A walk down the road, up the thoughts

Fashion ka Tashion

2010-03-19T21:25:00.000-07:00

#WARNING: This post is a rant. Feel free to ignore!

I always thought Madhur Bhandarkar to be a wannabe movie director trying too hard to be different. Then I saw Fashion. I now think he is also a narcissistic individual replete with vanity. This is how he defines himself and his movie Fashion right in the movie itself -

Did you hear that? Yes, he does research to make a realistic movie. I have never seen a more self-indulgent, self-referring and self-absorbed 15 seconds by a director. This 15 seconds destroyed any chance I had to complete this movie in my second attempt and with the leeway that a Bollywood flick gets by default. Agreed, that such self-references and signature-style movie making is common among some directors. Inglourious Basterds comes to mind among the recent ones. But even when Tarantino indulges himself by referring to his previous movies or explicitly naming his movie styles, he does not so much as exploit the medium to satisfy his attention seeking disorder. If you remember the last dialogue of the movie, he almost edged towards conceit but again, not tasteless and rather intelligent and humorous. Other directors too, like Subhash Ghai and Shekhar Kapur in Bandit Queen, who couldn't resist appearing on the screen themselves chose to make only cameo appearances. And as if this wasn't enough, Madhur Bhandarkar hits another self-eulogy:

Poor Mr. Bhandarkar - he's so much concerned with the social issues and the dedication to the movie art that he can't look beyond realistic cinema, with the quotation hand gestures. The trivialities of world shown in the glamorous mainstream cinema is for lesser mortals like Yash Chopra.

Well, right now, this vulgar and in-your-face display of conceit makes me feel he is Mayawati of Bollywood.

A new movie award

2010-02-27T18:31:00.000-08:00

This is a season of movie awards. Some have just concluded while others are anxiously awaited. Some reassure that you are not a mutant with deviant movie interests while some others make you cringe. However there is one category of actors who I believe are never recognized for their worthy contribution to movies. Therefore I have decided to create this award myself, and do the nominations and offer it to one I consider best. This is called FAADU award, or Fame Acquired As Dramatics Underdog awards. As the name expresses it so eloquently, this award recognizes those actors that appear on screen only for few moments, aren't listed among dramatic personae but still leave a lasting, and sometimes the only, impression of a movie. Here are them from some of the movies I have seen.

5. Charles Durning for Hudsucker Proxy

Charles, who play Hudsucker in the movie, graces the screen for only few minutes but the impact he leaves is much longer. This sequence always plays in my mind at work during one of our weekly meetings. As the meeting rambles on in a very similar conference room and even though I don't sit where Mr. Hudsucker sits, I imagine how liberating a free-fall like that would be. But, ahem, the price tag for that feeling is a bit too high!

4. Rajiv Gaur for Oye Lucky Lucky Oye!

This movie has enough FAADU actors to inundate these nominations. It could be the pissed off guy at parking lot, the Paan-wallah near the end of movie or the Haryanvi constable searching through Lucky's stolen collectibles but I think the waiter of New Amar restaurant has the most wicked grin I have ever seen. This grin sabotages jr. Lucky's authoritative manner ('Haan ek butter chicken le aa') to a meek kid out on his first date ('Khane pe bhi tax?').

Digging through web, I found this ZEE News journalist Rajiv Gaur who also looks suspiciously similar to him ;-)

3. Unknown for Suraj Ka Satvan Ghoda

Notice the person on whom bridegroom falls upon from horse. Also notice how he, after lifting up the groom from ground, also lifts the spirit of band company by his hand gestures.

This FAADU actor has the longest screen life among his competitors as he keeps re-appearing for a while in the movie. He's also hardest to justify as a nominee for he has some definite contribution to overall movie story. However, he's also the inspiration behind this award. Some of his other scenes are also just as interesting, like when he is next seen carrying luggage, or giving an advice to his master while riding taanga. There are no extraordinary dialogues for him except a frequent use of word 'mijan' but his manner and gestures make sure that he stays on in mind even after end credits start rolling.

2. Another Unknown for Haasil

I owe this to a friend for bringing it to my notice. This movie, Haasil, also has a menagerie of FAADU actors but the rickshaw puller's sequence of 5 seconds takes the show hands down. He is also the most adulated and discussed of his competitors among a group of my friends.

1. Couple of Unknowns for Mr. Hulot's Holiday

OK, I am not doing this because movie awards are supposed to be controversial but I seriously found the woman and his son in the first 15 seconds of the movie extremely hilarious.

This is undoubtedly the best slap that I have ever seen in a movie. When I first saw it, I had to hit the rewind button a few times to make sure this was not an actual slap accidently getting captured on camera. It's a real piece of acting on what looks like a real railway station. Also notice how effective the slap is - her son immediately knows how to behave and stop being a nuisance anymore. A great opening to a good movie. So, hereby, I proclaim this women and boy joint winner of FAADU awards whose names I couldn't find even with my best googling techniques.

