India against corruption:The Bangalore Satyagraha

This post was written before the news came out about the govt agreeing to all demands of Anna Hazare and his supporters. Below is what happened on April 7th(3rd day of the fast) at Bangalore.

When Anna Hazare speaks, the country listens. His never ending struggles have given us the RTI act, caused many corrupt politicians to lose their jobs and also gave us the hope that one man can ignite a flame big enough to wake up a whole nation. With his ongoing fast against corruption and for the implemetation of the 'Jan Lok Pal bill', he has done just that, yet again. The first day's fast(on april 5th) was lost in the euphoria of India's world cup victory. But, by the second day many started asking 'who's anna hazare?'. And by the 3rd day, a large majority of Indians knew Anna and each point of the Jan Lok Pal bill. Fasts and candle light vigils are happening all over the country right now.

Few of those who are undergoing the indefinite fast

a warning to yeddy man and all the politicians in India

On the 3rd day(April 7th), me and my friend Romel decided to join the satyagrahis at Freedom park in Bangalore. The idea of fasting had never crossed my mind in my 25 years of existence, until today. Anyway, on thursday morning, instead of going to office, we headed in the opposite direction to Freedom park. We were disappointed to see just a small group of 15 people sitting there(too bad for a city of almost 1 crore population). Out of this, 6 of them were fasting non stop for the last 3 days, right from the minute Anna Hazare started. Among them were M.K.Gandhi, yoga instructor and Ashuthosh, an entrepreneur. A retired teacher tried to cheer the satyagrahis up with soulful renditions of Gandhi Bhajans. Then, slowly the crowd began to swell.

some success

wish atleast half of those came out after India's world cup victory truned up for this movement...

An autodriver(name forgotten) was there from morning till evening, sacrificing his day's earnings. If he can do it, why can't we, the salaried class? His presence and his speeches went a long way in reducing my hatred towards Bangalore's autowallahs. Indeed, there are good people everywhere(even among HRs :P ). There was a little kid too, with her colouring book, intermittently snatching the placard from her mother. M.K.Gandhi spoke about how corruption is deep rooted by citing an example of him being asked for bribe by the security at the freedom park yesterday night for letting him use the restroom. Environmentalist Yellappa Reddy spoke at length about how corrupt officials are killing our forests. Many of whom turned up talked about their personal experiences with corruption. It was evident, very few(none?) are left untouched by this evil in India. In between all this, there were some who tried to use this stage for their own personal agenda. This included a group of college kids who came with 'ABVP' banners and another group of 'kannada activists'. Thankfully, the organisers told them politely that no other agendas are allowed other than Jan Lok pal bill and anti-corruption.

M.K.Gandhi, one of the 12 who are undergoing indefinite fast at freedom park....
Yellappa Reddy,famous environmentalist

an autodriver who spent the whole day at the freedom park....sacrificing his day's earnings....If he can do it, why cant the high salaried class do it!

the kid too decided to put in her might, so as to protect her futuresometimes she went back to her colouring book

By noon, the crowd swelled again, thanks to a big bunch of college students who came in their college buses. These college managements has to be appreciated for taking such thoughtful steps. The students' spirited sloganeering brought the freedom park to life. With placards in support of Anna Hazare and his movement, they strode in and filled up the park. The media was in good strength too by this time. It was a pleasure to see the empty venue getting filled up gradually. After 2, we had to leave to finish our duties at office. But we continued our fast till night, making it 24 hours. And, it was not as hard as we thought.

college students shouting slogans in support of Anna Hazare

high spirited!

future leaders..

an apt venue for the fast

romel, who accompanied me to the freedom park.

more placards

a lady speaking about her tryst with corrupt public servants

people signing up for the movement

On wednesday, when I decided to go for this, I heard so many highly negative comments from all around. I read similar comments in various online communities and in our office bulletin board. It was the same old 'Nothing's gonna change here', 'whats the use', 'This won't work' kind of comments. Thankfully only few congress,BJP symathisers and ultra pessimists share this view. They came up with all kinds of conspiracy theories like Anna Hazare is trying to gain a back door entry to government and that 'civil society' will hamper the development of this country. Either these people are utterly hopeless fools or are acting like fools even after knowing the facts. So, stamp out the negativity. Get out and support in whatever way you can. Your presence at the venues can make a lot of difference(even if its for an hour). This might or might not be a success. But the fact that atleast some of us will now think twice before paying a bribe can bring about a change. Wish atleast half of those who came out at midnight to cheer the Indian cricket team's world cup win, turns up for this.

