BJP confers Bharat Ratna on Rahul Gandhi

It was being discussed in power circles over last week or so. With the outcome of assembly results of Jharkhand and J&K, it has been made official. BJP Govt has decided to confer Bharat Ratna on Rahul Gandhi.

The sense of adulation towards Rahul is profound within BJP. Earlier in the media name of Atal Bihari Vajpayee was doing rounds for this award. When asked, BJP spoke person had this to say, “No doubt Atalji, Advaniji laid the foundation of our party. However it was Rahul who has worked hardly and helped BJP achieve glorious heights today. We wouldn’t be grateful enough if we ignore his contribution to our party and the nation. Without Rahul’s statements and lack of charisma, Modiji might not have become PM and driven hard the development agenda. Rahul is apple of nation’s eyes.”

Congress was quick to issue a defense. “Conferring Bharat Ratna on Rahul is a joke. What has he done? Other than to systemically eradicate Congress and propel BJP back to power. This is a vicious attempt by BJP to placate people faithful to them. We condemn it right, left and center.”

Rahul Gandhi was too happy to say anything. When prodded for a statement, he said, “Bharat Ratna is a state of mind. In my mind I am Global Ratna. Globe at my house has Bharat also. So I was already Bharat Ratna. However it feels nice to get that ribbon and pendant. Nice design I say”.

Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction and should be taken with humor.

Thank You Jet Airways: Flash Sale

I would like to thank Jet Airways. Long time passed since I met my college friends. Given that we all get artificially busy in our lives; it has become impossible to meet albeit in the virtual world.

The recent flash sale by few airlines including Jet Airways gave me reason to meet. Not that flights tickets are too expensive but flash sale was the last push I needed. I booked the tickets and off I went to Bengaluru.

It was just for the weekend but a weekend that washed away 3 years of stillness. Three idiots from college met and talked and talked and talked for a long time. Although I don’t agree with the attritional pricing of airlines that result in huge losses, but without that I might not have travelled at all.

I could have met few other friends while I was there, but it all got lost in the excitement and the 5km walk that I was subjected too. My legs are still paining, but all in good measure.

Interstellar: Possible Explanations of Plot Holes

Q 1: When 12 Lazarus missions were launched. Why didn’t they send embryos with each of the mission. 3000/12=250. We could have sent 250 Embroys with each of them. No need to wait 10 years for them to study the worlds and ping back the results. Whoever find the right habitat, start the civilization.
A 1: Maybe when Lazarus were launched, the Embryo breeding technology was not there. They developed it in those 10 years.

Q 2: Cooper met her daughter roughly 90 years later in Cooper station. That makes it around 65 years since Murph broke the gravity deadlock (with help from Cooper in bookcase). The idea of Plan A was to transfer humans from Earth to new planet that Cooper would have found habitable. What Murph and all the humans did in those 65 years? They just made the satellite stations. Why didn’t she send a reconnaissance mission through the wormhole in search for her father and the habitable planet?
A 2: Maybe it took a lot of time to build multiple such Stations. Maybe stress was on creating such stations and transferring all humans to such stations. All resources were concentrated on that. And given the human population (nearing 7 billion), to create such stations and transferring humans would have easily taken 65 years and maybe some poor humans were still living on earth in dire conditions waiting to be rescued. However Murph made sure a station was docked near Saturn (near Wormhole) which can pick up on activity if any.

Q 3: How was Cooper able to get rescued after entering the black hole.
A 3: Not exactly plot hole, but one hell of a blockbuster ending. The explanation that I can come up with is that 5D beings made sure that he travelled back through the wormhole and was left near the Cooper Station so that other 3D humans can rescue him. Or Maybe the force of love (Cooper for his daughter) was so strong that Cooper broke through the dimensions himself, travelled back the wormhole to see his daughter once again.

Q 4: How did Cooper and TARS interact in Tesseract?
A 4: Seems simple wireless technology. It might not have worked in Tesseract. But I feel 5D beings made sure they interact easily so that TARS relays quantum data from singularity to Cooper who relays it back to Murph.

Q 5: Why Mann wanted to kill one and all? He could have just explained that he lied as he did not want to die and that he is Sorry. Lets now got to Edmunds together and breed the humans.
A 5: I can only say that his evil actions made him see evil in everyone. He might have thought that other people can kill him for his lie. Maybe he thought they are going back to earth and even if he tell them the truth, they wont stop. To save the race he decided to kill them all and also let his deception die with them. Or he just went nuts.

Q 6:How did dying Murph knew about Amelia estranged on Edmunds? 
A 6: Cooper might have been de-briefed and Murph would have come to know about adventures of Cooper via that. So she knew about sling-shoted Amelia’s landing on Edmunds.

Q 7: Why did Cooper go alone to Edmunds to look for Amelia and not with a whole new crew?
A 7: As to why Cooper went alone when Humans have to move to the new planet in the long term, I am really not sure. Maybe humans were happy with Satellite Stations and not want to got to another planet which can again die like Earth. Maybe it was that kind of politics. Hence Cooper had to go alone, not just for human race but also for his kindling love for Amelia who is the only thread left for him from the past.

