Sep

3

Famous Indians who died in air crashes

September 3, 2009 posted by indiatime | 10 Comments

Famous Indian personalities that have died in air crashes:

Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose - freedom fighter, (1945) - airplane crash over Taiwan

Homi J. Bhabha - nuclear scientist, (1966) - airplane crash on Mount Blanc, France

S. Mohan Kumaramangalam - politician, (1972) - airplane crash near Delhi

Sanjay Gandhi - politician, (1980) - helicopter crash in Delhi

Ashok Birla - industrialist, (1990) - airplane crash near Bangalore

Surendra Nath - Governor of Punjab (1994) - airplane crash in Himachal Pradesh

Madhav Rao Scindia, (2001) - airplane crash in Uttar Pradesh

G.M.C. Balayogi - parliament speaker, (2002) - airplane crash in Andhra Pradesh

Kalpana Chawla - astronaut (2003) - space shuttle crash over Texas

Soundarya, actress (2004) - airplane crash near Bangalore

O. P. Jindal - Industrialist (2005) - helicopter crash in Uttar Pradesh

YSR Reddy - chief minister, (2009) - helicopter crash near Kurnool

Aug

18

Is America adopting Hinduism’s ways?

August 18, 2009 posted by indiatime | 9 Comments

This week’s Newsweek has an interesting take on America’s changing religious identity. Although more than three-fourths of the USA still identifies itself as Christian, the article argues that America is slowly adopting Hinduism’s values. Recent trends show that more than 65% Americans (including 37% white evangelicals) now acknowledge the validity of other paths towards God. More than a third Americans now choose cremation instead of burials after death. And one in every four Americans, now believes in reincarnation.

There are more than a million Hindus who currently call the United States their home. But Hinduism came to this country way back, more than a century ago. In his book Hinduism Invades America, Wendell Thomas describes the various ways Hinduism slowly made way into the American psyche. Brought to America by liberal Christians who wanted a world view of various religions, Hinduism came via religious congresses and conventions. Vivekananda in early 1890s, Yogananda in 1920, Shiva Yogaswami in 1940s, Yogi Mahesh in the late 1950s, Abhay Charan De aka Swami Prabhupad in the 1960s (and even the notorious Acharya Rajneesh in the 1980s), established movements, which over several decades, became the backdrop for America’s interest in Hinduism and its various forms like yoga.

Some have attributed the quiet rise of Hinduism to the quiet ways of its practitioners. D. M. Murdock (aka Acharya S.) credits Hinduism’s success in America to “its practitioners (in the US) do not rabblerouse, set up terrorist camps, call for destruction of the US constitution, bilk the American public for millions, establish bogus charities, engage in unethical & seedy televangelism, lobby congress for special favors and considerations, challenge constantly the principle of separation of church and state, abuse the First Amendment and all of the fun stuff (sarcasm) we are used to seeing from fervent religionists in our country and elsewhere“.

Still, nothing works like first impressions, they say, and sure enough, I’m sure America’s romance with Hinduism started with its first glimpse of Vivekananda who had this to say to his American audience in his first meeting with them in Chicago:

“…I am proud to belong to a religion which has taught the world both tolerance and universal acceptance. We believe not only in universal toleration but accept all religions as true. I am proud to belong to a nation which sheltered the persecuted and the refugees of all religions and all nations of the earth…

The present convention, which is one of the most August assemblies ever held, is itself a vindication, a declaration to the world, of the wonderful doctrine preached in The Gita: Whosoever comes to me, through whatsoever form, I reach him. All men are struggling through paths which in the end lead to me… ”

Incidentally, two Indian names that the Americans have become most familiar with during the last year, Bobby Jindal and A. R. Rehman, were both born Hindus but adopted other religions - Jindal choosing Christianity and Rehman choosing Islam.

And interestingly, a hundred-plus years after that speech in Chicago, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom, recently placed India on a watch list of nations that have failed to prevent increasing communal violence. India has called that report regrettable.

