Democracy in India: A farce?

Hi All,

I write this post with great disappointment and an even greater wrath at our elected representatives. An entire session of Parliament has been washed out due to the utterly reprehensible and irresponsible attitude of the ‘honorable members of parliament’. The session concluded with not much business done and the bitter acrimony between the government of the day and the opposition is showing no signs of abating.

Slowly but steadily, my confidence in our democracy is diminishing. This is how the scenario looks as of now: We have MPs who don’t even bother to be present during the session. There are some who will only ask questions in the House when they are ‘paid to do so’ [Cash for questions scam]. For a whole chunk of them, the quantum of money paid is the only consideration for voting on a certain bill. Barring a few exemplary members, almost of all of them love converging on the well of the house to chant slogans and disrupt proceedings. I pretty sure I have missed out at some of the negative traits of our MPs [as it’s a never ending list] but the above instances should suffice to show the state of despair of democracy in our country.

We can keep on with the chest beating that we are the world’s largest democracy. Mr. Obama might say we are a beacon for many nations in the world. We can go on with the humongous carnival of over 600million people exercising their franchise every 5 years. But we must ask ourselves, what does it mean to the poor labourer who is unsure of his livelihood? What does it mean to the farmer who sees no end to his misery? Democracy must work for these people for it to be proclaimed as a mechanism of support and redressal of grievances.

Needless to say, democracy has worked the world over. It has forced society to listen to the voices of the poor and downtrodden, share their burden and more importantly ensure their social and economic uplift. Unfortunately the same concept doesn’t seem to be reaping the desired benefits in our country. The question here is why isn’t democracy delivering for us? Is it really a problem with the system? Where have we gone wrong and what do we need to do to put the house (pun intended) in order. As usual, we find ourselves in a situation where we have more questions than answers.

P.S. Apologies for a rather somber post during the holiday season. But just thought that it might be good to discuss this. Happy New Year 2011 to one and all...

Season of scams

Hi folks,

Yes, it’s official now. We are in the middle of the season of scams. The sums involved this time make your eyeballs gouge out, literally, and put even the biggest of past scams to shame. Right from the land we live in to the air that we breathe, there seems to graft everywhere. In this post, I don’t wish to zoom into specific cases, for the fear of sounding like a mundane news bulletin, but rather focus on how we have responded to scams that have been unearthed in recent times.

Our polity has a new found addiction, the ‘moral high ground’. Find anyone of your party members in a compromised position? No problem. The accused individual will step down upon the request from the party high command and that absolves the individual and the party of all guilt! The loss to the exchequer and the taxpayer is conveniently overlooked and negative sentiments generated by the scam and their consequent effects are not even debated. This kind of circus goes on only in India and goes to show the moral bankruptcy of our political class.

The reaction from the great Indian Middle Class [IMC] has been along expected lines. The latest scams notwithstanding, the IMC has always looked upon the political class with despair and contempt. We couldn’t care less as long as we got our daily dose of Saas Bahu serials and cricket matches. We didn’t see any mass scale upheaval that naturally would have occurred in any other country. But this doesn’t surprise me as IMC knows very well that there is much more to come and will certainly be bigger in magnitude than the scams that have been unearthed.

The only consolation in this whole tamasha has been the fourth estate, the media. This section of our society has toiled hard to ensure that corruption is exposed and that the culprits are brought to justice. The electronic media, in particular, has gone into a tizzy covering the various scams. Official government reports on various scams appear first on television channels before they are even tabled in parliament. The media’s role has been so crucial that it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the government would not even bother acting on these scams if it were not for the relentless coverage and as such credit must be given to the media for precipitating change. [Of late, we have been hearing that some journos from the mainstream media were actually in touch with a dubious lobbyist. But we should be careful here not to paint the entire media with a single brush.]

Graft is a cancer that will certainly destroy us from within if we do not address it immediately with as much willpower as we can muster. As of now, I can safely say that we have not even initiated this difficult task.

P.S. While we are at it, why don’t we also turn the heat on petty corruption?

Season of scams

Hi folks,

Yes, it’s official now. We are in the middle of the season of scams. The sums involved this time make your eyeballs gouge out, literally, and put even the biggest of past scams to shame. Right from the land we live in to the air that we breathe, there seems to graft everywhere. In this post, I don’t wish to zoom into specific cases, for the fear of sounding like a mundane news bulletin, but rather focus on how we have responded to scams that have been unearthed in recent times.

