Diversity in Unity

wish everyday we could do this...see each other as Indians rather than with the colour of religion.

It was spontaneous. People from every nook and corner of the country came out of their houses last wednesday to celebrate India's victory over Pakistan in the cricket world cup semis. In a giant show of oneness, Indians from various social stratas and belonging to different religions and castes celebrated together. They hugged each other. They danced together. No questions asked, no thoughts processed on whether they are dancing with someone from another religion or from a different social class. Chaiwala hugging bigshot bussinessman, construction workers dancing with software engineers, congressman giving high five to communist. The scenes were surreal. For once, a majority of India had matching thoughts and matching actions. Similar scenes were repeated on saturday too, after India won the world cup. For just this one day, I'll always be thankful to this game. How I wish everyday we could win a world cup!

At the same time, there's a diametrically opposite, pessimistic viewpoint which tells me that all this was just in the name of a game. We never come together in such massive strengths for anything else. If ever we do come together, we look at the colour of the feathers of the birds flying with us. Yes, we come together to celebrate religious festivals with our fellow believers, we come together for riots with our fellow fanatics, we come together to fight for our respective languages, we come together as congressmen and saffron brigades...We never come together as Indians, except for trivial things like sports. No, its not anyone's case that such coming together for sports is bad. Just that, how beautiful it would've been to see that togetherness in our everyday life. Alas, once we all walked back to our houses and wrapped up the tricolour and placed it safely in the cupboard(not to be touched until the next big match), our togetherness also seemed to dissolve. Dissolved in our myriad differences like a a single white drop in a multi coloured ocean...something that can be called unity (lost) in diversity.

When will we come together like Egypt or Tunisia and give it back to our leaders for looting and fooling us? Maybe, Anna Hazare's indefenite fast against corruption that started yesterday is a good starting point. (http://www.indiaagainstcorruption.org/). Find out the location of the fast in your city, join in for sometime and support...

Some more shots from that wild night of celebration after India's world cup win

Sachin...One billion hearts....one wish...one dream fulfilled

the joy overflows..people celebrating inside and on top of a state transport bus

Joy!Jubiliation!

the spirit..

dedicated to THE MAN! Sachin!

I can't drive anymore...I want to jump!

people greeting strangers on the streets...how cricket unites people!

Blocked!

http://www.facebook.com/myopiclensesphotography

your crusader Praveen

Sachin's Masterclass

One of my fav clicks!

There's a dream that every Indian cricket fan carries with him- To witness that scene of Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar walking down the middle of the pitch, slowly removing his helmet, raising his bat and then looking up and thanking the heavens as the whole staidum roars in applause. It's an enduring image that defines the past 2 decades of Indian cricket. Many were lucky to watch it in the stadium, quite early on in his career. But, for some like me, it had off late become a dream that was slowly slipping away considering his advancing age and the probability of matches coming in your backyard. And that's when the Bangalore test match against the Aussies happened. The 1st day was a disappointment for us as the Aussies won the toss and batted through the day. We were to be content with watching Sachin on the field and cheering loudly and clicking whenever he touched the ball. We didn't get tickets for the second day.

3rd day morning. Sachin was on crease, nearing his half century. That's when Raja asked me, "why don't we go?" I had my own doubts considering the fact that it was the day after sunday(:P) and we were not college kids anymore. Also I had that big fear of Sachin getting out, the moment we stepped into the stadium. It had happened when he played in Bangalore for the last series against Australia. But then something told me to "take my chances"(and I had that song "take your chance" written by our dear friend Michael playing in my mind that time). And, so we headed to Chinnaswamy stadium on a sunny "day after sunday". We could hear the roars in the stadium, even before we reached its vicinity and we were sure Sachin was still at the crease. As we ran in, he was on 80. For the next few minutes, we sat there biting our nails and joining in the collective "ooooohs" whenever a ball swung in dangerously. Sachin on the nervous 90s raises the blood pressure of the nation for sure. Then on 93, we all had our hearts in our mouths, as he struck one high over long on. We had a huge sigh of relief and a big roar to give as we realised it had sailed on over the ropes. Before long, on 99, he did a repeat of the same shot and this time our hearts nearly stopped. It was wild elation all around when we saw the result was similar to before. The moment we were waiting for, had come. The man removed his helmets, raised his bat and thanked the heavens. BLISS! Cloud 49! Dream fulfilled, we sat there to witness Sachin mentoring Murali Vijay on the way to his maiden test century. As we went back that day, we knew we had taken our chance and fulfilled a dream.