Check the location and contact person in your city at this link- http://indiaagainstcorruption.org/citycontacts.php

The complete draft of the Jan Lok Pal bill and everything that you need to know about the issue is available in the site- http://indiaagainstcorruption.org/

It was heartening to see a big crowd of software engineers take out a protest march all over electronic city today evening.

your crusader Praveen

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

Madhugiri Fort-A trek

I was suddenly bitten by the travel bug again last week while watching a superb travel documentary. After watching that, there was no way I could've stayed back home last weekend. But, I ran out of ideas thinking of places to set sail to. Thats when I stumbled upon a blog , describing about a place called Madhugiri. After the mood killer of a world cup match on saturday, we had a perfect sunday thanks to Madhugiri.

Madhugiri is in Tumkur district, about 110 kms from Bangalore. The metro rail construction can slow down your progress out of Bangalore city, if you don't get out quite early in the morning. Then its smooth sailing until the place called Dobbaspete, about 60km from Bangalore. After that, the road is bad at certain stretches and you will find yourself tossed up inside your vehicle. As you near Madhugiri, you can see a huge rock overlooking the road from the distance. Yes, thats the one you are supposed to scale.

the structure near the entrance to Madhugiri fort

A fort was built by Vijayanagar dynasty on Madhugiri hills, which is the largest monolith in Asia and second largest in the world(courtesy-wikipedia). You could see some of the fort gateways from the bottom itself. A not so pompous gate welcomes you to the palace. The climb starts soon. For a good part, there are steps carved out of the rock. At rest of the places, you just need to lean forward and walk up the rock. The climb gets steep at some places and its better to be careful not to slip or tumble down. As you walk up, you can catch a glimpse of the Madhugiri town, with its closely packed houses, a temple, bus stand, fields and few small lakes. The aerial view is a treat.

A special feature of this hill is that you will never truely realise how high it is or how much more you've to trek until you reach the very end. We were fooled into thinking that the trek will end at the next gateway atleast 4 times. And when we reach the said gateway and take a peep through it, we will see the sight of the hill towering over you with more gateways to conquer. A sad thing we saw at Madhugiri was that most of the walls were disfigured by 'modern stone carvings'. Yes, I meant those love signs, lover's names and classic exercises in narcissism, which are a bane at most of our historical monuments. Most of them have taken the pain to carve deeply into the walls and rocks. Guess these are those 'brave' souls who have a fear of professing their love in the open. So, they travel great distances and carve their love laden messages in stones in obscure places in the faint hope that their lovers will see it when they visit the same obscure places many years down the line!

And, so after a 3 hour trek uphill(with ample rest time-drinking water, eating glucose,chocolates), we reached the top. There are ruins of a temple at the top. Cool breeze, shining sun and endless blue skies welcomed us at the top. After spending some time at the top, we had a quick downhill trek which took barely an hour. It was a day well spent...

a view of Madhugiri town

There are stairs at some places

The structure at the top

The team...downhill journey

another view of Madhugiri town

Modern stone carvings

not an inch of space left

Travel directions-
Go straight for about 60kms on Tumkur road, until you reach Dobbaspete. From there, take right turn. A ride of about 40 Kms will take you to Madhugiri. Make sure you take a lot of water. We exhuasted our supply before we could reach the top.

your crusader Praveen

Two incidents

This post is not meant to defame any religion. These are just word by word account of 2 real life incidents.

Incident No-1
It was a saturday, some weeks back. I met my old schoolmate after a gap of almost 5 years. We went around the city in my bike and was coming back home in the evening. Somewhere near majestic, we were stopped by a traffic policeman who jumped out of nowhere to the middle of the road. Over the years, I've developed this technique of avoiding the morons in khaki and white by speeding or going through the right side of a bus at places where they usually stand. This time, it was a new road and I was caught. Now, it was time to open my usual bag of tricks, which I use when I get caught. Fat policeman with big round belly asks for license, rc book etc which I promptly hand over. Then he sees my 'Kerala registration' number plate. Seeing this, he demanded money. I narrated my 3 yeard old (fake) story of being a newbie in Bangalore who came hunting for job from Kerala. He asks me to show him my wallet. The sight of 100 rupees lights up his eyes. I refuse to part with it saying its the only money we have for our dinner. Then he hurled a load of abuses. More pleadings later...