Our polity has a new found addiction, the ‘moral high ground’. Find anyone of your party members in a compromised position? No problem. The accused individual will step down upon the request from the party high command and that absolves the individual and the party of all guilt! The loss to the exchequer and the taxpayer is conveniently overlooked and negative sentiments generated by the scam and their consequent effects are not even debated. This kind of circus goes on only in India and goes to show the moral bankruptcy of our political class.

The reaction from the great Indian Middle Class [IMC] has been along expected lines. The latest scams notwithstanding, the IMC has always looked upon the political class with despair and contempt. We couldn’t care less as long as we got our daily dose of Saas Bahu serials and cricket matches. We didn’t see any mass scale upheaval that naturally would have occurred in any other country. But this doesn’t surprise me as IMC knows very well that there is much more to come and will certainly be bigger in magnitude than the scams that have been unearthed.

The only consolation in this whole tamasha has been the fourth estate, the media. This section of our society has toiled hard to ensure that corruption is exposed and that the culprits are brought to justice. The electronic media, in particular, has gone into a tizzy covering the various scams. Official government reports on various scams appear first on television channels before they are even tabled in parliament. The media’s role has been so crucial that it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the government would not even bother acting on these scams if it were not for the relentless coverage and as such credit must be given to the media for precipitating change. [Of late, we have been hearing that some journos from the mainstream media were actually in touch with a dubious lobbyist. But we should be careful here not to paint the entire media with a single brush.]

Graft is a cancer that will certainly destroy us from within if we do not address it immediately with as much willpower as we can muster. As of now, I can safely say that we have not even initiated this difficult task.

P.S. While we are at it, why don’t we also turn the heat on petty corruption?

Rajni...is he really that good?

Hi All,

I have been off this space for quite some time now. It’s the usual suspect which is to blame...work. During my absence from blogosphere, Mr Rajni seems to have scorched the box office with this latest release Endhiran(Robot in Hindi & Telugu). Mr Rajni and Endhiran seem to be ubiquitous... the internet, TV, newspaper and everywhere else. We have fans going out of the way to welcome the favourite star’s movie to the big screens, we have the media that has gone on an overdrive to promote the movie and when there is so much hype how could the internet be any far behind.


I don’t really want to go into the merits or demerits of such fanatic fan following and media coverage for an ageing ‘super star’ and his movies which can be best described as contorted sci-fi action films sprinkled with female subordination and a good dose of Indian masala. In this post, I am more concerned about the demi - god status that has been accorded to Rajni and why he might not deserve that. Now let me just present the facts as they are and explain why I (and probably many others) feel this way about Mr Rajni.


Let’s accept it; Mr Rajni is not the best of actors. Rajni is high on style but not equally loaded on substance. His dialogue delivery is still poor and his diction is downright bad, this after spending more than 3 decades in the Tamil film industry! His comedy tracks are rather monotonous, revolving around slithering snakes and wandering ghosts. His versatility too is in question. For the past decade or so, Mr Rajni could only been seen acting in one genre, commercial mass movies. Minus his style and Mr Rajni is nobody. Rajni will soon find himself getting a good run for his money with loads of teenagers, who are just as good in delivering style, entering the movie scene these days.


Now let’s get down to Mr Rajni as an individual. Be it regional loyalties or his secular identity, Rajni always seems to be in a state of confusion and inaction. Rajni keeps harping about how he will forever be grateful to Tamil Nadu and her people for his current status and fame but has nothing much on record to prove his gratefulness other than the odd charities run by him and his fans. With his influence and clout, Rajni could easily been a harbinger of change to the society he is living in but choose to take the beaten path by appealing to the crass and mediocre. His films usually have ‘arrogant female characters’ whom he ‘tames’ and eventually manages to make them fall at his feet. Mr Rajni has only recently moved away from pandering to male chauvinists after sensing the poor reception to such silly & childish tendencies.


They say charity begins at home but that’s not the case with Rajni. Mr Rajni’s most controversial brush with women’s rights came when infamously proclaimed that ‘more the girls stay in the house, the better while it is the reverse for the boys’. The last time I checked, Mr Rajni had two extremely successful and enterprising daughters who obviously could not have ‘stayed at home’ as their father seems to prescribe for the rest of the population. Now, let me be clear here. Rajni is free to bring up his daughters the way he likes it but at the same time he has to preach what he practices.