Jul

19

Tales from Udaipur

July 19, 2009 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

The Travel and Leisure magazine has come out with its list of the top ten cities to visit in the world. At the top of the list is Udaipur, India, for its rich and real sense of the culture, shopping opportunities and art collections. No other city figured in the magazine’s list, not even when it came to the top ten cities in Asia.

Udaipur is named after king Udai Singh who founded it, making it his capital, after mughal king Akbar captured the Rajput capital city of Chittor. When only six years of age, his elder half-brother raised his hand against a senior Rajput chieftain from Ajmer. The events set in motion a revenge killing, where little Udai Singh’s brother Rana Bikramjit was killed and the killers came after the 6-year old surviving prince.

The story goes that Panna Dai, the nanny who looked after the little prince, herself had a 6-year old son who also doubled as the prince’s playmate. That fateful day, the nanny’s son ended up doubling as the prince himself and was assassinated by the killers who thought he was the real prince. In the meantime, nanny Panna had managed to have the palace barber escort the real prince Udai Singh to safety. The prince resurfaced several years later, after spending his days of anonymity at the house of a jain merchant named Asha Shah, who was also the local governor.

Here’s the thing. The only person who knew who the real prince was, was Panna, the palace nanny. In the days when there was no scientific evidence or anything to back that story up, who is to say the nanny didn’t save her own son and told on the real prince? After all, by making the story up about saving the real prince, she would get best of both the worlds - getting her own son on the throne and getting the honor to have served the royals well.

The closest proof that the surviving prince might indeed have been the royal blood comes from two things. Udai Singh grew up and married 20 different women, something of an indication that his may indeed have been royal blood. The second and the perhaps the more definitive is that one of his sons turned out to be Maharana Pratap, one of the most famous warriors of the Mewar clan, and one of Indian history’s biggest and most revered warrior heroes.

Jul

13

Vegetarian village still protecting its past

July 13, 2009 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

Today’s Times has a story about Bannikoppa, a small village in Karnataka state, a place where everybody is a vegetarian, and where the village residents do not own any animals but cows. Attempts to own chickens, goat or sheep have ended in those animals dying of mysterious conditions.

Actually, the villages say they do know the secret behind the mystery. Pandavas, India’s 5 ancient warrior brothers from the epic Mahabharata, supposedly camped here during their 12-year exile. The locals believe that the warrior brothers sustained themselves on fruits and farm produce alone, hated chickens and all other farm animals except cows.

That’s not all. Most males in the village is named after one of the 5 warrior brothers. Luckily, unlike the Pandavas, the villagers do not share a single wife.

They are all strict vegetarians, all the folks in Bannikoppa are. And they are also strict about not letting anyone else live in their village overnight. Those who end up in the village for work-related activities, have to get out of the Bannikoppa village before dark.

And the locals are also supposedly strict about not allowing anyone from other castes to dirty their lakes. The village has a government-appointed watchman who forbids lower castes to draw water from the village lakes.

May

29

“…The chief of the ATS died like a dog on the street, but nobody wants to take the responsibility….”
- Kavita Karkare (wife of anti-terrorism chief Hemant Karkare)

The wives of Mumbai’s top cops who laid their lives down on 26/11 last year, are slamming a sham report written by a government-appointed bureaucrat. The so-called investigative report has absolved all the governmental bodies and officials including those responsible for key decisions on the fateful night 26/11. Joked a senior minister from the Maharashtra government,

“….It appears that we are encouraged by the report submitted by veteran bureaucrat Ram Pradhan on the terror attack. He has unexpectedly given a clean chit to all. The moot question is that if every one in the police force performed his duty, then why did the attack take place and why did we not react to the alerts sent by the Centre? After Pradhan’s report, every one in the government is in a relaxed mood. If there is delay in procurement of weapons, no one will be held responsible…”

While the wife of the former anti-terrorism chief is complaining that her husband died like a dog on the street, Vinita Kamte, wife of Mumbai’s late additional commissioner of police, is no less bitter in alleging that her right to information petition request has prompted the authorities to blank out 10 minutes of calls from the records.