Q 8: How old would be Amelia if Cooper did meet her again?
A 8: We can’t be sure as to how long in Edmunds time Cooper was in bookcase/blackhole. We can’t say how much did time slow down in blackhole w.r.t Edmunds. I leave this to experts.

Interstellar: 5th Dimension Explained

One thing that is left totally unexplained in the movie is the 5th Dimension. It talks of 5th Dimensional beings. It establishes Time as the 4th Dimension. But never lets out what the 5th Dimension is. It is just told that Future humans might have become 5-Dimensional beings.

1. Who are 5th Dimensional beings?
By referring 5-Dimensional beings, Nolan refers to beings for whom manipulating 4th-D (Time) is a piece of cake. They are beings who are no longer bound by the rules of 4D. They are not able to interact directly with the 3D people. They can only interact with people in 3D/4D, by manipulating gravity, which is explained as force that transcends dimensions.

2. Why has 5th Dimension not been explained in the movie?
Nolan has used 5D as a reference to people who have moved beyond 4D. Who can move across multiple 4D’s (Just like 3D people can move across multiple planes i.e. multiple 2D’s). Something like super humans. I think Nolan might not have wanted to over complicate already complicated fundas. Hence he just left at 5D beings who can manipulate 4D.

3. What is 5th Dimension?
My take is Parallel Timelines. In 5D we can’t just move back and forth in Time (Single line), but also adjacently (adding one more dimension). It means that 5th Dimension adds parallel timelines. In 5D we not just move through past-present-future but also different timelines of each moment of past-present-future. In Tesseract 5D humans, either rendered 3D projection of just one of the parallel timelines or there were all the timelines there, but Cooper concentrated only on one.

4. Why can’t 5D humans interact with 3D humans directly. Why toy with them indirectly?
Maybe they can. Maybe they can’t. Maybe they just choose not to interact directly. Just like StarTrek into Darkness’s opening sequence, where only observations of other evolving planets was allowed, but interference was outlawed. Or as Nolan explained, beings from different dimensions can only interact via manipulating Gravity. As Gravity is the only thing that transcends dimensions.

Interstellar: Time Travel Climax explained

Saw Interstellar last night; another one of the notebook movies. I call them notebook movies as you have to sit with a notebook and pen to understand the mind-bending concepts.

I liked the movie overall which has a repeat value for me on the entertainment quotient alone. First half is a bit lazy as it unfolds, but second half is an edge of a seat journey.

This movie is based on scientific nuances of Time Travel, Wormholes, Black holes, which humans know in theory but are yet to corroborate by experiencing physically. It contains directors take on such concepts. In the process it fringes on the boundaries of present scientific knowledge. Hence explanation of entire movie within the layman notion of science might not be entirely possible. However I will relate what I make of it. This post deals with the Time Travel Climax of the movie and the confusion thereof.

Let me call Two Coopers as Cooper farmer (who lives with child Murph) and Cooper bookcase (who went into the blackhole and emerged into the bookcase). Cooper bookcase gave Cooper farmer the coordinates to the NASA facility. Cooper farmer could not have gone to NASA and eventually become Cooper bookcase without knowing these coordinates. How did Cooper (any one of the two) come to know the coordinates in the first place? Someone other than Cooper would have told them right? How does the knowledge of coordinates become self sustaining? Cooper told Cooper, but who told Cooper?

This deals with the concept beyond what humans have experienced physically. The 4th dimension of Time. Post Miller mishap, a desperate Cooper asks Amelia, “Can’t we go back to past, change something to save people?” And Amelia replies, “Time flows in one direction. We can’t change what has already happened”. Her reply was perfect as far as our 3D world goes. But when Time becomes a dimension, we can travel though time too.

Just like we travel in 1D (ants moving in a single line), 2D (cockroach crawling the floor), 3D (insect flying in the room), we can travel through time in 4D (where 4th dimension is Time). In 1D, we can move back and forth on the line; in 2D we can crawl in any direction on the floor and in 3D we can fly in any direction in space. Similarly we can move in any direction in time.

Here comes the catch. Since we have understanding of just 3D world, we start asking questions about, “What will happen if someone goes in the past and kills his grandfather, thereby erasing his own birth?”, Or in the movie’s case, “The Cooper farmer got the coordinates from Cooper bookcase and went to NASA and ultimately reached the bookcase from where he relayed back the coordinates. How?”

Various scientists have tried to explain the Grandfather paradox from the 3D understanding,

• “A new timeline will emerge when he kills his Grandfather, a parallel universe”, Or
• “We can’t change anything. What will happen, has already happened. The rules of dimension make sure of it”.

Since we have never experienced the 4th Dimension of time, whatever science of today tells are mere guesses. Researched Guesses to be exact. But still guesses.

As I see in 3D, we can move from one 2D plane to another 2D plane, which would be mind-bending to a person who lives in 2D. Similarly in 4D, we can move through time, front and back. In fact past-present-future all exist simultaneously (don’t think of them as existing at the same time. Time has become a dimension now, not just a measure of past-present-future). The concept of PPP is no more in 4D. Hence Cooper bookcase and Cooper farmer can come to know of coordinate from each other as they both exist simultaneously in 4D.

