The Standpoint

2010-01-13T17:53:00.001+05:30

Indian Hockey Team served with deadline

Abhishek Mukherjee

India’s revolting hockey players were served with a 24-hour deadline to resume practice or face disciplinary action. The entire squad had begun an indefinite boycott of the World Cup preparatory camp over a payment dispute.

Peeved by the fresh strike, Hockey India, the game's governing body, threatened to crack the whip by warning the players to return to the camp by tomorrow evening, however, the players seemed to be in no mood to relent unless their demands were met.

A top HI source said that the players have been given a 24-hour deadline to return to the camp or face disciplinary action though senior player Prabhjot Singh, who has been appointed by his teammates as their representative for the negotiations, said they had not received any such ultimatum.

“The ultimatum is all hypothetical. Till now we have not received any ultimatum. We were told that HI officials were coming here tonight. Let us see what happens, we are waiting for their arrival”, Prabhjot said.

A high-level HI delegation headed by President A K Mattoo, Harish Sharma, Narender Batra and Jagbir Singh will leave for Pune either tonight or tomorrow morning to hold discussions with the striking players who are demanding their match dues, incentives and a graded payment structure among other things.

“We have communicated our views to them and we are hopeful that the players will see a reason to solve the problem. Antonio (FIH vice-president) will advise us as to what needs to be done in such a situation.” Mattoo told reporters.

While the players went ahead with their threat to stay away from the camp until their dues and incentives were paid, Hockey India too made it clear that boycotting a national camp for pending payments was akin to blackmail.

Frustrated with the turn of events, Mattoo, who had on Saturday night apparently said that all issues had been resolved, threatened the players with suspension if they failed to report to the camp.The players also came under attack from FIH, the game’s world governing body, with its Vice President Antonio von Ondarza saying the players had got their “priorities all wrong.”

2010-01-13T17:51:00.001+05:30

ANNUAL WINTER FESTIVAL- CROSSROADS 2009 at S.R.C.C

Kalpana Gupta

The Shri Ram College of Commerce (S.R.C.C), University of Delhi, held the much awaited annual winter festival- CROSSROADS 2009 from 19-22 December of the previous year. Throughout the campus of S.R.C.C, the air was filled with immeasurable enthusiasm and spirit amongst the students.

The four-day festival incorporated several events which were split under five official societies of the college including the Students Union of S.R.C.C, the Mathematics and Computers Society, the Commerce Society, the Travellers’ Society and the History and Political Society.

On the very first day of the event, “Woodstock” escaped the pleasant smiles on the faces of the students during the Rock Night which featured rock bands like Bare Face Liars, Them Clones and Chapter One. The next day was followed by the adrenalizing “Inferno” featuring Western Dance and Fashion Night. The day witnessed a footfall of more than 5000 students. “The winners of the Fashion Show were offered with a modeling contract worth Rs. 22 lakhs by Glitz which has made students more enthusiastic and competitive too” added Pankaj Chaudhary, an enthusiast working for the success of CROSSROADS 2009.

Numerous students tapped their feet at the DJ Night by “Random Collisions” and the atmosphere was full with vibrancy all over the S.R.C.C campus. The “Pulsar Stuntmania” in the college campus drew the attention of almost every student during the fest. Several students participated in this event and showcased their talents. Adding to the glory, the Travellers' Society offered sports like Rappelling, Flying Fox and Burma Bridge and received a tremendous response.

Surpassing all the previous events, the last day of CROSSROADS 2009 experienced what was seen never before. “Encore”, a part of the festival featuring the Pop Night by Kailash Kher and Atharva who dominated the stage for the night. A huge crowd of about 8-10 thousand students gathered there just to get a glimpse of Kailash Kher’s electric performance.

The year 2009 came to an end with a roaring success of CROSSROADS 2009. Considered to be the best festival in Delhi University, CROSSROADS 2009 witnessed 40,000 students from all over the campus during the four day annual festival.

2010-01-13T17:48:00.001+05:30

Sutil: F1 too safe for its own good

Abhishek Mukherjee

Sick and tired of driving on safe and boring layouts, Force India driver Adrian Sutil wants the 2011 Indian Grand Prix to bring back the thrill.

Sutil said the new tracks rolled out of late are safe to the extent of killing the charm which makes Formula One such an alluring sport for the drivers.

The German, who was in the Indian capital this week, cited the case of the picturesque Yas Marina Circuit which hosted the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix last year.

“Abu Dhabi was one of the most perfect circuits I have driven on, and the most boring as well,” a visibly unimpressed Sutil said.

“It was just straight and really, really boring. But I probably cannot say anything bad about it for it’s safe, like what all modern circuits should be,” was his satirical assessment of the layout. “I think it’s time to involve more drivers in their work, because we want fast corners and that’s where F1 cars are so good,” he asked.

On the 2011 Indian Grand Prix, Sutil hoped the organisers would seek drivers’ inputs before finalising the specifications of the track.

“We should concentrate on putting up a really good circuit in Delhi. Hopefully they will get information from drivers they want and I hope that they put some really exciting corners,” the lanky German said.

Sutil said he was not the only driver who felt F1 was losing its thrill.

“The majority of the drivers feel this way. Of course there are a few who like the way it is, safe. There will always be different opinions about it but most of them would say there can be some changes in the circuits,” he said.

Sutil said flirting with danger is what draws drivers to the sport and he was upset that the thrill was waning.“Everyone loves driving because there is thrill in it. If it was not dangerous, maybe so many drivers would not be doing it,” Sutil reasoned.

“Maybe there are certain risks in it but if you don't take those risks, it would get boring. Circuits are getting too safe and driving is not so nice anymore. Personally speaking, I'm just not getting that thrill”, he said

“There is a wall in the corner and you have got to take it easy or you would ram into it. Formula One is dangerously fast and is all about speed. That's why it's interesting and we should keep it like that,” he said.

The youngster said he was satisfied with the safety measures adopted in F1 and believes it is good enough. “Of course it is good to be safe and you need to look for improvement in drivers’ safety. But F1 did so much for safety that these cars are highly-developed and I feel really safe,” he added.

2010-01-13T17:45:00.001+05:30

ELIXIR 2009

Kalpana Gupta

The Hansraj College’s English Literary Society, INSIGNIA, presented their annual festival- ELIXIR 2009 on 16-17 December of the previous year. The theme of the two-day festival was “Fundamentalism”. The inauguration ceremony was held at the Auditorium on 16th December followed by a talk on “Protest Through Art” by Keval Arora.

Open to all the students across Delhi, M.E.L.A (Movie Entertainment Literature Art) conducted a Quiz. Students from I.I.T Delhi and Sikkim Manipal University participated in the quiz along with the students of the Delhi University, North Campus. “The Treasure Hunt” was able to gather a great deal of crowd.

Much away from the tiresome lectures, the students of the Hansraj College participated in the “Spell Bee” contest which demanded correct spellings of English words from the contestants and took them to another round of “Vocab” if they managed to clear the first round. A talk on “Fundamentalism” by Dilip Simeon followed the “Spell Bee+Vocab” contest. Lecturers were gathered along with their students in numbers to lend ears to Dilip Simeon.

“A Pay in Life of Ponga Pandits” was the movie which became the center of attraction during the fest. “Alienation” and “Resentment” were some of the few topics given to the participants in the Creative Writing Competition. The winners were awarded a cash prize of Rs. 1000. The final year students of English (Hons.) course in the later half of the day organised a group discussion on “Deity or Crusader- the true face of God?” at the English Balcony in the college premise.

The annual festival concluded with the “Street Music Competition” in which hordes of talented student musicians participated. The students of Hindu College, however, won the competition and were awarded with a cash prize of Rs. 1000.

2010-01-13T17:28:00.003+05:30

HOW RESOLUTE ARE WE?

Another year, another beginning of new hopes, newer aspirations and the celebration of a ‘gifted’ life.

Walking into the work space on the first day of this reincarnated existence and the first question that finds place on the periphery of my being is this one eternally unanswered question- “so what is your new year resolution?”

