Random Thoughts

So He Spoke

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 00:56:00 +0000

Few days back I read an interesting article in BBC about the Indian union cabinet minister for chemicals & fertilizers Mr. M.K.Azhagiri, who happens to be the son of Tamil Nadu chief minister Mr. M.Karunanidhi. He probably entered Lok Sabha sheerly because of Karunanidhi's influence. He has not spoken a single word in the parliament until now. He spoke couple of sentences in English after the question was submitted to him before hand and he had time to prepare. When there was a follow up question, the speaker of the house Mrs. Meera Kumar intervened and said that the minister of state would take up further questions.

The interesting thing I got to know from that article was that the question in the parliament could be asked in any language (officially recognized Indian language) but could be answered only in Hindi or English. Now, my confusion is, how is it okay for someone to ask the question in any Indian language but it is not proper to answer back in any Indian language. If it is possible to translate a question in English or Hindi then why is it not possible the other way around. I fail to understand.

How is it possible that in sixty three years of independence this was not an issue ? At least, I had not heard about it. We definitely would have had many such ministers in the past who did not speak any other language other than their mother tongue. To my knowledge there is no requirement in our constitution for a central minister to know Hindi or English. Even the article did not mention if there was any such rule. In a country like India I do not think our forefathers would have included such a rule.

To Tip Or Not To Tip

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 04:49:00 +0000

Why does one tip a waiter/waitress, hair dresser, masseur/masseuse, cab driver but not a clerk at the window, or a person who rings or bags your groceries. What makes some professions/professionals eligible to be tipped and the others not. I have not got a straight answer from any one on this. May be there is none. One reason I have heard often enough is that the people who are tipped are not well paid, so it is somehow imperative on the customers to tip them as if to take pity on them.

If that is so, then there are many such professions which may not pay as well. What about the worker in a Walmart ? We do not tip them on the shop floor. In fact the situation at Walmart could be worse and everybody knows the Walmart story so well these days that it has become a national political agenda. If genuinely someone is being exploited then the right way is to organize and protest or a market based solution would be to move to a profession which would pay you well. Then, with the decline in the supply of particular professionals would increase their wages in order to pump up the demand for such positions.

Another argument is that if we removed the tipping altogether then the employers of the people who are tipped would have to give the employees enough salary, which in turn would increase what they charge for their services. Somehow to say that to keep things cheap we do not pay our employees. So either ways we would have to pay for that. So it is like a chicken and egg problem. Is the salary for the "tipped" professionals less because they are tipped, or they are tipped because they earn less.

Another reason I think could be that it is like a reward system, a bonus, for the employees. So, if they do a good job they earn their perks through the customers. So it could be a direct feedback and bonus for the employees rather than the employer incentivizing and keeping track of their employees' performance. Plausible but unlikely. But even then it is unfair that for exactly the same type of service, two people could be paid very differently. Unless they believe that it evens out in the long run. But again there are many other customer touch point positions where the performance is hard to judge but the employees are still not tipped.

Isn't each one of us doing our job and getting paid for that ? Can I compare my self to an actor for example and say that they get paid well so I should somehow be compensated. Wouldn't that be ridiculous ? Each profession has its own pay structure and I think it depends on the supply and demand of the people working or applying for that profession, to a large extent. I tip because that is the norm although I do not like to. But why is it the norm ? Tips bring ambiguity to things. Should I pay 15% or 20%. If I pay less what would the person receiving the tip think. Would I get a good treatment if I visit them again ? The price for the same service offered at the same place by the same person for two people, could be completely different. I would rather pay a higher price and have tip completely abolished than have ambiguity. But until that time I would continue to tip albeit hesitatingly.

Statue Police Approved in UP

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 03:50:00 +0000

    Another political victory for Mayawati. She proposed for a statue police to protect the statues of politicians (read, herself and her mentor's) and the state government (which is herself and her cronies) has approved it. Mayawati started erecting statues of herself and Kanshi Ram all around UP sometime back. Supreme court has put a stay on such construction for now. There has been no opposition to the statue police.
When the whole world is trying to fight extremism, this statue police would make sure no one defaces our "esteemed" politicians' statues. This type of atrocious waste of money can happen only in India. We have enough money to squander it away but we do not have enough to feed our poor, to impart education, to provide clean water, to provide electricity.