Since time is not uni-directional in 4D, to think that Cooper bookcase came to know of coordinates only coz he was Cooper farmer in the past is wrong. It’s not Past-Preset-Future but Future-Past-Preset, Present-Future-Past anything. The only fact is that both Coopers has to come to know of the coordinates somehow. Information in 4D does not flow from Father to Son, but can be Son to Father too. In either direction.

Bookcase Cooper does not depend on existence of Farmer Cooper as time is not longer linear (Amelia was hence wrong). Bookcase Cooper came to realize this in Tesseract where he saw the entire timeline of the Murphs room all at once. Initially he tries to stop Cooper farmer by asking Murph to make him STAY. But he realizes it’s futile as laws of 4th Dimension are not allowing it.

What Nolan has portrayed is a 4th Dimension with a closed loop explanation, which says nothing can change. Cooper bookcase can tell anything to Cooper farmer; still he will end up in the bookcase. When he says “Stay”, Cooper farmer ignores the message, whereas he easily believes in Gravitational anomaly message from Cooper bookcase. Rules of universe made sure of it.

Similar is the explanation as to how future humans survived in the first place to be able to put wormhole to attempt saving past humans.

If and When humans conquer the 4D, they may find this explanation to be entirely wrong. Something we have never thought of could be the reality in 4D. Till then we are free to throw off our own hunches and punches just like Nolan has done.

White Dove

Gone are the days of blossoms,
Of roses, lily and cute possums,
Of rising sun and rise some more,
Of growl none but roar galore.

Gone are the days of merry,
Of apple cheeks n lips cherry,
Of silence at sea and ferry ride,
Of nothing red just peace white.

Gone are the days of beer n rum,
Of Sir sweetsalot, no cheeni-kam,
Of cakes bakes and milk shakes,
Of high octane n apply no brakes.

Gone are the days of give no hoot,
Of calmness none, emotions brute,
Of tiger jump and dragonistic fly,
Of crude anger and baby like cry.

Gone are the days of cigar rings,
Of hash leaves, delusion it brings,
Of dance wild like no tomorrow,
Of sipping away sadness n sorrow.

Gone are the days of diwali holi,
Of bursting crackers with the toli,
Of lighting candles, whole street,
Of enjoying more being indiscreet.

Gone are the days of count no sin,
Of standing up, taking on the chin,
Of tears out on losing dear love,
Of feathers cozy of the white dove.

12 rupaye ki Roti

Good heavens! 140/- for dinner in train. Looking at it from the point of view of when we eat out it’s penny. But looking at it from a public owned organisation, it doesn’t sound nice. Before you start berating me for being a communist, let me explain.

When poverty figures came out. There was a huge uproar. 12/- was the figure that was discussed endlessly. A lot of our esteemed leaders who were part of Govt of the day, supported that figure. They went even further and justified it by saying, “Meal at 12/- is available aplenty in our country”.

No point naming individual leaders but that sounded like a collective voice of the Govt. The point is when on one side you say 12/- is the price per meal in India and on the other you charge people 140/- for a meal on wheels. Where is the disconnect?

When I see the same leaders trying to find the reasons why they lost, I can only laugh. This arrogance was why you lost. Insulting justifications to make  point on TV debates, was why you lost. People can bear with hunger, but if someone try to justify that hunger, it’s intolerable. This is why you lost.

Had they been humble enough to admit the failure. Had they sympathized with 12 bucks junta, things might have been different.

The sad part is all those leaders are affluent even in loss. And 12 rupaye ki roti is still soiled in blood.

Thoda adjust karo

Journey back to Mumbai. Just as I boarded the train, first voice in my ear, Bhaisaab adjust kar lo thoda.

I found my seat occupied. Couple of guys sat there relaxed. Mine was the coveted window seat which everyone desire but only few get. Sometimes I wonder how the lack of ample trains in India is a blessing in disguise. The one who gets the seat jumps with joy. If there would be ample trains, this joy would never be.

Anyways, “Bhaisaab can you please sit there”, said the duo pointing to a middle seat. Over the years as I have stopped arguing, I have somehow learned the trick to handle this. With glib and humor.

“Oh! Itni si baat. For you, I am ready to sit on the floor Sir”, I said with a smile. Everyone nearby laughed as I parked myself in my designated seat.

I am a bit tired. It’s nap time now.

Back From The Dead

How would you feel when an old friend is back from the dead? Not literaly from the dead, but after a considerable estrangement. Happy? Excited? Surprised? Angry? Or a combination of feelings?

A close friend of mine who has a history of hibernating, popped up yesterday after an year or so. I called him up, whatsApp, email during this period of total blackout but to no avail. I tried enquiring his whereabouts, nada.

His name was added to our whatsApp group in hope. Yesterday I saw a message from him. I thought someone has hacked into and playing a prank. Given the group has Computer Engineers from IIT, it was no wild guess. Then the barrage of equally befuddled reactions from other people. We asked him a few verification questions before believing.

He answered all the questions correctly. Still not sure, I ringed him up. Was it his voice? After few secs of assurances, I was sure, he was the one. Then came the usual expletives.

Few 100 expletives later it was all normal. Like he was never estranged. I guess friendship is that kind of a bond.

