Old Monk

A life of protest

2021-05-07T14:56:00.006+05:30

The times are tough. Despite reaping the fruits of the plethora of privileges and having mastered the blessed skill of ignorance, living has become tough. While the effects of the scorching virus sending me into an endless cough fits are one reason, the major share of applause for breaking my spirit goes to the news I watch and hear. Like any other person in this giant country, I too wake up to news of people dying off breathlessness and lack of basic life-sustaining needs. Once dead, the bodies are kept, dragged and tossed around until they find a space to burn them. Like most of you reading this, I am broken as well. From the horrifying pictures of people carrying the dead bodies of their loved ones to the allegations of our supreme leader being an ignorant peacock, I have cried numerous times in the past few days. The lack of hope and “all is lost” is everything I hear inside my head.

There are times when a human truly accepts defeat and there is nothing more horrifying than this. I am an ignorant man who is only starting to live now but has already come close to this point a couple of times. From personal loss to accepting that I will have to helplessly watch others die before my eyes, my will to survive has taken a few good blows. Being an easily manipulative and vulnerable person, such moments truly seem to take a toll on me. Only a day ago, I had such a life-altering moment and this time, the point of inspiration was a movie.

I watch movies when I am happy or sad. Every time I lose control of my emotions, I boot up my laptop and watch a movie as I believe that it is one thing that truly grounds me. During the movie, there is nothing that matters to me and this form of escapism is everything that has kept me going during the few tough times I have faced in the past. Yesterday, I had begun thinking about the COVID crisis and by the time I hit rock bottom thanks to my pessimistic thought process regarding the topic, I also sustained a coughing fit and had to somehow calm myself down. I fired up my laptop and watched the Dhanush starrer Karnan. Two and half hours of pure magic. As the film ended and names of the cast came up on screen, I am in tears trying to just accept what I had just saw.

Mari Selvaraj is a humane filmmaker and his films are no less of a protest. Showcasing problems of the marginalized, he has often made us realize that there is an overlooked stratum in our country that continues to fight even today. Karnan is no magnum opus but is in fact a mirror to the lows of life many people have sunk to in the past for others to walk now. Rumored to be inspired from the life of a certain real-life person known as Melavalavu Murugeshan, Karnan’s fight for something as basic as his identity is indeed heartbreaking. The movie was the right one at the right time reminding me of the fact that there are people who fought and who never chose to give up. While I sit in the comfort of my room and wonder why the country is corrupt, the point that someone like Karnan lived in the past and didn’t even have the rights I take for granted is indeed a tight slap asking me to wake up.

As mentioned before, I am easily manipulated and the stories of such movies often leave me with the motivation I have been looking for. Turning the pessimistic clock around and looking at the glass half full, I realize that life for some has been their biggest protests and I walk free today because they had their heads raised. This very thought is everything that drives me at the moment and makes me write this piece, which will mostly be of no use for you but a reminder for myself that life must go on. A hard reminder that however worse things seem, it can be changed.

Trump and the Liars republic

2020-11-05T12:53:00.006+05:30

“US Election 2020: Biden inches closer to a majority as Trump sues 3 states”- This, without a doubt, is one of the most saddening headlines today.

Running US President Donald Trump is known for many things, lying being one of them. In earlier October, Washington Post had released an article with the headline “Trump downing in his own lies”, as appealing as the headline sounds, bizarre is the fact that its true. From the day of his incubation to the last public appeal speech, he did nothing but flaunt his good deeds and lie. So much so, that voters from US’ swing states came forward to acknowledge that they feel “sorry” that their neighbors are falling for lies by a candidate.

Let’s not lose the point here. Donald Trump served as the US president for the past 4 years and not everything has been bad. He has done good deeds, as a leader of his people. He has worked on the tax reforms and he has ensured his people with more employment, among the few other decisions that favor his country and his people. But, the fact that he is a business tycoon before he is the prez is something we can’t oversee. The tax fraud allegations over him while he was drafting a new tax reform for his country, is simply mind baffling. This is a man who in the early 2000s would do anything and everything for public attention, growing his empire. He was everywhere.

Decades down the line, some even think that his wish to become the president even came from his liking to be in the limelight. It is a hard decision to deny this certain allegation without considering for a second. Trump during his tenure was the “boring man” in any giving group of presidents. Don’t get me wrong, he was interesting for his followers, as well as the media but look at him from a peer president’s view. He is the man who went to almost all leaders’ meet and hijack the event to boast about him and his country. Let’s not forget the time, when Canadian premier Justin Trudeau was seen to simply sneak away from Trump’s company and was later caught gossiping with French premiere Emmanuel Macron and a few others on how much Trump talks and bores him. This man leads America.

Let’s keep aside his earlier doings or ‘history’ away and focus on what he is doing now. Suing states for misconduct and publicly appealing how the election is ‘rigged’ is his tactic to go to. It is sorry to see, the very person who swore in to protect the country and its system, destroy the very things he promised to protect.

