The Devil Codes JAVA

Last week I, along with a group of friends were accused of playing politics, bringing in groupism into an arena, which allegedly hadn’t seen it earlier. If this incident were to happen four years back, I would be terribly hurt and probably on a soul searching mission, asking myself where had I gone wrong. However, four year down the line, I realise that I have changed quite a bit as a person. Allegations of politics and dirty games don’t seem to hurt me anymore. I will be cheating myself if I were to take the credit completely myself. The credit for not being naive, the credit for understanding what putting up pretence is, credit for understanding the only one who matters in this big bad world is ‘Me’.
When I got my first job, I was so sure I would never do anything that is ethically wrong. I would never do anything that would hurt the commitments I had already made. I was too idealistic. It took just nine months of the corporate world to change me. The work atmosphere changed me to some extent but people changed me the most. It is usually assumed that your work is most affected by your superiors or your team. I have a different take on that. I think we get most affected by the people whom we spend the most time with, the people with whom we share our deepest secrets with, the people whom we trust the most.
The best way to become smarter is to be fooled. I don’t know how many times I have been fooled or been lied to in my life. However, the ones I have known have been more than enough for me to handle. The first one to rush to my mind is being lied to, over and over by friends (atleast they still claim to be) about their plans and relationships. Manyatimes I would get a feeling that I was being used by ‘friends’ to achieve their own motives. I have no idea how much politics exists in industries outside software but I can tell you that politics in software is not soft at all. The only thing soft is the outer persona of people.
I once thought of writing a book about my experiences at ‘Nihilent’. I never completed it. Probably as I never knew what the end would be. Perhaps I know now. I notice that people in the West are obsessed with the concept of the devil. Take my word, I have met the devil. He\She changed me in a way that I would never be the same again. I don’t think I can ever claim the moral high ground but I am sure that I will be very successful in the corporate world someday. That day I will go back to the devil and thank him\her for the lessons I have been taught by the actions taken by some people I had once trusted. I recently wrote to someone that she will have bad and good experiences in her life but please treasure every bit of both. As we learn and grow with every experience for our own good. If you read this and cannot control your curiosity to find the devil and are wondering ‘where in the world is the devil’, then all I can tell you is that the devil codes JAVA, go find him\her sitting in some big corporate office making his\her way upto the top.

China - the rich communist

China and Pakistan are two sides of the same coin. Fundamentalism rules roost in both countries. One is Right wing other is Left wing. Perhaps it is a cruel joke by the Almighty to place Pakistan on India's Right and China to India's Left!
The world seems to be waking up to the destructive dragon only now. Nancy Pelosi today said in Dharamshala, "Situation in Tibet is a challenge to conscience of the world". I say China is worse than Pakistan as it has the economic power, so the world seems reluctant to control its gross human rights violations. It is so true. Thats why the statement by the U.S. House Speaker is so apt.

China has to leave Tibet...I hope India co-operates with USA on this mission. India should have helped USA in combat operations in Afghanistan too but Pakistan didn't want it. As they knew Indian help in Afghanistan could mean the end of Taliban, Pakistan's closest ally.

Now, Pakistan is quiet about Tibet! Why are you Pakis quiet? When terrorists kill people in Kashmir you guys call them freedom fighters. However when protestors in China are ruthlessly beaten up and tortured, on camera that too, Pakistan prefers to hide in its bunkers.

TIBET should be an independent state and every Indian has an ethical duty to help their cause.