Tests of Life

I don’t remember the yaksha tale completely. But there were a set of questions to be answered to attain something. Clearing hurdles and attaining the goal has been a common thread all through our texts.

Some akin it to the way life is. It takes tests at times and what you achieve next depends on the how you perform. Such periods of life lets you understand the reality of a lot of charades. The real face as we can call it.

It’s very important not just to sail through such tests but also remember the period. Who decided to stand by you and who deserted you. It helps not only to gain perspective but also lets you an insight for the future.

Life is short if you make it fun. Life is long if you make it sad. For myself I would choose to keep fun and not let myself be bogged down. If people choose to stand by me, it would be good; if they decide otherwise, even better.

Some people say, after hard work comes the comfort. They might be wrong. There might be further hardships. My view is, even if there are further hardships, I would atleast be trained better to handle them.

Put right foot down

When you see injustice,
Innocent blood spilled,
Don’t just stand and frown,
Put your right foot down.

When you see a child,
Molested by a savage,
Don’t laugh like a clown,
Put your right foot down.

When you see hoodlums,
Teasing a certain eve,
Don’t sip your coffee brown,
Put your right foot down.

When you see a teacher,
Beating up small kid,
Don’t just use proper noun,
Put your right foot down.

When you see poor laborer,
Being taken advantage of,
Don’t you too fill godown,
Put your right foot down.

When you see fake promises,
Made by your beloved leader,
Don’t still paint the red town,
Put your right foot down.

When you see injustice,
Innocent blood spilled,
Don’t just stand and frown,
Put your right foot down.

Modi, Obama and UN

A lot of media coverage in India has been given to Modi and Obama meet. It has been touted as once in a lifetime event. A game changer; an earth shatterer.

There are valid reasons to some extent. US is at the top in the current era of single point of power. Hence newly elected head of the biggest democracy meeting US President sure is news. But I think the grandeur more or else must stop there.

Modi meeting anybody is news in India. I have to make my displeasure known when meeting with a failed Global Leader, Obama is given this outrageous coverage. Some might raise eyebrows on what I just said but Obama has indeed turned out to be a failure at Global stage unlike his predecessors.

Reasons can be aplenty. Starting from compulsions of uplifting economy back home to simple lack of acumen. At this point of time its hard to imagine Obama towering over state heads during conversation. One can easily remember Clinton or Bush doing so. This has sadly let to dimnished US clout which does not bide well for world peace.

For me Modi meeting Obama or speaking at another disappointing body UN is nothing note-worthy. The only positive I see coming out of it is showcasing vision and clout in front of world media which is present at UNGA meet.

Thumbs up to Modi for achieving the same. I sincerely hope Modi doesn’t end up being a failure like the two important destinations of his US visit.

Poor man’s fight

Not 5 mins back two people in my coach were having a shouting match. Topic “Whose space was it to put the luggage?” Let me call them passenger A and B.

B came and found luggage space under his seat occupied. He asked around and nobody claimed. The bags were exchanged and B settled down.

10 mins later A entered. His seat was couple of rows away. He flew into rage seeing his luggage on the ground. And the slinging match started. Clearly A was in wrong here but I don’t want to go into it.

Have you observed that chances of such fights are higher in trains than in planes; higher in sleeper coaches than in AC coaches; higher in city bus than in private AC bus; higher in hot places than in cooler climates. In fact they increase with decreasing money in the pocket.

Two relatively poor people are prone to fight over such things more than two relatively rich people.

Guess everything is a fight for survival for us poor strata of people.

Fart by Heart

I am travelling via train to my hometown. Given the upcoming extra long weekend, the trains are bulging with passengers. Just as I settled in my seat and started to take a nap, I woke up with a nauseating smell.

My fellow passenger introduced us to the lunch he took earlier in the day. It was a sickening smell which left us looking for cover in true sense.

My head became heavy and heart beat a notch higher. Just as I tried to acclimatise, the next attack. I lost all my senses and the will to live.

Since all I can think now is fart, I thought to put it to creative use. How does the below things smell now?

1. Flip-fart
2. Fart-tey raho
3. Fart bina chain kaha re
4. Fart-ti utaaroon main
5. My fart will go on…
6. Fart-tiya ilaaz hai bhaisaab.
7. Deepak Chourasia Fart Tak
8. Aisa com-fart aur kahan
9. Fart se maar do isey
10. I like Fartists.

Should Have Been

Should have been a fish,
Sometimes I do wish,
Swim across the ocean,
Splash aqua, lots of fun.

Should have been a bird,
If my voice was heard,
Fly front n back, low n high,
Mine would be whole sky.

Should have been a ‘roach,
But maker didn’t approach,
Nothing to care or to attend,
Be alive even if all else end.

Should have been a Sundae,
If they followed my fundae,
Chocolate fudge n Whipped cream,
Has been one of those dream.

Should have been a chicken,
Out of my wishful thinken’,
No fights, No shouts loud,
I could always chicken out.

Should have been a popcorn,
It’s what I want, why u scorn?
Poppin n Jumpin quite a lot,
Put in oven, my backside hot.

Should have been a turd,
Formed out of milk n curd,
Gave a fellow satisfaction,
As I came outta captivation.

Disgracing Journalism

As the number of news channels grew, the quality of journalism took a hit. Quality v/s quantity debate has been for long and journalism was not left untouched.

