WORLD MUSIC DAY- A journey.....
Today is the world music day...It could better be called a day specially for die hard music fans like me...My day started with the soothing strains of guitar from the song 'Vellai Pookkal' by A.R.Rahman. A song for world peace, this one could be called one of India's best exports to world music. So, a perfect start to the day.
Then I came to Deep Forest's 'Forest Hymn', which gave me a feeling of being inside some dense African forest with the tribal singers all around me. Truely, a 'Jungli' xperience.
Now its time to escape from the jungle to the Carribean Islands. Hmm...I could hear Bob Marley's classic 'Buffallo Soldier' from a distance. Somehow, that reminded me of our own Marley, Jassie gift. Its time for some tabla with the maestro Zakir Hussain and Dasgupta on Sarod. It was part of a 1989 concert in Canada. Heavenly.....Man, what is this?Where are your favorite rock songs...bingo...here it comes...Oasis's' Wonderwall', voted as one of the best songs played on guitar. Then came Metallica's 'The outlaw torn', not a very famous song, but i like this very much for that pumping rhythm. Back to another softie..Damien Rice's 'Cannonball'...cool guitar work and amazing romantic lyrics...ha..got me into dreamworld...
Now some jazz with Norah Jones's 'Come Away with me'..can any be song be softer than this?, I was wondering....
What music without some of our own great Raveendran Master's song...I played my favs...'Pramadhavanam'...'Harimuraleeravam'......The unmistakable classical touch in film songs...i bow my head to the legend...
Now some sufi stuff...Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan is the first and last stop...and the sufi inspired 'chaiyya chaiyya' of ARR came next....
Back to rock...Guns N Roses's 'Sweet Child O' Mine' and 'Estranged'....
Now some death...Slipknot's 'duality' sounds great and visuals.... aaah...Goryyyyy
What about some old rock n roll classic...yeah...BEATLES...'love me do', 'hey Jude' and 'Let it be'....a nod to the swinging 60s....
back to some soothing instrumentals with Pandit Vishwa Mohan Bhatt and his Mohana veena in raag Sarang from his grammy award winning album 'The lure of desert'...then U.Srinivas playing 'Endaro mahanobhaavulu' in his mandolin...2 of my all time favorites...
Now its the time to disco with some dance music from venga boys...i played the song for the socccer season...'Brazilllllllll'.....I ended the listening session with A.R.Rahman's 'Golden age' from 'warriors of Heaven and earth'...
Now time to get out and celebrate the day...me and my friends went to the museum auditorium in the evening for the world music day celebrations by alliance de francaise...It featured many artists from in and around kerala playing music ranging from classical to blues....a great way to end a music filled day...
Now am back at my home ready for another musical ride...This time the artist and listener is the same person....myself on guitar...playing 4 me....he hee....
Yours musically, Crusader Praveen
Thursday, June 22, 2006
Sunday, June 18, 2006
ARGENTINAAAA
Requilme-Ayala-Requilme-Rodriguez-Sorin-Crespo-Requilme-Rodriguez-Burdisso-Rodriguez-Crespo-Requilme-Sorin-Requilme-Mascherano-Requilme-Sorin-Requilme-Sorin-Saviola-Requilme-Saviola-Cambiasso-Crespo-CambiassoGOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
If viewed from the air, this whole passage of play would've looked something like Raja Ravi Varma's brushes running along in a canvas. U never know what it would look like in the end...and the finished thing would be the most extraordinary looking thing in thw world....Yes, this one was....comparable to the painting of Shakunthala......a grand salute to the team that did it for us, the soccer fans of the world....
Teves scored a goal of sheer individual brilliance. Messi proved his worth by setting up a goal and scoring one, all in 16 minutes...Is he, the next Maradona in the making, as the Diego would have us believe? And oh...god...I 4got the God of Argentina, who was in the stands, dancing up and down with joy, like a kid. I consider him as the single biggest inspiration behind this Argentine performance. DIEGO MARADONA.....any footballer will be charged up, when u see him rooting for u and chanting for you in the stands, more so if he is an Argentine. Maradona is an exception among those former champions, who sit in the special gallery in coats and suits. He sat there[sorry...danced out there] with the other fans ,wearing the Argentine jersey with pride.....Hats off to u....MARADONAAAA....
But, i still have doubt whether Argentinians have peaked a little too early in the world cup. lets ..wait and see....
NB- Inspite of whatever is written here, am still a Brazil supporter and strongly believe that they are gonna win the cup.....
Courtesy- The mathrubhoomi newspaper for the list of the players involved in that wonderful 2nd goal.
