Satan's Pride

Our New National Epidemic

2013-12-09T11:17:00.000+00:00

This is a column I wrote for the June 2013 edition of the Youth INC magazine.I'm reproducing it here . This is a world away from the topics I usually comment upon. Hoping it makes for an insightful read.The original can be read at the Youth Inc website.

Students in India have always incurred some kind of ragging or bullying in their lives. Society has grown to accept it but there are horrible consequences no one talks about. Nisarg Kamdar investigates
Bullying and ragging have long remained a smear on independent India’s script. Countless efforts have been undertaken to tackle the deepening menace and various legislations have been enacted, and while some have been effective, there is an overwhelming feeling that the law can have more of an impact to improve security of students in Indian institutes.

RAGGING VS BULLYING

Ragging is widely defined as ‘any action or situation created by a group to intentionally produce mental or physical discomfort, embarrassment, harassment, or ridicule among those wishing to join the group.’
Professor of psychology, and a key researcher in bullying, Dan Olweus defines school bullying in a general way as “repeated negative, ill-intentioned behaviour by one or more students directed against a student who has difficulty defending himself or herself. Most bullying occurs without any apparent provocation on the part of the student who is exposed.”
The fundamental difference between ragging and bullying is that ragging is intended as a method of initiation into the group whereas bullying is intended at keeping the victim ostracised.

SOURCE

While ragging was originally meant to help freshers mingle with their seniors and break the ice, it has become a tool for seniors to impose social hierarchy and implement their will upon their juniors.
Bullying on the other hand arose due to school students seeking an effective way of making themselves known. It is heralded as a product of low self esteem by modern day psychologists.

UNSEEN EFFECTS

When it comes to ragging, a victim who has been physically and mentally tormented by his seniors might start believing them to be his friends who are putting him through a rough time to prepare him for the future. This can be equated with Stockholm Syndrome where a kidnap victim empathises with their captors after having spent enough time in their presence. Unfortunately, this will ultimately result in the victim justifying the act of ragging who will, in turn, impose it on their juniors in the following years.
Bullying causes physical and emotional pain among the victims from continuous tormenting by their perpetrators. But with time, the effect is also felt by the perpetrator who spirals further into trouble-making activities which can be in the form of conduct
disorder, substance abuse and other forms of crime.

ERADICATION TECHNIQUES

When it comes to ragging, helplines are crucial to aid a student who is suffering from turmoil at the hands of his seniors under the guise of a socially accepted norm. However, strict laws need to be set up which will allow legal redressal to the victim and book the perpetrators for their heinous acts. It is only by effective legal recourse that a mass taboo would be placed upon the act of ragging, thereby eradicating it from our schools and colleges.
Bullying dances to a different fiddle since it stems from a psychologically affected individual or group of individuals who are asserting their will upon a weaker person. Emphasis should be laid on providing appropriate care to the victim as well as to the perpetrator in the form of counselling and psychiatric therapy. Restructuring the juvenile crime system will also allow strict legislation which will nip the root in its bud and help eradicate the problem from modern society.

24×7 HELPLINE

The University Grants Commission established a 24×7 helpline to aid any students who have been victims of ragging. The student may call the toll free number 1800-805522 or send an email to helpline@antiragging. net to file a complaint.

EXTREME RAGGING

In December 2004, a 19-year-old electronics and communication engineering student committed suicide by hanging himself from a ceiling fan in his hostel room at SKR Engineering College in Tambaram, Tamil Nadu. The student was being continuously ragged and humiliated by his seniors to the extent that he was forced to bathe in his own urine. Unfortunately, his written complaints to college authorities were ignored which led to this drastic recourse of taking his own life.

CYBER BULLYING

India ranks third after China and Singapore when it comes to cyber bullying. Reports have indicated that cyber bullying cases persist in the country due to perpetrators believing that they can get away scot free and because of intolerance towards minority groups who have been the prime victims of the crime. Cyber bullying is punishable under Section 66A of the IT Act which states that a person can be booked for sending false, offensive messages through communication services.

CELEBRITIES AGAINST RAGGING

Many Bollywood celebrities are openly against ragging and have spoken about the need to eradicate it. Amitabh Bachchan has vaguely spoken of a traumatic ragging encounter in his college days while Arjun Rampal has also spoken of a vow he took in college to never rag his juniors after he was subjected to ragging by his seniors. During the launch of 3 Idiots, Aamir Khan said that the film was specifically anti ragging and hoped to highlight problems in the education system.

Education in Cyberspace

2013-12-09T11:00:00.002+00:00

This is a column I wrote for the March 2013 edition of the Youth INC magazine.I'm reproducing it here .The original can be read at the Youth Inc website.

As the Internet evolves before our very eyes, it takes on every role imaginable – entertainer, informer, communicator and even educator. Nisarg Kamdar analyses the e-learning trend and what it means for India’s future

Rod Paige, former U.S. Secretary of Education, famously commented in 2002 – a period when Internet penetration was woefully low – “Education is the only business still debating the usefulness of technology.” Eleven years on, it can be stated that the debate has been settled and the Internet has been identified as technology critical in advancing affordable education and curating ideas.
As Internet penetration steadily climbs, online education, or e-learning as it is referred to in popular parlance, is gaining traction in India. An article in the Times of India forecast India’s online education market expanding into a $40 billion industry by 2017, a 100 per cent rise from current levels. In spite of having one of the largest education systems in the world with a network of more than 1 million schools and 18,000 higher education institutions, levels of education and literacy haven’t necessarily inspired confidence. A concerted campaign to develop and integrate online learning tools with traditional methods of imparting knowledge can go a long way in filling this lacuna.
Initiatives of the Government
Having recognised the challenge of educating such a populous country plagued by a severe scarcity of teachers and decrepit infrastructure, the government has devoted a substantial amount of its resources to establishing a vigorous foundation for online education. The National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning or NPTEL is a government-sponsored initiative to develop curriculum-based content to aid engineering education of undergraduates. A large number of videos from some of the premier institutes of the country have been hosted on the website with the sole aim of enhancing the quality and the approach to technical education in India. Phase 1 has some 600 courses being covered.
Phase 2 of the programme envisages the entire spectrum of the IITs, NITs and IISc being content generators. The credibility and impact of the enterprise will be catapulted, once value-added case studies are appended and experiential learning features are implemented. Phase 2 marks a major milestone with its inclusion of question banks and case studies in the courses, which is a euphemism for enforcing herd mentality. The provenance of innovation and research is embedded in questions arising from the unencumbered cognitive centres of the pupil rather than being fed with questions to ponder over. The latter is a self defeating exercise and it would be a sheer tragedy to burden online education with this burden.

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCS)

MOOCs have fundamentally altered the education that was being imparted, and engineered a global shift in the scope, blurring the limitations which so distinctly existed only yesterday. Geographical boundaries have been bulldozed, and attending a class in Political Science offered by MIT is eminently possible. There is a critical difference which delineates this bunch of resources from your regular animated curriculum material – the experience is engrossing and augmented by social interaction, thus enabling features such as peer-reviewed papers.
Aniket Parikh, a second year student of Mining Engineering at IIT Kanpur, opines, “I believe that even though e-learning definitely has long-term potential in India, the right way to go about it is systematically via establishment of prerequisite infrastructure and distribution conduits.” Indians are the second largest group registering on e-learning websites, which is testimony to the growing influence of online education and sustained shift towards a more refined approach to intellectual stimulation. Anant Agarwal, president of edX, a not-for-profit Harvard-MIT joint venture, was the benefactor of $60 million in funding to host a huge basket of lectures from the colleges online, believes that MOOCs are “the single biggest change in education since the printing press.” The influence of these resources is further amplified by the inability of a substantial number of major universities in offering simultaneous dual degrees. In the 21st century where one is expected to possess a working knowledge of every element and field one interacts with during the course of his professional work, such monolithic systems are strenuous and counterproductive.
There should be a clear move towards encouraging enrolling for dual undergraduate courses simultaneously. An upcoming field is patent lawsuits, for which one needs to be familiar with the finer nuances of law and technology. Unfortunately, this is a field dominated by lawyers with absolutely no knowledge of the technical intricacies. Rather, an engineer or lawyer resorts to online MOOCs to gain familiarity with the opposite field as the university still seems reluctant to enforce these reforms. Mumbai University’s decision to allow technical degrees to be pursued in conjunction with legal qualifications must be applauded in this light.
Reaction
Harsh Swaminarayan, an IT engineer who teaches at a public school in Dadar, regularly uses Khan Academy for displaying “simulation and videos explaining scientific concepts.” Harsh strongly believes that aids like Khan Academy help him establish a teaching schedule more suitable to the students grasping capabilities, rather than leading the entire batch at the same pace doing justice to neither the fast pickers nor those encountering difficulties with the subject.
Conclusion
That online education is basal to any sustainable education revolution in this country is beyond reproach, but a certain degree of caution is indispensable when observing the participation of Indian companies and universities in this. Their work has left a lot to be desired and one ends with the hope that Indian companies would refrain from re branding the various audio and video cassettes that were popular in the ’90s as online education, but rather pioneer an era of revolutionary education tools, available across the length and breadth of the country.
Geographical boundaries have been bulldozed, and attending a class in Political Science offered by MIT is possible[...]The experience is augmented by social interaction [and] [...]features such as peer-reviewed papers
Online Course Providers
The leaders in the MOOCs space, as featured by Business Standard are:
1. Coursera (US): for-profit, close to 2 million users, 5 per cent from India; offers 203 free courses as well as paid certificate courses which comes with an exam to judge the knowledge grasped.
2. Khan Academy (US): for-profit, founded by the ‘other’ Salman Khan, of Bangladeshi origin. His YouTube maths and science videos are highly popular in high school owing to their stress on basics and interactive tests.
3. edX (US): non-profit, founded by MIT and Harvard University. Courses are offered only in science subjects as of now, specifically in computer science.
4. Udacity (US): for-profit, outgrowth of free computer science classes offered in 2011 through Stanford University.