The big man even took it to Twitter and Facebook who had already said they will look upon and sanction those who try to declare early victory, to keep the elections of such problems. A certain scenario the tech giants prepared for when considering threats to democracy in the lead-up to the election. But somebody clearly doesn’t understand the points laid and that somebody leads the country for the past 4 years. We all know the intriguing relationship between Twitter and Trump. This is the nth time, a tweet from Trump is in question, yet nobody is surprised.

Early Wednesday morning, Trump wrote, “we are up BIG, but they are trying to STEAL the election. We will never let them do it. Votes cannot be cast after the Polls are closed!”

Twitter issued a warning and hid the post almost immediately, while it remained unlabeled longer on Facebook; the company added a label that read, “Final results may be different from initial vote counts, as ballot counting will continue for days or weeks.”

In a Trump Raj, this is a normal day, but in the history of US elections, it is a dark one. It was enough he tweeted that Trump took it to television. In what was a historically dangerous moment of television, he came live in the middle of the night and repeated that the elections were over and he ‘won’. His lying had passed the line, that news channels like NBC, MSNBC, and CNBC were forced to cut the speech short in-between to remind its viewers that Trump had not won anything yet; ABC News cut into Vice President Mike Pence's speech immediately after. The only thing good about this was that it was done in the middle of the night, and half of his intended audience was fast asleep.

It was that rare occasion where something the president did was simultaneously stunning yet not unexpected. But it was more than that. It is the worst thing Trump has said on-camera during his presidency, and that’s saying something- his lies will never stop. He had to intention to stop and went on to spill a few more historic (emphasizing the word to the maximum) blunders.

“This is a fraud on the American public,” Trump incorrectly said around 12:30 a.m. Arizona time. “This is an embarrassment to our country. We were getting ready to win this election. Frankly, we did win this election.”

This, of course, is a lie. Or lies.

This happened last night and the news channels simply snubbed it. In a sensible move, the election shows on television didn’t pursue it much and most of the world didn’t actually see/hear such a thing happened, but the damage had already been done. Cut to today morning, Trump protestors have already marched to the election offices and are in want to stop further counting. They believed their leader who said that the results coming out are fake. Now, this is a country that abides by its system. It is not the greatest to follow, but they and one man, in fact, their president over a night, and over a speech decided to put doubts into people’s minds over it. Of all the things Trump has done during his “bully career”, this was the worst and most self-destructive one.

Have you seen a child cry while losing in a sport? Well, a real-life president is behaving like one and we can only wonder what another 4 years under him will be like.

Arnab's arrest: Freedom of speech violation or personal vendetta

2020-11-04T13:05:00.001+05:30

"There can be no existence of free citizens if the news media cannot speak, and therefore journalistic freedom lies at the core of freedom of expression, but it is not absolute,” said the Supreme Court bench comprising of Justices DY Chandrachud and MR Shah in May 2020.

The observation was made while asking Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami to move the competent court to quash an FIR for a news show on Palghar mob-lynching. The transfer of the probe from Maharashtra Police to CBI was refused by the bench, however, it extended some relief to Goswami by providing him protection for the coming three weeks from the hearing.

Today, around five months later, Arnab Goswami is arrested by the Maharashtra police (in a suicide case of an architect), and the discussions are once again rising regarding the “freedom of the press”.

Arnab Goswami, as we all know is one of India's top news anchors. His name has been looming in courtrooms and newsrooms alike in the past few months. From conducting a parallel investigation in the case of a Bollywood actor who committed suicide, to allegations of rigging the TRP system for his own news house’s goodwill.

According to the policemen who waited nearly two hours from early morning at the doorsteps of Goswami, said that the Republic TV founder is being taken for investigation regarding his alleged role in the death of an architect.

Anvay Naik, who designed the Republic studio took his life in 2018. This was followed by his wife accusing Goswami of not paying Naik, eventually leading to the death of him and his mother. However, Goswami and Republic TV network denied the allegation.

Naik’s wife has ever since been campaigning on social media for the case to be investigated thoroughly as she claimed to have hold of the suicide note left behind by Naik blaming Goswami for his death. Following Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh’s recent orders, a special team began an investigation in the case which has led to the arrest of Goswami.

Since the event that took place today morning, Republic TV has continuously accused the police of barging into their Editor-in-chief’s house and "manhandling" Goswami's family members. Various videos have surfaced of the so-called “attack” by a fleet of assault rifles carrying police and even more videos of Goswami telling reporters present there, that the policemen had attacked his son and in-laws in the process.

While most news channels have been busy reporting the live status of the US election, Republic TV is on the fight to bring forth the idea of “a second emergency” on show by the Maha government. This is an immensely powerful statement to make and it has taken Twitter by storm.

We are all aware of Arnab Goswami’s overly aggressive style of anchoring and questioning, and his set of drama on screen. Meanwhile, some of his critics, who believe his views have become more sympathetic towards the right-wing politics of the country, have come forward to state that the arrest was nothing but a personal vendetta of the Maha government towards the star anchor.

It is as clear as sky how particularly critical was Goswami regarding the conducting of Mumbai police in the case of a Bollywood actor’s death. He never held back while accusing the Mumbai police department of being lenient in their investigation of this certain case. He has also been critical of Maharashtra’s coalition government headed by regional Shiv Sena party - a former ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party on multiple occasions.