    This is not the first time she has frittered away the public money. In the past she had spent crores of rupees on her birthday bash. It is not as if it is her own money. If it is, then it would anyways be embezzlement of funds, because being a public servant she could not have had so much money. She does not come from a traditionally rich family either. Why is there no opposing voice to what she is doing, other than the regular displeasure shown by some politicians ? There should be a law which should be passed against such things in order to stem this problem systemically. But who will do it, who has the political will to do it. It is all about you scratch my back and I will scratch your's.

    I very strongly feel that there has to be a public movement and this time it would be a second independence from our own politicians. Gandhi, Nehru and the like would be turning in their graves looking at the plight of the country, they helped create. They had such lofty ideals and ambitions for the independent India, which we are getting demolished by our politicians.

Look who is talking

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 04:15:00 +0000

    Uddhav Thackeray is talking about the right to protest at the Rahul Gandhi rally in Mumbai. Who are the Thackeray's fooling ? They are treating everyone in Maharashtra as if they are their slaves. Now they are asking for their own rights ? Shiv Sainiks were told by the state government that the demonstrations would not be allowed close to Rahul Gandhi's rally or something to that effect.


Every one has to comply with Shiv Sena/Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) rules or leave Maharashtra. Do these politicians own Maharashtra ? Who gave them the right to hold every one at ransom ? How can we turn a blind eye towards them ? They asked Amitabh, Jaya Bachchan and now Shah Rukh Khan to apologize for a personal comment they made. Do those people (common man) not have any right to express their feelings ?

    Whenever such things happen in Indian polity, why does not the whole fraternity (actors, artists, sports personalities) come together in defense of their own people. Time and again our elite group cozies up with the politicians. Finally they all succumb to the political pressure and end up apologizing to these handful of politicians ? What does our elite group has to lose ? If the elite crowd does not stand for their own cause then who will ? They are the ones who should be setting up examples for the people to emulate. They are powerful, they have the clout and support of the people. It is high time that actors, artists, sports personalities etc stand up against our politicians fearlessly.

Teenage Suicide

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 04:19:00 +0000

    It was very sad to read that Mumbai is becoming the teenage suicide capital of India. Reason mentioned was that the teenagers are not able to handle their education pressure. The article has blamed the parents for building up that pressure on the teens. Parent's expectations have sky-rokected and everyone wants their kids to be at the very top.


In this rat race we have forgotten that we are human beings. We have forgotten that the shining stars have always been the ones who have followed their passion. The movie, 3 idiots showed it very nicely. Aamir Khan says in the movie "Tum kamiyabi ke keeche kat bhago, Kam wohi karo jo tumhe pasand ho, Kamiyabi apne aap tumhare peeche aayegi" (do not go after recognition, do what you love to do, recognition would automatically come after you).

    Market is also to be blamed for this pressure. Since there are not very many avenues, in India especially, other than being an engineering or medicine, that the parents tend to push their children into those streams. I think it is high time we realized it and encouraged our kids to follow their heart. We would have more scientists, artist, musicians, sports person to boast of. Let us not stifle our growth. Government of India should develop schemes to promote different skills so that people could take them up and excel in them. Now when the Indian economy is growing at a faster rate, it is all the more important that a country of one billion people showcase more talent than just churning out engineers or doctors (not to say that these skills are any less important).

Carnatic Music Idol

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 03:47:00 +0000

Better late than never. At last, there is a Carnatic music competition, like the other idols, on Jaya TV. But the main difference is that judges do not fight or talk crap, competitors do not cry, judges do not discourage and is highly challenging. Singers are tested on lots of nuances. In this age of fast money, people still having passion for the arts, that too for not so well paying art, relative to movie music, is really commendable.

