After a very inspiring lecture a few days ago in class my friends and i have really taken it seriously and are doing our bit to what we call "exercising for our rights"....
since the past few days the delhi police's PCR service has been getting regular calls from us as we complain of auto rickshaw drivers who either refuse to go to the destination or refuse to go by the meter...even though it doesnt take us time dialing 1oo and complaining(toll free!!) i've been pondering over it ....something disturbs me....even though we all are being so vocal (aise kaise nahi chaloge meter se bhaiya??) i get a mixed feeling whenever i do it.... 'mixed' as in....i dont understand the whole purpose....the whole aim of getting one challaned....how do we know if he is in need....if he is poor...do we understand his point of view??...
the other day my mom and i had to come back fom south ex...when i asked an auto to take us to saket he demanded 60 rupees and so did his other accomplices... and what was strange was that all of them were doing so....everyone!!!! "kis kis ka registration number bataun??". i yelled.....but no use...they just simply dont care.... i went further and stopped one ..... he was no different...." bhaiya sone ka auto hai kya aapka??".....i immidiately ....without thinking dialed 100 and complained about him....."you wont get an auto if you keep complaining like this....will u?? its of no use...they dont care.If not us he'll have many others to pay according to his demand...whereas we cannot afford to stand like this fo hours.... its getting late we have no time for your' natak' ...lets take ANY auto now that we have no choice "...she yelled...i HAD to agree....(you cannot disagree with your parents specially when they scream at you in public places and when they are amost correct...i couldnt either) all through the journey i thought about it..."she's right" i repeated to myself....i could not get an auto by complaining about them to the police ....they would anyway 'reject' my plea and i'd hace to settle in....but why?? what is the meter for then(in cases when it is there in the first place...since most of the times it is 'not working') ??? and even when they are there they are easily tamperable....yaah we indians are experts in this department....i can recall my brother when he was in kindergarten and every time we used to visit the nearest marketplace he would cry and wail in front of the toy shop so that mom and dad buy him those car toys and as soon as we would reach home he would proudly show us different parts of it...."mom this is the engine and this is the...." ....i think we all are like that.....im not being narcissistic ....its true...we have the brains....(except some...) and it only depends on how we utilise it.....
...so after all this....i guess some things are left better to be decided by oneself...
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Sunday, January 20, 2008
phir bhi dil hai hindustani....
"hum sab ek hain!!" i guess only in movies....and even if its true its an old one. we have a new version ost developing india...."ek main aur ek tu!!"
Off late certain issues have been disturbing me so much so that i always ended up fighting with people...since 'fighting' or raising our voices is something that we are such experts at...we call ouselves a free economy but take less time in overreacting to issues that in many cases are not even 'issues'...
Be it the Danish cartoon or the banning of AXN for two months in India or the controversies surrounding M.F. Hussain and Salman Rushdie or many others like them… . Just today NDTV’s office in Ahmedabad was vandalized by goons claiming to be a part of some political outfits (who clearly disowned them…). The larger question is … Where is the India which was an example of peace brotherhood and “aadmi hoon aadmi se pyar karta hun” feeling?? Which society are we heading towards??
In a country where a politician calls the opposition leaders ‘hijras’ at a public rally and everyone plays a mute spectator and on the other hand a news channel conducts a poll and its office is vandalized and employees injured…just because they were offended to one of the nominees in the poll. Where is the freedom of expression now??
Come valentines day and our dear Shiv Sena and VHP workers venture out and attack all couples in their vicinity, vandalize restraunts, card shops etc etc….calling it a western phenomenon and more…when a leadng actress from south India when asked in an interview presents her views on pre-marital sex she is attacked several times…. when Richard Gere kisses Shilpa Shetty, his effigies are burnt and there are widespread protests . But when a girl is harassed and molested in broad daylight at a public place we turn a blind eye and a deaf ear... noone tries to help her. Because we all are so scared.…
But why??