Poor Old Raj

“Raj”, Shahrukh Khan made this name extremely popular, when he starred in Aditya Chopra’s debut, “Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge”. Till date this movie is considered as a modern day classic and the pair of Raj and Simran has been engraved in hearts of many Bollywood fans, perhaps just like Laila-Majnu or Heer-Ranjha were in the previous century.
However the Raj that we know of today is “The Raj Thackrey”. The fundamentalist, divisive, almost terrorist leader who calls for the blood of Nort Indians. Whatever happened to the Hindutva and Hindu Rashtra agenda. Oh I am really sorry, the Hindutva agenda is patented by his uncle Bal Thackrey and his old ally Advani(old man desperate to be PM before he departs to God knows where). Take a moment and think about it, what is the difference between Raj and Osama Bin Laden. Osama asks the “Kafir”- non-believer Americans to leave the holy land and then rages a terrorist war against them. Well, he doesn’t exactly fight with them himself; he only uses those infamous video clips that appear on Al-Jazeera mysteriously, to “inspire” his followers. It’s much easier for Raj. He gives sound bytes. He doesn’t need to send mysterious messages to TV channels. They run after him to get his quotes. Infact they run after his men too, to shoot the visuals of them beating up an innocent man or breaking a poor man’s cab. So Raj can openly call for the blood of North Indians (most of them Hindus) and his men can keep pelting stones and killing innocent people.
Let me for a hellish moment assume that I agree with Raj. Lets say that we should start asking people from U.P., Bihar, etc to leave Maharashtra, where do we start? Shouldn’t we start at the very top? Oh yes, that’s why Raj first targeted Amitabh Bachchan. What a visionary! However, I urge Raj to start even above Amitabh. Surprised? Which North Indian in Mumbai is even above Amitabh? Shahrukh? Lets not get into the Shahrukh –Amitabh war now, we already have enough of them. Ambanis? The richest men in India and among the richest in the world? No, no, Ambani bhais are Gujratis, so what if they are not “originally” from Maharshtra, they are not North Indians. S.M. Krishna, Governor of Maharashtra ? Now lets leave Soniaji’s man out of this controversy, as we know if she really gets angry on Raj, we know whom we will be bidding farewell tomorrow! I was mentioning the other Krishna actually. Lord Krishna.
Raj, first throw out all the idols of Lord Krishna and Shri Ram from temples in Maharshtra! Yes, after all their birthplace is U.P as well. Why should Krishna and Ram be allowed to prosper in Maharshtra, when their “gaavwalahs” are not? Also, immerse all the Ganpati idols. Isn’t Ganeshji supposed to be living with his father Lord Shiva on the Kailash Parvat, somewhere in Uttaranchal. Once you can do that, then ask the common man to leave.
However poor old Raj can only ask weak humans to leave. He can only instigate some losers who have not achieved anything in life yet, like their leader. I am sorry, isn’t he doing all this in the first place to become a political leader. Does his party even have a MP? Not one MP? Isn’t that the real issue Raj? If not, then abandon Ram, Krishna and Ganpati, then I will believe in your cause.

In Pursuit of Happiness

As kids we all want freedom. Freedom to play, freedom to have fun, freedom to have all those things which we don't have. As we grow up we want to be better. We want better looks than our friends, better outfits, better lovers,etc. Finally, stepping out of teenage we look for better status. More money, better job, more rewards and thus better education. What we keep searching in all these pursuits is happiness. This nine letter word is the rarest commodity on earth. And I learnt it in one night.
Tonight I chatted radomly with five people, people whom I have known closely for a long time now. I chatted one on one, with all of them. One common sentiment among all of them was of unhappiness. Let me start with this friend of mine here in Canada, who has been frustrated for sometime now as his plans are not going the way he wants them to go. He had imagined his life in a certain manner couple of years back but now things seem to be rather different from that rosy picture he had in his mind. I have known him for a few years now and have never seen him unhappy or atleast understood it. Tonight I know and I do understand.
Next, is this really old friend of mine from engineering days. Tough guy, always has a go getter attitude. Always brags about his hot sex life and the girlfriends he has in all different parts of India. Today's chat started in a similar manner. However, as I digged little bit below the surface I unconvered the hidden sorrow behind the big talks. Although he had made love to innumerable women, he never fell in love with any one of them. The only woman he loved, never had the courage to love him.
This third one, I had been expecting for sometime now. A good friend of mine, got married to a rich banker, moved to US of A. A dream for many young Indian girls. To many it would sound like a fairytale. However, as the old saying goes, money does not buy happiness. With a social life close to zero, lack of friends and late work hours of hubby, my good friend is not feeling that good anymore. She is unhappy that her young years are passing away, sitting at home when she can acually do something great with it. Loneliness and an east coast winter is almost a perfect prescription for unhappiness.

Fourth up, is a really close friend of mine whom I have shared my most intimate feelings with. Today he told me that he still remembers 'Strangers at Last Sight' and thinks about how he can relate to it. How he still looks at lost oportunities and thngs that could be. In short the unhappiness bug had struck the southern hemisphere boy too.

Finally, the fifth one, was yours sincerely. My life is going just the way I planned. I am not unhappy on being lonely, I have tons of friends n Montreal, good social life. I am not tired of meeting random people, in fact I have hardly got that wild. However, I still am not happy. Is there anyone out there who truly is?
'Ek masoom dil hai aur sitam hai kitne. Is mohabbat ke siwa aur bhi gham hai kitne'

