EK CUP CHAI

The President of India is visiting Hyderabad today! I’m not sure for what purpose. May be he will talk about developing India, and motivate children. Good for him. Bad for me!

How is his visit Bad for Me? Ha…so here it is.

He is going to come early in the morning today. And will be taken over to the guest house, through a wonderful route! The protocol says that the Governor (if he is fine and existing), and the Chief Minister, along with the Speaker of State Legislative Assembly should all be present to welcome the President. Oh! How Wonderful.

Now all these people travel  through ONE particular road - the busiest of roads, not just in Hyderabad, but probably one of the busiest in the whole of India! The Airport to Raj Bhavan Road, via Begumpet Flyover!

So when the president and his convoy, the CM and his convoy, the acting Governor and his convoy and the speaker and his convoy, are travelling.  The traffic will be stopped. When? From 0815 hrs to 0915 hrs. Who cares what will happen to the stopped traffic? Who cares about those thousands of bus commuters, who don’t care to read a news paper. After all they don’t matter, do they? On the whole there are around 20,000 vehicles that pass through this road at rush hour!
And when the President is leaving the next day - wow he takes the exact road from Hi-Tech city to Airport again. The convoy will block as many roads as possible. The complete stretch of 15-20 kilometers will be stranded, at around 1800hrs,(06.00pm) ! Now most of all these people will be those who contribute to what Mr.President is going to call “Developed India”! What if somebody face a heart attack. Even the nearest Ambulance will take one helluva time reaching the fellow.

I’m angry, and importantly seriously disappointed with the way the President (and his office) has been acting in the recent time.

As a school going kid, I particularly enjoyed those unexpected holidays! There would be too many people shouting outside the school, with some placards, banners all with some logo of a student union! “Text Books” would be the oft quoted reasons for these bandhs. Well of course today I realize there are too many “bandhs” in our country!

No text books – Bandh! A leader is arrested – Bandh! Government says yes to reservations – Bandh! Court ‘stays’ a reservation order – Bandh! Governments ask for pollution free vehicles – “City Bus” Bandh! Government asks digital “distance-cost” meters for taxis – “Taxi Bandh”!

Well there were too many weren’t they! These people just need an excuse. Even when performing a rally or a strike, police should be intimated first, so that there are no untoward incidents. And even then there will be those unexpected events!

Here is just a glimpse of what happened recently:

Remember what happened Bangalore recently – Somewhere in Iraq one Mr. Saddam Hussain was hanged. To protest against it – a rallying crowd burnt three buses on a Friday! Now on Sunday (or some later day) another group was rallying against this burning and burnt a good part of a Muslim Colony. Well that’s how most people like to rally!

Being a part of an association is not always necessary for any body. However I still remember  - college students who dared to attend classes were beaten up badly by members of student associations who boycotted classes. Recently there was a huge strike by Auto-rickshaw drivers in Hyderabad. The non-association members who ventured out for their “daily-wages” were attacked, and their autos were rummaged!

Who are behind these associations? Why do they make sure that atleast ONE person gets hurt (close to death)! Is the aim of their strikes and rallys to protest against a certain system or to make sure that every body knows about their problem? Either ways, their road blocks, and traffic jams cause because of it drive their point. Why hurt people or spoil public property?

The system that makes sure that there are enough laws when ONE person kills another, why aren’t their laws that nab GROUPS who hurt mostly innocent people and public property? Yes the system needs complaints from citizens! How wonderful! The rallying people first inform police and go on rampage. And if even then these incidents are not handled well then who will guarantee the security of the complainants?

All I know is, with every single day of strike and rally (which are in most cases unnecessary, if the system or people involved with it were fine) some hundreds of man hours are wasted just like that!

Now that’s what I call news!

The Shiv Sena’s supreme Bal Raj Thackray has hit out against President APJ Abdul Kalam. If that could have been how he was working, it could have been fine. But Mr. Thackeray said that Mr.APJ Abdul Kalam Azaad cannot see beyond his hair!!! (as per TIMES NOW – television news scroll)

I have never seen Mr. President wearing spectacles but Mr. Bal Thackeray does. So who cannot see beyond their hair! Anyway these are again Personal Statements.

Supporting his father, Mr.Uddhav Singh Thackeray said out that his father didn’t mean any offense. He also pointed that when V.V.Giri was the president, Indira Gandhi said he was a rubber stamp. Yeah! Great going bro great going! Forget Brihanmumbai Municipal Elections. You should be made the Prime Minister of India. You will throw a nuclear bomb on Pakistan and say, why are you shouting at me idiots, ask the US it threw the nuclear bomb on Japan!