I dedicate this post to the Argentine fans worldwide, who are in a rocking mood right now...hope that mood remains till they meet Brazil in the final.....
with luv, ur crusader Praveen
The guys from the land of the 'hand of the god' goal had a goal fest against Serbia and Montenegro. 6 goals in a world cup match that too from one side, that doesn't happen everyday. And mind you, Serbia was not at all a weak team. Full marks to Argentina for such a classy and clinical display that made the Serbians mute speactators. Still, its not the number of goals that matters, its the way in which it was scored that really made me jump up from my seat and applaud them. The 2nd goal scored by Cambiasso would easily become the goal of this world cup or maybe one among the top 3 of alltime. I would rather attribute that goal to each of the 9 men who participated in that wonderful display of passing. Would u believe it- 24 passes....o godd...here's a list of how it went....
Requilme-Ayala-Requilme-Rodriguez-Sorin-Crespo-Requilme-Rodriguez-Burdisso-Rodriguez-Crespo-Requilme-Sorin-Requilme-Mascherano-Requilme-Sorin-Requilme-Sorin-Saviola-Requilme-Saviola-Cambiasso-Crespo-CambiassoGOALLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL
If viewed from the air, this whole passage of play would've looked something like Raja Ravi Varma's brushes running along in a canvas. U never know what it would look like in the end...and the finished thing would be the most extraordinary looking thing in thw world....Yes, this one was....comparable to the painting of Shakunthala......a grand salute to the team that did it for us, the soccer fans of the world....
Teves scored a goal of sheer individual brilliance. Messi proved his worth by setting up a goal and scoring one, all in 16 minutes...Is he, the next Maradona in the making, as the Diego would have us believe? And oh...god...I 4got the God of Argentina, who was in the stands, dancing up and down with joy, like a kid. I consider him as the single biggest inspiration behind this Argentine performance. DIEGO MARADONA.....any footballer will be charged up, when u see him rooting for u and chanting for you in the stands, more so if he is an Argentine. Maradona is an exception among those former champions, who sit in the special gallery in coats and suits. He sat there[sorry...danced out there] with the other fans ,wearing the Argentine jersey with pride.....Hats off to u....MARADONAAAA....
But, i still have doubt whether Argentinians have peaked a little too early in the world cup. lets ..wait and see....
Courtesy- The mathrubhoomi newspaper for the list of the players involved in that wonderful 2nd goal.
I dedicate this post to the Argentine fans worldwide, who are in a rocking mood right now...hope that mood remains till they meet Brazil in the final.....
with luv, ur crusader Praveen
Wednesday, June 14, 2006
La Copa De La Vida
The world cup this far has produced some amazing moments. The inaugural function saw an unprecedented get together of former champions. It was really a great experience to watch all those great men together in a single stage. And the sexy model Claudia Schiffer did make Pele squint his eyes and look at her, when they carried the cup together to the stage. But i would've liked to see Maradona along with Pele, though Pele would prefer Schiffer. Also, the German President's speech in Germany was as comprehensible to me as an economics class. He should have delivered his speech in English, reflecting the true nature of the global game. The 1st match itself created a record for the most number of goals in a world cup opening match. Costa Rica did give host Germany some anxious moments before surrendering. The goal by Germany's Frings was a gem. England didn't leave up to the hype in its first match as it scrapped through with an own goal, though it was from a brilliant free kick from Beckham. Another great moment of this world cup was when newbies Trinidad and Tobago secured a draw against Sweden, after being reduced to 10 men. Argentina won emphatically by the brilliance of its midfield general Requilme, who had a hand[sorry, leg] in both goals. Portugal won against its former colony Angola, with the help of Pauleta's goal. Australia made an amazing comeback against Japan, after being down one goal till the 83rd minute. Japan's goal was a controversial one with the aussie goalkeeper being obstructed and pulled down by Japanese players. But the Aussie triple strike in the last 10 minutes really left Japan shell shocked. As the commentator was saying, Lady luck left Japan after giving a kiss on both its cheek in the 1st half. I think Lady luck liked the Aussie lips more than the Japanese cheeks. France got a drab draw with Switzerland. I wonderr what happens to Theirry Henry in the big matches. He wasted countless chances today also. He doesn't display that spirit with which he plays for his club when he plays for his country. Does really money matter there, Mr.Henry?
A notable thing about the matches was that the players who performed brilliantly were mostly english premier league stars. From Costa Rica's Paulo Wanchope to Australia's Cahill and Holland's Robben, the premier league stars have distinguished themselves. But, wait for the Spanish premiera liga stars, because the biggest of 'em are in Brazil-Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Roberto Carlos...do u need more....Brazil are now the overwhelming favorites of the media, bookies and the public. Even the opposing teams have made them the favorites. The Brazil players are saying that its a clever ploy by these teams because they could play without pressure. But the media who made them the favorites are saying that favorites never win the cup. What an absolute contradiction...Am sure the yellow army is gonna prove all these jugheads wrong. Also, Ronaldo's weight is a bigger news for the media than the world cup itself. Why do they find fault with such a genius, who has proved his worth again and again...In 2002, the same thing happened and we all saw what happened once the world cup started....So, lets wait and seeeee....for Ronaldo, Little Ronaldo[Ronaldinho] and company to rock the world cup 2006....hopefully i could write more about them on july 9th...when they become HEXACAMPIOSSSSS
With the World cup reigning the public conscience everywhere, all other sports have taken a backseat. The French Open saw emperor Federer being humbled again on clay by the King of clay Nadal. Now I have to wait one more year to see Federer winning the grand slam. In F1, my favorite Schumi was again bettered by the young Alonso...really brilliant driving,dude...The sport which was relegated to nothingness was cricket. The crowd for the 2nd test tells the whole story. Still, Sehwag's swashbuckling innings was really a treat to watch. Lara was seen jumping up and down with joy after Trinidad and Tobago secured the draw against Sweden. And in the 1st innings, he got out soon. Maybe, he wanted to watch the world cup badly. Atleast, that is better than playing in front of an empty stadium.