Taken into consideration the number of remarks made by the star anchor, Republic TV’s claims that Goswami has been targeted over his journalism, can’t be completely dismissed. It has even come as a surprise that many on various social media platforms, even those who do not like his brand of journalism, have come forward to question the arrest and grounds in which it was made.

While it is clear that the personal vengeance of the state government can lead to one such situation, one must also consider the fact that Goswami’s level of critical journalism could have been to favour the nation’s right-wing government which has openly slammed and fought with the Maha government’s leaders. As far as freedom of speech is considered, this is a neutral case. If the allegations made by Naik’s wife turns out to be true, the ruckus we create today to support Goswami will become nothing but a forced mistake. However, if the allegations turn out false, it will reassure the fact that the Maha government acts like “goons” given vengeance in situations, exactly the way Republic TV claims.

Tale of Koovagam: The Transgender Festival of India

2020-10-21T20:44:00.002+05:30

Every year for 18 days, the otherwise sleepy village of Koovagam comes alive. Dance, music, lights, and prayers, the scintillating display of the utmost celebration of the transgender community in the country come together here to the Koovagam festival. Celebrated in the month of Chaitra according to the Hindu calendar (April/May), the one-of-its-kind festival in India challenges the extreme summer heat and brings together an oppressed community. The festival which gains more popularity by each year is attended by transgender people and a larger LGBTQI community from across India, Sri Lanka, and even Southeast Asian countries.

Koovagam village located about 25 km away from Villupuram District of Tamil Nadu is home to the Koothandavar Temple is the place where this festival is primarily held. With a history dating back centuries, Lord Aravan is believed to be one of the core elements of this festival. Various mythological stories are told here that sheds light on the lord’s importance among this specific community.

Also referred to as the Kuthandavar-Aravan Mela, the origin, history, and mythological significance of this festival trace back to the epic Mahabharata. According to the tales of the epic, the sacrifice of Goddess Kali was required for the Pandavas to win the Kurukshetra war. During the time, Lord Aravan, son of Pandava Arjuna and Naga Princess Ulupi offered to sacrifice his life for his family to indulge victorious while sparing Kali. Aravan’s last wish, however, was to experience marital life for once. Since no woman agreed to marry him who was supposed to die the very next day, Lord Krishna decided to take the form of Mohini, a woman and married Aravan, who sacrificed his life the very next day. Koovagam festival commemorates this mythological incident by celebrating the union of transgender women, also known as Aravanis. The locals along with the Aravanis believe that the transgender community truly comes alive by celebrating the significance of this story.

The quietest, sleepy villages near Koovagam get lit up, decorated with banana trees, and the crowd itself with tourists and vendors year after year for the fest. The first 16 days involve numerous activities, and cultural performances ranging from devotional songs and dance to skits by NGOs spreading awareness. However, it’s on the 17th day that the prominence rises. On this day, transgender women dress as brides or Mohinis. They wear bright coloured sarees, fill their hands with bangles, cover themselves in jewellery and ornaments, and visit the Koothavandar Temple. Here, they marry the deity of Aravan. The priests in the temple tie the Thali or Mangalsutra completing the marriage. Followed by processions and festivities, the whole event is a crowd-puller. An image of the severed head of Lord Aravan, which is kept in the temple throughout the year, symbolising the sacrifice is carried through the streets in the procession.

Well, now the marriage is over, one night later, the newly married transgender women gather at a designated ‘mourning ground’ called Azhukalam. The Aravanis gathered mourns the death of Aravan, their one night’s husband. As the priests remove the thalis signifying the marriage’s end, women fiercely break their bangles. They cry aloud, beating their chests, before bathing and changing into fresh white sarees. Their widowhood begins. As contrasting as the picture is, the very street that celebrated the wedding a day before, echo cries of sorrow and mourning.

Koovagam festival is not just another event but an occasion for the expression of a collective identity. From social recognition to equal opportunities, the stories seen in each of the Aravanis faces are different here. The flocking of people of the transgender community from all over the country is indeed a unique experience. It is indeed a rare occasion where the community can openly flaunt their sexuality in public without facing censorship or mockery. The collective lamentation of Aravan’s death carries a lot more significance in their hearts. A unique festival that brings about the diversity and culture of India, the yearly festival is one to be not missed.

India’s ‘complicated’ adventure love affair

2020-07-18T11:41:00.004+05:30

A decade’s success story of Hero Motor Corp.

The BS6 variant of the Hero Xpulse 200 is expected to be launched soon in India as it finally got listed on the company website. The news is a head-turner for all Indian adventure enthusiasts as the bike is expected to bear more torque than its predecessor. The amount of hype this motorcycle has been getting in the past few months is beyond compare. The Xpulse 200 is currently by a large margin, the flagship product of Hero MotoCorp. The success of this particular motorcycle came overnight but was in the making for over a decade.

Hero MotoCorp was always a visionary when in the Indian motorcycle market. Their partnership with Honda has produced some of the most successful selling motorcycles in the sub-continent. In 1999 Hero alongside partner Honda launched the Hero Honda CBZ. A 156cc 4-stroke engine with a come of age, stylish body was a revolution in the Indian motorcycle market. A decade later, in 2010 Hero and Honda decided to break their partnership and started producing individually designed motorcycles. For Honda, who were already making successful motorcycles alone, this was not a great deal. However, Hero had a market to make and a mountain to scale.