Now all this is happening, and does any body know why? Because Mr President has been delaying the case of Afzal, the man who has been convicted of plotting the attack on the Parliament in 2001. Afzal has been given death sentence. Whatever the reasons the president is delaying it, may be it is wrong. However, if Bal Thackeray can think a bit far, he will understand that by waiting for the President’s decision, Afzal is dying every moment.

But which occassion did Mr.Bal Thackeray hit out at the President? Somewhere campaigning for Mumbai Municipality elections. Wonder Why? The president is a muslim, Afzal is a muslim! Would Mr. Bal Thackeray say this if there was a Hindu in place of a Hindu. Well may be, he would! After all the President is a muslim and that’s what he needs!

I have been told that Bal Thackeray has been voice of millions of Marathi people! But looking the way he talked against president, it sounds like he must control his “Voice” or else he would end up giving wrong signals which might lead to the killing of millions. Remember 1992 any one?

I think if any one residing in Mumbai can see through these statement of ShivSena supremo, they WILL NOT vote for his side! This SINGLE STATEMENT and the result following it (ELECTION RESULTS) will justify how well can Mumbai think!

The Presidents of India have long since been QUIET about too many things! But no one got against them. Atleast if he doesn’t speak out now, then may be it is high time a President spoke Out!

After a huge farce yesterday, at the finishing ceremony of Telugu Cinema’s Diamond Jubilee, quite a few questions have risen. For info on what happened read Celebrity Vs Legend – A Farce
So here are those questions:
1. Padmabhusan Megastar Chiranjeevi in two different statements said that Telugu Cinema is not popular in India, and there are more than 2000 cinema halls in Andhra Pradesh! What does that mean? Even with so many halls if we are not producing good movies, which legends or celebrities are the reason? Isn’t it high time that the legends and celebrities, instead of satisfying MOB fans, give out true Cinema?

2. Padmasri Mohan Babu’s words meant that Caste politics do happen in Telugu Cinema! That is enough. Why did a self-proclaimed Legend say that there is Caste politics? Why didn’t he use his Legendry to stop such politics?

3. Why did Chiranjeevi said that he would discuss reasons later? Instead of simply saying out that he thought didn’t deserve it! Wasn’t he pointing something? Does it mean that these awards were discussed and argued upon, even before they were announced?

4. Few people were not even invited. That is true! But then there was a gentleman, who almost made a pathbreaking effort with his first movie in Telugu! Not a single person, mind you, NOT a single person mentioned his name in the entire function.

He was so good, that one fine day he said, “I don’t want to make movies in Telugu”. And later, when he got involved in Hindi movies, Twentieth Century Fox (or may be Columbia…I’m not sure) offered to help him in his three movies. Only two, and only two major stars whose names were repeated again and again in the said Diamond Jubilee acted with him. Why? Was he so bad? Or did he eliminate the “Herosim” in his stories that didn’t go so well with “Celebrities & Legends”? (Forget the name! The issue is important here!)

5. Actually why should ACTORS be called legends at all, without their directors being legends? Is it not the directors, the producers, the writers who should be legends? And yet with no directors, producers, and writers being legends, and only few actors as legends, what does it say about the GREAT TELUGU CINEMA?

6. Today, there are only a handful (or even less) excellent directors. Why don’t the legends encourage them? After all it is the benefit of Telugu Cinema that they want! (Or is it?). But why are they interested more in Colleges and Social services. NO I don’t mean that they should not be. But why is encouraging such directors their first priority?

7. And yet with only few good movies happening every year in Telugu industry, state government says that other language movies cannot be dubbed into Telugu! Why? Because they show the short comings of Telugu Cinema? Or does it help the legends and celebrities to copy other language stories and make a hash of it?

All I know is that what I asked here are only few questions. None of them will be answered. All that will be left in people’s minds is that Mr.Mohan Babu said something and Mr.Chiranjeevi got tears in his eyes! That’s enough! I won’t be surprised if some Cine association will call for a Andhra Pradesh Bandh soon!

It is funny that both my posts today should be about films or film people .Though I have tried to bury the temptation, I had to give in. The topic is huge, especially for Telugu film industry!

So here’s what happened (those who already know what happened, can skip this and read Celebrity Vs Legend - Few Questions):

On the final day of Telugu Cinema Vajrotsavam, Padmabhushan Megastar Chiranjeevi was felicitated as the “Legend of Telugu Cinema”, along with few others! What he said later was a bit surprising, and importantly entertaining! Chiru, as he is fondly known, said, “…he takes the blessings of the elders but not the award…”. He also said that he would give out the reasons later!

