Enter my world
The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
A San Francisco cable car holds 60 people. This blog was viewed about 2,000 times in 2011. If it were a cable car, it would take about 33 trips to carry that many people.
Yet another year passes by, as it always does, in rapid succession.
Looking back from the events that have formed the crux of the previous year, it has been a year of mixed emotions, of trials and tribulations, of waxes and wanes, crests and troughs; and a myriad of experiences.
January – [to March]
2011 started off on rather slim note, with work taking up most time along with my third attempt at MBA exams; with XAT being the usual finisher. What followed a set of unexpected results. The first shocker was CAT – I had presumed that I had performed decently well, but it turned out to be the worst outing of the three! The other exams were fiascoes, barring NMAT & XAT which managed to get me calls from NMIMS, XLRI and XIMB. Of the lot, GD and PI, NM was horrendous and XIMB was decent. I didn’t take up XLRI as it was a call for their HR course. Having deftly screwed up my chances of getting an MBA seat in Operations management, I looked in the other direction which was to go the tech way, the MS way, which was the equally interesting and better plausible alternative.
February -
A bunch of us college buddies came together of the best trip we had ever been on together. After the Wonderla outing that came as a compensatory and consolatory trip to the fiercely failed Coorg trip; we set out on a trip to Goa – the state that’s always on a holiday! Abhishek from Bangalore, Hari from Coimbatore, Yesahavant from Chennai – came together at Bangalore; and I from Mumbai; met at Mapusa in Goa. We spent three memorable days roaming around the streets of Goa on non-geared vehicles, going well late into the night. Specific details in a separate post maybe 
March to May -
This was the period I truly enjoyed my stay at Mumbai – seeing around places that define Mumbai - CST station; late night Marine drive outings including Tanmay’s farewell and the free roam with roommates after India’s world cup victory; Gateway of India; trip to Water Kingdom, Paintball at Powai with friends at office. Work was not very demanding too as many of us were leaving
It was time for another Goa trip 
This time with office buddies. To summarise – an unforgettable train journey with 12 of us sitting on 2 berths playing Antyakshari all night/day, stay at Tanmay’s place, exhilarating late night rides on Avenger, getting caught by the police at Panaji, cricket and football games, futile attempts to learn swimming, adrenaline pumping adventure sports at Baga beach, to the bumpy bus ride back to Mumbai – it was one helluva trip that all of us will cherish for years to come!
The last day of May was my last working day at Accenture. A sense of redemption, juxtaposed with the feeling of going away from friends for life, who wrote the Mumbai chapter of my life, crept into me. Wishing all well, and bidding farewell, I moved to Bangalore.
June – July
Time to spend at home, Bangalore. Mostly characterized by meeting up with relatives and friends before leaving in pursuit of the MS dream. Packing up stuff, finishing up tasks and also parting with my steed of five years, Apache 
. The sinking feeling of parting with my bike is something that I cannot find words to describe. The slick clutch, the seamless gearshift, the flaring acceleration, the feather touch manoeuvers is something that I would miss for a long time
Bade adieu to close relatives and friends, whom I am not sure when I would be meeting next, and set off to Bhiwadi. The Rajasthan trip that ensued was culturally uplifting. It reiterated that India is such a diverse country with rich history and culture. Sad to see the current state of affairs. Cannot expect much except that Indian polity needs a revolution. More on this in some other post.
Had my fill of home food, movies and serials; which will have to wait once I started off on my MSE.
August – December
Started off with the “honeymoon period”, characterised by the excitement of being in the USA, all on your own, exploring places and meeting new people. As the semester progressed, I was brutally exposed to the true colours of the course. Stuff that I had supposedly ‘learned’ in my Bachelors had evaporated, even my from thick skull! However, one course [of the three] posed the most problems, as it was completely unfathomable to me! Bad choice for a rookie. Learned the hard way that I had to do some serious damage control.
All in good time, hopefully.