How can we denied of our rights so easily and the best part is that we don't raise our voices against it. We really don’t care whom we are voting for or how our country is being governed?? The truth is that when we vote (well, this is for those who vote because for most of us it is that perfect holiday when we dine out and watch movies) . so for those of us who vote its almost like a family tradition where we vote for those candidates to whom our elders have been voting for... We need to keep the tradition alive you see!! But wait I guess in a country like India we will have those who shall prove this wrong...and those are the ones who care for the future of their country
Where are today’s Subhash Chandra Bose and Bhagat Singh ?? can we only promise to put our lives at stake or is a fake pledge we take in front of the cameras when we are auditioning for MTV Roadies???
But when i read the newspaper today i got some answers...it was muharram yesterday and members of a hindu family in Uttar Pradesh sent out a special message, "we fast for muharram and ramzan just as we do for navratras.For us both Hinduism and Islam are equal" .... So hence proved ....Is it true that we haven't changed much ...just a little?? ...But that doesn't mean that whatever i said is not true!! considering what's at stake (my whole article) ill try to give the only example dribbling inside my head...its just like whenever our mother cooks kheer for us ...even if its does not have that perfect taste we dont mind....at the end of it , its cooked by our mother (and yah because its kheer)....
Similarly, i guess we shall remain what we were just a little change here and there....some less sugar but after all "phir bhi dil hai hindustani"....
Well i cant find a proper conclusion so i guess ill leave it to you ....does it all even matter to you?? when was the last time you tried to listen to your heart and make an effort to help someone or to set an example ?? to change for the good...for your country..your people...and you!!!
Off late certain issues have been disturbing me so much so that i always ended up fighting with people...since 'fighting' or raising our voices is something that we are such experts at...we call ouselves a free economy but take less time in overreacting to issues that in many cases are not even 'issues'...
Be it the Danish cartoon or the banning of AXN for two months in India or the controversies surrounding M.F. Hussain and Salman Rushdie or many others like them… . Just today NDTV’s office in Ahmedabad was vandalized by goons claiming to be a part of some political outfits (who clearly disowned them…). The larger question is … Where is the India which was an example of peace brotherhood and “aadmi hoon aadmi se pyar karta hun” feeling?? Which society are we heading towards??
In a country where a politician calls the opposition leaders ‘hijras’ at a public rally and everyone plays a mute spectator and on the other hand a news channel conducts a poll and its office is vandalized and employees injured…just because they were offended to one of the nominees in the poll. Where is the freedom of expression now??
Come valentines day and our dear Shiv Sena and VHP workers venture out and attack all couples in their vicinity, vandalize restraunts, card shops etc etc….calling it a western phenomenon and more…when a leadng actress from south India when asked in an interview presents her views on pre-marital sex she is attacked several times…. when Richard Gere kisses Shilpa Shetty, his effigies are burnt and there are widespread protests . But when a girl is harassed and molested in broad daylight at a public place we turn a blind eye and a deaf ear... noone tries to help her. Because we all are so scared.…
But why??
How can we denied of our rights so easily and the best part is that we don't raise our voices against it. We really don’t care whom we are voting for or how our country is being governed?? The truth is that when we vote (well, this is for those who vote because for most of us it is that perfect holiday when we dine out and watch movies) . so for those of us who vote its almost like a family tradition where we vote for those candidates to whom our elders have been voting for... We need to keep the tradition alive you see!! But wait I guess in a country like India we will have those who shall prove this wrong...and those are the ones who care for the future of their country
Where are today’s Subhash Chandra Bose and Bhagat Singh ?? can we only promise to put our lives at stake or is a fake pledge we take in front of the cameras when we are auditioning for MTV Roadies???
But when i read the newspaper today i got some answers...it was muharram yesterday and members of a hindu family in Uttar Pradesh sent out a special message, "we fast for muharram and ramzan just as we do for navratras.For us both Hinduism and Islam are equal" .... So hence proved ....Is it true that we haven't changed much ...just a little?? ...But that doesn't mean that whatever i said is not true!! considering what's at stake (my whole article) ill try to give the only example dribbling inside my head...its just like whenever our mother cooks kheer for us ...even if its does not have that perfect taste we dont mind....at the end of it , its cooked by our mother (and yah because its kheer)....