So when Padmasri Mohan Babu was called and offered “Celibrity of Telugu Cinema” he simply rejected the award. Everyone knows (and yet doesn’t talk ) about the feud between these two actors. Gossip mills say that one used ‘Caste’ and the other uses “polticis”!

Now whatever the reason, Mr.Mohan Babu said, “… there should be two books written about the words ‘Celebrity’ and ‘Legend’” Now if that was not interesting, he went to say out all his great deeds – from his humble beginnings to he becoming a Rajya Sabha MP and questioned why he cannot be a legend? He also said out neatly that he never used “Caste” and said that the college he established doesn’t merit Caste at all!

And then when everything was done, Chiranjeevi gave a speech filled with emotion and tears! Here’s his speech - “All of us in film industry are like family members. If somebody does a mistake, we solve the problem in closed doors… This function is to thank Telugu ‘cine kalama talli’(the TELUGU Cinema) that granted us this status. In the beginning of our careers, we struggled and could not even afford good food. We used to wait for roles and chances in films. Let us not forget those days. When I visited Goa Film Festival, I did not see the photographs of NTR and ANR among the legends of Indian cinema list. The fame of Telugu cinema is not going beyond the borders of Andhra Pradesh. This function is an effort to show our power in Delhi. No other state boasts off more than 2000 theaters in India. We are one and we will remain to be one.”

With this speech Chiranjeevi gained “immense sympathy and full popularity”! But all this happened in the presence of Chief Minister! Later few ‘elders’ tired their best to put down the issue. Alas the questions this farce raised, will have to be answered. Read the post Celebrity Vs Legend - Few Questions!

Imagine a typical Bollywood song – Shammi Kapoor is riding a horse and singing! Now try to hear the music.  I think, for any bollywood fan, the song would be – “Banda Parwar…thaam lo jigar…” Yes the music of horse foot, or the simple “tap tap tap” like ( Honestly I don’t know if the instrument is a xylophone or a clavioline or broken & dried coconut shell) was so lively and haunting. All this was given by none other than Onkar Prasad Nayyar!

His “Aai yeeee…meherbaan …” and “Meraa Naam Chin Chin Chu…” will remain haunting melodies, and so will his magnificent love stories with Asha Bhonsle. He never used Lata Mangeshkar’s voice and yet was a super hit! He never had formal training and yet taught it to find food. He was lively, energetic, and he went on to pass it on even when he was not doing music. He treated people with Homeopathy!

May be, his composition (of Homeopathy) was as melodius as his music, that people say he treated all treatable diseases except Cancer and TB!

His music was melodius alright, but his music was more than needed in his times! The wildness in his tunes could only be reached by few – like Asha Bhonsle, Mohammed Rafi, Geeta Dutt or a Shamshad Begum! His tunes needed funny antics which only people like Shammi Kapoor, or Madhubala or Guru Dutt could capture! And yet when there was subtlety needed – he could give it, without much hype!

Some greats never believed he had formal training, some greats never matched his penchant for Punctuality, and some semi-ordinary people like me never believe that he has passed away just like that. He will live, not just with his music, but with making careers of some more legends – like Mohd Rafi or Asha Bhonsle!

My heartfelt tributes to O.P.Nayyar

Our dear President has asked us to take a ten point OATH! On the front side it looks fine. But on a comical and cynical analysis this is what it happens! So I kind of changed it each point of Mr.President as an interview! This is strictly for fun:

1.    I will pursue my education or the work with dedication and I will excel in it.
Me: Work is fine Sir. But please let us not think that there is Great Education in India. It is the same kind of education system that has been given to us, and you see great India is today. Yes there is development. But can it be called Real Development? Or can we achieve the real development with these partial developments.

2. From now onwards, I will teach at least 10 persons to read and write those who cannot read and write.
Me: OK Sir, Sure! I will try to do this. Though I have quite a few questions, I might sound to cynical here. I hope they will go beyond signing what ever they are asked to sign instead of using this reading ability to READ and then sign!

3.    I will plant at least 10 saplings and shall ensure their growth through constant care.
Me:  Hmm this is excellent! But I need to find Safe land first! Otherwise, I might be planting in a ‘residential plot’ in the suburban, or else in the forest! But does forest need planting? May be!

4. I will visit rural and urban areas and permanently wean away at least 5 persons from addiction and gambling.
Me: Oh! Now this is funny! So basically I’m asked to convince people here, against the system. The system makes sure that people (both in urban and rural areas) are addicted to ever growing economy and yet ever increasing prices, ever increasing policies and yet ever increasing population and too many ever increasing things. Well I’m addicted to this too! Who will permanently wean me off these?

