The last week.. and Prash …
The last week, I had been a witness to some interesting stories.. some directly percipient to and to some things, I was just an informant through media. I wish to share a few nostalgic moments.
Cricket and noise pollution
A society in a suburb; fast developing metropolitan, a society with over 120 families living in the premises where construction is at fast pace ( Read 600 decibels every second, 11 hours a day). A small cricket enthusiasts trying to relax with few games of cricket during weekends start 1615 hours. The pity is that complaints roll in at the handful of cricket loving enthusiasts (Read 50-60 decibel shouts – “out,” “Not out,” “Catch it” etc. approximating every 10 seconds). Then at the helm, I got to think of Benjamin Franklin’s quotes – “Constant complaint is the poorest sort of pay for all the comforts we enjoy.” The thingy is that these cricket-lovers are dumb ducks and respect the privacy. I don’t understand how do we define a noise pollution here!
Peepli [Live]
Amir Khan’s productions – I’m a big fan of it. Aren’t you? First, I thought the entire society would join us but unfortunately we ended up in four numbers. The morning show with a quite good strength. Saddling fast filling up. Lights shut and enter the village scenes. It reminded me of AKP’s Lagaan in the back drop – extreme poverty, thoughtfulness in persons, agony and everything we could see from a person’s doleful face of hunger. The take home message is that over 8 million farmers stopped farming as per 2001 census. How the media turn to the families, politicians turn foes in Indian scenario was depicted very well. Most importantly, “let’s start the music” and roll on the enjoyment was candidly shown amongst politicians. A H-O-P-E wherein the person willing to be a news maker/media person dies at the backdrop of the about-to-suicide “Natha” – the Hero of the movie was well shown. Furthermore the way, the grand old man in the movie who earns Rs 20 ( sorry, I couldn’t figure out, how to use INR symbol in my laptop, yet!) a day dies was the real take home message. He ploughs the land, sells the stack of soil bags for Rs 20 and thinks of the water reserve from the ditch, even as media passes through him. Doesn’t it show that the old man thinks of just time and energy? Kudos! Over all, a very good movie, ought to see. Beware! There are dialogues not to be heard to., so kids out of cinemas please! I think the cinemas should play National anthem before the start of such movies
Pay 10 bucks [READ Parking at owner’s risk]
The day I watched the aforementioned movie, I was surprised to see that my two-wheeler parking zone has the above sentence. So , why Rs 10? We will not change! Any thoughts?
C’mon I’m the owner of an apartment
Every owner of a house is proud of his/her flat. Beware and check out if the apartments have fire extinguisher. Don’t ever dream of a house without that. Lest you dream, list the cream of your apartments and To-Dos.
Independence day celebrations and the youth
After our tiresome preparations for Independence day celebrations, I happened to have my brunch in a restaurant. The person next to me was talking over phone and I heard him saying – “Common yaar, 13 sal hua kaun jayega flag hoisting?” Shame that some of the current youth behave in this ill-poignant way!
Indian Tennis players gets a tag ‘monies’
The quadrants of Indian Tennis changed the way they thought. They sent several e mails to the sports council about the dues they had to get, publicized it and all of a sudden started to think of their country. Reason – they were promised the “monies.” Such players should be tagged “for monies” not “for many’”
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I would often find people (including me sometimes) talk, gossiping, see several things amidst them which could be brought to attention or changed. Unfortunately, it is likely that we end-up talking but not bring any C-H-A-N-G-E. I express my views:
- “I have worked under him” is often used. I don’t now what do people mean by saying that. Shouldn’t it be “under the guidance of ..” or say, “under the prime direction of …” I’ve even seen editors of reputed magazines and newspapers making this mistake. Any grammarian around?
- “One of my friend…” C’mon the moment I hear this, I get miffed. When “one of” is used, doesn’t it imply that the succeeding words in the sentence makes an impression that there are “many…” ? One of my friends.. plural please!
- People ( especially younger generation.. please spare me!, I start with salutation and end with a good tone :-).. ) are least bothered when they write an e mail. Addressing people, be it your better-half, your boss or your sub-ordinate needs a salutation. Please start with Dear/Hello.. etc and end your email with Sincerely/Affectionately/Faithfully etc… The words or sentences between these two, whatever be it, the salutation makes your letter feel that it is a letter, not just a “tweet..” to someone these days.
- “Please Sound Horn” is the common caption you find it on the back of trucks, lorries and some auto-rickshaws( at least in developing countries like India…). So there are some guys who wish to promote sound pollution be the use of horn and honking! And that too impressing upon the drivers staying behind to “please..” them. Can I dream of “no sound horn please” …?