Dada’s Kirti

I have fallen to my temptation of lifting the title of a popular Bengali movie.
“Dada’s Kirti” translated in plain English would perhaps mean elder brother’s great doings. There Dada was a popular Bengali actor called Tapas Pal (Madhuri debuted opposite him), here however the Dada I refer to is well known all over India and to most in other cricketing nations too, especially Pakistan and Australia. Ganguly has been a nemesis, particularly for these two teams. Against Pakistan as a batsman, sometimes even as a bowler and against Australia, in many forms. Sometimes as a captain or as a batsman or sometimes by just being there. This current crop of Indian cricketers we see today, who are not afraid to give it back to the Aussies, are products of Dada’s school of thought. They are aggressive, bloating with pride and won’t take a word lying down. So whether it’s Harbhajan replying back to Symmonds or Shreesanth doing the dance on the pitch against South Africa, they all show us that they are proud to be Indians and are not any less than the cricketers from the so called developed world.
Just like Sachin’s presence in the team inspires youngsters to be more committed and perform better, Dada fills the youth up with passion. What happened in Sydney, probably wouldn’t have happened if Dada weren’t there. The BCCI was more than happy to sweep the issue under the carpet and go on with the series. It was a combination of the passion that a large group of the team had, to not just silently accept cheating by the Aussies and the match officials, along with the dramatic Indian media which forced the BCCI to take the tough stand. BCCI chief, Pawar, who has his eyes set at the ICC chief’s chair was in no mood to take risks by getting into a tangle with the ICC and Cricket Australia. Needlessly to say the nation’s pride was last thing on his mind. If it weren’t for the unified Indian team which refused to leave Sydney until the contentious issues were resolved, the BCCI would have never disturbed its inertia. I still remember the instant when in the second innings of the Sydney test, Michael Clarke took that controversial catch and Ricky Pointing declared Dada out, he refused to leave the crease until the umpire would say that its out. That was important, especially after a series of wrong decisions against the Indians, someone had to protest. I still feel that after this decision the Indians should have walked out like Inzy had once done, demanding that the match be scrapped. However alls well that ends well. The humiliation of Sydney filled the team with a feeling of revenge for justice and thus followed the victory at Perth.
The very next day, the one day squad is announced and Dada and Dravid are dropped! People are surprised, accuse Vengsarkar and Dhoni of partiality and what not. However the real culprit is none of them, least of all Dhoni. The man responsible for this game of politics is the political mastermind called Sharadchandra Govind Rao Pawar.
The seeds of this plant lie in Sydney. Dada’s ability to unite the team, seniors and juniors alike scared the Board chief. A unified team means less power for the manipulative BCCI officials. They knew that removing Dada would mean media reports about a divided team and internal bickering. BCCI are not alone in fearing an unified Team India. Cricket Australia fears it too. If Greg Chappell’s tenure is analyzed closely, it can be seen that Chappell always tried to divide Team India (with help of some BCCI officials) and thus brought India’s performance to an all time low. Whether Cricket Australia was behind this deep rooted conspiracy is anybody’s guess. After the 2003 World Cup and India’s stunningly successful tour to Australia, the only country which could have displaced Australia from its cricketing throne could have been India. This ofcourse did not happen, thanks to Greg Chappell and the likes of Bindra, Dungarpur and Modi (Lalit, not Narendra).
Cricket India is plagued by the problems that have plagued India for the past few centuries. Foreigners dividing the country, Indian politicians thinking only about themselves and regionalism taking a toll on the country as a whole. I wonder when we will eradicate evils like Pawar, Bindra and Modi. It is not just about these people being thrown out but also the evil that they represent needs to be eliminated.

When life a'int easy

Someone displayed his gtalk status as "Nothing worth havin comes easy in life".
Thats precisely what I have been thinking this morning. Maybe not in the same words but the thought process was the same. Sometimes we choose to do things only because they seem easier to do, not thinking whether the end is really what we want. Sometimes we choose not do things or not even to believe things that seem to be hard. Hard to believe, hard to change, hard to accept. Someone I know, once rightly said, the path of least resistance ultimately gives us happiness. Path of least resistance, means making life harder. During that hard life, there is bound to be a feeling of doubt, moments when you question your judgement, your beliefs, those are the times when faith gets tested.
When I went to Canada, I knew what I wanted. I had my own doubts when I saw the road was tough. Maybe I took a step back to make the road easier. However I still believe in what I aim for. Perhaps the reason is that I have a fair idea of the road to follow. But what do you do when you don't know which path to take. You know your aim, you know it's tough, yet no guide. It is in matters like these that destiny plays it's role. There are somethings in life which happen to people only if they are destined to happen. Someone once told me that when one aspect of life goes bad, there is some other aspect that blossoms. I hope I see a day when all aspects of my life blossom. Yet I know the flower that blossoms with the first rays of the sun has to fade away with the fading light of the sun. Life a'int easy, will death be?