5. I will constantly endeavor to remove the pain of my suffering brethren.
Me: Well, if I try doing that, the police will arrest me, the courts will punish me. The reason, because I will support economically poor Forward Caste people and say let there be no reservations on the basis of Caste and Birth! Oh please let me know if I should help them or not?

6. I will not support any religious, caste or language differentiation.

Me: Sir, do you have any idea what you are trying to say! The system gives people certain support based on Caste and Religion! Are you telling me to go against system?

7. I will be honest and endeavour to make a corruption free society.
Me:Oh Silly! How will I survive? How will I survive without corruption in India Sir? Ration Cards – corruption! Roads- corruption! Housing Boards – Corruption! Industry – small, medium and big – corruption! Politicians- Corruption! President jee you are asking me to leave this country or what???

8. I will work for becoming an enlightened citizen and make my family righteous.
Me: Enlightened citizen. I don’t know who is enlightened citizen here. Can you please quote one – Dr. Manmohan Singh! Lalu Prasad Yadav, Jaya Lalitha…or yourself. May be you are. But with what you’ve spoken above, I think you are asking me to go against the system. If that is enlightenment, how come you will be the President of the same citizen and yet ask me to go against you?

9. I will always be a friend of the mentally and physically challenged and will work hard to make them feel normal, like the rest of us.
Me: On this – No questions! Sincerely!

10. I will proudly celebrate the success of my country and my people.
I will surely do that, when they succeed! When India wins few cricket matches, when Hritik Roshan jumps off cliffs! When Sania Mirza goes to second rounds and third rounds! Or when Private companies are asked to have Reservations Quotas! Or when news media have only Shilpa Shetty and Shahrukh Khan to talk about! Of course I will celebrate success!

I received a mail yesterday with modern version of “Ant-Grasshopper”. The ant works hard in summer while the grasshopper lazes. So when winter comes, the media, the politicians – ‘Ghaas’ Lalu, ‘Mandal’ Arjun Singh and ‘Comrades’ all support the Grasshopper and start opposing the Ant. So far so good.

In this story, I also saw all even Arundhati Roy’s and Medha Patkar’s names mentioned in support of the Grasshopper! It was only a joke. But….but!

I’m not sure of Medha Patkar, but here are some interesting facts and achievements about Arundhati Roy:

• Her family gave Shahrukh Khan one of his first films (though a telefilm).
• She wrote those wonderful dialogues for never forgettable TV serial ‘Malgudi Days‘!
• She won a Booker Prize for her first novel. Later she won two other international awards for Cultural Freedom Award and Peace Prize! Don’t forget the Saahitya Academy award, which she declined against the Indian Government policies – the same foolish policies which we know and regret. Now how many have the guts to do it?
• She was on the ‘Vogue’ cover when she was just 22, and when very few of us even heard of the magazine!

Read the rest of this entry »

What would you do if you think you eat is NOT earned by YOU?
You would eat it if you are too hungry. Right?

But what if you keep showing your inability and ask for food?
You will be called a beggar, and you will get only - Left overs!

Now why am I telling you all this? Well I just got a ‘confirmation’ that DD – Doordarshan is telecasting a ‘7 minute delayed’ version of a ODI match.

Nimbus Television did what they could. Fight for the Telecasting rights, and win the rights from BCCI. After not budging to DD for a while, it came down a step. Nimbus offered DD to telecast the cricket matches LIVE, with some conditions. DD didn’t budge, and wanted their own advertisements. And this, DD’s official say, is in the interest of the nation.

In whose interests did they want their own advertisements, is a question to be asked.

Now, with Delhi High Courts decision, DD is telecasting a ‘delayed’ match. It is going to be great fun. See the live scores in a news channel, and watch the match! (May be this is not valid for entire India)

Of course, DD gets its OWN advertisements revenue, but the match is delayed! Now in whose interest is this being telecasted? DD has approached Supreme Court. Beggars cannot demand, but who has stopped them from filing cases?

But then, if DD wins the case, what will Nimbus Television lose? Now that’s an interesting question! Also interesting is another question - What will someone in Portugal lose, if AR Rahman copies his music for a Hindi Film?

Today is Netaji’s Subhash Chandra Bose’s birthday!

I donno if he lived until recently, or if he still lives or may be he passed away in that unfortunate accident in 1945 or whatever. All I know is that somewhere, in all of us lies a certain hero! And this man’s story enough to rise that sleeping hero.

Well I can write his story, this blog won’t be enough or may be I don’t know enough. But on his birthday, I say silent prayer, “Lord! For the sake of people like him, let India wake up from its deep slumber… soon”