The Politics of Youth

2013-12-09T10:43:00.003+00:00

This is a column I wrote for the January 2013 edition of the Youth Incorporated Magazine. While certainly not my proudest effort, this was the brief from the editors, so I'm reproducing it here nevertheless.The original can be read at the Youth Inc website.

With the rise of younger politicians in India’s political playground, Nisarg Kamdar profiles some of the players and gauges their skills on the field

While the Indian National Congress (INC) certainly has a more obvious youth presence and a greater number of youth politicians in the media limelight, one has to note with a tinge of regret that an extremely high percentage of those are a product of dynastic politics. Either their ancestors were themselves politicians, thus establishing a direct link, or were public servant officials during the Nehru-Gandhi reign and have successfully made the transition to politics – like Kanishka Singh, son of former foreign secretary and Arunachal Pradesh governor S.K. Singh, who has now successfully ingratiated himself in Rahul Gandhi’s inner political circle. In fact, a huge chunk of Rahul Gandhi’s close aides include sons and daughters of former loyalists.

The Congress’s youth battalion is led by Rahul Gandhi, though he seems to be perilously close to breaching the youth bulwark at 42 years. Some more popular faces are Sachin Pilot and Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia, a descendant of the Scindia dynasty that represents Guna district in Parliament. Scindia is the present Union Minister of Power, a very crucial ministry considering the colossal power crisis pestering India. Other notable names are Jitin Prasada, Mausam Noor, Milind Deora, Priya Dutt and Navin Jindal – all descendants of families with a rich political heritage.

Sachin Pilot

Sachin Pilot (age 35) is the present Minister of Corporate Affairs. He represents the Ajmer constituency of Rajasthan, a constituency formerly represented by his father, and is a well recognized Gujjar community leader. He is the son of Rajesh Pilot, who was a Union Minister from 1991 to 1996.

To his credit, in 2009 when he was elected, he became the youngest Member of Parliament in the country. He is the first Union Minister to be commissioned as an officer of the Territorial Army, following in the footsteps of his father who had served as a squadron leader in the Indian Air Force before diving into politics. His father adopted the last name Pilot owing to this.

His education includes a Bachelor of Arts Degree from St. Stephen’s College, New Delhi, and an MBA from The Wharton School of Business, USA. In 2004 he married Sara, former J&K Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah’s daughter, deftly navigating heavy opposition from Sara’s family.

He stuck to his father’s tradition of holding an ‘Open House’ every morning where people from his constituency drop in to interact with him. One of his most pertinent qualities, as writer Aashti Bhartia notes in her debut novel Votes of Confidence, is his ‘self-conscious evenness’. Aashti notes that unlike most politicians, Sachin speaks in the same tone and dialect in his constituency as he would in Delhi, giving him a much sought-after air of credibility.

During his stint in the Ministry of Information Technology, he attempted to help non-English communities access mobile Internet. He was acutely aware of the fact that far greater resources needed to be devoted to develop locally relevant content in local languages.

Sachin has stated that he wishes to make the Ministry of Corporate Affairs a more approachable ministry that facilitates and “reduces the cumbersome nature of the red tapism and the time lag that we have sometimes”.

BJP

The BJP’s youth connect is primarily through its youth wing, the All India Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha and the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), which is its All India Student Council.

Anurag Singh Thakur

Anurag Thakur (age 38) is a member of the Lok Sabha, representing the Hamirpur constituency in Himachal Pradesh. He is the son of the present Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Prem Singh Dhumal. Anurag has a Rajput lineage.

Thakur, unlike most of his compatriots in the Congress, completed his education in India itself. He claims to have dropped his last name in a bid to pre-empt any accusations of dynastic politics.

Anurag became the President of Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association at the tender age of 25 years, at a time when cricket administration is dominated by career politicians or established professionals. He is widely appreciated for enabling international matches to be played at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala, a challenge which was exacerbated by the fact that the stadium is situated at a height of 1,457 m above sea level amid snow-capped mountains in the backdrop.

From there on, Anurag worked his way up to become the President of the All India Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha. He was an integral part of the controversial Tiranga Yatra which aimed to hoist the Indian flag at Lal Chowk, Srinagar. It snowballed into a huge political charade and polarised opinion against him.

In spite of this, Anurag has an affable nature and inclination to interact with people. He has the knack of being able to converse to an industrialist and an activist for the rights of eunuchs in the same breath, which will hold him in good stead if one were to go by the age old adage – politics is the art of compromise.

Nationalist Congress Party

The two prominent youthful faces of the NCP, a party strongly rooted to Maharashtra, are Agatha Sangma and Supriya Sule. Supriya is the daughter of NCP head and Union Agricultural Minister Sharad Pawar while Agatha is the daughter of P.A.Sangma, a former Lok Sabha speaker and Chief Minister of Meghalaya, who recently lost to Pranab Mukherjee in the Presidential elections.

Agatha Sangma

Agatha Sangma (age 32) is the youngest MP in the 15^th Lok Sabha. She represents the Tura constituency of Meghalaya and won the 2009 parliamentary election as a candidate of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP).

Having completed her LLB from Pune University, she went to Nottingham University in the UK to complete her Masters in Environmental Management. At the age of 29 she became Minister of State for Rural Development, which made her the youngest minister in the 15^th Council of Ministers. She planned to ‘incorporate environmental aspects and focus on vigilance in the work being done in rural areas’ during her stint in the Ministry.

Her appointment was also an important step in reintegrating the North East with the rest of the country. Conscious of the discrimination against people from the North East in the rest of India, Agatha delivered her speech in Hindi while wearing a traditional outfit, thus making a social and political statement.

Samajwadi Party

The Samajwadi Party (SP) is today responsible for the governance of India’s most populous state – Uttar Pradesh. And it does become imperative for them to have youth representation in the party.

Akhilesh Yadav

Akhilesh Yadav is the present Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. He is the youngest CM of UP at 38 years. He is the son of SP supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav, himself a three-time Chief Minister and a former Union Minister of Defence.

Akhilesh studied engineering in Mysore before obtaining a Masters in Environmental Engineering from University of Sydney.

Akhilesh began his political journey in 2000 when he was elected to represent the Kannauj constituency in the Lok Sabha. He was instrumental in improving the SP’s tally from 97 in 2007 to 224 in the 2012 UP Elections to the Vidhan Sabha.

He was subsequently elected the Chief Minister of the state when his father responded to popular demand. His performance in office, though, has been underwhelming. The law and order maintenance seems to have deteriorated, the youthful exuberance is absent, the investment in the state is still lackadaisical and communal tensions seem to be rising.

Many sympathise with his situation as he is a youthful CM caught in a cabinet full of party loyalists with an inflated sense of ego he cannot afford to irk.

Other Notables

Kalikesh Singh Deo of the BJD

Kalikesh represents the Bolangir constituency of Orissa and is the son Ananga Udaya Singh Deo, a veteran politician.

Kalikesh graduated from St. Stephens College, Delhi and has played basketball and shooting at the national level.

Deo was instrumental in starting the Legislative Assistance for Members of Parliament (LAMP) programme. It began on an individual basis and was later institutionalized. The programmeis an 11-month fellowship, providing the youth an opportunity to work with an MP.

Deo is currently the convener of the programme. The program is an excellent opportunity for budding politicians to acquaint themselves with the functioning of the parliamentary system and also throws up a career alternative as a political aide to an MP.

Lessons from the World’s Oldest Democracy

2013-12-09T10:27:00.000+00:00

This is a column I wrote for the December 2012 edition of the Youth INC magazine.I'm reproducing it here .The original can be read at the Youth Inc website.

NISARG KAMDAR EXPLORES THE AMERICAN ELECTION PROCESS AND FINDS VALUABLE LESSONS FOR INDIA

The two-year-running acrimonious battle to be elected to the august office of the President of the United States of America culminated on November 7 with the reelection of Barack Obama. In the aftermath of this whirlwind ride, the time is ripe to stray light on the deficiencies in the Indian democratic paradigm which we can rectify by simply borrowing from the world’s oldest democracy. As Obama embarks on his second and final term in office, it is paramount upon a country that is more fixated with the political rumblings of the west than the political fortunes of mofussil leaders, to palliate the ails of the modus operandi of elections in India considering a string of state elections and national elections will be upon us with the span of the next two years.
It is preponderant to issue a disclaimer to the effect that the idea of this piece is not to lambast the election system presently existing in India nor is the author a victim of the western inferiority complex hoping to see all and sundry branded Western shipped into this country. The idea is to engage in a conversation to evolve the election process, a natural part of any modern and progressive democracy, in a bid to envelope a larger section of the populace under the canopy of enfranchisement.
PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES
This is skimming off the popular sentiment in India. Almost the entire segment of passive political watchers, those who make up for the electronic media (TV), print media (newspapers) and social media’s traffic, collectively yearn for a Prime Ministerial debate after witnessing such debates through the tools of modern technology. They are enamoured not only the content but also the measurable impact it has on the entire election morale.
The Presidential debates carried with them a certain allure and political theatre which invited viewing and catapulted the American elections to the consciousness of the world zeitgeist. But those are the ancillary benefits. For voters, it offered an opportunity to see the candidates and their ideas of America juxtaposed. It was extremely prominent that the moderator for all four debates – rather than let the candidates indulge in garrulous incontinence and lengthy diatribes – chose to purposefully draw them to the bones of contentions, thus helping delineate their positions. In fact, this cost the contender, Republican nominee Mitt Romney quite a bit, whose inability to offer nuanced details on his plan for economic revival spooked voters and which Obama played to the hilt. This is extremely crucial for India, a country where the politicians permanently float in the realm of ambiguity when it comes to policy, thus making it near impossible to differentiate the major political parties on the basis of their policy agenda. Rather, we are reduced to substituting this with religious nonsense. Having a Presidential debate can make a world of difference, pushing parties to take stand which can be represented at the debates.
Special mention must be reserved for the Commission on Presidential Debates, an independent, non-profit corporation instituted to finance and conduct debates in an efficient, unbiased and ethical manner. Their penchant for setting up debates in a manner which assists voters to draw a clear distinction between the two parties’ position is something India should adopt blindly. The moderators too were firm, erudite and quick to clamp down on any attempt to filibuster.