Usually it's the director who is given credit for introducing such FAADU actors in a movie. Therefore FAADU actors, though deserving in all respect, lose out in the race of any award, any recognition and sometimes even notice. It's like cinematographers losing out on their awards just because they are only capturing a director's vision.

Lastly, a confession of a hidden agenda behind this post. If I could get one FAADU role in a movie, something similar to that foppish rickshaw puller in Haasil or that irascible parent in Hulot's holiday, I would meet my childhood ambition and die content!

A Life of Contradictions

2010-02-23T22:54:00.000-08:00

Whenever I hear of real life examples of caste brutalities or homophobia, like this recent one, I am almost always reminded of these prophetic words of Dr. Ambedkar spoken to the Constituent Assembly while discussing our new found polity:

"On the 26^th of January 1950, we are going to enter into a life of contradictions. In politics we will have equality and in social and economic life we will have inequality. In politics we will be recognizing the principle of one man one vote and one vote one value. In our social and economic life, we shall, by reason of our social and economic structure, continue to deny the principle of one man one value."

As inclusiveness becomes the new buzz word, making noise from Davos to Bihar, I wonder how much of that would would turn out to be music!

A for Applicability

2010-01-27T21:47:00.000-08:00

In the newly independent India, a satyagrahi and his wife arrived at a dusty village set around an arid landscape. Pt. Nehru, on being turned down on his offer to join his government, had instructed him to spread education in a village that he had recently visited. The visitor's first challenge was to set up a shack that would serve as classroom. Selling some personal belongings helped him do that. His next challenge was to bring village kids to classrooms from reluctant parents's home. He persuaded them and was able to form a class of boys and girls, students from upper and lower caste, and Dalits. It was nothing less than a social revolution under that shack. One of his student, a woman, went on to become a prominent politician of Haryana and, later, Lt. Governor of Pondycherry. Others became officers in public departments. Another of his student became a school teacher himself and his grandson, yours truly, received one of the best education in India. This working paper on education improvement techniques in rural India, recently cited in Economist, made me remember this story and I wondered what would have I been had that satyagrahi not come to my village.

I was lucky. And so was my village. But most of the other villages were not. About six decades on, so much has been done but quality education still evades rural India. This paper experimentally proves how a novel technique of monetary incentives for teachers can improve the quality of educated imparted in rural India. This paper, IMHO, would largely be a disappointment for policy makers as it lacks any 'actionable' information, if I may borrow a term from diplomatic parlance.

The authors of the paper observed performance of students in two sets of government run schools in rural Andhra Pradesh. In one set, they introduced a scheme of performance bonus to teachers of science and language in primary schools. The other set was left untouched to serve as a control for comparison with the first set. After a period of two years, authors observed a much higher performance of students in the first set as compared to second set in independently administered tests. Now, who didn't see that coming!? Further, authors argue that "performance pay might not only increase effort among existing teachers, but systematically draw more effective teachers into the profession over time". This is a naive conclusion that I would want to differ with. The paper lack thoughts on many implementation issues that can derail author's noble intentions.

Authors have ignored the difference in performance of schools in rural settings as compared to urban schools. Urban schools perform better because (a) parents are more conscious of the importance of education, and (b) urban lifestyle allows time for study as compared to rural places where most of the families are associated with labor intensive agriculture, and (c) teachers are regular in discharge of their duties due to higher visibility in cities. While the proposed scheme may create more diligent teachers in rural area, it leaves the first two factors unchanged. It's also more important to bring quality education to rural places because they don't always have a luxury of private school as an alternative. Private operators find it tough to invest for low student population in villages. Coming back, since scheme leaves first two factors unchanged, it will push teachers to seek postings in urban places over rural places. As the number of teachers is always low than required, this can create a negative bias towards rural schools. This might be corrected by additional policies that enforce teachers to serve in rural schools for a certain period of time but this would then engender use of influence to get the desired postings by a teacher. This can also result in teachers leaving rural schools as soon as their terms get over. Teachers protesting against such a harsh policy is a different matter altogether.

Authors have also kept quiet on how to administer exams fairly. Would teachers not be tempted to assist students when they proctor them during exams? Even if teachers are not proctoring students from their own class, what stops him or her from helping students in return of the same favor from another teacher. How often should this exam be administered and in which grades? What happens to a teacher who is recently transferred to a class that will take this exams? What about cheating during exams? I have myself seen scores of family members and friends throwing answer notes (chits as they are called) inside examination room to their dear ones despite presence of teachers and police around. In fact, looking from outside, the examination centre looked like a fallen fort with the 'ravaging army' attempting to enter it from every possible inlet.