OM Shanti Om - Honest Review

What was I thinking? I still don’t understand why I went to watch Om Shanti Om. In August I wasn’t very excited about Om Shanti Om(OSO). Despite the aggressive publicity, I was quite sure I would give this movie a skip. Ditto for Saawariya. By October I was longing to see a blockbuster masala Bollywood movie with comedy, songs and dances. Needless to say I had changed my decision on watching OSO. Saawariya, still I would stay away from. Promos looked nice but I knew it would be a slow film.
As the reviews came out and I read about Saawariya being a slow movie, I felt I was right. However as I kept reading the reviews, I noticed that the critics have criticized anything and everything in the movie. From direction to performance, from art direction to Ranbir’s butt. Now, this seemed a bit fishy. Sanjay Leela Bhansali is too good a director to get everything wrong at the same time. My doubts were confirmed when I read rave reviews for OSO.
OSO was praised for being a terrific entertainer. Everything about it was superb. From performances to direction, the critics loved everything. Akshay Kumar and Aby’s baby all shined in the miniscule roles they had. Needless to say, King Khan was thanked for providing relief on the occasion of Diwali. I think the critics should thank him for the perks he provided them too. I love typical Bollywood movies. I loved Bunty Aur Babli, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, K3G, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Devdas, Salaam Namaste, and the list goes on and on. But I cannot like any crap dished out in the name of being typical Bollywood. I am sorry Mrs. Farah Kunder this is not a Manmohan Desai or Subhash Ghai movie.
You know why? Because the drama and story those makers created in their movies seemed believable. You felt those characters like Anthony Gonsalves are real. However, this was pure shit!
This movie tries to take a dig at many veterans. I don’t disapprove of that at all but some of them are just not funny. Like the Manoj Kumar one, which some critic praised to the heaven, didn’t amuse me at all. Mrs. Kunder (popularly known as Farah Khan) also takes a dig at Bimal Roy, however she conveniently lifts her climax from his movie, Madhumati. Trust me, Madhumati, although about reincarnation and a ghost, is still a beautiful and believable movie. I don’t even want to get started on Shahrukh’s performance in the movie, I wondered if he was on drugs. The pace at which the movie swung from humourless comedy to over the top emotions (Kiron Kher can put ‘Tulsi Virani’ to shame) I thought maybe Farah was experiencing pregnancy mood swings during the making of the movie. Some critic also commented thathow it was better to watch Shahrukh’s six packs rather than Ranbir’s butt. He went on about how the audience wowed Shahrukh’s look in New York. Believe me, in a theatre a few hundred kilometres away from NYC, in Montreal, I could hear no one going gaga over this so-called six-pack. I thought he looked old. Yes, I could actually see very prominent laugh lines on his face. I know everyone gets old but you don’t need to play 30, act like a 20 when you are in your mid 40s. It looks ugly.

I saw Saawariya after this torture. Although not a classic, it was still bearable. Some dialogues were hard hitting, sets were beautiful. Both Ranbir and Sonam looked gorgeous. Among the performance, Sonam truly stole the show. She was so natural (what a relief after watching ham king Shahrukh Khan), Rani in her cameo was amazing. The ease with which she plays a roadside prostitute was surprising. Ranbir didn’t show any sparks in the acting department like Sonam but he could well become the new male sex symbol, atleast the way Bhansali has shot him, it looks as if he has been packaged for that. It does get slow at times and you might feel that there are too many songs, you can watch it if you have some patience and a love for some genuine poetry. All in all, a better film to spend your hard earned money on. After all we don’t have the kind of money that King Khan has. If in his first production, Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani, he exposed dark side of the media, for this one he has used this dark side to put down a decent film and promote a piece of trash. The formula must have been simple. You can buy the cheap media critics, who don’t mind getting sold out. For the genuine ones, who usually work for reliable news channels, just have a corporate partnership with the channels. How can an employee criticize his/her own corporate partner? So King Khan has tried to introduce a new formula, formula for all round good reviews. He might have got good reviews for now but time will show him that he cannot change fate with the power of money.

PS: Why was Kiron Kher so atrociously dressed in the first half. I am sure in the 70s mothers didn’t look that scary. In some scenes I felt she was a drag!

Abhi Toh Main Jawaan Hoon...

I read the headline on a website today. It read, ”Kumble named the test captain”
You must be joking. Yes, I know he is a sincere player. Yes, he is one of the best spinners we have had. Yes, he has got those marvellous records like the 10-wickets in one innings. But captain at 37! It’s like fulfilling a dying man’s last wish. How long can he be captain? 1 year, 2years? I doubt. If Kumble plays all test matches for next 2 years, he will have to retire on a stretcher. If you are convinced by the first argument that this is a stupid decision then hold on, it only gets better. Kumble has often not found a place in the test side when our team plays in Australia and South Africa. The Reason: Most pitches in these countries are not conducive to spin. Hence having two spinners makes no sense. Since Kumble hardly spins the ball, Bhajji usually gets the preference over him. He gets preference over Bhajji either when the track is conducive to spin or Bhajji is not performing well. So now we have a captain who probably shouldn’t be in the team in the first place. And this gets better. Our next tour is against Australia in Australia! Now, who made him the captain!
Tendulkar refused the captaincy stating that a younger player should take on this responsibility. Its amazing how the Board found the youngest of them lot. The Australian tour might turn out to be Kumble’s deathwish after all. As a captain he will have to play all the matches. He will have to bowl in all the matches. He will be hit out of the ground by the Aussies on most of their pitches except one. Once that happens Kumble will truly realise what an honour it indeed is to lead the Indian team.This will be one of the toughest overseas tours that this “young” Indian team will ever make. Australia are not England, it will be a completely different ball game. Especially after the aggressive attitude shown by Sreesanth towards the Aussies, they are all charged up to receive India. In such a scenario, an old warhorse leading the army is not a good sign. I would have trusted Dhoni or Yuvraj more any day. This decision could have had a long-term positive effect. Unfortunately we are only looking at our short-term goals or maybe not even that. Ravi Shastri had objected to Dhoni’s name saying that since he has to keep wickets and concentrate on captaincy at the same time, he is not the right man for the job. So if that’s really the case then Dhoni should never be named captain for the longer version of the game! That’s rubbish according to me. It’s all a game of politics.
The Board, selectors and ex-cricketers don’t want anyone to become a heavy weight sportsman like some of the senior cricketers we have (don’t count Dravid). They want a team that is not as powerful as them. This helps them as then they can keep manipulating them as they wish. The moment you have strong players who can lead the team and make India win in any form of the game, the Board has a problem. The balance of power shifts more towards the players then. The players can then negotiate better contracts and demand more from the Board. They can then ask for any team they want and the selectors have to agree. The role and power of the ex-cricketers like Shastri get curtailed and they have not much work to do other than being tame advisors. So they don’t want Dhoni or Yuvraj to have the status that Tendulkar or Ganguly had. All these people have seen what a strong captain like Ganguly, backed by a superstar player like Tendulkar are capable of doing. Hence this time they want to kill the plant at its roots or atleast restrict its growth. I wonder how the BCCI and its gang learnt such good politics. Indeed knowledge flows from the top!

