Teacher's day - I do not have much remembarance of this day in school (Birla Sagar Higher Secondary School, Porbandar). Gurupurnima is the ancient "Teacher's Day" and I feel we did not need another one - but when it comes to Teachers I can't complain. Just like for me Father and Mother's days are futile celebrations (as the cliche goes - we should observe these days everyday) so is Teacher's day. After all our values teach us that Teachers (Gurus) are next to parents and equal to God. I today ad this urge to mention about the teachers who I REALLY feel have influenced me.
Let me start from Kindergarten - Bhambhani Madam - my 1st teacher as far as I remember. Right from teaching alphabets, numbers and nursery rhymes to creating an interest in education, I owe a lot to you ma'm and even though I know I might have teased and irritated you no end, I am indebted.
Joshi sir - Sir you taught Hindi to us kids. We didn't like your class as you were extremely strict. We teased you because of your Brahmin "choti" but I must say this - you created love for Hindi in my heart without me even realising it. I still remember the 1st thing you would do on entering the classroom - write "Shri Ganeshay Namah" on the top of the blackboard. I continue doing this till date. Whenever I start a new notebook/diary "Shri Ganeshay Namah" is the 1st thing that goes on it. Thank you sir!
Antani Sir - Sir I can never forget you in my entire life. You taught me music but more than that you taught me the importance of music. You taught us soulful prayers, encouraged us to learn music, helped participate in competitions withOUT expecting anything in return. I don't have the words to describe but you have left a great impression on my life
Minaxi Madam - English is the word that comes to my mind before I even finish your name Ma'm :) You not only taught English language, you inculcated love for languages in our young minds without us knowing about it. Even today when someone asks me about an effective way to learn "proper" English I tell them the same method as you did - "read 1 paragraph from a good newspaper/website (we did this through Times of India then but today ToI actually needs a bunch of good English Teachers) everyday... note down all the new words and their meanings from the dictionary, into a notebook and take efforts to use those wordswhile speaking. I cannot forget how proud everyone in school felt on getting a "Very Good" or Excellent" and a velvet star on the notebooks from you.Thank you ma'm!
Thakrar Madam and Sundar Sir - Thank you for making Mathemetics fun to learn and making us believe that we need not fear the subject and that ALL can score in Maths. I know I made a mess of that learning in college, but all blame is on me for that - you did the best for us.
Dashottar Sir - For me you are the only Master of Hindi language. Amazing command and beautiful flow of language. Till date I feel sad that I studied Hindi from you for just 2 years. I attribute my love for poetry to your inimitable style of reciting and conveying the poet's meaning behind the lines. You contributed immensely in making me respect any language like religion. And the humor that you carried while teaching is something I have never seen in a teacher in my life. "Tentua daba dunga", "Zameen mei gaadhke ghode dudva dunga"...I remember these fun lines even after 22 years!
Late Shri Bora Sir - Sir how can I forget you? You brought an imaginary love in my life that continues till date - History. How can a subject about ruins, blood and dead people be romantic...by learning it from Bohra sir. Your understanding of the subject...your departure from text books to teach the subject and your style created an interest for the subject that, given the chance and time - I would love to learn over and over again. Thank you sir. I still remember a part of your home address after you retired and left Porbandar - "Behind Olympic Cinema, Jodhpur, Rajasthan".
And of course there are many others whom I might have missed mentioning here, who directly or indirectly have shaped my thoughts and values. I am indebted to you All gurus. Thank you!
Wednesday, September 05, 2012
Thursday, June 07, 2012
Are we helping our cause?
I belong to the right, the center of right. In a country like ours it is not easy to accept and fathom this fact with the kind of secularism and communalism being practiced – thanks to social media the community now at least knows that there are enough intellectuals on the Right.
India, our motherland, has always been a complex culture that has intrigued the world for centuries and continues to do so. Be it the definitions and battle between Dharma and Adharma 5000 years back, the misinterpretation and exploitation of caste system, the battles within the Hindu religion, forming of alternate paths like Buddhism and Jainism, the battle with foreign invaders from Alexander to Nadir Shah to Ghazni, Mughals, Portugese, British and so on - we have always kept things "interesting". But we have always survived albeit with changes in our culture – while maintaining the essence of the past - which is the real beauty of our land. Post- independence, and especially in the last 3 decades we have seen a vehement debate, discourse and sometimes violence between the citizenry - although most of times driven by politicians. But then I don't want to digress from topic.