Would this policy not be unfair for other subject teachers if it is made applicable for only science and language teachers, as authors did for their experiment? A potential of protests of huge intensity would make any government rethink this part of the scheme. If all subject teachers are made eligible for the bonus compensation, would it still carry the same value? Another of the paper's finding was that students did better in all subjects and not just for the subjects for which teachers were paid extra. This spill over benefit would be tough to use through a government policy.

It has usually been remarked that services run good when government pays and private organizations provide. It's hard to envisage a situation where this could be applied to education in India. There is less incentive to open private schools in small villages with small student population. It's therefore more effective to build the right infrastructure that would make commuting easier to nearby town. It's also important for majority of population to move from labor intensive agricultural practice to specialized skilled labor. This would in effect increase priority among parents to see their children get quality education. This priority can also increase if the state run institutions become fair in providing employment and other opportunities to youths. A sense of nepotism and corruption lowers incentive for parents to seek quality education for their kids and promotes throwing chits to their wards during exams. If things were fairer, increasing pay and not bonuses to teachers would attract the right talent into teaching. Of course, this is nothing less than a social revolution and we also don't have any more satyagrahis around!

A Serious Man

2009-12-03T20:10:00.000-08:00

"What is TRUTH?", replied Pontius Pilate, when Jesus Christ affirmed in an ever-certain manner “Everyone that is of the truth heareth my voice”. Coen brothers bring the same ambivalence to life and set it in Judea philosophy. & I am moved to write this because it's giving tough competition to Fargo as my favorite Coen's movie (Sorry, Lebowski fans!). I think I have a thing for mild comedies, characteristic and accentuated manner of dialogue deliveries (of the likes one can see in Oye Lucky Lucky Oye too), and a bunch of quirky characters out to create a mess everywhere. A Serious Man gives me just that, with an icing of contradictory situations raising doubts to everything around.

I would have missed many Judea connections in movie, but this cultural distance didn't stop me from enjoying so many of its scenes. The creepy but funny short dybbuk tale that starts movie, provides almost a perfect setting for what follows. Some of the scenes in movie stand out. In one of them, a young kid walks into a senior Rabbi's office and in the hallway's gallery sees Abraham about to sacrifice Isaac. His expressions change to fear from uncertainty as he approaches desk of Rabbi staring at him, only to find him reciting a couplet of 'Dont you want somebody to love'. This kind of unexpected and uncertain events are spread throughout the movie. No wonder, the protagonist Larry teaches Schroedinger's cat experiment in college.

& the best of all is the way movie ends, again, totally unexpected and uncertain. Just like the dybbuk story.

The Behenji

2009-04-17T14:21:00.000-07:00

In India, temperature is soaring. While the sun is doing its bit, the election season is pushing up the mercury too. One of the leader that has suddenly caught the fancy of media in this election heat is Behenji - Mayawati. From the scholarly magazines like Economist [source], to feature pages of BBC [source] and to tabloid media of India [source], she is being biograph-ed, analysed, debated and usually hated in the comments section. This is in complete contrast to the last election in her home state - Uttar Pradesh, when she silently crafted the biggest electoral victory in UP in last two decades. This post is dedicated to her!

Leaving the arduous task of predicting her place in the South Block of Lutyen's Delhi to electoral pundits, I would just mention some things that had long crossed my mind for her and her nature of politics.

She is the worst nightmare of India's English speaking, 'The Hindu' reading and metro dwelling intelligentsia. She signifies to them everything that is wrong with Indian politics and her rise to national politics has left many of them sleepless. To me, personally speaking, politicians like her are a bulwark against class wars. This is also where, I believe, democracy plays out better than other forms of government. Her rise to power gives voice to the most marginalized section of the Indian society. A society that keeps a section of itself deprived of resources, dignity and power for centuries always risk facing a revolution or armed conflict from them. Democracy gives voice to them, and leaders like Mayawati helps ease that pressure.

Besides being a dalit, she is also a woman. Somehow, her gender has never been used like her caste to show her inability to govern or to gain sympathy from women voters. In fact, in Indian politics, gender is never a major electoral issue . Women in India do not particularly rally for a woman leader or men do not particularly shy away from voting a women. In western world, however, gender is always an issue in politics. There was a huge mass of women supporters behind Hillary Clinton when she contested the primaries. The fact was repeated many times that a women has stood for primaries for the first time. Many newspapers, likewise, came up with a biased coverage of her due to her gender. It was also mentioned in some news channels discussion that an awful number of people will not vote for her due to her gender, just as some others will not vote for Barack Obama for his race. Given the far more social independence that women enjoy in western society as compared to Indian society, this comes as a suprise. My take on this is as follows: In western world, especially in US, an individual is celebrated unlike in India where the caste, community or family is. In US, where caste and strong community bonding does not exist, it's the individual that is evaluated on their personal traits. Coversely, in India, the community and the family of that person is given more importance than the individual qualities. Thus, the baggage of her caste is so much more for Mayawati that her gender would not figure in electorate's mind while casting their vote. Corollary: She would be just as much despised by a Yadav woman in UP, as she is respected by a Dalit male.