All the judges on the show are really humble and try to make the participants feel relaxed. I really hope that carnatic music is encouraged and may be even incentivized so that more and more people could take it up as their profession. I know this is one of those few things which people take up not for money but for the love of it but what I mean is, to make it attractive and popular without losing its purity. I know there are a few musicians who have already started to do that. Carnatic music idol may be able to set an example for the other music or dance competitions on TV. There is no harm in having clean and good quality programs.

Toyota Recall - Better or for Worse

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 04:30:00 +0000

Toyota recalls millions of its vehicles across different models for having a faulty gas pedal. It is a terrible thing to happen to a company like Toyota. People had come to trust Toyota as a company which makes reliable cars. Even big corporations look up to Toyota as a role model. Now this recall, just goes on to show that no one is perfect, of course. But I was wondering if this is really bad for Toyota's image, after all.

Would Toyota lose its lead in the auto market ? Would people treat this mishap as just another human error or would it label Toyota as just another company ? Is it possible that through this issue Toyota comes out much stronger ? If Toyota sets an example for customer support not exhibited by other companies. If people get their problem fixed in a timely manner and are treated fairly, they might have a much better opinion about the company than what they initially went in with. It is only in bad times that we really get to know the worth of anything. If people believe that Toyota is intrinsically an ethical company, they might be willing to forgive them. I do not have answers to any of the above questions. But it would be interesting to see how Toyota performs in the coming years.

Carving Out UP and Bihar

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 04:19:00 +0000

    In all the brouhaha that is happening over carving out a Telangana state out of Andhra Pradesh why cannot we carve out UP and Bihar and make them independent countries. One the state size and population would certainly warrant it as per the western standards (these states are as big as some of the countries in Europe).
Secondly, people like Mayawati, Laloo, and Mulayam Singh would be elated to get a country of their own where they could be prime ministers. Thirdly, India's actual growth rate would look much better without them. Fourthly, overall crime rate in India would go down.

    These are the most lawless of all the states in India. How dare Mayawati spend such a fortune (tax payer's money) on her birthdays and on erecting statues for her mentor and herself ? Is there no law in India which could stop this and bring her to court for misappropriation of public funds ? Are those laws not applicable to our esteemed so called leaders ? Is there no conscience left in her ? She proclaims to be the leader of the dalits but has hardly done anything for the dalits. Now after spending crores of rupees on erecting the statues, she wants to form a police force to protect those statues. This is clearly a contempt of India.

    I do feel bad for the people of those states, but even they are to be blamed a little for the state of affairs. If they want a change they have to do something really radical. Lets make these separate countries and let them deal with their own mess. Let all of us live in peace there after.

Saif On His Padma Shri

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 03:18:00 +0000

Today I read in Hindustan Times Online edition that Saif Ali Khan saying "I don't deserve a Padma Shri". I was thinking to myself that at least he had the grace to come out in public and say that he does not deserve it and that there are other much more deserving senior celebrities. Apparently there were some protests about Saif getting the award. So given that, I am not sure if this statement came out of his own or because of the protests.

He said that he would accept the award and would live up to it. Had he just stopped there, it would have been okay. But he went a little further and blew his own trumpet. That is where it became funny and pompous. He said that there was a similar controversy when he received the National Award for his movie Hum Tum (forgetful performance and movie) but now there is no controversy because he thinks that he may not have deserved one for Hum Tum but he definitely deserved one for Omkara (for which he did not get the award). Similarly, he said that he may not deserve the Padma Shri now, but in a few years from now he would. It is kind of growing into the award, oh what logic !! Could someone please teach our film stars how, what and when to talk.

Predictably Irrational

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 03:19:00 +0000

   Topic of this blog post has been borrowed from the book by the same name. I am currently reading this book written by Dan Ariely. It is a very interesting book. I am sure we display and encounter irrationality everyday. This book probably triggered me to write this blog which I might not have written otherwise.


There is one irrational behavior I want to talk about, which I experience everyday while getting back home from my work. Let me describe the situation. There is a traffic light around one mile away from my house. The road approaching the lights is one lane but right at the lights it is two lanes. One is to go straight and the other is to go straight or turn right into an office complex. Right after the lights, it becomes one lane again.