And what does the newly elected prime minister have to say to the martyrs who died for their country? While the government’s cronies cleared every one of those in the chain of command that night, the prime minister himself was celebrating his new victory, rewarding the then chief minister of Maharashtra with an important portfolio in the cabinet and promising the then sacked home minister that he would be taken care of. “we’ll take care of everyone…”, promised the prime minister.

Thank you, sir. We truly appreciate your vision and thank you for helping us forget the tragedy of 26/11. It is better that such bitter memories are quickly forgotten and erased. These martyrs’ wives are just bitter and upset and do not understand how nations conduct their business. Good governance means you have to take along those, and shield all who are cronies and phonies, and make them look good, no matter how badly they screw up or what havocs their incompetence wreaks.

And Hemant, my friend, I know you’re in heaven somewhere reaping the rewards for your sacrifice as a soldier and a good life as an honest man. Just in case you choose to be reborn in this country (not too sure you will), make sure you choose to be the son of some current politician. That is the only way to reap rewards in a land that continues to spit on its great soldiers and martyrs, and still garlands and idolizes rajahs and kings and ministers.

May

22

Abusing Gods to win their affection

May 22, 2009 posted by indiatime | 19 Comments

kunde habba - courtesy Hindu.comAbusing and insulting someone to win their affection may seem like a bad idea to many. But tribals in south India have created an entire festival around the idea. ‘Kunde Habba’ or ‘Bodu Habba’ is an annual festival usually celebrated during the last week of May, in Kodagu district, amidst the southern hills of Karnataka state.

Apparently, once of the time, the people of the region were promised by Lord Ayyappa that He would take them hunting. And they say he did, but once in the forest, he left them on their own when he found the beautiful Goddess Bhadrakali. The tribals took this as a huge insult and decided to return the favor by an annual celebration around their moment of insult.

So they get drunk, dress in women’s attire, dance around tress for hours, and shower their otherwise revered Gods with choicest, filthiest and foulest abuses. They then ask the tourists for money (of course), and then sacrifice hundreds of chicken to honor the Gods. The tribals believe that if they don’t show the affection by insulting the Gods, the Gods will severely punish them.

Travelers to India have previously described India as a topsy-turvy world and a century-and-half old book on the people of the same region describes in detail the traditional ways of life in parts of India, where the past and the present and the future seem to be a happily seamless continuum. It’s more like a time machine that allows unrestricted travel back and forth, at your will and command and whims, and sometimes without your will, shoving you into the past or the future without your authorization.

Those of you who are not Indians, the next time you get abused or insulted by an Indian, all you need to know is that it is a way to show affection and an honest attempt to win your heart. For those of you who are Indians at heart, you already know quite well how to show your affection back, you @#$%.

May

16

India votes for change by voting for no change

May 16, 2009 posted by indiatime | 5 Comments

That India was not voting for a change this time, was clear several weeks ago. All such predictions came true today as the vote counts began coming in and the incumbent ruling party began preparations to reap the rewards of seeds long-sewn by the likes of Gandhi (Mahatma), Nehru, Gandhi (Indira), Gandhi (Rajiv), Gandhi (Sonia) and Gandhi (Rahul).

Although most news accounts would have you think that Man Mohan Singh is the winner of India’s long, arduous, often-excruciating democratic exercise, those who know will tell you that this win belongs to the emerging powerhouse of the ruling party, the man waiting in the wings to take his destined seat at the helm of power, the heir-certain and the uncrowned uncoronated king of his people - Rahul Gandhi.

That Rahul Gandhi would one day take his place on the family throne, was a given. It was one of those questions which wasn’t an if but a when. The friends and family and foes of India’s ruling family have known this for years. What is astonishing is that, once again, the coordinated machinery of India’s grand old party worked its wonders, putting the top family’s next generation on the party posters, making the dynastic democracy a palatable pill, yet another time for the nth time .

That the opposition would fall flat on their faces, was also a given. They shown incredible inability of making an issue out of the dynastic democracy, were never certain which ruling party leader they needed to target, and were really all over in their weak assault, divided as ever, focusing on nothing, offering nothing new at all. Their option for the main contender for the top spot was a man more than twice in age to the ruling party’s prince. Like what happened to John McCain six months ago, it became impossible for the older gentleman to speak about change when the man opposite him seemed to personify it for many. Plus the ruling party played its chess moves wisely, hiding its king well and castling time and again by confusing the opposition as to who they should target. Which of course sounds very stupid, because anyone could have seen these results coming.

