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noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 09:14:00 +0000

I have written the title this time, quite skeptically. We are always told that India was very rich in the medieval times. Please note the claim, ‘medieval times’, not the ‘ancient times’. Many exaggerations of the same are also spread, like ‘pots of gold used to exist in every home’, etc. and etc. In the ancient times, I am quite sure India along with many other nations of the present – day was super rich. But, as far as the medieval times go, most people would amalgamate the medieval era with the ancient era.

There remains a basic difference between the two. In ancient time, India was rich along with its people. In medieval era, India, and even China, for that matter, might be rich as compared to other then-existing world nations. But, were its people rich as compared to other nations of the time? The answer remains no.

In India, it is a common thought in the minds of the people that in the medieval era, the present day developed nations were all poor. That would include the United States, Canada, Oceania (Aus and NZ) and the whole of Europe, while same would have a favorable view on China’s prosperity. USA and Australia were definitely unheard places then but what can we say the same in case of Europe?

There was this interesting piece of read that I found in ‘The Post – American World’ by Fareed Zakaria. I am pasting the relevant passage here. The statistics that are cited are in turn taken from Angus Madison’s book, ‘The World Economy: A Millennial Perspective’. It reads:

We

have lived in a Western world for over half a millennium. Despite the rise of other nations and continents, the shadows of the West will be long and its legacies deep for decades to come, perhaps longer. It has become commonplace to say that actually China and India were as rich as the West right up until the 1800s. The dominance of the West, according to this perspective, has been a 200-year blip, and we are now returning to a more normal balance. This statement also implies that the West's advantages may be largely accidental—the result of "coal and colonies," that is, the discovery of a cheap energy source and the domination of the rich lands of Asia, Africa, and the Americas. This view, which embraces a multicultural sensibility that denies any special status to the West, has its political advantages. But while it may be politically correct, it is historically incorrect.

One reason for this misinterpretation is that analysts often focus solely on the total size of the Chinese and Indian economies. Historically, this has been a misleading statistic.

Until the modern age, a country's economy could not be mobilized, extracted, or put to use in any meaningful sense. The fact that in, say, the seventeenth century, millions of peasants in remote and unconnected corners of China were working the land in grinding poverty did not really contribute to the nation's usable wealth or power, even though their output added up to a large number. Population was the main ingredient of GDP, and production was largely agricultural. Since China and India had four times the population of Western Europe in 1600, their GDP was, of course, larger. Even in 1913, when Britain was the world's leading power, with cutting-edge technology and industrial production and trade many times larger than all of Asia's, China could claim a greater total GDP. In studying the preindustrial age, before big government, communications, transport, and broad-based taxation, aggregate GDP alone tells us little about national power or a country's level of advancement. It doesn't say anything about the dynamism of the society or its ability to make new discoveries and inventions. And it was mastery in these areas that gave a country new ways to create wealth and its government power.

We get a much clearer picture of the real standing of countries if we consider economic growth and GDP per capita. Western European GDP per capita was higher than that of both China and India by 1500; by 1600, it was 50 percent higher than China's. From there, the gap kept growing. Between 1350 and 1950—six hundred years—GDP per capita remained roughly constant in China and India (hovering around $600 for China and $550 for India). In the same period, Western European GDP per capita went from $662 to $4,594, a 594 percent increase.*

European travelers in the seventeenth century routinely pointed out that Chinese and Indian living conditions were well below those in northwestern Europe. The economist Gregory Clark calculates that in the eighteenth century the average daily wage of a laborer in Amsterdam could buy him 21 pounds of wheat, in London 16 pounds, and in Paris 10. In China, a day's wages would buy about 6.6 pounds of wheat (or its equivalent). Clark has also examined records to determine differences in the number of famines, which points in the same direction. The West, in short, was more prosperous than the East long before the eighteenth century.

So, there are enough stats and facts kept out there in the passage to enlighten us on the same. The education, innovation, research what the Western countries produced ensured that they would stay ahead of the rest far easily. Even today, the same continues and I do not see India and China turning out the research centers anywhere remotely! That would require an altogether different post, as there was some interesting read on the same in ‘India Unbound’ by Gurucharan Das. Answer lies in education and innovation again though.

On an interesting note, China and India still do stand as the world’s 2^nd and 4^th largest economies of the world. One of my earlier posts is written on the same.

That was an interesting eye opener!

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 09:14:00 +0000

We

have lived in a Western world for over half a millennium. Despite the rise of other nations and continents, the shadows of the West will be long and its legacies deep for decades to come, perhaps longer. It has become commonplace to say that actually China and India were as rich as the West right up until the 1800s. The dominance of the West, according to this perspective, has been a 200-year blip, and we are now returning to a more normal balance. This statement also implies that the West's advantages may be largely accidental—the result of "coal and colonies," that is, the discovery of a cheap energy source and the domination of the rich lands of Asia, Africa, and the Americas. This view, which embraces a multicultural sensibility that denies any special status to the West, has its political advantages. But while it may be politically correct, it is historically incorrect.

One reason for this misinterpretation is that analysts often focus solely on the total size of the Chinese and Indian economies. Historically, this has been a misleading statistic.

Until the modern age, a country's economy could not be mobilized, extracted, or put to use in any meaningful sense. The fact that in, say, the seventeenth century, millions of peasants in remote and unconnected corners of China were working the land in grinding poverty did not really contribute to the nation's usable wealth or power, even though their output added up to a large number. Population was the main ingredient of GDP, and production was largely agricultural. Since China and India had four times the population of Western Europe in 1600, their GDP was, of course, larger. Even in 1913, when Britain was the world's leading power, with cutting-edge technology and industrial production and trade many times larger than all of Asia's, China could claim a greater total GDP. In studying the preindustrial age, before big government, communications, transport, and broad-based taxation, aggregate GDP alone tells us little about national power or a country's level of advancement. It doesn't say anything about the dynamism of the society or its ability to make new discoveries and inventions. And it was mastery in these areas that gave a country new ways to create wealth and its government power.

We get a much clearer picture of the real standing of countries if we consider economic growth and GDP per capita. Western European GDP per capita was higher than that of both China and India by 1500; by 1600, it was 50 percent higher than China's. From there, the gap kept growing. Between 1350 and 1950—six hundred years—GDP per capita remained roughly constant in China and India (hovering around $600 for China and $550 for India). In the same period, Western European GDP per capita went from $662 to $4,594, a 594 percent increase.*

European travelers in the seventeenth century routinely pointed out that Chinese and Indian living conditions were well below those in northwestern Europe. The economist Gregory Clark calculates that in the eighteenth century the average daily wage of a laborer in Amsterdam could buy him 21 pounds of wheat, in London 16 pounds, and in Paris 10. In China, a day's wages would buy about 6.6 pounds of wheat (or its equivalent). Clark has also examined records to determine differences in the number of famines, which points in the same direction. The West, in short, was more prosperous than the East long before the eighteenth century.

