Blogging... Is it worth it?

Found this very interesting article on blogging as compared to journalism and the viability of blogging. I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I did....

http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/web2.0story.asp?id=ARTEN20070009520

Happy Blogging :P

Reality Bites Hard - IV - Isn't it in-evitable?

For how long should we keep the tinted glasses on and pretend that India is well on its way to becoming a super-power and is poised to become a force to reckon with in world economy. In various articles in this blog I have clearly and concisely discussed why this is a fallacy... a dream that would require major re-organization and restructuring for it to work as it should. And there are miles to go before we acheive the dream that we claim is already fulfilled.

It is to be noted that news channels like the BBC have started questioning the claim that India is making.... isn't it time that someone did so? In an article where it discussed the booming retail market in India and the mushrooming of elite stores selling fresh vegetables and fruits for the growing Indian middle class, it also highlighted the plight of the un-educated marginal road-side fruit vendor who got directly hit by the opening of such stores. To read the complete analysis click here.

So, India's maladies might as well become the reason for its failure to becoming a super-power in the near future. The great divide between the middle and upper classes and the lower classes is very significant. The lack of education has been poined out as the major cause of this divide. So inspite of being such a populous country there is serious lack of skilled labor to support the mushrooming of MNC's who are ready to put up base in the Indian sub-continent. Click here to read a very well written article on the subject.

The BBC is talking about it. Some of the most knowledgeable people are also talking about it. How long would it take the whole world to talk about the fact that Indians had been grossly over-rated and that the state of the infrastructure in India does not warrant such huge expansion?

Isn't it time we really start doing something to save our dream????

Dor.... The story of two women

Since I have started this blog, we have laregley written about social concerns and have written about some of the good authors of India today. This is the first instance of discussing our views on a movie. We are fortunate enough to have the oppurtunity to discuss one of the best movies that I have had the pleasure to view in recent times.... Dor.

Dor is a film directed by Nagesh Kukunoor who has carved a unique niche for himself in the Indian film industry. His films are therefore enjoyed and viewed only by a unique section of Indian society. Like all his films this film also does not boast of any big stars or actors. It is a very sensitively directed film which highlights the relationship between two women coming from diverse backgrounds. The sub heading on the movie pack says 'How far would you go to save soemone you love?' The entire film revolves around this theme but what makes an impact is how sensitively the director has handled the relationship between city bred, independent woman living in Himachal Pradesh and a simple, young widow living in a village in Rajasthan steeped in tradition and completely dependent on her family.

As the film progresses, the two woman are bound together by mutual need which develops into an unusual friendship. The city bred woman is played by Gul Panag who is dependent upon the village widow to save her husband from capital punishment. The village widow is played by Ayesha Takia who knows only how to be dependent on her family which would ultimately betray her and sell her to the highest bidder. The director sensitively handled the coming of age of the young widow which motivates her in escaping the iron bands of wrong and sinful 'traditions'. She draws her strength from the city bred friend.

The quaint mutual dependence is highlighted very well in the movie. The sensitivity of the director is seen by the fact that he potrays neither woman to be stronger than the other. The gradual acceptance of a new set of values by the young village widow is very well potrayed when she answers back her father-in-law in soft but firm tones; dances a furitive jig on a well loved song and has the guts to leave her in-laws' house to make a life of her own. Certain other sensitively potrayed facts are the budding of romance between a villager and the city bred woman and the acceptance of the fact that there is nothing to the relationship.

Overall a very sensitive film devoid of any songs, thrills and completely negative characters. In short... a must watch film. We have completely loved other movies by Nagesh Kukunoor - Hyderabad Blues, Teen Deewarien, Iqbal, Dor.

************** Deepa and Shikha ******************

News Media – Do we deserve the kind of News we are getting?

Recent times have seen the progressive degradation of the kind of news that is published every morning, noon and night. The headlines in the major papers in the city have become the various escapades of Shilpa Shetty, the Abhi-Ash wedding, the performance of Indian cricket team, the sensational news like Nithari case, the Jessica Lall case, and the Nitish Katara case and so on. This is not to minimize the contribution of the media to bringing justice to the deserving. But the questions is that is this the only kind of news that a common Indian is interested in?