It is as it were a crumbling of the entire notion of believing in what to do versus merely stating what to do. Most of us, now have lost out on the actual reasoning behind resoluting something. It has almost become a ‘post year’ syndrome!

If we were to ponder on the above thought, it would be more than just a realisation of how abused the term has lately become. Shayanti, working in a leading MNC says “New Year resolutions are like a vent out point at least for me, because all that I would perhaps want to do and may fail to do, get their space in the garb of a new year approaching and consequently with newer plans evolving on the process.”

Now, what’s so grave in this- Do we really need an occassion to feel strongly about somthing? This question may have been asked numerous times, but the answer, invariably, remains unanswered.

Why as thinking individuals, do we mock our existence by labelling our wants and to-dos’ to this one resolution bubble that bursts the very next monotonous day of this 'New' year?

Many of us, I believe, feel strongly about something or the other, so why is it that at the end of the day (or the year maybe) we limit our thoughts to either no vent out or a possibly ‘hoax’ vent out with no higher significance whatsoever.

Neeshu, a student in an engineering college aligns herself much to the above thought, saying that “if you really wish to name your resolutions, name them as such on a daily basis, why just some new-year resolution at work? Alas an individual vow to not limit my intended plans to a one day celebration, where the resolution seems to be more of a fit rather than a thought out intention.”

Here's wishing all our readers a very happy, productive and a prosperous New Year!

Your responses will be encouraged at- thestandpoint@gmail.com

Watch out for this space for more interactive startups. If you wish to tell Bonisha about any similar subjects you wish to read here, write to her at: bonisha.good2u@gmail.com.

2009-12-02T13:44:00.001+05:30

CONTEMPORARY YOUTH GOES CLASSICAL

Kalpana Gupta

The St. Stephen’s College (University of Delhi) presented a week long festival – VIRASAT 2009 in collaboration with SPICMACAY (Society for the Promotion of Indian Classical music and Culture Amongst youth). The students were seen gathering in large numbers at the Vishwavidyalaya metro station and continued their journey till Central Secretariat on 7th November 2009 for the very first programme- “A WALK THROUGH THE NATIONAL MUSEUM” of Virasat 2009. The Director, National Museum, Mr. R.S Chauhan, escorted the students. Many unknown facts about the Harrapan Civilisation came into light while the artefacts drew the attention of the students.

Dr. Kiran Seth, the director of SPICMACAY, inaugurated the festival on November 9th which continued till November 13th. The students from across various colleges of the University dropped in to witness the dance performance by Padma Shri holder Smt. Bharathi Shivaji. Smt. Shivaji tapped her feet on the graceful dance form of Kerela called as Mohiniyattam accompanied by a demonstrative lecture on the technicalities of expressions and performance.

On November 10th, the College Hall of St. Stephen’s college presented Mehfil-e-sama by Ghulam Sabir and Ghulam Waris Nizami. The most famed Qawwali singers in the Sufi style, Astana Gayaki as well as the modern Qawwali tradition, the Nizami brothers, presented the Darabari Gayaki before the students. The Nizami brothers’ performance of a 16-year old ghazal to the tunes of harmonium, dholak and tabla, received overwhelming applaud from the audiences. Adding to the glory, the students were shown the movie- RASHOMON by Akira Kurosawa. This movie is said to have introduced the Japanese cinema to western audiences and is considered one of Kurosawa’s masterpieces.

On November 11^th, Padma Shri holder, Anjolie Ela Menon exchanged her prominent views on painting as an art and showcased her presentation regarding the same. M.F Hussain and Amrita Shergil were other painters who escaped some space in her lecture. On receiving the highest civilian honour in India, Anjolie Ela Menon narrated her own story to the audiences and inspired them to have faith in themselves.

Hailed as the “Saint of the Santoor” and the “King of Strings”, Padma Shri holder Pt. Bhajan Sopori presented his talent on the stage of college hall on November 13th. The combination of tabla, veena and santoor attracted heavy crowd and made a grave impact on the minds of audiences. The students present, gave an ear to the sounds of classical instruments unlike the modern ones used in the ever popular pop and rock genres.

With the onslaught of rapid change and global homogenization, this week observed the multifaceted Indian Heritage in its distinctive hues. As the week long festival came to an end, the students expressed their willingness to be a part of VIRASAT 2010.

2009-12-02T13:42:00.000+05:30

26/11 – A year on

Abhishek Mukherjee

Entire Mumbai came to a standstill during the three-day long attack on innocents by guns, grenades and bombs. Terror strikes are not new in the country, but these attacks which happened on the fateful days of 26^th, 27^th, 28^th November 2008 and ceased only the next morning, got unprecedented attention for it was a rude awakening to the reality that even the economically sound urban elites were not safe anymore.

A whole year has passed since the horror, and for most of us it seems only yesterday. It was a shameful acceptation that our security is very vulnerable, and that a bunch of ten gunmen can cause havoc in the cosmopolitan metropolis of Mumbai and even its grandest and significant areas. The rage that had been building since times immemorial over the treatment of civilians as scapegoats for every trouble caused, reached a peak after these attacks.

A number of questions were asked: Why did the media play to the hands of the terrorists in being their virtual ‘eyes’? How could this group enter through fake passports? Why weren’t some fishermen’s reports about them arriving via sea taken seriously? Why did the NSG Commandos take as much as 10 hours to arrive in the wake of emergency?

As in the infamous 9/11 and many more grave acts of violence mainly by terrorist organisations like the Laskar-e-Taiba, attackers targeted the most significant places – the Taj Mahal Hotel, The Oberoi-Trident, Nariman House and the Victoria station.

After three thousand were killed in the heart of America on 11 September 2001, terrorists gained confidence that any part of the world could be targeted. The subsequent bombings in cities such as London and Madrid only reiterate the fact. No place in the world is totally safe, and therein lays the need for tight security and military defence. A country has to save its citizens, and be on guard all the time. Bombings and hijacking are the most potent and popular tools for terrorists to ‘invade’.

However, in Mumbai there was no such thing. Ten young gunmen easily breached all security and opened fire at will. Without a doubt it was thoroughly planned and ensured with sufficient arms and gadgets, but the freeness for them for three full days with a whole helpless country looking on in horror is a slap bigger on the face of the nation than on any other occasion, even the hijacking of IC-814 ten years ago.

A year on, Kasab’s court case still lies pending, and Pakistan, after taking ages to recognise him as its own citizen, has virtually done nothing to bring those involved to justice (nor is it expected to). It is said efficiency and awareness about security has improved, although authorities find Naxal violence difficult to end.

The phenomenon of the menace of terrorism and defence is just like an ongoing battle between development of viruses looking to cripple computer systems and that of softwares looking to save or defend them. Most of the terrorist activities take place irrationally – with its only purpose being violence and claiming of lives. It is necessary to accept that bloody attacks will continue to happen in the world, even when there is no logical reason behind them. After the two World Wars, a third one would be sufficient to make human species extinct. It has not yet happened but there are countless groups, radical and rational, who can go to any lengths to assert power and take revenge on anybody and for unknown and un-established reasons. The Arab world looks most potent in terrorism, for having no dearth of religious motivation for attack against ‘non-believers’, but the phenomenon cannot be generalised in any way. The Tamil Tigers, Shoko Asahara’s Aum Supreme Truth, Somalia’s late Farrah Aidid, and the Baader Meinhof Gang are no less aggressive and effective than Al Qaeda and the Lashkar-e-Tayyeba.

The priority is for the country to be smart. In the Kandahar shame ten years ago, it was anything but smart, and was brought to its knees by a handful of people. In a similar incident, the Germany-based Baader Meinhof Gang were involved in hijacking a Lufthansa plane, and threatened to kill all aboard if their demands were not met. The German government did not give in, and its commandos were able to kill three of the four hijackers, injure the final one, and free its passengers.

Thus sometimes it is important to be repressive. The need of the hour is efficiency. There ought not to be any loopholes in the system. It is a lesson for civilians for not adjusting with terrorist mishaps anymore, to propagate peace, to learn to appreciate life, to be aware, and to be on guard always. We cannot annihilate campaigns of terror, but we can learn from other nations and at least do what’s needed- to be vigilant.