The media used to hate her for her ostentatious display on her birthday bashes. Her diamond studded earings, mountain-sized cake were a focal point of derision by the columnists of many dailies. Agitated, they would ask - Why doesn't her voters get offended by these displays when they know they could never be as rich as her? There hasn't been any tangible evidence that shows that dalits fare better in her rule in terms of employment rate or financial status. Lately, she has also bonhomied with the upper most caste of Indian society - Brahmins. Her candidates in the current election are also mostly from non-dalit caste. She has diluted her stance of hatred towards upper caste, lacks any major developmental works in her current tenure, also hasn't done too much for the upliftment of dalits, whose cause she most vociferously espouse. Yet, her vote bank is said to be non-transferable! Why do dalits still vote for her, even though there are reasons for them to believe that she is using them to fulfill her political ambitions? The truth is - instead of getting offended, dalits love to see her display of wealth. Even if she never changes a single thing for them, they would still vote her to power. The reason is symbolism. For them, she symbolises everything that they had been denied for centuries. The sheer fact that somebody from their community could go on to reach this stature is enough of a good reason for them to vote.

Reading through the barrage of hate posts emanating from the urban youth in the comments section of most of the online media reports, I am surprised to see that many of them think of her as an uneducated and an illiterate person. I wonder where this misconception has come from. She holds two degrees, was a primary school teacher in a school in Delhi and was preparing for the civil services exams when his mentor Kanshiram spotted her furiously debating with Janata Dal leader Raj Narain and then walking out of that meeting in the constitution club of Delhi.

Dr. Ambedkar, while exhorting to his followers once said, "Political power is that master key to unlock all your problems". His statue of holding constitution in one hand with the other hand pointing towards Lok Sabha symbolises his message to his followers to educate themselves and gain political power. Dalits have given a lot to Mayawati and she has vigourously followed Dr. Ambedkar's statement of gaining political power. But what has she given back to dalits in return? Laloo Prasad Yadav gave a lot of voice to the socially backward Yadav community in Bihar but he didn't do any developmental work that would help them feed their young ones, or let them send their kids to school. In a same way, Mayawati may have given an iota of voice to dalits who can now sit in the main chaupal of the village, but she has still not started the developmental works for dalits. She has gained the master key but she is yet to unlock all the problems that beset Uttar pradesh and members of her own community. Instead, she is eyeing New Delhi. Personally, I think her ambitions for being a national player is well justified but it should have been supported by her work in UP. Just like Bihar's CM Nitish Kumar and Gujarat's CM Narendra Modi have a made a name for themselves for good governance, she should have followed suit. But she is more busy planning her next moves to check mate players in delhi. Like Sahir Ludhiyanvi wrote in one of his poems, "Yeh duniya agar mil bhi jaye to kya hai?", I ask of Mayawati - What if you even become the Prime Minister of India? What would that change? Would that uplift a community from the centuries of burden that they had to bear? Would that help a dalit to gain better education and compete in open market? Would that make India a more tolerant nation? Would that in anyway change this nation except some new parks and statues of yours and Dr. Ambedkar?

A Republic's Voters

2009-01-26T18:14:00.000-08:00

India celebrates its 60th Republic day today. This day also, in my opinion, puts to rest the doomsday prophecies of certain world leaders and writers like Winston Churchill and Rudyard Kipling that saw balkanization of India soon after its independence. Situated amidst countries in South Asia that are ruled by monarchies, dictators, army rulers or a weak parliament, India has indeed emerged as an unexpected beacon of democracy for the region.

On the other hand, there are multiple reasons that call for an introspection as well. Has democracy really worked in India? I agree with Ramchandra Guha when he answers this as - yes, but 50-50. I was watching a panel discussion on CNN-IBN network [video link] today. The network also conducted a poll on various questions related to efficacy of politicians, government bodies and the overall results of democracy. The findings, as expected, were dismal with majority having lost their faith in the integrity of politicians and governmental bodies. I am sure the sample set for these polls would have been just as much a biased selection as the audience was in this show. But I agree that it is overall representative of the general mood of the public in India. So what is lacking in the "system" or the polity of India that most of us are losing faith in this?

Among a lot of gibberish that was said on the show, some of the comments stayed with me. One of them was by Salman Khurshid. He says that he finds it hard to win an election if he only does the right thing. He needs support from people who also force him to help them do illegitimate activites. Having seen elections and the political process from close quarters myself, I know how true Mr. Khurshid is when he makes that point. To elaborate, a candidate needs support from a lot of "workers" that usually belong to the candidate's party or are personally associated with him. These workers campaign for the candidate to the constituents, create a sellable image of his to the electorate and uses their relations and connections to improve a candidate's prospects. In the words of a two-time assembly elections contestant, it is the worker who actually fights the election. Indeed it seems so, as the most important duty of worker comes during the election day. He sits in the election booth as an agent of the candidate and overlooks the voting to make sure it is going on fairly or in the favor of his candidate. The real difference that he makes is in the votes from the electorates who skip the voting i.e. do not come to vote on the election day. An overzealous worker will liason with the polling officer a day before and get some of the unpolled votes poll for his candidate. He would also get some people to make sure that the unenthusiastic voters are encouraged and helped to come to the polling booth to cast their vote. So, a smart or a strong, in the literal sense, worker helps to improve the chance of a candidate significantly if not drastically on the election day.