EARLY VOTING
Surprisingly and rather unsettlingly, this slipped beneath the radar as far as popular punditry in India is concerned. Unsettling because it helps address and mitigate a much deeper wound than Presidential debate cures – the apathy and sheer torpor of the quintessential voter.
Early voting (also known as advance polling or voting) is the process by which electors can vote on a single or series of days prior to an election. The idea of early voting is to substantially pump up participation and relieve congestion of polling stations on election day.
Early voting is similar to “no-excuse” absentee voting. In many U.S. states, the period varies between four and fifty days prior to election day.
While accounting for the propensity of Indian politicians to win by artifice (it might be too early to encourage voting by post or email) the concept of early voting is certainly implementable and essential.
An array of Chief Election Commissioners have, on countless occasions, expressed disgust at the pathetic polling numbers election after election, particularly chiding the middle class and the elite for their apathy. There can be no better solution than early voting.
Early voting robs people of the perennial excuse of insufferably long lines and irksome timings. Also, it absolves the need to have election day as one another in the long list of national holidays. The US has for decades now had election day as a normal, working day, hardly affording the thought of allowing another day to go to waste.
Having early voting guarantees high polling percentage, is a convenient setup for citizens to exercise their rights and reduces the strain on polling booths on election day. A quarter of Americans, including President Obama himself, chose to lock their vote well before election day.
Organising early voting might be a logistical challenge, like every election in India, but should not prove beyond the capabilities of the superlative Election Commission.

YOUTH PARTICIPATION
Unlike India, both the Democrats and Republicans concentrated a major part of their political rhetoric on wooing the youth. Youth agendas were drafted and policy commitments made with primarily the youth as the voter base.
There is yet no discernible youth identity in the way India votes and the incumbent politicians are hardly bothered about the political lightweights.
The Indian youth still votes on religious and caste considerations.
Secondly, both campaigns had participation from the youth who extended a hand for basic volunteering as well as to be part of the organisations’s setup. This inculcation of the youth as one of the pillars of a successful presidential campaign illustrates the value attached to their insight and makes it a much more participatory democracy.
MORAL INTEGRITY
This election has established that in America probity and rectitudinousness in public life as well as past life as a private individual are unsubstitutable qualities and are held non-negotiable.
Pundits and people might disagree, but the reluctance of Mitt Romney to come clean on his income tax returns at the height of his time as the head of Bain Capital and the infamous and uncharitable “47 percent” remark he made to a private gathering in a secret video created the illusion of chinks in his moral armour, irrespective of his credentials to lead America, and played subconsciously on the minds of Americans.
Barack Obama, on the other hand, enjoyed a clean slate and seemed to carry around genuine empathy and earnestness which helped boost his image. His sterling record while in public office, devoid of any colossal outbreak of idiocy, held him in good stead.
FUNDING
Election funding has always been a contentious issue in India with accusations often flying left, right and centre.
That black money floats around with impunity in election season is an incontrovertible fact. The Election Commission might have gone with its collective might to counter this menace but the success has been anything but resounding.
The American model, however, offers hope, though it too is beset by ills. The idea of the public financing the Presidential election campaigns is based within the chaste tenets of democratic principles which intricately links the candidate with the constituency backing him. The people financing are not just the rich and wealthy; even the plebeians make their significant contribution within their means in a bid to secure their and the country’s future with the candidate whose manifesto they identify with. Such a system establishes a scheme of shareholding wherein the public becomes a shareholder in the success of their candidates. This scheme of instituting ownership in the candidates can probably be the justification for the jubilance of Obama supporters which left many Indians a tad befuddled.
Admittedly, the system is not without its perils, what with corporates and bankers creeping in through Super PACs (Political Action Committees) but at least every penny spent is accounted for.
In Indian election reforms, state funding of elections has been put on hold for far too long, allowing the nefarious elements in society to make merry.
EVOLVE CONSTRUCTIVELY
Our country is in the midst of a major churn. Politicians are facing the heat like never before and unless they react appropriately, they will be dinosaurs
long before they regain their senses.
The proletariat is in a sense of frenzy having just witnessed the juggernaut of American democracy roll ahead, brushing aside any barrier with characteristic contempt.
The nation must not fritter away this opportunity to push ahead with vigour and vitality towards election reforms – reforms which reflect our progress and evolution since Independence.
REPUBLICAN NOMINEE MITT ROMNEY’S INABILITY TO OFFER NUANCED DETAILS ON HIS PLAN FOR ECONOMIC REVIVAL SPOOKED VOTERS AND OBAMA PLAYED IT TO THE HILT IN THE US PRESIDENTIAL DEBATES

PAUL RYAN’S CRITICISM OF OBAMA’S FOREIGN POLICY WAS TERMED BY VICE PRESIDENT JOSEPH BIDEN AS “A BUNCH OF MALARKEY”

DID YOU KNOW?
The Americans do not elect their president directly.
They vote for an elector – a representative who must vote for the same candidate. There are 538 electors. Together, they are called the Electoral College. Each state has as many electors as it has members in Congress (parliament).
When Americans vote for a candidate of a party, they actually vote for an elector of that state.
On election day voters go to the polls to choose the electors in their state, however, they only see the names of the Presidential and Vice Presidential candidates. They vote for a candidate, but they in fact vote for the elector. This is called the popular vote.
A candidate needs 270 electoral votes to win the election.
In almost all states the candidate who receives the most popular votes wins that state’s entire electoral votes.
The President is elected only in December.
Even though the winner of the election is known the following morning, he/she is officially elected President in December when the electors meet. The President is then sworn into office only in January when the oath of office is taken.
The United States of America is a Constitutional Republic.
The Republic of India is a Parliamentary Representative Democracy. While we will assiduously avoid diving into a stream of jargon, we shall keep that in mind to avoid making unfounded suggestions.

100,02,93 – Internet Activism or Slacktivism?

2013-10-08T19:03:00.000+01:00

This is a column I wrote for the July edition of the Youth INC magazine.I'm reproducing it here .The original can be read at the Youth Inc website.It was also subsequently posted on rediff.com.

The acid test of any communication medium in its transition from puberty to adulthood lies in its ability to enact a constructive and fortifying role in channeling the collective angst of people into decipherable change.
And with the advent of social media, come similar challenges. While the traditional media and the public at large (well the one who the media features, at least) have been quick to laud it as the new powerhouse channel of activism, doubts persist regarding its ability to translate into tangible action.
Before we begin though, it is paramount to define the term to shed light on the perspective with which this piece has been authored.
Wikipedia defines Internet activism (also known as digital activism, cyber activism and e-campaigning ) as the use of electronic communication technologies such as social media, especially Twitter and Facebook, YouTube, e-mail, and podcasts for various forms of activism to enable faster communications by citizen movements.
With that settled, let’s dive right in.
India Against Corruption
The nationwide protest against the malaise, that is, corruption captured the nation’s imagination and was undoubtedly an overwhelming success when it came to the ability to mobilise crowds. What marked this movement out as a revolutionary one was its masterful and ingenious use of social media to expand its base and effectively disseminate its message, free from any propaganda or bias which plagues mainstream media today.
The government was caught unawares at Team Anna’s canny use of social media in an attempt to effect direct communication with the proletariats.
Not only did this help raise awareness regarding their demands, but also helped in organizing the forces on the ground.
A live stream of the ground proceedings was made available and invitations to various local and national rallies populated the invite list in social media sites. As many bloggers branded it – it was a ‘triumph of communication’.
On Independence Day, Anna featured in 500,000 status updates and comments across top social networking sites likes Twitter and Facebook. Two days later, the number was 9 million.
On YouTube, over 40,000 people watched the video shot by Kiran Bedi inside Tihar Jail in which Anna addressed his supporters which flared the passions of millions of Indians and drove them on to the streets. Facebook has 542 fan pages in Anna’s name.
The movement certainly fueled the idea that social media could empower and enable us.
It is pertinent to recall the words of Gaurav Bakshi , one Team Anna’s faces: “Social media sparked Anna movement, can lead to demise too”.