Similarly, i guess we shall remain what we were just a little change here and there....some less sugar but after all "phir bhi dil hai hindustani"....
Well i cant find a proper conclusion so i guess ill leave it to you ....does it all even matter to you?? when was the last time you tried to listen to your heart and make an effort to help someone or to set an example ?? to change for the good...for your country..your people...and you!!!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
....not me, WE
Killing in the name of….
Mahatma Gandhi said , “ I have nothing new to teach the world truth and non-violence are as old as the hills…”. I, a lesser known (actually an unknown) soul would rather quote “hatred and communal violence are as old as truth and non-violence…” . so much so that it has become a world of convenience.We have come in terms of accepting them in our day to day lives and yes.....we have no qualms about it. I remember my younger brother in his nursery class....one day he came up to my parents and said, "mom i want shoes with spikes in them like the ones cricketers and footballers use"....my mom amazed, enquired of the reason. he then replied that he had a scuffle with some other classmates and so he wanted to 'smash them up'..... of course we didn't buy them for him ....
In today’s world as we long for peace and happiness it is sometimes so strange to see some spreading fear and terror. Be it Bush uncle, Osama uncle, Pervez uncle or their ancestors like Hitler ….all of them are being named together in the paradigm of fear, terror and hatred that they have created.
Terrorist attacks, communal violence, “invasions”, war, “jihad” ….are some words with which we are so familiar that if now we hear of some bomb blast, we don’t bother to care much about it since it has become such a common phenomenon. And its scary….what knowledge are we imparting to our future generations? What is going to be the future? And will there be a future at all?? Who are we killing each other for? In whose name? The ONE who created us?? I wonder what he must be thinking…probably himself trying to find the answers…
It’s so sad that forget humans rather every living being is fighting for their basic right to survive in this age. It’s become a rat race …a lion race ….a survival race. And it is startling how one can so easily snatch away another’s right to survive. How can we be so merciless??? How can we let this happen??? Why are we quiet?? When are we going to speak out and say , that we don't need terror rather peace...and a better world for everyone…. Why don’t we exercise this power….the power of oneness….the power of unity…the power of ‘we’……
Mahatma Gandhi said , “ I have nothing new to teach the world truth and non-violence are as old as the hills…”. I, a lesser known (actually an unknown) soul would rather quote “hatred and communal violence are as old as truth and non-violence…” . so much so that it has become a world of convenience.We have come in terms of accepting them in our day to day lives and yes.....we have no qualms about it. I remember my younger brother in his nursery class....one day he came up to my parents and said, "mom i want shoes with spikes in them like the ones cricketers and footballers use"....my mom amazed, enquired of the reason. he then replied that he had a scuffle with some other classmates and so he wanted to 'smash them up'..... of course we didn't buy them for him ....
In today’s world as we long for peace and happiness it is sometimes so strange to see some spreading fear and terror. Be it Bush uncle, Osama uncle, Pervez uncle or their ancestors like Hitler ….all of them are being named together in the paradigm of fear, terror and hatred that they have created.