    During the evening time hardly anyone would turn into the office complex. So we could safely assume that both lanes, for all practical purposes, is to go straight. Also there is no road sign which explicitly says that the right lane only turns right. Given all this, you would think that the cars as they approach the lights would distribute themselves evenly in those two lanes but I almost always see cars lined up on the left lane and the right lane is invariably empty. Only reason I could think of for this behavior, is that since right after the lights the right lane merges with the left, so it is kind of the right of way for the left lane. Or it could just be following the cars ahead of us.

    I almost always get on the right lane and am able to get off the lights quickly. It may not be a big deal after all. Everyday as I approach the lights I hope the car waiting pattern at the lights might have changed but to my surprise and advantage, it remains the same. One day I might see the cars evenly distributed in those two lanes but that day I would also lose my advantage.

Phir nahi Mile Sur

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 03:44:00 +0000

    "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara" (MSMT) has been relaunched as "Phir Mile Sur" (PMS). It definitely brings back the old days and makes you feel nostalgic but I have to say that it is mediocre. The photography and the presentation is good but it does not have the flavor of India which was in MSMT. As with any other thing, we get to see only our movie stars in PMS. We just do not want to venture into any other Indian achievements.


Lyric has been kept the same but the tune has been changed and I have to say that it is just about okay. I am not averse to change but the change has to be good. I could count only seven languages used in the newer version (with sixteen minutes of video) compared to thirteen languages used in the older version (with six minutes of video). I feel MSMT was broader in appeal and showcased the diversity much better. My verdict is thumbs down.

Is bollywood all we got ?

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 03:17:00 +0000

Bollywood has infested every aspect of Indian television including primetime news. Media is obsessed with movies and the lives of movie personalities. 15-20 years back we used to have nice T.V shows be it serials, quizzes, songs, art, science programs, mushiara/kavi sammelan etc etc. Everyone used to wait for those programs.
In the name of quantity, the quality has deteriorated or rather is dead. I would any day swap the quality of programs we used to have for the quantity we have today. We are one of the oldest civilization and bollywood is all we got to showcase. New year's eve programs used to be a treat to watch. We used to prepare ourselves for it. Now the programs they show on new year's eve is the same as what we see everyday - hindi film programs. If we get tired with bollywood we get on to cricket. These are the two greatest obsessions we have as a society.

Where are our scientists, entrepreneurs, artists, musicians, social workers etc. Do we not care about them or are they any less than our movie stars ? "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara" the yesteryear's patriotic song has been relaunched and has been named as "Phir Mile Sur". As one would expect it is dominated by actors. Are they the only ones who have a patriotic feeling or are they the only ones available for a photo shoot or are they the ambassadors of India or is there any other reason. I fail to understand. If we have to build our society, then movies have to be a part of it, not the whole.

That time of the year again: Padma Awards

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 04:23:00 +0000

    This would be my last blog posting about padma awards, I am done with it. I had written about my resentment towards these awards in the past. The unfair treatment (or a preferential treatment towards some) meted out by the Indian Government still remains in effect. This year I saw Ilayaraja's name among the list of other padma bhushan awardees like AR Rehman and Aamir Khan. I am happy for all of them but I feel this award has come too late for Ilayaraja.

    If Aamir Khan could get it, then there are much more deserving people in the film industry like Kamal Hassan, S.P.Balasubramaniam, Om Puri, Mani Ratnam (he has not even received Padma Shri yet, I guess) etc just to name a few, who should have got it much before. Rekha gets Padma Shri now, after so many years, and after so many other actors (much younger) who received these awards much before her and who have hardly achieved anything in Indian cinema. It is clear now that it is all about how you position yourself in the awards market.

    This is just an example from our film industry. Imagine what would be happening in the other fields. I hope the Indian government wakes up to it, otherwise very soon these awards would cease to have any value at all (or may be it is already so).

African American Quaterbacks - Lack of talent or discrimination

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 04:31:00 +0000

    I am still a novice when it comes to football. I just started watching football very recently, just this season and have probably watched 6-7 games totally. I could not help but ask myself about the number of African-American quarterbacks in all the teams put together. As far as I understand the game, quarterback is the most important and strategic position of all. They are the highest paid position in the game.