The Anonymous India Protests
Anonymous India was a loosely knit guerrilla group primarily focussed on opposing the government efforts to enforce Internet censorship.
Anonymous, which has successfully orchestrated the Occupy Movements across the globe, had shifted their focus to India in recent months.
Being primarily a beast of the virtual world, they attempted to whip up frenzy in the domain and created events to mark ground protests. The idea was to gather at Mumbai’s Azad Maidan wearing the iconic Guy Fawkes mask and create the necessary thrust to propel the movement into public consciousness.
Out of the 2500 confirmed attendees on Facebook, no more than 25 bothered showing up which led the daily tabloid Mumbai Mirror to pass the acerbic comment “too wee for vendetta”.
Such instances have made people wonder whether social media is just a convenient mode of communication or can be instrumental in delivering long lasting and sustainable change
The provenance of the pejorative term slactivism lies in an incident such as mentioned above.
World View
Around the world social media activism has acquired colossal proportions. If not hoisted on its own pillars, movements around the world have certainly received a fillip out of social media.
The Arab Spring is widely credited to be the first movement, on such a revolutionary stage to have truly embraced social media as a to tool. The Kony 2012 campaign stood out for its truly global nature in the long list of social media success.
A word of caution though – social media is great for such viral issues or even to an extent personal issues but as Malcolm Gladwell argues in his 2010 article Small Change, the movement will be hoisted on its own petard unless able and impassioned statesmen force the issue after the initial euphoria wears off.
Study in Contrast
The Anonymous India and Team Anna protests have made for a study in contrast.
While there is this inherent tendency, due to technological idealism, to hype up social media activism, there is no doubt that social media has helped embrace and involve those who were previously less than enthusiastic.
As Shashi Tharoor famously said, “The means of communication can never determine the outcome.”
The real challenge is in actually transferring the change into a world which extends far beyond the walls of Facebook.
As to whether a movement with a solely virtual presence can deliver a knockout blow, the jury is still out on that.
Social media is the tool and not the entire strategy. It is imperative to ensure that social media does not become another victim of the infamous slayer Slactivism.

We Got Our Priorities Straight

2013-06-19T16:42:00.000+01:00

The Prime Minister announced ex-gratia assistance of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of those who have lost their lives and Rs 50,000 each to those injured.

Just to put this into perspective, Delhi Govt gave Rs 2 crore to MSD and Rs 1 crore each to Delhi boys Kohli, Viru, Gauit and Nehra for winning the World Cup.

Rajasthan Govt. announces aid of Rs.2 cr to flood hit Uttrakhand.

Just to put this into perspective, the Rajasthan State Cricket Association announced 1.3cr when the Rajasthan Ranji Team won the cup.
Plus the Rajasthan Govt. gave the entire world cup winning team a free ride in the "Palace On Wheels" luxury train.

This in closely following Tuesday's media farce.

Close to 100 people dead, about 25,000 stranded in what is predominantly a man made disaster in Uttrakhand, a pernicious concomitant of the unchecked and random construction activity in the name of development, but Mr.Arnab Goswami is still infatuated with incessant and petty political bickering about some fake encounter.

Utterly disgraceful and odious.

Flight of Foreign Fancy

2012-12-20T13:33:00.001+00:00

This is a column I wrote for the September edition of the Youth Incorporated magazine.I'm reproducing it here .The original can be read at the Youth Inc website.

A number of recent events stand as evidence of our constant need for approval from foreign media. Nisarg Kamdar delves further into this national obsession
While replication is considered to be the best form of flattery, merely plagiarising without application of one’s mental prowess is plain cretinous. The syndrome seems to be fast overpowering a major section of the Indian media and consumers. While the foreign media industry has for ages wielded a disproportionate amount of influence on our internal functioning, this recent ass worshipping borders on servility and obsequiousness.
Who’s the Underachiever?
Take the recent Time magazine cover, which managed to raise a storm. Hours of television programming and oceans of ink were devoted to analyzing a cover labeling Manmohan Singh as an ‘Underachiever’. Senior ministers elevated it to a pedestal by issuing rebuttals, which is surprising when juxtaposed with their contemptuous dismissal of incisive and indicting reporting by national magazines. The juvenile tit-for-tat from the Outlook Magazine points to the importance awarded to insipid commentary as long as it originates from the Western Hemisphere.
The one with Narendra Modi on the cover was interpreted as a stamp of approval and his supposed eligibility for the high post of India’s Prime Minister. What baffles me is this constant craving for approval from the foreign media at the expense of the public at large.
Why do we require all our prime ministerial candidates to be vetted by those who at best have a passing interest in our country?
Why does an op-ed in the New York Times send the government and the media into a tizzy, while informative and erudite commentary back home rarely rises beyond a passing mention?
How difficult is it grasp that the media of every country functions with the aim to promote the interests of the country rather than with the interests of India at heart?
The Economic Coma
Unfortunately, it is not just the political class that seems to base its decisions on portrayal by foreign institutions. The Indian media too seems to have joined the bandwagon.Rather than choose to chart out an independent path based on enlightening commentary and protecting the interests of the proletariat, it seems to have lapsed into a coma, parroting western thought and economic policies adopted by the international media.
The verbose breast beating which lines our dailies is cringe worthy. The absence of critical analysis and rational thinking is apodictic. Stories seem to be based primarily on commentary by the international media rather than a fact based observation on the travails of India.
In the absence of indigenous and ingenious thought, India has been bulldozed into following half-baked ideas, which have in turn fuelled this great disparity between the masses in the country.
The media, along with the executive, the legislature and the judiciary are the four pillars on which democracy takes safe refuge. In many ways, it is the most essential ingredient of any democracy. Its malfunctioning can be catastrophic for the country. As a bastion of free thought and guarded skepticism, the inability to preserve free thinking has been manifested in a decaying and regressive society.
Abhishek Karandhikar, second year engineering student offers an acerbic take, “With an economy down in the dumps, increasing distrust in our markets by foreign investor, and a collective feeling of not belonging to the ‘developed world’ and failing to compete with China, our media, which almost essentially is a political entity now, is clinging to the 15 minutes of fame we get for free.”
Social Sector
The majority of the country is aware of some of the diabolical and egregious social diseases that persist and perpetrate in India. It is more or less a defining theme of our Sunday newspaper spreads and that infected portion of our body which we have chosen to severe rather than cure.
But with alarming regularity and tedious predictability, there is a chorus of outcry the moment a Guardian decides to take up the cudgels in the fight for social equality. Responses range from defensive retorts and inability to swallow the truth to sympathetic tweets and Facebook statuses. Rarely does either translate into ground level action.
The trouble is why do equally erudite, if not more, reports armed with incisive statistics and illuminating facts in local dailies not arouse the same urge for change which a Guardian report my initiate?
Should every fact be reinforced by the supposed purveyors of journalistic ethics for it to finally register?
‘Meaningful’ Cinema
Unsurprisingly, the entertainment industry and its offshoots have been caught up in the same rot.
Rather than cater to the audience, serve up intelligent produce replete with takes on Indian idiosyncrasies and home grown ideas, they are designed to educate and entertain everyone but Indians.
An award at the Cannes Film Festival is all what matters, not the content or lack of that. Somehow, in this age of claptrap nonsense, scheming PRs have managed to categorize anything which gets an award at an international film festival as ‘offbeat’ and ‘meaningful’ cinema, when there is far better regional and national programming, who choose to avoid climbing on to this gravy train .
The idea that anything endorsed by a chimp sitting in Paris is far better than local produce is defeating, degenerate and regressive. Unfortunately, most Indians fall for such silly marketing exercises, in turn failing to appreciate and enjoy far better quality entertainment just because they weren’t rubber stamped by the likes of the Wall Street Journal.
Free Thinkers
A country is defined by its idiosyncrasies, its peculiarities and it’s tough process. Unless we break out of our feudal mind-set, I fear that we still remain imprisoned and our cognition still incarcerated, 65 years after gaining independence.

A Question of Morals?