Terrorist attacks, communal violence, “invasions”, war, “jihad” ….are some words with which we are so familiar that if now we hear of some bomb blast, we don’t bother to care much about it since it has become such a common phenomenon. And its scary….what knowledge are we imparting to our future generations? What is going to be the future? And will there be a future at all?? Who are we killing each other for? In whose name? The ONE who created us?? I wonder what he must be thinking…probably himself trying to find the answers…
It’s so sad that forget humans rather every living being is fighting for their basic right to survive in this age. It’s become a rat race …a lion race ….a survival race. And it is startling how one can so easily snatch away another’s right to survive. How can we be so merciless??? How can we let this happen??? Why are we quiet?? When are we going to speak out and say , that we don't need terror rather peace...and a better world for everyone…. Why don’t we exercise this power….the power of oneness….the power of unity…the power of ‘we’……
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
... so i write
That same old story…
Hey hey!! Please don’t close the tab already since now u have read the heading. These headings sometime kill the whole fun of the story , they make the whole story so predictable at times…whatever ill not go on and on now and stick to my ‘heading’ ,now that I m not writing this story to prove that they do kill the whole fun…well this is not just any other same old story ,it is a collection of my experiences with the city…
lately Hindustan Times’ ‘I love Delhi campaign ’ has been an eye opener…the newspaper highlighted all the nice things about Delhi and what was mote interesting was the overwhelming response that they received from their readers …it was a commendable thought now that we love to hate everything around us…the horrible transport system ,always nagging auntys, cheap men, irritating autowallahs , dirty roads and people that litter and have converted the whole city into a BIG toilet and yes not to forget the government (it is always so convenient to blame the government whenever we cant find anyone else to blame!).
A radio channel RED FM also attempted to make Delhi a better place for those residing and those visiting…the campaign “dilli ke chamakte sitare” was a funny and sarcastic take on those ‘’ shining stars of the city such as seeti bhaiya the ‘eve teaser’ whose aim is to stare and ogle at every girl…the susu uncle due to whom the walls of the city are not alone covered in paint…and many other ‘stars’ whose contribution to the city is ‘inevitable’ …the campaign was so carried out in such a spirit that the message was also delivered and the entertainment quotient was also maintained…so much so that I once called my mother “kachra aunty” when once she threw something from the car window… in the light of all this I try to recount some of my experiences with the city…
And living in delhi who can forget the very popular and (now) very unpopular ‘killer’ blueline buses ….and everyday I experience something new including some near to death experiences (apart from those men staring at you) ...and you cursing environmentalists for discouraging the use of deo sprays…dumb men yelling their vocal cords out...and budhdhi aunties giving those glances for wearing that sleeveless top...for the sake of timepass..... I attempt to try my hand at ‘face reading’ those around me .....it is such a ‘joyful ’ ride at times…it teaches you so much at times that you hate traveling in them yet you do… faces expressing worry(oh no I’m late to work again and probably ill be fired today!!), anger(I hate my boss….i hate my boss!!), happiness(now that’s a difficult one to spot!), irritation(trust me when you leave home all ‘fresh’ the least you expect is to be covered in sweat and smell like hell when you reach your destination ) etc etc…children selling pen torches, and beggars singing for money…all this I guess prepares you for the life ahead…and at the end of it you realize that India has a long way to go before it becomes a superpower ,the competition is not the U.S. but the society itself …we first need to accept how we are to move ahead and ensure that everyone has a say and feels a part of the so called ‘mainstream’ …transsexuals, gays , lesbians , people with disabilities etc should enjoy the same amount of liberties and freedom as you and I do…it is so sad to see people deprived of their basic right to live when we exercise such rights so liberally…and so I hope for a better tomorrow for the country ....
PS. Cudnt find an appropriate conclusion....*sob sob*
Hey hey!! Please don’t close the tab already since now u have read the heading. These headings sometime kill the whole fun of the story , they make the whole story so predictable at times…whatever ill not go on and on now and stick to my ‘heading’ ,now that I m not writing this story to prove that they do kill the whole fun…well this is not just any other same old story ,it is a collection of my experiences with the city…
lately Hindustan Times’ ‘I love Delhi campaign ’ has been an eye opener…the newspaper highlighted all the nice things about Delhi and what was mote interesting was the overwhelming response that they received from their readers …it was a commendable thought now that we love to hate everything around us…the horrible transport system ,always nagging auntys, cheap men, irritating autowallahs , dirty roads and people that litter and have converted the whole city into a BIG toilet and yes not to forget the government (it is always so convenient to blame the government whenever we cant find anyone else to blame!).
