist the matter in such a way that the real issue gets shadowed by proxies. In this case too, some people were quick to throw wool in to the eyes of the people. Is it not surprising that the television channels across the nation are today debating whether there is a case against the brand ambassadors namely Superstar Amitabh Bachchan and Diva Madhuri Dixit, with Priety Zinta, presently away from silver screen and thus not hot news.
      
While we shall have to wait and watch for the future developments in the case, one can not help but mention that if something like this were to happen in say USA, UK or in Europe, then the company would have gone bankrupt by now, and here we are discussing whether Mr. Bachchan and Ms Dixit are culpable. Nobody is talking of punishing the culprit, the manufacturers of the deficient products, the licensing authorities and the hundreds of district wise food safety officers posted all over India.   

To end on a lighter note, while one anchor was shouting at his panel, recommending stringent action against brand ambassadors, citing and reading out lines out of the related law, that a thought passed across my mind, "why not punish the media as well for broadcasting / televising the advertisements of such nefarious products...". After all, we get to see the products' advts only on the tv channels.

 

Why these rivers are considered sacred ?

Why these rivers are considered sacred ?

While watching tv, one sees an advt by tata docomo calling upon its consumers to keep sending more data - continue " bhalai ki supply ".

Had never thought that companies would stoop so low to boost their revenues. Ideally, they should have advised judicious use of internet.

But then advertisers usually show what is essentially not good to do, unworthy of emulating, like speeding and doing stunts on the bikes,

However, the catchword in tata docomo advt, "bhalai ki supply", reminds me of an encounter with one gentleman, who was dismissive of the holy status accorded to the rivers like Ganga, Godavari, etc.. Naturally, I tried my best to convince him but he would have none of it.

Somehow, not being happy with his stubborn insistence on his point of view, (though I too did the same thing - insisted on my viewpoint), and I was constantly looking for a convincing argument to support my view, and it is then that the idea came up in my mind and it clicked.

I showed him the origin point of River Godavari (Triambak near Nasik in Mahashtra) (showed him picture atlas of old times - no internet yet) and showed him the entire curvacious route followed by the great river till it meets the ocean - almost 1500 kms away from its birth place.

Then I also showed him a couple of rivers originating in the same ghats - near Triambak - (did not know the names then - thanks to google, now I know that at least one of them is named Vaitarana ) and how these rivers travel just a few kms and fall promptly in the nearest bay. 

Eventually, he felt it is nice to be in awe of mighty rivers, to appreciate the natures' beauty, and to feel happy about the natures' bounty.

Friends, as I had told him then, I feel that the people worship the rivers like Ganga for the basic reason that the water the rivers bring is so essential for life. Also, it is seen that all such rivers take pains to cover a larger part of the land mass to complete its travel instead of taking the shortest available escape route to ocean. Thus, somehow it appears that these rivers, that are considered sacred, are like philanthropic individuals, and deliberately, purposefully, take pains to bestow their largesse on the populace of wider geographical area.

We may say that like the catchphrase of tata docomo advt, these sacred rivers are perennially continuing with eternal "bhalai ki supply".

Vishnu Bhakta Narad To Ram Bhakta Hanuman

Vishnu Bhakta Narad To Ram Bhakta Hanuman

Here is an interesting sub plot from the epic tale narrated in Ramayana (Ramcharitmanas). It is believed that Hanuman was none else but an incarnation of Narada, who is a bhakta of Lord Vishnu, and accompanies his master to the battlefields of Ravan Ki Lanka. This story also says that Ravan and Kumbhakurn were Jaya & Vijaya, servants of Lord Vishnu, who had been cursed, by four Rishi Kumars, to become demons and only Lord Vishnu could rescue them.

The story is a bit longish but then you have to read it all to appreciate it fully.

Once Narada Muni went to meditate in a grove in a forest. Lord Shiva had given a special blessing to this Tapovan, the forest for tapasya. As per the blessings of Lord Shiva, no one will be able to disturb a Muni who meditates in Tapovan. Unaware of the blessings, Narada went to Tapovan to meditate. 

Indra became concerned and sent Agni, Varuna and Vayu down to disturb Narad. Varuna made it rain but Narada didn’t respond. Vayu made the wind blow, but Narada did not respond. Agni lit the place on fire, Narada sat still in perfect stillness. All three of them went back and said, “Indra, we can not disturb his meditation, he’s meditating so strongly we don’t know how to stop him from meditating.”

Indra called Kamadeva, God of Love, and said, “Kamadeva, you go down and break his meditation. Take Rati, take the Apsaras with you, the celestial nymphs, the dancing girls, do whatever you have to do, make him stop meditating.” Kamadeva tried everything within his power. The apsaras danced and they made spring blossom and the bees were buzzing and the birds were humming, and it was the atmosphere of Love but Narada didn not stir one bit. Kamadeva admitted defeat. The God of Love went back to Indra and said, “I can’t break his meditation.”

