Let us reclaim our humanity....

The recent terror strike on Mumbai has affected each one of us in a very deep and personal way unlike the past. The spectacle of seeing terror holding fort of our lives for 59 long excruciating hours was nothing like the country has ever seen before.  I will be honest, I have seen previous reports of bomb blasts and just treated it as a statistic, brushed it aside and thinking it will not happen to me.  

But this time it was very different and I became to really feel the hurt and anger within. To see husbands, sons, mothers massacred senselessly by a group of psychotic youngsters ( I refuse to even call them misguided or brainwashed anymore) was too much to take. 

I even began to contemplate that there should be a strong response to destroy all these people involved, enactment of tougher laws, extreme surveillance and exterminate the root of these evil even at the cost of some collateral damage including a few innocents losing their human rights. To be candid, I felt like a monster with a strong sense of rage bordering on ill-tolerance.

The thing which is very tempting, which a section of right wing politicians who shall choose to exploit the demonization of members of the minority community and paint them all with a single brush. Quite poignantly, I happen to see the movie 'Aamir' yesterday, it is about an educated Muslim middle class gentleman who rejects terrorism and prefers death risking his family's safety. All terrorism and unrest has its roots in class inequalities namely lack of education, poverty and access to a better future.

The nation today is outraged. But How do we achieve something constructive out of this collective rage as a nation is the question before us. The media and the people have gone on to bash the politicians and police.  I hope that this does not fritter into  a frivolous blame game and we get over this trauma over the weekend and start going on with life as usual. If that happens it will be most sad aspect of urban cynicism.

What India needs is that people show a strong sense of solidarity and keep pushing the establishment to take corrective action and ensure change takes place in the system, instead just being arm chair critics.

The focus areas for the government is choking the finances of these terror organizations, countries to collaborate and disassemble the training centres and bring people to justice. The operational aspects involve improving the intelligence networks, arming the forces adequately. Secondly the government must ensure that people have access to education, reduce unemployment and ensure all sections of society in this country succeed in the India growth story.

The title of this post is let us reclaim our humanity …. the reason I say so is that we should neither become too cynical and take inaction or swing to the other extreme and become bigots and set off a vicious cycle of hate and terror.

Seems a fairy tale doesn't it ?? Do you think this will happen over night in a short haul, not likely at all. The answer is NO. The politicians of India will listen to you only if you are part of a vote bank... so let us became a single VOTEBANK which will only vote for politicians who can bring this change in handling terrorism and ensuring security. Let this day not forgotten by all of us. 

Philosophy from Star Trek

Couple of days back I caught the new Star Trek movie trailer it revived my childhood memories watching the various Star Trek series rather religiously on cable television. Yes, I am one of the confirmed Trekkie geeky clan. 

The reason I really liked Star Trek is the fact it reposes faith on future of humanity unlike the other sci-fi movies like the Matrix, Terminator, Alien, etc which always paint a dark picture for mankind with machines taking over the world. The stories and characters in Star Trek are in ways exploring various moral dilemmas which we even face in today's world in a futuristic setting.  I shall perhaps come up with a more detailed post some other day on how Star Trek changed the world, today I shall be sharing my favorite Star Trek quotes.  

  

Perhaps "because it is there" is not sufficient reason for climbing a mountain 

This is a mistake perhaps most of us do, we never take time to analyse what challenges to pick and just following the first thing we can lay our hands on.... 

A no-win situation is a not a test of your abilities but of your character 

A no-win situation is something all of us have to face in our lives, there is precious little we can do, so instead of getting overworked and losing self confidence is to accept the fact and move on. How we accept defeat is as if not more important how we handle success. 

Pain and guilt are things we carry with us, the things that make us who we are. If we lose them, we lose ourselves

It might be slightly parodoxical why to hang on to our weaknesses, but our failures and unfullfilled aspirations also add to our character and defines our unique nature. We must embrace and not try to escape from them. 

You can commit no mistake and still lose. That is not a weakness. That is life.

I guess it is pretty self explainatory...

What we leave behind is not as important as how we've lived

This is a good point to end this post, sometimes we get so hung on leaving behind a legacy or working too hard for a better future we miss out on the present. 

P.S:  I know this is bit TOO much gyaan but i liked the aliens and spaceships on the show too :)

The tale of two presidents ....

The history of a nation can perhaps be narrated best by the story of its leader, perhaps that is why it is called HIStory. (Please pardon my insensitivity toward gender neutral language but that is the word in the Dictionary) 

This is the tale of two great democracies of the world, one the world's largest super power and the other largest democracy and knowledge industry powerhouse. The leaders I have chosen  to discuss are not the most historic figures like George Washington or Mahatma Gandhi, but rather because their lives of the two men is represents their nations' history in the second half of the 20th century. 

Birth 

Barack Hussein Obama was born on August 4th 1961 to a Caucasian American woman and a Kenyan gentleman which was a fairly short lived marriage and the son saw his father just once after the divorce. He went to spend years of his  childhood in Indonesia with his step father and mother.