And now after the fall break, looking forward to a better 2012 – full of life, benevolence, optimism and yeah of course, learning
You know how creativity is fed sometimes by sheer frustration. Here is one more example I present from my experience to substantiate the previous statement.
The list that follows is a compilation of all the negative energies, the formidable frustrations, the amiable curses, the rhetorical cusses of the three of us – Tanmay, Rohit and yours truly; that results in a surge of creativity towards our Testing lead ; within the walls of a cubicle.
The protagonist of this work is a character worth writing about – a captain who can sink his own ship even on calm waters without the aid of an iceberg.
Adjourn the able. Admonish the capable. Usher in the imbecile .
To many, this might just seem to be a collection of adjectives. To us, it is the fuel that fed our satanic creativity. Here’s presenting The Poopist Chronicles.
PS: We are forever indebted to the protagonist for expanding our thinking, however little; and saving whatever is left of our grey matter. Kudos!
Hindustan – The land of the Hindus. A name referred to India even today in some languages. Great name. Strong name actually, for a country that has openly declared itself as a secular and socialist republic in its constitution.
For a religion that almost 80% of India’s populace follows, Hinduism has well stood the test of time. Or has it? Are Hinduism and its ideals being followed religiously in today’s neo-sapien society?
For all I know, what was once more of a consensual feeling of oneness than a religion has been reduced to a mechanical way of life where rituals and practices are performed out of fear that arises by NOT propitiating the Gods. Most of the ‘learned’ are involved in the exploitation of the ‘devotees’ who are willing to go to any extent to satiate their ‘spiritual’ needs. Religion has become more of a business today, a means to make money.
Numerous examples can be quoted to substantiate what I am saying. All of the instances I am quoting are to do with Hinduism as I have experienced them as a Hindu.
Disclaimer – I am neither an atheist nor an agnost. I truly believe that there is a power which surpasses my limits as a human. Any debate on this point is welcome
Why does a Hindu visit a temple?
I believe that the fundamental concept in Hinduism is nature worship. We started worshipping something that we cannot completely control, something that surpasses human limits as a power that sustains life. But today, this essence is lost and is more oriented towards idol worship. This implies that devotion comes from sight and NOT perception. Later on, devotion from sight becomes my perception of God!
As a devotee, I go to a temple to see the deity whom I perceive as God, and surrender myself in full to His greatness [as I have been told in my growing years]. So, a Hindu has been groomed to be spiritual when he sees an image of a deity, physical or mental.
Idol worship is a hugely debatable topic and I do not intend to discuss the basis of its formulation in here. When I visit a temple, as a devout Hindu, I expect to see the Lord in full, feel sanctified by the experience and be uplifted spiritually.
Having said that, let me throw some light on practices in temples today.
Situation #1 –
Consider Tirupati – the world’s richest temple. [Or has Tiruvanathapuram overthrown its monopoly? I’ll get back to this later J] An estimated 40 million people visit this temple annually; all of them expecting to see Him and be satisfied on having His grace. The first thought that comes to mind is about the waiting time – 8 hrs for general queue. But we are blessed with immense business acumen! It would take 4 hrs for special queue with an entry ticket of Rs.100 and 1.5 hrs for a VIP queue, with an entry ticket of Rs.300. [I am unsure of the rates but there are three tiers of devotees for sure J] One thing common across all queues is that we are allowed to see Him for about a second or two, not more than that. At the first step itself, I am ‘bribing’ Him by paying money for the ticket which gives me faster access to Him, when there are thousands more waiting to get the same fleeting glimpse. Apart from this, the queue leading up to the main deity is fraught with people who will go to any lengths to establish their dominance in the queue – push, pull, stamp, box, nudge, elbow; and many more moves that are yet to be named. A simple devotee like me, who is not high on spirituality on the likes of Adi Shankara or Ramanuja, will not have their unwavering concentration to still think about Lord Venkateshwara’s greatness when I constantly fear if I can get out of the queue alive. When the basic concept of ‘sight’ and the serene environment of a temple is compromised, devotion is too hard to get. I would rather prefer a relatively unknown, not-so-popular Venkateshwara temple next to my house where I can see the deity in peace for 5 min. I have also been told that the deity at Tirumala is ‘very powerful’. No disrespect or offence meant to anyone; but aren’t all Venkateshwaras across all states and countries the same? The satisfaction that I get from the nearby temple is profound whereas at Tirupati I am holding on to dear life!