Plus, the men who had given the opposition a distinct advantage the last time around, weren’t around any more. Pramod Mahajan, BJP’s star campaigner and coordinator who gave that party its win the last time, had died at his own brother’s bullet. Atal Bihari Bajpayee, their star candidate, had retired and taken a backseat to the next-in-lines. And those next-in-lines were just that - the next-in-lines without any personal charisma, hoping and hopping on the goodwill created by the party elders like Mr. Bajpayee.

But the opposition had squarely squandered its goodwill, taking people for granted and believing that they have invested in people’s stupidity enough to make them eat the religion pill. The ruling Congress party, has heavily invested in people’s stupidity, but they have become masters of that now, and no other party in Indian politics has the goods to overcome Congress party’s advantage. And no other party in Indian politics currently offered a fresh, new face that could offset the promise of the ruling party.

Most of those in the opposition who risked it all, probably lost it all. Most of those in the opposition who chose to remain true to their opportunist colors, chose well. And most of those who understood Indian public’s historic penchant for monarchies, understood well. Did the democratic process work? You bet it did. But democracy in the tropics, just like everything else, has a different flavor, a different taste and a different color.

May

6

As India gets busy with the last critical phases of its huge multi-step electoral process, the leaders across India’s northwestern borders are in the white house, discussing the strategies to counter the Taliban offensive. It is telling that Pakistan’s new president has flown thousands of miles to seek help countering the Taliban who are now literally at a stone’s throw from the Pakistani capital. So much for the world’s 7th largest armed forces. And so much for all those promises Pakistan has been making to the west throughout the last decade, milking the American treasury for billions, making nothing but empty and unaccounted for promises.

No wonder most in India believe that Pakistan is taking the Americans for a ride. And that it has, for not just the last decade, but for last 6 decades altogether, duping 12 American presidents and their administrations into bending the American policy backwards to help out the world’s largest non-secular military. More than the American diplomacy, it is a testament to the charm and charisma of Pakistan’s political and military leaders over all those years. Plus, it is also a testament to the lack of charm and charisma of India’s political and military leaders over all those years.

No, not that India hasn’t had charismatic leaders leading India in the corridors of Washington. But their charisma was never effective or eloquent enough to reveal to the west its worst mistake of the last century - their financial and military support to their worst enemy whom the west traditionally labeled, treated and considered to be their staunchest ally. No reports of humanitarian crises, genocides, atrocities or ethnic cleansings made it through the American policymakers’ ears, as they kept hoping and wishing for a Pakistani democratic revival that was never to come and was hardly in the making in the first place.

Today, Zardari is up to yet another charm offensive. Last year, he tried to charm American vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin by telling her she looked more gorgeous in person that on television. Today, he will try the same tactic on Michelle Obama. In the past, such cheap tactics have yielded surprizing and amazing results for Pakistan. And once again that might be the case today, as well.

Today, Zardari is asking for more money and more military equipment, especially the drones - the multitasking unmanned predator aircrafts. How ludicrous it is that as Taliban knocks on his capital’s doors, Pakistan’s top leader is thousands of miles away asking for unmanned aircrafts. That tells me that the world’s 7th largest armed forces is a joke. And the notion of civilian leaders being in charge of that military is also a joke. What is hardly a joke however, is that the same inept armed forces controls an arsenal of at least a few hundred nuclear warheads which can destroy half of planet earth if not the whole of it.

For a second, imagine a few unmanned drones carrying a few of those nuclear warheads. Think of that risk the next time you see and hear a Pakistani leader speak his or her Oxford English.