It is a no brainer that Rajni has thousands, if not lakhs, of fans belonging to the minority community. But he mercilessly broke their hearts when he visited and received the ‘blessings’ [read political patronage] from the leader of a political outfit which has often openly professed its hatred to select communities and rejected the idea of India as a secular society. Again, Mr Rajni is free to visit whoever he wants but he cannot act as an angel and at the same time have dinner with the devil.


Let me provide clarification here before I sign off. I am NOT a Rajni basher. I have relished watching many of his movies. I liked and even loved his style and I do accept he that he is among top rung of actors in South Indian cinema. But Rajni certainly doesn’t deserve this much attention and fanfare and certainly cannot be regarded as the best actor of our times. Yes he may be one of the best but nowhere close to being the best, either professionally or personally.

P.S. Now all the above might and probably will apply to many actors in India. But I have intentionally narrowed down the scope to Rajnikanth, the ‘super star’...:)

My 4 days in Chennai

I had wanted to go to my sister’s place in Chennai for quite some time now. The Janmashtami holiday on Thursday, 2nd of Sep seemed to fit bill just nicely. Apply for leave on the 3rd and voila what do I get? Four days of freedom. With my project undergoing a lean phase, there was every chance of my manager approving the leave and little probability of getting recalled due to production issues or the likes. Absolute bliss! What more could a techie ask for? So off I went to Singara Chennai. [Beautiful Chennai, I know...what a joke... :)]

Day 1:

Arrived dead tired at my sister’s, after having travelled in local trains and
standing in the wrong bus stop for almost 30 minutes before realizing that the bus stop has been shifted! The usual Indian-family-reunion-emotional drama ensued. With my mother having come over from my place there was no dearth of affection. Add two cute little kids to this potent mix and I was in an exalted state for the most part of the morning. The late morning and the whole afternoon went mostly as it does for me when I am on vacation...deep slumber... :) It was in the evening that all the action started. An array of games was on display and we were not sure which one to play. My nephew was hankering for Business (Monopoly), my mother was for Chinese checkers and my 2 yr old niece wanted us to do colouring along with her! Finally, we settled for a couple of games of Chinese checkers.

Day 2:

I managed to find my way to Wipro Sholliganallur Office. What took me back was the ticket fare. No, it wasn’t because the fare was exorbitant. In fact it was the other way around. I stared at the conductor in total disbelief when he issued a 4 rupee ticket. Did he hear me wrong? In Bangalore the same journey would have easily cost anywhere between Rs.11 to Rs.13 [Depending on the conductor’s mood and at ease with which you speak Kannada.]

Met loads of my friends in CDC and played catch up. Returned home with a box of cookies for the kids...they couldn’t have asked for a better mama, could they?

Day 3:

My friend Balaji and I had decided that we would allocate a day for hanging out in some mall. Since I hadn’t been to Spencers Mall (a crime by Chennaites standards), we decided that we would spend the day there. After having a sumptuous meal at a nearby restaurant I entered the vast unknown territory called Spencers. We probably spent an hour there. The mall was a great let down after all the hype I received/heard from my friends and family. We moved on to next place on our itinerary which was the newly built swanky Express Avenue mall.

The mall was quite big or at least much bigger than Bangalore’s Forum Mall. We were sauntering in and out of shops and our throats were parched in no time. We went in search of a watering hole and found a Cafe Coffee Day outlet. I reluctantly browsed the menu card for some cheap drink only to find one in the low 100s! There was a greater shock waiting for me when the deceiving cashier spit out the bill amount. It came to close 340 for just two drinks. He had added the some silly toppings to the drinks. Given my scorched state, I was in no mood to protest. Moral of the story, always have water bottles filled up to the brim before stepping out of your home.

Another notable incident was when I spotted an old friend of mine in Odyssey. I really wanted to go and connect with her but my silly inhibitions prevented me. Good going dude, with this attitude and at this rate your glorious list of girl-friends [which currently stands at 0] is going to skyrocket!

After having purchased some books and window shopped to our heart’s content, we came to the entrance of the mall and stuck into small talk. It was during this time that I realized that my friend Balaji was really perturbed by something. He was quite concerned about the dressing sense of some of the women there. I was having a gala time though, feasting my eyes on the fairer sex... :) Why do we always see women as the sole custodians of morality and culture?