In the last few decades we have seen a very obscene form of secularism, which is always unjust to 1 group. Secularism can never be selective and subjective.- it has to be just and tolerant to ALL groups. The history of the world shows that real Secularism can be practiced and citizens can live a peaceful and progressive life when the majority asserts itself without suppressing the minorities - and THAT is an extremely tight rope to walk. On the other hand taking the majority for granted, dividing them and then appeasing the minorities is a very old political trick that has worked, especially in India and still works.
It is under this pretext that having a strong “Right” is extremely important. What side of “Right” one belongs to is again subjective but not as subjective as the interpretation of secularism – because at least the ones on Right agree that they are on “Right”. Today, for most “Hindu Rights” there is 1 messiah - for the lack of a better word - who is the need of the time – Narendra Damodar Modi – and there is almost no doubt in this. Modi represents the Right. He has worked for the progress of Gujarat in the last decade, more importantly he has worked at the grass root levels before the Gujarat miracle and has proven himself to be an excellent administrator both pre and post Gujarat story.
At the risk of being proven wrong and facing some vociferous rebuttals, I write this. Are we- Modi fans – really helping him? He has contributed immensely in the growth story, his vision has worked miracles and his political and administrative will has made many unthinkable things happen easily. BUT we, Namo fans also know that he is excellent at marketing things – and of course it is EXTREMELY important aspect. Not all that is being marketed would be true in spirit. Statistics are always double sided – as it goes “There are lies, damned lies and statistics”. A new set of statistics are thrown out from every side every day. For the very same parameter you see different sets of statistics with a different (hidden) context in the background. Modi churns out a few numbers that get rebuffed by the opposition and then there are rebuttals and further rebuttals and it goes on. That is an important battle that we need to continue to play though. What the Modi-baiters are doing is repeat the lies time and again till they wear the garb of Truth in the minds of the citizens – it requires strong rebuttal every time but with restraint. What we also need is to create a positive feelings in the minds of the fence sitters. Why alienate these fence sitters by responding violently to the baiters?
What is appreciated in the “Right” is the center not the extreme Right and definitely not the extreme Left. BUT, are we becoming sycophants? This is a question I have been asking myself for the last few months. Is everything that Modi does Gold? Can’t he falter? Can he never take a wrong decision? Do we really believe there is absolutely no corruption in Gujarat? Are all ministers as upright as the leader? Agreed that Modi is not corrupt and he doesn’t allow corruption around him, he has taken measures to curb corruption but then no system in the world is incorruptible. Modi has displayed in abundance something that is the need of the hour for the whole nation – GOVERNANCE. That is what we want for the whole nation and that is what we Modi fans need to propagate in his favor, spread the word, convince our peers, friends, families. Why should we keep Modi restricted to the Right? The whole nation needs him. But let us please NOT paint a picture that shows that everything will be rosy once he is the PM. The situation is so rotten that whoever has the right intentions has to first stem the rot and that is going to take more than 5 years. Once the rot stems, then the progress starts. There is also the compulsion of coalition, other pressures under which Modi has to work.
As fans we need to keep him true, we need to keep our own feelings and expectations true. We need to promote his works and his vision but also keep him informed on the fallacies. That would be the real help. Even Bhagat Singh, while fighting the British first tried to bring his house in order by promoting unity, removing social evils, working on the ills that were not the works of the British. Same goes for Gandhi, Ambedkar, all true leaders.
Why should we catch the baits floated around by vested interests? Why abuse journalists, think tanks, intellectuals who are anti-Modi? Why not debate logically? I am not generalizing but this seems be a trend now. 1 day a columnist/journalist/TT is showered with praises by us for writing something very anti-UPA or for writing something good for Modi. The next time he/she writes something against Modi we abuse him! Why abuse someone like Praful Bidwai or Arundhati who are known to be extreme lefts? Why provide gas to these empty running think tanks?
Are we helping our choice of leader (Modi) by forcing him as a Messiah and a solution to all problems? Is our “sycophancy” hurting Modi? Are we spending more energy on negative debates than creating a positive atmosphere for him? Are we keeping him true as our leader – more importantly are we keeping our expectations and hopes honest & true?
India, our motherland, has always been a complex culture that has intrigued the world for centuries and continues to do so. Be it the definitions and battle between Dharma and Adharma 5000 years back, the misinterpretation and exploitation of caste system, the battles within the Hindu religion, forming of alternate paths like Buddhism and Jainism, the battle with foreign invaders from Alexander to Nadir Shah to Ghazni, Mughals, Portugese, British and so on - we have always kept things "interesting". But we have always survived albeit with changes in our culture – while maintaining the essence of the past - which is the real beauty of our land. Post- independence, and especially in the last 3 decades we have seen a vehement debate, discourse and sometimes violence between the citizenry - although most of times driven by politicians. But then I don't want to digress from topic.