May

4

Katy Buchanan, a journalist from Pittsburgh’s Post Gazette recently traveled to India for the first time in her life and came away with an impression common to every first-timer to India - that it is a land of extraordinary parallel worlds. She describes her culture shock and some of those unique impressions in a series of articles in the Post Gazette. Here are the top 10 impressions that India made on this first-time traveler -

1. Noisy, crowded, dirty

2. Woman riding side-saddled behind her partner on a two-wheeler, reaching to recapture the headscarf fluttering-flying in the wind

3. 21st century wealth next to ageless poverty, beggars and slums

4. Smell of urine and men freely urinating in public

5. Corrupt cops and their palm-greasing by the public

6. Flies, food out in the open, and the hazards of eating such food

7. Jostling, cramming crowds with no regard for privacy or personal space

8. Men, even those not gay, holding hands

9. The left-right head waggle that means ‘whatever’

10. Begging, poverty, people living on sidewalks under tarps

11. People’s fascination with skin color

12. The other-worldly beauty of India’s historic monuments

Ms. Buchanan’s impressions are honest, forthright and of course, very true. She writes without any agenda, lavishes praise and awe where deserved, and doesn’t mince words when necessary. Since her journey was a short one, she missed traveling to many more beautiful parts of India and probably also saved herself from some horrific impressions of India.

The culture shock isn’t new to any first-timer who has traveled to the east. Back in 1894, John J. Pool, a missionary, wrote this in his ‘India - The Land of the Idols -

“…..Everything seems to be turned topsy-turvy (for the first time traveler to India) and it takes new arrivals to the east some time to get used to the remarkable change. The oriental has an odd way of doing everything backwards….Their saw has the teeth set towards the handle, they take off their shoes and keep on their hats….”.

Remains to be seen what a traveler from 2050s would say about India. All that depends on how the orient orients itself in this century.

Apr

2

Jagdish Tytler, a former cabinet minister, who was once implicated in the 1984 riots against Sikhs in New Delhi, has now been cleared by India’s Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Families of the riot victims protested and Tytler celebrated as the case has now apparently been closed.

In 1984, after the assassination of former prime minister Indira Gandhi at the hands of her two Sikh bodyguards, angry mobs rampaged the Sikh neighborhoods in New Delhi, attacking and killing Sikhs. Tytler, then a young politician and a close friend of the Gandhi family, was accused of cheerleading the attacks, a charge that has dogged him ever since. But the investigating authorities have continually claimed that they did not find any witnesses who had seen Mr. Tytler actually participating or spearheading the riots or the attacks.

Strangely, the CBI has refused to share the contents of its reports on the Tytler investigation, casting doubt about the authenticity of the investigation and the veracity of government’s claims. This is the second time in two years that the CBI has shown its inclination to clear Mr. Tytler. Back in 2007, a Delhi magistrate had ordered the CBI to reopen the case based on a couple of purported eyewitness accounts. A team of CBI officers flew to the US to interview the witnesses, but concluded that their versions and stories weren’t credible enough.

Every major independent commission that investigated the ‘84 riots, pointed to either the negligence by the police or implicated some of the local political leaders of the ruling party. Marvah Commission (1984), the first one appointed to investigate the riots, was ordered to suspend its investigation. Next came the Misra commission (1985) which didn’t want to identify anyone but remarked that the police had failed to register or file charges against local politicians. The Mittal Commission (1987) implicated several local police officers. Banerjee commission (1987) and Potti Rosha commission (1990) tried to bring charges against Sajjan Kumar, another ruling party politician, but were intimidated into closing shop. Aggarwal Comittee (1990) recommended filing charges against three top Delhi politicians, but the police failed to act on those recommendations. Besides these, Ahuja (1987), Dhillon (1985), Narula (1993) and Nanavati (2000) commissions basically found grounds for filing charges against some of the local political elite. So, every independent commission or committee appointed by various governments in power from 1984 to 2004, found enough evidence and credible grounds to prosecute some local politicians for their hand in the 1984 riots.

CBI however, has now shown that all of those independent judges and commissions were either wrong or dishonest or deceptive in their rulings. That’s a great relief for Jagdish Tytler who can now contest the parliamentary elections and once again seek high political offices that he maintains he is so deserving of. The hope dwindles for the victims’ families though, and 25 years after the incident, there is now little chance of any closure for them. The rest of the country will just move on and cover up those wounds. And get back to drinking the Bollywood and Cricket cool-aid.