Journey

As the month of December draws closer, my excitement grows at an ever-increasing pace. It is hard to work or study for a moment without counting the number of days left for December 7th. Right now, there are just thirty days left for a journey, which will be the most exciting journey of my life. The journey back home. It seems like such a long time back that I arrived in a cold and gloomy city. Pitch dark at 4pm and showing no sense of hope, it seemed like a difficult place to live for. For the first time in my life I have experienced such a drastic change, from one season to another, from one experience to another. It’s been some journey this last year, and I keep reminding myself, it ain’t over yet. I remember contemplating in my articles, written earlier this year, whether I had made the right decision. I am leading towards a stage where I think the answer might be in the affirmative. I have never regretted any decision in my life yet and as Kareena says in Jab We Met (best movie I have seen this year), Babaji, you have helped me maintain my record :). Thank you.
Coming here to do MBA had many reasons. The more obvious ones being better career opportunities, better education, etc. However, something that I often felt in my initial years of work was that I lacked the appreciation of what I had at work. Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t lack the hunger for success but I just couldn’t appreciate what I got. This was probably because I did not struggle much to do what I was doing. That was something I wanted to improve on. After almost a year here of surviving for the next day, hunting tons of jobs and having very little hope of being any better, struggle is not a stranger anymore. However, as winter faded away and summer approached I hoped that it brought better days for me. As per expectations it did!
As another winter approaches I try to brace myself to what Canada hasn’t thrown at me yet. Maybe this time I will have something new for it. Bonne Chance pour moi!

Crucial Period begins

Mush is curbing media, judiciary and political opposition. Benazir makes another grand arrival, this time in Islamabad sans the suicide bombers. She vows to hold a protest rally banned by Mush. Imran is underground, speaking through his ex-wife in London,alleging Benazir of being hand in glove with Mush. Nawaz doesn’t want to be left out of the action, crying his heart out from the holy land. Bush has little idea of whats going on, Rice keeps issuing all sorts of pleas to Mush. Meanwhile, Taliban has taken over 3rd town in Waziristan . The militia has imposed Shariah in occupied areas and is removing Pakistan's national flags from all government buildings in the five sub-divisions now under their control.
Could anyone ever define chaos better? The scary thing here is that some nuclear bombs are located somewhere in the middle of all this chaos. If Pakistan really fails as a state and disintegrates again, which looks inevitable now, the whole world is at huge risk. India, of course being the immediate neighbour faces the highest risk. However, the Middle East and Europe shouldn’t rest either. We all know the finesse with which the extremists can transport the coveted weaponry.

What can India do in such a situation? Not much actually. A direct involvement by India will direct all the extremist elements in Pakistan towards India. I am sure no one in the Government would like that. However, what we can do is seal our borders as much as possible. Both on West and East with Bangladesh. If required, use some force on the Eastern border to eliminate some dangerous elements there. I suggest sealing the borders for two reasons. One, the terrorists love to strike on the eve of Diwali. Two, with the chaos in both our problematic neighbouring countries, especially, the one on the West, the terrorists are gaining in strength and are operating at their own will. This is the time when we have to be the most careful and be ready for any kind of assault. The next couple of months leading upto the beginning of 2008 will be crucial, security wise, for both India and the world. I have this uncanny feeling that a very crucial period is beginning for the world and our future will not exactly be like what we were expecting it to be!