Media is considered one of the pillars of democracy and hence the concept of Free Media. Free in the sense that no pressure or censorship from outside. Media is expected to be self-regulated, just like judiciary. However vested interests among media are hell bent to destroy this.

Over the years reporters have put their life on the line. Hence it pains me to write this. Ever since Radia tapes came out and two senior journalists were named, it was sad to see that they were not shamed. They kept their jobs, were not shunned. They prospered even more.

The self-regulation of media was required. Alas! It was not to be. Modi was hounded by media persons for 12 years and rightly so. I applaud media to do so. But now that he is PM and on a foreign tour we should hold our horses. As long as he is abroad, debates should be on his foreign policy and relations with that country. There will be a lot of time to dissect his old doings when he comes back.

A senior media person, to get into fist fight with people in a foreign land, does not bide well for journalism as a whole. In Deepika v/s TimesOfIndia, where it was evident media house was in wrong, the reporters kept coming out with the sleaziest of POV’s that could be.

In this case also the senior reporter was the first to come out with a video, which turned out to be half-truth. When I first saw the video, I was supportive of him and angry at the un-civilized crowd. But after seeing the entire video, I am just speechless. I urge media once again to stand up and make self-regulation counted. But the only response I see from media is, “Mehhh…”.

Weekends: End of a Romance

There are days when Thursday feels like advent of weekend. Then there are days when Friday feels like a weekday still. I am sure most of us would have had this feeling one time or the other.

What leads to these emotions? Sometimes if the work is less on Thu, the mood remains jolly and we feel a fake Fri. Probably a Fri with lots of work makes us forget the charming Sat/Sun. Then there are long weekends (with Fri a holiday) and there are working Sat.

As I grow older, the boundaries are somewhat getting blurred. I am able to schedule my work better. Find time on weekdays if I want, work on weekends if so required. The charm of weekends seems to have watered down.

These days my activity level goes down on weekends, and I long to get back to work, just to get the kick. It would have sounded laughable to me few years ago, when all I lived was for weekends.

In fact the charm of month ends (read salary days), is also not so much now. EMI’s have probably killed the romance.

I might find some charm back of Weekends/Monthends once I have a family. At least I hope so!

पगली की याद

क्या तुमने मुझको याद किया,
जब तूने मुझसे पुछा उस दिन,
क्यों बोलूं झूठ, न याद किया,
पगली याद करूँ गर भूलूँ मैं।

बात कभी अब तुम न करते,
लगता है मुझसे ऊब गए हो,
ऊबने की बात है कहाँ से आई,
पगली दिलचस्पी पूरी ले तो लूँ।

मिलने को बुलाती, तुम न आते,
हर पल बस दूर ही भागे जाते,
अपनी दूरी कैसे बढ़ सकती है,
पगली पास तो पूरा आ जाऊं।

सुनते ही नहीं, मैं बड़-२ करती,
बिलकुल भी मुझपे ध्यान नहीं,
अरे सोचूँ मैं कुछ और तो तब,
पगली ध्यान से पहले हटे तो तू।

सजके सँवरके आई थी मैं,
एक स्वर भी प्रशंसा नहीं करी,
कितनी मैं करूँ तारीफ तेरी,
पगली हर रोज परी है लगती तू।

व्रत था तुम्हारे लिए रखना,
डांट के तुमने मना किया क्यों,
तू सुनती मेरी क्या डांट बिना,
पगली तुझे भूखा कैसे देख सकूँ।

क्या तुमने मुझको याद किया,
जब तूने मुझसे पुछा उस दिन,
क्यों बोलूं झूठ, न याद किया,
पगली याद करूँ गर भूलूँ मैं।।

Mars Orbiter and India

Mars Orbiter takes India to dizzying heights in Space research. You would have already read a lot about technical intricacies of the mission, so I would not elaborate on that. That’s the stuff for geniuses anyways.

I recall a conversation from decade back from college days. Topic of Mars exploration came up and we wondered when our country would achieve that. It was during college and quite few of us wanted to be part of this dream.

I remember a funny reply that one my friend gave in a drunken stupor. “Hey, I would move to US; become a citizen there. My Country would then have gone to Mars Man! Simple”. Not that he really meant what he said. Such characters who could play with words either ways used be in abundance.

Out of the nations ravaged by colonial rule, we are way ahead. Chaiwaala becoming a PM is one of the things that keep sanity in this country. We know that hard work pays here and there is no need to grab and dash. Mars Orbiter also showcases the exploits of that hard work.

Hope MOM gives impetus to next generation of Space Research in India.

Nehru v/s Gandhi: The evil of dynasty

Nehru was known to be the closest confidant of Gandhi. This perception was formalized when Gandhi blessed Nehru as India’s first PM.

I am no one to question to Gandhi’s judgment. In fact Nehru did quite a good job to keep the nation together. Other nations who got independence around the same time were withering away while India progressed. Backbone of India’s technological advancement could be attributed to Nehru’s forward thinking.

However Nehru gave India something much more evil, “The curse of dynastic politics”. Here Gandhi was different from Nehru. People accuse Gandhi of neglecting his children, but for me it was Gandhi’s yet another sacrifice for the nation.

