Why a temple for Godse is a dangerous idea...

Like millions of my fellow-Indians, I was outraged by the recent news that some Hindu right-wingers are planning to build a temple for Godse all over the country, and declare January 30^th as ‘Shaurya Diwas’ or 'Bravery Day'! This was nothing short of sedition and utter disrespect for the father of the nation! Gandhi is a national icon and symbolises this country in more ways than one, and here was a group that wanted to idolise his assassin!

But first let’s ask why it has taken Godse’s supporters 66 years to decide to deify him. Surely, if it was felt that his act was one of great heroism, a shrine for Godse would have come up much earlier – if not during the initial post-independence years of the Congress regime, at least during the years of the Janata party rule (1977-1979), or during the BJP rule (1998-2004). So what took them so long to proclaim him a messiah, and why now? The only answer can be that, it is not so much the glorification of Godse that the forces, that be, are interested in; rather, by glorifying Godse, they are implicitly taking a hardline Hindu (read anti-Muslim) stance.  And, the answer to why now is of course that the right-wingers have never had the kind of political clout that they enjoy today.

From his last speech in the court (courtesy: youtube.com, Google docs), it appears that Godse was a man guided by strong nationalist emotions. In as much as Godse respected Gandhi for his service to the nation, he felt that Gandhi’s idea of non-violent struggle had become irrelevant and unworkable, and the old man simply refused to accept it. Godse also hated Gandhi’s pro-Muslim stance and was extremely angered by the leader’s submissive acceptance of the country’s partition.  It is another thing that the Hindu hardliners did not deem Gandhi a true Hindu and strongly disagreed with his interpretation/practice of the religion (courtesy: Ramachandra Guha).

Godse abhorred Gandhi’s methods, and saw himself as a revolutionary who though it was his duty to save the country by eliminating Gandhi. With Gandhi out of the scene, people could shake off all pretext of non-violence and take up arms to rid the country of its evils.

The story of Godse and Gandhi is not new. History is strewn with instances of leaders who had to pay for their political or social reforms with their lives – be it Abraham Lincoln for his role in the abolition of slavery in the USA or Martin Luther King for his activism in seeking the removal of racial discrimination for his fellow African-Americans. These two high-profile assassinations happened in the USA, supposedly the torch-bearer of human rights and freedom in this world. The question is, has this country allowed memorials to be built for the assassins of its leaders?

Likewise, will the Indian government allow shrines to be erected for Dhanu (the suicide bomber assassin of Rajiv Gandhi), and Beant Singh and Satwant Singh, the assassins of Indira Gandhi.

No doubt, Nathuram Godse firmly believed in the righteousness of his act. So did the others, and so does every Jihadi! Are we as a society going to condone their acts and declare these killers, martyrs!

We have known neither Gandhi nor Godse. Our knowledge of them is only from secondary sources. But, I think we know enough not to bet our stakes on the guy who takes to the gun to solve the world’s problems. Of course, I agree that Nathuram Godse’s point of view matters – our constitution gives all of us the freedom to be heard. But, building temples for him is akin to explicitly approving murder and murderers!

Finally, Indians are known to have a poor sense of history. If this propaganda continued, I fear, some years down the line, Godse could well be positioned as a hero and a martyr who laid down his life to rid the country of its evil leader, and that is what our children will read in their history books.

 It is ironical that, today, in our country, anyone can malign Gandhi and go scot-free, but God help the guys who dare to speak against Godse!

Vande Mataram!

Why PK is an important film

Last week’s events turned out to be bloody for the world, yet again destroying the fragile possibility of a globe undivided by religion. In India, religious bigots brought home the lost sheep back into the fold (‘Ghar wapsi’) in an attempt to right, what they believe to be,  generations of wrong;  this they did by dangling the carrot of material kickbacks, proving once again that the worship of Mammon (a biblical deity of riches and greed) is really the universal religion.

Meanwhile, other overzealous religious practitioners elsewhere in the world unleashed terror on unsuspecting school children and cafe goers. As Blaise Pascal, the 17^th century French mathematician once famously said, “Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.”

While all religions (cl)aim to refine and purify our souls, it is obvious they have not even  managed decent human beings in the first place. All the world’s religions (as they are practised today) and all their God's men have failed to teach us the first principle – of being simply human.

Going by the outcry the Sydney and Peshawar incidents have generated on social media, it is apparent that many of us are seriously questioning the usefulness of religion.  A friend and fellow-blogger & writer went all out to express his pride in being an agnostic in today’s messed up world. This reminded me of the quip by Kamalhassan (a self-proclaimed agnostic) in ‘Dashavataram’ – “I don’t say God does not exist; I only wish He did!” 

It is in this context that a movie like ‘PK’ has to be appreciated. Quite unwittingly, Raju Hirani & Vinod Chopra have released the movie at a time when mankind’s religious beliefs are being tested yet again.  