The world cup song of 2006 ''Time of our lives'' is a disappointment. Toni Braxton and Il Divo belts out what can be called an opera song at best. I wonder, in whose head the idea for such a song came from. Also the album 'Voices from the world cup' is a compilation of love songs. Whoever has compiled this list has carefully selected the love songs of the artists featured in the album. So we have Ricky Martin's 'private emotions' instead of 'the cup of life' and Savage garden's 'truly madly deeply' instead of their other energetic numbers. The only saving grace is the anthem 'celebrate the day', which is getting good airplay in all the channels.
OK...Me gonna watch the match noww....15 minutes more 4 the lionssss to start roaringg....Until then.....its VIVAAA BRAZILLLLLL....oh..wait...lemme play tht Venga Boys song once moreee Brazilllllll....lalallaallaaaaaaaaaaaaaa brazillllllllllllll
with love , Your crusader Praveen
Indeed...the cup of life it is and it is overflowing with joy and madness...the last fortnight has seen the frenzy reaching a feverish pitch...The fans on a mad rush to get the jersies of their favorite teams and also queuing up at the nearest saloon to get those weirdo haircuts. The streets are wearing a festive atmosphere. The World cup is 4 days old today. And my friends were wondering why still no article on the world cup in my blog. So, friends here is my answer to you. For me,The 2006 FIFA world cup officially starts only today. Because today the samba warriors gonna set their foot on the German turf, ready for another record breaking conquest. The Brazil team brings it with all the wild beauty of attacking football. Which other team could boast a striking force consisting of Ronaldo, Adriano with Ronaldinho and Kaka as the midfield generals and old warhorses Roberto Carlos and Cafu at the back. Indeed, an embarassment of riches.
The world cup this far has produced some amazing moments. The inaugural function saw an unprecedented get together of former champions. It was really a great experience to watch all those great men together in a single stage. And the sexy model Claudia Schiffer did make Pele squint his eyes and look at her, when they carried the cup together to the stage. But i would've liked to see Maradona along with Pele, though Pele would prefer Schiffer. Also, the German President's speech in Germany was as comprehensible to me as an economics class. He should have delivered his speech in English, reflecting the true nature of the global game. The 1st match itself created a record for the most number of goals in a world cup opening match. Costa Rica did give host Germany some anxious moments before surrendering. The goal by Germany's Frings was a gem. England didn't leave up to the hype in its first match as it scrapped through with an own goal, though it was from a brilliant free kick from Beckham. Another great moment of this world cup was when newbies Trinidad and Tobago secured a draw against Sweden, after being reduced to 10 men. Argentina won emphatically by the brilliance of its midfield general Requilme, who had a hand[sorry, leg] in both goals. Portugal won against its former colony Angola, with the help of Pauleta's goal. Australia made an amazing comeback against Japan, after being down one goal till the 83rd minute. Japan's goal was a controversial one with the aussie goalkeeper being obstructed and pulled down by Japanese players. But the Aussie triple strike in the last 10 minutes really left Japan shell shocked. As the commentator was saying, Lady luck left Japan after giving a kiss on both its cheek in the 1st half. I think Lady luck liked the Aussie lips more than the Japanese cheeks. France got a drab draw with Switzerland. I wonderr what happens to Theirry Henry in the big matches. He wasted countless chances today also. He doesn't display that spirit with which he plays for his club when he plays for his country. Does really money matter there, Mr.Henry?