In 2013, the company introduced the first of its kind ‘go anywhere’ adventure motorcycle in the name ‘Impulse’. Hero Impulse was a head-turner as the Indian consumers hadn’t seen anything like it before. With a 149cc engine and a curb weight of 134kg, the Impulse was arguably the best entry-level adventure motorcycle ever sold in India. However, the interest of the people didn’t turn into profit and the sales were constantly on the fall until, in 2017, the company decided to discontinue the motorcycle.

Now, what went wrong was that the company was looking for a market that didn’t exist. Indians weren’t used to off-roading or adventure riding per se and the everyday commuting commoner, the Impulse remained alien. As time passed, the Indian market gradually changed and young blood started experimenting on different modes of riding. For the average person, the BMW GS1200, Triumph Tiger, or Ducati Scrambler were all far fetched in pricing for a purpose build motorcycle. The novices in adventure sports started buying used Impulses. A market exclusive for the Impulse was being made.

By the year 2019, Impulses became scarce in the market. At this point, Hero MotoCorp announced the Hero Xpulse 200, a more powerful successor of the Impulse. The makers, who were well ahead of the time in 2013 were spot on this time around. The Xpulse became the talk of the town. Consumers who already owned an Impulse saw more power being offered by the Xpulse, and for the rest of the market, the motorcycle became a budget-friendly mountain climber. An article interestingly called it the ‘poor man’s Triumph Tiger’.

What Hero started with Impulse in now a decent demand market in India with a short but strong list of adventure motorcycles like the Royal Enfield Himalayan and the KTM 390 Adventure. Even though the likes of Benelli TRK 502 and Kawasaki Versys 300 are all strong contenders for the market, the average Indian’s budget friendless remains the biggest positive for the Xpulse 200. At an ex-showroom price of INR 1,15,000, it is without a doubt the most efficient one of the bunch.

Hero MotoCorp recently started retailing the Hero Xpulse rally kit in India through select dealerships. The kit was instantly picked up by moto enthusiasts from across the world when it was first showcased at EICMA 2019 held in Milan. Priced at INR 38,000, the kit is the most affordable and accessible tuning the Xpulse needs to be the perfect budget ‘go-anywhere’ motorcycle.

The Indigenous Way of Dating

2020-07-03T16:01:00.002+05:30

Love is beautiful. It is divine and like any other divine procedure, love too takes a while to happen. Some people take up their whole life to find that one perfect partner.

I have been thinking more about this hyped-up system of 'finding love' lately. The internet has the best answers for questions relating to this. Well, all the millennials seem interested in the stuff there (do check out, when you get time).

Now finding love is easy. Yes, trust me it is. I don’t know about you, well I don’t know where you are from. In most parts of the world, this process is hard, agreed. You meet people, go on a date, you talk, get to know each other, sleep with each other and then after this schedule repeats for months, you evaluate the relationship and if it all seems going good, propose to your partner. (Which is a big deal). Now you move in with him/her (which is at times done before the proposal too) and after months from proposing, you surprise your partner again only this time to get married (which is again a huge deal). Diamond ring! So important, you dare not compromise there. Unlike the last time, you are facing a real test this time. Either you get a “Yes” or you go back to where you began and start the process all over again with someone else. If your proposal does get accepted, there you go, you are done and your 'destiny' is fulfilled. If you're in the finest of English speaking countries, grow old with each other in your beautiful house and there is nothing better to do. Amazing! Not to mention the pressure, the tiring efforts, time wasted and everything else (including the values broken, if you are an Indian). This is the amazing process of love, as far as my knowledge ends, that's it. Again, at least for most of the world.

Then there is the sub-continent (I hope our neighbours will agree to it too) where finding love is easier than finding a Starbucks in the U.S. If you don't believe me ask someone or take your case. When was the first time you fell in love with someone, you have probably forgotten? But then, it was never a big deal because you were in school. I’ll tell you the story of my friend’s first love. One day, he was walking down the corridor, he came across a good looking girl, he stopped and shared momentary eye contact and BAM! He was in love. TRUE.

Love at first sight. A beautiful name for a completely senseless thing where you just have a look at a person and all of a sudden have something for them, or at least you pretend to. Infatuation is a good word. Please don't take offense, it’s not about you, I am talking about my friend Damodhar. Let me narrate to you the rest of the story. This small something is called having an infatuation. But not here because once you have fallen in love at first sight, you start to stalk her, you find her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Uber and all the other social networking sites you can spot her name on (TikTok got banned, so sad) and text her even though the girl doesn’t even acknowledge the existence of poor Damodhar. But he is adamant. He will continue sending one-sided love letters, so romantic. Until the day she replies with all the love in the world “STOP TEXTING ME!”. Now, Damodhar is smart, he understands the code language she uses, it is an invitation to continue the conversation. Now, he acts so cool and talks like such a ‘paavam’ that he is. Now, the girl has limited options you see, either block this person on the platform or text back but you know sometimes blocking is dangerous and Damodhar can get creepy if something like that happens. Don’t worry, the society lets him be the creep, it’s okay.