Situation #2 –
I have already established that the main criterion to invoke devotion in Hindus is to see the deity. Most temples in India are old and the deities are made from a ‘sacred’ black stone which is found in abundance in India. I understand that natural lighting is limited as yesteryear architects had limited resources and had to depend on oil lamps for illuminating the deity. This sufficed when the whole population of India was about 5% of what it is today. But today, in the world of LED lighting, the same number of oil lamps that were used 5 centuries ago is used to satisfy the needs of a population that has grown 20 fold. Visibility is seriously compromised and thus devotion invoked is zero. I have been grossly disappointed on numerous occasions – Padmanabhaswamy temple at Thiruvananthapuram, Guruvayurappan temple at Guruvayur, Tirupati etc. The various photos that are displayed in the stalls outside any temple are more clear and pronounced than the deity itself! When I get more satisfaction from seeing a photograph than from the deity, why would I want to visit the temple in the first place?
Situation #3 –
The immense commercialization that accompanies your entry into the temple premises makes you wish you would have been better off staying at home. Apart from the previously mentioned ticket rates, you can also find sleuths frolicking around you to get you a ‘special darshan’ and a guided tour of the temple for 200 – 300 rupees. Be it Mathura [the birth place of Krishna], Haridwar, Hrishikesh, Nathdwara or any other place that has mythological significance -the sanctity of the place is lost!
The temple timings are also strategically timed. Most temples in the south open early, say by 5 AM and close by 11AM; open in the evening by 5PM and close by 8 PM. In the north temples open by 7AM and close by 5PM. Even during these working hours, the sanctum sanctorum is closed with a curtain as the deity is being decorated. This takes up about an hour each in the morning and evening which is costly especially in the southern temples. During my visit to the Nathdwara temple recently, one fellow had the audacity to ask for 100 rupees to show us around the temple even after it was closed! I’m guessing he must be having a share with the temple’s priests.
Scenario #4 –
God save the money that’s been unearthed from the Thiruvanathapuram temple! Maybe that wealth can be used to clear off our debt to the world bank. Srirangam temple follows suit. No God asks for materialistic wealth, it’s us who are obsessed with satisfying our self made spiritual desires!
I must be unabashed in saying that it is definitely difficult for today’s youth to be pious or spiritually inclined, considering the odds that I have mentioned. After all, we are not the only people to be blamed! The system needs to be changed. There have to be supervisory bodies or mutts that ensure temples adhere to certain norms.
Having undergone all this, the astute part of my brain devised a practical solution to all these problems. The next time I want to visit a temple, all I need to do is an image search on Google! 
He stared at the vast expanse of the ocean, mulling over the time they had spent together. There had been memories, memories that were full of hope, exhiliration, intensity and soul. Memories that would make him the person he would be. Memories of events that he thought would never happen. Memories that would stick with him for the remainder of his existence.
She had been the light in the darkness of his life, the oasis of solace in his desert of solitude, the pull of gravity for the sustenance of his system. Deep inside, he heard the voice of his subconscious telling him that she is the one.
The horizon looked blue, full of optimism for the future. He could feel the wind whispering that everything would be alright. The simmering sun seemed to acknowledge his thoughts. The faint cry of the seagulls seemed to bring eternal peace to his disturbed mind.
However, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t come to terms with the fact that he had to let her go. He was going to war, literally and figuratively. One as a service to his nation, the other as a test of his emotional endurance. He Reeled under the myriad of emotions. On one Side Was exaltation that he was on his path for glory. Then reality hit him hard on the face. There was no assurance that he would see her again. He pondered that he could never get her, for he was an outcast. An outcast to her people, as they would never let her be or accept him as hers. The irony of life tore him apart.
He longed for her gentle touch. He pined to feel her hair on his face for one last time. But it was time. The enemy was closing in, his emotions were piling up, a storm was brewing, he had to go…..
I have already spoken about the pitiable state of today’s consumer in one of my previous posts ‘Confusemerism‘. This post is in continuation to that, to showcase the apathetic treatment that is meted out to customers today. The text that follows below is the mail I sent out to the customer care of the DTH major, BIG TV and the response from their customer care. Specific details are withheld to protect privacy.
To Whomsoever it may concern -
I am availing DTH services from Big TV since December 2010. I have 2 registered STBs whose IDs are quoted below.
STB #1 [Parent] – <number1>
STB #2 [Child] – <number2>
I am one of the many consumers who are stricken by the incorrigible audacity of corporates who craft customer policies that eyewash customers as being beneficial but are authoritatively exploitive in nature.
It is indeed sad to note that a company like Reliance ADAG, coming from the house of one of the pioneers of Indian business, has succumbed to the herd mentality of abusing customers and not being customer friendly. I offer substantiation to justify my claims.
It has been 3 months since we got transferred to Biwadi [Rajasthan], from Chennai. Coming from a typical South Indian setting, language is a huge barrier for day to day communication. The apartment complex we reside in does not endorse setting up DTH services of our choice, the monopoly is held by BIG TV DTH providers. Every resident MUST install Big TV DTH in order to watch the very basic television. The incredibly customer-friendly TATA SKY DTH service was of no use when we shifted as we had to migrate to Big TV DTH.
The installation and choosing of the individual packs was done by the local salesman. On registering online, I was informed that I am availing a channel pack named “channel_pack_1″ which costs Rs.300; along with “Tamil Pack – C” which costs Rs.5.
Since we are not comfortable conversing in Hindi, I assumed that my queries will be answered on contacting the customer care.
To my dismay, even on selecting the option for English through the IVRS, all customer care executives converse in very fluent Hindi, whose content we cannot comprehend. It is sad to note that the customer care unit of a business giant like ADAG has executives who cannot converse in basic English.
The customer care also wasn’t of much help as I only ended up getting more confused. I was informed that we are availing multiple STB discount. I was also informed that I could add/remove any channel pack of my choice online, over the internet.
However, I was unable to find a ‘Pack selection’ option either on the the BigTV site [http://www.reliancedigitaltv.com/home.html] or on the Reliance services site [http://myservices.relianceada.com/]. I only found an option for online recharge which is to recharge my account and increase the balance along with different PDF versions of the available packs.
On going through the packs available, I was able to conclude that they aren’t designed in a way a normal customer who stays at home wants. A customer will have to choose all possible packs to get his basic TV watching needs satisfied. Just to quote some examples -
Referring to “Add-on-packs” -
1. Infotainment pack includes Nat Geo, but doesn’t include Discovery Channel. I have to avail Discovery Channel via the a-la-carte option. However, if that is done; I stand to lose out on the Multiple STB offer that I currently get for having 2 STBs.
2. Neither the ‘English Movie pack’ nor the ‘Jumbo Entertainment pack’ include Star Movies. The same scenario with Discovery channel applies to Star Movies too.
The only option I have is to choose all possible packs to watch the few channels I want.
FYI, Discovery Channel and Star Movies were basic channels that we used to get from cable operators way before the advent of DTH.
In conclusion, a customer like me, who doesn’t expect much from service providers, ends up getting confused and is taken for a ride. A mail of this intensity solicits a response.
Ashwin
Response from the Customer care –
Dear Customer,
Thank you for contacting Reliance Customer Care.
This is in reference to your e-mail regarding Reliance Digital TV services.