Traffic policeman-What is your name?
Me-Praveen
T policeman- HINDU?

10 seconds of shock, hatred, anger later, I nodded my head in the affirmative. I stopped myself from talking back thinking about the royal screw up that these guys are capable of dishing out.

And then surprisingly, at that very minute, he asked me to leave. Without paying any fine. Yes, that happened in Bangalore, capital of 'beef banned' Karnataka. And, my friend who was with me and who was watching all this conversation, happened to be a muslim. While we were riding back, I matter of factly told him, 'Imagine, if he had asked you that question'. And, then he told me about some incidents in Mangalore, where he's pursuing a career in medicine.

Incident No-2
Three of his classmates(A muslim couple and their common Hindu friend) went out on a Friday morning. After having a jolly good time at a mall there, the muslim boy went to the mosque leaving his beloved with their friend. As these two friends were walking on the streets, a group of men came rushing and asked both of their religions.They told the truth. And, the thrashings followed, both to the boy and the girl. The men belonged to the notorious 'Sri Ram sene'. Apparently, these men are against people of these religions mixing together, especially if its a male and female. The two of them sustained a lot of injuries. And this was not one isolated incident. My friend narrated to me quite a few.

I leave it at that. Judging on these two incidents, I leave it to you.

Unrelated PS- I was 'born' a Hindu. I eat beef. And I've ways of getting it here in Bangalore eventhough some bigots are hell bent on preventing us from eating it.

your crusader Praveen

The Corporate World Cup

Cricket fans getting lathicharged near Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore as they wait for non-existent tickets!

This monday was a day of anticipation. On the previous day, I had recieved the notification from kyazoonga, the online ticketing agency, about the release of the tickets of the cricket world cup final. Only 4000 tickets were to be sold to the public, out of which only 1000 will come online. The tickets were to be available on the site from 1 PM on monday. A server down message greeted us at the site at 1 PM. Frantic calls to friends followed for one hour. And atlast, the site becomes active. I was jumping up with joy as the ticket booking page with the stadium seating arrangements loaded slowly on my screen. And then I hovered the mouse over one of the stands and it flashes "Rs.12500". For a moment, I thought I might be seeing zeroes when there are none. Then as it sunk in, I consoled myself with the thought that this might be one of those expensive stands. Mouse over next stand flashes "Rs.18750". And rest of the stands tickets were frozen. Yes, these are the rates of the tickets meant for the general public. Am I the only one smelling a scam here?

The scam doesn't start with the ticket prices. It started with the renovation of the stadiums. Most stadiums where renovation happened, has ended up with lesser seating capacities. The Wankhede stadium where the finals are to happen has ended up with a capacity of 33,000 from the original 40,000. And, why are the finals happening in such a small stadium when we have much bigger ones all around(Eden gardens??). If the 'Mumbai lobby' really wanted the final to be in Mumbai, why not the D Y Patil stadium with a capacity of 60,000? And, of the 33,000 available seats, 20,000 tickets are reserved for the Mumbai Cricket Association. Special passes are a necessity, but its no more special when more than 50% goes to politicians, bureaucrats, officials, their second wife's third husband's neighbour and so on. And many of these special passes later appear in the black market at exhorbitant rates. Cricket in India is certainly in the hands of businessmen.

When the India-England match was shifted from Eden gardens, it brought happiness as well as a tinge of sadness. Sadness for the mecca of Indian cricket losing a game. And happiness for the match coming to my backyard in Bangalore. We decided to queue up for the tickets that were to be sold from 8 AM today. The plan was to go there around 4 AM and queue up. But then, something told me that it won't work out as expected. In the end, we decided against it. Thankfully, that decision saved us from a lathicharge and a useless wait in the queue. Some of my friends who went at 11 30 PM ended up coming home empty handed and someone even had a bonus in the form of a bandage. In Bangalore, the public was to get just 8000 tickets. From what happened today, it seems only around 2000 were sold. The counter opened and closed before anyone knew about it. Those who walked back dejectedly included people who came from nearby districts taking leave from their meagre paying jobs, just because they love this game.