Now, this whole process continues until everyone in the country knows that you are in love with the girl except for her. Then one day he proposes to her and gets slapped in the face or end up being called a brother (both the same for Damodhar). Sometimes, this proposal gets accepted too. Damodhar has a good life either way. Well, it’s either acid or marriage. Options seem interesting, right.

There is also a different scenario where the guy proposes to the love of his life just 15 minutes after he sees her for the first time in his entire life. Once this proposal gets accepted, they start dating and live happily ever after only if they are courageous enough to run away together, as marrying the person you love is a sin in this part of the world. See, this is easy. We do stuff the easy way and if you don't find love in your life, no worries at all. You won't spend your life single (even if you wish) for we have the arranged marriage system where you don't have to care what you look like or what your qualifications are, it’s assured that you will get married on the basis of your caste, creed, salary (basics of life) to a stranger (who might have been in 'love' with your first cousin for the past 5 years of her life). When it’s all over you are in bed, you wake up to a woman and wonder where have you seen her before and remember you got married to her last day. (May sound like something that happens when you get drunk in Vegas). Interesting right.

See, the Europeans have got it all wrong.

Fishes out of water

2020-07-03T16:00:00.002+05:30

"Fish Out of Water" is the fourth episode of the third season of the American animated television series Bojack Horseman. The episode features Bojack traveling to a film festival in the ocean, where he wears an oxygen-filled bubble to continue breathing. Notably, the episode features less than three minutes of audible dialogue.

Plot: BoJack’s publicist Ana sends him to the world's biggest underwater film festival to promote his movie ‘Secretariat’. Unfortunately, ex-Secretariat director Kelsey Jannings is also attending the festival. Faced with the thought of seeing her, BoJack panics. He goes to the festival lobby where press events are underway. A group of fish journalists takes his picture, so he poses for them—giving them the thumbs-up sign, not knowing that this gesture is offensive in Pacific Ocean City. He notices Kelsey sadly trying to drum up interest in her movie, so he tries to write her an apology note, but she disappears before he can give it to her.

Later in the episode, BoJack falls asleep on a bus, where he has to help a male seahorse give birth, and becomes stranded far from the city. As he starts his long walk back to the festival, he realizes that one of the baby seahorses clung to him, so he reluctantly decides to find its dad. Following many misadventures, he reunites the baby with its father, but it turns out that it was not missed. The seahorse dad invites BoJack in for dinner and even offers him money, but BoJack declines. The dad seems to ask, "What do you want?" but BoJack does not know. He leaves, depressed and jealous of the seahorse family.

BoJack catches a cab back to the hotel. En route, he writes a heartfelt apology note to Kelsey. He arrives too late to attend the premiere, so he returns to the hotel just in time for the afterparty, where he learns that Secretariat was a huge hit. As Kelsey leaves the party, BoJack runs after her cab, but by the time he reaches her window, his soggy note is runny and blurred. Kelsey speeds off without knowing what he wanted to say.

As BoJack stands at a crosswalk, a man with a helmet yells at him by pressing a button on the collar. Realizing that he could speak the whole time, BoJack presses the button and the episode finishes with him saying "Oh you have got to be kidding—"

You are Bojack: Bojack is intimidated by the idea of confronting Kelsey. He carries guilt off the fact that he paved way for her getting fired and chose to not say a word ever since. At the beginning of the episode, as he finds out that Kelsey will be present at the festival, he decides to not go. He tries to make a run from it but fails and he is sent into a world where people don’t speak his language. Look closely and one can see that going into a place he is alien to, doesn’t scare Bojack but meeting an old acquaintance does. He fights his battle and decides to write an apology.

He writes, “Kelsey, in this terrifying world, all we have are the connections we make. I’m sorry I got you fired. I’m sorry I never called you after.” It’s as real as Bojack can be. He through the letter puts light on a fact that he’s terrified of the world. However, he believes in the connections. He knew he messed up things for Kelsey but he points out how good a connection they both shared. Life puts us all in confusing situations. One must simply realise that apologising for a mistake, however big it is, is the right thing to do. Accept the mess-up. Not all times will you get an “its okay” for a reply but it’ll still be the right thing we do.

On the bus, he dozes off introspecting his life. Well, the side seat of a bus or the shower is the best place to do so.

Bojack finds the kid stuck to him and in the attempt to return it, he goes through some serious struggles. It’s nothing but an indication of the compassion hidden in him somewhere. He couldn’t leave the baby just anywhere but took it straight to its father. Later, when he finds out that the baby wasn’t missed, it breaks him as he sees himself in the baby. Bojack had a ruined childhood and knowing that the baby wasn’t missed makes him go into his memory lane. This is me or you. Some things can’t be forgotten in life and we may have to live with it. Going back to the memory lane is not a bad thing. It only makes us human to put ourselves in another’s shoes.