The media has gone the bollywood way. Most of the news is more becoming more and more sensational and promoting fantasy. One of the most common justifications heard is that the ‘we give the people what they want’. I would like to counteract this by saying that we would ‘start’ wanting whatever is fed to us. Yes, we have the option of changing the channel but almost all the news channels are showing the same kind of news again and again and all over again.

The Indian masses and classes have demonstrated that we are very easily impressed by bollywood and the television entertainment media. The impressive impact of this media needs no mention. It’s very apparent. The parents take pride in their children imitating the ‘superstars’. The ‘watching movie in the theatre’ is back with the bang, the quality of cinema has changed. We are not only impressed by what goes on the screen but we also show active interest in the lives of the ‘superstars’ but we like them as only Page 3 or the entertainment section. Is it really healthy news to impinge into the privacy of the rich and famous? Does it not promote actions on the part of the superstars like the one at Tirupati where the devotees made to stand for hours because the Bacchan family was media is much appreciated not only in India but they are also made good impact on abroad too. Serials like the Laughter Challenge, Antakshri, Indian Idol, Boogie Woogie are platforms for the common man to show their talent and are much appreciated too.

The masses and the classes have grown and the Media should wake up to the fact that the news that is being published will finally govern the entire thinking patterns of the classes and more so the masses. The education of the masses of India is more important in a country like India which is growing and developing. The ‘superstars’ are the creation of the print media. Take the Sunday Times of May 13, 2007 for example. Today being the mother's day all you can find are the faces of celebrity mothers staring out at you. There is an entire column on how celebrity mom's think is the best way to inculcate Indian value in children. Aren’t we just promoting the fact those celebrities know the best? Wouldn't it have been better to have printed the views of a child psychologist, taken the views of a mother who has dealt with situations like death of their husbands in the prime of their lives and their trials and triumphs and the success of motherhood?

In the more recent times the media has applied the right kind of pressure to bring justice to the now famous judicial cases. It is commonly believed that Rang De Basanti prompted the first public outcry in the Jessica Lall case. And the print media took over from there and the masses and classes moved in step. Despite the fact that the print media is a very strong media, perhaps what is lacking is perhaps a proper direction, a lack of drawing lines and adhering to those lines. Channels like NDTV have discusses these issues very effectively. So hopefully the print media would recognize their strength and make true the saying – ‘Padhega India, Badhega India’. Can we hope that the Print Media will take over the reigns over from The Entertainment Media to shape the thought patterns of the Young India?

Here I would like to pose a question to the common man whether it can prompt the print media to deliver news which they want to see and hear? Are we also not responsible for the kind of turn that the print media has taken?

Are the citizens of Delhi an un-concerned lot?

Delhi, the capital city of India with a population of a few crores which is a mixture of cross-cultures and cross-ethnicity. One can witness the extremes in Delhi…. From the very poor to the very rich. The economic disparity is perhaps more marked in metropolitan cities than anywhere else today.

A trip around the city of Delhi would bring forth the fact very strongly that there are major developments going around in the entire city in order to accommodate for the thousands of foreign nationals who will come for the international games that India hopes to host. And there is evidence that the un-authorized shops and complexes are coming under the MCD hammer. The middle class has also risen to enforce some action on long pending issues like the pending trials in court of justice. But despite the developments there are points of concerns that still exist.

One of the major points of concern is that Delhi-ites are no longer motivated enough to exercise their power to vote their own representative. Given the state of politics in India as a whole, the citizens of Delhi quietly protest by showing their lack of support simply by not going to the polling stations to vote. But is it the right way to go about doing so? Shouldn’t it be a better idea to make use of the ‘Right not to vote’ to show their protest? But how many citizens of Delhi are actually aware of this right? Shouldn’t the people demand to know the financial, criminal backgrounds of the candidates that they chose not to vote for? ADR is an organization which could help them do exactly that. But are the people aware?..... More importantly do they want to make themselves aware?