- Every day when I bike, I see people seldom wear helmets, over-taking and crossing me. Needless to mention that it is the head that is important for us. But for some ‘ultra-headers,’ helmet is not at all required. And the worst thing is people forget to switch off the head lights during the day. Please, please save E-N-E-R-G-Y. Would you?
- Accept suggestions. “Hey, who’s this guy to tell me? My foot..” Being egoistic doesn’t make you a big shot. Just think , stay cool, have a coffee bite and then discuss with your “this guy.” I’m sure you will for sure win each others discussion! Have a good day to accept your accomplices’ suggestions. There’s no harm in saying a hello when you come across each other. It does reflect that you are just not respecting him but respecting the humaneness in “us.” Isn’t it?
- Pay by MRP. For some people, MRP stands for Maximum Retail Price means whatever the retailer or the shop-keeper counts on his/her mouth not by the one inscribed on the exchanger or the product. Pity that, we pay as much as we could. Please beware that the money is an off-shore that you are paying in such ways. Please, please demand a receipt for that. Thanks!
- Too much of mobile revolution. I’m a ‘say no to mobile’ user. Two things, to save environment/save fauna and exploit my ethics .. I don’t mind losing my back than ears in honking tongue-like over phone for hours. Before someone makes mobile a compulsion, please please remove the option “mobile #” in applications.
- Back to e mailing, sorry I forgot to an extent that people don’t care to respond to some emails that are sent to them. At least a “thank you..” “okay, I disagree with your email etc..” helps. That shows you are respecting the way you write and receive exchange of words.
- “Service above self” that’s what I have tried to, / practised/ being a member of Rotary family all these years. There’s ain’t any loss if you donate one cent of your earnings! You know what? There will be no poor if every one on this globe does that!
DISCLAIMER: All the aforementioned views are unto the discretion of the reader. Even this blogger might have had in one of the above situations that demanded a change, but the author, like many beckons a change. C-H-A-N-G-E is inevitable! Should that need to be said?
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India Mourns… Are we?
View 1: Dantewada, India has seen the deadliest Naxal strike ever claiming 76 CRPF soldiers.
View 2: People taking pleasure in the Indian Premier League (IPL)
View 3: A politician talking about his excursion abroad.
View 4: A Tennis player (Do I need to say her name?) preparing for her wedding
I put the view 1 foremost, but let me tell you it does matter for some of our Indians and some of them would like to have it read last! If you ask me, what interests Indians these days; I sense they would choose the latter three. And amongst the three, I’m sure they would rather prefer to talk the final most. What a dishonor!
S-E-V-E-N-T-Y–S-I-X is not a small number in terms of lives. The soldiers were in the midst of forest protecting our land from the so-called Maoists. They fought a hard battle for India to get rid off the infiltrators. Several newspapers published the mourning nonetheless the people are more inclined to follow the kind of paraphernalia news. Where are the ethics gone in our country? Where are the people who recognize the suffering? In this country racked by domestic violence especially the Naxalite problem compounding over 40 years, where are the likes of the people showing concern to the families of such fatalities? Should sports involving cricket mad people be deemed more important than the militia shackled to death?
I always believed that the ethos of television and newspaper journalism tag on the ethics of the people but my dear folks, it isn’t! Due importance ought to be given to people’s suffering than celebrities’ marriages or burlesque. C’mon grow up guys! Let IPL be hyped, let IPL recognize the new talent, let politicians blow own horns about their excursions abroad, let celebrities’ marriages happen, but let not ethics go a miss from your mind as on when required! Please let’s show sagacity!
Shame that, I did put a title like this “India Mourns… Are we?”
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How to get motivated?
I was often asked this question. I would ask myself what makes us to get motivated? I woudl also ask myself how would our forefathers used to get motivated whence no world of Intenet existed?
Thence last two days I grew confident and my morale is again going up! Hurray! The guys who are close to me would ofcourse know it. Right?
Back to you in April! Tata, BBye and cheerio 🙂
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But…
I’m sorry I have had busy time during weekdays and couldn’t blog. This time, I’d be glad to blog on the book I have read during the last couple of weeks. It was “Dreams in Prussian Blue” by Paritosh Uttam. Hmm… sounds familiar? I can now jump and say that I’m the neighbor of Paritosh 🙂
Anyways, I must admit that this was the first novel that I have read. The genre I read is biographies for that I believe that every biography has a take home message. Not that the other genre don’t have that piece. Ever did I try to understand the story of the book but when I noticed the punchline “When Love kills…” I wondered that it’s going to be a kind of love story. For my mercurial and warring brain and conscientious thoughts I keep in frame, I did experience a great literary charm in the book. I finished reading the book in 10 days, all with an approximate period of eight hours in tandem. After reading the book, my opinion of live-in relationships changed a bit. I asked myself several questions : What if I were Michael? What if I were asked to seek an alliance live-in relationship?