He knew nothing good comes out of dynasty. Had Gandhi nurtured his own children, they would be heading congress rather than the Nehru clan.

Gandhi, the saint that he was, could not get himself to do that. He kept his children out of politics. For me he was an accidental father. In essence he was more like top national leaders of BJP, who either didn’t have children or never forwarded them into politics.

When Gandhi forwarded Nehru, he would not have anticipated what would become of his legacy. He would have wanted Nehru to do the same that he himself did. Making his daughter, his Chief of Staff, would be the last thing Gandhi would have wanted Nehru to do.

गोलू मेरे पास है

मुझे पढ़ते वक़्त कलम से कुछ भी लिखने/बनाने की आदत है। कोई चित्र, कोई शब्द, कुछ भी। यह मेरे ख्यालों से अपने आप निकलते हैं। “मैं गोलू के पास हूँ, गोलू मेरे पास है”, एक दिन पढ़ते वक़्त मैं यह लिख बैठा किताब पे। कुछ देर के पश्चात, मेरा एक मित्र मुझसे मिलने आया और उसकी नज़र इस लाइन पे पड़ गयी। वह हंस-२ के लोटपोट हो गया।

इस किस्से को करीब १० साल हो गए, पर मेरा मित्र इसे भूल नहीं पाया। न ही उसने मुझे भूलने दिया। जबतब वह मेरी टांग खींचता रहता है, इस बात पर।

मित्रों ऐसे कितने ही किस्से हो जाते हैं जीवन में। कुछ हम संजोह पाते हैं, कुछ धुंधले हो जाते हैं। दोस्त भी ऐसे ही एक किस्से की तरह होते हैं। कुछ से हम संपर्क में रहते हैं, कुछ अतीत का हिस्सा बनकर रह जाते हैं। कितना अच्छा हो अगर हम ऐसी हर याद को अपने पास रख पाएं, जब तब अनुभव कर पाएं उस एहसास का।

एक अंग्रेजी चित्रपट में दिखाया गया था की कैसे हम अपने मष्तिष्क में अपनी हर याद को संझोह के रख सकते हैं। हम एक ऐसी दुनिया बसा सकते हैं जिसमें हमें अपने सारे मित्र, परिवार, एक साथ रहने का आभास दें। बस आँखें बंद करें और डूब जाएँ अपनी यादों के समुन्दर में।

गोलू भी वही दर्शाता है। मैं गोलू के करीब उतना ही हूँ, जितना गोलू मेरे करीब रहना चाहता है। यह एक दुराही मार्ग है। कोई याद अगर कड़वी है, तो उसे हम कहीं गहराई में दफना देते हैं। गोलू और मैं दूरी बना लेते हैं।

जिन लोगों से हम संपर्क में रहते हैं, वह लोग हमसे संपर्क में रहना चाहते हैं। वह हमारे लिए गोलू होते हैं, हम उनके लिए गोलू होते हैं। अत: मैं गोलू के पास हूँ, गोलू मेरे पास है।

Vrindavan Widows: The Helpless Old Ladies

My hometown, Agra is next to Vrindavan. A drive to the temple and back used to be our once in month getaway, growing up. The place is divine in the true sense. You will have to visit once to get the feel of it

Recently the female MP, who is an actor by profession, made a comment on the widows that stay in the city. They were called unwelcome beggars among other things.

I am not really sure since when these ladies started coming here. But it has been quite some time. “Going by your deeds, I don’t expect you will take care of me. If your father goes before me, I will got to Vrindavan and live there”, mothers chastise their sons in this side of the world, albeit in jest.

I won’t take a theoretical approach here. I will admit, as per my first hand knowledge, what the MP said is true to some extent. They do beg for money and a lot of people who visit the city are more than willing to help the old ladies in whites. But this is where the truth of her statement ends.

I agree that most of the ladies come from across the country. But they come here when they have nowhere else to go. When the husband dies, the house and the money is gobbled up by the relatives in remote villages even today and these ladies are left with nothing.

Just because there exists a place called Vrindavan, a large number of them are alive. Or else they would have been dead by now. It needs to be celebrated and not looked down upon. Virndavan has become synonymous with LIFE for such ladies across the country.

The MP was recently mocked for not spending time in her constituency where ideally she should permanently stay. Given this background, such a statement reeks of desperation to rake up some local emotions and make her presence count.

Being a lady herself, she should have used this as a divine opportunity to serve and take care of vulnerable and helpless ladies. Small scale industries can be set up here, utilizing this ready made labor. This would not only give them a dignified life, but also take care of the issues that the MP has mentioned.

But Alas! That would require her devoting time and energy here. It’s more convenient to visit for a day; make some disparaging remark; go back to Mumbai and sleep in peace.

Nicknames

Laal naak, Lambardaar, Kholu, Dhakkan, Steel.

Before you think I am babbling like a mad man, let me clarify. These are few nicknames I remember of my college mates. I have forgotten real names of lot of them, still remember them by nicknames.

If you try and think, nicknames are not just random, they depict a personal trait. “Real names are by birth, nicknames are based on sh** you do in life”.