Thank you for taking time to contact us to explain the issue. We regret any inconvenience you have experienced.We treat each customer’s suggestion as a feedback to improve our DTH services.
In future if any changes made to existing pack and channel offering you would be informed
Digital TV aims to consistently deliver a professional service to our customers and we would like to state that on this occasion the level of service you received was unacceptable.
Further to your complaint regarding poor services received from our Customer Care, we are deeply concerned by the feedback provided by you and also regret the inconvenience faced by you while using our services.
Yours sincerely,
<Name>
Customer Care
Reliance Digital TV
Point to ponder upon - All this said and done, nothing will change for the time being. Just a couple of mails back and forth, and things will be back to square one again. Companies will get back to what they do, and consumers will get exploited as always is the case.
The stats helper monkeys at WordPress.com mulled over how this blog did in 2010, and here’s a high level summary of its overall blog health:
The Blog-Health-o-Meter™ reads Wow.
A Boeing 747-400 passenger jet can hold 416 passengers. This blog was viewed about 2,800 times in 2010. That’s about 7 full 747s.
In 2010, there were 10 new posts, growing the total archive of this blog to 39 posts. There were 22 pictures uploaded, taking up a total of 4mb. That’s about 2 pictures per month.
The busiest day of the year was August 16th with 46 views. The most popular post that day was The Indian dream … a Mirage?.
The top referring sites in 2010 were facebook.com, orkut.co.in, twitter.com, orkut.com, and elance.com.
Some visitors came searching, mostly for enthiran, wonderla, inception posters, hasili fisili, and 2012 ark.
These are the posts and pages that got the most views in 2010.
The Indian dream … a Mirage? August 2010
8 comments
Enthiran – The Invincible! October 2010
10 comments
Inception-Nolan’s best conception yet! August 2010
7 comments
10 Things to do before I die . . . June 2010
11 comments
About Me July 2008
3 comments
What happens when your conscious mind is doing something mechanical and your subconscious is left completely jobless? The result is the waking up of the many rusted neurons and getting them to work, as follows, resulting in the understanding of the seemingly simple things in life – all of this, from a cubicle!
Well; Abhishek , Puneeth and I put on our thinking caps once in a while.
These are some of the quotes that have popped up during our discussions at work, over Office communicator.
The affable Abhishek-
Yours truly -
More additions to this post is directly proportional to the time spent at work 
PS : Puneeth had The Reaper series at the focus of all his attention. His inputs will be added soon. .
“This is what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object”
- The Joker in “The Dark Knight”
This best describes what happens when Rajni and Shankar come together. Rajni, the unstoppable force that he is, going strong at 60. Shankar, the immovable object, sticks to his style of filmmaking, and continuously reinvents himself at the same time. Endhiran brings them together after the blockbuster “Sivaji”.
What happens when combo of a ubiquitous media baron [Sun Pictures, Kalanidhi Maran], a Demi God Super Star, a maverick director [Shankar], the Mozart of Madras [AR Rahman], a global beauty [Aishwarya Rai] and a Legend in animatronics [Stan Winston Studios] come together? The result is bombastic.
Being in the making for about 2 years, Enthiran commanded the greatest of our expectations, and it doesn’t disappoint.
The plot is simple and straight. A genius scientist Vaseegaran creates a hyper-advanced robot, Chitti, for the Indian army. Enthiran is about the consequences that arise when the robot interacts with the society and the problems/solutions it introduces. OK, the plot is simple and age old, what’s all the noise about?
Firstly, with the screenplay, Shankar, the captain courageous, scores big. It’s no mean task to amalgamate the taste of the Indian audience and the technicality that goes into a project of this magnitude, both of which are relevant for this movie to be a success. Shankar comes up with an original product that has no similarities to other robot movies of Hollywood. Full marks to him for his detailing. Immense research has gone into the execution of Enthiran and it reflects on screen. Topics like coding of the neural schema [one of the key concepts in artificial intelligence], using the Zigbee protocol for data transfer to an examination hall for Sana [Aishwarya] to clear her medical exams, Obstetrics – to deliver a baby, the realization that dawns on Vaseegaran to give Chitti the power to feel things as a human; are small things that may not be noticed by us viewers, but show Shankar’s prowess in eye for detail.