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 05:10:00 +0000

Right from printing press, which spearheaded the flow of ideas, to railways, the single most impacting invention ever, to the recent computer and internet, we have had set of inventions. But, this is not really the age of inventions. It is dominated by small and big 'innovations' that ease the way our already established inventions work. Ahh, without getting much jargonic, let me put up what I want to say.

This was a nice email forward and is taken from ForwardedEmails.Com . Imagine, how much they will ease our life.

Real Smart and cool inventions

SMART CUP

Smart cup in which you can put 2-3 of your favourite cookies. You don’t need extra plates. It’s made for right handed and left handed.

BANANA GUARD

Are you fed up with bringing bananas to work or school only to find them bruised and squashed? Banana Guard allows you to safely transport and storage individual bananas letting you enjoy perfect bananas anytime, anywhere.

LOCK-CUP

Lock Cup – Anti-Theft Coffee Cup. Are you tired of others stealing your coffee cup? Well now there’s a solution. The Lock – Cup has a hole which prevents most people from using it. Only the owner of the cup can use his/hers shaped key to close the hole.

PENGUIN TEA TIMER

Making tea, though easy to do, is also time consuming. Once you pour the hot water into the cup, you must patiently hover over it, waiting for the tea to steep. Well, the Penguin Tea Timer happily does the waiting for you.

Place your tea cup under the beak and set it to the desired time. As you turn the timer dial, the beak lowers the tea into the hot water. When time is up, a bell sounds and the penguin automatically lifts his beak, removing the tea bag from the water.

TRANSPARENT TOASTER

You love toast, but you always burn it? Than, this invention us for you.
This transparent toaster allows you to see the bread while it is toasting so you just have to take it out when the colour is right. This idea is based on a transparent heating glass technology.

BUTTER CUTTER

One Click Butter Cutter controls your portion as an important part of staying healthy. This ingenious butter cutter delivers one standard pat with each click of the handle. I liked the name though, it sounds rhyming, 'butter cutter'.

GIANT REMOTE

Never lose your remote again!
With giant buttons, this extra-large remote is easy to use and impossible to lose. It’s a 6-in-1 remote so you can use it to control your TV, VCR, DVD player, satellite, cable and auxiliary A/V device. It even features glow-in-the-dark buttons, so you can easily find the remote in the dark.

DAYCLOCK

What day is today? You don’t know? Then you need a DayClock. It’s uniquely designed to keep track of weekly events like your golf day, card night, movie night, and so much more. It’s ideal for vacations and cruises when it’s easy to lose track of the day.

CRIME SCENE TOWEL

Chalk outline crime scene beach towel – be the coolest person on the beach!

LASER SCISSORS

Laser ScissorsCutting a straight line has never been easier. Just aim the pin-point laser and follow the line. The scissor blades are stainless steel and cut very clean with a micro serrated edge.

ILUMINATING CAR SLIPPERS

Do you get up at night to drink water, go to the toilet…Do you wish you could see in the dark? Remarkably bright LED lights are triggered by your footsteps and light up the floor 30 feet in front of you; ultra-soft plush style are extra comfortable and cozy warm.

INFANT PILLOW

The Zaky is an ergonomic infant pillow designed by a mom to mimic the size, weight, touch, and feel of her hand and forearm to help her baby with comfort, support, protection, and development. The Zaky can help calm your baby and help your baby sleep better through the night.

TRAVELER’S PHRASE BOOK T-SHIRT

If you are traveling a lot and don’t always know the language of the country you are visiting, then this T-shirt is for you. It has a phrase book printed on it so just point a finger at the pictogram you need and then point it twice at the question mark, which means, “Where is it?” and in no time you have found what you were looking for… or not.

MODERN LADDER

Realy cool modern ladder. I am not sure whether it would balance itself as the person on it properly.

WHEEL-MOVING BENCH

Whether you want to sit on the sun or in the shade, near the river or under the tree… now you have your movable bench, to sit wherever you like.

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 05:10:00 +0000

Dooordarshan – Advertisements of the Doordarshan Times!

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 16:50:00 +0000

First of all, happy new year and new decade to you, folks! :D

This one proved to one of the best pass times on the internet in my case some time back. Watching old ads! The ads are not just simple and naïve, but they get you a nostalgic feeling too. Were they really good or not, I do not know, but that was the only option to view then! Some of them would still make for good ads in today’s world. Please have a look.

Gold Spot Zing Thing

In the second ad in the video, it is Kitu Gidwani! Total YouTube hits: 15k approx.

LIRIL Ad 1985

This was the reshot of ad in 1975. The 1975 ad featured Karen Lunel, an airhostess with Indian Airlines in green bikini on the only national channel then! It was fine in those days as much as it is now. There were rumors that she died in a fatal accident. The accident did happen, but she survived after some stitches. This ad was only to ascertain that she is alive. Oh, and LIRIL is still my favorite soap, from childhood. I never knew the reason why I liked this soap particularly, but it seems this is the reason! Okay, there is a reason to bath daily now. Economic Times interviewed her in August 2009 and they contacted her through her son’s comment on her own YouTube video! She lives in New Zealand. Total YouTube hits: 2,22k approx.

DoodhDoodh Doodh

This was a much advanced ad compared to others but this had two different version of the ad. This one was shorter so I thought of embedding here. Total YouTube Hits: 31k approx.

Jalebee

Dhara Dhara Shudh Dhara! This was the famous ad where a boy wants to leave home but goes back home because of his temptation for Jalebees! Total YouTube hits: 275k

Surf Lalitaji

I don’t know in which years was this commercial famous, but noteworthy is its last line, ‘jee haan, Surf ke kharidari me hi samazadaari hain’ (Buying Surf makes sense). But at the same time, when the above line is being said; it shows two bottles of same size, one of half kg, and other of 1 kg! What makes sense? Total YouTube hits: 75k

Fevicol

The video shows Rajkumar Hirani as the model in it, who is also the director of the ad. He is the director of Munnabhai series. Total YouTube hits: 58k

Chal Meri Luna!