Day 4:

Woke up only in the afternoon. More games, food and then it was off to Bangalore again.

Freedom…what it means to me

Freedom

Freedom can mean a multitude of things to different people. To a bubbling toddler freedom from the physical clutches of his ever protective wards, to a raging teenager it could mean relaxation on the much hated ‘time restrictions‘. Freedom is clearly a subjective word but there is a clear convergence in all the instances. Freedom is liberating and makes one feel unrestrained, a feeling parallel to none other.

To me, as an individual, freedom is the ability to chart my own destiny. It is an endowment to practice, without fear or compulsion, a religious ideology of my choice. It is the liberty to lodge democratic protests against the state on policies which I sense are inappropriate and the free will to work in institutions that I want to work for. Overall, freedom on an individual perspective means the ability to decide and implement what is best for oneself.

As a citizen, freedom has been a significant factor in nation building and a feeling of oneness. It refers to the ability of my nation, India, to hold her head high and assert herself in the comity of nations. Additionally, freedom has been a causative factor in the empowerment of the downtrodden and under privileged. Subservience, a by-product of lack of freedom, has proliferated access and opportunities denial in our nation for many centuries. Its absence, thankfully, is slowly but steadily creating inclusive growth.

Bertrand Russell quotes “Freedom in general may be defined as the absence of obstacles to the realization of desires”. This probably captures the essence of freedom in its totality. Freedom is to humans what oxygen is to the lungs, a vital component for survival. To sum it up, freedom has been and will be a cornerstone of human development till humans exist on this planet.

Jai Hind!

P.S. I had submitted this write up for the ‘What Freedom means to me’ creative writing competition held for Wipro employees. The word limit was 300. So you can see that i was really constrained for words. The competition is over now and i didnt win…:( So thought that i might at least share it here…

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas…A Movie Review

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas is a movie about the Holocaust and is based on a book by the same name. The movie is set in the backdrop of the World War II, when Nazi Germany was on rampage in Europe and killing innocent Jews in the disguise of nationalism. This movie stands apart from the rest of the Holocaust films as it portrays a perspective of a son of a Nazi commander rather than narrating the gruesome discrimination and humiliation meted out to Jews, as other movies’ do.

The movie starts off with the Bruno, a happy go lucky 8 year old, being forced to shift from the Berlin to the country side as his father, a Nazi commander, has been posted take charge of a Jew extermination camp. Obviously Bruno’s father utters nothing related to the camp and successfully convinces him that the country side home will be as good the current one.

Bruno’s adventure seeking instincts get the better of him in his country side home. He discovers ways to kill time by playing in his favourite swing, the house servants and even exploring the backyard that leads him to the ‘farm’. It is in this ‘farm’ that he chances upon Shmuel, an 8 year old Jew inmate. The friendship between the two boys blooms over time but at no point does Bruno realize that the ‘farm’ is actually an invidious Nazi pogrom and that his own father is at the helm of things there.

As the film moves on, Bruno encounters several incidents during which reality is laid out thread bare. But Bruno, being an adventure seeking innocent 8 year old, refuses or probably is just too young to understand the gravity of the situation around him. His naive attitude tugs your heart. You get emotionally overwhelmed when he laments about ‘How adults cannot make up their mind’, an obvious reference to a Jewish servant whom he thinks gave up his medical profession to become a potato peeler! His enquiry about the same servant’s return after a lethal thrashing, doled out by his father’s Nazi underlings, buttresses his innocence and cements the idea that this boy has no idea whatsoever of what is going on around him.

I am going to leave out the climax, intentionally. Try to grab a DVD copy of this movie.

Disclaimer: Emotional disturbance guaranteed!

P.S. What are the other Holocaust movies which you liked?

Are we turning into an INTOLERANT society?

Hi All,

Gone are the days when intolerance was considered repulsive and divisive. Intolerant people being labeled extremists and frowned upon are things of the past now. Welcome to a 'new', 'united' India where intolerance is a way of life and anything counter doctrinal is treated as blasphemy and equated to slaughtering the sacred cow. Be prepared to get labeled as 'anti-national' if you dare to criticise the blatant wastage of the CW games. The same fate awaits citizens who question the anti-Naxal strategy of the government. Except this time the tag attached is that of a ‘Naxal Sympathiser’.