In the last few decades we have seen a very obscene form of secularism, which is always unjust to 1 group. Secularism can never be selective and subjective.- it has to be just and tolerant to ALL groups. The history of the world shows that real Secularism can be practiced and citizens can live a peaceful and progressive life when the majority asserts itself without suppressing the minorities - and THAT is an extremely tight rope to walk. On the other hand taking the majority for granted, dividing them and then appeasing the minorities is a very old political trick that has worked, especially in India and still works.
It is under this pretext that having a strong “Right” is extremely important. What side of “Right” one belongs to is again subjective but not as subjective as the interpretation of secularism – because at least the ones on Right agree that they are on “Right”. Today, for most “Hindu Rights” there is 1 messiah - for the lack of a better word - who is the need of the time – Narendra Damodar Modi – and there is almost no doubt in this. Modi represents the Right. He has worked for the progress of Gujarat in the last decade, more importantly he has worked at the grass root levels before the Gujarat miracle and has proven himself to be an excellent administrator both pre and post Gujarat story.
At the risk of being proven wrong and facing some vociferous rebuttals, I write this. Are we- Modi fans – really helping him? He has contributed immensely in the growth story, his vision has worked miracles and his political and administrative will has made many unthinkable things happen easily. BUT we, Namo fans also know that he is excellent at marketing things – and of course it is EXTREMELY important aspect. Not all that is being marketed would be true in spirit. Statistics are always double sided – as it goes “There are lies, damned lies and statistics”. A new set of statistics are thrown out from every side every day. For the very same parameter you see different sets of statistics with a different (hidden) context in the background. Modi churns out a few numbers that get rebuffed by the opposition and then there are rebuttals and further rebuttals and it goes on. That is an important battle that we need to continue to play though. What the Modi-baiters are doing is repeat the lies time and again till they wear the garb of Truth in the minds of the citizens – it requires strong rebuttal every time but with restraint. What we also need is to create a positive feelings in the minds of the fence sitters. Why alienate these fence sitters by responding violently to the baiters?
What is appreciated in the “Right” is the center not the extreme Right and definitely not the extreme Left. BUT, are we becoming sycophants? This is a question I have been asking myself for the last few months. Is everything that Modi does Gold? Can’t he falter? Can he never take a wrong decision? Do we really believe there is absolutely no corruption in Gujarat? Are all ministers as upright as the leader? Agreed that Modi is not corrupt and he doesn’t allow corruption around him, he has taken measures to curb corruption but then no system in the world is incorruptible. Modi has displayed in abundance something that is the need of the hour for the whole nation – GOVERNANCE. That is what we want for the whole nation and that is what we Modi fans need to propagate in his favor, spread the word, convince our peers, friends, families. Why should we keep Modi restricted to the Right? The whole nation needs him. But let us please NOT paint a picture that shows that everything will be rosy once he is the PM. The situation is so rotten that whoever has the right intentions has to first stem the rot and that is going to take more than 5 years. Once the rot stems, then the progress starts. There is also the compulsion of coalition, other pressures under which Modi has to work.
As fans we need to keep him true, we need to keep our own feelings and expectations true. We need to promote his works and his vision but also keep him informed on the fallacies. That would be the real help. Even Bhagat Singh, while fighting the British first tried to bring his house in order by promoting unity, removing social evils, working on the ills that were not the works of the British. Same goes for Gandhi, Ambedkar, all true leaders.
Why should we catch the baits floated around by vested interests? Why abuse journalists, think tanks, intellectuals who are anti-Modi? Why not debate logically? I am not generalizing but this seems be a trend now. 1 day a columnist/journalist/TT is showered with praises by us for writing something very anti-UPA or for writing something good for Modi. The next time he/she writes something against Modi we abuse him! Why abuse someone like Praful Bidwai or Arundhati who are known to be extreme lefts? Why provide gas to these empty running think tanks?
Are we helping our choice of leader (Modi) by forcing him as a Messiah and a solution to all problems? Is our “sycophancy” hurting Modi? Are we spending more energy on negative debates than creating a positive atmosphere for him? Are we keeping him true as our leader – more importantly are we keeping our expectations and hopes honest & true?
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Where and When will this End?
I must confess I am a news junkie and a compulsive tweeter (though I do NOT tweet a lot) BUT I do NOT follow any celebrity journo like Rajdeep, Barkha and do not watch any news channel. That was something I never thought I would be able to achieve in my lifetime and till a year back I would keep reading articles and see news from these "journos" despite my blood boiling with anger. Today my source of news is Twitter - of course I do venture a little in news websites sometimes :)
I am a Gujarati and was settled in Ahmedabad in 2002 - of course in a very safe area BUT could understand the pulse at that time - but that is not the topic for now - well that was a sort of a disclaimer.