2009-12-02T13:40:00.001+05:30

CUBAN REVOLUTION COMPLETES 50: DU CELEBRATES

Kalpana Gupta

The department of Germanic and Romance Studies, University of Delhi and Left Word Books celebrated the 50 years of the Cuban revolution on 11th and 12th November of this year. The Lecture Hall of India International Centre witnessed this event which was inaugurated by H.E Miguel Angel Ramirez Ramos– the Cuba’s Ambassador to India. Professor Aijaz Ahmad conducted a keynote address on “Against the Grain of our Times”. The Marxist Literary Theorist, Shri Ahmad, discussed the survival of Cuban Revolution practically in a state of siege for 50 years. The keynote address was followed by five contemporary Cuban films- “Dancing chachacha”, “The silly Age”, “Madrigal”, “Mauricio’s Diary” and “Broken Gods”. As a part of the Film Fest, the Cuban films concluded the events of Day 1.

On November 12th, H.E Miguel Angel Ramirez Ramos chaired the discussion meet where Zaida del Rio talked about “The Bridge of Art: Cuba and India” along-with a talk by Sonya Surbhi Gupta. The academician who spoke about “The Cuban Revolutionary Cultural project” pointed out that Cuban revolutionary art is deeply associated with the ideas of Cuban Hero- Jose Marti. She further emphasised that the decision of the government of Fidel Castro was to conduct the nation-wide illiteracy camp. Ashwani Kumar added a Comparative perspective of “Voices of Cuban Poets” and “The Dalit Poets”.

Followed by a refreshing tea break, the Second session included the thoughts on Cuban Cinema by Samik Bandyopadhyay. The film critic focused on the film “Memorias Del Subdesarrollo” where the post-revolutionary politics have been critiqued. Ruchika Singh, however, discussed “The Art of Wifreds Lam” followed by Alan Meller who talked about “Muralism in the time of Neoliberalism”.

Vibha Maurya talked about the “Cuban Art within the Revolution” in the third Session of the event. She added that “despite difficult times, the artisits found myriad ways to express themselves”. The two-day event came to an end with Surender Negi’s lines on “The Lighthouse of Revolution” and Vijaya Venkataraman’s “Singing to the Revolution”. Numerous teachers and students were seen hooked to the speeches by various well-known personalities. After leaving the Lecture Hall, students and teachers were found exploring the new books on Cuban revolution on display. Next, was a display of several thought provoking paintings at the lecture hall.

With a post tea session, the event concluded itself on the note of harmony and peace.

2009-12-02T13:36:00.002+05:30

Photo Exhibition on Consumerism at J.N.U

Kalpana Gupta

An exhibition of photographs by Sreedeep, a student of J.N.U pursuing his doctorate on social aspects that influence brand consumption, took place at the Gallery of Arts and Aesthetics, Jawaharlal Nehru University from 3rd-17th November.

26 year old Sreedeep, in association with J.N.U Photography Club and Five Issues Newspaper, seemed excited on his first ever solo exhibition. All of the 43 photographs that were on display attempted to depict the consumerist culture that has consumed urban society today and the juxtaposition of realities and projected lifestyles.

Unlike other exhibitions, “Brand (e)scape-the changing Sur(face) of the city”, was not inaugurated and Sreedeep simply rescued to boast about his exhibition.

The posters were displayed in advance all over the cultural centres and various colleges of Delhi. The mesmerizing photographs left the viewers speechless and strove them to ponder over the hidden meanings they attempted to convey. In one of the photographs, one could experience a beautiful juxtaposition of imagination and the real world. The photograph illustrated the flawless face of a model with a woman labourer looking on. Another photograph showcased a popular bollywood actress supporting a sports brand while the trespassers are seen resting with their backs at the side of the hoarding.

The myriad ironies of a developing nation got space in the photographs by Sreedeep. In pursuit of taking his hobbies in materialistic terms, Sreedeep worked for two years and six months to compile his own collection of such photographs. He covered South and Central Delhi which are considered to be the hub of the city. The Khan market and South extension, which incorporate the biggest hoardings of the metropolis, became the central attraction of the exhibition.

The startling fact about this exhibition was that the photographs had not been given any specific titles. The photographs were self-explanatory. Sreedeep, on the same hand, spoke of being totally against the idea of giving name to his work.

The students and on-lookers were seen unmoving from their places while witnessing the intricate details of the pictures while others had appalling expressions. The two week long exhibition collected appraisal and admiration from eminent artists too. Sreedeep is now looking forward to display his abstract photography at some prestigious events. According to him, lines and shadows do contain some meaning other than Candid Photography alone. It is, therefore, well expected from him to bring his next collection on display which is scheduled to arrive in the midst of the following year.

2009-12-02T13:32:00.003+05:30

Goodbye, Safin

Abhishek Mukherjee

At the age of 29, with loss to Argentine del Potro in the Paris Masters, the ever-entertaining Marat Safin called it a day. It had been a troublesome few months for him; with at most average performances taking into account his quality and credentials. His last noteworthy result was the 2008 Wimbledon Semi-Finals, in which he had defeated Novak Djokovic en route to the penultimate stage of the prestigious tournament. His tennis career has been full of ups and downs, but the Russian would have peace with the fact that he was his own master.

Virtues like discipline and stability were antonyms to Safin. Nine years ago, the young boy of 20 stunned the tennis fraternity when he defeated legend Pete Sampras in straight sets and claimed the US Open. The world showered praise for this new wonder-boy and predicted high honours for him.

Yet as they say, it is not the talent but the temperament which ultimately makes a player. Marat seemed to be more fascinated by off-field life – his friends, his cars and his parties; and his tennis did not take off the way it was expected. It is understandable when it is acknowledged that he emerged from modest means. It would be unfair, however, to dwell more on his personal life as his injuries did not help matters either. For the next four-five years, he was recognised as a decent player for his parts played in Davis Cup ties for Russia, and a finals appearance in the Australian Open in 2002; but it was not the future as expected, for his talent was immensely more than what results showed. Fabrice Santoro, asked to comment on his encounter with Lleyton Hewitt in Paris-Bercy final in 2002, said: “This is the number one in the world against the best player (Safin) in the world”.

In the Australian Open 2004, Marat finally looked to be able to come of age. He finished a proud runner-up to the other legend Roger Federer. Towards the end of that year, Marat caught amazing form which eventually culminated in the Australian Open triumph in early 2005. In the Semi-Finals, he clashed with a Roger Federer at peak, and saved a match point in the fourth set to defeat him 5-7, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (8-6), 9-7 in one of the most thrilling matches in tennis history. He destroyed the home favourite Lleyton Hewitt in four sets in the finals to claim his second grand slam.

However, this was not a sign for things to come. He could be considered unlucky to be in the same era as Sampras and Federer - two of the greatest players in history, but Marat did not deliver enough on the tennis court. Yet he remained a most interesting player to watch. Breaking of rackets on the court as a vent of rage was his patent, as was also his honest and outspoken comments. He never worried about others’ opinions about him. Many times he tended to throw away his grip on matches by not being hungry enough on the court. He was perfectly dignified, honest and possessed a good sense of humour. His antics were dear to his passionate fans.

Marat got what he wanted –enjoyable life, dignity and fame. That he remained one of the biggest underachievers in tennis may be of concern to others. Even in the short career that he has had, he has given us more than a couple of moments of the brilliance that might have been.

2009-12-02T13:00:00.000+05:30

YOUTH: BLINDED BY SMOG

Karan Deep Singh

Tushar Garg, a class 10 student studying in a ‘public’ school in Delhi brags about having made around 200 friends through Facebook, a social networking website on which he spends not less than five hours per day. On being questioned about what hooks him up so long, he says: “I love to stay in touch with my friends; we can exchange messages about every single moment of our lives. I can see their latest pics and they can see mine; it’s like my whole world out there!”