2012-09-23T14:09:00.002+01:00

There has been a lot of stink raised over the past month on what is seen as a concerted attempt by the government to impinge upon the constitutional freedoms accorded to every citizen and resident of this country. The two prominent incidents that have gained a lot of traction, especially in the media are ‘Internet censorship’ and the ‘Mumbai Police Social Service branch’ headed by the rather infamous Vasant Dhoble. While both have seen the spurt of spontaneous protests, more pronounced in the virtual world, Dhoble’s actions seem to have fomented the more vitriolic of reactions. And while the amount of claptrap circulating on various media forums is certainly amusing, I’m going to attempt to pare off at the media smokescreen and make a case on some basic facts. Though I must swiftly introduce a clarification: The idea of this piece is not to pick sides nor attempt a black-or-white classification. Like every aspect of human life, this area too retains shades of gray.
Anti-Dhoble Hype?
Vasant Dhoble, assistant
commissioner of Mumbai police, head of the Mumbai Police Social Service branch, is a hockey stick wielding cop who claims to be waging a war with the nefarious elements of society. His detractors, though, choose to paint him as a megalomaniac who seems to be hell bent, enforcing his parochial moral compass on jolly members of the society. While the lacunae are Dhoble’s mode of functioning has certainly been highlighted, the positive offshoots of his drive have been unceremoniously ignored.
For instance, a team of the Social Service branch, led by Dhoble, on the June 25th, 2012, raided a massage parlour ‘Shy Lee’ in Powai and rescued seven girls who had been allegedly forced into the flesh trade. People who live in Mumbai are aware of the underground sex trade and child labour industry that flourishes under the nose of the authorities. In such light, Dhoble’s actions functioning under whatever motive certainly deserve appreciation.
Another instance bandied around while tearing into Dhoble, is an incident involving a popular suburban roadside eatery, Amar Juice Centre, near Cooper Hospital in Juhu. Living and studying in the vicinity of this social menace, I’ll recount a firsthand account of the brash and disgraceful functioning of this establishment.
An illegal installation, it’s the talk of the town for breaking laws with impunity and subsequently the blatant bribing of officials. Encroaching upon the footpath, setting up tables and chairs on the roadside, functioning late into the night with nonexistent hygiene standards, local bodies describe it as nothing but an absolute nuisance. Serpentine queues of cars align themselves along this very street, as waiters prance around the streets serving patrons in their cars, unmindful of the major traffic snarls it causes and the sound pollution that occurs right outside one of the city’s integral civic hospitals.
So it comes as no surprise then, when local residents and social activity groups from around the city have expressed their unequivocal support for the Social Service Department’s latest drive.
Dhoble’s credentials and previous service record hardly inspires confidence, but his drive to check such anti-social elements should be appreciated.
Licensing laws are in place based on sound reason and breaking them is unacceptable and contrary to the tenets of the law. The results of unlicensed activity on our streets can find the form of underage drinkers acting unsociably close to where we live and degenerate elements mushrooming across the city, fuelling alcoholism and drug addiction, two of the major concerns for modern India. So when a posh pub is hauled up for certain violations, it’s part of the larger design. Stipulations are put in to avoid overcrowding to ensure the greater safety of the patrons as they party into the night. In case of a fire or any other accident, such limitations aid in ensuring rescue operations as well as help in minimising the damage. Too often, the local disco is crammed with people, leaving hardly any space to swing around freely.
As far as the implementation of archaic laws go, some dating back to nearly a century, it’s for the legislators to take notice of the constantly evolving social parameters and respond with adequate supervision. Ambiguities of the law need to be clarified to ensure the executive branch that the police do not function like unchecked mafias.
Internet Clampdown
On a very distinct note from the above actions, no reasonable justifications can be offered for the actions of the Department of Telecom led by the virtual world’s favourite clown, Kapil Sibal and the band of ISPs (Internet Service Providers).
What began with the bulging number of yearly requests to Google (www.google.com/ transparencyreport/removals/ government/IN/) to pull down content from its various sites and search results, has now degraded to the blocking of file and video sharing websites.
It is pertinent to note that India holds the ‘numero uno’ spot when it comes to government-made content removal requests to Google. The rather unsettling part of this statistic is that out of the 101 requests made, only six were backed by court orders. The rest were made at the behest of the police and government. This seems to be an extension of the government’s plans to put in place a regulation under the pretext of checking blasphemous content, a move that is widely perceived as an attempt to curtail our freedom of speech and muffle the voices of discontent that have found a safe haven on the Internet.
Luckily for us, Google and Twitter have shown some fight and refused to cave in to the irrational demands made.
But what irks me the most is the Madras High Court ‘John Doe’ order, which was misinterpreted by the ISPs to pull down legitimate file sharing websites like Vimeo and certain torrent websites, which had been offering their co-operation in tackling piracy.
While piracy is certainly a legitimate and apodictic problem, it needs to be dealt with regard and respect for the legal file sharing operations that the website facilitates, ensuring that the interests of the other users are taken into account. Such arbitrary blocking is counterproductive; it contrives against the basic principles of the Internet and calls into question the authorities intentions.
India’s Internet freedom has now been called into question and unless we citizens wake up to check this insidious activity, we’ll be regressing to darker times. It’s depressing to see how many of us have become blasé to the idea of Internet censorship. Recently, an anonymously organized protest was held in Mumbai, where a measly crowd of twenty attended the event. The government’s surreptitious actions, coupled with the amendments to the IT Act 2000, have been looked upon with deep suspicion by the virtual community. The need of the hour is to educate the common public about these fairly oppressive notifications. The scrutiny and the eagle-eyed surveillance of the public at large is the only leash that can keep the government in check.

This is a column I wrote for the August edition of Youth Incorporated Magazine.I'm reproducing it here.The original can be read at this address.

The Young and The Comatose

2012-08-10T13:07:00.000+01:00

This is a column I wrote for the July edition of the Youth INC magzine.I'm reproducing it here .The orignal can be read at the Youth Inc website.

The problem is the indifferent attitude of the youth towards their government and election process. Young people just don’t want to vote,” expressed Dr S Y Quraishi, Chief Election Commissioner.
The youth have often been touted as the beacon that will guide the country through the tumultuous period of strain that accompanies a nation’s acceleration from a developing to a developed country. The very premise on which the aspirations of a billion people are based is in the vigour and vitality of a youthful demography.
The 300 million golden figure is quoted instantly, aspersions are cast on the sustainability of the country or the preposterous theories are punctured. In this atmosphere of superfluous positivity, why do the youth depart for a weekend jamboree at the nearest tourist spot at the scent of an approaching election? Why do we still register dismal figures at the polling booth irrespective of it being a local, state or national election?
At first glance, it appears to be an open and shut case. It displays the apathy and the callousness of the youth when it comes to upholding the basic pillars of our democracy and exercising the right to vote enshrined by the constitution. It displays contempt for the parliamentary democracy and failure to recognise that the democracy is still in an extremely nascent and susceptible state of inception. It requires to be fortified by incubation in the temple of political engagement, activism and liaison.
Jay Mehta, a 20-year-old engineering student chooses to differ. “Maybe it’s because today’s youth is tired of the endless fighting, corruption and inefficiency, which has become the hallmark of Indian politics. We see the same promises delivered to us every election and the inability or the unwillingness of our leaders to fulfil the same,” he says. But shouldn’t that spur on the youth to elect someone who is reputable and can be trusted with their future? He retorts, “I think that the Indian youth today is simply bored of politics and this is on display when you see that many educated, college-going youth don’t even know the names of India’s President and Prime Minister. I think in order to get the youth interested in politics, there should be a revamp of the entire political system and it should be ensured that the promises made by the leaders should be delivered. For instance, a young IPS officer was killed when he tried to stop illegal mining. Instead of catching the accused, the political parties began a blame game. If an IPS officer’s murder goes unpunished then what hope can there be for the rest of us.”
You have to concede to the final. In spite of union pressure, the legal system laboriously plods along making the idea of any kind of enforceable and effective justice redundant. The shocking thing is when youth, speak of refurbishing the system exactly whom do they expect to do that? The politicos? Wasn’t that precisely what the youth were designated to do?
Siddarth Chandrasekaran makes a pithy observation, “Even I’ve been very perplexed by the situation. We go out on the streets in hordes when Anna wants us to. But not to vote!”
However, many try to hide behind the garb of procedure and the struggle it takes to procure a voter’s ID card.
Says Russel Shah, “The government must incentivise voting and streamline the procedure of registering to vote rather than making us run from one desk to another,” resonating most of the country’s youth.
Vrushali Ambedkar lands a stinging rebuke, “When you turn 18, no one lands up on your doorstep offering you a voter’s card but most of us still have it, don’t we? No one’s going to lay down the red carpet to ‘incentivise’ voting. The biggest incentive is a wellgoverned country where your rights are respected.”
Least to say, the political class is enjoying this display of sloth from the young change makers.
The closer you look, the more stark the problem appears. Statistics reaffirm our instincts. The voting percentage (from the registered youth voters) has been consistently a couple of notches below the national average. In fact, studies have shown that there is no discernible youth identity in the way India votes. Locality and gender reign supreme even when it comes to the youth voting trends. The lack of a radical political alternative by the youth who are perennially sobbing at political ostracism is keenly felt.
One author, with delightful candour, calls the Indian youth ‘The generation in coma’. They are wiser words from which we’ll do good to seek the underlying message. As we move away in an attempt to grasp the wider context, it seeps in that this isn’t necessarily an India-centric problem and it would be fair to say many developed nations have been acute victims too.
Canada has been recording a steady decline in youth voting figures and they tend to blame it on the trust deficit and lack of political astuteness, which has led to disillusionment among the youth.
A study by a US-based organisation shows that the major reason why the youth tend to skip voting is the lack of faith in the impact their vote can have. Its stupefying because it’s a well documented fact that in 2000, the presidential election in America was decided by a mere 537 people.
“Voting is not seen as a part of transition to adulthood by students,” the 2009 Youth Electoral Study (YES) stated. “Attending ‘schoolies’, obtaining a drivers license and leaving school are all far more important rites of passage. This is the root cause of the problem. The fundamental lacunae are the inability to value the right of enfranchisement. As highlighted by Richard Neimi, “political ideas—like the consumption of cigarettes and hard liquor—do not suddenly begin with one’s eighteenth birthday.”
Studies also draw light to the fact that the younger generation fails to see a direct connect between how their life pans out and which direction they vote. This dampens the motivation to vote. There is this school of thought that the political establishment hasn’t sought to attract the youth to the voting booth. While certainly a lot of media chatter has been bandied around, lack of concrete actions with specific reference to education and other issues concerning the youth can be a major thrust behind this disenchantment.
At the same time, the political class is happy at the lack of enthusiasm among the youth for they can continue in its march towards a veritable basket case.
Voting is a beautiful and rare thing. We are fortunate to have the right to vote. At the same time, it’s a responsibility and a commitment to your own future. Around the Gulf, you see people sacrificing their lives for the singular aim of a right to choose an adept government, a right we choose to disregard for the weekend getaway. As one political commentator so famously stated, ‘If you don’t vote, then, shut up.’
The time is still not lost. We’re passing through a unique moment in a country’s history where a majority of its demographic is full of youthful endeavour, vigour and vitality. Let’s fulfil the promise we carry rather than being relegated to being nothing but the ‘lost generation.