There are thousands of maids working in the household of the lakhs of people in the city. How many upper class Delhi-ites actually take interest in the upbringing of their own maids’ children. It is very easy to discuss the need for literacy among the lower class people to bring their status up. But how many of us actually take the first small step and ensure that our own maids’ children gain literacy? …. Not many. Recently, an act has been enforced banning child labor in certain sections of professions. But how many of us actually report the use of child labor when we see it… not many of us I am sure. Ever seen a child beg on traffic signals? Ever seen them selling their meager wares to earn a few rupees on the same traffic signals? Have you reported the existence of child labor to the concerned authorities? If the answer is NO, then are you really concerned about the welfare of the citizens of Delhi and want to make Delhi a successful city?

All of us groan at the filth in and around the city. And at the filth of the government offices. But aren’t we also responsible for contributing to the same? Yesterday, while I was traveling towards Karol Bagh, I read a quote on the wall….’Ek Gadha Yahan Pe Moot Raha Hai’. Do you think it deterred the offenders from doing exactly that? Nooooooo…… Some perverted fellows take ‘pride’ in doing exactly what they are not supposed to do. They willingly do not use the public toilets that have been erected around the city in order to same the city from this kind of filth. Apart from that the roads are littered with a lot of other things too. It makes fun of the dustbins that some thoughtful shop keepers have kept outside their shops. And this is one thing that the MCD has done…. Placed dustbins all around the city. But do we use them….. Mostly not.

Delhi-ites have to battle with peak hour traffic every day. The easiest way to cause a traffic jam is to park a bus or a tempo on the road-side. And within an hour one will have miles and miles of traffic jam. Everyone wants to act smart with the vehicles that they are driving and to demonstrate their skills of driving they cheerfully make fun of the traffic rules that they need to follow. I wonder who is it that they are trying to impress? Or is there a race going on…. The first one who is out of the traffic jam wins a prize? Due to the ‘smart’ driving of a few handful of drivers the others have to suffer too. How about following the traffic rules to make life a little easier?

There are lot of other things that I can enumerate and write about to question the concern factor of Delhi-ites….like feeling a sense of pride in fooling a cop to escape being challaned by paying him less bribe than the cops was asking for. What is not realized that a bribe is a bribe ir-respective of the amount and it is illegal. But are we concerned about the legality of our own actions? I could go on. But somewhere I need to stop and ask…… are we concerned enough and giving back enough to the society… is it wise always to criticize the government and other officials…. Aren’t we guilty too? Shouldn’t we change too? Time to give it a long hard thought… isn’t it? Its OVERDUE.

Author I Admire - III - Satyajit Ray

It is impossible to write anything new about a man who is not merely an author of in-numerable adventure stories and other stories but also a noted film-maker whose work has won him international acclaim and awards. His in-imitable character of Jatayu in his adventure stories about Feluda is one of the most colorful characters that I have ever read about. And Feluda, a detective by profession, is so un-like the superheroes and superman category characters that are so popular today. Feluda is a down-to-earth, almost real potrayal of a common man whose profession leads him to travel far and wide and overcome obstacles to bring back harmony to the lives of his clients. The potrayal of the character is so strong and well defined that it is no wonder that he was recognised, identified and connected to by the common man. This led to the popularity of not only the charcter but also the man who created the character. His stories about Feluda became so popular that some of them have been made into equally memorable movies directed both by him and his son - Sandip Ray.

I have had the pleasure of reading his work in both English and Bengali. The turn of phrase that characterises his work in Bengali is missing in the translated work. But I have enjoyed both the versions - English and Bengali.

His work today brings some fresh air, peace of mind and simple joys into this complex and busy lifestyle of today. His work will always remain im-mortal. To know more about him click here.

Reality Bites Hard - III - Indian IT Hotspots - Are we really ready?

India has been one of the major hotspots for multi-nationals to setup base for their back-office work. Bangalore has been a favorite destination for these multi-nationals. But these days the there is a very grim picture coming to out where in Bangalore's lack of infrastructure is making multi-nationals looking further into other cities within India. This article published on the BBC tells a very grim story.