‘Thou shall reap what Thou sow’

Last Sunday, I went out for breakfast with my two housemates and the girlfriend of one of my housemate - Madame I. The place was nice and cozy, although a bit creepy, it was charming, after all it’s Halloween time. Invariably when a Hindu is on table with westerners the conversation has to draw towards spirituality and with me it is almost inevitable. Madame I was curious to know about why we believe in reincarnation. I told her about Karma and how we (read I) especially believe in ‘Thou shall reap what Thou sow’. What I didn’t realise is how quickly I will see live examples in front me.
Rahul Dravid being dropped from the cricket team is hot news in India. People are angry, disappointed and stunned, how can the selectors do this to him? Ex-cricketers are asking for Vensarkar’ head. My take on this, predictably, is that I agree with the selectors. Officially they say he has been rested but we all know he has been dropped. And he should be. He didn’t perform well in a couple of series, why give him more chances? After all as the captain of Team India he did pursue this policy for some players, especially for a particular “Senior player/ex-Captain” called Saurav Ganguly. Now, why change the rules? Now the selectors have asked him to go back to domestic cricket and prove himself to be back in the team. If my memory serves me right, Kiran More and his pack of jokers had advised the same to Ganguly and others like Zaheer Khan. Both these players made a comeback, why can’t Dravid do it? Self Doubt?
How uncanny can be the ways that life teaches us its rules. I guess we don’t have to wait till next birth to repay our debts, the cycle has become much faster in the Internet Age. So Mr. Dravid, you should probably go home and read Geeta, maybe that will make you understand that why the things that happened to you have happened. It is not Vensarkar or Board only to blame here, it’s your Karma and you have repay it!

Let go

I took a long break from writing my blog. Long break from blog was a result of no break available in real life. This month, a lot has been crossing my mind and also my tongue. I have been uncharacteristically blunt. Or so I think. Often I tend to convict myself too much. It has also been tough personally. It was my first Puja away from home, Bombay. Mid terms and assignments cluttered around the same week. To add to that, an event that I have known about for a long time, happened last week, causing some pain to me. That’s when I decided to search someone’s name on the net and what I ended up with was a link to non – attachment. It is said how easy it could be to relieve your pain and stress by simply letting go of the idea you feel is so near and dear to you. We often tend to have a perception of happiness in our minds and we keep trying to reach there. In the pursuit of happiness what we end up with is stress, pain and sadness. In the end, once we reach there we realize that now we need more to be happy. Let me correct myself, we want more to be happy. I never really understood the difference between needs and wants in my Marketing Management class but now I do.
So back to the spot were we thought we would be happy but now we want more. Isn’t that pain, stress and effort we put in to reach this spot seem worthless then. It does. So detach yourself from any idea that makes you feel stress. Nothing is more important in this world than peace of mind. One of the ways that I find really useful for the peace of mind is meditation. It is often hard to empty ones mind and concentrate. The secret is not to try too hard. Just let go of the idea that you need to empty your mind and you will see that you need to empty your mind and you will be startled by the results. The moment you think that my mind needs to be empty, you have given birth to a new thought. And it is this thought that brings back all worldly worries and thoughts to your mind when your mind should actually be empty.
Often I notice that the exams I try too hard for tend to go bad. However the ones I don’t try too much, let myself ease into the course material, I tend to perform quiet well. It is funny that in my first course, without any knowledge of what an A+ means for the GPA, I got one. Thereafter I could never get one. Maybe I had attached myself so hard to the idea of an A+ that I just tended to get too impatient.
It is ironic and funny that today I am trying to detach myself from someone using the spiritual ideas of non-attachment, human spirit and ultimate happiness, when these very ideas were the ones that brought us close. Close to whom? Ummm…. I think I have detached too far to remember now!

Fall of the Traitor

Today, I am delighted to say the least. The moment I was waiting for, for what seems like an eternity, has finally come. Dravid has stepped down as captain of Team India. Finally, the last traitor has fallen. I know that me branding Dravid a traitor will irk many feelings. Especially, the ones from his hometown. However for once I appeal to all to stop wearing the regional goggle and take an honest look at Dravid's conduct after becoming the captain. Before becoming the captain, his conduct was incomparable. I myself was a big fan of Dravid, the a team player. However we need to analyze his career in two phases. One before becoming captain and the one after.
  Dravid became captain under controversial circumstances. Ganguly, who was arguably India's most successful captain, was thrown out on the insistence of a foreign coach. However, blaming Chappell completely for the coup would not be justified. Many vested interests in BCCI played a major role in that. Dravid was Mr. Clean until then.  The problem started when Dravid played along with Chappell's politics and gave in to all his cunning games. These games were not played on the ground but in the dressing room. He initially planned to throw out the former captain who had stood behind him in tough times and then the players who had supported the former captain. Even after throwing out Ganguly, he persisted with his politics to keep him out of the team. However, Ganguly was far too strong for a person like Dravid and he returned. That too in what style! Maharaj hit back-to-back half centuries in South Africa to save a hopeless team in South Africa.
  If we thought that Dravid would accept him in the team for the sake of the team after his good knocks, we couldn't be more wrong. He persisted with his tactics and continued to support Chappell in his evil plans. Finally all the hard work put in by Chappell paid dividends and Team India crashed out of the World Cup in the very first round. Chappell had to go but he didn't leave until he fired his last salvo. The coach who was supposed to strategize and be the real captain of Team India for the World Cup blamed the seniors for the defeat. He alleged that they didn't allow the captain to implement his decisions. This allegation was quite hilarious as the captain had always been spineless and never implemented any of his own decisions. The coach was the one calling shots all this time. Dravid in his usual manner didn't want to take responsibility for the defeat and blamed his batsmen for their dismal show. Thus displaying that he was never man enough to take the blame but would always be ready to shine in the light of victory. He was only concerned about how history would judge him, just him.
   His latest decision to step down demonstrates the same. Team India had a successful tour of England. However Dravid couldn't care less, all he was concerned about was his personal form. He doesn't want to go down in history books as a player who didn't retire in good form. Whether his stepping down now will affect Team India adversely must be the last thing on his mind. Sometimes I feel that even Azhar was a more selfless captain than Dravid. He sure has been alleged for match fixing but he played selflessly for the team. Seldom did I get the feeling that he was playing for his own records. I had heard that power corrupts, however there could be no better example of this than the 'The Wall' himself. From a selfless team player to a spineless, insecure and plotting captain it has been a long journey for Dravid. This hopefully would be a beginning of a new era for Team India. The last traitor has fallen.