Its a scam of the highest kind where our cricketing bodies are hand in glove with black marketeers. The arrival of the IPL changed the way cricket functions. The IPL auctions are one of the ugliest things to have happened to this game. And it hit depths when legends like Ganguly, Dravid and Kumble were not bid by anyone in the auctions. It pains even more to see that these decisions are taken by such petty creatures like shahrukh khan and shilpa shetty. Cricket's no longer in the hearts of those millions of common men who paint their faces, wave the flags and cheer loudly from the stands all day long. Its in the hands of a privileged few in Armani suits, who has eaten up this beautiful game with their financial clout. There's an old saying in Malayalam, "Panathinu meethe parunthum parakkilla"(Not an eagle will fly over money). It seems some rich vultures are indeed flying over our lovely game.

your crusader Praveen

The Theyyam Experience

Eminent theyyam artist Aneesh Peruvannan during mukhathezhuthu(face painting)

It was a thursday night, two weeks back. Thats when my friend Munz, the metalhead cum photographer cum politician from Kannur pinged me and asked, 'Coming to watch a theyyam here in my hometown'? I never thought twice when I heard that. And on friday night, I found myself travelling in the general compartment to Thalipparambu in Kannur. The year 2011 seems to have started a strange love affair between me and general compartments with already 3 trips in the overcrowded box in my kitty! After landing in Kannur, I roamed around in the majestic St.Angelo's fort, overlooking the sea. My host was busy with a (secret) high risk photography assignment. My all time favorite food and drink(Kappa-meen curry and Sharjah shake) kept me in high spirits as I started the short bus journey to Thalipparambu. Kannur lived up to its reputation of being a 'communist bastion' with red flags and banners at every junction. And my friend being a staunch communist himself, had renamed his street as 'Che Guevara lane'.

By the time I reached Munz's house, it was time to get out for theyyam. The bike started moving through the narrow inner roads of Thalipparambu. A brilliant sunset over a river provided the perfect setting for a heady evening. We lost our way many times and travelled so much that, atlast when we reached the place I felt like I reached the end of the world. Mulloor kaav is a non-descript temple in the interior of Thalipparambu. A brief digression for the sake of those who don't know much about theyyam.(This was my first theyyam experience, BTW). Theyyam is a ritualistic art form practised in Northern Kerala, mainly in Kannur and Kasargod districts, which were once known as kolathunaadu. It involves intricate movements and dance steps which faintly resemble kalarippayattu. There are hundreds of different varieties of theyyam, each in tribute to a particular deity. It is an art which needs years and years of practise. What makes this art form stand out is that it is performed by those belonging to the lower castes(castes like vannan,malayan). It is a kind of revolutionary uprising of the downtroddens. So, unlike Kathakali, which is for the classes, theyyam is the art of the masses. And to challenge the Brahmanical ideas of purity, the theyyam drinks kallu(toddy) and eats meat. Sacrificing of cocks is a part of the ritual for some theyyams.

The big rings being worn over the legs

getting ready

a mirror is pointed at the theyyam after the makeup. Thats when the theyyam acquires the characters of God...The old man sees God in the theyyam and prays with folded hands

This theyyam was to take place in the courtyard of a tharavaadu(ancestral house). Thanks to my friend, we reached there in time to shoot the process of mukhathezhuthu(face painting). Aneesh peruvannan is a theyyam artist with years of experience and have won several awards. He smiled shyly as we started clicking him. At the end of the painting, a mirror is pointed at him. This is when he acquires the characteristics of the theyyam, changes facial expressions and jumps into the courtyard. The main theyyam for the day was called kandanar kelan theyyam. The first part of any theyyam performance is vellattam or thottam(only one of this will be there for a particular theyyam). In this part, the face paintings and the props are simple. The 'thottam paattu' is sung during this time. It describes the origin of the theyyam and related things in a song format. Its a form of social commentary which tells us the conditions that existed in the bygone era, the stories of oppression and cruelty by the rulers towards the lower castes. 'Vellattam',on the other hand, is a toned down version of the main theyyam, but with more acrobatics as the artist is wearing no props. After 'vellattam', the theyyam goes back to the makeup room. Then starts the long process of the intricate face paintings, body paintings and putting on the props. In this gap, another theyyam might take place. This day, it was a performance of 'kudiveeran', eulogising an ancestral martial arts expert of that particular house.