A notable thing about the matches was that the players who performed brilliantly were mostly english premier league stars. From Costa Rica's Paulo Wanchope to Australia's Cahill and Holland's Robben, the premier league stars have distinguished themselves. But, wait for the Spanish premiera liga stars, because the biggest of 'em are in Brazil-Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Roberto Carlos...do u need more....Brazil are now the overwhelming favorites of the media, bookies and the public. Even the opposing teams have made them the favorites. The Brazil players are saying that its a clever ploy by these teams because they could play without pressure. But the media who made them the favorites are saying that favorites never win the cup. What an absolute contradiction...Am sure the yellow army is gonna prove all these jugheads wrong. Also, Ronaldo's weight is a bigger news for the media than the world cup itself. Why do they find fault with such a genius, who has proved his worth again and again...In 2002, the same thing happened and we all saw what happened once the world cup started....So, lets wait and seeeee....for Ronaldo, Little Ronaldo[Ronaldinho] and company to rock the world cup 2006....hopefully i could write more about them on july 9th...when they become HEXACAMPIOSSSSS
With the World cup reigning the public conscience everywhere, all other sports have taken a backseat. The French Open saw emperor Federer being humbled again on clay by the King of clay Nadal. Now I have to wait one more year to see Federer winning the grand slam. In F1, my favorite Schumi was again bettered by the young Alonso...really brilliant driving,dude...The sport which was relegated to nothingness was cricket. The crowd for the 2nd test tells the whole story. Still, Sehwag's swashbuckling innings was really a treat to watch. Lara was seen jumping up and down with joy after Trinidad and Tobago secured the draw against Sweden. And in the 1st innings, he got out soon. Maybe, he wanted to watch the world cup badly. Atleast, that is better than playing in front of an empty stadium.
The world cup song of 2006 ''Time of our lives'' is a disappointment. Toni Braxton and Il Divo belts out what can be called an opera song at best. I wonder, in whose head the idea for such a song came from. Also the album 'Voices from the world cup' is a compilation of love songs. Whoever has compiled this list has carefully selected the love songs of the artists featured in the album. So we have Ricky Martin's 'private emotions' instead of 'the cup of life' and Savage garden's 'truly madly deeply' instead of their other energetic numbers. The only saving grace is the anthem 'celebrate the day', which is getting good airplay in all the channels.
OK...Me gonna watch the match noww....15 minutes more 4 the lionssss to start roaringg....Until then.....its VIVAAA BRAZILLLLLL....oh..wait...lemme play tht Venga Boys song once moreee Brazilllllll....lalallaallaaaaaaaaaaaaaa brazillllllllllllll
with love , Your crusader Praveen
Sunday, June 11, 2006
GR8EST DAY OF MY LIFE
Today....oh.....what should i writee...no words are enough to describe this day...a dream of 14 years fulfilled...Never thought it would be fulfilled this soon...When I was in 2nd standard, Roja released..That was the first cassette i brought..then i dreamed of meeting this man..and i've lived with this dream for 14 years with his music providing me solace every moment....and without any warning the D Day arrived today...10th June 2006....a day to remember forever in my life...the day i met my biggest idol...the day i met the man whose music, i've grown up with...the day i met the musical genius A.R.RAHMAN.
When I reached infront of the palace, I saw a mercedes...sure...he's inside...So I got in...Lots of ppl were standing there. The function was almost over by then. Still I pushed through them and ......ohhh godddd.....my gooodness....there he's....i closed my eyes and opened again,just to make sure that i wasn't dreaming. Yes, it was him with that inimitable smile. I couldn't see anything else between him and me..Mind u, there were some very big singers and film stars sitting there. I would surely have given a second look to them on any other day. Maybe i would have pesteres them for autographs..But, not this day...When my idol is there in front of me....I thought of ways to get close to him...i went near the backstage waiting for the function to get over. I got a pen from a press photographer and stood there. The main function got over and next was the screening of the video and the guests were preparing to get down from the dias to the front row...This was my chance..I ran into the stage and pushed aside the man standing close to ARR[i later realised that it was the popular malayalam actor Jayaram] and got closeee to my idol. First thing I did was to touch him, just to check if this was a real man. Then I shook his hand. He still had that pleasant smile.Lots of people got there by then.The policemen swung into action and drew everyone away and made way for ARR to sit on the front row. Thank god...they din't see me standing there beside the big speaker set. I walked to his seat and gave pen and a piece of paper, which my little cousin had torn from his copy book and had given me as i left home. ARR scribbled ''luv ARR'' on it, but it was hard to make out. By then the policeman had grabbed my shirt and pulled me out. Still, I was happy. I got the autograph...