This one is my favorite. Small, simple and the jingle is melodious as well as it fits well with the rhyme used. But, I do not see any particular company name behind this! I think it was promoted by the Govt. to encourage more people to buy lunas. I don’t know! Total YouTube hits: Only 32k

Jab Main Chhota Bacha Thaa – Bajaj

This one is only 20 seconds long and you will suddenly recall the jingle of the ad. It is hard to forget it! It is from the times of '80s. Total YouTube hits: Only 18k

Lijjat Papad

Karram kurram, kurram karram! This is the ad that featured the famous ‘speaking doll’ by Sharad Padhye of the ‘90s. Have a look. Total Youtube Hits: 20k approx.

Cadbury Cricket Ad!

Just watch this! The model doesn't seem to dance naturally out of joy and not as a part of the commercial! There are many other good Cadbury ads with the same motivating lyrics, which you can get by clicking on the video below and then searching for 'Related Videos' in YouTube. Total YouTube hits: 11k approx.

There might be many more interesting ones out there on the web. These were just a sample!

Dooordarshan – Advertisements of the Doordarshan Times!

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Sat, 02 Jan 2010 16:50:00 +0000

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:08:00 +0000

It is no slightest doubt that everyone in India has experienced what really is global warming. The average temperatures have gone up in the last few summers, and even the winters and rainy seasons are showing abnormalities from their behaviors over the last few years. Indeed, this is ‘global weirding’ or rather ‘climate crisis’ that would define the thing better.

But, what really caused global warming? Industrial revolution for one, heavy pollution caused by it another and there might be numerous such reasons. But, how do we know that we have landed in a state of global warming? Of course, anyone who has experienced summer in any part of India would know better. But, any symptoms that would convince the rational mind? Yes, in fact there are many. If you haven’t seen Al Gore’s documentary, ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ you must watch it once. I would rate it 5 stars, as it is a must watch for everyone today. From the official website of An Inconvenient Truth by Al Gore, I could get some science behind this. The symptoms are listed below and are sourced from the website climatecrisis.net (official website of An Inconvenient Truth). Do visit the website, it has a good music track played once the website is accessed. Other initiatives from Al Gore are the website of WeCanSolveIt, TakePart, RepowerAmerica.

[caption id="attachment_286" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Image from www.cranberg.com"][/caption]

Carbon dioxide and other gases warm the surface of the planet naturally by trapping solar heat in the atmosphere. This is a good thing because it keeps our planet habitable. However, by burning fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil and clearing forests we have dramatically increased the amount of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere and temperatures are rising.

The vast majority of scientists agree that global warming is real, it’s already happening and that it is the result of our activities and not a natural occurrence.¹ The evidence is overwhelming and undeniable.

We’re already seeing changes. Glaciers are melting, plants and animals are being forced from their habitat, and the number of severe storms and droughts is increasing.

The number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes has almost doubled in the last 30 years.²
Malaria has spread to higher altitudes in places like the Colombian Andes, 7,000 feet above sea level.³
The flow of ice from glaciers in Greenland has more than doubled over the past decade.⁴

At least 279 species of plants and animals are already responding to global warming, moving closer to the poles.⁵

Deaths from global warming will double in just 25 years -- to 300,000 people a year.⁶

Global sea levels could rise by more than 20 feet with the loss of shelf ice in Greenland and Antarctica, devastating coastal areas worldwide.⁷

Droughts and wildfires will occur more often.
The Arctic Ocean could be ice free in summer by 2050.⁸

More than a million species worldwide could be driven to extinction by 2050.⁹

Heat waves will be more frequent and more intense.

¹ According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), this era of global warming "is unlikely to be entirely natural in origin" and "the balance of evidence suggests a discernible human influence of the global climate."
² Emanuel, K. 2005. Increasing destructiveness of tropical cyclones over the past 30 years. Nature 436: 686-688.
³ World Health Organization
⁴ Krabill, W., E. Hanna, P. Huybrechts, W. Abdalati, J. Cappelen, B. Csatho, E. Frefick, S. Manizade, C. Martin, J, Sonntag, R. Swift, R. Thomas and J. Yungel. 2004. Greenland Ice Sheet: Increased coastal thinning. Geophysical Research Letters 31.
⁵ Nature.
⁶ World Health Organization
⁷ Washington Post, "Debate on Climate Shifts to Issue of Irreparable Change," Juliet Eilperin, January 29, 2006, Page A1.
⁸ Arctic Climate Impact Assessment. 2004. Impacts of a Warming Arctic. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press. Also quoted in Time Magazine, Vicious Cycles, Missy Adams, March 26, 2006.
⁹ Time Magazine, Feeling the Heat, David Bjerklie, March 26, 2006.

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:08:00 +0000

The number of Category 4 and 5 hurricanes has almost doubled in the last 30 years.²
Malaria has spread to higher altitudes in places like the Colombian Andes, 7,000 feet above sea level.³
The flow of ice from glaciers in Greenland has more than doubled over the past decade.⁴

At least 279 species of plants and animals are already responding to global warming, moving closer to the poles.⁵

Deaths from global warming will double in just 25 years -- to 300,000 people a year.⁶

Global sea levels could rise by more than 20 feet with the loss of shelf ice in Greenland and Antarctica, devastating coastal areas worldwide.⁷

Droughts and wildfires will occur more often.
The Arctic Ocean could be ice free in summer by 2050.⁸

More than a million species worldwide could be driven to extinction by 2050.⁹

Absurd Heights!

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:20:00 +0000

> 1. What is height of Fashion?
> Ans : Dhoti with a zip .

>
> 2. What is height of Secrecy?
> Ans : Offering blank visiting cards.

>
> 3. What is height of Active laziness?
> Ans : Asking for a lift to house while on a morning walk.

>
> 4. What is height of Craziness?
> Ans : Getting a blank paper Xeroxed.

>
> 5. What is height of Forgetfulness?
> Ans : Seeing the mirror and trying to recollect when you
> saw him / her last.

>
> 6. What is height of Stupidity?
> Ans : A person looking through a keyhole of a glass door.

>
> 7. What is height of Honesty?
> Ans : A pregnant woman taking one and a half ticket.

>
> 8. What is height of Suicide?
> Ans : A dwarf jumping from the footpath on the road.

>
> 9. What is height of De-hydration?
> Ans : A cow giving milk powder.

> 10. What is Height of Kanjoosi ?
> Ans : Banta's house has caught fire and he is giving
> miss calls to the Fire brigade!!!

Absurd Heights!

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 17:20:00 +0000

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 20:14:00 +0000

There are aplenty of hopeless people around the world. Did they all become hopeless all of a sudden, or did they have any choice? Understanding this is complex. However, I believe terrible helplessness at some point of time makes people hopeless. If they ever had any other choice, they would opt for it!