This does not augur well for a democracy as it creates multiple problems. One of them is that it makes even more difficult for a newcomer without any workers to win election. The other is what Salman Khursid said - it forces the elected representative to be more representative of his workers than the electorate, thereby making a mockery of democratic principles. How can this be resolved?

I have known this factor for a while and thought over it a few times. Election commission of India has done a splendid job by releasing the affidavits of the election candidates on its website [link] since the last few elections. The affidavit contains the complete assets declaration and ongoing police cases, if any, of the candidate. This brings a greater transparency to the electorate and its easy access gives it a wider reach. ECI also releases further data like the number of votes polled at each booth, candidate-wise percentage etc. I would like to suggest to ECI, through this post, to also release the list of voters who voted on the election day. The voters are required to sign in the polling booth before casting their vote so the data is already being maintained by the commission for all the elections. As we have a closed ballot system in India, ECI does not keep a record of who voted for whom and this should continue to stay like that. Releasing this list of voters who polled does not compromise any of our democratic principles as far as I can see. I would also imagine that since election is a public exercise and a cornerstone of Indian democracy, the electorate would welcome such a move instead of raising privacy concerns. This list could potentially raise a hell storm when the voters will see that their votes were cast even though they did not visit the polling booth! A series of litigation might well follow and bring the ECI under a higher pressure to minimize such anomalies. This, in turn, will reduce the impact that the worker has on the election day thereby limiting the dependence of a candidate on the worker. The effects of this data could be similar, if not greater, to the effects of the Right to Information Act.

I might be naive in my thinking or projection here. I might even be totally misplaced on the legalities behind such a move. And thus, I wouldn't mind other's opinion!

Nuke the Nuke-Deal

2008-07-22T19:27:00.000-07:00

Indian politics is sometimes hope, mostly disappointment. The recent events leading to trust vote of Indian government definitely cannot be classified as hope.

Congress party and its allies may have won the trust vote but the nation, as a whole, lost. In what could have been an ideal environment to discuss and debate the Indo-US nuclear deal, soon turned out to be a mockery of democratic values. The deal that had long been occupying media and politicians' attention was pushed behind for the sake of personal political ambitions. Such travesty makes me wonder when, if ever, we would have an issue-based politics in India ? And it's not some abstract Utopian ideology that I am talking about. It's very much a practical issue. The survival of the government meant survival of the deal and therefore, this trust vote was either a 'Yes' or 'No' to the deal.

So, while some leaders bargained to christen airports with their daddy's name, others asked for specific ministries in return of support to the government. Then, there were others, negotiating for higher ratio in seats distribution for the coming election.

Where have we gone wrong ? Is it the democratic structure in India to be blamed that allows multiparty system ? In other words, is it the cost that we will have to pay to ensure being the largest democracy ? Assuming that it is so, can we rely on the electorate to bring such opportunistic leaders to notice ? This brings me to another disappointment in Indian politics' arena. Why doesn't the electorate ever find it objectionable and question the propriety of their elected leaders ?

Ajit Singh is a US returned UP politician. His claim-to-fame: his daddy is late Charan Singh, a notable freedom fighter and then activist who fought for the rights of Indian farmers and land reforms primarily against Nehruvian regime. Indian farmers in western UP, who mostly belong to his native Jat community, owe high allegiance to him. But, like most other things in India, this allegiance is smoothely shifted from father to son and Ajit Singh, who returned from US at the demise of his father, lacking any experience in politics, became the next president of his father's party. Twenty years on, his vote bank is still the same and he always manages to get few MPs from the western UP region.

TRS is another party that seeks creation of Telengana state in northern Andhra Pradesh. Their leaders are ready to support any party or goverment in center as long as they can be promised creation of their new state. It's an important identity issue among people of Telengana region in AP. Not surprisingly, TRS also manages to win reasonable amount of seats from the same region.

Shibu Soren, leader of JMM, also fought the same cause for Jharkhand about a decade back. Jharkhand was created eight years back but his part still gets few MPs from the same region. His desire - to get coal ministry back after trust vote.