Mar

29

Remembering martyr Dhirendranath Datta

March 29, 2009 posted by indiatime | 3 Comments

dhirendra nath dattaExactly 28 years ago this day, the Pakistani army raided the home of 86-year old Dhirendramath Datta, an Indian freedom fighter, who had worked with Mahatma Gandhi and Deshbanhdu Chittaranjan Das. The venue was Comilla, in the then east Pakistan. The Pakistani army then kidnapped Datta and his son Dilip to a nearby army camp in Mainamati, then mercilessly beat & tortured them with bayonets, and finally shot them to death, before dumping their bodies into a neaby ditch.

Dhirendranath Datta, an ex-schoolteacher, a lawyer, a Gandhian, a parliament member and a former minister for social welfare in East Pakistan, died a martyr at the hands of a brutal Pakistani regime. His crime was his advocacy of the Bengali language, and his leadership in the Bengali language movement, demanding that Arabic script and Urdu not be forced upon the Bengali speaking majority of independent East Pakistan after 1947.

I write this today because 28 years after the Pakistani army tortured and shot dead a non-violent freedom fighter of Indian independence movement, the world outside of South Asian borders, and especially the west, has learnt few lessons about Pakistan’s oppressive and brutal record over last few decades. I write this today not just as a reminder about a forgotten hero, but also as a reminder about the continuous abuse and blatant violations of trust by Pakistan of the huge military and humanitarian aid given to it by the west.

Yesterday, President Obama unveiled his latest strategy for the unstable northwest Asia. A major part of that strategy hinges on a stable and democratic Pakistan. THAT is a fantasy that the west and especially the United States needs to get over. Since Pakistan’s independence in 1947, every American president has bought Pakistan’s lies about being an ally to the west, and have delivered huge amounts of military and financial aid. After all that 6 decades of aid, Pakistan of today is the biggest threat to world peace and the worst enemy of the west, its purported military might and arrogance funded and strengthened by the American taxpayer.

All Dhirendranath Datta argued for was letting his people speak Bengali instead of Urdu. For saying that aloud, he got a bullet in his head. That was March 29th of 1971. Surprizingly, not much has changed in Pakistan since its arrogance split it in two, back in ‘71. Surprizingly, not much has changed in the American policy towards Pakistan, in spite of Pakistani spy agency’s complicity and involvement in 9/11 and 26/11 and God knows how many other terror attacks. And surprizingly, India too, has failed to make any gains, vis-a-vis changing the world view on Pakistan’s true colors.

Mar

20

Remembering forgotten heroes

March 20, 2009 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

Dayanath Singh’s recent article about Gomadhar Konwar, Assam’s forgotten 19th-century hero, is a reminder that history (or historians, if you will) has not always been kind to those who fought the region’s invaders and occupiers. A never-before seen almost 150-years old 30-page manuscript written in Tai language on a tree bark, has now seen the light of day for the first time. In short, the manuscript has brought out the name of Gomadhar Konwar, the exiled prince of 1820’s Assam, as the first soldier who sparked the fires of mutiny against the British, almost 3 decades before the first known soldier mutiny that everyone knows to have happened in 1857.

The manuscript, originally written by prince Gomadhar’s close associate Mokham (Sanjay) Barua, survived 15 decades of light, as it managed to stay with the original author’s descendants in a small village in northeastern India. His account of the prince’s plans and the subsequent defeat and exile, puts the forgotten prince in the ranks of Rani of Jhansi, Mangal Pande and Nanasaheb Peshwa.

That’s pretty exciting. Not just because it’s a new find. But because it opens up a discussion about those who remain nameless instead of churning and grinding the names of heroes whose names have turned into round polished idol stones. Gomadhar was the last in the great line of Ahom kings who ruled the northeast from the 13th to the 18th century, giving the region a 500-plus years of stability after it had enjoyed a 700-plus years of the famous Gupta empire. The Ahom dynasty was uprooted by the battle of Yandabo, the most expensive battle of the British-Indian times, a battle that took the lives of tens of thousands on either side.