Going through the tweets/news articles or comments in blogs belonging to the Right space, I get a feeling that people still do not understand the basic facts - let me rephrase "people do not WANT to understand the basic facts" - and 1 has to keep on pleading/requesting - to read the last decade in Gujarat with a clean lens and view the riots, speed/quality of justice etc. as a simple logical issue And not complicate them with religious/political/ideological overtones.
Isn't it simple:
1. Karsevaks killed by miscreants
2. Subsequent riots by miscreants - some were enraged, some wanted to avenge a personal loss, some just wanting to take advantage
3. Administration erred, MAY BE in gauging the enormity of the situation initially, but quickly corrected it by asking for Army assistance
4. Damage appeared to have been done by rioters in very less time. But then they were dealt with strictly which is obvious with the number of Hindu deaths by police firing. KPS Gill's (a no-nonsense cop) help taken
5. Vidhan Sabha dissolved, elections held in Dec instead of July so that there is no unfair advantage to ruling party (polarization, minorities rehabilitation etc.)
6. Elections held under no-nonsense CEC Lyngdoh
7. Modi won the election with big majority
8. Commission to probe formed taking even the CM into its purview (advocated by the CM himself), led by professional and respected officers
9. NGOs filed 100s of cases in local courts, HC and SC and shifted many cases outside Gujarat
10. No evidence found by any probe against the complicity of administration
11. I am not even going into the use of victims by NGO industry (Rais Khan's story) OR the Banerjee report that tried to prove that it was a sinister Sangh ploy to kill karsevaks - that is for another day
12. Meanwhile development at full pace and another election in 2007 - this despite "sting operations" conveniently timed along with "other proofs" that are usually supposed to be "setback/blow to Modi"
13. Officers coming out of hibernation with "facts" whenever the time suits them - not in 2002 or 2003, but in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011 even 2012
14. This time(2007) again a BIG win for BJP - this time no polarization, no fear in minorities etc.
15. Meanwhile progress of the state goes full steam...Industry, Agriculture, Tourism, Human Resources etc....
15. SIT supposedly finds no evidence in its probe - will know more in the coming weeks
Still, questions from both sides of the fence (and also those sitting on it) seem to be "Who decides who is guilty and who is innocent?" - read "Narendra Modi" as "who". There is no logical end to this till either side bends. Peoples' court has decided twice but it doesn't seem to have proved anything for the riot industry - for them Modi is the culprit and he has fooled everyone till now. I wonder on 1 hand these people credit the progress of Gujarat to the smart Gujjus (and I am a proud 1), not Guj Govt, and on the other hand they feel we "smart Gujjus" can be fooled by a man for 10+ years? How ingenious! Are you trying to insult us - if so Thanks but you may STFU - if NO, still STFU!
So when and where does all this stop? Answer : Never till Modi loses an election Or is convicted by someone. Even if the judges declare his stand correct, the NGO Riot industry will always have a Sanjiv Bhatt or a Sreekumar or even dead people like Haren Pandya to "help" them. There was a day not too long ago when Political and ideological battles were fought in the real battlegrounds - Elections. Now they are being fought in the courts, print, television studios and in that sense we truly are becoming a banana republic - not as a country perhaps but definitely as the citizenry and that doesn't augur too well for the coming generations.
In democracy the people are the real Gods - janta janardan - so all I can say is "Ishwar allah tero naam, sabko sammati de bhagwaan"
I am a Gujarati and was settled in Ahmedabad in 2002 - of course in a very safe area BUT could understand the pulse at that time - but that is not the topic for now - well that was a sort of a disclaimer.
Going through the tweets/news articles or comments in blogs belonging to the Right space, I get a feeling that people still do not understand the basic facts - let me rephrase "people do not WANT to understand the basic facts" - and 1 has to keep on pleading/requesting - to read the last decade in Gujarat with a clean lens and view the riots, speed/quality of justice etc. as a simple logical issue And not complicate them with religious/political/ideological overtones.
Isn't it simple:
1. Karsevaks killed by miscreants
2. Subsequent riots by miscreants - some were enraged, some wanted to avenge a personal loss, some just wanting to take advantage
3. Administration erred, MAY BE in gauging the enormity of the situation initially, but quickly corrected it by asking for Army assistance
4. Damage appeared to have been done by rioters in very less time. But then they were dealt with strictly which is obvious with the number of Hindu deaths by police firing. KPS Gill's (a no-nonsense cop) help taken
5. Vidhan Sabha dissolved, elections held in Dec instead of July so that there is no unfair advantage to ruling party (polarization, minorities rehabilitation etc.)