I can go on and on but a pattern can be observed from these examples alone. We, Indians, are not a single kind of people. Our nation does not beat at the same rate. We are divided - not in two, ten but hunderds parts. Such parties and hectic money-exchange before trust vote are just effects of this underlying reality. The sad part is, not only are we diverse, we are also divisive. Sixty years on, and we have failed to rid ourselves of narrow divisions like casteism, religion or regionalism. Such leaders thrive on these desires and it is always easy to divert attention from real issues to these emotional appeals.

How can the nation come together ? Do we need a charismatic leader like Pt. Nehru ? Sure, we do but that is a passive wait for Godot. My understanding is that we can beat at similar, if not the same, rate if our communications infrastructure gets stronger. Imagine, every house in India with a television set and telephone and every village connected by a road. These may look basic equipments to few of us metro dwelling Indians but some parts of India take days if not weeks to get to know what is happening in the rest of country. Also imagine the amount of travel and mobility it will bring to each Indian. I believe infrastructure can be a catalyst in changing the dynamics of our socio-cultural fabric.

Coming back to the deal, I still feel cheated. Noam Chomsky, in one his article, argues that Indo-Iran gas pipeline would have done much more to solve our energy problem than this deal will ever do. Does that mean we are making a mistake in sacrificing a more value proposition in favor of a less one ? Also, by when can be expect to get newer energy from nuclear reactors if this deal is operationalised ? There are many more questions that could have been asked but both the political and media time was rather lost to arithmatics of parliamentary numbers. When would we, as Indians, realize and question this ?

Fallacy

2008-04-04T21:04:00.000-07:00

Found an example of a logical fallacy - cum hoc ergo propter hoc in wired magazine. Here is the article.

Pakistan: Creation, Existence and Survival

2008-01-26T15:41:00.000-08:00

As the man reached dais & began his address after clearing throat, the audience didn't know that they would be lost in academic deliberation for a while. However, by the time the man finished, history was made - for pakistani textbooks. The man - Mohammed Iqbal & later to be christened Muffakir-e-Pakistan had just concluded his speech with a clarion call for an autonomous Islamic unit in North-West India. The gathering was All India Muslim League and the year 1930. The seeds for a sovereign islamic nation were sown.

A little fast forward in time and a popular pakistani leader is gunned down allegedly (since I don't completely buy Pak Govt. version) by Taleban militants while she is waving to crowds at the end of a popular public meeting. As the news of Benazir Bhutto's assassination came to me, I was plunged once again into a reverie over the fate of Pakistan as a nation.

Pakistan came into existence one day before India gained its independence from Britishers i.e. on Aug 14th 1947. What followed soon were a series of one the bloodiest riots that subcontinent had seen in living memory. Millions were killed and many more dislocated from their homeland. Unfortunately this was not the end. The riots left a deep imprint on the psyche of people of subcontinent. Being an Indian myself I can say that it created a mental divide and a sense of suspicion towards other community. Hindu nationalism strengthened in this tensed environment, Gandhi was killed, RSS evolved, Babri mosque demolished, Bombay blasts & then Bombay riots followed and Gujarat, the land of Mahatama, burnt in 2002. Pakistan supported, both politically and militarily, Punjab insurgency that led to Operation Bluestar, then the murder of Indira Gandhi to be followed by Anti-Sikh riots of '84. There's more to it - India and Pakistan fought three wars, still fight and kill people in kashmir and have turned it, called the heaven on earth, into an inferno.

Pakistan has done even worse. It's a remittance economy. There has always been an anarchy and no law in the tribal areas bordering Afganistan. Pakistan census reports show a decline in the population of religious minorities since Independence. And what is probably the worst, the country has never seen political stability. Almost juggling between despotic military rulers and democratically elected political leaders, it has lost its place among the progressive nations on earth. The militancy and ISI, once aimed at India, has become so powerful now that it's killing leaders back at home. Indeed, a very sorry state of affairs.

All this at what cost ? To have a sovereign nation for muslims in pre-independence India ? Haven't we paid a price too heavy for this fanciful idea ?

I see two primary arguments for the creation of Pakistan - one ideological and the other a practical one. There may be more but I would contend against only these since they were the most influential one behind Pakistan creation by virtue of fact that one was originated by Sir. Muhammad Iqbal and other by Muhammad Ali jinnah.

As per Iqbal, Islam by definition is not just a personal religion but an ethical system governed by its legal laws and a likewise polity. This makes it different from majority of Hindus of India and therefore Muslims of India needed an autonomous/sovereign unity where such Islamic principles of ethics and law can be implemented by an Islamic polity. Thus, a nation where Church and State are organic to each other and that strives to remove stamp of Arab Imperialism from Islam. I, indeed, am significantly dwarf in my knowledge of Islam and Christianity as compared to Iqbal and therefore will never attempt to contend his argument in theory and make the discussion academic in nature. I will rather just look back into state of affairs of Pakistan since its genesis. Has Pakistan achieved what Sir Iqbal wanted it to ? Has it even come close to the ideal of Islam polity that Sir Iqbal cherished in his 1930 Presidential address to Muslim League ? What different culture has Pakistan been able to regenerate among its citizens that resurrected Islam in subcontinent ? Far to even coming close to these ideals, Pakistan has not even been able to stay politically stable since its creation. Pakistan's military rulers have made military so strong, politically and financially, that it raises its head whenever it finds nation's leaders not toeing its line. I see both the church and the state crushed under the perils of instability. Not difficult to imagine, the economy stoops over their western overlords and Pakistani diaspora is their only hope of foreign exchange. But is there a future, even if a distant one ? Sixty years, as one political scientist noted, is a long enough time for a nation to test its polity. Rest, I leave upto the reader.