There was a Laal Naak with nose as red as anything you will see. When he asked a question in class, it went even redder. Kholu was the highest rank guy in our batch. Dhakkan was the closing rank. Steel had such elasticity when it came to arguments. Even if you said earth go round the sun, he would have a nonsensical counter ready to throw back at you. There were more of such names that I can’t discuss here sadly. They were based on various body parts down south, if you know what I mean.

What these nicknames do is create new friendships. We are all new to college; A bunch of strangers thrown together. Nicknames give us a sense of family. Just like parents give us a name at birth, nicknames represent a new phase of life, with a new set of people.

When you go home and your parents call you by some silly pet name, it means something special. No one else in the world calls you by that name. Same is the case with college nickname. You get a new name at work. Another by your life partner.

Each one represents a new phase, a new life, a new birth, new experiences and new memories.

बेचैन दिल

दिल रहता है बेचैनी में,
जाने क्यों मेरा कबसे,
हर आहट से है लगता ये,
कि आई वो मेरी चौखट।

आँखें मेरी तरस गयीं,
न हुआ पर दीदार मुझे,
मर्ज़ जो है मुझे लगा,
कोई इलाज़ पता तुझे।

रातों को करता हूँ गिनती,
तारे तो अनगिनत ठहरे,
झींगुर की झन-झन भी अब,
मुझको लगने लगी लोरी।

हवा के हर एक झौंके से,
मन तड़पा मेरा जाता है,
स्पर्श नहीं कुछ सुगंध सही,
क्यों लाता अपने साथ नहीं।

कोई कोयल कूकी डाली पे,
लगा कि संदेशा है लायी,
न तू लायी कोई बात नहीं,
एक मेरा संदेशा पहुंचा दे।

चांदनी में भीगा हर कण,
मुझे अपना सा लगता है,
इसी चांदनी को यार मेरा,
ओढ़ रहा होगा इस पल।

कहते हैं घूमती धरती है,
धुरी पे अपनी हर एक पल,
थम जाऊं गर मैं इस क्षण,
क्या धरती मुझे मिला देगी॥

BJP: Three in a row. ‘sup Bro?

Elections have proven to be a great leveler once again. Political pundits were left scrambling for the reasons behind by-election debacle of BJP. That it has happened three times in a row makes it all too noteworthy.

What can be the reason? Well I can think of few.

First is the ever thinning patience of the voters which I mentioned few days ago. People want corruption free, polarization free, appeasement free development. When General elections were fought on these principles, it paid. When assembly by-elections were fought otherwise, the party had to pay the price.

Next is the Modi wave or lack of? Modi didn’t campaign. Second rung firebrand leaders were at the center of it all. Had he campaigned, things would have been different. Also his silence on his party’s not so subtle forays of late, seem to have irked junta. Nobody wants another Manmohan. Hope these results instill some sense and for good.

Loss could also be attributed to the dearth of local stars. We haven’t had anyone of Rajnath’s stature in UP politics ever since he moved to Centre. It did hurt this time.

To put it in one word, it’s Arrogance. They started speaking the language of the ousted Government soon after taking power. Following the footsteps of the previous Govt in Governor issue, Less than honest means for Govt formation in Delhi and sting thereof, flaring communal tensions in UP, hiding behind norms and institutions, were few of such things.

If they need to survive, they must gain back public confidence. It can’t be earned by acting smart and by being arrogant. People see through it. Next time you try and hoodwink public, know this, we ain’t no fool no more.

अच्छे दिन आने वाले हैं

अलग-२ दल लगाएं अलग-२ नारे,
सब दौड़ें हितैषी बनने को हमारे,
टर्राने लगे हैं जैसे मेंढक बरसात में,
कुछ दिन तो गुजारिये गुजरात में।

कोई फेंके है रोटी, ललचाये है पैसा,
निकाले हैं आंसू, नाटक कैसा कैसा,
वादे झूठे सुनाकर, करे सीट पक्की,
हर हाथ शक्ति, हर हाथ तरक्की।

अभी की नहीं, रीत है ये पुरानी,
राजा की बेटी, हुई मुल्क की रानी,
सालों तक रखा, सबको हक़ से दूर,
एक शेरनी सौ लंगूर, चिकमंगलूर।

रुक रुक के बोले, बड़े हौले हौले,
विरोध मेरा, ये अच्छी बात नहीं है,
सबका होगा भला, नर हो या नारी,
चुनो अबकी बारी अटल बिहारी।

बाप और बेटा, साईकल पे डोलें,
सद्भावना फ़ैलाने की बात बोलें,
फूल को मसलें, रोकें हाथी का दम,
यूपी में है दम, जुर्म हैं यहाँ कम।

सरपट मैं दौड़ा, हो रेस का घोडा,
दर-२ पे भटका, भूका औ प्यासा,
जीतते ही हम भर पेट खाना वाले हैं,
क्योंकि अच्छे दिन आने वाले हैं।।

What Times are Now?

An unfortunate controversy erupted when a leading English Newsgroup published a not so subtle article about a leading actress. Without getting into the details of the write up, silence of the associated news channel amuses me. On all other issues, this TV channel is always here and Now.