A radio channel RED FM also attempted to make Delhi a better place for those residing and those visiting…the campaign “dilli ke chamakte sitare” was a funny and sarcastic take on those ‘’ shining stars of the city such as seeti bhaiya the ‘eve teaser’ whose aim is to stare and ogle at every girl…the susu uncle due to whom the walls of the city are not alone covered in paint…and many other ‘stars’ whose contribution to the city is ‘inevitable’ …the campaign was so carried out in such a spirit that the message was also delivered and the entertainment quotient was also maintained…so much so that I once called my mother “kachra aunty” when once she threw something from the car window… in the light of all this I try to recount some of my experiences with the city…
And living in delhi who can forget the very popular and (now) very unpopular ‘killer’ blueline buses ….and everyday I experience something new including some near to death experiences (apart from those men staring at you) ...and you cursing environmentalists for discouraging the use of deo sprays…dumb men yelling their vocal cords out...and budhdhi aunties giving those glances for wearing that sleeveless top...for the sake of timepass..... I attempt to try my hand at ‘face reading’ those around me .....it is such a ‘joyful ’ ride at times…it teaches you so much at times that you hate traveling in them yet you do… faces expressing worry(oh no I’m late to work again and probably ill be fired today!!), anger(I hate my boss….i hate my boss!!), happiness(now that’s a difficult one to spot!), irritation(trust me when you leave home all ‘fresh’ the least you expect is to be covered in sweat and smell like hell when you reach your destination ) etc etc…children selling pen torches, and beggars singing for money…all this I guess prepares you for the life ahead…and at the end of it you realize that India has a long way to go before it becomes a superpower ,the competition is not the U.S. but the society itself …we first need to accept how we are to move ahead and ensure that everyone has a say and feels a part of the so called ‘mainstream’ …transsexuals, gays , lesbians , people with disabilities etc should enjoy the same amount of liberties and freedom as you and I do…it is so sad to see people deprived of their basic right to live when we exercise such rights so liberally…and so I hope for a better tomorrow for the country ....
PS. Cudnt find an appropriate conclusion....*sob sob*
Thursday, January 10, 2008
what am i thinking???
Its 2 a.m. ....11 January...my birthday. After chatting on the phone for 2 hours im feeling extremely sleepy but i hav to write a blog or ill be dead in class. After listening to the usual 'happy birthdays' and "congratulations you finally turned 18!!!" I’m clearly not as excited!! I’m probably ranting because they all just killed my sleep (but I don’t regret ….i love my friends ...thank you Graham Bell!! This would not have been possible without you…) Well what exactly do they mean by ‘finally’?? was i not supposed to turn 18??
Honestly what’s with 18 anyway???....as I turn 18 today I m thinking a lot of things (some of which I’m making public)...so I’m a ‘major’ after all?? How does that even matter? Does it make me more mature and intelligent to take important decisions of my life? Does it make me a better person? WHATEVER……I don’t think so!!!! Well I have proof….George Bush, Osama Bin Laden, Hitler, Narendra Modi…I don’t think crossing even 40 helped them at all!!! So here I come back to my to my original question….and I want to ask you all (if there is anyone at all ,that is) what is the whole fuss about 18 anyway??? And who actually decided on that number??? It could be 20 or 30 or 14 (remember child labour???) who was that ‘intelligent soul’ who decided on that number? The ‘age’ which brigs with itself a lot of ‘responsibilities and (ahem!!) liberties’…. So I can vote now(how does that matter)….and I can marry now(who wants to marry at 18!!!!!)