Many of our so-called ‘Youth of India’ from the capital and other cities might have similar stories to share. While they are being exposed to almost an information explosion with such an enormous amount of content through the television, the internet, tabloids, dailies and other information sources at their hands, the young seem to have gone overboard in their efforts to acknowledge themselves as equal participants in their roles as citizens of the country. Unlike previous generations who did not dare to even think beyond their curriculums or a predominant family rule; the bright-eyed are better informed due to a plethora of information sources and believe in taking decisions themselves.

Enchanted by the Pied Piper of Consumerism, their pricey attention can only be drawn by intelligent marketing strategies employed by cola selling companies or a couple of others selling branded clothing. “Today, even if there’s a road accident and they happen to be on the spot, they will hardly notice”, says Neena Kumar, a career consultant. While school-goers constantly wish to give up their ‘not-so-in’ titles, the college-goers seem to be smitten by the “cool” attitude, chic clothing, branded footwear and global fashion trends. While making a style statement is pre-requisite in colleges, HT City reported young Delhi University students ready to hit the campus in their newly hired Audis, Mercs and Land Cruisers on the first day of college- just for those eyeballs they wish to capture! And of course, to experience the ‘good life’ they seem to be restless for.

The generational shift in attitudes of this Youth is somewhere definitely a product of Liberalisation. And it is not only to blame. It is important to understand the causes of this shift and more than ever before, today, as India's youth are already having an enormous impact: on the economy, on companies hoping to sell them products, the culture. And most importantly Mass Media- the impact of which in-turn is hugely responsible for this sudden upsurge in the youth’s urge of relating with and to the rich. The glittery fashion weeks, parties, extravagant lifestyle, pubs, brand culture, expensive gadgets, snazzy cars and the list goes on. While these might find extensive coverage on television, in mega-million movie productions, glossy print and on web, the national dailies and their ever popular supplements have not been left behind. What else, do we understand from the writings of Editors and media personalities of ‘national’ newspapers about Food, Hotels, Restaurants and Music! It only caters to the ‘beautiful’ people. And is a sheer disgrace to the word ‘national’ when those thousands of poor, malnourished and ‘unfortunate’ Indians are waiting to be heard by the so-called journalists.

The mass media and the concern over it’s content has become extremely important as one hardly notices the subtle but important role it plays in defining and changing our beliefs, attitudes and aspirations today. Journalism is not merely about reporting of events. It also provides valuable information from which we draw our cognitive maps of reality.

Whether the media is television, press or radio, media as collective has the power to set agendas for the public at large, to reproduce ideology, to create ‘moral panics’ or to influence what we think. Mass media’s portrayal of the rich and their lifestyle can ruin this country of the poor. And the ones who are likely to be affected the worse by this menace are the Youth as a whole, the 41.05% of the population of India- including the other Youth who have no food to eat, no access to schools, no books to study and absolutely no means to be able to gain access to the ‘beautiful’ world they see and hear about on television.

It is important to note that the author’s intention is not to discourage, depress or undermine the confidence of today’s youth and their ability but simply to stress on the fact that a blind approach towards glamourising the world for the young could end up leaving them dejected, disheartened and misinformed leading to a risky consequence- a massive brigade of ‘dreamers’.

It is time, not to sell them campaigns; it is time to show them the real world. Let them know the stories of the poorest. Tell them what the ‘Truth’ is, for the nation and its people should not be a hazy picture in their minds. But for now, the Youth must demand the ‘Truth’ otherwise it will continue to suffer from a distorted vision that can indeed lead us all to a dangerous moment of stillness.

2009-12-02T12:00:00.000+05:30

THE FEST(ival) ZEST!

With the winter chill setting in, one can almost see through the amount of festivity that’s either around or would be around us in another week or two's time. Not only has the university circle kick started their own rounds of various college fests'; even family weddings and the like are in the month's menu chart.

So, then, what is the idea of a celebration?

A college/university fest inviting some 'oh-my-gawd' rock band or is it a pompous wedding with a budget that exceeds the population count of perhaps a 'smaller' country in the globe!!??...A small family affair or a group outing can NOW, never (for a lot of us) categorize itself as a celebration. Thanks to the notion of the new age “FUN factor”, we find a huge turnout of people wherever there is the presence of the glamour quotient, in contrast to the oh-so-scanty number of people who (after all) don't mind attending a less gaudy affair.

The Standpoint conducted a quick survey to get a closer picture. Shimanto, a third year Delhi University student believes that a college fest gets tagged as a COLLEGE FEST only if it promises “good entertainment”.(P.S-the good entertainment he explains- is not only the presence of a contemporary musical band but also the various 21^st century eatery joints that burn a hole in a lot of our pockets apart from ballooning us all together!). A leading corporate professional Sayali, when asked about her idea of enjoying, houses a similar opinion of being the part of a grand event with thousands of people flocking in and out of the event.

Looking at the consensus of the students we spoke to and some professionals, it is thus, very disheartening that the notion of a small get together with a little less grandeur and a lot of affection, holds no importance for a very large number of people now.

Though, there may be a family get-together taking place but the idea of a unified celebration excuses itself from the conglomeration of these people. It is, as it were a labeling of the entire concept of “belongingness”. A lot of us (very sadly) no longer take pride in belonging to a closer setup.

Is this spirit then, the true spirit of celebration?

Your responses will be encouraged at- thestandpoint@gmail.com

Watch out for this space for more interactive startups. If you wish to tell Bonisha about any similar subjects you wish to read here, write to her at: bonisha.good2u@gmail.com.

2009-11-06T22:50:00.001+05:30

MASS HUNGER STRIKE AT DU

Kalpana Gupta

The wave of fee hike in the University of Delhi resulted in a 48-hour mass hunger strike at the Arts Faculty, North Campus (Delhi University) on from Oct 27-29th last month. The Protest March began at 11A.M. on 27th October from the Vivekanand Statue while marching towards various colleges from St. Stephens to Miranda House.

The notification proposing the hike by the administration of the University of Delhi dropped in on 19th September 2009 and it was after that the fee hike took place. The Vice-Chancellor , Mr. Deepak Pental, Professor of Genetics, however, supported the decision by showing his sincerity towards the circular given by the Ministry of Human Resource and Development.

There were 70-80 students who participated in the Hunger strike from all the DU colleges including students from Delhi University, South Campus. Hundreds of students took to roads and participated in the protest against the fee hike. Sunny, an activist and the Vice-President of All India Students Association said, “The recent circular from the M.H.R.D is yet another assault on the student’s rights and the very idea of an affordable and quality education.”

The agitated students shouted slogans and effigies were made against the Government in the ruling. “We are supported by the teachers alike as Education is our fundamental right and we would not let monetary issues come in between”, said a student shouting slogans against the administration.

The students started their Protest March from the Arts Faculty of Delhi University and voiced their demands right in front of the Vice-Chancellor’s office. It was after their visit to all the colleges of North Campus that they came back to the Arts Faculty and sat on a 48-hour hunger strike. Where the charge of submitting late fee increased from Rs. 5/- to Rs. 25/- per day , on the other hand, the students will now have to pay a sum of Rs. 500/- instead of Rs. 200/- for revaluation of one paper.

The students demanded the roll back of the hike in examination fees and increased utility charges in addition to the refunding of the extra money which has been charged from the students on the basis of the circular that favour the non-liberal agenda of commercialisation of education. Gurmeet Singh, the Proctor of Delhi University, didn’t give any assurance to the students and agreed for a meeting only after the hunger strike was called off.

The Vice-president, A.I.S.A, added “..As of now we have written to the Vice Chancellor of the University asking him to re-think and roll back the decision. If that doesn’t work out, we will think of the Protest on a much larger scale which would include other universities such as Jamia Millia Islamia and J.N.U as well”.

It is, therefore, unpredictable to imagine the reactions of the students on the upcoming student’s bus-pass hike which is reportedly observing a whopping increase from Rs. 12.50/- to Rs. 100/- per month.