Muhammad A. Jinnah, contrary to popular perception in India, was a secular - at least on paper & in words, and just wanted a separate nation where muslims won't be made submissive by the hindu majority of India. A nation where muslims will have control over their polity and not be harassed by their Hindu brethren. Just a look over the demography of both the nations will hint that this idea failed from the start. The number of muslims in India and Pakistan are almost equal. Accordingly, as per Jinnah's logic, half of his muslim community didn't get its salvation after partition. And whatever has happened to the muslim minority of India ? India, unlike Pakistan, chose to become a secular nation. And therefore, on paper, muslims got equal civil rights as Hindus. My critics here may well claim that what was on paper never really reached ground. Also, the number of hindu-muslim riots in Independent India's history also fairly well suggest that muslims were injusticed(sic). Were they ? Yes, they were. But my argument is that had India and Pakistan remained a single nation, these riots would not have taken place at all. The deep antagonism for each other's community originated from the ghastly aftermaths of partition. Hindu nationalism would not have picked up so strongly as it did after the partition. Hindus and Muslims may have different epics, different heroes as claimed by Jinnah but they have been able to evolve a common nationality in India, contrary to his claims.

Naipaul in his journey through Pakistan, documented in his book Among the Believers, comes across a muhajir who left his home in Mumbai during partition to come and settle in Karachi. The good thing in Pakistan, as compared to India, he mentions is that he can hear maulana's call for Namaz from nearby mosque coming right into his home. In Mumbai, he said, mosque was far enough from his home and he had to remember his Namaz timings all by himself. This, as per him, was the justification of Pakistan as an independent nation.

Anwar (2007)

2007-12-15T21:04:00.000-08:00

I typically don't write about movies that I like but this one had to be the exception. More so, because everywhere in the web, the diatribe against it includes phrases like loose plot, direction less direction, good songs but slow to death etc. What I am going to contend here is that the movie is in fact a strong plot and artistically directed.

I'll start with a cliche sentence - Anwar grows on you. The movie is about love and that's it - only love. Hindu-Muslim tension, farcical media and hypocrite politicians are just peripheral wings of a masterfully crafted core story or stories as you may call it. To enjoy the full glory of it, don't see it as a conglomeration of multiple distinct stories but look for pattern that emerge from each story. The central theme of each story is Love (sic). And the salient points that emerge from them are:

It is basic human desire to be loved and love. The strongest of the emotion craves for a subject on whom to shower all that it has. Master Pasha: Pyaar karo anwar, pyaar. Pyaar ke bina jindagi kitnee neeras hai.
And love, as much as it is pure, is also impartial in residing among human's heart. Be it a swine or an innocent lad, a hypocrite politician or a cunning journalist, it finds a place in each heart.
Howsoever basic or universal this emotion may be, it is a taboo in contemporary indian society. A feeling that is to be felt shameful for. Ironically though, given that the myths and legends of India has been full of love display. An overused mythological couple, in this movie and at many other places is Krishna and Meera as a symbol of pure love.
Coming back, movie also comments that harboring this emotion has its flip side as well. It can bring unimaginable pain. And this is where I find movie's strength lies. It has taken up this point so indifferently and yet so frequently that it is hard to miss it. Going where other bollywood flicks tremble, Anwar shows that this pain is caused when our love blinds us to see any imperfection or any limitation in the subject of our love. A relegation to apotheosis as one may call it. And soon this dream shatters, coz we are, in the end, mere mortals ! Be it Mehru's unfaithfulness, deepti suddenly seeing a bhikhari (bum) in Master Pasha or refusal of love by Miss DM to Minister, it all shows what humans are made up of - an idealism fancying beast with feet cuffed to ground.

So is there a hope ? To be in love and yet to be far from pain. I may be accused of over stretching here but I see hope in the imagery of love shown so beautifully and colorfully in Krishna's leela with Meera. If the object of your love becomes Divine Himself, as Meera chose it to be, then Love doesn't hurt. This, I felt, is the passing remark of Anwar.

Besides, the background flute music (another reference to Lord Krishna ?) and rhythimic camera work gives a poetic expression in movie's narrative. Needless to say, I fairly enjoyed the movie and if you have been accusing Anwar of loose plot, this might be a good time to revisit it!