Next comes Animatronics, a technique that is used extensively in Enthiran, executed to perfection by the guys at Stan Wiston Studios, USA. FYI : Stan Winston studios are the guys behind special effects for movies like Alien, Terminator, Predator, Jurassic Park, more recently, Iron man and Avatar. With such an impeccable track record, these guys yet again make us go gaga over the special effects in Enthiran. There are certain sequences that gave me goose bumps and definitely deserve a mention – the introductory scene of the robot where he showcases his talent in different martial arts and different types of dance, the firefighting scene, the train fight sequence, the scene where Chitti has to be approved by the All India Robotics Development centre, the emergence of the destructive robot; lastly, the final 30 minutes of Endhiran leaves you spellbound with the magic that is animatronics. I do not want to quote specifics of the climax lest it spoil your experience. Kudos to Stan Winston for giving Animatronics to the world!
AR Rahman is in fine form, as usual and as expected. Music is extravagant which reflects the mood of Endhiran. I am at awe with his ability to create two completely different versions of the same song. The album includes the fast version of “Irumbile oru Irudhayam”, but he weaves the slow version of this song in the BGM. Pure genius. Shankar’s exquisite picturisation, especially “Kadhal Anukkal” and “Kilimanjaro”, accentuates the songs and makes them a selling point. Aishwarya puts in a fine performance as the scientist’s lover-girl. Special mention to her dancing skills – she steals the show in “Irumbile oru Irudhayam” and “Kilimanjaro”. Danny Denzongpa does justice to his miniscule role. Santhanam and Karunas can pride themselves for having bagged a role as Rajni’s sidekick!
Coming to the Boss! Enthiran is Rajni mania unleashed!
Enthiran is primarily dominated by the robot Rajni [Chitti] who does things you have always wanted Rajni to do – chase trains to save a girl, save people from an apocalyptic fire, run horizontal, talk to animals [or more specifically, to insects], replicate himself to multiple robots, wield 100 guns, smash vehicles and the likes! Rarely does Rajni get to showcase on screen his villainous skills of yore. The transformation he brings into the sinister robot is to be seen to be believed. The maniacal laughter, the aggressive body language and the agility he infuses into the rogue Chitti in the second half satisfies every bit of the Rajni fan in you. He adds his signature style to every frame of the film. The climactic sequence puts Rajni against Rajni which more than satisfies the fan in you.
Negatives, if any, would be the lack of a dedicated comedy track, and excess stunt sequences. But I am not complaining since they are executed to perfection!
Enthiran is Rajni at one of his many bests. With this, Shankar defines a new standard of filmmaking. Indian cinema has found its place on the global map. Watch it to savour the experience that Enthiran is.
15th August, 1947
“Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps, India will awake to life and freedom.”
That was the day of redemption for 35 crore people.
That was the day their dream of a free India was realized.
That was the day the martyrdom of tens of thousands of our forefathers achieved its purpose.
That was the day the Indian people started dreaming of a better future for their children.
That was the day we Indians started governing ourselves.
“A moment comes, which comes but rarely in history, when we step out from the old to the new, when an age ends, and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance. It is fitting that at this solemn moment we take the pledge of dedication to the service of India and her people and to the still larger cause of humanity.”
It has been 63 years since this memorable speech was delivered by our first Prime minister, Nehru. 63 years down the line, braving the test of time, when we look at this, doesn’t the relevance of these lines even today make us feel inherently ashamed of ourselves?
In these 63 years
Has the suppressed soul of our nation found its utterance?
Have we taken / fulfilled our pledge of dedication to service of India?