6. Elections held under no-nonsense CEC Lyngdoh
7. Modi won the election with big majority
8. Commission to probe formed taking even the CM into its purview (advocated by the CM himself), led by professional and respected officers
9. NGOs filed 100s of cases in local courts, HC and SC and shifted many cases outside Gujarat
10. No evidence found by any probe against the complicity of administration
11. I am not even going into the use of victims by NGO industry (Rais Khan's story) OR the Banerjee report that tried to prove that it was a sinister Sangh ploy to kill karsevaks - that is for another day
12. Meanwhile development at full pace and another election in 2007 - this despite "sting operations" conveniently timed along with "other proofs" that are usually supposed to be "setback/blow to Modi"
13. Officers coming out of hibernation with "facts" whenever the time suits them - not in 2002 or 2003, but in 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011 even 2012
14. This time(2007) again a BIG win for BJP - this time no polarization, no fear in minorities etc.
15. Meanwhile progress of the state goes full steam...Industry, Agriculture, Tourism, Human Resources etc....
15. SIT supposedly finds no evidence in its probe - will know more in the coming weeks
Still, questions from both sides of the fence (and also those sitting on it) seem to be "Who decides who is guilty and who is innocent?" - read "Narendra Modi" as "who". There is no logical end to this till either side bends. Peoples' court has decided twice but it doesn't seem to have proved anything for the riot industry - for them Modi is the culprit and he has fooled everyone till now. I wonder on 1 hand these people credit the progress of Gujarat to the smart Gujjus (and I am a proud 1), not Guj Govt, and on the other hand they feel we "smart Gujjus" can be fooled by a man for 10+ years? How ingenious! Are you trying to insult us - if so Thanks but you may STFU - if NO, still STFU!
So when and where does all this stop? Answer : Never till Modi loses an election Or is convicted by someone. Even if the judges declare his stand correct, the NGO Riot industry will always have a Sanjiv Bhatt or a Sreekumar or even dead people like Haren Pandya to "help" them. There was a day not too long ago when Political and ideological battles were fought in the real battlegrounds - Elections. Now they are being fought in the courts, print, television studios and in that sense we truly are becoming a banana republic - not as a country perhaps but definitely as the citizenry and that doesn't augur too well for the coming generations.
In democracy the people are the real Gods - janta janardan - so all I can say is "Ishwar allah tero naam, sabko sammati de bhagwaan"
Saturday, November 21, 2009
hun manushya chun..
Since last few days things have been going in in my mind which I finally could take out in form of the following words...
હું શ્વાસ લઉં છું... હું મનુષ્ય છું
જન્મતાંજ રડુ છું.... કે રડતાં જન્મું છું.!..
નિષ્કપટ પ્રેમમાં ઊછરૂં છું. . . સંસ્કાર પામું છું
કપટ ને વિક્રુતિઓ ક્યાંથી મેળવું છું?
હું ક્રુતજ્ઞી છું
હું ક્રુતઘ્ની છું
હું સંતોષ છું
હું ઈર્ષા છું
હું ગીતા નો અભ્યાસી છું. . . પોતના નેજ હણું છું
હું સ્વર છું... સંગીત છું
હું પ્રેરણા છું... હતાશા છું
હું માંદગી છું... દવા છું
હુંજ બંદગી છું... દુઆ છું
હું અનૂભવ છું
હું સમાનાર્થ છું... વિરોધ છું
હું ક્રાંતિ છું... ચળવળ છું
હું કર્તા છું... વિનાશ છું
હું સર્જના છું... સ્મશાન છું
હું ગુન્હેગાર છું... મૂનસીબ છું
હું સુઃખ પામવા....દુઃખી છું
હું ધિક્કાર નો મહાસાગર છું
હું લાગણિઓ ની ઓટ છું
હું અપાર પ્રેમ છું
હું કરૂણા છું
હું દેવ છું... હુંજ વેદ છું. .
ઈચ્છું તો હુંજ ભગવાન છું. . .
પણ એક પ્રશ્ર્ન રોજ સતાવે છે. . . .
હું શ્વાસ લઉં છું . . હું મનુષ્ય છું ??
હું શ્વાસ લઉં છું... હું મનુષ્ય છું
જન્મતાંજ રડુ છું.... કે રડતાં જન્મું છું.!..