The impersonal touch

I have often wondered as a child, how people could be so open and brazen about their feelings and emotions. Often I have found it difficult to express my true feelings. Not only with people I don't know well but even with those that are closest to me, to my heart. It might be very hard for many of my friends to believe me but I am someone who keeps my deepest feelings to myself. I might have an expressive face but my facial emotions hide more than what they reveal. It is not that I have been brought up this way, it is just the person I am. I tend to withdraw into my shell whenever I sense a hint of vulnerability. That is not something I am terribly proud of.
It is funny that I write this on the birthday of one of my closest firends. Often I have felt I have never said somethings probably I should have said long back. Somethings which I felt were better left unsaid and untold. Maybe that is why I write this blog, to keep reminding me that there was something that I had left undone, unfinished. Perhaps I have failed to keep up with the times, perhaps I am still a soul from the eighteenth century.
In todays day and age of mass media and marketing for anything and everything being a person who is not very flamboyant of ones ownself, might not be ideal. Infact I am still suprised as to how I can emote myself seamlessly on this blog and subject my feelings to the view of all and sundry and allow a public scrutiny of my opinions. Perhaps technology can change things, people and the way we live our lives. Certainly it has changed my life, and me in more ways than one.

Yours Truly,
Abhijeet Nandy

We have come back a full circle

The picture above shows Rahul Dravid embracing Saurav Ganguly on 31st July 2007 in England.They both made their debuts in test cricket in England, that was the summer of 1996.
Finally it seems kicking away Greg Chappel has paid off, need I say more!

Important Dates

What are the most important dates in your life? Your birthday? Maybe, but for me a couple of dates I can never forget are the ones on which I got my job offers and the days I quit those jobs :) I don't know why I just remember those days crystal clear.

Then there are those dates which you dread to forget. Like your girlfirend's birthday or your best friend's birthday. Its hard to say who keeps the grudge for a longer time:) I usually am angry when a close friend forgets my birthday, however that only lasts a couple of days. Come August and there are a host of such dates I have to remember.

August in more ways than one also marks the start of the festive season in India. Rakhi, followed by Janmashtami and Ganesh Chaturthi. Ofcourse October brings Durga Puja with it. For me those are the five most important days and night of the year. In those five days I get enjoyment of a lifetime. I keep tracking dates of Durga Puja almost a year in advance. However this year, perhaps first time in 26 years, I won't be in Bombay for Puja. Believe me, I stayed in Pune for 10 years but for Puja I had to return to Bombay. Nothing matches up to the festive spirit of Bombay. Whether it's Ganpati,Durga Puja, Navratri, Diwali or New Years, Bombay is the place to be!

Terror Outsourced

When the 9/11 bombings happened and then the 7/7 bombings in London, India took pride in saying that there were no Indians involved in the attacks. Infact some senators and top officials in the Bush government had recently pointed out that India has a vast Muslim community which is very moderate and had not been involved in terrorist activities against the 'West'. Alas, the facade has given away. The truth is out. The latest Glasgow bombings have Indian links and the fact is that we have extremists in our country just like Pakistan,Iran,UK,Saudi or US for that matter. Saying that terrorism is preached by some radical Islamic groups and young educated Indian Muslims are getting attarcted towards this thought process would be over simplifying the matter. The fact is that extremism gives birth to extremism. The very fact that these highly educated youths were convinced that terrorist attacks are the right path to take raises big questions. Why would someone so educated and intelligent go for such activities?
Maybe we need to introspect. Isn't this a result of the extremism practiced by Indian political parties since the Late 80s? Isn't this a result of extremism practiced by Modi in Gujrat? Isn't this a result of extremism practiced by Bush?
Why Bush? Well, thats simple. If he would have attacked only Afghanisthan and claimed the war was against terrorism then it would be acceptable as Afghanisthan was encouraging terrorist activities and terrorists(just like Pakistan). However, misuse of this opportunity to control Iraqi oil, is the reason why we are in the situation we are in today. Bush did not attack Iraq because Iraq was a terrorist state. He attacked it for business purposes. Today the whole of West and South Asia is paying the price for his stupidity. Fighting terror is the last thing Bush has done in this war. All he has succeded in, is in creating more hatred towards the West and thus more terrorists.