It doesn’t take rocket scientist to figure out where all this is leading to. Tolerance is slowly but steadily getting shunted out of our polity. Intolerance is glorified as the new ‘Unity’. ‘You are either with me or either with them’ syndrome is ominously looming over us and is threatening to make us an intolerant society which refuses to take any constructive criticism and goes even to the extent of condemning varied viewpoints as anti-patriotic.

Offhand I can think of a few reasons why this new attitude has crept in. This intolerance is largely due to the fear arising out of failures and wrong doings. So if someone speaks out against you, label him a terrorist, an anti-national or better still a traitor. Rally popular opinion against him and bury his credibility. Additionally, this serves as a potent warning to anyone who might dream to take this path. There is also a fear among us that diverse, non-homogenous views perpetuate divisiveness and hence we need herbicides like intolerance to weed out divergent views. I feel the final one is the most dangerous of all and needs immediate attention.

I guess this trend is a cause of concern for all of us. Why are going down this path and where is all this leading us to? How do we put an end to this self destructive journey? I am hoping some of you out there might throw in some answers.

Five things i have learnt from my Mama's 60th

Family functions have always been events that I have cherished and loved to participate. The congregation of so many people at one place is by itself a rarity these days, given our fast pace of life. Coupled with serene village atmosphere, where these functions are usually held, you get a carnival with ever lasting memories.

I was fortunate enough to be a part of my MAMA’s [uncle’s] 60th birthday celebrations last week. I observed/ realized a few things which were compelling enough to pen down.

1. Late night work is a good way to bond

Family events are synonymous with work. There is always a mountain of it and the more you think you have completed the more seems remaining. But when done in the right atmosphere, work can be conquered. I found this out during continuous late night ‘shifts’ I had with my cousins. Dwelling over the past or sharing the present was such a great experience. Catching someone whose eyelids just can’t keep open was equally fun.
[To all those naughty ones who were smirking after seeing the first point, put a leash on your thoughts. What were you thinking? ]

2. Make your presence felt

Be everywhere. Do everything. Don’t say NO. NO is taboo in public functions. Learn it if you don’t know it already. Or at least fake it! Move around, raise some eyebrows if you have to and run some errands for that distant relative of yours. (Whom you will be meeting for the first and the last time) Make sure the overall effect is one which raises your profile.

3. Be prepared to cope with totally unanticipated scenarios

Be it when asked to do some urgent work when nature’s call becomes more than just a request (!)or when someone catches hold of you and narrates a long winding story of your antics, be prepared. Have a smile on your face. Reciprocate the warmth and you will soon realize that the chance meeting is actually mutually beneficial.

4. Take advice in the stride

Advice, like alcohol in a beer fest, will be free flowing. The usual ones will be “Get married early”, “Focus on your career”, “Why don’t you consider part time studies in lieu of a full time one?” What else do you expect when you are surrounded by people twice your age and ten times your wisdom? Take it your stride. Put across your points and have a healthy discussion. After all, learning from other’s experience is smarter isn’t?

5. Education's importance is finally being realized

My mama had, for the sake of convenience, outsourced the cooking department to a well known chef. The usually busy chef happened to be a little free on one of the nights and we had a chance to interact with him freely. He was gloating with joy on how his daughter had got a good score in grade 12 examinations and how she has proceeded to pursue her engineering. He had specific details of her ‘cut-off’ and how she might manage to eke into this college and probably not into another, which just goes to show how involved he has been in the entire process. All this for a man who might have barely cleared grade 10(sorry Mr Chef if I have underestimated your academic qualifications). The news was all the more sweeter as he was willing to support his girl child to the hilt which normally would not happen in a rural setting.

Do you fear excellence?

Hi All,

I am coming back to this space after a long time. I had some hurdles to cross and they required my undivided attention, hence the prolonged absence. While overcoming the above obstacles, I experienced a certain strange feeling which I thought I should share with everyone.

I fear excellence. I fear perfectness. Let me get myself clear here, I don't fear PEOPLE who are brilliant or near to perfect. I fear perfectness as a virtue. While surmounting the obstacles, something in me was telling not to go for perfectness. It’s not achievable. Or worse still, it’s a sacred cow which was not to be slaughtered. It’s better left untouched.

This feeling could have stemmed from the fact that I am more pessimistic than I am optimistic. But I have reasons to feel that this might not be the only reason for the peculiar sentiment which I was undergoing. I have always wanted to be among the top. I have always wished to be showered with laurels. But at the same time, I have also dreaded the academic limelight. At those times I did not know what was making me feel in such a way.