East vs West

2012-07-16T19:21:00.001+01:00

This is a column I wrote for the July edition of the Youth INC magzine.I'm reproducing it here .The orignal can be read at the Youth Inc website.

Gandhiji was once asked rather innocently by a Western reporter on what he made of the culture of the West. He replied with uncharacteristic wit and levity, “It would be a good idea.”
As the cosmopolitan youth of India drift towards the attributes and idiosyncrasies of Western culture, these sarcasm-laced words are vividly drawn to the mind. Are we indeed progressing towards a more evolved, refined and sophisticated culture or have we set ourselves on the irreversible journey of self-destruction? Before I attempt to critically analyse this metamorphosis, let me introduce a disclaimer. I am not a fanatic nationalist, nor do I yearn for a return to ‘the glory days of the old’. Sati and marital rape are two contentions a national debate on the polarities of the world finds itself stuck in. There exists veritable proof of the vicious aforementioned activities flourishing untrammelled in the heart of India. I find the concept of a globalised nation enticing and remain taken up by the allure of a just society rather than one undermined by the weak foundations of blind faith.

WHERE THE GRASS IS ALWAYS GREENER
An inherent inferiority complex is an epithet apt for the Indian mentality. From all-pervasive colour, class and caste racism to the fascination with Caucasian looking skin, Indian society seems to have a perennial chipon- the-shoulder dilemma. From this derives the rotten myth, sadly more pervasive among the (semi-) educated classes, that anything with the stamp of Western approval transcends any superior indigenous examples of ingenuity.
While part of this comes from the urge of the elites to delineate themselves from the proletariats, who are limited to local produce by their scarce resources, another factor is also the manufactured deprecation and assumed inferiority of homegrown products. Vrushali Ambedkar, a first-year engineering student at DJ Sanghvi College of Engineering, contends that, “Indian culture has evolved over time. It’s unfortunate that people deliberately highlight the negative points to pull down a sound and civil culture. This is the proverbial ‘the grass is greener on the other side’ syndrome.” At times, it takes Western approval for us to respect our own roots!

MODERN DAY INFLUENCES
Present circumstances, especially with economic liberalisation and the subsequent staggering growth, has certainly given Western culture its fair share of thrust. Western brands are a coveted treasure and have become household names in skyscraper dwellers and slums alike. The certain allure attached to them as objects of desire has captured a huge section of the middle class.
The peculiar aspect to note here is how elites drop brands if they move out of the bracket of exclusivity. Maybe this Western infatuation can be attributed to maintaining and fortifying social status by seeking to facilitate feelings of mystery and enigma, rather than any particular prejudice. The lack of signature status has certainly made a dent in local handicraft and fabric businesses.
But institutions have collectively worked to undermine and destabilise indigenous supremacy. Take the case of the traditional Indian beverage of a lassi, chaas or thandai being phased out for the highly nutritious local cola. This,in spite of the knowledge that Indian beverages like aam panna, jal jeera, thandai, lassi, chhanch or nimbu paani are prepared to beat the heat of the sultry Indian summer, and chai as well as the popular filter coffee to provide warmth during winters. But in our inexplicable concupiscence to imitate Western buffoons we have dismissed them as crass, asinine and inelegant, forsaking them for the pesticideinfested soft drinks.
The irony? Today, you have the average urban resident shelling out an exorbitant sum for a packaged bottle of that very ‘shoddy’ beverage packaged by the same cola maker, when he could consume the same for a pittance in the warm and gracious ensconce of his living room. Donkey’s have more common sense!
Another pertinent example is the running shoes gimmick. The Western barons made a fortune out of tricking the fitness freak clique into purchasing shoes at prices, which can mildly be described as extravagant. Then arrived the bummer. A front page story on a popular daily carried a report on the various health and fitness benefits of running bare foot rather than cuddled in those cretinous shoes, something long propagated by blaring clarions of our homeland. The benefits of running unshod, especially on sand, are well researched and documented. But why bother until a Western study with the stamp of some fancy university shines some light on the claptrap sitting in your very backyard? The pages might dry down; the examples could fill a bottomless barrel. Plonkers like me will cry themselves hoarse, oceans of ink will be spent breast beating but what remains is the study by that suave college down by the Thames.
As Abhishek Karandikar so lucidly puts it, “As for them being more civilised with regards to rigidly following civic rules, yes they lead by example. But the hypocrites that they are, can’t they follow the shining example of social behaviour they strive to enforce. Just to put things into perspective, how many times has the peace-loving Western world destroyed the homes of innocent people under the garb of peace keeping? They value freedom but unite to deprive other states of their sovereignty. This is not to say that the Eastern world is tolerant. But if your actions, words and thoughts are not exactly in sync, it is a sure-shot sign of complete lack of civility.”

THE SITCOM ANGLE
Western sitcom broadcasts have become all the rage these days, what with many fanatical clubs springing up and the ‘wholesome’ entertainment they offer. Couple that with the morally disgusting Indian soap debacles and you have a potent cultural upswing here. Or is it?
While many hold Western broadcasts as superior programming with higher production values thus culminating in enhanced entertainment, they may argue that it’s a forum for a subliminal cultural push.
While they certainly free and unclutter thought, bereft of parochial considerations, something which we would do well to emulate, they have also sought to stand for excessive drinking, gambling, licentious and promiscuous behaviour- characteristics which get labelled as vices in civil societies.

WHERE EAST BEATS WEST
We may litter our roads, pay bribes and honk incessantly. But these examples cannot qualify as proof of being ‘uncultured’. It’s not these attributes that define us, instead it is our values, our commitment to nonviolence and respect for freedom that highlight our culture. In the process of aping the West, let us hope not to lose out on these attributes. The sense of independence, which often borders on selfishness, is a trend that has travelled from the Western world into our borders. Despite living in a materialistic world with an enviable quality of life, many Westerners are running eastward to find meaning and peace in their fast-paced lives. They crave spiritual knowledge, appreciate Indian meditation techniques and the wisdom of our practices. Are we heading in the same direction towards a problem despite being blessed with its solution?

THE FINAL DAWN
Abhishek weighs in again: “Civilisation is also about the extent of one’s development as a person. Many in the Eastern world can easily adapt to their languages and values. Civilisation is not a set code of conduct with competitions between others. It’s the assimilation of good values that allow mankind to progress without compromising on morals and conscience.” Siddarth Chandrasekaran attempts to straddle the fence saying,“Everyone wants change now. Westerners are trying to ape our lifestyles and we are living theirs. They love yoga, ayurveda, Indian classical music and we, Gucci, Armani and Kim Kardashian for that matter!”
Does this indulgence in a never ending eulogy of Indian cultural values masquerade the severe lack of morality felt in all spheres of life among those fanatically embedded in the very fabric that constitutes the widely paraded value system? Do we have the objectivity of selecting what qualities are worth adopting? Or will we be trapped in a cultural web and in the process lose our identity and weaken our roots? The jury’s still out.

Prophetic Words

2012-05-20T11:09:00.000+01:00

Propehetic words from the TOI website.

Has the IPL hit its nadir?

2012-05-15T19:27:00.001+01:00

This is a piece i wrote for the May edition of the Youth Incorporated magazine.Though a bit late, hope this reproduction here makes for a pleasant read.

Title: Has the IPL hit its nadir?

Intro: After the many low points the IPL has suffered over the past few years, Nisarg Kamdar asks if the brand worth billions will come shining through the present season

As the month of May draws to a close, so does the sportaintment carnival that IPL is. A two-month long cricketing jamboree, besprinkled with the extravagant elites and the glamorous Bollywood celebs to up the oomph factor, IPL has been a roller coaster ride with the troughs far outnumbering the crests.

The Origins

The provenance of the IPL is premised on the emergence of the rebel T20 cricket league – The Indian Cricket League. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) seeing the copious amounts of apostates in the domestic and veteran circuits ready to jump ships in the lure of heavier pockets, initially responded rather immaturely with severe sanctions.

Having now fully appraised the very threat to its iron grip on the reins of Indian Cricket, the BCCI through its maverick Vice President Lalit Modi responded with the IPL, a professional 20-20 cricket league, one that promised to be the glitziest of all sporting shindigs. The IPL quickly signed up some of the world’s greatest players onto its roster. With the delicate intrigue of the auction packaged with flamboyant owners, the IPL seemed a winner. The city-based formats whipped up the desired frenzy and the player auctions ensured top billing in the media. The mind-boggling sums of money did no harm to its burgeoning popularity in a country obsessed with figures. Player salaries skyrocketed. Cricket sycophants boasted that India now had a product that was comparable, at least financially, to the English Premier League.

The Formative Seasons

The inaugural seasons of the IPL lived up to its billing. Brendon McCullum and the Kolkata Knight Riders exploded on to the stage when they hammered Vijay Mallya’s Royal Challengers Bangalore in the opener. The first season was capped by a cliff-hanger on the field where the underdogs, Rajasthan Royals beat Chennai Super Kings in a cliff-hanger of a finale.

The stellar level of cricket was well complemented/distracted by the enchanting bevy of beauties sensually grooving to the tracks belted out by international DJ's. Celebrity spotters had a field day; the IPL was one forum where the whole array ranging from the Bollywood star to the fading, decrepit socialite could find acceptance.