Then, the function got over. A.R.R was escorted to the outside of the palace and the fans and the police were running after him. Soon he was surrounded by an army of pressmen and policemen, outside the palace. There was no way I could've got near him now. Hmm...now lemme try a trick. I took out my mobile phone from my pocket and held it up and began shouting ''press..press'' at the policemen. This gave them the impression that am a press reporter[he hee...meee] wanting to record an interview with ARR. They gave me way and there I was now again standing close to ARR, the 3rd time this day. Oh...am i dreamingggggggg. Now it was time for the pressman Praveen to ask questions. The guys there were asking some question in Hindi like ''agla project kya hai''. Now I shooted my question, ''Sir, When r u gonna do a concert in Kerala?''..He smiled and said..''I Don't Know''...Then I said..''Sir, there are many die hard fans out here ,as u can see, who would love to see you livee....sir, pls do it for us''....he again smiled and said...''I'll try''. Now he was walking to his car...there were autograph hunters running behind him. Me too ran close behind him. As he reached his car and opened the door, someone called out ''Bolo A.R.Rahman Ki Jai''..We tooo joined him ..''Bolo A.R.Rahman Ki Jai''....He smiled and got in....The door closed. Lotz of guys were trying to catch a glimpse through the closed windows. Some guys clicked pictures of him. The sad thing for me was that I din't have a camera with me then. Still, I was happy for having met him....Now his car sarted to roll...and we all waved him goodbye..He too waved back....Then the Benz disappeared out of sight. I stood there for a few seconds looking at the road through which the car just went. And I could sense drops of tear in both my eyes. The first time in my life, I cried out of happiness...the happiness of having fulfilled a dream that i've been nursing from the day I heard Roja...the day I, for the 1st time truly loved a song....the day from which my life with A.R.Rahman's soul stirring started.....again i scribble the date heree......10/06/06......and in my heart.....No day can be better than this.......am still shaking my head wondering if all of this was a great dream.....
Before going into the details let me thank the wonderful person who made this possible...and that is my dear sister Swapna...She was the one who called me at the time when ARR was here. She said ''boy, run run''.and i did just that.The moment i got the call, i rushed outside to my bike...before kickstarting, I called up some of my friends and told this great news and as it turned out, most of my friends didn't believe me and sat at home. They thought ..''ha, this guy is being fooled by some prankster. Let him go out there and be a fool''. But i was sure that my sister won't play that kind of prank with me. Stil I had my own doubts. So with my mind clouded with doubts, I kicked on the bike and started my journey. Sometimes heart rulz over the head..this was one of those moments as i sped through the heavy city traffic at 105 kmph. Atlast i reached the ultimate destination..Kanakakkunu Palace. There was a big flex board in front with pic of ARR and singer Srinivas announcing the launch of a music album. Now i was confident that ARR was inside, still i doubted whether he had left already.
When I reached infront of the palace, I saw a mercedes...sure...he's inside...So I got in...Lots of ppl were standing there. The function was almost over by then. Still I pushed through them and ......ohhh godddd.....my gooodness....there he's....i closed my eyes and opened again,just to make sure that i wasn't dreaming. Yes, it was him with that inimitable smile. I couldn't see anything else between him and me..Mind u, there were some very big singers and film stars sitting there. I would surely have given a second look to them on any other day. Maybe i would have pesteres them for autographs..But, not this day...When my idol is there in front of me....I thought of ways to get close to him...i went near the backstage waiting for the function to get over. I got a pen from a press photographer and stood there. The main function got over and next was the screening of the video and the guests were preparing to get down from the dias to the front row...This was my chance..I ran into the stage and pushed aside the man standing close to ARR[i later realised that it was the popular malayalam actor Jayaram] and got closeee to my idol. First thing I did was to touch him, just to check if this was a real man. Then I shook his hand. He still had that pleasant smile.Lots of people got there by then.The policemen swung into action and drew everyone away and made way for ARR to sit on the front row. Thank god...they din't see me standing there beside the big speaker set. I walked to his seat and gave pen and a piece of paper, which my little cousin had torn from his copy book and had given me as i left home. ARR scribbled ''luv ARR'' on it, but it was hard to make out. By then the policeman had grabbed my shirt and pulled me out. Still, I was happy. I got the autograph...
Then, the function got over. A.R.R was escorted to the outside of the palace and the fans and the police were running after him. Soon he was surrounded by an army of pressmen and policemen, outside the palace. There was no way I could've got near him now. Hmm...now lemme try a trick. I took out my mobile phone from my pocket and held it up and began shouting ''press..press'' at the policemen. This gave them the impression that am a press reporter[he hee...meee] wanting to record an interview with ARR. They gave me way and there I was now again standing close to ARR, the 3rd time this day. Oh...am i dreamingggggggg. Now it was time for the pressman Praveen to ask questions. The guys there were asking some question in Hindi like ''agla project kya hai''. Now I shooted my question, ''Sir, When r u gonna do a concert in Kerala?''..He smiled and said..''I Don't Know''...Then I said..''Sir, there are many die hard fans out here ,as u can see, who would love to see you livee....sir, pls do it for us''....he again smiled and said...''I'll try''. Now he was walking to his car...there were autograph hunters running behind him. Me too ran close behind him. As he reached his car and opened the door, someone called out ''Bolo A.R.Rahman Ki Jai''..We tooo joined him ..''Bolo A.R.Rahman Ki Jai''....He smiled and got in....The door closed. Lotz of guys were trying to catch a glimpse through the closed windows. Some guys clicked pictures of him. The sad thing for me was that I din't have a camera with me then. Still, I was happy for having met him....Now his car sarted to roll...and we all waved him goodbye..He too waved back....Then the Benz disappeared out of sight. I stood there for a few seconds looking at the road through which the car just went. And I could sense drops of tear in both my eyes. The first time in my life, I cried out of happiness...the happiness of having fulfilled a dream that i've been nursing from the day I heard Roja...the day I, for the 1st time truly loved a song....the day from which my life with A.R.Rahman's soul stirring started.....again i scribble the date heree......10/06/06......and in my heart.....No day can be better than this.......am still shaking my head wondering if all of this was a great dream.....