'Vellattam' for Kandanar Kelan theyyam

Vellattam has more acrobatics than the main theyyam

playing with fire

a cock being sacrificed for 'kudiveeran'

kudiveeran

The whole locality had gathered in and around the courtyard to watch the theyyam. Its a time for coming together, for those who have gone to far away places to come back to their ancestral homes and share the togetherness. One of the best things during the breaks were the talks with the old men. They were happy to tell us the stories behind each theyyam. A short version of the story of Kandanar Kelan can be read here. It helped that my friend also knew quite a lot about theyyam. His metal band 'The down troddenz' and some of their songs are infact inspired from ideas behind theyyams. The main performance of 'Kandanar Kelan' was to take place at 4 in the morning. It was a long wait, but well spent with Munz and our other photographer friend Clint Soman. We sat there in that divine atmosphere in biting cold, bitching about everything under the sun. The theyyam artists caught some much needed sleep at that time. Some of the paintings were done while he was still asleep. During the season, they never get any respite, performing at temple after temple, night after night and sometimes during the day.

Exactly at 4, the chendas and the small pipe sounded. Kandanar Kelan's 'mudi'(the big prop on the head) was worn. Big metal rings were put over his legs. The moment arrived and Kandanar Kelan ran into the courtyard in all his glory. A big bonfire was prepared at the centre of the courtyard. The theyyam ran and jumped over it. Two helpers on either side supported him as he ran swiftly over the blaze. It was a sight to behold. Viewed from the front, it looked like a human phoenix rising from the flames. There were many others running around adding fuel to fire, fuel being dry coconut leaves. The fire raged like a mountain. We couldn't withstand the heat even from the distance. The toughness of mind, the years of practice and above all the inner purity needed for a theyyam performance like this is enormous. And its a mystery how the theyyam never get burns. Instead, he was jumping and running over it again and again. The eyes were fierce, as if he would devour the whole big blaze. At that moment, I saw divinity in him. Its no surprise that 'theyyam' is a word derived from 'deivam'(God).

Kandanar Kelan theyyam jumps over fire

rising like a phoenix

get, set, go

I disappear...into the fire

I was mesmerised to say the least. It was a feeling similar to what I had when I came out after my first metal concert. Yes, this will match any metal concert, any day! And, by then I had fallen in love with kolathunaadu too, with its rich traditions and warm, friendly people. Now my aim is to watch each of those hundreds of theyyams. Guess my friend will curse the moment he decided to invite me, after reading the previous sentence.

Join my recently launched photography page in face book- http://www.facebook.com/myopiclensesphotography

your crusader Praveen

Prisoners of conscience

"Even if a 1000 sinners go unpunished, an innocent man should never be punished". This is supposed to be one of the unwritten laws of judiciary. But the Indian govt and judiciary seems to believe in just the opposite. Mass murderers walk free through our streets. Cold blooded rapists contest elections. Corrupt officials get a pat on the back and promotion to boot. Less said the better, about corrupt politicians. So how will we fill up the jails? Easy it is! Use one of those words like terrorism or maoism, frame a case against someone who's not even remotely connected with any of these and put him in jail. It helps that no one in India will ever question if a person is arrested in connection with one of these 'isms'. And matters are made easier when a section of the media is ready to give breathless coverage and conduct a 'virtual execution' of the 'traitor'.

Binayak Sen-Prisoner of conscience

'Sedition' is the buzzword nowadays in judicial circles. Dr.Binayak Sen is the innocent victim of this ugly word, which is twisted to suit those at the top. And his crime? Treating the poor and down trodden Indians living in naxal hit villages and then speaking out against the notorious salwa judum, the supposedly anti-naxalite people's army of Chattisgarh. Binayak Sen is also the national vice president of People's Union for civil liberties, which was one of the organisations that spoke out against the Judum's atrocities in the name of fighting naxals. Innocent villagers were killed and women raped by the special police officer's(SPO) of the Salwa Judum. The Judum started as a people's movement to fight naxals but later morphed into a monster which is even worse than the naxals.(Read this Tehelka article to know about some of their atrocities). Binayak Sen speaking out against this state sponsored terrorism ruffled a few feathers. And they hit back with a vengeance, arresting him in 2007. He was branded as a naxal and as a threat to national security. This, even after he spoke out against the violent ways of the naxals. After almost 3 years in jail, the Raipur court sentenced him to life imprisonment 2 weeks back. Another victim of the sedition charge is Sudhir Dhawle, the editor of vidrohi magazine, who was arrested this week. This well known human rights activist was also arrested on charges of having close links with naxals. Yet another case of the mighty state trying to silence those who speak uncomfortable truths happened with the Karnataka police framing false cases against K.K.Shahina, Tehelka's reporter who wrote a report on how the police paraded false witnesses in the Madani case. They even branded her a terrorist, allegedly because of her name which symbolised the community she belonged to. And, of course none can forget the other high profile victim of the sedition drama, Arundathi Roy.