The fact that the sudden exposure to international shores – South Africa – in the second season, straight from the incubator back in India-caused no freckles and to the contrary enhanced the league’s reputation was testimony to the fact that the IPL had made the transition from a domestic tournament to a global athletic pursuit. The revitalised movement to sneak cricket into the Olympics gained further impetus.

The Grandest Stage of All

The IPL was fast being used to catapult into the senior national team from the innocent confines of the U-19 Indian team or local leagues. This springboard paid great dividends of the loyal toilers of the Ranji league who fail to attract attention in the monotone of domestic cricket.

Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Sharma , Ashok Dinda and Yusuf Pathan were a few who piggybacked from near obscurity to limelight on the back of strong and vigorous IPL display.

If you want to get acquainted with a pressure cooker situation, IPL is the place. IPL has sparked of a global breed of cricketers who are blasé in the face of daunting challenges or inflated expectations. They might be short on footwork and batting techniques but never devoid of self confidence and bullishness.

The chance to learn from cricketing legends is also unparallelled. Virat Kohli was sharing a dressing room with Jacques Kallis. John Buchanan , the coach who has won a hat trick of world cups, was imparting valuable words of wisdom to Ashok Dinda. The cricketer you idolised and modelled your game upon was now literally a request away. This amiable atmosphere helped nourish and mould some of the most prodigious talents in the game today.

Financial behemoth

The IPL in a way has been an embodiment of the stunning capitalist growth unravelling in the country. The mind-boggling numbers involved have given premium sports franchises a run for their money. It ensured windfall gains for the BCCI.

At the start of only it’s second season a report by a UK-based consultancy pegged the IPL’s worth at over $4 billion. The commodity has successfully found its own space in the world of clogged cricket calendars ensuring the biggest attraction at every season. Its popularity extends well beyond the peripheries of the cricket-crazy subcontinent .The various slavish leagues subsequently announced by other cricket boards is tribute to the ingenuity of the league.

It has sparked its own niche industry. The IPL has been mighty successful in making cricket a more acceptable game throughout the masses. While test cricket had a limited loyal base in the purists and the ODI appealed to the proletariat, the IPL

Controversy Magnet

The IPL has been the nursing home for several controversies, which have largely taken off the sheen of the league. The slapgate controversy was a poor example of sportsmanship and later trickled down to the festering ugliness in the Indian cricket team.

The late night after-match parties brought to notice the lascivious tone the league had adopted and brought the league serious public disrepute. The league has also been mired in financial scandals with serious allegations of tax evasions, money laundering and presence of nefarious elements in the ownership structure being levied. The Enforcement

Directorate has been on its case and with fresh revelations being made on a weekly basis, the league is certainly not deprived of bad press.

The unceremonious circumstances which not only pilloried a Union minister for State, Shashi Tharoor but also guillotined the League’s founder Chairman, Lalit Modi, called into question the league’s probity or lack of it. Allegations have been levelled on auctions being fixed, contracts been manipulated and illicit dealings. The Madras High Court has taken a strong stand on the issue and has made its displeasure clear at IPL being allowed to evade entertainment task under the guise of being public entertainment while tickets command at exorbitant rates.

The present IPL is a decisive and critical one. Now that the novelty has rubbed off, whether the league will be able to hold its own and still enchant viewers is of significant importance. The teams have had sufficient time to build up a loyal supporter and sponsor base. Whether the success of the Indian Cricket team at the international stage in anyway fuels the massive glory of the IPL will also be observed. What we can expect is a month and half of some slam bang cricket laced with appropriate amount of glamor and speculation to keep the tabloids happy.

OPINION SPEAK

The IPL is- at it's best- an extra-ordinary attempt to further exemplify the glory of the revolution cricket has turned out to be, in the last few decades. Following the footsteps of EPL, the IPL has turn ed out to be an extremely fascinating, entertaining phenomenon albeit on a slightly smaller footing. The thrill of T20 encounters, coupled with the explosive stadium atmosphere as well as the novelty involved in watching players from different countries team up together, all add up to make IPL one of the mega-events to look out for, every year!
It is sad however, to be a witness to the fact that Pakistan has been left out purely because of political reasons. Sports are a bridge towards better international relations, not a means to apply pressure. Same goes for the revelation of scams and money siphoning in the course of bidding. It brings to mind several doubts about India being ready to host a tournament of such mammoth proportions, money wise.
In terms of overall impact to the game, the IPL may have taken some sting out of classic international ODI or test series, but that is only a sign that we are gradually shifting to a newer paradigm. The 3 hour format of the game does impact the player's mindset drastically, but as a spectator, it's nothing better than wholesome entertainment. Maybe it's not too far-fetched to believe there will be more Mumbai Indians fans than Chelsea ones someday. Who knows!
PRATIK MEHTA, F.E-D.J.SANGHVI

Ipl has become an out and out business.Its pros are that it increased the international exposure for Indian players and even greater monetary gains and recognitions but it has all culminated down to a country v/s club debate which never ever existed before.....and even it has led to people retiring from longer versions of the game....people performing in ipl are given better opportunities as opposed to seasoned ranji players....if you don't have the attacking power you are just not considered.....test cricket is the only parameter to judge who a true batsman or bowler is not a twenty20 match....
with all its hype and fever i guess one day it will just take down the international arena to an all time low....which is not good for the sport...:(

Club-country dilemma has affected in a way that players have started performing for their respective ipl teams and have underperformed on the international arena......prime examples are malinga and rohit sharma....

As a fan it does bother me its alarming and quite saddening to see this downfall in terms of country matches.....
and football system is not preferable because its a different ball game and you cant merge all three forms of the game at club level...

-Russel Shah, First year engineering student

Link to the orignal piece.

Racist?Nah.

2012-05-04T15:19:00.000+01:00

In what universe is this racist?
Aren't most of my countrymen dark skinned?
Doesn't majority of this country have an accent which some choose to describe as 'funny'?
Or has this just 'caused an existential crisis among the urban dwellers whose fascination with fair skin knows no bounds.
Have they been finally rid of their delusions they seemed to have developed by isolating themselves in Air Conditioned offices on the 36th floor of some lousy sky scraper while having their face smothered by the assorted bunch of fairness creams?
Personally the response has much more more undertones of racism than the stimulation.

Things We learnt from #slapgate

2011-11-24T10:56:00.004+00:00

This is a rather hastily put together post, things we inferred when Harvinder Singh palms kissed the the rather swollen cheeks of swindle master,Sharad Pawar.

1.)You know when many of us feel irritated with a news channel keeps playing the same clip in loop over and over again.
Somehow the slap on Pawar's face gets sweeter and better every time it lands.I'm never getting old of seeing this clip.
2.)Its also interesting to see how Politicians close their ranks when one of their own is attacked.Everyone condemned the act of violence rather conveniently ignoring the suffocating living conditions that led to it.
3.)Such a small knife would be ineffective against Pawar.
4.)I guess I'm never going to grow tired of saying this-The media is run by a bunch of buffoons.One reporter blurts out that the man could be arrested under the Arms Act for carrying a knife.For the uninitiated, the Kirpan is a legal ornament of the Sikh.
And one enterprising crook was encouraging the idea of more security for politicians.
5.)In response to Pawar's stone faced and rather indifferent reaction,shoe companies have announced their intent to test for the durability of products by having a fling at his face.
6.)The proud Sikh unfortunately will now face the brunt of the politic-judicial cartel in this country.
7.)(From twitter)TOI says Pawar was ASSAULTED .. bhenchod if one little slap is an 'assault' then what is TOI's term for gaand pe laath?
8.)Finally Pranab Mukherjee admits 'I don't know where this country is going'.Thank you, Harinder.
9.)(From twitter)We condemn the #SlapGate #pawar faced at hands of Harvinder Singh . Just as Chiddu condemned the recent Mumbai and Delhi blasts

10.)And take a moment to pay homage to man who set the trend and redefined a democratic means of protest against a fascist state.

11.)As for harvinder's hatrick,i think he should go after Chidu's luingi.
12.)This was quick

Journalism at its lowest ebb

2011-11-17T14:40:00.000+00:00

OK I'll at admit it at the onset.I underwent tremendous dilly dallying before i poured this out.I could not stand the humiliation of acknowledging in public that i spent a whole five minutes of my life watching street whore Barkha Dutt's 'The buck stops here' after the veil over her so called non-partisan journalism had been swept aside by Radia Tapes.
But i did learn a thing or two, or to be true actually reinforced an opinion .The buck starts here.I happened to catch the interview with Pervez Mushraff, another notorious 'I'm up for sale' fella.And it did not reflect the media in good light.
Justice Katju, the recently appointed Chairman of the Press Council of India recently labelled the Indian media a of low intellectual level and how Barkha Dutt epitomises that.She has come to redefine the nadir of a career. Her credentials have already been found wanting at Kargil and 26/11-in both situations she put the country's national security at risk by revealing the locations of strategically placed snipers-LIVE on national television.
The interview is going along smoothly-so boring that i would rather watch grass grow-until you are jolted out of your mild slumber by a sequence of events following one of the many wild allegation from Barkha which were laced throughout the show.She accuses him of having made a statement to the regard that Pakistan should continue funding the Haqqani network( a terror module for the uninitiated) as a strategic asset.Mushraff is prompt with his denial.Off course he's denying,he's stonewalling-you think.But what follows shocks to no end.Instead of vehemently defending her claim and sending Mushraff to the guillotine,she without battling an eyelid shifts her goalpost ,tones down the question and drifts him towards Pakistan's strategy towards the Haqqani network.Mushraff still astounded by the wild remark,stays in denial mode for the next few questions before he regains his composure.
And then it finally dawns upon you, what just transpired.That Barkha's whole statement was a sham.Mushraff never ever uttered those words , it was just the handiwork of some creative student whose just been introduced to the word 'manipulation'.And how rather nonchalantly barkha managed to tug it under the carpet.The fact that she even failed to make a weak attempt to defend her remarks displays her complicity in the mischief.Any self respecting person would have stormed out of the interview, you'd think, but then such people are generally not found in the same room as Barkha..