As the Dad seahorse asks him “what he wants?” he is baffled. He doesn’t know what he wants. He had all the money and fame and it didn’t matter to him. His movie was doing great and he’s on the way to an Oscar nomination, but that doesn’t matter. All his life he has wanted acceptance and as he gets it, he knows it’s not real. At that very moment, he wants to tell Kelsey how sorry he is and he wanted her to tell him it’s okay. But this is life and it doesn’t happen that way. There will be some things we want which we won’t get, ever. Closure isn’t promised in life and you have to accept it.

Sometimes, you can write the most heartfelt letter you have ever written in your life and still get it ruined in water. That’s life. Sometime, you could be able to talk all the while but you wouldn’t know.

You will be scared to press the button and just open your heart but you will realise that you should’ve once the opportunity has passed on. This was just an interpretation of an episode that touched me real deep and I hope, you as a reader get the point. Not everything in life will be okay and it’s okay to be Bojack.

Home to the Kerala Blasters

2020-06-11T18:44:00.004+05:30

It was nonetheless heart-wrecking as a football fan from Kochi to hear that Kerala Blasters were likely to play a few of their next season's home matches at Kozhikode's EMS Corporation Stadium, which is currently the base of I League outfit Gokulam Kerala FC.
From the inception of ISL in 2014, the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium near Kaloor in Kochi has been Kerala Blasters' home ground, where the players enjoyed playing in front of the formidable 'Manjappada.'
Famed for passion, Manjappada is currently ISL's biggest fan base and quickly growing to be noticed on the international base.
Even as there is no doubt in the passion of the fans or the players, the management's actions in the past few years have been very much questionable. The Kerala Blasters management reportedly held discussions with representatives from the Kozhikode Municipal Corporation on Wednesday (June 3) to carry out a few structural changes required for Kozhikode's EMS Corporation Stadium so that it meets the requisite ISL norms.
The rumour stated, though the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium in Kochi will continue to be the base of Kerala Blasters, the team is planning to conduct a few engagement activities and may even host a couple of pre-season friendlies at the EMS Corporation Stadium in Kozhikode as a trial run before the venue gets ready to host an ISL match.
Selling fan favourite players, quick changes in managers, and letting go of the club legend and captain Sandesh Jinghan has all been provoking actions for the fans.
The decision to organise a few friendlies in Kozhikode is indeed a good decision as the Malabar holds an everlasting love for the game. However, the same news set off some alarms in fan's minds as a favourable playing condition in Kozhikode might potentially open a door for the management to think of shifting the team's base there. It is only logical to think such as Kozhikode is clearly less expensive for the management and less of tension as it will put an end to their long time standing friction with the Greater Kochi Development Authority (GCDA).
With the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) starting to raise claims over the stadium and the not so fan-friendly mentality of the management continuing, the team's future at Kochi remains a question mark. As of now, one can only hope that the gigantic arena that left numerous players and managers speechless including the Brazilian legend Zico remains the Blasters' home for the future and grow to become known across the globe. I for one dream of a day when Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium's name would be placed alongside The Old Trafford or the Anfield.

Waiting for the drug

2020-06-08T21:22:00.002+05:30

More than 397,000 people across the world have died till date due to Covid-19, yet a cure seems to be nowhere in sight. While around 150 drugs are undergoing rigorous trials and study, Gilead Sciences Inc., an American biopharmaceutical company claimed to come closest to cracking this code.
Remdesivir, an antiviral drug designed by Gilead to treat Ebola proved itself effective on Covid-19 patients. The result of a trial of the drug showed an increased speed of recovery by up to 4 days. The result of this trial was accidentally posted on the World Health Organisation's website a couple of weeks ago and quickly taken down too. The test was marked 'preliminary'. However, fate seemed more lost when further tests of the drug conducted in China failed to show any remarkable improvements in the patient.
As of now, Remdesivir still stands as the most effective drug to cure Covid-19 as it has helped patients with Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (Mers-CoV) and severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) in the past.
A week ago India had approved Remdesivir for emergency use in treating Covid-19 patients. India's health ministry approved it as the first drug to show improvement in Covid-19 patients in its clinical trials. However, despite the rapid rise in deaths and approval to use the drug in hand, the patients in India are still waiting for the drug to be available. As much as five companies are awaiting approval from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI).
The companies awaiting the green flag have signed agreements with Gilead to manufacture and distribute the drug in around 127 countries, putting light on the fact that all those are counting for its availability. As of today, the manufacturers are ready with raw materials for production of the same. Meanwhile, the DCGI has asked these companies to submit data from animal toxicity studies, stability studies and test licenses as all of these companies have only submitted the data analysis handed out by Gilead themselves.
As this conversation happens, one can only hope that this doesn't turn out a wasteful one where a government authority and a private manufacturer keep putting the ball on each other's turf. The number of cases doesn't seem to slow down by the day and the availability of such a drug in the market is the need of the hour.

Hope and redemption in "The Shawshank Redemption"

2020-06-05T21:06:00.002+05:30

"The Shawshank Redemption" has a non-secular touch at some point in the movie as Warden Norton believes to have confidence in two things-“discipline and the Bible”. When the Warden first addresses Andy he cites from the Bible "Salvation lies within" which isn't said again in the movie until the scene where Andy escapes and the Warden reveals it from inside the inward cover of the Bible which Andy used to hide the rock hammer he used by making a hollow cavity between the pages.
The Shawshank Redemption is a parallel among the biblical lessons and a movie. The story makes use of an individual’s journey of existence to portray problems based on the principles - hope and redemption.