Archibald Campbell, the man who won that battle of Yandabo for the British, was later rewarded by a top military spot in the then Bombay, when he was made commander-in-chief of Bombay and later sent to look after the British territory of New Brunswick in Canada. Few people in India have heard of or remember Gomadhar Ahom or Archibald Campbell. At the end of a long, hard-fought battle, Archibald Campbell, the victor and a battle-hardened soldier, was rested and exiled to a higher diplomatic post. And Gomadhar Konwar, the loser, a would-be king, was exiled to the islands of Andaman and Nikobar. A couple centuries later, history has rolled its dice. Archibald Campbell, is long forgotten and out. And Gomadhar is in.

But what better time to out old manuscripts and forgotten heroes. With the national polls a few weeks away, the heroic news couldn’t have come at a better time. With the outing of Gomadhar Konwar’s courageous legacy, the local government and the politicians are now beginning to smell victory at their own battle which they will face in another few weeks. Let your hearts fill with pride and let our voting boxes fill with your votes, they seem to be suggesting. Let’s do this one thing for now, and we’ll build Gomadhar’s statues, name the metro streets after him, and maybe open an IIT with his name, too.

Mar

5

Gandhi on ebay

March 5, 2009 posted by indiatime | 4 Comments

James Otis, the American who has claimed the ownership of Mahatma Gandhi’s mementos, has apparently claimed that he is also in possession of Gandhi’s blood and ashes.

Mr. Otis was already known to be in possession of Gandhi’s glasses, eating plate & bowl, sandals and watch. Those items seemed to be everything the Mahatma ever owned at the time of his death, apart from a well-deserved respect and gratitude of his fellow human beings. The revelations about the mortal remains of 20th century’s most immortal soul, are stunning, to say the least.

I think it’s a blessing Gandhi was cremated, and not buried or entombed. Because that could have opened up claims of people owning Gandhi’s brain and nails and what not. Years from now, historians or tomb-raiders would have claimed the find of their century, the mummified remains of 20th century’s incredible Mahatma. And I’m glad Gandhi lived at a time when semen banks weren’t as common as are now. ‘Cause I’m sure his fellow humans would have coaxed Gandhi into leaving one sample for posterity, turning the self-avowed celibate peaceman into a crazy old fool.

I’m just amazed that the reason everyone’s discussing Gandhi today is because he’s almost on ebay. Gandhi’s blood was spilt because he was so ridiculously inflexible about his path of peace. Now, almost a lifetime later, with Pakistan claiming the mantle of terror capital of the world, Gandhi’s dream of peace remains not just shattered, but totally and utterly destroyed. Not that Gandhi would be particularly proud of today’s India either. But those he threw his support behind during the days of the partition, those who begged him to give them India’s money to start a new nation next door, have surely and thoroughly betrayed him and desecrated his legacy.

The government of India is now bending backwards to buy back all of Gandhi’s possessions from the auctioneers. And many in the media are blaming Mr. Otis for auctioning Gandhi. But Gandhi has really been being auctioned in India for so many years now. Bit by bit, piece by piece, word by word, ideal by ideal, politicians have been auctioning Gandhi’s name, throwing numbers around, escrowing the nation’s future to corrupt dullards and slackers. Gandhi may have died a pauper, but he surely made billionaires of a generation of no-good morons who knew how to throw his name around in India’s pentennial political auctions.

Had Gandhi been less of a dreamer, he might have seen through his fellow humans’ follies and he might just have conceded on the semen bank issue. Darn it, the world can surely use an inflexible peace-loving messiah who would not cede his principles and would not budge no matter what. Well, for all we know, Gandhi’s dried blood might still hold some viable DNA. And who knows, Mr. Otis may also have gotten his hands on some secret semen bank from some early-20th century time capsule.