But now I have understood it. I am frightened by excellence. I am not sure if this is restricted to academics or extends to other spheres of life as well. I am equally confused as to whether this might be as bad as it looks or could actually be a blessing in disguise as excellence, which I consider to be an unachievable virtue, keeps pushing me further and further.

So what are your thought on this? How do view excellence and how do you deal with it?

IPL Mess...who would have thought?

Hi All,

During the past two weeks, we have seen so much controversy involving cricket, politicians and business houses that it promises to thrill no less than a typical Bollywood film. We have encountered controversies in the past [we live in India!] but this one seems to be a lethal mix of money, politics and patronage.

The IPL’s fall from grace surprised many. [To be frank, I am still a little perplexed] After all, this was touted as India’s answer to other major global events like the EPL and the UEFA Champions League. Some even brazenly equated IPL’s introduction to India finally arriving on the global stage and claiming its rightful place in the comity of nations. With a dynamic commissioner, cash rich franchisees, raving media and crazy fans who were waiting to lap up everything that was thrown at them, the IPL had everything going for it. But it was not to be. Not when you have somebody from the inside who decides to blow the whistle and bring down some really powerful people along with his imminent exit.

As the puzzle untangles, we are led into a world of murky business dealings, proxy owners and shell companies. What is even more shocking is the global angle to all this mess. The IPL truly seems to have taken globalization to a whole new level. Suddenly we have Mauritian companies trading with Singaporean ones for media and distributor rights for IPL. So much for countries that don’t even have a significant cricketing viewership or for that matter a significant population to start with!

Now leaving all the politics aside, I am starting to wonder what’s coming the game’s way. With so much negative publicity, IPL’s image has surely taken a beating. What’s next for the IPL, the teams who have invested millions and the players hoping to rake in some money before they retire and the fans who have shown so much love and affection for their favourite teams?

What happened to the other sports?

Hi All,

Let’s be honest...we are primarily a one sport nation. We virtually eat, sleep and breathe cricket. [And many other un mentionable actions...:)] It seems that if you are born Indian then your default sport is cricket. Your sports icon is Tendulkar and sports entertainment means watching cricket in channels dedicated for cricket!

So where did all the other sports go? Just offhand any one of us can probably count 5 other sports which are so popular globally but are barely included even in small talk in India. So why is cricket so disproportionately popular? Who is to blame for this anomaly? And more importantly how can we rectify this lopsidedness?

As for apportioning blame, I guess it has to be shared among various sections. The administrators of various sports who haven’t really been aggressive in promoting their respective sports, the viewers who simply refuse to even temporarily shift loyalties to other sports and even to some extent history! The British Raj left a long lasting impact on us in the form of cricket.

Before proceeding further, I wish to reiterate that I am making a conscious effort to follow different sports. These days’ hockey and tennis are regulars in my sporting menu. I am also anxiously waiting for the world cup in SA later this year. [Now I won’t have hypocrite tags thrown at me...:)] Regarding the question of making other sports popular, I was thinking we must incentivise patronage. So prizes, money and possible fame will lead our masses to new sports. Government support for non cricketing sports will also help.

I am sure you must have heard about 2 new teams which are going to be added to IPL 4. What might(actually must) have shocked you more is the staggering amount of money the winning groups are willing to pay to own these teams. The IPL mopped up more than 3000 Crore Rupees for the 2 newly auctioned teams. [Wow...how many poor kids can that amount of money educate/feed/clothe....anyways let’s leave that discussion for another day...I wanted to focus primarily on sports in this post...]

Rampant consumerism

Accumulated agony from my weekly visits to a mall located close to my residence led me to write this post. My roomy and I usually like to shop for our weekly necessities during the weekend at the mall. Every visit of ours just reiterates one point. Consumerism is increasing and this trend is here to stay.

Consumerism drives the economy, say the economists, as it’s the demand for goods and services which actually keeps the economy running. It creates jobs, generates wealth and provides robustness to the economy. All well and good. But it can get to your nerves when it becomes obscene or ostentatious. After all, too much of anything can never be a good thing.

It’s as if necessity has been sacked and greed has taken total control. Nowadays it doesn’t seem to matter it a certain commodity is actually required or not. Let’s just get it seems to be the attitude. As long as it’s affordable and within one’s reach, it’s deemed to be required. [What happened to our ability to discern between what is a necessity and what is not?]