Hope
Andy struggle inside the cage that is the prison until he eventually breaks free leaving his friend Red behind, who's later paroled.
One day Red decides to walk away from his job in search of a field. Andy had once told Red about a hidden box beneath a volcanic rock in a wall situated in a field in Buxton. Red goes in search of this box and discovers it. Inside the container, Red finds a written note. The note further reassures that him coming this a long way will make him willing to go even further.
Red, in pursuit of Andy’s guarantees, heads to Mexico and reunites with Andy at the Pacific seaside in Mexico. The movie emphasises in large part on Red’s voice-over narration on the very last segment of scenes stressing greater on the massive theme or idea driving the entire film: “I wish I can make it through the border. I hope to see my pal and shake his hand. I hope the pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams I hope”. The context relating to this declaration seems to be “hope”, a wonderful trust for what the future beholds, and being optimistic about what lies in the near future.
In the book of 1st Corinthians verse 13, the qualities that Apostle Paul points towards love are those that Andy points to hope which he portrays in the movie. If we substitute hope for love in the whole of Paul’s chapter we might end up with a fair portrayal of Andy, since he has passed through all those things.
He was not only focused on keeping up his hope but did work to inspire others too. Red’s hope was built by Andy helping him find a new dimension perceiving things positively.

Redemption
Andy’s persistent fight to break free of the prison shackles finally came to an end, when he finally completed to chisel a pathway through the cemented wall. After crawling through 500 yards of sewage, lands safely on the other side. When he escapes, his friends in prison, continues to talk about all the things they shared in their leisure time. Red, Andy’s most faithful disciple, follows him onto freedom, re-enacting a conversation from the book of John 13:36 in which Simon Peter questions Jesus, “Lord, wherever you are leaving?” to which Jesus answers “Where I am going, you cannot follow me now; but you will follow afterward”.
The conversation shows how redemption comes for both of them. Andy redeemed himself while Red achieved the same through parole.
Andy Dufresne embodies several characteristics of a Jesus-like figure; there are several parallels to be drawn between Jesus himself and Andy. Many of the situations that lead to Andy's being in jail and his escape are similar to what happened to Jesus’ pre-crucifixion and post-resurrection. His storyline mirrors that of Jesus' in that he was punished for a crime in which he was relatively falsely accused and figuratively had his own "cross to bear." The Bible notes that once Jesus was captured, Pontius Pilate knew that he was innocent, but wanted no part in the killing of anyone. Therefore, he allowed the crowd of people to choose between Jesus and a criminal who raped and killed. Rather than absolving him, the crowd ultimately chose to kill Jesus despite his innocence. Similarly, Andy was convicted of a crime he didn't commit because his details of the night of the murder, although entirely veracious, weren't convincing enough to declare him innocent. Andy's jail cell can be related to the tomb in which Jesus is contained in for his short period of death. Andy's sentence was the limbo between the real world prior to "his" crime and the real world that would come after his escape. Andy's escape of prison through the wall is similar to Jesus' metaphorical escape (ascension to heaven) from his tomb/death.
Andy referred to Zihuatanejo, the town where he would ultimately escape to, as a heaven-like experience, which is where Jesus would end up.

Not only were situations similar between the two, but also the personalities and influence of both could be related to each other. Despite his circumstances, Andy remained a positive influence on Shawkshank Prison considering his contributions to prison mates' education, finances, and atmosphere. He built the library and revamped all of its amenities, all while keeping accounts for the warden and educating other prison mates. Likewise, Jesus had great influence over his disciples; he was the leader of a large movement and, according to believers, was capable of performing miracles. Both were front-runners in their way and made generous contributions to the people around them. After their "crimes", Jesus and Andy hoped-for rebirth and cleansing of their sins. They wanted to erase their pasts; Andy did so in jail and Jesus did so through his crucifixion. Andy was buried and risen in a metaphorical sense, while Jesus did in a literal sense. They both eventually found salvation at the end of their known storylines.

Lastly, Bible references were present throughout the film. The safe for all of the finances in the warden's office was hidden behind a Bible verse.
Although the warden claimed to be a devout Christian, it is later revealed how he goes against many of Christianity's basic morals. The most famous cinematographic moment in the movie is when Andy escapes from prison. The scene where he stands with arms outstretched with the rain pouring down on him makes Andy look like Jesus on the cross. It is difficult not to see all of the similarities between the story of Jesus Christ and Andy Dufresne's character.