Sudhir Dhawle protesting against the injustice meted out to Binayak Sen. Ironic that, he himself was arrested on the same charges soon after this!

K.K.Shahina, a honest reporter who was branded a terrorist!

All these instances point to a police state becoming increasingly uncomfortable with its citizens speaking out against its wrongdoings. I used to think that human rights activists are a burden to the society with their negative approach to the government. The mainstream media also did contribute to this blinkered view of mine. But, over the last few years, with the emergence of alternate news sources, the campaign of misinformation run by the state and its cronies is slowly unravelling. Without these bunch of activists who bravely question the injustices and stand up for the rights of the silenced, our country will be in deeper danger. I still regard Arundathi Roy's views on azadi and afzal guru with utter contempt. But there are other issues that activists including her have spoken out about, which deserves to be heard and acted upon. The plight of the kashmiris reeling under the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act[AFSPA], the plight of the tribals driven away by mining corporations, the plight of the poor Indian citizen tormented by the police and many other similar cases need to be discussed in the civil society.

The sedition law stated in section 124A clearly states that "Comments expressing disapprobation of the administrative or other action of the Government without exciting or attempting to excite hatred, contempt or disaffection, do not constitute an offence under this section." All the above said cases fall under this particular category. There was never an attempt to excite hatred, but an expression of disapproval in the way the state behaves in particular scenarios. The sedition law dates back to the days of the British empire, with appropriate changes made after independence. There are suggestions in various circles to repeal the law itself. A better idea would be to use it wisely. But the way the government is using it to silence its critics sets a dangerous precedent. Its these disagreeing voices which acts as corrective forces and balances the democracy. By shutting them up and selling its propaganda, the Indian state is edging closer to show signs of an autocratic state. Its time more voices spoke up. A lone wolf is easy to hunt down, but not a pack of them.

your crusader Praveen

Cherrapunjee Indigenous Festival 2010

If you been planning a trip to north east and if you also happen to be a die hard rock fan, next week is the time to go! The Cherrapunjee indigenous festival is on from Dec 8th to Dec 11th. You might all be familiar with the name 'Cherrapunjee', which was a constant in our school history books as the place which recieves the highest rainfall in India. The festival's aim is to showcase the traditional art and culture of Meghalaya. The display of traditional archery will be one of the highlights. But, what might be of big interest to all the rock fans out here will be the national level rock competition to be held on the 10th of December, where the winning band will take home a cash price of Rs. 1.5 lakhs.

The icing on the cake is going to be the performances by 9 specially invited bands. The list of bands performing are as follows.

1. Indus Creed- One of India's first 'big' bands 'Indus Creed' is making a comeback. And, one of the first set of concerts is going to be at Cherrapunjee. The rock machine fronted by Uday Benegal is coming together after a real long hiatus of 10 years. So, be there to witness what they've in store for you.

2. Soulmate- The blues duo of Rudy Wallang and Tipriti 'tips' Kharbhangar needs no introduction. I've already talked about them in this blog last month. This is surely an unmissable treat.

3.Abiogenesis- A rock fusion band from Nagaland who invented a genre of their own-'Howey'. Discover for yourselves what exactly that is, cos even I don't have any idea. BTW, They were nominated for grammys in the world music category last time.

4. Susmit Bose- Dubbed as the 'Indian Bob Dylan', he's a veteran who's been performing since the 70s. His songs dealing with human rights, non violence, world peace etc has earned him accolades and also at the same time highlighted important issues.

5. Lama Tashi- The former Principal Chant master of the Dalai Lama will add a dash of spirituality to the proceedings.

6. Gyomyo Nakamura- This Japanese Buddhist is a rock musician who is said to possess some insane guitaring skills.

7. Girish n the Chronicles- This Gangtok based rock band was the first Indian band to compete in Suncane Skale music festuval in Montenegro.

8. Colours-A Shillong based band formed way back in 2004.

9. Snow White



So, Booked your tickets to Cherrapunjee????

your crusader Praveen