નિષ્કપટ પ્રેમમાં ઊછરૂં છું. . . સંસ્કાર પામું છું
કપટ ને વિક્રુતિઓ ક્યાંથી મેળવું છું?
હું ક્રુતજ્ઞી છું
હું ક્રુતઘ્ની છું
હું સંતોષ છું
હું ઈર્ષા છું
હું ગીતા નો અભ્યાસી છું. . . પોતના નેજ હણું છું
હું સ્વર છું... સંગીત છું
હું પ્રેરણા છું... હતાશા છું
હું માંદગી છું... દવા છું
હુંજ બંદગી છું... દુઆ છું
હું અનૂભવ છું
હું સમાનાર્થ છું... વિરોધ છું
હું ક્રાંતિ છું... ચળવળ છું
હું કર્તા છું... વિનાશ છું
હું સર્જના છું... સ્મશાન છું
હું ગુન્હેગાર છું... મૂનસીબ છું
હું સુઃખ પામવા....દુઃખી છું
હું ધિક્કાર નો મહાસાગર છું
હું લાગણિઓ ની ઓટ છું
હું અપાર પ્રેમ છું
હું કરૂણા છું
હું દેવ છું... હુંજ વેદ છું. .
ઈચ્છું તો હુંજ ભગવાન છું. . .
પણ એક પ્રશ્ર્ન રોજ સતાવે છે. . . .
હું શ્વાસ લઉં છું . . હું મનુષ્ય છું ??
Monday, August 31, 2009
A simple hi....a small smile...difficult?
My wife Kruti often takes our 8 month old princess to the park and then sits on a bench just beside the main rod of our complex. She usually sits there in the morning at @ 0830 and on evenings @ 0600. Since its that time when everyone is either rushing to offices or coming back..or going for shopping/play etc....many cars zoom by and my daughter enjoys that.
Kruti often tells me about how the Americans (white and colored alike) smile, wave a hi or just acknowledge....irrespective of whether they know us or not ot if they like our presence or not...But when it comes to desis, they stare and zoom by...the ones who know us wave or say hi...but others just pass by as if ignoring....not that it makes any difference, but the same desis when pass by an American would wish them....
Isn't it discrimination within our own people for no apparent reason? Isn't it time we learnt a lesson or two on basic human etiquette from these firangs?
Kruti often tells me about how the Americans (white and colored alike) smile, wave a hi or just acknowledge....irrespective of whether they know us or not ot if they like our presence or not...But when it comes to desis, they stare and zoom by...the ones who know us wave or say hi...but others just pass by as if ignoring....not that it makes any difference, but the same desis when pass by an American would wish them....
Isn't it discrimination within our own people for no apparent reason? Isn't it time we learnt a lesson or two on basic human etiquette from these firangs?
India wins Nehru Cup.....
...hello!!!! Its not some university Cricket tournament...its an international football tournament. India beat the much much higher ranked Syria 5-4 after a penalty shootout.
In a country obsessed by Cricket (I am also a cricket enthusiast) this was a welcome news...for once reported as headlines..even though for 15 minutes.
High time that we realise the potential we have in sports ther than Cricket. At least other sportspersons do take pride in playing for their country and not JUST earn in the name of playing for the country!!!!!
Nehru cup was not played for 10 years because of lack of sponsorship....hope someone will dole out some change for the most popular sport on the planet...so that it can flousih with new rich Indian talent...Amen!
In a country obsessed by Cricket (I am also a cricket enthusiast) this was a welcome news...for once reported as headlines..even though for 15 minutes.
High time that we realise the potential we have in sports ther than Cricket. At least other sportspersons do take pride in playing for their country and not JUST earn in the name of playing for the country!!!!!
Nehru cup was not played for 10 years because of lack of sponsorship....hope someone will dole out some change for the most popular sport on the planet...so that it can flousih with new rich Indian talent...Amen!
I am not concerned that you have fallen..I am concerned that you arise
I have been resisting (successfully) from writing anything on the ongoing BJP
troubles, but the way everything is going I wanted to put my thoughts in
perspective...probably I can reflect back on them once the storm has died down.
2004....NDA loses the general elections to everybody's surprise..even to the
surprise of Congress. It was a loss..yes, but was manageable as the loss in seats
was not too much when compared to the results in 1999. It was mainly the loss of TDP and other regional allies that hurt the most. Vajpayee was an able leader and I'll curse my luck till I live that we did not have him as the PM again in 2004.
BJP coul not cope up with this defeat...
2009....Another general election and BJP lost it miserably. I am saying BJP and not NDA as this time BJP was the main loser. Its allies ofcourse lost but the percentage lost by BJP was higher.