    Currently the African-American quarterbacks constitute only 16% of all the quarterbacks put together (127 total quarterbacks). I did some research through the NFL.com website on the player profile. I find it very odd that the game which is almost 70% (websites quote that number, which seems plausible) dominated by African-Americans has such a low percentage of quarterbacks.

    What is the reason, if any ? Is it lack of talent ? Or Is it discrimination ? I do not want to pick either. On one hand, I find it very hard to believe that there is any lack of talent, hard work, enthusiasm or skills that is required to become a quarterback. On the other hand I sincerely hope that there is no discrimination. I am still waiting for the answer.

Organ Donation

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 02:56:00 +0000

    I do not know much about Mr. Jyoti Basu or his politics, except that he was the longest serving chief minister of West Bengal (for that matter any Indian state), one of the eastern states of India. He had been the beacon for West Bengal politics and had been a mentor for many of his comrades, including the current chief minister. He breathed his last on Jan 17th, 2010. When I first heard the news of his death I thought it was good that he did not struggle for his death, which was good for him and the state. States usually would spend tons and tons of money on their politicians, just to keep them "alive". But he went one step ahead, in his death he has shown us all a path towards immortality. He decided to donate his body for a very noble cause - medical research.

    This reminds me of a story that Prof. Barry Shwartz had once mentioned in one of his articles. He said that it was seen that British donate their organs more often than Americans. It was not as if Americans were less inclined to donate, rather it turned out that the driver's license in America had a default opt-out of organ donation whereas Britain had a default opt-in. So, it was just the difference in how the policy was framed.

    It is in human nature that we want to take the path of least resistance, therefore we do not take active steps towards addressing these issues. I am sure if it is made easier where in every country adopts this automatic opt-in policy for organ donation, people would agree to it and would come forward to do so. In that sense Jyoti Basu has been a true leader.

3 Cheers for 2 Directors

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 03:37:00 +0000

    One is basking in the glory of his most recent success-3 Idiots and the other quietly showing his prowess without any fuss. I am talking about the well known Rajkumar Hirani and the not so well known Shimit Amin. Both of them have given three back to back hits . Raju Hirani - Munnabhai M.B.B.S, Lage Raho Munnabhai and 3 Idiots. Shimit Amin - Ab Tak Chappan, Chak De India and Rocket Singh: Best Salesman of the Year (not sure if it is a hit yet).

    I liked each one of these movies. Each one had a message which was served in a very engrossing and entertaining way. Although, I have to say that I liked Shimit Amin's movies slightly better because of his subject choice. In fact, my favorite Shah Rukh Khan movie to date is Chak De India (mentioned in one of my other blog postings earlier). Shimit Amin breaks a lot of stereotypes and the protagonist of the movie is the story and narration itself. There was not much publicity about his most recent movie, Rocket Singh. It is a very well made movie and it definitely deserves a look.

    Both these directors have been able to get stellar performances from their cast. Both of them are humble and do not hog the limelight. Their work talks on their behalf. Indian movie industry is changing and I guess changing for the good. Having said that, the ratio of bad or pathetic movies to good movies is still huge. The Indian movie industry needs such new breed of directors who can bridge this gap. Directors and film makers always hide behind the excuse for making bad movies (repetitive theme), that the audience is not mature enough to accept different types of movies. I think the contrary is true, audience is always eagerly waiting for these directors to give them fun and meaningful cinema.

    We need stories which resonates with people and touches a chord in them. Movies, if used properly, could become a medium which could bring about revolution or which could dumb down people. That is not to say that every movie should have a social message. Tell stories and the movies would get made by themselves. Let us make India the biggest movie maker in the world in terms of quantity (which it already is) and quality.

Platform of Success

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 11 Jan 2010 02:32:00 +0000

    A few days back I read a news article which talked about a few villagers in Taj Nagar, India, who built their own railway platform. Taj Nagar is just outside of the national capital Delhi. It now has two platforms and some trains would make a scheduled stop there. This would help the residents of Taj Nagar to have a better commute to work and in turn to have a better quality of life. For this project to materialize, each resident contributed Rs. 3,000.