I have great regards for the civilization that India was, is and is going to be. I have a feeling of belonging to this country which makes me accept whatever it is. Is this one of the prime reasons why India is what it is today – people like me and you accepting the atrocities pervading the Indian society.
India is a country of various cultures with innate diversity that adds richness to its heritage. Statistics say that there are 18 official languages recognized in India and 347 languages that are spoken across 28 states and 7 union territories. Agreed. Point taken.
The fancy phrase that is thrown around everywhere is “Unity in Diversity”. The interpretation of this line that is famous – even though people from multiple cultures and backgrounds are residing in India, we all can peacefully coexist. We salute our motherland and stay with her through thick and thin, during a crisis or otherwise. A term that is very well coined, Kudos! I don’t know if my paranoiac instincts are more powerful than my optimism, but I find this to be of very little relevance in today’s India. The very reason that is quoted to justify the so called “Unity” in diversity is India’s bane. India is infested with fanaticism – for language, for religion, for region, for money. How can I love my country as a whole with such deep rooted problems in its society?
Though I am digressing, I would like to quote an instance to validate my point. I had planned for a perfect weekend. Had to visit Siddhivinayak temple, seek His blessings; go to the IMAX theatre, watch Inception; get back home and watch a movie; blowing away about 400 rupees in the process. While getting back home after my ‘perfect’ weekend, I was subject to disturbing reality that upset me, first as a human, then an Indian.
The scene is at a crowded railway station, where everyone is minding their own businesses. While at the ticket counter, I saw an old lady, possible as old as my grandmother, seeking alms from people waiting in the queue and bystanders. Her walk was tired and had a limp. She was turning in all possible directions, with the hope of finding someone to give her some money; with one hand outstretched and the other hand on her back, possibly to relieve herself of the pain; all this while taking support of the wall nearby. It was hard not to notice people not noticing her. There was this woman, who must have been through so much in life, must be having children of my parents’ age and grandchildren of my age; “destiny” has put her in this situation, and can’t even one person find the time or capital to spare her some money? Are we so callous that we can gleefully accept that there is a fellow human being who is struggling to feed herself/himself. The truth is that there are so many people like this old lady at the station everywhere that we find them to be a part of life who are merely entities. I gave her a few coins. The grateful look on her face and her acknowledgement of my “generosity” was too hard to take. I was on my way home after blowing up 400 rupees in about 3 hours and here was this lady for whom getting a meal was a big deal. The irony of life wrenched my heart.
What is the point in saluting the National Flag, singing the National Anthem, cheering “Mera Bharat Mahan!” when the very essence of life is lacking in our society? A child’s education is still a dream for many of our compatriots. Three meals a day is luxury for some. Such is the disparity of living and income In India; that it makes any normal, sane person with basic rationality to question its system, its culture, and its ethics. An iota of doubt on my motherland is an insult to my integrity. The question we need to ask ourselves is what is that we have done as citizens to make our fellow human beings’ lives better. [borrowing from Kennedy’s speech here]
Indian independence is something that our forefathers [not us] have achieved after a long struggle, so that we would have what they didn’t have – freedom : from injustice, from social evils, from monopoly. Their sacrifices will go in vain if we don’t realize their Indian dream. Our Independence day has come to become just a break from our mundane routines, where we sit at home and watch TV. The hard fact is that our complacency and apathy have let opportunists exploit the situation and make merry.
I have quoted the causes of these problems [corruption, politics etc] in my previous posts and wouldn’t want to elaborate on them. We know the problems, we need to find solutions. Apparent patriotism is not the need of the hour. We need to turn on the switch, shift gears and step on the gas pedal – I can hear the siren wailing.
There is hope for the future only if we wake up from our slumber. India is shining in her own way, she is recognized on the international map as a progressing nation with growing economy – but much is left to be done, and this task is very much on our hands.
I would like to quote Swami Vivekananda’s immortal and inspiring quote – “Arise, awake, stop not till the goal is reached”.
Jai Hind. Truly.
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