In no way am I justifying the acts of this Bangalore doctor but we should take a step back and think that why our youth has got misguided. Earlier terrorsits were being produced in the Middle East, in UK and Central Asia. Now, it seems terrorists can be produced and exported more economically and efficiently from Bangalore, just like software.
I am sure this would be the first outsourcing project Bangalore would refuse and say NO THANKS. Alas, outsourcing is not always profitable.

Sonia Outsmarted the Media?

"Pratibha Patil is the UPA nominee for President". The moment journalists first heard this, what do you think their first reaction was? Shock? Suprise? NO. It was fear. They were petrified by the reaction they would get from their editors. How could they not find out after having all those sources in the Government about this lady? How did this happen?

So, to defend themselves they come out with the story that how she was a last minute nominee and this is like a fairy tale come true for her. Now, thats not completely true. If I have observed Sonia properly since 1998, she has never acted instinctively after the "272" fiasco. This seems to be a well thought out plan. Whether by Sonia or someone else, it was well thought out and implemented superbly. There were murmurs in the Congress that this could be the right time for a lady President. The proof of this is an article published by rediff on 6th of June, 2007.

http://in.rediff.com/news/2007/jun/06prez.htm

The media now crying foul over the selection procedure is actually licking it's own wounds. The fact is that they didn't see this coming. They are fearful of losing credibility in the eyes of the Indian junta, especially after the UP exit poll debacle. It's time that the Indian media conceded the fact that Sonia caught it unawares this time with her Presidential nominee.

It seems she got better of the media this time!

The Great Fall

The U.S. dollar has not only fallen against the Indian Rupee but against many major foreign currencies like Euro, Yen and Canadian Dollar. Infact the Canadian Dollar has moved up so swiftly in the past 3 months that it is now close to being equivalent to the U.S. Dollar. Till December 1 Canadian Dollar fetched 0.866998 U.S Dollar, now it is close to 0.94, soon it is forecasted to cross the value of U.S. Dollar. And by soon, I mean before the end of this year. If this were to happen it would be a first of sorts.

Now, lets look at why U.S Dollar will fall further.
U.S. GDP growth was dismal 0.6% (annualized) for the first quarter of 2007. Part of it was due to inventory drawdown, hwich is expected to correct itself in the next quarter. However there is a slump in the U.S. housing market. It is believed that after the results of this quarter the "Fed" will lower interest rates. If this does happen(which is likely), this will cause further devaluation.
From India's perspective, if inflation goes up again, like it had in the last quarter, we will have to hike up interest rates to control it. This will further appreciate the value of the Indian rupee v/s the U.S. Dollar.

Now what does this mean for us in Canada? Well, exporters closing shop. Canadian tourists can enjoy cheaper holidays in U.S. and yes a stronger Canadian Dollar might create more self confident Canadians visa vis the Americans.

Shiv Sena - A party fighting the future

Have you ever seen a political party which drives away voters from it?
If no, then meet the Shiv Sena. The party from Aamchi Mumbai. Shiv Sena is famous for it's violent protests,rioting and all that can be called unlawful. Yet, at many points of time it was the most favoured party of Mumbaikars. However, they have been going down in popularity and this trend may continue if they don't put on their thinking caps. But again, the Sena and logic don't go hand in hand.
It is hilarious to see Sena politics sitting far away from Mumbai. They seem to oppose anything and everything which is related to being young in Indian society today or any futuristic trend. They oppose Valentine's Day, something that almost every college going kid celebrates or atleast would like to. They oppose outsiders coming into Mumbai by thrashing up Bhiharis. Maybe they don't understand that looking at current trend, Mumbai will have far more North Indians than any other community, especially in the blue collared jobs. And you know whats worse for them, these are the people who actually go out and vote. And now they oppose orkut. For god sake, almost every young Mumbaikar or for that matter young Indian is using orkut today.
Sadly the sufferer in all this drama is the young Indian. Even if he or she wanted to go out and vote against the present UPA government for it's idiotic reservation policies, what choice would he/she be left with? The BJP and Sena? One is interested in vandalising art galleries and movie theatre while the other wants to ban arguably the most popular Internet site today in India! Yes, I am not kidding. Orkut's popularity seems to have invaded Matoshree too! According to today's Times Of India, three Thackrey grandsons are members of orkut.

Well, my advise to the Sena and the Sainiks is to stop fighting the future, no one in history has ever succeeded in defeating time. Accept change and if you can't lead the world towards the path you want it to take. But alas, whom am I advising, logic and Sena never go hand in hand.