thanking my chechi again.....
i dedicate this post to the millions of A.R.Rahman fans who dream about meeting him someday...Hope all their wishes come true...
with tons of happiness and disbelief, your crusader Praveen
with tons of happiness and disbelief, your crusader Praveen
Friday, May 26, 2006
Arjun Singh and OBCingh
Yes, its now official. The central govt. has decided to implement the quotas in July 2007. And, for the 1st time all those dumb ass politicians had a single opinion on an issue. Even those who, at the back of their mind, may have wished to support the anti-reservationists didn't do so fearing a backlash in the elections. How I wished the politicians had shown the same unity in some developmental issue. This rarely seen unity points to another truly sad fact. There is not even a single politician in India who would stand by his ideologies and principles and who is brave enough to speak out what he thinks is right. They always see any issue with an eye on elections and votes.
Yes, its now official. The central govt. has decided to implement the quotas in July 2007. And, for the 1st time all those dumb ass politicians had a single opinion on an issue. Even those who, at the back of their mind, may have wished to support the anti-reservationists didn't do so fearing a backlash in the elections. How I wished the politicians had shown the same unity in some developmental issue. This rarely seen unity points to another truly sad fact. There is not even a single politician in India who would stand by his ideologies and principles and who is brave enough to speak out what he thinks is right. They always see any issue with an eye on elections and votes.
This power hungry politics is clearly visible in men like Arjun Singh. When I saw his interview on CNN IBN last week, I felt like going out there and shoot him to hell. He was not answer convincingly the scorching queries Karan Thapar put forward. Whenever he was strangled with difficult questions, he kept on repeating, ‘‘its for the parliament to decide’’. It was as if he wanted to wash his hands clean after creating all these problems. And he came across as a person who doesn’t have much knowledge of what actually is happening with the present quota system. Whichever arguments or reports were against him were dismissed as hyped or cooked up stories aimed at tarnishing his image. He simply refused to see the other side of reservations, the ugly side which speaks of shattered dreams of meritorious students. His stand cannot be termed as adamant, as this word has a positive sense sometimes. His is the shameless opinion of a wronged politician who always wants to hang on to power at any cost and by any dirty means. He always wants the spotlight to be turned on him.
Now, coming to Nehru’s comments on reservation. In a letter dated 27th June 1961, addressed to the CMs of the states, Nehru says, ‘‘I dislike any kind of reservation. If we go in for any kind of reservations of communal and caste basis, we will swamp the bright and able people and remain second rate or third rate. The moment we encourage the second rate, we are lost. This way lies not only folly, but also disaster.’’ Though am not a big fan of Nehru’s brand of politics, I agree wholeheartedly to this comment. The Modern day[No No, India is still not a modern society according to Mr. Arjun OBCing] politicians should take a leaf out of Nehru’s book and come out strongly against this injustice. More than half the seats reserved to SC/STs in Delhi University and IITs are still vacant. And Arjun bhai doesn’t even know the percentage of OBCs in India. All he knows is that he will give them 27 percent reservation, even if there are not enough OBCs in India to make up that number. Also there were reports on how for a few 100 rupees, a forward caste person could become an OBC in a day. All this shows that quotas are a futile exercise being thrust upon us under the veil of words such as ‘Social justice’ and ‘oppression of a 100years’. This will only hurl India to underdevelopment and inefficiency.
THE KERALA SCENE
Now coming to Kerala, my own beloved native state, the God’s own country. The so-called highly educated and enlightened people of Kerala were conspicuous by their silence. The Junior doctor’s association of Kerala refused to support the anti-reservationists. The students organisations, supposed to be champions of student’s cause, were also silent. These are the same guys who will hit the streets and destroy public property at the slightest provocation. The same guys who resorted to widespread protests against a minister(its another matter that the minister is kerala’s biggest sucker), after hearing the words of a lady(or is she a pro), who changes here opinions everyday along with her innerwear(Now don’t tell me she doesn’t change that). After all, what does a sex scandal got to do with a student organisation. Neither was the lady a student nor the culprit an education minister. The student organisations should raise their voice for issues that concern the students. If not, what is the meaning of campus politics. Maybe that’s why am still a neutral guy, not owing allegiance to any party, after 3 years in college.
The need of the hour in Kerala is an organisation on the lines of youth for equality. A Kerala chapter of the organisation would be a good idea. OK, the 1st member is here.....lets do it.....plz think abt it and tell your friends about it....such a highly educated society like ours should n’t keep quiet on this....SPREAD THIS MESSAGE.....