[caption id="attachment_272" align="aligncenter" width="269" caption="Image from www.emotionalcompetency.com"][/caption]

This is a song (as well as the whole movie) portrays the helplessness of six different people who are close friends. I have been listening to the songs of this movie, Kaante, since it was released, and I never got bored. Oh, but I felt somewhere I am missing one song out of the movie (which I had heard a lot sometime) and upon Googling for the lyrics, I got it back! Do not know how but I accidentally seem to have deleted this song back. Maybe, because it was Punjabi and I did not even get an essence of it then. It is 6 years that I am listening to the songs of this movie, but I happened to watch this movie only yesterday night on Star Gold.

I am yet to come out with any better movie that portrays the helplessness of people in personal lives so precisely. All actors were great, but Mahesh Manjrekar (originally a director) stood different as an actor in this, and so did Sanjay Dutt. Kumar Gaurav and Amitabh were great as usual. Suniel Shetty and Lucky Ali did not have many dialogues as always but their body language spoke a lot.

As such, this movie is ‘inspired from’ Reservoir Dogs, but many have told me that this one is better presented. Whatever, this post is about the song and not the movie. The song will show the helpless situations of the six friends in the video itself. I found it touching. It is originally in Punjabi, and I got it translated from a Punjabi speaking friend.

I wish I should have heard it daily for the last 4 years!

By the way, this song appears in the movie when Amitabh’s wife (played by Rati Agnihotri) is about to die and Amitabh wishes to get her back. He has no one to live for except her. He is asking for his own thing to God, but he cannot get it. The initial lines are in Punjabi, next two in the brackets are in Hindi, and the last two are in English. If you know any one of the three languages, you will understand! :D

Yaar Mangiyasi Rabba Tetho Ro ke, Kedi Main Khudaai Mang Laayi
Mar Jaan De Kisi Da Mainu Ho Ke
Kedi Main Khudaai
(Yaar manga tha Rabba Tujhse Ro Ke, Kaunsi Maine Khudaai Maang Li
Mar Jaane De Kisi Ka Mujhe Ho Ke, Kaunsi Khudaai)

I only asked for my dear (wife), I did not ask for your (God’s) kingdom

Let me die for the sake of my dear, I am not asking for your (God’s) kingdom...

Kinniya Duawan Mangga, Koyi Vi Na Manni Jaaye
Kaanu Roz Roz deve sanu dhokhe
Kedi Mein Khudai
(Kitni Duayeein Mangu, Koi bhi Na Mani Jaaye (or sunee jaye)
Kyun Roz Roz De Mujhe Dhokhe, Kaunsi Khudaai)

How many times I’ve prayed, not a single one is reaching you,

Why give me trauma everyday? I did not ask for your kingdom…

Pyaar Mera, Kar Rabba Mere Hawale, Yaar Bin Dil Mera Kaun Sambhale
Cheez Apni Hi Mangi Maine Tuhjse, Kedi Mein Paarai Manglaayi
Mar Jaan De Kisi Da Mainu Ho Ke, Kedi Main Khudaai
(mera pyar, kar mere hawale rabba, yaar ke bina kaun dil sambhale
cheez apni hi mangi thi maine tujhse, kaunsi parrai (kisi aur ki) mang li
Mar jaane de mujhe kisi ka hoke ..kaunsi khudai....)

Give me my love (wife) back, who will look after me without my dear?

I have asked for something of my own, did I ask for anything of others?

Let me die for the sake of my dear, I am not asking for your (God’s) kingdom...

Mera Ye Naseeba, Hai Meri Nahin Sunta
Sapno Ke Jaal Yeh To, Roz Roz Bunta
Kabhi Sun Le Tu Meri Bhi Duhaai, Kedi Mein Khudai
(meri ye kistman , hai meri nahi sunti Sapno Ke Jaal Yeh To, Roz Roz Bunti
Kabhi Sun Le Tu Meri Bhi Duhaai, Kaunsi Maine Khudai)

O my luck, doesn’t even listen to me, weaving out dreams of its own daily and daily,

Sometime listen to my two lines of prayer, I am not asking for your (God’s) kingdom.....

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 20:14:00 +0000

Yaar Mangiyasi Rabba Tetho Ro ke, Kedi Main Khudaai Mang Laayi
Mar Jaan De Kisi Da Mainu Ho Ke
Kedi Main Khudaai
(Yaar manga tha Rabba Tujhse Ro Ke, Kaunsi Maine Khudaai Maang Li
Mar Jaane De Kisi Ka Mujhe Ho Ke, Kaunsi Khudaai)

I only asked for my dear (wife), I did not ask for your (God’s) kingdom

Let me die for the sake of my dear, I am not asking for your (God’s) kingdom...

Kinniya Duawan Mangga, Koyi Vi Na Manni Jaaye
Kaanu Roz Roz deve sanu dhokhe
Kedi Mein Khudai
(Kitni Duayeein Mangu, Koi bhi Na Mani Jaaye (or sunee jaye)
Kyun Roz Roz De Mujhe Dhokhe, Kaunsi Khudaai)

How many times I’ve prayed, not a single one is reaching you,

Why give me trauma everyday? I did not ask for your kingdom…

Pyaar Mera, Kar Rabba Mere Hawale, Yaar Bin Dil Mera Kaun Sambhale
Cheez Apni Hi Mangi Maine Tuhjse, Kedi Mein Paarai Manglaayi
Mar Jaan De Kisi Da Mainu Ho Ke, Kedi Main Khudaai
(mera pyar, kar mere hawale rabba, yaar ke bina kaun dil sambhale
cheez apni hi mangi thi maine tujhse, kaunsi parrai (kisi aur ki) mang li
Mar jaane de mujhe kisi ka hoke ..kaunsi khudai....)

Give me my love (wife) back, who will look after me without my dear?

I have asked for something of my own, did I ask for anything of others?

Let me die for the sake of my dear, I am not asking for your (God’s) kingdom...

Mera Ye Naseeba, Hai Meri Nahin Sunta
Sapno Ke Jaal Yeh To, Roz Roz Bunta
Kabhi Sun Le Tu Meri Bhi Duhaai, Kedi Mein Khudai
(meri ye kistman , hai meri nahi sunti Sapno Ke Jaal Yeh To, Roz Roz Bunti
Kabhi Sun Le Tu Meri Bhi Duhaai, Kaunsi Maine Khudai)

O my luck, doesn’t even listen to me, weaving out dreams of its own daily and daily,

Sometime listen to my two lines of prayer, I am not asking for your (God’s) kingdom.....

