About-Face

Culture is an important aspect of every civilization. It is the wheel that’s been driving the human mind so far in to the deepest caverns. Civilizations have been fighting for ages to preserve culture. History is written by winners and so a winning king is always in the company of glorious adjectives: tolerant, brave, victorious, benevolent, magnanimous, generous, and god-like and finally God while the losing guy is branded a tyrant, demonic, born killer, ivied, Satan’s son and the great Satan himself. A retrospective analysis of the wars and battles exemplifies that the need of war was to glorify the human ambitions, satisfy personal egos lacking rationale: blaming it on Mars, rather than cultural preservation. There has been no real good reason for any big wars or even for even small brushes. As my intuitions are based on reasoning, I am taking a deviation here to prevent juxtaposition of contradictions. Change is Hope and it is Progress juxtaposed with Catastrophe. Now, this is why I do not hate Democrats (I did not say I like anyone: Neo-political).
The secondary school language improvement class back at SAV, one of the best in the business, flashed in front of my eyes recently? Dejavu!(Doesn’t suit here!). The story of Ebenezer Scrooge was one of the stories that were enacted by small groups in the class. The transformation of Scrooge is what the story is all about (I am not forgetting Marley and the three ghosts). I think I played the third ghost, or the one that had the longer role! The way Dickens ends the story is admirable: One sentence is a touché for the entire story.
Well, on the track, “Meeting the Ghosts” brings the change and that’s why I had to quote Mr.Ebenezer here.
Once again, I would like to quote from “The Great Indian Novel” by Shashi Tharoor. In the foreward of this book, he says that India is in the highest rotten state and the eternal cycle of time will again take it to the peak and it is just a natural phenomenon that is beyond any kind of control varying only in magnitude.
The successful Indian version, IPL aping the European football leagues especially the EPL, ARR winning the OSCAR have already stolen enough fuel from the burning pyre. This is the talent pool of the billion plus people peeping out of the lidded jar.
Although the weird name, Sadam beach in kerala and the snake charmers protest playing flutes in Calcutta have attracted enough world attention, the recent headlines from the different tabloids around the world about India have been the brow elevators.
The recent news that really took me in is the Charter plane that took passengers from Delhi to Gaya over 45,000 feet to have a glimpse of the six minute long solar eclipse. This is of course, a miracle which will not happen again in our lifetime. But I do not when was the last time people in India opened their eyes, unfolded their praying hands to climb a charter plane to see any miracle and that too an eclipse. The holy bath in ganges, prayers, staying in doors are still at large. The price for the Eclipse travel is a whopping $1600!




Another act touted as a brave and a revolutionary one is the Delhi high court’s decision to lift the ban on the Gay relationships. There were people on the roads celebrating the court’s order. This is totally unusual from the land of conservatives letting lots of Johnnys and Abis lead the unusual tabooed life very commonly.
The Abercrombies and aeropostles have already taken strong roots burping the sales of so many local brands.
Aping continues; I found it really meaningful when Mastermind India, KBC and many other game and reality shows were produced in a number of local satellite channels to cater the local needs of billions of people. This is where like everything else this also takes an unexpected turn: Rakhi ka swayamvar: What a dumb –ass show! I dont understand why on Earth someone was interested in producing anything resembling “The Bachelor”. The shock was when I came to know the gamut of audience for this so called reality (stunt) show.Sorry folks, if you are one of the show followers.

I am happy that they did not name the show as Draupadi ka swayamvar!
The sex-ratio does not work out that way!!
Just to mention it here, another one of the recent headlines read this way: “No copters or limos, NRI in rickshaws”. I do not know how this news qualified for any kind of space on any newspaper.Adding to surprise, Katrina Kaif is finally replacing aishwaraya rai and kareena kapoor from most of the headlines atleast. This is good news.
One more feather in the heap:



The contrast: Who is poor?
Catch 1: Abdul Gali, 70, a beggar in front of a mosque in kerala has 80,000 in cash and receipts for 1.4 million and he challenges the police that this is the result of his honesty and hardwork.( Wake up people, its not Vivek ‘s blunt words but reality).

Catch 2: SRK bought an apartment for 20 million pounds in the Park Lane area in London which is supposedly a plush location.

It’s a classic Catch 22.

Catch 22: It’s the middle class’s “early Enough”.

Many more uncanny headlines adding frustration, “Sallu is human”. The step to apotheosis is because he is opening a T-shirt store to get money (which apparently he does not possess) for his charity organization, weird enough!

It’s Change in India: Progress juxtaposing Catastrophe