Also, could somebody tell me where are the livestrong arm bands manufactured. An anti reservation band or youth for equality band would be a good idea. They could make money and we could spread the message....readers plz respond and spread this message...LETS FIGHTTTT
Now coming to Kerala, my own beloved native state, the God’s own country. The so-called highly educated and enlightened people of Kerala were conspicuous by their silence. The Junior doctor’s association of Kerala refused to support the anti-reservationists. The students organisations, supposed to be champions of student’s cause, were also silent. These are the same guys who will hit the streets and destroy public property at the slightest provocation. The same guys who resorted to widespread protests against a minister(its another matter that the minister is kerala’s biggest sucker), after hearing the words of a lady(or is she a pro), who changes here opinions everyday along with her innerwear(Now don’t tell me she doesn’t change that). After all, what does a sex scandal got to do with a student organisation. Neither was the lady a student nor the culprit an education minister. The student organisations should raise their voice for issues that concern the students. If not, what is the meaning of campus politics. Maybe that’s why am still a neutral guy, not owing allegiance to any party, after 3 years in college.
The need of the hour in Kerala is an organisation on the lines of youth for equality. A Kerala chapter of the organisation would be a good idea. OK, the 1st member is here.....lets do it.....plz think abt it and tell your friends about it....such a highly educated society like ours should n’t keep quiet on this....SPREAD THIS MESSAGE.....
Also, could somebody tell me where are the livestrong arm bands manufactured. An anti reservation band or youth for equality band would be a good idea. They could make money and we could spread the message....readers plz respond and spread this message...LETS FIGHTTTT
with love, your crusader Praveen
Wednesday, May 17, 2006
Quotas...youth...awakening
Some days back, one of my friends was asking, ''hey crusader, u still haven't commented about the quota issue thats raging on in the country''. Now am not gonna postpone it. Because, this is a time when the protests for and against reservation has reached its peak.
We've been having quotas since the time we got independence. And what was said then was that this system would be continued until the day when the backward classes are able to stand on par with the forward class. But even after 58 odd years, the condition have not changed much, although the percentage of quota has since gone up. Also, the backward class has since then expanded to include some more exotic classes. It is in this scenario that Arjun Singh decided to include OBCs too under reservation and deprive the forward class of the already decreasing number of seats. And what was in his mind was clear. This is a nice way to show his power in the UPA. Because, none of the other ministers or MPs would dare to make a public statement against reservation. They could do so only at their own peril. He's just following the footsteps of another Singh, V.P.Singh of 'Mandal' fame, in playing this petty vote bank politics. Arjun Singh wanted to divide India's youth based on caste. But barring a few who support these quotas, a large number of the OBCs themselves are against this.
Arjun Singh was happy that his calculations were going right, as none of the ministers protested against the quota proposal.But the youth of India were not to be kept quiet. Initially, the doctors and medical students from AIIMS started the protests. An organisation called 'Youth for Equality' led the protests. Most of them were peaceful. But the police resorted to violent means and beat them up. Thats what sparked widepread agitations against reservation. Students cutting across professions has joined this fight against injustice. There were many candle lit protests and India Gate marches. These kind of novel protests were seen first after the verdict in the Jessica Lal case. That was the time when a movie called 'Rang De Basanti' released and inspired a whole nation of cine-goers, especially the GenX. The catchphrase 'a generation awakens' has now really come true. This is the 1st time that such a large scale get together of youth have become a reality. Watching the images of this protests on TV, you can see close parallels with the movie. Movies inspiring changes in society is not a new thing. When Swades released, it did give rise to some sort of reverse brain drain on a small scale. I've read some mails in certain forums of Indians working abroad, expressing their wish to work for India. And some of them did return back to the motherland. This change in attitude is also seen in the IIM recruitments. There were so many fresh graduates who refused job offers from foreign companies instead prefering to work here. Some of them expressed their desire to join the IAS and there are many others working in the rural villages striving hard for the upliftment of the downtrodden.
Coming back to the subject, if this reservation policy is implemented, the total reservation will go upto 49.5 percent. And mind you this is going to be done in IITs and IIMs, which is meant to polish out India's best brains. These are the ones who are to contribute in taking the nation forward to the big league. If the reservation is going to be implemented, so many undeserving candidates would get into these premier institutions. Its for sure that they would struggle in this highly competitive environment. They would even find it hard to passout of the institution. The need of the hour is revamping the primary education system with prominence given to the backward classes. We should equip them to reach their dreams rather than put them into more hardships in the name of fulfilling their dream. If they are given special training from the lowest level, they will surely be able to compete with others. The new proposal by the government is to increase the number of seats in the institutions in proportion to the increase in quotas, so the forward classes are not affected. But, still the 49.5 percent is to be taken from this number, which is unfair. And, where is the infrastructure to support such an increase in number?What the Government should do is to scrap the whole reservation thing, which has not taken India anywhere and which surely will not, in the future.This is impractical, u may all argue. But any Government which has the courage to take such a decision would be guaranteed of getting all my votes until death. Its another matter that after taking such a decision, the next election would see the party being wiped out from the face of Indian politics.