At the outset, I felt the author would have done more justice to the female lead character in the novel by seeking alliance and approbation from the blind. The female character is exploited in such a way that she have had three veneers of camouflage in her character. Such characters might exist but but the take home message from the story is such eugenic characters do exist whence inescapableness.
Must read and take home with you belletristic knowledge.
Prash
PS: If you don’t have a dictionary with you, it is highly recommended you have the one. Please mark my words!
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Hello Again! It’s been sometime I blogged. I’m sorry. my morale was down, so was energising. you know! 🙂
By the way, you might have heard of COP15 the world is talking about. It’s been held now at Copenhagen. While 193 countries participate and discuss CO2 and several issues, I was wondering what best I could do as an Environ conscious person.
The puja leftovers I do, I always wonder where should I place them. These elements pile up every month and I usually provide it to the trees nearby. But isn’t it creating a pollution?
Thoughts?
Between, missing Copenhagen and Denmark very much!
Prash
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…Were the words put by the Master Blaster Sachin. I gave a standing ovation to Sachin when he was out for 175. I witnessed on screen the greatest innings even though I followed few minutes of cricket last night. I couldn’t resist writing this blog for that I’m an avid cricket fan whilst I occasionally play during the weekends. What mesmerised me was I did see not only the greatest innings ever played but saw a man who is in deed considered the “God of cricket” by some cricket enthusiasts. Perhaps, I didn’t discover that thing in him, until last night. Kudos Sachin.
One thing I found fascinating was the way he backed the youngsters at the crease. Truly laudable. At the helm, he was to the very point going to the other end telling the batsman to remain cool and composed. Ohh my… how could he still not get tired after playing three hours of prolifi’cricketing’ and still walking to the other end and patting the batsman and saying.. ” Come on, we CAN do it.” Some fanatics say he plays for his records, some say he is amazing but plays stupid shots.. but to me, he plays for ‘passionate India.’ There is a difference between “playing for India” and “playing for passionate India.” I hope you got me
At this juncture, I get reminded of famous quotes by John Maxwell:“A great leader’s courage to fulfill his vision comes from passion, not position.”
Our captain mentions that there prevailed mental balance absentia. I would say.. “It is the sport that keeps you beyond mental balance. If you are playing cricket, then please be reminded that the sport itself kickstarts and removes that imbalances and emotions. Please accept the truth that our batsmen failed to support one of the greatest warriors in cricket. You yourself are responsible for imbibing mental agonies as you should have batted first during the fourth one day. Doesn’t you sound over confident sometimes? Please self assess.. ”
Sachin, needless to say you have been a great motivator. I’m with you. And above all, my fellow bloggers and readers, a sport is a sport, I loved watching last night’s game more than I loved to play.
See you soon
Prash
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This year’s Nobel committee for Peace awards quote
“for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples” might have been read by many. Some in awe, some happily and some with few thoughts spared on the decision. I was the one among who was a bit surprised. All through the years, I knew that Nobel awards are dedicated to the ones whose accomplishments are to be seen and practiced for years.
“Be the change, but we believed” was what Obama quoted.
He did change, but we still need to believe that Obama won the Nobel. I’m sorry Obama, although I appreciate the change you brought, I feel, we still need to see it happening.
Congratulations to you and that said, may umpteen soldiers’ soul rest in ‘peace.’
Prash
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Quality of the news
Yesterday morning, when I staretd reading “The Times of India” I was in an awe when I read “Like T…, Maoists behead Policeman”
I felt sorry and my feelings and thoughts crossed the bereaved family. Amidst all these things, what I observed was the quality of the news “The times of India” nurtures these days. What does it mean, when it starts “Like T…?” Uhh ?
Shame on you The times of India when you call yourselves the leading newspaper of India. I felt very sick of the news. Are you indirectly propagating chauvinism here? I kept it aside and started reading my favorite newspaper.
If you ask me to rate the best newspaper in India, I would, perhaps, rate ToI as my least favorite now. To me, the quality of the news is deteriorating everyday!
BBye
Prash
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When do we raise an eyebrow?
Last week I wondered at some point of time: What makes us to raise an eyebrow? And when do we raise it?
Is it when we are nonplussed? or when we are excited? or is it when we feel embarrassed? My quick search in thesaurus showed and satisfied my search for the idiom. But when a novel idea is presented, how do you find yourself placed when someone raises an eyebrow? I would for sure get disappointed ,when it sounds to me that the idea presented was foolish. It just happened to me!
Anyways, these things apart, what I learnt from this scenario is we aren’t good at making constructive criticism.
“Criticism, like rain, should be gentle enough to nourish a man’s growth without destroying his roots.”— Frank A. Clark
I hope someone listens to this!
Good bye for now
Prash
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