2009-11-06T22:19:00.001+05:30

The ‘New’ Man

Bonisha Bhattacharya

The metrosexual man of today seems to have become the ‘other’ of the supposedly normal, stoic, self-denying, modest, and “straight” male. He is far more interested in his image and is comfortable being seen as less certain of his masculine identity. Within this context, it is also important to look at the concept of the metrosexual in relation to widely held conceptions or images of the ‘gay’ male.

Metrosexuality is a term which is generally applied to men with a strong concern for their appearance or whose lifestyles display the exploration of their own selves in a so-called ‘feminine’ manner. The term originated in an article by Mark Simpson published on November 15, 1994, in The Independent. Simpson wrote, “Metrosexual man. The single young man with a high disposable income, living or working in the city (because that’s where all the best shops are), is perhaps the most promising consumer market of the decade. In the Eighties he was only to be found inside fashion magazines …, in television advertisements for Levi’s jeans or in gay bars. In the Nineties, he’s everywhere and he’s going shopping.” Thus Simpson’s metrosexual man can be seen as a person who does not seem to flinch away from the thought of pampering himself and would not mind going a step further by flaunting this desire. It is within the framework of some of the visible markers of metrosexuality overlapping with those of the stereotype of the gay male that one should be able to distinguish male homosexuality or being gay as a different offshoot of masculine identity altogether. Homosexuality or being gay is not primarily image oriented. While metrosexuality deals with experimentation in terms of one’s outward physical appearance, homosexuality primarily deals with an alternative sexual preference. Even though at the outset both these terms evoked very similar images in the world of popular perception, in reality they assume a host of completely different implications. In order to understand these terms and trace their origin, understanding ‘masculinity’ as a term is very essential.

Susan Faludi in her book Stiffed -The Betrayal of Modern Man, talks of a certain gender identity in terms of being masculine. She argues that there seems to be a certain code of conduct laid down meticulously for men in general. The very paradigm of masculinity talks about being the master of your own universe. Men live under a great burden of masculinity. The fact that men are expected to be all withstanding, puts an unparalleled pressure on them to live out roles which they can fall short of in situations of crisis and may not want to be trapped by on a day-to-day basis, but since masculinity is shaped and reinforced by society, they most often refrain from thinking their way out of this dilemma and from taking active political steps to resolve their crisis.

It has been argued that this act of overlooking their own constraints for so long seems to have resulted in a range of distributary masculine gender and sexual identities such as metrosexuality, retrosexuality, hypermasculinity, homosexuality and bisexuality. Ask feminists to diagnose men’s problems and you will often get a very clear explanation: “men are in crisis because women are properly challenging male dominance…women are asking men to share the public reins and men can’t bear it”. Ask anti-feminists and you will get a diagnosis that is in one aspect similar- men are troubled, many conservatives say, because women have gone far beyond their demand for equal treatment and now are trying to take power and control away from men. Both feminist and anti-feminist views on this conflict are rooted in a perception that to be a man means to be at the controls and at all times to feel yourself in control. What’s more likely, says Faludi, is that they are clinging to a ‘phantom status’. However, to understand why men are so reluctant to break with the codes of manhood sanctioned in their childhood, perhaps we need to understand how strong the social constraints on them are. Surely patriarchal culture had for very long not offered an alternative vision of manhood and the level of mockery, suspicion and animosity directed at men who stepped out of line had been profound.

By the end of the twentieth century, the dictates of a consumer and media culture had trapped both men and women in a world in which ‘top billing mattered more than building’. This seemed not too good for either of the sexes, but at least ‘femininity’ fit more easily in the new ethic. But what would it mean to be a man in this new realm? What could masculinity possibly mean in a display culture? In 1965, Leslie Fiedler had mused in an essay -‘The New Mutants’, about what looked to be the start of a “radical metamorphosis of the western male...all around us, young males are beginning to retrieve for themselves the cavalier role once piously and class-consciously surrendered to women: “that of being beautiful and being loved”. There was a time when to take socially sanctified “woman’s wear” and flaunt it on a male body was to stand up and question society’s most sternly guarded definitions of masculinity and femininity.”

However, as time passed, the signs of a masculine metamorphosis in progress were hardly limited to the bohemian literary, artistic or the gay fraternity. Take the example of the uber metrosexual icon David Beckham showcasing his million dollar stud or perhaps giving the female fans drooling over him, a glance of his well-conditioned long hair. Even Brad Pitt, who was once considered a suitable contender to be called a masculine hero in Hollywood, could not retain the same designation for a long time because just as Bill Margold comments-“he has become just so pretty”. Actors such as Saif Ali Khan and Shah Rukh Khan no longer mind stepping over the line by sporting a pink “ganji” or showcasing their smooth bodies in full public view. Interestingly enough, the trend which might have possibly emerged out of a feeling of suffocation transcended to become a matter of personal choice. Wearing feminine colours as a part of one’s ensemble or frequenting the nearby beauty salon can now be associated with trying out an alternative lifestyle. As Akshay Khanna, the critic, puts it, wearing bangles and anklets would not necessarily make him gay. Only on being rebuked by a certain ACP once, did he decide to engage in this particular topic of what was style statement and of what constitutes being gay. Metrosexuality might not necessarily be looked at as a method of defiance towards society instead it could be simplistically viewed as an effort to look presentable.

However, for those people who would link or confuse the concepts of homosexuality and metrosexuality, my argument is that even in the 21^st century where though reluctantly, metrosexuality has managed to escape the wrath of traditionalists, homosexuality or being gay is still evaluated by many as ‘abnormal’. The worst a metrosexual male might have to face is to be looked at as a gay person, but as far as the status of a homosexual is concerned, even the Indian Penal Code deems homosexuality a punishable offence (except in the jurisdiction of the Delhi High Court). While metrosexuality could be talked of as a phenomena which is comparatively newer, Pramod Nayar argues that homosexuality in India, be it lesbianism or being a gay, traces its lineage back to Hindu folk lore and legend. On a lighter note, if one were looking for similar lineage, perhaps, one could align the modern metrosexual man to the ardhanarishwara avatar of Shiva that simultaneously embodies both the feminine and masculine principle.

Even while the metrosexual identity is taken quite seriously in mainstream popular culture especially in India, the gay is seen as a figure of comic pathos, the misfit or the pansy. In other words, the metrosexual man is thrust onto the audience as an image associated with high profile male icons who are seen as trendsetters and are expected to be ‘aped’ at a certain level. However, the homosexual or the gay is often available only for purposes of comedy. For instance, in a Shah Rukh Khan’s Bollywood success, Kal Ho Na Ho, the Saif-Shah Rukh interludes, misread by the puritanical Kanta Ben, are meant to be funny and not an open positive affirmation of alternative masculinities in the way SRK’s Lux advertisements are. Thus, taking into account all the above mentioned arguments, it could thus be concluded that metrosexuality in a contemporary light has become more of a statement and beyond superficial similarities occupies a very different space within the realm of popular representation from that of the male homosexuality.

2009-11-06T22:13:00.001+05:30

Researchers Question the basis for N.E.T Withdrawal

Kalpana Gupta

The All India Researchers’ Co-ordination Committee organized a meeting on 31st October 2009. The agenda for discussion was to decide the course of action on the illegal retrospective withdrawal of N.E.T (National Eligibility Test) from M.Phil and Ph.D holders. The meeting incorporated around 200 researchers from renowned universities such as Jawaharlal Nehru University and Jamia Millia Islamia University.

In the open air theatre at the Faculty of Arts, University of Delhi, Sudhanshu, the secretary of A.I.R.C.C chaired the meeting. The committee was supported by the Teacher’s Associations from Haryana, West Bengal, Chennai, Madras and Uttaranchal. “It was on 1st July 2006 that the U.G.C directed the N.E.T exemption for the researchers but suddenly, out of nowhere, they withdrew the exemption on 1st July 2009”, added Sudhanshu, the Secretary.

Adit Narayan Mishra, President of FEDCUTA (Fedration of Central University Teacher’s Association) supported a one-day strike on 1^st July of this year in all the central universities across India. Adding to it, the Protest March also took place from Mandi House to Jantar Mantar on 9th July 2009.” Kapil Sibbal, the Education Minister, however, arrogantly responded to the researchers and kept silent on further appeals”, said one of the representatives who approached Mr. Sibbal on this issue.