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:34:00 +0000

Okay, I am back to post after a long time. I had lost internet connection for some time, courtesy rains and courtesy BSNL. Well, I do not want to write anything with facts and stats, analyses, on economy, business, politics or whatever this time, or rather from now onwards. I have not even been in touch about current affairs from some time, as all the time I am busy enjoying and watching movies.

This last month, I watched some four movies, starting from Paying Guest, then Terminator Salvation, and finally Transformer: The Revenge of the Fallen. After these three, I watched a movie named Gunda. Most people call it a cheap B – grade flick, and adding to it the fact that Mithun – da has acted in it, most elite watchers leave it there. Nevertheless, then even most people believed that the earth is flat and it turned out wrong, right? This is a logical fallacy called as Argumentum ad populum.

Right from the start until the end, the movie is full of rhymes, and one cannot stop oneself from enjoying it! The comments about the movie on IMDB seemed great, and I do not think any B – grade movie has ever achieved any feat like that. In Transformers, the hero is saved so many times that it becomes hard to believe the stuff we watch. However, in Gunda, the villain has to save himself some 200 times! There are aplenty of unbelievable stunts, but after I saw Transformers, do not know why but I found it less stupid!

Overall, it is a great comedy pack with action that would put behind the Terminator (s). Caution, it is to be viewed only by above 18, and I would rather not recommended it to females because of the tremendous cheap obscenity. Ishrat Ali was at his best! The names of characters are Lamboo Ataa (played by Ishrat Ali), Pote (Mohan Joshi), Bulla (Mukesh Rishi), Chutiya (Shakti Kapoor), Ibu Hatela (Harish Patel), etc. Noteworthy fact is that these actors have acted in many quality movies, even by 1998. There is everything from fighting with bare hands to even rocket launchers. I think this movie has even sparked an inspiration for a video game series where Mithoon would be the protagonist, on a mission to kill the villains one by one.

These are some of the dialogues from the movie and I believe they are the greatest in any movie I ever saw! And they were all delivered at some serious scenes in the movie, which makes it all the more enjoyable! I think the actors couldn't have stopped themselves from laughing.. Wonder to whom the Best Dialogue Award went in 1998... You need to watch the actual movie to enjoy these and some other great ones! Comment below and let me know which one you liked. :D

Bheegi hui cigarette kabhi jalegi nahi,

Aur yeh tay hain ki, teri maut ki tarikh kabhi talegi nahin!

Aaj 1 tarikh hain, 2,4,6,8 aur dus,

Ab bass, dekhna main hota hoon kya tass se mass,

Jab train aati hain tab jaise station kaapta hain,

Waise meri khauff ke bukhaar se, tumhare andar ki hamdardi bhi kaapne lagegi

Jahan dekho wahan jurm hain, jahan dekho wahan paap,

Insaan aaj ke to hain, jurm aur paap me shaitaanon ke bhi baap

Mera naam hai Ibu Hatela,

Maa meri chudail ki cheli, baap mera shaitaan ka chela,

Khayega kela?

Mera naam hai pote,

Hum who hain joh apne baap ke bhi nahi hote,

Mera naam hai bulla,

Main rakhta hoon khulla,

Are a kundan,

Lagaaungi tuzko chandan,

Aur bhejungi tuze isi hawai jahaaj se London!

Inspector kale,

Ab lagnewaale,

Tere mooh pe, maut ke taale,

Kitna bada risk hain,

Teri maut ki date fixed hain

Are main to ek nariyal jaisa hoon,

Jo bahar se garam par andar se bada naram hoon,

Muze tum jaise garibon par badi hamdardi hain,

Hum samaaj ki karte hain seva,

Aur badle me dete hai gundon ko thoda mewa,

Hat jaao varna phaad ke rakh dunga,

Saamne ayaa koi toh gaad ke rakh dunga

Bhaiyya, bhaiyya maine kya bura kiya,

Kisiki ijjat lutna bura hota hain kya?

Hum sab Ravan milke ab tuz jaise Ram ko maarnewale hain,

Itihaas hi nahi balki sabkuch ab se ulta likha jaayega aur padha jaayega

Are abhi to tere tube me light ayaa thee,

Aur Shankar ne to tera fuse hi udaa diya,

Waah, khote sikke ne kya baat hain boli,

Boli toh aise hai boli jaise ho koi bandook ki goli!

Are bulla,

tune khullam khulla,

Lamboo Ataa ko maut ke tawe me senk diya,

Uski laash ko Worli ke gutter me phek diya?

Villain: A kaun hai be tu?

Hero: Main hoon jurm se nafrat karnewaalaa,

sharifon ke liye jyoti, gundo ke liye jwaalaa,

Villain: Ab rakh dunga tuze banakar maut ke mooh ka niwaalaa, tere seene me gaad dunga maut ka bhaalaa,

Edited To Add: The 1998 Best Movie Dialogue was awarded to 'Dil To Pagal Hai' which I honestly think is a joke. On request of Amit Simant, there is one more dialogue added.

Munni meri bahan Munni, Ooth,

To Tu Mar Gayi?

Lamboo Ataa ne tuze lamba kar diya?

Maachis ki tili ko khamba kar diya?

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 13:34:00 +0000

Bheegi hui cigarette kabhi jalegi nahi,

Aur yeh tay hain ki, teri maut ki tarikh kabhi talegi nahin!

Aaj 1 tarikh hain, 2,4,6,8 aur dus,

Ab bass, dekhna main hota hoon kya tass se mass,

Jab train aati hain tab jaise station kaapta hain,

Waise meri khauff ke bukhaar se, tumhare andar ki hamdardi bhi kaapne lagegi

Jahan dekho wahan jurm hain, jahan dekho wahan paap,

Insaan aaj ke to hain, jurm aur paap me shaitaanon ke bhi baap

Mera naam hai Ibu Hatela,

Maa meri chudail ki cheli, baap mera shaitaan ka chela,

Khayega kela?

Mera naam hai pote,

Hum who hain joh apne baap ke bhi nahi hote,

Mera naam hai bulla,

Main rakhta hoon khulla,

Are a kundan,

Lagaaungi tuzko chandan,

Aur bhejungi tuze isi hawai jahaaj se London!