Football's toughest test

2020-06-03T18:18:00.001+05:30

With almost all major football leagues in the world set to resume this month, multiple players have come forward voicing angst against the decision. With the games set to be played behind closed doors, it's only sane to state the fact that football won't be the same.
Officials of major football leagues including the likes of English Premier League, La Liga and Seria A have decided to put their feet down and resume football countering the ongoing pandemic. English F.A, arguably the most prolific governing body in the list is facing claims of some serious criticism for going through with the "project restart". Multiple players have taken it to social media platforms and various media to openly bash the decision. Some of them claim that the restart is being done sheerly for the F.A's monetary gains and should be stopped.
Some of these claims are starting to sound more serious than the others as Watford striker Troy Deeney gave out a statement that he received a threat for standing against the League official's decision.
Football as we know it has come through some tough tests in time yet 2020 might be its toughest. Since the time of its conceiving football has been a fan sport. Many of the team's rise, as well as dips, has had direct involvements. However, in the past few decades funding from the league's broadcasters has multiplied in double digits. Money becoming a driving point for any sport is a scary pointer. Football which should be played for leisure is slowly and steadily becoming nothing less than a billion-dollar business and the resumption of the leagues amidst a pandemic on a killing spree is the greatest proof of the same.
One can notice that the Virus spread situation in the U.K. is on a dip and an all-time low in the last few days but with nearly 300k confirmed cases and 40k deaths recorded, it would be sly stupidity from the government to resume a normal calendar year disregarding the threat that remains. Many countries across the world can be taken as an example of the same.
The French Football Federation stands as visionaries at the current scenario as their decision to void the 2019-20 season can be noted as nothing but wise. It would not the craziest of things to say that other football governing bodies should be considering the same.
As of now, the officials are adamant on the restart and we the public can do nothing but hope that nothing goes out of hand. I cannot imagine a day when this becomes the new normal and see through my 32" television how the Manchester derby plays out in front of an empty Old Trafford or Liverpool lifting their first league trophy in 30 years in an empty Anfield stadium. I could not agree more when Newcastle's Danny Rose went on record to say that "football shouldn't even be spoken about until the day the numbers (Covid-19 cases) have dipped."

No time to pick sides

2020-06-02T16:16:00.002+05:30

Picking and assigning sides are two of the best things Indians do. As the Malayalam saying goes, "അമ്മയെ തല്ലിയാലും രണ്ട് പക്ഷം". The saying means that even when you hit your mother, there will be people picking sides either supporting or opposing your action. The purpose shall always stay unimportant for some reason yet 'jumping to conclusions' remains a classic Indian cuisine served at every corner of the planet.

The strangling of George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man from Minnesota by Derek Chauvin, a duty cop, on claims of using a counterfeit $20 bill has started a series of protests in the U.S. People have come forward with a very strong claim that hate towards black people needs to end. Shouting slogans, marching with placards, burning public property and attacking the police, the protesters have started to put pressure and fear on the country’s government. The protesters have taken charge so much so that on Monday, President Trump was forced to stay in a bunker inside of the White House for nearly an hour until the protesters were forced out of the building premises. For the first time in history, the lights in the country's most decorated building remained off. The protests have taken off in the right foot as people from across the world have started to join in through online platforms offering solidarity to this fight against racism. "Black lives matter" is potentially in the wake of becoming a sensational movement across the world amidst the on-going pandemic. Indians who sum up a huge presence on the global social media platforms have also come forward in solidarity of the same. However, internally we are on a different fight altogether.

Earlier today, I came across a feed on Instagram bearing tweets of Indian celebrities in support of the 'anti-racism' movement. Most of the tweets were the last words of Floyd - "I can't breathe". It's always good to see people despite their origin and interests joining hands for a good cause.

However, the comments section of the same post was portraying a dilemma. A sum of people had put up comments bashing these celebrities for keeping quiet about the migrant crisis happening in the country and supporting a protest happening in an outside nation. 'Black lives matter, Indian lives too', wrote one of the writers. The comment section of this single post sheds light on the vast dilemma prevailing in the thoughts of an average Indian.

Clash of ideologies is very common in an educated self-sustaining society but it's not the ideologies that are at stake here, is it? The Minnesota killing is the most sensitive thing right now for someone who urges to fight the unjust happenings in the world. At the same time, the protest would mean absolutely nothing for an average Indian who is struggling on a day to day basis to put food in his/her family's stomach. So, who is wrong here?

Hunger and right to life are two things one can't pick sides between. It's only sane to demand explanations to our government for each of the 80 people's death that happened aboard the Shramik trains or even the ones who fall prey to accidents and even the scorching sun on their long trails home. This is our nation’s fight. We need to make noise for each of these poor workers who walk daily on a thin rope to survival. We the privileged of the country are obliged to do whatever little we can to help these people win their fight. Yet it shall remain wrong to point and shout curse words at the one's not choosing to talk about it.

“If each of these celebrities put in a share of their riches, the migrant crisis in the country can be solved very easily”. This was one of the most popular comments on the post and of course, people were opposing this comment too. One must realize that offering to help someone in need in itself is a choice. We came across people turned heroes like Sonu Sood who is doing a remarkable job in helping migrant workers stuck in alien states reach their homes. Appreciate the good work where it's due but that doesn't give one the authority to demand the rest of the actors do the same. The migrant crisis in India and the anti-racism protest in the U.S. are both equally important fights and one must not pick sides in these tough times. Staying ignorant to something happening right in front of your eyes would be wrong but cursing at a person doing it is also equally wrong.