The meeting on 31^st October primarily decided as to what the next step should be if they are still unheard. The researchers as well as the Ph.D holders showcased their concerns regarding their loss of six attempts of sitting in the N.E.T exam during this period. As no one forced U.G.C to grant the N.E.T exemption, the researchers and the Ph.D holders who still work as the Guest Lecturers or on ad-hoc basis in various colleges are demanding justice now.

Sukhdev Thorat, Secretary, U.G.C, responded ambiguously. Therefore, after all the possible steps that the researchers took, they have now decided to move to the court and file their petition. The meeting was closed on the note of this decision which ended at 5p.m. in the evening. The researchers and Ph.D holders are feeling under-estimated by this step taken by the U.G.C. “We will not keep silent. We will fight”, claimed one of the students pursuing his doctorate.

2009-11-06T22:08:00.003+05:30

THIS WAS IT!

Abhishek Mukherjee

It was announced in March by the man himself--

“I’ll be performing the songs my fans want to hear.”

“This is it. I mean this is really it. This is the final…this is the final curtain call.” (pause). “Ok? And…um…I’ll see you in July,”

The July never came.

Tickets for Michael’s concerts had sold at a rate of 11 per second. The concerts were arguably the biggest musical event of the year, and expected to be larger than life.

Efforts made to reveal the moonwalker preparing for live performances after a twelve-year long gap culminated into Kenny Ortega’s ‘This is it’ - a much-anticipated movie released as a documentary-feature.

A sincere attempt at showcasing the master artist at work, the film portrays the man as gentle and simple – at the same time a realistic perfectionist keen to ensure the best quality performance for his fans. Whether jamming to ‘Jam’, or lifting the hands and legs together with his band of dancers in ‘They don’t really care about us’, Michael seemed to have complete sense of technical details for the perfect music and rhythm.

He ensured that he does not give it his all in the rehearsals, to finally let loose on the day. Sometimes, just gingerly “luke-warming” and looking for the best possible rhythmic collaboration and synchronisation of dance with the music, he seemed to genuinely enjoy the moments, and the prospect of another gift for his fans.

Thematic videos of many of his popular songs such as ‘Smooth Criminal’, ‘Thriller’ and ‘Earth Song’ were re-created bigger and exciting to capture the imagination of everyone.

And his team was just in a trance. To be able to share space with the man himself was simply overwhelming.

“Michael has a depth to him that people don’t really know.”

“This is a dream come true. When MJ comes in the room his presence is just amazing….”

The movie is not another spectacle of miraculous song-dance-action, but the revelation of the real man, as calm and wise as a seventy-year old and physically as young as a twenty-something. He wanted to be on stage for his fans and also for his children, as in his own words ‘they were old enough to appreciate it and he was still young enough to do it.’

His wish, however, unfulfilled:

“It’s an adventure…it’s a great adventure. Wanna take them places where we’ve never been before…wanna show them time that we’ve never seen before…”

2009-11-06T22:05:00.001+05:30

Red Devils seek to stop Blue rampage

Abhishek Mukherjee

In what is dubbed as a clash of titans, title holders Manchester United will play table-toppers Chelsea on Sunday.

The Premier League fixture at Stanford Bridge will prove to be an extremely crucial affair since a loss for the Blues could bring the Red Devils lead on points atop the Championship.

Chelsea would heavily depend upon their star striker Didier Drogba, claimed by many as the best contemporary striker in the world. Drogba could be a nightmare for Manchester United's back four just as he was when he scored the only goal against them in the 2007 FA Cup final.

United, fresh from their 3-3 comeback with CSKA Moscow in the UEFA Champions League fixture, which confirmed their progress to the last 16, have been tested. They looked out of sorts against a resurgent Liverpool side and in Old Trafford trailed by 3-1 against the CSKA side, before staging an unbelievable comeback – so typical of them.

After having lost Cristiano Ronaldo and talented striker Carlos Tevez this season, manager Sir Alex Ferguson has been struggling to find a perfect combination. Berbatov, however, has more than compensated the loss of Tevez by displaying magical touches in front of goal.

They've only been able to name an unchanged back five once this season. Injuries have meant that the Ferdinand/Vidic centre-back partnership has been used in less than a third of their matches.

Chelsea, meanwhile, have been the team to beat this season, largely due to the clinical approach by manager Carlo Ancelotti. Drogba, at 31, is in the form of his life, and Lampard has got back his touch. In fact, they have hardly put a foot wrong this season.

The goal threat of Drogba, Nicolas Anelka and the in-form Frank Lampard will be constant and the gap at the top will be five points unless United come up with something special.

United have it in them to spring surprises. The last time in January the two sides met at Old Trafford, United blew Chelsea away. This time, Chelsea would be seeking revenge.

2009-11-06T22:03:00.002+05:30

Rossi champion again

Abhishek Mukherjee

Hailed as the greatest biker in motorsports, Valentino Rossi fought off a close competition from rival team-mate Jorge Lorenzo to claim his ninth world title.

The Italian finished third in the concluded Malaysian Grand Prix and captured seventh MotoGP title. Australian Casey Stoner won the race but the 30-year-old Italian secured the title by coming in third on his Yamaha. Spain's Dani Pedrosa was second.

Rossi said he was delighted to seal the championship title with one race to go - in Valencia on November 8.

Valentino Rossi’s acquisitions of world championships began with a win in the 125cc category of the world title in 1997 followed by a win in the 250 cc category in 1999. Rossi competed with an Aprilia bike during these races. Rossi stepped up to the 500cc category and took the 2001 World Championship for Honda. Inaugural year for the MotoGP bikes was 2002. Rossi captured MotoGP’s top title in 2003, 2004, 2005, 2008 and with the latest, 2009. Valentino signed with Yamaha in 2004. There were rumors circulating several years ago that the motorcycle-riding great would make a move to driving Formula One cars.

Rossi is under contract with Yamaha until 2010 so it’s unlikely that Rossi will be making that transition. Rossi is a man of surprises, however. The motorbike giant has made appearances with green and orange and even appeared with his head shaved at one time. Rossi is a fan favorite with his charismatic and flamboyant public image.

This time, he pulled a wheelie over the finish line to celebrate his latest success.

Rossi did not fail to shower words of praises to his worthy rival Lorenzo, who throughout the championship snapped at his heels. The Spaniard was unlucky in numerous races, in some of them crashing out to give up his lead over Rossi and finish with no points.

“Throughout the season I had great rivals, at the end especially Jorge my team-mate, who stayed very close to me, and we had some great fights. He’s a great rival so congratulations to him”.

Comparisons have been drawn between Rossi and F1 legend Michael Schumacher. His crew chief Jerry Burgess believes Rossi could race till 2015 atleast. With the form and enthusiasm that he has, it would be unfair to think otherwise.

2009-11-06T21:59:00.001+05:30

KALMADI: THE SHERA IN ‘CHAINS’!

Karan Deep Singh

Commonwealth Games: Kalmadi rejects technical review panel-15^th October (The Times of India), Defiant Kalmadi asks Games CEO to leave- 16^th October(The Times of India), Fennell rejects all OC demands, Kalmadi stays firm- (IANS) Oct 16, Fennell rejects all OC demands- (IANS) Oct 16, Kalmadi stays firm, Gill meets Kalmadi, looks to solve crisis- (Indian Express), Oct 20. The man has been in the headlines of national dailies and has made it to almost all television news reports due to his haughty behaviour and that of an extremely forward thinking man as far as his vision for the Commonwealth Games 2010 are concerned.

From the letter sent on 13th September in which CGF chief, Michael Fennel had expressed serious concerns over the Organising Committee’s ability to host the mega-sporting event up to the standards set by the last two editions of the Games in Manchester and Melbourne to his personal attack on CGF CEO, Mike Hooper in Delhi and his reaction to the setting up of a technical review panel by the CGF, Mr. Kalmadi has had something or the other to say about almost everything.