Inspector kale,

Ab lagnewaale,

Tere mooh pe, maut ke taale,

Kitna bada risk hain,

Teri maut ki date fixed hain

Are main to ek nariyal jaisa hoon,

Jo bahar se garam par andar se bada naram hoon,

Muze tum jaise garibon par badi hamdardi hain,

Hum samaaj ki karte hain seva,

Aur badle me dete hai gundon ko thoda mewa,

Hat jaao varna phaad ke rakh dunga,

Saamne ayaa koi toh gaad ke rakh dunga

Bhaiyya, bhaiyya maine kya bura kiya,

Kisiki ijjat lutna bura hota hain kya?

Hum sab Ravan milke ab tuz jaise Ram ko maarnewale hain,

Itihaas hi nahi balki sabkuch ab se ulta likha jaayega aur padha jaayega

Are abhi to tere tube me light ayaa thee,

Aur Shankar ne to tera fuse hi udaa diya,

Waah, khote sikke ne kya baat hain boli,

Boli toh aise hai boli jaise ho koi bandook ki goli!

Are bulla,

tune khullam khulla,

Lamboo Ataa ko maut ke tawe me senk diya,

Uski laash ko Worli ke gutter me phek diya?

Villain: A kaun hai be tu?

Hero: Main hoon jurm se nafrat karnewaalaa,

sharifon ke liye jyoti, gundo ke liye jwaalaa,

Villain: Ab rakh dunga tuze banakar maut ke mooh ka niwaalaa, tere seene me gaad dunga maut ka bhaalaa,

Edited To Add: The 1998 Best Movie Dialogue was awarded to 'Dil To Pagal Hai' which I honestly think is a joke. On request of Amit Simant, there is one more dialogue added.

Munni meri bahan Munni, Ooth,

To Tu Mar Gayi?

Lamboo Ataa ne tuze lamba kar diya?

Maachis ki tili ko khamba kar diya?

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 08:06:00 +0000

Economic recession has hit countries the entire world hard. It included even the most booming ones like India and China, where the estimated growth was not reached. In case of India, it happened to achieve lesser growth than the expected even though the economy did expand. So, a question remains which countries survived the economic recession best?

Answer – Australia

Servcorp carried out the survey. The countries that were worst hit were all the Western ones. The unemployment is growing high in the developed West, whereas it went up even in the Third World Arab countries, which are traditionally having a high unemployment. In the survey too, the list does not have any name in the top 10 except for Canada.

Image Credit : Digital Inspiration

It seems having a not – so – open economy helps. The external diseases do not hit hard enough, but conversely when the world economy booms, the external growth does not come in fast too. Followed by Australia were China and India/Singapore. New Zealand stands at ninth stop. Many names are from the Eastern world. Clearly, this is the century where rise of the Asian countries phenomenon can be seen. In his book, ‘The Post – American World’, Fareed Zakaria talks in detail about the phenomenon which he calls ‘The Rise of The Rest’. It means the rise of other powers apart from America.

The 19^th century belonged to the British, the 20^th century belonged to the Americans, and it seems the 21^st century belongs to Asians!

As for the major western powers, there were all booming when the world markets were booming. The effect of recession they felt was also high when the global recession took place.

It is not so easy to say whether an open economy helps or not. In most cases, an open economy only helps. If the whole world opted for open economies, well, the world would be much more free, peaceful and prosperous then. Countries indulging into free trade do not have any skirmishes or any problems with each other. That is the beauty of free trade.

A British politician, Richard Cobden once (1857) said:

"Free Trade is God's diplomacy and there is no other certain way of uniting people in the bonds of peace."

[Source]

At this time of recession, Obama’s policies are turning out more protectionists. Pranab Mukherji, earlier Foreign Minister of India had also accused him for the same. This same mistake was done by the Western countries back in ‘70s and the outcome was nothing good. What different can we predict in case of America?

Coming to the survey, when people in Australia were asked which countries do they find surviving the recession best, Australia was the answer from their side as well!

Still, I do have a doubt. The survey was carried out by Servcorp. It seems an Australian based firm, and if you observe, the countries that you find there in the survey list are very close to the ones where the firm has its locations!

Now, that is quite fuzzy, but still I would rather rely this as Australian Dollar is hitting high from last eight months even in the times of recession.

The survey is can be found by clicking here.

The top countries best surviving the global recession:

1st - Australia
2nd - China
3rd - India and Singapore (equal)
5th - Hong Kong
6th - Canada
7th - Japan and Qatar (equal)
9th - New Zealand
10th - Malaysia, Sweden and Vietnam (equal)

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 08:06:00 +0000

The 19^th century belonged to the British, the 20^th century belonged to the Americans, and it seems the 21^st century belongs to Asians!

"Free Trade is God's diplomacy and there is no other certain way of uniting people in the bonds of peace."

[Source]

The top countries best surviving the global recession:

1st - Australia
2nd - China
3rd - India and Singapore (equal)
5th - Hong Kong
6th - Canada
7th - Japan and Qatar (equal)
9th - New Zealand
10th - Malaysia, Sweden and Vietnam (equal)

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Tue, 26 May 2009 20:13:00 +0000

Never before have I seen a Marathi movie as good as this. No, I generally do not watch Marathi movies, and the number of them focusing on the urban middle class audience is less. This was one is a gem of a movie I must say. It is released at a right time, as the media hype over the local politics was high some time back. Mahesh Manjrekar is excellent in all he does, be it writing, directing or acting. Some of the incidents in Shivaji’s life were very excellently correlated with scenes in the movie and the theme is about a common person voicing opinion in politics. The movie is somewhere similar to Nayak only that this one has a high focus on the Marathi cause and people. As a matter of fact and coincidence, the protagonist in the movie Nayak: The Real Hero was also Shivaji Rao (played by Anil Kapoor). Nevertheless, the presentation is awesome. Before the time comes that saying ‘I am proud of being Marathi’ means your affiliation with some right – wing political party, a movie that brings of sense of pride among the people was certainly the need of the hour.

[caption id="attachment_250" align="aligncenter" width="320" caption="A movie still from Mee Shivaji Raje Bhosle Boltoy"][/caption]

The protagonist (Sachin Khedekar) of the movie is a clerk in a bank in south Mumbai, from a typical middle class Marathi household with two kids. The son (Abhijit Kelkar) is a computer-engineering aspirant, and the daughter (Priya Bapat) is an aspiring actor. The protagonist is more like a loser living in the heartland of Mumbai, in a thwarting big old bungalow. The movie is all about his personal experiences of being discriminated as a Ghaati (a term used for lower middle class Maharashtrians), the loser feeling that he gets and the encounters with a builder (Vidyadhar Joshi) who wants to vacate his bungalow. The builder intends to build a multi – storey complex at the place of his bungalow, and send Mr. Bhonsle to Badlapur, a town in the outskirts of Mumbai along with the gift of a car. The drama is all about this fight. Typically, a middle class person would not go for any fight with a builder who already has contacts with goons and the government offices. Nevertheless, Mr. Bhonsle despite being the kind of a looser he is goes on to fight against the builder when Shivaji starts appearing to him the Lage Raho Munnabhai style. The fight is no that smooth, there are wonderful vicissitudes midway.