Sachin, at his defensive best.

Sachin-Symphony of destruction

The six over long on, that he hit when he was on 93...

and then the next, while on 99..

The moment arrives...The raised bat and then the thanks to the heavens...all we dreamt of seeing for real for the past 2 decades..

Eat this...

Sachin the mentor- A pat on the back for Murali Vijay for his brilliant century..

And the next morning, we decided to take our chance, yet again. Sachin was on 191. Maybe, a triple century? This time, we had two more to our gang, Muthu and Jijo. And we reached the stadium quite early to see the stands slowly filling up and Sachin practising in the nets. I wonder, why this man needs to practice! :D The stands were full by the time he came out to bat. Sachin's biggest fan Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary, who follows the Indian team wherever Sachin plays, was there too, with his trademark tricolor painted body and 'Tendulkar' written on it. We didn't have to wait for long for the double century. He reached the landmark with a cheeky single. Blessed twice in as many days, thats what we felt. He celebrated it with a straight four. We were slowly warming up for the triple century. But then, he got bowled soon on 214. The man quietly acknowedged it all, as the whole stadium stood up and applauded the masterclass. I wanted to leave the stadium at that very moment but stayed on as they still had hopes on a Dhoni magic. But sadly, the tail was wrapped up even before Sachin removed his pads in the dressing room. But, we were still content, as we were lucky to watch the Sachin double and also India taking the lead over the Aussies.

Single minded determination. Sachin practising in the nets on the 4th day morning...Unbeaten at 191, he came back to complete the double hundred.

A nation stands up to applaud. Sachin completing the 200th run.

Never getting tired of raising the bat..The double hundred

The leg glance

Sachin gets cheeky

And a majestic innings of pure class, comes to an end. Bowled!

Sachin looks back to see the stumps rearranged and the bails flying off..

5th day. Match could swing both ways. We were still undecided with Aussies on an overall lead of 200. We all know the nasty behaviour of Indian pitches on the 5th day of any test match. And to confirm our doubts, Sehwag was back in the pavilion just as the innings started. Smelling a thrilling finish, we made yet another trip to the stadium. the third time in as many days. This time we had two others joining in, Nikhil and Rahul. Debutant Pujara, who got a real nasty ball in the first innings, was playing the innings of his life. He, along with Murali Vijay, took India into a comfortable position. We reached on time to see Sachin at the start of the innings. Pujara departed after an innings that showed high temparament in high pressure. A class move by Dhoni there by sending him in place of Dravid. Soon, we had India's trusted combination of Sachin and Dravid at the crease, toying with Aussies. We smelled another 50 from Sachin. And we were again treated to that shots over long on, which he played during his century. The Aussies had given it up by then. And, it was yet another 50 from the master. It was a matter of time before the master and the wall clinically dismantled the brains of the AUssies. With 2 runs needed, they played out 2 maiden overs. Yeah, Just for fun, cos they can :P. We weren't complaining, as the solid defence from these stalwarts were a treat to watch. Before long, Sachin took a two and finished off the formalities. The full to the brim stadium erupted in joy. We stood there, finding it hard to believe our luck-A sachin double century in 1st innings, an unbeaten 50 in the 2nd innings, him hitting the winning run to complete a whitewash of the Aussies and then him winning the Man of the match and Man of the series. It was our wildest dreams coming true over 5 days.

The repeat! Sachin's six over long on in the second innings.

Yet another 50!

Sachin acknowledges the crowd after completing the winning run as the stadium erupts in wild celebrations.

Sachin and Dravid celebrating the win, as the dejected Aussies move in to congratule them..

Presentation ceremony- Sachin being called in to recieve the man of the match and man of the series.

Sachin with his man of the series trophy with an applauding Sunil Gavaskar behind him

The left handed sign!

Sachin displaying the trophy to the crowd during the lap of honour.

Here's a song for the man...motherjane's "before one million comes one". Infact, the band dedicated this song to Sachin when they played an unlugged concert here in Bangalore last week. This song was originally written about Mother Teresa.

There was one
who gave dignity to the dying
who brought hope to the living

There was one
who gave to a different degree
who proved with certainty,
that before one million comes one.