This trend is especially discomforting in a nation like ours where millions go without a square meal a day. It’s just not fair that some have so much of everything while many don’t even have little of some thing. Nothing ticks me off these days like a rich (often FAT) kid spoilt for choice and deciding to get whatever falls within his eye range! I don’t wish to pursue further down this track as my original intention was to highlight the trend of consumerism and the rich poor divide in our country.

My roomy feels the same about this trend but sometimes dismisses these thoughts as ramblings from a poor bloke who just can’t afford to be part of the ‘consumerist gang’. I am confused though, am I reading too much into this trend or is it actually that bad.

India win; only on paper

Hi All,

Sunday's clash between India and South Africa went right down to the wire and till the last ball it was still anybody's game. Even after the last ball was bowled, spectators had to wait with bated breath for the verdict from the third umpire. Apart from the nail biting excitement the match brought to me, I felt something else which I thought I should pen down and share with everyone.

A drawn result would have been more comfortable with me, for the kind of character that the South African lower order showed and for the not so extraordinary performance displayed by India. Before I get branded as a traitor, let's get something clear here. South African top order, sans Jacques Kallis, did collapse and probably deserved to lose. But help came from unexpected quarters and how. From about 180/7, the lower order ensured that the match went down right to the last ball.

The temperament shown by the SA batsmen especially Wayne Parnell is applaud able and worthy of a lesson for any lower order batsmen. The way he stood up to the challenge and nudged his team almost to the finish line will probably live in our memory for some time to come and serves as a constant reminder to the unpredictability of the cricket. Indian batsmen could take a leaf or two form Parnell's books.

P.S. Yesterday's MOM Ravindra Jadeja was also the same man who lost the match for us against Australia last year when India were chasing a huge total and Sachin made 175 and almost single handedly won the match for India.

Tall leaders...?

Hi All,

We all know a political veteran passed away last month. Condolences came in thick and fast from every corner of the country and leaders, across the political spectrum, heaped praises on him and his ability to connect with the masses. Before I go into the topic, let me clarify that this post is not about this man.

Watching this spectacle made me ask one question to myself....how does one measure a leader's effectiveness. Who should be called a good leader and who is the rotten one.Should the number of years a person spent in politics be a figure of merit? Or should we take into consideration his/her volume of supporters after all ,as the phrase goes, there is strength in numbers...

I have observed that we Indians tend to get confused when asked to rate a leader and in good old Indian fashion play it safe and brand him a great leader. Especially when he is above his 60s at the time of death and had had a good fan following in his heydays. The media, for its part, starts to go on a sympathy overdrive for the very man they thrashed a few days back. And bingo....we have a 'great leader' who has just passed away. How sad...

So should we finetune the standards that are used to measure a leader's effectiveness and success. Pour in your thoughts....

Frivolous Ads...

Hi All,

Something has been ticking me off these days. The ubiquitous irritant is delivered through the idiot box right into my living room and the only way to avoid it, is probably to switch off the box altogether. Yes, I am talking about ads. The little messages which come in between your favourite shows, the ones that television channels broadcast when you are on the edge of your seat and biting your nails not knowing what will happen next. It makes economic sense for them as ads are the revenue lifeline for them.

Let me get something clear from the start. I don’t have any issues with ads across the board. Most are ok and some are even revolutionary, innovative and way ahead of their time. My sticking point is with the ones that are misleading, stereotypical or just downright disgusting.

Take for example the ‘Pond’s Age Miracle’ ad- the one that shows a husband going out of his way to woo his wife to marry him ‘again’ just because she applied the stupid cream and looks younger. Repulsive isn’t it? Since when did husbands start disliking their spouses just because they have grown older and have a few wrinkles on their face? [At least this is not case in India and hope it remains that way.] The ad also denigrates women who would, I believe, wish to be judged and liked by their content of character and not by their appearance.

The other one is the ‘K factor challenge’ ad which promotes the eating of cereals to lose weight. The problem is the way in which it does it. The mother consumes the ‘magic’ cereal hoping to tone down and fit into that ‘red dress’ upon her daughter’s request. [Just petty at its best, I would say.] Have more ads like this and the time won’t be far away when every kid in the block is going to place unreasonable demands on the physical appearance of his/her mother.

So what do you people think about these ads. What can we do to ensure that young impressionable minds are not influenced by these seemingly naïve ads?