    Indian Railways had, in the past, declined to construct the platform because of budgetary reasons and the insignificance of the place. The one good thing about this whole project was, that at least the railways did not create any hindrance in the people's effort and rather agreed for some trains to make a stop, if the residents built their own platform.

    It is a great example of team work, will power and perseverance. This just goes on to show that if we decide we could achieve anything. Think about a bunch of villagers taking over a giant, the "Indian Railways". I sometimes feel that the city dwellers lack the enthusiasm and drive to change the society, that the people from small towns and villages have. Urban people want the system to change but they do not want to take any steps to change that. I include myself in this group. The only meaning we, as citizens of India, have understood of democracy (people power), is to destroy the state machinery in the name of protest.

    I hope this platform becomes a launching pad for many more such successes for India. I also hope to be a part of at least one such success story in the future.

The Delhiwalla - Blog on Delhi

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 03:48:00 +0000

    Hindustan times started a new section online called the "Blogs". Here the Hindustan Times reporters write their views about a certain topic on a regular basis. I was a regular reader of Vir Sanghvi and Khushwant Singh's articles in the past. Vir Sanghvi's "Counter Point" has been replaced by his blog called the " Medium Term". One blog in particular really caught my eye, "The Delhiwalla" by Mayank Austen Soofi. He writes about the soul of Delhi.

    We always take, the place where we live, for granted. I never really appreciated or rather gave it a thought to the place where I was born and grew up, Delhi, for its beauty and historical significance. Now, when I read about Delhi, it brings lots of nostalgic feelings and also I learn about so many aspects about Delhi which I never knew about.

    The other day I was reading the "Delhiwalla" and learnt about a canteen tucked inside the teen murti bhavan. Immediately it brought back the days when I used to take the bus which used to go past teen murti. It was as if I was transported back to Delhi. Obsession to know more about Delhi came up (keeps coming back now and then) last time when I visited India in 2008. I bought a book "The Last Mughal" which gives the description of Delhi, specifically old Delhi, during the 1700-1800 A.D. Ever since, I was looking for a nice book about Delhi, not a guide book but more on the lines of Mayank's blog. I found one (I hope it is a nice read) and have saved under my Google books selection, I intend to read it some day.

    One more posting, that I remember, of his was about the old Delhi and the surrounding area of Ballimaran. I felt so proud to have been born in the Ghalib's playground. I had gone to Nai Sarak (neighborhood of Ballimaran where Ghalib lived and breathed his last) without realizing that one of the world's greatest poet lived there. Nai Sarak is new only by name otherwise it is pretty old and congested. So many different types of business like books stores, garment shops, eateries, handicrafts etc, all coexist. Hindu-Muslims have lived and worked side by side with out any problems for so many years. It is a great example of communal harmony for the whole country.

    I remember during one of my outings in 2004, when I went to Nai Sarak to buy a Urdu to Hindi dictionary, so that I could better understand Ghazals (form of poetry) and ended up buying 6-7 books on poetry including "Madhushala" by Harivansh Rai Bachchan. Shopkeepers may not be learned in the typical sense but they know so much about their books that they can put Borders and Barnes & Noble to shame. Nai Sarak is a congested little booketeria.

    There are many such things about Delhi. Book Fair at Pragati Maidan, used book market at Daryaganj . "Delhiwalla" also had a posting about the Daryaganj book market which the municipality is thinking of dismantling because of "public nuisance". Dilli (native name of Delhi) is the heart (Dil in Hindi) of India, literally. It is the capital in every sense of the word. I hope the essence of Delhi lives for years to come.

Gay and Happy

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 23:46:00 +0000

    I applaud the historic judgment given out a few days back by the supreme court of India on same sex relationships (I am not sure if that judgment also allowed the same sex marriage). All this while, we have been in a denial mode. It is a giant step in making India a liberal society. It might take a while for people to change their attitude and be open towards homosexuals and to accept them as equals. Some of them may never change, but for those we can only feel sorry, who think they are the privileged lot.