Now, Rang De Basanti has inspired all these protests. Some students at Allahabad even performed last rites on Arjun Singh's effigy. The protestors being beaten up reminds me of the 'Khoon Chala' song. All this has happened. Now am waiting for one last thing from the movie to happen. I wonder what the consequences of the next few words would be. Hopefully , not something like what happened to Rockus. Beacuse what I want to see is the killing of the minister by the youngsters, happening in real life. After all this deal of being awakened by the movie, this is one thing that is remaining to happen. Not one, but all those suckers who betrayed the country and the countrymen should be given this ultimate punishment .....HAIL RDB.....DOWN WITH THE QUOTAS......LET ALL INDIANS JOIN TOGETHER IN THIS FIGHT
NB- Some of my comments on this post may appear irrational to the readers. Yes, u r right. This post was written at a time when emotions were ruling over rationality inside me. So, reader discretion is requested. But, I won't find fault with any reader, who in a small period of indiscretion decides to carryout one of the wishes i expressed in this post.....
post your valuable comments
join the struggle against this injustice at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Youth-Forum-For-Justice/
with love, your crusader Praveen
Friday, May 12, 2006
THE RED DEVILS and THE SUN
The election results are out. Most of the results were on expected lines. And yes, my 1st vote has gone waste. Well, am not worried a bit. So lets look at what's special about the results this time around.
Kerala...The media is going gaga over the change that is sweeping all over the state. They are celebrating the change of guard in the state. But, actually i couldn't see any change. Its the same story repeating itself every 10 years. Beacuse, any wayside prophet worth his salt would know that, if it is LDF this time around, then it would be UDF next time. The most heartening news for me was the complete failure of DICK[yes..i prefer not to use tht bracket for K]. Muraleedharan's statement before the election that dick would decide the future of Kerala politics was given apt reply by the people of kerala. yes, DICK and Mr.K sucked big time. Then, another of the men i hated lost-Mr. Kunjalikutty...the man who's followers wrecked havoc at the karipur airport and replaced the national flag of our country with their stupid party flag. Now, its Achudanandhan all the way...the perennial fighter...the betrayed leader...the octagenarian loved by even small kids[the amazing sales of kids t shirts bearing his picture serves testimony to that]. Now, what remains to be seen is whether the red brigade lives upto the expectation of the people...yes, the same false hope we repeat every 5 years.
Tamilnadu...the land where one bag of rice or a punch dialogue from a superstar may win you an election. Sorry, this time around Television was the big winner. And the sun shone really bright over DMK and its allies. Jayalalithaa and her legion of sycophants are still puzzled that their rice program hasn't worked. Maybe, the voters thought that they could sell the TV and buy a tonne of rice if ever the need arises. For, the time being lets have some enteratinment. And it was fun watching JAYA TV today. After it became almost clear that, they were gonna lose, there came a shower of ads. Then there was news. Headlines were like...'Jaya wins by a whopping margin of 25000'....'Karunanidhi won only by a margin of 8000'....'AIDMK wins 8 seats in Chennai'...all this when the main news was DMK's amazing victory. Wonder what all they would show in the coming days. Then, Actor Napolean tasted defeat. I was surprised that an actor could lose an election in TN. oh, then I got the reason. He has done so many villain roles. And the people taught him a lesson for his villainy. Napolean sir, be careful next time u choose your roles.
Westbengal....as expected red army swept WB. Budhadheb Bhattacharya, the man who is changing the face of Bengal was the main factor. This is the Left front's seventh straight term at office. The previous victories, at the time of Jyoti basu, were marred with accusations of poll rigging and booth capture. But this time there are no such problems. Budhadeb's development oriented politics went well with the public. At the same time, he didn't forget about the agriculture sector. Thats the secret of his victory. Then there are 2 more ....Assam and Pondicherry. I don't have much knowledge of the politics there. So, am not goin into that.
Before I stop, lets go to Raibareilly. Sonia Gandhi won there by a record margin. What more can I say other than raising my middle finger at the lakhs of sycophants who voted for this bloody foreigner. 25 years down the line, u'll see Rahul Gandhi's son winning the election by a huge margin. The Indian voter's obsession with the members of the Nehru family will continue......who knows, the next winner from raebareilly could be sonia's dog.
with love, Your crusader Praveen
Before I stop, lets go to Raibareilly. Sonia Gandhi won there by a record margin. What more can I say other than raising my middle finger at the lakhs of sycophants who voted for this bloody foreigner. 25 years down the line, u'll see Rahul Gandhi's son winning the election by a huge margin. The Indian voter's obsession with the members of the Nehru family will continue......who knows, the next winner from raebareilly could be sonia's dog.
with love, Your crusader Praveen
pic courtesy-CNN IBN
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