Dr APJ Abdul Kalam was born on October 15th 1931 to a Muslim family at Rameshwaram in South India. The family business was to rent boats to local fishermen for a living. 

The time they were born, both countries were in the midst of a social revolution and  poised on the cusp of a dramatic change.  In India it was Independence movement lead by Mahatma Gandhi and the growing civil rights for Afro-Americans protests led by Martin Luther King in the States. 

The impact of the movements did help both the men meet their destinies in lot of ways.

Intial Career 

A 16 year old Abdul Kalam could walk in a free India specialized in Aeronautical Engineering from Madras Institute of Technology and joined ISRO. He went on to play a crucial role in India's first indigenous Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-III) which successfully injected the Rohini satellite in the near earth orbit in July 1980 making India an exclusive member of Space Club. 

Barack Obama  went on to graduate from Columbia University and Harvard Law School, where he was president of the Harvard Law Review ( First black president here too ). Obama worked as a community organizer and practiced as a civil rights attorney before serving three terms in the Illinois Senate.

APJ Kalam rose in the ranks as scientist and its is considered the ISRO, DRDO and few other research institutions which are purely meritocracy driven organisations with minimum interference from the bureaucracts which explains why they have stood the test of time. He was responsible for the development and operationalisation of AGNI and PRITHVI Missiles. 

The break through moment 

Kalam became a house hold name with the success of Pokran II nuclear blasts and the term 'missile man' of india was coined by the media. He became the symbol of modern India's intellect and military might. 

Obama came into the limelight with his key note address in the Democratic Party Convention where he spoke in favour of John Kerry and when he came out heavily down on President Bush and advocated the need for CHANGE, The folks in the democratic convention stood up and took notice. 

Rise to Power 

Dr Kalam rise to the presidency is a telling comment on the vote bank politics Indian politicians have perfected. The BJP lead proposed his name so that they could take claim to the nuclear bomb and parties like Congress, SP and Mayawati wanted to be associated the fact they supported a Muslim President to the highest office. 

Obama's rise to power is a far more compelling story of the US people getting tired of the same old politics. The people set aside both the old establishment candidates Hillary Clinton in the democratic primary elections and then Sen. McCain was defeated by a large margin in the U.S elections. 

What their tales tell us about the two nations 

Indian democracy is very fragmented with several regional parties playing kingmaker in central politics. The two principal political parties are across the communalism idealogy divide which prevents much co-operation between them partly driven by rheotric. A political career is scoffed at by the common man, because it is like a family business, muscle power, criminaliaztion and the black money which are the factors which decide the outcome. 

U.S on the other hand has an election system which provides state funding, primary elections and a fair chance for any one to run for president. By limiting the president's post for 2 terms, it is ensured newer leaders come to the fore and they do not have octogenarians clinging to power unlike in India.  It has its shortcomings in terms of lobbyists ruling the roost and bi-partisian apathy to world affairs. 

A final Note 

Dr Kalam was born in South India, which was far removed from the scars of the India-Pakistan partition which has poisoned the minds of generations. The high proportion of Muslim community in India is still under the poverty line and less access to education compared to the nation's average. 

Obama was born to a white mother and spent his early childhood in Jarkata and later  on with his white maternal grandparents did not see the travails in a usual black neighbourhood and was never denied the opportunity for growth.

The success of both men can perhaps attributed to the fact they were not beaten by the system in their formative years. 

India needs an inspirational leader to emerge from the grassroots and Obama needs to walk the talk and take America forward to chart the future histories of these two great nations. 

Of Bhandarkar's Fashion and the 'fashionable' thing to do ....

For this blog, I thought I would shift focus on my other major interest which is off course movies diverting from the philosophical rants of the first 2 blogs. The movie I caught up recently was Madhur Bhandarkar's Fashion, I cannot say I was very eagerly looking forward to it.

What can you expect when the promos pretty much summed up the movie, "you have to loose more than just your morales", really in Bhandarkar's view nothing comes easy especially success !

Several movie critics gave this movie a must watch and 3 star ratings considering the good reputation Mr. Bhandarkar has made for making 'realistic' movies.

The reasons the movie didn't work for me ......

• the predictable plot, a small town girl has dreams , she tastes success early, she brushes off her good friends and loving boy friend, has an affair with a powerful business man and then fails professionally and personally and in the end makes a fairytale comeback.
  
• Kangana Ranagaut's perfected melancholic alcoholic girl gone bad act after Gangster, Life in a Metro does not cut much ice either and its really repetitive
  
• You really don't feel any sympathy for Priyanka's character because she succeeds without any compromises and picks up all the bad habits and short comings after she becomes the supermodel .... the saying "how you treat people who cannot hurt you tells a lot about you applies here"
  
• The usual stereotypes galore all designers are gay and all rich media tycoons hit on women .and many more supportive mom , strict dad etc
  
• finally the length of 3 hours more makes the ordeal seem much longer.
  

Apart from what I thought about the movie itself , there are two points to ponder .....

Why do people want to get into the glamour industry if its so bad and evil ??