    I do not understand why homosexuality should be something to be ashamed of or shunned. First of all, people are wired to be a certain way and second of all, even if it is not true, it is no one's business to interfere in anyone's private and personal matters. I have heard arguments from people, saying that it is against the very nature of life. Every species is supposed to procreate and homosexuality works just against that very principle (and by the way they are the same people who do not believe in evolution and natural selection).

    But who said that homosexual people could not have babies. Moreover aren't there heterosexual people who choose not to have babies and those who cannot have for medical reasons. So, what is so wrong about not having babies. It would only do good, at least for a country like India, to be cutting down on our population. But if someone really wants a baby in the conditions mentioned above they have many ways to do it, adoption, artificial insemination and surrogacy.

    I have also heard the extreme argument that what if everyone turns homosexual. In that case the human race would come to an end. First of all I do not think we are anywhere close to that and secondly, sexual liking and wanting to have babies are two different things. People could still have kids using the methods mentioned above. If the species has to survive then it would find ways to do so if not, we will become extinct but that cannot be a reason to prevent homosexuals from leading a dignified, normal and free life.

    This decision would certainly kick off discussions in the society. This would definitely give the homosexuals a legal recourse. Where countries like US are still grappling with this issue of same sex marriage and equal rights for gays, a conservative country like India, ruling in favor of the gays was really commendable.

Senseless Killing and Destruction of Public Property

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 27 May 2009 01:23:00 +0000

When would people who do senseless killings and destroy the public property be brought to justice? How long are people supposed to suffer for someone else's misdeeds? Punjab is burning, why, because a sikh break away faction guru has been killed in Vienna. Now, what has that got to do with the people of Punjab ? Perpetrators who killed the guru should be brought to justice in India or in Austria.

Why should the common man suffer for some ideological clash between the religious groups? This is not the first time this has happened in India. We will find plenty of such examples in the not very distant past, if we turn our history pages. How is it possible that the police is unable to do anything in such matters? It is all because of the political support and the power behind these anti social elements.

Government of India should intervene in such matters swiftly and should have severe punishments for such people. There should be zero tolerance for such anti-social activities. Nobody has the right to kill anybody or to destroy any public property. For every step we take towards prosperity we slip down two steps because of such activities. It is a sorry state of affairs that we never learn from our past mistakes.

Nagesh - The Ultimate Comedian

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 04:47:00 +0000

    Nagesh is dead, long live Nagesh. No one who watches Tamil movies would have remained untouched by his comedy. His sheer presence on the screen would make people laugh. He did not restrict himself just to comedy though. He played the role of a villain, a character artist and a comedian with equal ease. But he will always be remembered for his impeccable sense of comedy.

    It is very sad that such a stalwart has completely been ignored by the prime time Indian media while they were busy getting to know the affairs and split ups of today's actors. Nagesh's death is a great loss, not only for the Tamil movies but for the Indian movies as a whole. Was it the same, when Hindi film comedian Mehmood died ?

    This post actually also ties very closely with what I had written an year back on the Padma awards and how the people from the south are not honored or recognized as much as someone from the north. I actually came to know from the obituary column in Hindu that Nagesh had died and that he was not even conferred with Padma Shri. It is a disgrace to our society and the committee which confers such awards on eminent personalities. The newest entrants to the Padma club are Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Akshay Kumar what more need I say.

Slumdog Millionaire

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 19:28:00 +0000

I do not understand what is all this hype about the movie, Slumdog Millionaire. It is coincidental that I am writing about my views on the day of the Oscars. I watched this movie in the first week of its release. Ever since I watched it, I have been thinking about writing my views. I have objections to it at various levels. My objections are not emotional at all like some others, who are saying that India has been shown in a negative light.

1) There was nothing new in this movie, at least not for the Indian audience. I went in to watch this movie because of the hype that was created by the people who had already watched it. This was, at the heart of it, a romantic movie with highly unlikely events tied to the life of the protagonist and not to mention some directorial glitches along the way.

2) There are many Indian directors who have made much better films that this. There are many Indian movies with a similar kind of theme of struggle, romance and success. Just because it was made by a westerner, it got all the publicity which according to me it does not deserve. Would the same movie made by an Indian director have made it to the Oscars, definitely not.