At that, Narada woke up and said, “I have defeated all the Gods, I have even defeated the God of Love, I am beyond desires.” And he was so happy, and he went to Shiva in Kailash and Shiva said, “Narada, your shining radiantly why are you so happy today?” And Narada said, “Shiva, I defeated Kamadeva, he couldn’t break my meditation, I have conquered the God of Love.”

Shiva said, “Narada, that’s very interesting, but if you have an experience like that don’t ever tell it to Vishnu.” Narada said, “Why not. I want to tell Vishnu, He will be so happy to hear the news.” And Shiva said, “Well, you do as you like, but I suggest don’t tell Vishnu.”

Narada took leave from Shiva and went right to Vaikuntha and he said, “Vishnu, I’ve just come from the greatest meditation.” And Vishnu smiled and said, “Really, you look radiant like you’ve achieved a tremendous victory. What kind of meditation did you have?” And Narada said, “I defeated the God of Love. I am free from Love, I am free from lust and desire.” And Vishnu said, “Oh, that’s fine, that’s very nice, wonderful, I applaud your attainment.”

Here, both Shiva and Vishnu were unhappy that their favourite sanit Narada had lost his wisdom.

Narada then went off, and he was so full of happiness and joy and self-conceit that it was his power that allowed him to sit there and meditate without any disturbance. And it wasn’t because Shiva had blessed that grove, it was because of Narada’s attainment. And as Narada was traveling, he looked out and he saw this beautiful young princess dancing near the garden. And he looked down and he said, “Wow, there’s a beautiful young princess, I’m going to go see who she is.”

So he went down to the garden and he saw that it was the daughter of the King Shilanidhi. And he went in to see the king and the king said, “Oh, Narada Muni has come, please, my daughter is just about to choose her husband, please look at her palm and tell us what kind of husband she should choose. What will be her fate?”

He called the daughter, he said, “Please, sit here next to Narada Muni.” And Narad Muni looked at the palm of this princess and her name was Vishwamohini. And he took the hand of Vishwamohini and he looked in that palm and he saw that whoever marries this lady is going to be the king of the three worlds, he’s going to live as the Gods live. And suddenly Narada thought, “Well, I should marry this girl”. And he said, “Well, everything looks wonderful in her hand and she’s going to find the most beautiful, the most handsome prince, and they’re going to marry and be very happy.”

And Narada went straight to Vaikuntha and he said, “Vishnu, you got to do something for me, I have a favor for you, I want you to turn me into the most handsome prince and deck me out with many ornaments, and gold, and finery and silks and satins and make me as beautiful and as desirable as possible.” And Vishnu said, “Narada, why, I thought you had just conquered the God of Love.” And Narada said, “Oh, yes, I did conquer the God of Love but now I’m thinking that I should marry this princess.” And this is going to be her swayamvar, she is going to choose her husband, I want to have the most distinctive appearance.”

Vishnu promised, “I’m going to give you the most distinctive appearance.” And he dressed him in the finest, and gave him a golden crown. And gave him all the ornaments, and jewels and necklaces and garlands and he made him the most beautiful looking prince with the face of a monkey.

Narada went to the assembly of all the kings and princes and he walked in knowing that he was the most beautiful of all the princes, “Gee, the princess will certainly choose him”. And the princess took the garland of victory and she walked around the assembly of princes, and she looked at the face of everyone assembled there and passed by many people, and she came to Narada Muni and she started to laugh! There was this beautiful monkey dressed like a prince coming to win her hand, and she walked right past him and then she came to the last of the Kings assembled and she gave the garland to Vishnu.

Narada said, “Wait! You made a mistake, I’m the most beautiful man here, I’m the most handsome prince and I am deserving of this garland.” And everyone started to laugh. And Jaya and Vijaya (two servants of Vishnu that we met in the last scripture) came to Narada and they said, “Why are you so possessed with yourself, you are so filled with self-conceit, you don’t know what you look like? Come and look in this looking glass, and see what kind of distinctive appearance you have.”

And Narada went and looked in the looking glass and he saw he had the face of a monkey. And he got mad, he took some Ganga Jal in his hand and he said, “Vishnu, I asked you to make me beautiful so that I could get the heart of my beloved and win my beloved, and instead you turned me into a monkey. And now I’ve lost my beloved, I curse you Vishnu! You will lose your beloved, and endure the pains of separation from her. And in order to get her back you’re going to make friends with monkeys, and monkeys are going to be your helpers, and your saviors, and your devotees. And you think that it’s funny that I look like a monkey and I lost my beloved, here, is my curse!”

Vishnu smiled when he received the curse. And said, “I accept your curse Narad, and I will incarnate as a human being and my Goddess Lakshmi will be my wife, and I will endure seperation from her. 

But all of this is to fulfill the curses against Jaya and Vijaya, who became in the first incarnation Madhu and Kaitabha. In their second incarnation they became Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashyapu. That was the story of Prahalad. And then in their third incarnation they became Kumbhakarna and Ravana. And now I have to go down and save the earth from the atrocities of Ravana, so I accept your curse. You are my favourite and you would be helping me. 

Thus, it was the monkey face of Narad Muni that took birth as Hanuman to serve Lord Rama.