With a political career spanning from 1978 after becoming the President of the Maharashtra Pradesh Youth Congress to becoming a member of parliament (Rajya Sabha) in 1982 followed by becoming a member of Lok Sabha in 1996, his list of achievements and work profile have been explicitly published on his own website (sureshkalmadi.org). But it seems the man has recently stumbled upon heavy criticism after taking on the job of the Chairman of the Organising Committee for the Commonwealth Games 2010 to be held in Delhi next year.

The Chairman of 2010 Commonwealth Games Organising Committee recently rejected the Commonwealth Games Federation executive board's decision to set-up a technical review panel to monitor preparations for the Games calling it an ‘avoidable burden’. Facing widespread criticism for the lack of preparedness for the Games that start exactly a year from now, Kalmadi said, “There is no need for a separate monitoring agency. If they want they can add some technical experts to the coordination commission which is already monitoring the Games’ work”.

In an interview with Shekhar Gupta on the NDTV show ‘Walk the Talk’, he spoke about his infamous row with Mike Hooper going to the extent of saying: “He has been a great hindrance. He has been shouting at our staff. He threw keys at one of them. Besides, we have not got any advice from him…we can’t have him here. That is for sure!” While being asked about Athletics being in deep mess, something other than the progress about Commonwealth Games infrastructure, he nonchalantly assured: “We will do well in the Commonwealth Games. In the Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune, a number of people did well in athletics.”

When asked to elaborate more about himself, he said: “I was always keen to be a politician.” And now a sports administrator! Responding to a tough question- You may have played sports in the academy, but you are not a sports expert. Is that something that bothers you, he said: “I am the president of the Olympic committee for the past 10 years. I have always made sure that the secretary is a technical person. This combination works because the president has to collect money.”

Another question that seemed like a slap on his face- Can you tell the distance between two hurdles, he answered: “I can’t. That is for technical people to say.”

After all his demands being rejected by the Commonwealth Games Federation, Executive Board, he has been asked to push the dust under the carpet and get working by the Sports Minister, MS Gill. This seems like the growling tiger has been finally chained. Why not concentrate on your work Mr. Kalmadi except showing us all what you’ve been doing extremely good at- talking in thin air?

2009-11-06T21:49:00.001+05:30

Button is champion

Abhishek Mukherjee

Brawn’s Jenson Button claimed the Formula One World Championship in Brazil as he secured fifth position. Britain retained the title secured by Lewis Hamilton last year and Button and the Brawn team broke into wild celebrations.

Red Bull’s Australian Mark Webber took the checkered flag but it was Button who stole the limelight for securing his maiden title. He took fifth place as his team-mate and rival Rubens Barrichello finished eighth and Sebastian Vettel, the only other driver capable of winning the crown, finished fourth.

"It's really amazing," said Button. "That was just such an awesome race. I deserve the title after that race! 21 years ago I jumped in a car and I loved winning. I never expected to be world champion in Formula One but I've done it today."

The grand prix was an eventful affair. The opening laps were filled with incident as first an off-track fight almost erupted between Jarno Trulli and Adrian Sutil. Replays appeared to show Force India's Sutil forcing Trulli wide on to the grass, causing the Toyota to lose control and slide off into the barriers, tagging Sutil along the way. Sutil also ended up in the gravel trap and had to face a fuming Trulli in a confrontation that almost became physical.

A lap later Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen was caught in a flash fire in the pit lane. The Finn had gone in to receive a new nose cone after tagging the back of Webber's Red Bull. Ahead of him an earlier spinner Heikki Kovalainen was leaving the pits but with the fuel hose still attached to his McLaren. Fuel sprayed over the hot Ferrari, which was briefly engulfed in flames, although Raikkonen was unhurt and carried on.

However, all eyes were on Button who had just produced a sensational performance to claim fifth place and with it the title.

By his own admission he struggled to cope with the expectation in the second half of the year but his performance drop-off was largely down to Brawn cutting back on development and his own pragmatic approach.

Earlier having the image of a notorious playboy, Button silenced all critics throughout his career by proving to be a hugely deserving world champion.

2009-11-06T21:44:00.003+05:30

Questioning the canon

How many of us care to question the “question”?

Since our childhood we are overtly bred on such a system of education which does not believe in imparting knowledge so as to share it. Classroom teaching limits itself solely to the realm of the examination hall. In other words, as products of the 21st century, most of us have turned out to be “spoon fed robots”, clones of one another. The only objective of a “one-full-year’s-academic” teaching seems to be no absorption of any so called ‘knowledge’.

The power to “question” (as it were) has stopped breathing in many of us.

After (say about) 18 years of constant unhealthy and ignorant teaching, when one steps ahead into the university level, the side effects of this rickety education system slowly surfaces itself. With the handful of colleges that may (note the modal) believe in individual thought, the situation is no better. Even though students may (finally!) get a new dimension to the way they have been perceiving education; so far the larger question is- how many can (then after all) actually cope with this way of teaching where there is no spoon feeding at all? Thus, what we realise is that this kind of self-destructive teaching, lays its hands on students in a manner, that there is left a very thin veil between self doubt and failure. One fails to realise the significance of knowledge as it were.

One starts taking the given word as the word of the gospel and does not dare to refute the same. And finally when asked a simple “why” at the college level, most students find themselves in rather awkward situation. It becomes a pity to ‘witness the absence’ of any constructive thought in the 18years of a student’s existence. Consequently, most of us harbour the belief that the canon cannot be questioned. The handful of students who may have tried to question it might as well have withdrawn.

It is as though the terms “discovery” and “invention” no longer hold any relevance in our lives. An assembly line production (of humans) is now what we get. Our daily routine includes every activity required for our bodily sustenance but when it comes to thinking, most of us fall flat. While some of us very conveniently shut out any extraneous stimulus trying to reach out through the periphery of our minds; the others couldn’t have cared any less in discarding even the thought that this stimulus is a living fact!

Thanks to the exam logic, most of us grow up having learned very little of what we should-the art of thinking!

If this is what we are heading to, then what are we feeding ourselves with? Smelly cat?!?!

Watch out for this space for more interactive startups. If you wish to tell Bonisha about any similar subjects you wish to read here, write to her at bonisha.good2u@gmail.com.

Your responses will also be encouraged at- thestandpoint@gmail.com

2009-11-06T21:39:00.003+05:30

The phantom of exams…

As compared to the usual monotone of regular college days, exam days are the ones when we come alive. The slumber is gone and the realisation that we are ‘students’ suddenly strikes! The day before the exam is the most eventful. The first herculean task at hand is to arrange for the notes. Some are copied from friends and seniors over the phone and some are searched for on the net. The entire day goes in planning how to start studying. And before we know its night and less than 12 hours to go before we enter the exam hall!

In-fact the first realisation of the approaching ordeal comes around 12 a.m. itself. That’s the time to call your classmates to get that motivational speech on how important it is to pass the subject in the exams this semester/year to ensure that the fat pocket money we get keeps coming! After a 40 minute serious discussion with your best friend, you feel all keyed up to gather those books and shove them down your brain. You grab a mug of coffee, switch on that table lamp, open page 1, chapter 1, and just as you finish reading the first line… a yawn escapes your lips!

The rest of the night is a witness to the same scene being repeated every half an hour. Only with the difference that the motivational chats with your friend soon turn from coaxing to threats to angry outbursts! The first rays of the sun cause panic among the already terror-stricken student community. It’s now or never. Quickly we’re out of that night suit and gulp down that glass of milk. Rushing our way to the bus stop we quickly stuff all the notes in our bag while hoping to catch the bus on time. The journey to college is a mix of theories and flow charts accompanied with pushing and shoving from all sides. Meeting friends is a much-needed solace as everybody is in the same boat. Only that boat is headed to nowhere!