3) Indian media, the film fraternity and Indians, as always, are owning it as if it is an Indian movie. Just because the dialogues, actors and the story is Indian, does not make it an Indian movie. Would you call Gandhi an Indian movie ? I certainly would not say so.

4) This is not A.R.Rehman's best music score. It is just about average. We all know what he is capable of doing. I do not think I need to get into it now. But I am happy for him. I do wish he wins the award for the best music score.

5) Anil Kapoor was just horrible in the movie.

Finally, there is nothing wrong in aspiring for an international recognition but I do not think that Oscars are the benchmark for movies.

One more blast to add to the tally

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 02:29:00 +0000

    How many blasts would it take, for the government of India to wake up to the reality? Blasts have become so common these days that people have literally stopped talking about them or rather started saying that this time the blast killed only 5 people as if it is okay if the count is in single digits. Have we given up on our government? Can the government really do anything in countries like India? Has the government taken any steps to curb the spread of terror? How many of our places are really safe? Why are we so such a soft target? Do we never learn from past mistakes? Why are we so lax and why do we have a "chalta hai" attitude for anything and everything.

    Those days are gone when politicians used to own up to the responsibility and quit on moral grounds. These days the politicians feel no shame in their incompetency and proudly boast about not quitting. The politicians also come out to be very insensitive. Delhi's chief minister, while talking about a murder, instead of saying that she would take immediate action and punish the culprit, said that the lady-who was murdered-should not have gone out at 3 A.M. Politicians, police and intelligence keep pointing fingers at each other as more and more innocents are killed day after day. We keep forming committees for everything but the common man never comes to know about the results of all those committees.

    Yes, it is difficult to govern a country as big as India with one billion population. It is physically impossible to keep an eye on everyone. Even if the government does keep an eye, it would immediately be criticized for invading the privacy. Government definitely has to take tough steps to ensure the safety of people. People would also have to give up some of their freedom to ensure a safe living for everyone. Lets hope for a safe and soaring India.

Go Green

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 23:32:00 +0000

    These days, going green has become more a fad than a concern. It is the "in" thing. I do not care as long as it helps the environment. At least fifteen years back - my adult years - in India, my family had already taken this initiative, albeit in a small way. I had always seen my mother reuse things, whether it was to use the old cloth material to make cushions, curtains, pillow covers etc, or making a notepad from used paper. Wastage of any kind was strictly prohibited. I imbibed all these things subconsciously and still continue to walk on those lines.

    We would not go out to buy anything without a tote bag. We would refuse to take plastic bags from the shop keepers and would in fact give the ones we had back to the vendors and shopkeepers for reuse. For things like newspaper, bottles, iron etc we used to have people who would come pick it up from the houses based on the weight for each type of item. I remember bargaining with them for the best price.

    Using things judiciously was ingrained in the Indian psyche, at least to some extent, and to a large extent in my family. One reason could be that it made good financial sense, but more important was realizing that it was the right thing to do. One could argue that may be the society was not developed enough so people had to resort to such methods, but if development means more wastage and burden on our planet then we should shun such type of development. Baby steps by each individual in the right direction would bring about a sea change in the quality of our environment. I think it would also make good business sense for the companies. It is a win-win for everyone. We just need some change in the attitude and be conscious of what we do, that is all it requires.

In The Greater Good

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 01:25:00 +0000

"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country", these are the famous words by John F. Kennedy. How much are we really willing to give up of our own, for the greater good of the country and society. This question has always troubled me. If a road construction project goes through a farmer's land, should the farmer give up his livelihood and accept the compensation for the construction of the road. Many of the concerns of the affected groups are genuine, but it is also true that in countries like India most of the protests are politically motivated. The mantra for the new age is, be prepared to change with times or perish.
I think it is imperative on the part of the government, before starting any huge project, to educate people to see the greater good, to compensate the affected people appropriately and to assure them of job and training in a new sector. A neutral body should look at the merits and demerits of all the projects. I am sure if people are treated fairly and with compassion there would be no such problems. It is only when one side tries to benefit more than the other, that we encounter all these issues.