The hidden volcanoes (or should I say the self-created-bloated-eog-volcanoes) erupted. Before I move further I must admit that it was wrong for Advani to continue as the Opposition leader. he should have taken responsibility and made way to the next generation. It would have sent ht right message to party cadres and would have also pressurised Rajnath to step down.
Ok...Jaswant and Jinnah, Yashwant and his big mouth etc....all this has happened. Jaswant was expelled..I regard him high for his abilities both as external affairs minister and finance minister. But his Jinnah book was not meant for Indian politics. The political(and read Media here too) cannot separate personal academic intersts and politics. He had to go and he was expelled...what caused the furore was that he was expelled by a leadership that itself had little moral authority to do so.
Yashwant has been 1 of the most opportune politicians...BJP would do good to rid him too...I would still keep Arun Shourie as he is an intelligent and well read man and has interest of the country and the party.
After all the hue and cry came Mohanrao Bhagwat. Mediamen pounced on him at a press conference in New Delhi. What role does RSS play here...what was RSS doing for BJP...like a pack on hungry wolves they pounced on him..but to his credit he didn't give anything to them and nor to the congress.
whatever happens now...I just want to keep Bhagwat in the picture. BJP leadership should have done what Bhagwat did all these years. The main problem with BJP is that there are too many mouths that want to speak and theya re eager to say what the media wants...gullible to an extent. Why not have designated people who are calm, composed and give out things only that they want to....let them assume whatever they want but dont blurt out whatever....
I am 100% confident that BJP is going to come out of this mess...leaner and stronger..with a more focussed leadership. Let Rajnath go into the shadows...let Advani guide as a mentor..he has been good at it and ma sure he will still be able to do it..after all I find his contribution bigger than Vajpayee's when it comes to building the party. Let someone like Jaitley, Swaraj, Shourie, Khanduri, Raman Singh, Shivraj, Modi take up the leadership....BUT with a goal to REbuild the party..
India needs a very strong opposition...specially with Congress ruling the country in a dangerous fashion. 5 years gives enough time to refocus...take each assembly election as the stepping stone...exepriment in the assembly elections...choose the right allies...play it alone in states where allies are not reliable...BJP has paid the price more because of the follies of its allies than because of itself (excpet in 2009). Build base....in fact the base is already there...just bring confidence back into them. Let India be stronger with a strong party.
Note:
Subject line quote by Abraham Lincoln
troubles, but the way everything is going I wanted to put my thoughts in
perspective...probably I can reflect back on them once the storm has died down.
2004....NDA loses the general elections to everybody's surprise..even to the
surprise of Congress. It was a loss..yes, but was manageable as the loss in seats
was not too much when compared to the results in 1999. It was mainly the loss of TDP and other regional allies that hurt the most. Vajpayee was an able leader and I'll curse my luck till I live that we did not have him as the PM again in 2004.
BJP coul not cope up with this defeat...
2009....Another general election and BJP lost it miserably. I am saying BJP and not NDA as this time BJP was the main loser. Its allies ofcourse lost but the percentage lost by BJP was higher.
The hidden volcanoes (or should I say the self-created-bloated-eog-volcanoes) erupted. Before I move further I must admit that it was wrong for Advani to continue as the Opposition leader. he should have taken responsibility and made way to the next generation. It would have sent ht right message to party cadres and would have also pressurised Rajnath to step down.
Ok...Jaswant and Jinnah, Yashwant and his big mouth etc....all this has happened. Jaswant was expelled..I regard him high for his abilities both as external affairs minister and finance minister. But his Jinnah book was not meant for Indian politics. The political(and read Media here too) cannot separate personal academic intersts and politics. He had to go and he was expelled...what caused the furore was that he was expelled by a leadership that itself had little moral authority to do so.
Yashwant has been 1 of the most opportune politicians...BJP would do good to rid him too...I would still keep Arun Shourie as he is an intelligent and well read man and has interest of the country and the party.
After all the hue and cry came Mohanrao Bhagwat. Mediamen pounced on him at a press conference in New Delhi. What role does RSS play here...what was RSS doing for BJP...like a pack on hungry wolves they pounced on him..but to his credit he didn't give anything to them and nor to the congress.
whatever happens now...I just want to keep Bhagwat in the picture. BJP leadership should have done what Bhagwat did all these years. The main problem with BJP is that there are too many mouths that want to speak and theya re eager to say what the media wants...gullible to an extent. Why not have designated people who are calm, composed and give out things only that they want to....let them assume whatever they want but dont blurt out whatever....