Had it been a politician who would have made some unsavory speech; had it been a police head who would have issued a demeaning guideline; had it been some actor who would have made some politically incorrect observation, the channel would have raised hue and cry on primetime and rightly so. The primetime which it boasts have garnered highest TRP’s in the last 5 years.

But today all silence. It’s not an isolated incident. If you go to their website, you would see more of such obnoxious articles. Skimpy clad images of female models collated from across the globe. Explicit stuff posted at the very top, just to grab eyeballs.

Some of the headings with equally raunchy pics one finds there are, “Babes flaunt assets online”, “Bollywood babes unbuttoned”, “Hotties’ peek-a-boo moments”, “Celebs caught pantyless” and “Celebs’ oops moment!” I feel ashamed even typing them, but not the newsgroup which can do anything for money.

What I am afraid is that such acts leave the fourth pillar vulnerable to attack. In their lust for readership to plunder advertising revenue, they are ready to sell the very essence of news. I agree that these pics are collated from public domain but why plaster them on the news website?

I urge Press Council of India to take suo moto cognizance and issue appropriate guidelines. Now is the Time to put an end.

दाढ़ी वाले बाबा

कुछ बचपन की यादें ताजा,
करता हूँ तो उठते कुछ सवाल,
सुना बहुत, पर होता क्या है?
टिंडे की जड़ औ बाल की खाल।

बाजार से जा दो टिंडे लाया,
सुबह से शाम किया उन्हें हलाल,
लेकिन फिर भी ढूंढ न पाया,
टिंडे की जड़ औ बाल की खाल।

सुबह मैं तड़के नाई के पहुंचा,
औ सफा कराया एक एक बाल,
घिर गयी रात पर हाथ न आई,
टिंडे की जड़ औ बाल की खाल।

जब कभी मचाया था ऊधम,
जोर से मरोड़ा गया था कान,
एक बार जो तू हाथ में आएगा,
चूहे की कोठरी में डाला जाएगा।

पूरे दो दिन से जगा हुआ हूँ,
चूहों के पीछे ही लगा हुआ हूँ,
हर संभव मैंने कोशिश की,
पर न मिली कोठरी चूहे की।

एक और किस्सा याद आता है,
डराया करती थी जब माँ मुझको,
बेटा अगर तू खाना नहीं खायेगा,
दाढ़ी वाला बाबा उठा ले जाएगा।

एक दिन सोचा कि व्रत मैं करूँ,
औ दिन भर कुछ न खाऊँ पियूं,
चौखट पर बैठा टकटकी लगाये,
पर दाढ़ी वाले बाबा नहीं आये।।

Apology Tourism

One of my friends visited a WW2 Extermination Camp, Majdanek in Poland. He was all oohs and aahs about the atrocities committed and what he learnt of them. Hitler this and Hitler that! I agree that people endured some unspeakable atrocities there, but does that give us a right to turn it into a tourist place?

One major argument for turning such structures into tourist places is that future generations can learn from the mistakes. “Once you see it for yourself, the horror of it, you will become a better person”, is what we are fed. But does it really happen? Apart from adding to tourism revenue and serving some political agenda, they serve little purpose.

How are we better than Hitler? Do we not stand and let people get killed en masse all around the globe; by mighty and crippled economies alike? Some kill there own people, some kill abroad. Point being, tour of such places does not help reduce the horror. Attracting opulent patrons to such places, I call “Apology Tourism”.

The truth is we just want to sit in our cozy little houses, oblivious of the current. We wait for our present to turn into past so that our children can tour the upcoming horror houses. Thus keeping the Apology Tourism alive.

Lets not be hypocrites. We just need tourist places to go and spend our holidays. And since we have lots of weekends to kill, we have gone a step ahead and converted tales of human miseries to our convenience.

Hardly any tourist would have sobbed at Majdanek. One thing he/she would have done for sure is to click pictures to put online. We should stop hiding and admit that we just go there to enjoy. Learning from history is a sob story and a bad one at that. If any tourist ends up making a difference, I would be proven wrong. But I seriously doubt.

Given the inaction of people like us who sneeze when it breeze, such tourist destinations will keep presenting themselves around the world. Our weekends stand booked.

भक् साला

जब दिखी कोई सुन्दर कन्या,
मन मचला सा क्यों जाता है,
जैसे बिन चाबी का ताला,
दिल करे कि बोलूं भक् साला।

उस दिन तो यारों हद हो गयी,
घर का रास्ता ही भटक गया,
कोई वशी-इत्र उसने डाला,
दिल करे कि बोलूं भक् साला।

सब्जी लेने को गया था मैं,
वहां किलो-२ भर तोल रही,
धनिया भी मुफ्त में न डाला,
दिल करे कि बोलूं भक् साला।

सोचा चलो जांच मैं करवा लूँ,
आँखें हैं ठीक, बोली डॉक्टर,
पर चरित्र है तेरा कुछ काला,
दिल करे कि बोलूं भक् साला।

फूलों की टोकरी, रख सर पर,
बेच रही वो, लगा पुकार,
मेरे मन ने बना ली वरमाला,
दिल करे कि बोलूं भक् साला।

सोचा कई बार, त्याग दूँ सब,
आखिर कब तक करूंगा मैं,
मस्ती तफरी, और मधुशाला,
चल हट दिल नौटंकी साला।।