There was one
who gave a handful and a smile
who brought rest for just a while

There was one
who did what was possible
who took small sacrifices
and built a miracle

There was one, now there are a million
There was one, now there are a million

Coz when the horizon of a desert speaks of an ocean
A rain cloud is god sent, a raindrop is ecstasy
before one million comes one,
each similar to a different degree.

your crusader Praveen

CWG Opening Ceremony :Dousing negativity

The past few weeks were filled with negativity, when we were relentlessly fed news on all that is wrong with the Commonwealth games. Falling roofs, broken bridges, dirty rooms, flooded village and what not! The same 10 second clipping and 3-4 photos were rotated on the airwaves for weeks. We all thought this is going to be a shame like no other. There was not a single news on the big arenas and the truely exciting parts of the village(which is more than 95% of the village if the comments from the visiting athletes are to be believed). Not to forget the criticism that they unleashed on A.R.Rahman and his theme song. Later, the same channels were hailing the same song when he trimmed 1 minute out of it. Speaks a lot on their musical knowledge! It was one sided journalism of the worst kind as these media groups went on to tarnish our image very badly on the world stage. Kalmadi and co deserves to be punished, Agreed! But using that to spin stories and gain viewership is an equally condemnable crime. Sensing that the public had begun to see through the truth, the channels did show some positive news on the games over the last 2-3 days. But that doesn't wash away their sins.

Its amidst this huge wave of negativity that the grand show that India put up at the CWG opening ceremony gains significance. It may not match the mind numbing show put up by China for the Beijing olympics. But, we did show the world what we can in our own inimitable way. The Jawaharlal Nehru stadium in Delhi witnessed a spectatular show of Indian culture and arts. Starting with the Indian national anthem, for which the 60,000 crowd stood up in rapt attention, the games were declared open by Prince Charles, with Prathibha Patil saying 'Let the Games begin'. It was ironic in a way that both these persoalities are just puppets without any say in their own country's affairs. And, the importance accorded to the British monarchy is puke worthy. The heavy percussion display that followed featured artists fromthe length and breadth of India and must have made the stadium basement shake. The young kid playing the Tabla was wonderful.

The highlight of the show was the Aerostat, the big helium balloon that towered over the stadium. It was an integral part of all the shows with rolling photos, titles and sometimes morphing itself to suit the various situations, most notably when it became the leaves and branches of the giant bodhi tree. Almost worthy of the 40 odd crores spent on it. The swagatham song sung by Hariharan and choreographed by a host of young kids was a delight. The impromptu drawing of giant mehndi on white sheets by these kids looked magical. The march past of the athletes, an otherwise boring affair, was lit up by the loud cheers that the Indian audience reserved for the Pakistani contigent. A true spectacle, that! Hope the foolish guys across the borders learn some lessons on peace and harmony atleast at this late hour. The minute Kalmadi came to deliver his speech, the channel was changed. Later, I heard that the guy was booed. Serves him right.

'The great Indian Journey', the show put up by Indian railways was the best of the whole show. Modelled as a big train, each of the wagons showed one scene common to Indian streets. Thus there were cycle repair shops, chilly bhaji vendors, bangle shops, swamijis, beautiful ladies, politicians during election time etc in each of the wagons. A great display of earthy Indian culture by India's best bet for travelling, the Indian railways. Another great show was the one showcasing yoga. A host of yogis performed various asanas around the huge bodhi tree, accompanied by soul lifting music. Then there was the dance show which introduced to the world, India's various dance forms like mohiniyattam, kuchipudi, kathak, Odissi etc. Maybe, they could've thrown in a show about the new resurgent India. But, no one is complaining! And to top it all, we had A.R.Rahman himself singing the CWG theme song. I still can't understand the mindset of those 'musical pundits' who called this a bad song. Rahman followed it up with a rousing performance of 'Jai ho'. And thus, the curtains went up on the Delhi common wealth games. Now, Let the games begin! And let positivity reign!

PS- I still don't understand the purpose of the commonwealth games. Leave out the 'brotherhood, friendship and all that shit through sports' answer that we always get. The games seems to be a kind of saluting the same monarchy that all these 70 odd countries once drove away from their own countries. Was Kalmadi trying an one fingered salute when he stole all those thousands of crores?:P God only knows!

BTW, the losers at BBC have already put up a negative article after the opening ceremony. These guys seems to be envious and is trying hard to spoil the picture.

pic courtesy-AP

your crusader Praveen