….watch ‘A’ rated movies (oops!! Too early or too late) ahem….!!! So the fact of the matter is how does that even matter after all ??? But wait….i can vote!! That means I have the right to choose the best government for the country…well honestly here in India “har bachcha apni maa ke pet se politics seekh ke aata hai” (as said by a ‘popular’ actor on national televisin…Ravi Kishan to be precise) . well I think he is partially correct…we all DO know so much about politics even before we are thorough with its spelling(….oops is mine correct?) . “mom there was class voting for the monitor …but the teacher herself chose the same boy who comes first and is the monitor since years…why don’t I get to be the monitor and he does even though there is no actual ‘voting’?? ”… “beta…don’t worry….in fact its good that you get to concentrate on your studies rather creating more enemies and wasting your time”….but I want to ask….why not the child be given a chance to do something he really wants to?? He may become a good leader and participate for the betterment of the future of his country!! “politics toh gandi naali hai”….we say but does anyone even care of cleaning it?? (no !! im not asking for MCD’s help…honestly I don’t think they are equipped to clean any ‘naali’ ….leave alone that of politics) .everyone wants to become a doctor ,engineer, pilot and businessman, but no one wants to be a politician….no one wants to lead their country….we can vote at the age of 18 but to lead the nation the only criteria are white hair , falling teeth, displaced bones etc etc etc……I now remember one comment made by Mallika Sherawat (she is an ‘actress’ by the way!!) “70% of our population is youth but those who are leading the nation have their feet hanging in their coffins” (please don’t be surprised if she plays some hot mindless politician I some c grade movie….but trust me she can take the credit of working a lot better than her ‘older counterparts’)…. Anyways she looks ‘somewhat 18’……(oops!! sorry!...my bad)
Honestly what’s with 18 anyway???....as I turn 18 today I m thinking a lot of things (some of which I’m making public)...so I’m a ‘major’ after all?? How does that even matter? Does it make me more mature and intelligent to take important decisions of my life? Does it make me a better person? WHATEVER……I don’t think so!!!! Well I have proof….George Bush, Osama Bin Laden, Hitler, Narendra Modi…I don’t think crossing even 40 helped them at all!!! So here I come back to my to my original question….and I want to ask you all (if there is anyone at all ,that is) what is the whole fuss about 18 anyway??? And who actually decided on that number??? It could be 20 or 30 or 14 (remember child labour???) who was that ‘intelligent soul’ who decided on that number? The ‘age’ which brigs with itself a lot of ‘responsibilities and (ahem!!) liberties’…. So I can vote now(how does that matter)….and I can marry now(who wants to marry at 18!!!!!)….watch ‘A’ rated movies (oops!! Too early or too late) ahem….!!! So the fact of the matter is how does that even matter after all ??? But wait….i can vote!! That means I have the right to choose the best government for the country…well honestly here in India “har bachcha apni maa ke pet se politics seekh ke aata hai” (as said by a ‘popular’ actor on national televisin…Ravi Kishan to be precise) . well I think he is partially correct…we all DO know so much about politics even before we are thorough with its spelling(….oops is mine correct?) . “mom there was class voting for the monitor …but the teacher herself chose the same boy who comes first and is the monitor since years…why don’t I get to be the monitor and he does even though there is no actual ‘voting’?? ”… “beta…don’t worry….in fact its good that you get to concentrate on your studies rather creating more enemies and wasting your time”….but I want to ask….why not the child be given a chance to do something he really wants to?? He may become a good leader and participate for the betterment of the future of his country!! “politics toh gandi naali hai”….we say but does anyone even care of cleaning it?? (no !! im not asking for MCD’s help…honestly I don’t think they are equipped to clean any ‘naali’ ….leave alone that of politics) .everyone wants to become a doctor ,engineer, pilot and businessman, but no one wants to be a politician….no one wants to lead their country….we can vote at the age of 18 but to lead the nation the only criteria are white hair , falling teeth, displaced bones etc etc etc……I now remember one comment made by Mallika Sherawat (she is an ‘actress’ by the way!!) “70% of our population is youth but those who are leading the nation have their feet hanging in their coffins” (please don’t be surprised if she plays some hot mindless politician I some c grade movie….but trust me she can take the credit of working a lot better than her ‘older counterparts’)…. Anyways she looks ‘somewhat 18’……(oops!! sorry!...my bad)
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