Mood: Contemplative and romantic. Should watch my favorite ghazal now.

Recommendations for a Loser

2006-07-02T01:29:00.000-07:00

"Some are born Losers, some achieve, and some have it thrust upon 'em"

-Lokzpeare

Yet Another Night !

If you are one of the last two i.e. a neophyte or an epiphany-realized loser & are wondering on how to survive for the rest of your life, this post is for you. Ya, you may be wondering what qualifies me to speak for you. Well, my brethrens, I have been in this game since birth & I bring to the table 22 yrs & 6 months of loserapa experience. I have seen it all & now mastered the guerilla tactics of survival in the worst cirsumstances.

I know you get distraught when you see young guns like you embracing arms of the opposite sex, enjoying life cheerfully & merrily. Comrades, as one of the most influential self help guru Stephen R. Covey says, the problem is not out there but you. To change the world, you will have to change the YOU. We all live in a microcosm & as a behavioural psychology study recently proved we all seek competition with persons around our social/friend circle. You will have to change your perception of the world, your microcosm & the YOU & soon the problems will vanish.

With the bull$hit said, now follows the meat. To change the perception of the world, you will have to be careful on what you see from the world. This will define the world for you. Here is the list of things that I will earnestly recommend you ..

Movies:

A clockwork orange (Dir. Stanley Kubrick):- So you thought that you are the only loser. Check out these guys & you will have a reason or two to feel pride.
Pyaasa (Dir. Gurudutt) :- Your talent alone cant take you too far !
The Obscure Object of Desire ( Dir. Luis bunuel ) :- The masterpiece & a must must recommendation for every loser to walk on the planet earth. Never before or ever will such a loser tale be captured through lense.

Books:

Thus Spake Zarathushtra ( Friedrich Nitzsche ) :- For moral support & to give you a vision for your loser life.
Crime & Punishment ( Fyodor Dostoevsky ) :- Cheer up ! you havent seen the worst part of life yet.
The Stranger ( Albert Camus ) :- Indifference is the key !
Catcher in the Rye ( J. D. Salinger ) :- The world is phony, you alone are the truth.

Art/Paintings:

The persistence of memory ( or infact anything from Salvador Dali) :- The melanchony & barren lands can engross you for hours & you will feel one with them soon.
Guernica ( or infact anything from Pablo Picasso ):- Ever wanted to see hallucinations without opiating yourself ? You can also continue looking at them since they wont make any sense for loooong time.

Music:

Metallica : Some really depressive stuff fuelled with guitar & a hopeless voice. you will cherish !
Slayer/Megadeath : No words !

Well this is just the begining my comrades. Be comfortable, there is enough material to keep you busy rest of your life & you will never have to see the light of that happy cheerful world again !

P.S.: Incase you have something to contribute, please feel free to do so. It is a collective responsibility to help our brethrens.

where do I fit in ?

2006-04-17T12:00:00.000-07:00

As an author puts it, to say "I Love you", you have to recognize "I" . Spinoza, among other mysteries, confronts "where do we fit in?" in his most acclaimed work - Ethics. Nice questions, but where do these chaps get time to think of humanity ? I, for one, am too much concerned with myself. & Ironically enough, these are the same people who are driving me nuts.

This interview gave me goosebumps. The extent of imagination & thought that this scientist has is overwhelming. Rob Carlson, an EE deptt. Prof. at U. Wash religiously writes his personal blog to discuss almost everything related to Biology & industry.

& when I see these stalwarts through my small eyes, I am all set to be haunted by a single question - "Where do I fit in ?". In the world that has already seen greatest of the greats, where does a simple man with big dreams ends up ?

& more pertinent, where does a simple man with big dreams who ponders "where he fits in ?" ends up ?

An asylum, may be ??

Mental Masturbation

2006-03-30T10:28:00.000-08:00

How many of you spend more than a fraction of your day dreaming of events otherwise unlikely to happen in real life. Well, I do. No, the content of these events dont have to be amorous. Infact, they DONT have to be.

I spend a large part of my mental energy dreaming of unlikely encounters, how I would respond to them, how this will make others feels etc. I think I was born with this weakness, coz I cant think of any time in my life when I didnt fall for this temptation. For a long time, I wasnt even aware of this. Hindu yogis warn that this can make me mentally weak & my will power will hit its bottom low. I try rescuing myself from this never ending surreal experience, but before I realize I have already gone too deep in this tar pit.

May be meditating more will help fix my mind more.

2006-03-13T21:46:00.000-08:00

Escapist

2006-01-25T02:54:00.000-08:00

This is my first post. I can feel my head heavy as innumberable thoughts are competing to get penned down.

Since I am bad with words, I rather take the easier way out. I upload this image & let others do the thinking. I liked it the instance I saw it. Blame it on my testosterones, you perverts, but I call this creativity. If only I could have played the violin !