The most basic aspect of humanity is the ego and the degree of inherent narcissism. I mean if you cannot stop checking your self out in a mirror daily, then imagine the high you can get to be featured on a magazine cover or a billboard.

Secondly a bit of attention in college or a beauty pageant perhaps accentuates that feeling/craving for attention which drives people to a field with such a small window for success.
In cases, people do end up rationalizing the means does justifies the end.

Why do the common folks deride the glamour industry vehemently and do follow the gossip columns even more religiously ??

The outsider view of the fashion industry ... how tough can it get to sway down the ramp in fancy clothes which you cannot wear on most occasions and have a hazzar flashbulbs and give a 100 watt smile and appear in page 3 dos, perhaps a inherent tinge of jealous fuels this feeling.

The second aspect is the holier than thou attitude to look down at the glamour industry, that they indulge in drinks, drugs and sleep around, basically to stereotype people and run them down.

The reason why the two questions are relavent to this discussion, so what must have prompted Madhur Bhandarkar to make this movie 'Fashion'? I really wished it was the exploration of the first question, unfortunately the movie plays to the gallery and doesn't rise beyond the obvious.

Perhaps Fashion as a standalone movie would have been refreshing, but as a follow up to Corporate, Satta and Page 3 , it seems more like a standard Bhandarkar formula and definitely not the reality.

Atleast in Chandini bar you can sympathize with the characters considering the poverty and situations, for urban educated characters in the other movies who know what they are getting into, I cannot shed a tear...

Why so serious ???

The title of this blog might lead you to think its another take on the Joker and the Dark Knight mercifully its not .... i guess the topics most written about this year would include this movie, Obama and financial markets ..... which are not going to be focus of my ramblings here ..... The focus this time is about babies .... which I have been seeing a lot of in the past week or so ....


One sight which really makes me happy or I guess any adult for that matter is the face of a smiling goofy baby and the squealing noises they make ..... It is a great joy to see a creation of pure innocence and a bundle of energy ..... Off late i have been observing them fairly closely in shopping malls , company buses ( yeah moms picking up kids from the electronic city day care centres after a hard day's work ! ) and at my friends place ....

Most of us when asked when asked what was the best phase of life .... would say "bachpan was the thing ever ..... koi tension hai bas masti karthe rahe ho". It would be interesting to look deeper into that statement ...... offcourse there are pressures on us of acads, jobs and relationships which perhaps weigh us down ... but somewhere along the way when we are coping with this world , we forget the things which we really were good at as kids .... the stuff which made us understand and master the world in the first place ....

Short attention span - I guess the best thing which kids can do better than adults is keeping moving from thing to another, unlike us who can really get fixated and brooding about something

So Curious - this is wot really amazes me about babies, the amount of concentration they put it to understand the environs in which they are placed ...... the little eyes keep darting about to know more and more ....

Demand Attention when required - Babies arent so egostic like us .... when they need something they cry ... tell people around how they feel or scream their lungs out to make thier point if needed

open to new people - kids have really cracked this formula ..... make good eye contact and give a blooming smile ...... i guess the one of the better if not the best way to be open and make new friends ......

I guess there are many more facets of a baby and i could going on and on..... but I know is fairly simplistic to say that we all should be child like and carefree which off course is not possible in entirety.... .

but every once in a while ..... we should look at these little wonderful angels around which ask us the question "WHY SO SERIOUS??"

First things first .... why are we here ??

This is going to be my first blog, I was thinking I should be focusing on being articulate and taking time to crystallize my views or be spontaneous type out the stuff on my mind and see if it can be more of bouncing of my ideas with friends....

Since right now i am lacking the discipline to think too much, i think i will just ramble through this one and let me begin with my most favorite topic .... "Why are you here ?? ( as in existence)"
The answer which people give thanks to what popular notions seems to lead back to the fate and god paradox ..... if things go in your favour then thank the lord and in case it goes against you blame fate.... is the world so simplistic or need for us keep our sanity ??

i mean if today i have some thing bad happening to me .... it feels justified because i must have been bad in the previous life or the person hurting me today will have his/her comeuppance on day .... the world is fair and to be said "fairly regulated" if i must add unlike the US financial markets.

My personal feeling is that we wish that there is a grand scheme in all this and we have a major role to play in it .... it gives our life a purpose that puts up on the top of the evolution chain and keep our superiority over other flora fauna inhabiting this habit.

So the fundamentals of our thoughts, persona and rational outlook are based on simple axioms which do not necessarily rational.

Till recently, I saw this world as a random experiment of 6 billion humans and million other variables which play on each other ..... one man's choice is other person's destiny so where does God come into the picture though .....

if life is going good, we trust the fate and the pretty picture it paints ... but it is in the lows we question everything ....

I particularly do not have a definitive answer of why we are here ?? I think perhaps its our intuitive purpose to find out why.

yes I do believe that we have the right to be happy in every stage of our existence in the world .... and if faith gives us that happiness so let it be .... but we shouldn't take it as the gospel truth.