I am 100% confident that BJP is going to come out of this mess...leaner and stronger..with a more focussed leadership. Let Rajnath go into the shadows...let Advani guide as a mentor..he has been good at it and ma sure he will still be able to do it..after all I find his contribution bigger than Vajpayee's when it comes to building the party. Let someone like Jaitley, Swaraj, Shourie, Khanduri, Raman Singh, Shivraj, Modi take up the leadership....BUT with a goal to REbuild the party..
India needs a very strong opposition...specially with Congress ruling the country in a dangerous fashion. 5 years gives enough time to refocus...take each assembly election as the stepping stone...exepriment in the assembly elections...choose the right allies...play it alone in states where allies are not reliable...BJP has paid the price more because of the follies of its allies than because of itself (excpet in 2009). Build base....in fact the base is already there...just bring confidence back into them. Let India be stronger with a strong party.
Note:
Subject line quote by Abraham Lincoln
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
My doll crawls now...
7+ months....can you believe it? Its been more than 7 months and my doll has learnt to crawl. She is teaching me to be happy in so very small things...and I am so glad that it is happening.
Last Saturday Kashti suddenly started to crawl. Kruti and I were overjoyed, we would just make her crawl again and again..try capture videos and photos..it was an amazing feeling.
Yes, I do feel sometimes that she is growing so fast and tell her "beta, dont grow up so fast..."..yes thats selfish of me, but can't help it.
Next step....when my baby starts taking baby steps... :)
Last Saturday Kashti suddenly started to crawl. Kruti and I were overjoyed, we would just make her crawl again and again..try capture videos and photos..it was an amazing feeling.
Yes, I do feel sometimes that she is growing so fast and tell her "beta, dont grow up so fast..."..yes thats selfish of me, but can't help it.
Next step....when my baby starts taking baby steps... :)
When friends(?) turn conspirators
"Dost dost na raha...." remember that evergreen betrayal glorifying bollywood song..Raj Kapoor singing it with a sad face looking into the eyes of Rajendra Kumar?
Its been a few months now since I've been playing the Raj Kapoor and I can't even sing..unlike that Raj sand it for Vyjantimala while I've no issues on that part.
Perhaps I was never made out for the corporate world..should have been a teacher or a farmer or something else, but not in the corporate world. The way corporate friends hit u from behind....real hard....appendix pain would also be ashamed...This hit from behind doesnt even have a cure...try all you want to prevent but this virus is non-preventable.
Oh yeah..am back to whining..I know. Time I become really assertive...no..no...time I become really aggressive and just hit back..won't hit from the back for sure...but at least let me prepare myself to rid my life of "corporate friends"...life will be a lot better....Can't complain if I don't do something about it. Isn't it?
Its been a few months now since I've been playing the Raj Kapoor and I can't even sing..unlike that Raj sand it for Vyjantimala while I've no issues on that part.
Perhaps I was never made out for the corporate world..should have been a teacher or a farmer or something else, but not in the corporate world. The way corporate friends hit u from behind....real hard....appendix pain would also be ashamed...This hit from behind doesnt even have a cure...try all you want to prevent but this virus is non-preventable.
Oh yeah..am back to whining..I know. Time I become really assertive...no..no...time I become really aggressive and just hit back..won't hit from the back for sure...but at least let me prepare myself to rid my life of "corporate friends"...life will be a lot better....Can't complain if I don't do something about it. Isn't it?
Monday, July 27, 2009
Kashti learns to sit!
Wow...what a weekend. Kashti started sitting on her own on saturday (25th July 2009). Kruti and I were so happy....proud at the same time. Last few days, we have been waiting to see Kashti try to crawl, sit..do something new. There were signs that she was trying to crawl but then suddenly she sprand this surprise...as if telling me "Don't think I'll do what you want/expect"..
Little joys...these....watching her 2 bunny teeth when she smiles...watching her sit again and again as if she is so proud of her achivement. Its amazing this feeling of watching you kid grow! Sometime you want to watch her grow every minute, sometimes you want the process to be slow so that you can enjoy everything again and again...its a dilemma...but then one can't fight progress, human or otherwise....best is to enjoy the progress and be happy.
Next step...wath her crawl happily .....and then walk.....and run...its gonna be fun for sure!
Little joys...these....watching her 2 bunny teeth when she smiles...watching her sit again and again as if she is so proud of her achivement. Its amazing this feeling of watching you kid grow! Sometime you want to watch her grow every minute, sometimes you want the process to be slow so that you can enjoy everything again and again...its a dilemma...but then one can't fight progress, human or otherwise....best is to enjoy the progress and be happy.
Next step...wath her crawl happily .....and then walk.....and run...its gonna be fun for sure!
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