When his son is attacked, he refrains from the fight anymore as the matter has reached his home, but then followed by a powada, (a form of Marathi song) his imaginary Shivaji starts motivating him again. The fight between Shivaji and Afzal Khan is presented in between the powada very wonderfully. He rises up again, and then there is the episode when his whole family is kidnapped, and again the imaginary Shivaji comes up with another incidence.

The 10 – minute speech on politics is a good one. The important point that politics is dirty because we people are dirty is a notable one. After all, it is rule by the people. The discrimination faced in the first half, and answered in the second half is a must-watch. This movie will bring your pride of being a Marathi up, and on a very positive note. This movie does not look for bringing up a Marathi spirit by any common hatred (the way dictators look for doing), but by binding of some common goals. This film does not have any racial slurs, or anything against any community.

However, I do feel the case of the protagonist is somewhere exaggerated; it does not represent the common middle class Marathi man. The middle class Marathis too are having their own achievements and a decent education, openness to modernity and modesty. The average middle class Marathis are not that naïve as much as shown in the movie (my personal perception). We can say this one is for the naïve, who has not waked up for the caliber he has, and the opportunities in front of him in MH itself.

The dialogues are very exact, with those in the first half being a little on the losing side, whereas those in the second half were glorifying. A must watch for the Marathi pseudo – liberals and the extreme right – wingers (hoping both will have a shift in their opinion).

The best part of the movie was the presentation of the story. The way incidents of real life of Shivaji are connected with the story of the movie are something worth seeing. This one will not make you to give any jingoistic ‘jai Bhavani, jai Shivaji’ chant, but one filled with a meaning!

My rating: ****

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Tue, 26 May 2009 20:13:00 +0000

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Wed, 20 May 2009 10:45:00 +0000

This was a post return prior to the elections. Due to connectivity issues, I am uploading it now. The elections are over by now and the result is also declared. Will soon come up with a post on the post - poll scenario. Take this as a pre - poll scenario. Thanks.

With all the media focus on voting, I was sure many young voters would queue for voting at the booths. Nevertheless, the things turned otherwise. We have one of the least voter turn – out this election. If this trend is considered, the time is not so far, when we have some narcissist taking over the country and there would be no elections! Bal Thackeray put it saying, voting should be compulsory as if political manipulations would not stop if we go to the other extreme of making voting compulsory.

[caption id="attachment_246" align="aligncenter" width="351" caption="Image Credit: The Hindu Business Line"][/caption]

It is quite a sad fact to say but the governance and the kind of politicians we get is an outcome of the thinking of public. In a democracy, the government is a direct output of the wish of the public. It is after all rule of the people. It is, we, ourselves to blame for the apathy, anarchy that has quite groped in. At some 65% literacy and at 50% people living below at $2 per day, is it a surprise to see what a banana republic India is? This is a common problem ailing the III World democracies. Nevertheless, what we should be thankful for is that people have elected politicians quite wisely despite all this. India has not seen any military coup; India has not seen any dictator overthrowing power (except for Indira Gandhi’s 22 months) and serious attempts to overthrow democracy at present are negligible. In the long term, democracy always pays. If one looks at the journey of the Far Eastern nations, and how they come up after their independence from absolute poverty, no one would stop giving the credit to democracy. It is a thousand times better option than a monarchy, for any monarchy has high unemployment. Look at the unemployment statistics of any Arab country, from Tunisia to Jordan, and even Iran (which happens to be a Persian country and not Arab), the official unemployment figures there aren’t less than 10%, whereas the real figure is always higher than what the data these monarchies provide.

As far as Indian elections go, there are two main contestants. Congress and the BJP. Third Front or other parasites do not have any chance to take over. Polls until now show that results favor Congress. Well, that is a good sign. It is the lesser evil of the two. Lesser evil, but still evil.

Both parties have their own strengths. Congress has some good economists like P. Chidambaram, Manmohan Singh (who is likely to become the PM again), Montek Singh Ahluwalia of the Planning Commission, Sheila Dikshit in Delhi, and there is this recent addition of Shashi Tharoor that is very likely to work in favor of Congress. This party’s strength lies in the fact that they have shown good economic stability even in times of recession, controlled inflation, and a decent growth. The single biggest impressive thing that this govt. did was the Indo – US Nuclear Deal. Manmohan has a wise brain and has the guts to talk tough things at times. There is no person better than him who would give India a good stance, geopolitically. On Mahmoud Ahmedijenad’s visit, he clearly taunted on Bush saying, ‘no one advise on two of the world’s ancient civilizations’, when Bush was dictating terms to India, whereas he had kindly said to George Bush before that ‘India loves you’. He had the audacity to stand very firm on Indo – US Nuclear Deal despite all the petty opposition from Communists and Advani. He signed the Nuclear Deal and was bold enough not to visit Iran for an Iran – Pakistan – India pipeline that Iran is very curious to go for with India. The proposed IPI would go from Baluchistan in south – West Pakistan and no other information is required further. When almost no country of all the countries from OIC was not of any help to India, post 26/11 and were passively in support of Pakistan, he came out with a statement, ‘the entire civilized world is in threat from terrorism’.

Where this Govt. lacks is on many fronts. It is a pseudo – secular government, there is no doubt about it, but still a better choice than communal Advani. The border with Bangladesh needs to be sealed urgently. There entry into India has caused many a bomb blasts, especially all those that we see happening in Assam, North East, the growing slums of illegal Bangladeshi migrants in Mumbai and various other issues. But, a smooth entry in India with Rs. 5000 that gives them Indian citizenship ensures vote bank for Congress. Even Manmohan Singh did not take any tough measure for this. It is true that his stance on terrorism is soft, but the use of more technology emphasized by him would surely give out good returns over time. It is not an easy task to manage a banana republic ands a billion plus country.