Jan

2

Ghajini on the new year’s eve

January 2, 2009 posted by indiatime | 4 Comments

This morning, reading about the therapeutic value of dancing, and its use as a remedy for the ills ranging from ‘economic downturn to terror’, I have begun to think if the average citizen is now a victim of yet another medical condition - a condition now made famous by Amir Khan’s ‘Ghajini’, a sort of memory loss that arises after an event has happened. Ghajini, a remake of the Tamil remake of the original Hollywood story ‘Memento’, is a narrative of a man who suffers from anterograde amnesia with no memory of events after they happen from the moment they happen.

India’s political brass seems to be suffering not just from such anterograde amnesia for the events of 26/11, but also from several other mental conditions. Just a few hours ago, defense minister Antony stripped away any time constraints for Pakistan saying that there was no time limit for Pakistan to act. Antony’s ’stern’ warning today, came on top a series of other lovable, affectionate, non-warnings which had little credence and zero bite to begin with.

Just a few hours ago, spending the new year’s eve at a friend’s palatial home, I watched as dozens of kids and housewives and corporate types mingled and chirped and danced, some with soft drinks in their hands, others with wine & champagne. Not much of a dancer myself, I found an empty chair next to an elderly gentleman in his late 70s. Turned out he was an ex-major in the Indian army who had distinguished himself in the 1971 war, and was a witness to the famous Pakistani surrender on the 16th of December that year.

We struck a conversation about the 26/11 tragedy and during one of his serious narratives, we were interrupted by the host who asked this elderly gentleman to come on the dance floor. ‘Betaa, mera dil nachneko nahin karta‘ (I don’t feel like dancing, son), he said with a heavy voice, trying to clear a lump in his throat. I think I caught a glimpse of his watered up eyes and his sad and angry face. And then, trying to hide his disgust, the 1971 war hero faked a smile and asked our host to go ahead and keep dancing. ‘Aap log khushiyan manao‘ (You guys go ahead and have fun).

‘…I am too old for these things now, my legs aren’t that strong anymore…’, he said to me, rather apologetically. I looked at the dance floor and saw the rest of the crowd dancing themselves to their drunken stupors. And suddenly, I understood the feeling of disgust in the old war hero’s eyes. He was the only one in the room without anterograde amnesia.

Dec

16

Missing Kolkata husband returns home after 44 years

December 16, 2008 posted by indiatime | 1 Comment

Stranger things have happened, but this one surely ranks right up there somewhere. A Kolkata man, missing since 1964 years and presumed dead since 1976, has now returned home, remarried his wife, and living with his family once again.

After a dispute at the factory where he worked, Panchkari Hazra left his wife and young sons, and wandered off into 44 years of hazy fog, without a trace. Just like that. The family waited and waited, and eventually gave up. His wife Annapurna performed his last rites in 1976, and started living her life as a widow.

Panchkari, now 94, and a ghost from the past, reappeared a few months ago and started living in the old house. The old neighbors informed his sons about an old man who had started living in their old place. The couple were reunited and got married the day before and the neighbors and friends celebrated the old man’s return.

In 1761, most of the Maratha army battled Afghan insurgents in the great battle of Panipat, and suffered a bloody defeat. Sadashivrao Bhau Peshwa, the leader of Marathas, was said to have been killed in the battle, and everyone believed that to be true. But in 1670, a brahmin from Kanauj (UP) showed up in the south, and declared that he was the Maratha leader Sadashivrao Bhau Peshwa.

The English forces, sensing a dissent and ambivalence in the Maratha ranks, supported this stranger’s bid to become the Maratha king. Eventually however, the Marathas captured him, brought him to Pune, put him on trial, and sentenced him to death. By most accounts, on December 17th of 1776, he was sentenced to be trampled by an elephant and met his death in that manner. Other accounts claim that Puneites didn’t want him sentenced to death on account of his being a brahmin, and so they threw him in prison for life.

Panchkari has been lucky. For Panchkari and Annapurna, there probably aren’t many witnesses from the past who can verify or validate their claims of being a couple. Skeptics would have suggested a DNA (paternity) test, but in this case, nobody seems to have asked for one. Then again, there’s no reason for anyone to complain if two old strangers in their 90s want to hitch together and get married. And even if this weren’t the same man who had left in 1964, who is to say this isn’t the real husband and the first one wasn’t an impostor?

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