The transcript:

Barkha:One of the big areas of friction between the United States and Pakistan is the Haqqani network and mike mullen(US

chief of staffs) has described it as literally one wing of the ISI.Now you have said that while you do not agree with this

assessment,you also believe that Pakistan has reasons to continue its support-strategic reasons- to continue its support

to the haqqani network.General Mushraff don't yo think this is a virtual justification for supporting a known terror group?

mushraff:(A bit confused) No,No i have never said this,uh.

B:(Immediately without any sort of resistance)Well how do you believe Pakistan should handle the haqqani network?

M:Well i have never said that this is a reason to keep supporting....(Still trying to make sense of Barkha's allegation)

B:(refusing to allow mushraff to complete his statement)Do you accept that there is support to the haqqani network?

M:no,no i never...

B:Do Do you accept that there is enough action against it??

M:No No they have not taken enough action against them...........(settles into a soliloquy)

B:So how do you believe Pakistan deal with the haqqani network??

M:Yes,Yes...(looking a bit more composed)............

And to double check it , jump to 26:28.
http://www.ndtv.com/video/player/news/fromndtv/216210

While some may choose to classify this post as pedantic ,i strongly believe this is an accurate representation of the wider problems plaguing the media as an entity.There is need for some serious introspection and to weed out the unsocial,unethical and PR agents masqueraded as journalist people.Such kind of atrocious interviewing should be met by a defamation lawsuit in court.Its one things to put words in someones mouth but its totally unacceptable to whip up a controversial quote from thin air.
Let journalism be based on facts and creativity be the domain of fiction writers.

Out of Depth

2011-11-15T13:32:00.000+00:00

Many people here have taken a very simplistic view of international diplomacy failing to recognise the underlying tensions and grasp the context and the modus operandi of the protagonists.Manmohan Singh, i and millions other suspect, is trying to leave back a political legacy or bowing to the communal forces at play in India.We need to recognise that we are dealing with the De facto heads of Pakistan-the civilian democracy- while the real power lies in the custody of the notorious ISI and its big brother-the army.So getting assurances from a rubber stamp are bloody useless.
The Pakistan army at the end of the day still believes it is its manifest destiny to form a Noe mughal empire with Islamabad as its capital and India as its vassal states.But India's hapless leader's have been equally responsible for perpetrating the crisis.Their reply to 26/11 was dossier bombing.
We had developed substantial international pressure, especially in the western world (which control the UN,WTO and other such crony groups) and had isolated Pakistan.When it the time came to deliver the knock out punch we were found wanting in every aspect-from our shoddy investigations to playing vote bank politics.
I am not a hardliner and have an immediate preference to liberal means to resolve such disputes but history is not just meant to fill up the old dust cupboards lined with cobwebs.There is a lot to be learned and inferred from it.Unfortunately over the years India have learnt it the hard way.
Peace will exist only when we have democratically elected govt. in Pakistan which wields complete power rather than the puppets which work at the behest of the ministry.Till then , i suspect, opening up diplomatic channels would be delusional.
Repeated bullshit is not wisdom.

Shareholders Make Merry

2011-08-04T08:21:00.000+01:00

There is this funny article up on FirstPost.com on the banality of the Indian shareholder and his ridiculous demands.

The coupon says I get a snack and a hot beverage. I want a cold drink,” yelled a shareholder of Tata Steel.

Here is a list of questions that were directed at the Tata Steel management on Wednesday.
Why do you have the AGM during the monsoon period?
Tata: Not possible.
Why don’t you use recycled paper?
Tata: It is already being used.
Will you be discontinuing paper-based annual reports, and what is the cost of distribution?

Tata: Both options are available and the cost is Rs 24 per copy.
Why don’t you provide binoculars or glasses with your annual report?
Tata laughs and suggests this question be asked in the AGM of Titan Industries.
Why don’t the board members and other senior people hold shares in the company?
Tata: We had problems in the past and hence, this is not encouraged and we are cautious due to insider trading regulations.
Who pays for the AGM meet?

Tata: Shareholders pay for the expenses.
When will you appoint your successor? Who is it going to be?
Tata: We are looking into it.

Can we go for a plant visit?
Tata: There are safety issues and not possible.

There's this great anecdote of how a particular women, i must refrain from naming, buys a single share in some random companies, medium size and then screws them .

So for example lets say she's at ABC company's AGM.Now out of nowhere she stands up and says that either she wants to move some resolution or make a speech.Now moving of a resolution can be done by show of hands or an actual ballot .With a ballot, its the added trouble of getting the ballot paper,boxes and booth's ready.Plus there is still tally of the votes to be done.

Now in both situations,either the speech or a vote, consumption of time is on the higher side.So the AGM stretches beyond the planned time leading to the company having to arrange for further stay-so hire the conference hall for the time consuming activities.Then make further arrangements for snacks and beverages for the irksome shareholders.

This leads to a considerable cost for the company and more than the cost its the hassle which comes with such bastards. Shareholders are quick to make merry of the situation making ridiculous demands and wringing the company until the last drop.

So to avoid the mess , the companies usually resort to paying off this woman rather than to fall into her web of frivolous activities.

Huge companies,though, don't take this bulls@#$.Through extra constitutional means ( read misusing the police, roughing up people or simply making an anonymous tip to the income tax department) make life hell for such people.Thus generally the woman avoids such companies.

P.S:The woman comes in a three wheeler but bills it at the same level as hiring a luxury car.

Penny wise,Pound foolish

2011-07-31T12:17:00.000+01:00

The phrase could be apt for the buffoons running the country/congress.About a couple of months ago there was a bit of chatter on how Mrs. Meera Shankar, India's envoy to the US, during a summit had referred to Sonia Gandhi as a catholic.Mrs.Gandhi 's religion has been the subject of deep speculation.Though she herself refrains from making statements on the subject, babble emerging from her party calls her a Hindu.

The aforementioned article read:

Just how sensitive an issue it is was revealed last month when the official representative of the UPA Government in Washington, Ambassador Meera Shankar, delivered a speech at a US university referring to Sonia Gandhi being a Christian as a testament to India’s pluralism and diversity. However, that reference was later quickly deleted.

So i found it highly amusing to find the same references being made in the akshay kumar movie Nameste London .A paraphrase of his words would read-

India is a country where a Catholic woman stepped aside so that a Sikh could ascend to the post of the prime minister's country.

Now putting aside all those lovely disclaimers which appear before the movie, i would imagine this hypothetical situation aping reality would irk more than a refernce on the MEA's website, which people rarely bother to visit.

Especially in India, where there is no better propaganda vehicle in India.

Glamour is a magnet

2011-07-28T15:01:00.005+01:00

Glamour.The one magnet which attracts one and all.One which possesses the ability to asphyxiate your brain.Its almost synonymous to putting blinkers onto horse.Though it is a deeply mystifying situation, it isn't a new phenomena.You witness it in all walks of life.From the inherent racism we as Indians display towards our countrymen at the scent of a foreigner to even the minute matter of being one of the many to buy an iPhone (just coz it's cool).

So why all this babble?Well, recently the new Pakistani foreign minister Mrs.Hina Rabbani Khar took the pains to visit India for another round of 'Lie To Me' with her Indian counterpart.As expected the media when overboard,twitter was busy discussing her handbags and comparing her looks with that of the duchess of Cambridge( another prime example of Indians getting blind sighted by glamour) and news anchors couldn't help but use the potent but cliched 'beauty with brains'.Now there is nothing wrong in taking such a deep interest in our relations with our friend/foe neighbour Pakistan.

But a there's a certain extract in a Times of India article which could give us far more insight on Pakistan's latest and probably the most cunning crook.

She apparently loves her Birkins, which can cost as much as $100,000. Hina belongs to one of Pakistan's landed elite, is enormously wealthy, and owns Polo Lounge, an upscale restaurant in Lahore. In 2010, though, she - along with 25 other ministers of Yousaf Gilani's cabinet - didn't pay income tax. Over the past few years, she has paid agriculture tax of (Pakistani) Rs 7,500 but nothing under the head of income tax.

But why bother to read the complete article when the first paragraph gives a rosy picture.Here is a woman who is probably among the most wealthiest in Pakistan but hasn't paid tax since years.She pays a pittance in the name of agricultural tax.And this is the same woman we hope will help and participate in the eradication of terror from South Asia.Same one, we hope will act on the evidence from the countless terrorist activity the notorious ISI has perpetrated in India.

The point is that the veil of glamour is opaque .We never manage to see beyond that.Style quotient has become the substitute for lack of character.Glamour is such a powerful drug that it manages to even negate the obvious anti-Pakistan bias which exists in a major portion of the media and a part of the Indian population.

The way we are going we might end up being a PR representative's dream audience.If people after being made aware of her unique achievements still wish to fawn over her then that's a personal choice.But i wouldn't hold my breath.

UPDATE: There's a nice article up over at first post titled
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