IT companies are looking towards Hyderabad and Kolkatta for spreading their wings further. And in the process of attracting more MNCs to India, the Government of India has identified Special Economic Zones (SEZ) in the entire length and breadth of the country. These SEZ are a point of concern since they eat into quite a bit of fertile agricultural land of the farmers. Some farmers are protesting like the ones in Nandigram, West Bengal. But other farmers are simply making huge amounts of money by selling their lands. Suddenly all farmers in the outskirts of all major cities like Hyderabad, Noida, Ghaziabad, Faridabad have struck it very rich. Land prices in these areas have escalated beyond imagination. You can spy a couple of brand new vechicles like scorpio, tata inidica etc on roads that are not wide enough to hold these vehicles and are majorily kuccha in nature. Posh houses, cars and luxuries have made in-roads in areas lacking in basic nfrastructure like 24 hour water and electricity supply. If the basic infrastructure is not taken care of then each of these 'cities' including Chandigarh will head in the same direction that Bangalore is heading towards.

Wont the MNC's over a period of time simply become fed up with all the red tapism and beurocracy that exists in the Indian sub-continent and simply go elsewhere????? (Just to point out a simple example....India is closer to some countries that it bids for to export foodgrains to. But it looses the bid everytime.... to Chile... all the way around the world.... and the reason... that despite the huge difference in distance to be covered while exporting the total cost of exporting from Chile is much cheaper than exporting from India......)

So should we not really think about improving the basic infrastructure of the cities before trying to attract more multi-national organisations to setup their base here. Water, electricity, roads, hotels, telephones, internet connectivity..... the list of infrastructural improvements that has to be done to justify and encash on foreign investement seems to be endless. Correspondingly, India has to increase its base of skilled labor force too to cater to the demands and requirements of the multi-national companies.

Time to think hard and act faster... dont you think? Can we really afford to miss the oppurtunity to give useful employment to the un-employed millions in India?

Another Ray of Hope!!!!!!!!!!!

A lot has been said about the political condition of the country. And as Indian citizens we have accepted the political condition of our country. But some people are strving towards making a difference and improving governance in India. A group of 11 highly motivated professors from IIM, Ahemedabad formed an organisation called ADR - Association of Democratic Reforms in the year 1999. Since then this organisation which is headquartered at Ahemedabad, Gujarat have made attempts to improve the governance in India simply by ensuring that they screen the backgrounds of the political candidates and by ensuring the accuracy of the voter's list in the state of Gujarat.

As was expected they met with quite a bit of resistance from almost all political parties apart from Congress. Congress was the only party which gave ADR its full support.

ADR won two landmark judgment from the Supreme Court mandating disclosure of criminal, financial and educational background of candidates contesting elections. They made good use of the Right to Information act for getting this one passed. It worked with the Election Commission to ensure that ordinary citizens have a right to access the information declared by candidates. It also worked with the media since October 2002 and has played a significant role in bringing this issue to light. It has built up a network of partner NGOs in different states and has been actively involved with them in doing Citizen Election Watch work exposing the criminal and financial background of candidates. So far, this has been done on Gujarat, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chattisgarh. Click here to see the kind of work that ADR had done for the General Elections in Delhi in 2004. They have stated clearly the candidates who have criminal cases pending against them and the assets that they have and the tax that they pay. These are things that every Indian Citizen should know in order to choose a deserving candidate. Unfortunately, in many parts of India, citizens still do not have access to this kind of information.

But the right steps are being taken. The progress is slow and dismal but progress is there. I, as a normal Indian citizen hope to see some good changes being brought about in the process of electing the leaders of our country. It's a small start but a start nonetheless.

In the meantime, the Indian constitution has also empowered the Indian citizens with the power of deciding not to vote. It is a matter of debate as to how many Indian citizens are actually aware of this kind of a provision that has been made for them.

It is a gentle breeze right now... but a breeze nonetheless... hoping that it will soon turn into a major force which will re-shape Indian politics forever. So, definitely.... I can say that ADR is another ray of hope..... in the jungle of politics...