We quickly exchange verbal notes of what little we know. The wicked bell goes off too soon and before we know we are gazing down at the question paper. Three hours are gone in a jiffy calculating the passing marks needed, who is taking how many sheets and all this while trying to catch a glimpse of the answers of the guy sitting in front. Before we are certain if what we have written would be enough to cruise us safely to the next semester/year, the time is up and the sheets are snatched away. All this followed by a long account of who left how many questions and the only thing left then is to wait for the results to be out! The result day has horrors of it’s own as we prepare to face our demons ourselves. However that’s another story, another day…

2009-11-06T21:35:00.001+05:30

All or Nothing is the third studio album by the British R&B singer Jay Sean. The first one under American hip-hop label Cash Money Records, which has made him the first British Asian singer to sign with an American label.

Lead single of the album “Down” feat. Lil Wayne is a very simple, fun track. Something which is apt for your car stereos and clubs. Nice beats, easy lyrics and a tight delivery by rapper Lil Wayne, I’m fightin for this girl, on the battlefield of love/ don’t it look like baby cupid sending arrows from above/. It lives up to the tag of lead single of the album.

“Do you remember” feat. Sean Paul and Lil John talks about the good ol’ times with ‘em ladies, bringing it back and making new memories. It’s a feel good song. The collaboration with Sean Paul again does add another dimension to the song, Yo ay girl yo bring it back to the time when you and me had just begun/ when I was still your number one.

“Tonight” has a very good keyboard tune initiating the track, but it’s too short that you’d wish for more. The lyrics are just like any other R&B song, nothing special about it.

Then you have “Ride It”, the slow, seductive melody. It’s also one of the chart toppers by Jay. Here too, the lyrics are nice and simple. The delivery’s quite tight though. The slow mood to the song makes you groove slowly on it.

“Maybe” is one song which tells you the tale of today’s love. Texting all night, staying online throughout to see if he/she’s checked your message, etc. that’s the state of all the relationships in this text-era. I’m always connected online, Hooked on facebook all the time/ Hopin you’ve checked my profile just can’t help wondering why. It’s about how caught up we are in these confused relations. Maybe, the love’s for true or its not.

Well, with # 1 hit single like Down and other hits like Maybe, Do you remember, the album deserves a listen. A good product for cars and clubs.

2009-11-06T21:00:00.000+05:30

Rihanna finally gets to return to her primary focus of actually releasing an album (fourth in five years, since you ask) – and here we have one more in line with hip hop than R&B or Pop. Since pretty much everyone reading this will probably be entirely aware of every aspect of her altercation with her ex-boyfriend Chris Brown, and the subsequent abuse she suffered, but there is no real need to go into the issue anymore – just know that it obviously provides the basis of "Rated R." So here it is, "Rated R" – Rihanna's own mini autobiographical package.

What we have here is a dense album that requires multiple listens. RR, for the most part, has lyricism more akin to hip hop than any other genre. Unlike “Good Girl Gone Bad”, this album is lacking on “club” numbers which is surprising for a Rihanna album.

“Rated R” aims to tell us a story, which could, possibly, be joined by us only in the halfway. To start with, “Hard” featuring Young Jeezy is a very tight and catchy track. This one comes very close to the current hip hop style of self boasting. As the lyrics go, And my runway never looked so clear/ but the hottest bitch in heels right here. Money in the bank, cars, clothes, I need it all. and Jeezy's verse is characteristically strong. The lead single, "Russian Roulette," is a classy, haunting mid-tempo act complete with superb vocal production. "Fire Bomb" is a strange and interesting one, where Rihanna declares The lovers need to clear the road.. If there is a "traditional" Rihanna sound, this is the closest thing to it on RR. One of the interesting moments arrives with "Rude Boy" – again, though, a catchy track but this one lacks on content. Still, the beats make you get hooked on to the song. "Photographs" is a decent number featuring Will.i.am with a 1980's feel to it, complete with a funky switch up. "G4L" – which means "Gangsta For Life" – is her strange revenge fantasy about, presumably, gunning the s*** out of Chris Brown and licking the gun afterwards, because revenge tastes sweet. The track is intriguing enough, but doesn't completely fire on all cylinders. Then comes along "Stupid In Love", an averagely produced but lyrically cracking ballad. It has a potential to be a very anthem that many would easily identify with. Rihanna emphasizes on how shattered she felt after the altercation with Chris brown, I still love you but I just can’t do this. I may be dumb but I’m not dumb.

"Rockstar 101" (a song that sounds superb in a late night driving scenario) is a reckless ride in the VIP section of the club, a subtle contribution from Slash contrasting with completely over the top production, with over-the-top lyrics like six inch walker big ***t talker, I never play the victim I’d rather be a stalker/ so baby take me in, I’ll disobey the law, make sure you frisk me good, check my panties and bra. The disturbed pop singer goes all nasty on this track. “Cold Case Love” is, according to me, the true end to this album, with subtle instrumentation of an aura-like closing. The tempo catches on; the lyrics reflect self-realisation in a way. The actual curtain call is "The Last Song," a slightly pointless, melodramatic end-credits number that serves no real purpose.

Her singing in this album has improved significantly. And the content also, is not all about club numbers unlike the previous album. This is more about mood/lyrics, and it is an undeniable success on those terms. However, it is very dense and maybe needed more melodies to help digest it all.

It scores 3.5 on 5 for me!

2009-10-05T23:17:00.003+05:30

National Meet on the Status of Muslims in India

Karan Deep Singh

WHAT IT MEANS TO BE A MUSLIM IN INDIA TODAY- was the subject of a National Meet on the Status of Muslims in India organised by Anhad, in collaboration with other organisations including Action Aid, Apna Angan and Youth for Peace from October 3-5 at the Constitution club, Delhi. The meet was organised to document the continuing ways of discrimination, exclusion and persecution of Muslims in India.

The three day event was divided into two sessions per day from October 3 to October 4 and the 5^th of October was kept as the day for deliberations and preparation of proposed recommendations by the jury members. The first session was on ‘Persecution in the Name of Terrorism’ followed by a second session on ‘Social, Economic, Educational, Political Discrimination, and limited access to the impact of Govt. schemes’. The third and the fourth session deliberated upon the ‘Faces of Discrimination’ and ‘Communal Violence and State Impunity’.

The event began with an opening speech by Ms. Shabnam Hashmi, social and political activist, Founding and Managing Trustee, Anhad in which she talked about the constant discrimination faced by the ordinary Muslims from being denied the space for burying its dead or forcible occupation of Qabristan lands, to losing its sons in fake encounters and several other forms of discrimination and persecution of Muslims.

Mr. Harsh Dobhal, editor of Combat Law Human Rights Magazine conducted the rest of the proceedings for the first session on ‘Persecution in the Name of Terrorism’. The panelists present for the session were Mr. Colin Gosalves, Mr. Hanif Lakdawala and Ms. Rooprekha Verma among others.

The first session being an account of the victims of persecution, the panelists heard over seventeen victims with their painful stories about themselves, their family members and acquaintances who were wrongly persecuted.

Manisha Sethi, teacher at Jamia Milia Islamia brought to the attention of the listeners about the alleged Batla House Encounter at Jamia Nagar on 19^th September which she termed fake while mentioning that the “only evidences of bomb- making material found at L-18 were a Bucket, Polyethene Bag and Cello Tape!”. Sethi also mentioned that “17 year old Sajid, one of the accused in spite of being a minor who should have been dealt under the Juvenile Justice Act (JJA) was deliberately killed by the police and the fact that he was shot on top of the head points to the fact that he was deliberately made to sit and then shot leading to the death of a child”.

Musarrat Jahan, her sister, Ishrat Jahan who was killed in an encounter by the state police for having links to terror outfits Lashkar-e-Toiba including a mission to assassinate Chief Minister Modi said: “My sister was even scared of a cockroach, we never even knew who Modi was, how could she ever be involved in a mission to assassinate him. How can they take a life when they can’t give it back”? The sobbing sister left the podium after raising the question: “Hum ab kahan jayein, kya karein? Kya humse galti ho gayi ki hum is mulk mein paida ho gaye?”

The accounts of other members were patiently heard by the panelists and related documents were submitted by the victims, their family members and acquaintances to the jury to support their accounts and arguments.

The continuing session was followed by the second session for the day.