Regarding BJP, there are not many good prospects, as Advani is the proposed PM. Had it been Modi, well, the whole of young India was sure to vote him up. There are many pseudo – liberals in India, that is a problem with Indian youth, but all of them would certainly vote for him if one sees the tremendous change that he has demonstrated in Gujarat. Right from cutting the funding of terrorism without harassing people, every step hat he took is admirable. Something like Vibrant Gujarat at the India level would make great sense. Suhel Seth was one of his most ardent critiques, but his change of opinion is worth noting. His Financial Times article is revealing in this regards. Modi had clearly said in an interview that if he is found guilty in Godhra incident, he should be hanged to death. Delhi would not have stopped hanging him were he to be guilty, but you never know the truth. He has shown a good turn around, even gave order to raze some 1000 temples in Gujarat, and distanced himself from VHP after the incident. There is no looking back for him since then.

BJP has a very good record of accomplishment if we consider their regime of 1998 – 2004. India started to boom truly in that time. Their infrastructure projects were pioneering. All their proposed projects literally stopped under INC, and 2007 was termed the slowest year for all infrastructure projects across India. Under the BJP – Shiv Sena state of MH, a completely new Mumbai – Pune expressway was built on state expenditure. A proposal for Mumbai – Nagpur maglev train would have took off had it been there for the second term. The real reason why they lost is only urban focus.

BJP’s stand as a political party may be centrist with right – wing affiliations, but their leaders at present are pathetic. If control of the nation is given to Advani, he is bound to destroy the nation in the best possible manner. Playing the Ayodhya card has cost BJP very badly. It is time they should understand that divisive politics, communal politics has no place in Indian public’s priority.

What an average person needs is more than $2 per day.

A good thing about leaders of all non – Congress leaders, is that they have toiled to come this far, that toil may include rapes, assassinations, murders, etc. but nevertheless they weren’t born with a silver spoon in their mouth. In case of INC, we find half – monarchy of the Gandhi – Nehru dynasty. Now, that must stop. People like Man Mohan Singh should be given another chance, rather than any Gandhi.

The manifestos of various parties had economic growth on their agenda even at the state level, like, someone of Andhra Pradesh who revamped Hyderabad (a long time back), Modi of Gujarat, and all ministers in MH and even the new dictator Raj Thackeray promises the same for voters in Mumbai. That on one hand, and what one would find happening in other part of the nation is a party promising ‘removal of English and computers in government offices’, only to keep the region backwards forever. This was said by some party in the state of UP, the most highly populated state. This will only add fuel to the fire for others in MH, Goa, Assam and Delhi for the voice they have raised against hordes of Bhaiyyas entering in.

Populist measures need a break when the public is highly illiterate, uneducated, and does not know what is good for them. With India’s literacy and middle – classes growing, let us hope that the new majority of voters push the politicians towards newer issues that would benefit all.

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Wed, 20 May 2009 10:45:00 +0000

noreply@blogger.com (Ameya Waghmare) — Wed, 20 May 2009 09:53:00 +0000

After the success of his other books like ‘Lexus and the Olive Tree’, ‘Longitudes and Attitudes’ and more recently, ‘The World is Flat’, the new theme the New York Times columnist has got in is global warming. Global warming is a problem common all throughout the world. Well, for one it is real. There is an astonishingly high number of people for whom it took too late to understand that ‘global warming’ is not any political innovation. It is already happening. Your experiences in May (in case you are in Northern Hemisphere) give you a receipt of this repeatedly. The 2006 European Wave that took some 35, 000 lives is one big receipt. Of course, Hurricane Katrina and 2004 Tsunami were other that affected other parts of the world.

[caption id="" align="alignnone" width="468" caption="Image Courtesy: Treehugger.com (A Mirage in Finland)"][/caption]

Globalization or rather flattening of the world has brought up many a people from poverty into middle classes. More and more people coming into middle classes marks a new phenomenon and that is, ‘flat meets crowded’. The case with world is such that it doesn’t matter how many people live on earth, what matters is the number of people living a typical American Dream, where the energy consumption is high. Fighting global warming is quite an urgent issue, but Thomas Friedman leaves no bone in elaborating his well researched points that can help economically as well.

There are five major reasons that Friedman gives in his books: Energy and natural resources supply and demand, petro - dictatorship, climate change, energy poverty and biodiversity loss. There are chapters dedicated to almost each of this term in the first half of the book.

Supply and Demand: The oil price rise that we saw in May 2008, when oil peaked at $147, was driven by the imbalance between supply and demand. This was not about geopolitics as it was in case of the 1970s oil embargo. This was purely because the demand had grown, from China and India and from other developing countries.

Petro – Dictatorships: This is another important issue in combating global warming and in coming up with alternative energy / fuels. Oil as a resource, is found with mostly all authoritarian regimes of the world. Saudi Arabia, Russia (which is a complete autocratic state at high oil prices), Nigeria (democracy was best there at oil $10 in 1995), Venezuela, etc. Graph of oil price vs. freedom is given in the book.

Climate Change: ‘Global warming’ is kind of a misnomer. In fact, it is ‘global weirding ’or rather‘climate crises’. Al Gore had first called it global warming, but later on he named his website of his documentary ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ as www.climatecrisis.net .The term climate crisis describes the term more aptly.

Energy Poverty: This is all about load shedding/blackout and I am experiencing it greatly! Yes, this problem is grave. Developing countries are rising, and so is the demand for electricity. Blackout is common all across Africa, especially Zimbabwe and South Africa, and in India as well. Renewable energy is necessary now, also for environmental concerns, and for business concerns. The country that will come up with something substantial in energy technology is going to lead the world next. US and China both are doing well in this regards, and Obama administration has paid heed to this pressing issue. Can you imagine a day without electricity? No computers, no internet!!

Biodiversity Loss: This mainly deals with the deforestation that is taking place at a very fast speed in Brazil, and Indonesia, two of the countries in the world that have claim to one of the biggest and dense forests. Different species have started becoming extinct, and let us hope human race is not one of them!

This revolution, green revolution is unlike other. There is not a single revolution in the history of the earth, in which no one got hurt. In green revolution, everyone is enjoying. It is going to help us all as it is a question of human survival in the end. It is rather a green party.

The second part of the book is well researched and provides solutions to the American industry on what to do next. It gives a 7 – page example of an experiment that was carried out in Washington, US on efficient electricity utilization. It saved electricity by 70%! This is no exaggeration. The model is described in detail in the book. It is all about a smart grid to be used, in every home as well in every block.

After the recession in 1991 that gave birth to IT it is the turn of ET after this global recession equivalent to The Great Depression. It will make a good entertainment to see which country gets a major share in it. As of now, US and China have the highest chance of getting it, though Israel has a good chance too owing to a successful electric car experiment there. India has all resources but no political will.

The world at present is all about going green.