Coming as it has, two years after the ground-breaking Oh My God! (OMG) (released in 2012), the movie no doubt is a disappointment in terms of originality of theme. Unlike Raju Hirani's earlier movies, which were delightfully bold and fresh and brazenly ventured into unchartered territories, (my favourite has always been Lage Raho Munna Bhai for the sheer audacity of its theme – friendship between a goonda and Gandhi.)  'PK' lets you down on the novelty parameter.

But where does PK score is in its nobility of intent (despite being a commercial venture) and relevance of theme (unfortunate!). By raising very simple and basic questions, from the standpoint of a rational alien, the movie strikes at the very heart of the logic behind religion and related practices. Although the movie does remind one of OMG much too often, it is undeniable that the film rakes up fundamental issues that every person should confront and contemplate, some time or the other, or even better, now!

Forget 2015, check what the year 2035 holds for you.....

As the countdown begins for the birth of the new year, 2015, I took a leap ahead to wonder what life in India would be like 20 years hence, in 2035. Predictions for the year are everywhere– they range from the promise of a glorious future to the horrors of a holocaust. But, reality, as always, is likely to fall somewhere in between. 

In the last 20 years, we saw technology redefine the world. The coming years, experts believe, will be no different. Quantum computing, smart clothes, hologramic broadcast and nano technology are set to become household names.

But, even the reach of technology is limited; eventually, we have to contend with some stark realities – climate change, exploding human population (8.6 billion by 2035) and dwindling natural sources –  which will limit the boundaries of human progress.  

With that reality check, this blog tries to peek into what 2035 holds for an average urban Indian.

(Qualifier: This list does not pretend to be a serious or exhaustive compilation, but is mostly the result of a top-of-the-mind recall exercise. This list can be made more extensive and meaningful with your contributions. Look forward to hearing your views of the 'World in 2035'.)

Some milestones that India will touch between now and 2035:

According to UN estimates, in 2028, India’s population will overtake China’s, earning it the dubious distinction of being the most populous nation of the world.

Other kinder estimates suggest that India will emerge as the world’s third largest economy (based on nominal GDP) by 2030.

Masks and gloves will become a part of the school uniform for urban kids. Denser agglomeration in Indian cities will pose huge hazards to both humans and the environment. After years of reckless use of antibiotics, most Indians would have become immune to them, and the superbug will be one of the biggest challenges facing a-sixth of mankind.  

On a conservative estimate, a kilogram of rice will cost Rs.400 per kg. Increasing productivity notwithstanding, climate change, burgeoning population and declining acreage under agriculture will have the obvious consequence – food prices will skyrocket.

Government subsidies will be inadequate to cover the market prices, severely affecting affordability of the underprivileged population. To keep prices down, India will have to significantly step up its food imports, besides working miracles with its food storage infrastructure.

Homes in cities will be fitted with water meters, with consumption charged at a steep, escalating rate.

Personal privacy will be a distant memory. You will be under surveillance from the moment you step out of your shower to the moment you retire for the day (hopefully, not afterwards!).

Biometric testing will become mandatory for all personal identification. We’ll have discarded plastic cards and account numbers and progressed to using biometrics to operate our bank accounts. Ironically, at the same stroke, we will also have regressed to being an ‘angoota chaap’.

With unrestricted and unlimited access to our genetic information, the Government will play the ‘Big Boss’ with its citizens.

Biometric records of potential employees and grooms will be checked with police databases before employment/ nuptial agreements are entered into.

In the name of surveillance, mankind will consume enormous data storage devices, and generate and store massive amounts of useless data.   

Retirement ages will shrink gradually in both the private and public sector with the size of the workforce entering the job market far surpassing the jobs available. 

Employee welfare will be grossly neglected as companies aggressively pursue their elusive profits in a highly competitive business environment.
 

On the positive side, increasing awareness over the indiscriminate use of pesticides will give a big boost to organic farming; greater scale of organic food cultivation will be achieved and organic food products will become more affordable.

India’s space programme will be a money spinner for the government. ISRO would have followed up its highly successful MOM mission with several others and would be generating enormous revenues for the government by helping other smaller nations with their space programme.

As conventional energy sources start to dry up, India will increasingly look to the skies for help - solar power will meet a significant share of the country’s energy requirements.

 

E-tailing would have settled into a mature phase of growth after extreme consolidation. Discounts and easy returns will have disappeared, and footfalls would have returned to the malls heralding the victory of ‘touch & feel’ over ‘click & cart’, at least in some segments (for eg. garments, the largest segment of organised retail in India).

Not sure about Bollywood, but Tollywood films (Tamil movies) will have moved on to the digital medium and almost all small and medium budget films will be released directly on the Internet.


Last, but not the least, services such as googlemaps, youtube, facebook and whatsapp, to name a few, would have long since switched to the subscription-based model.

On the lighter side:

Switzerland will declare ‘Gujarati’ its fifth national language, and ‘dhokla’ its national cuisine. ‘Dhokla flavoured cheese’ will be on the hit list of Gujarati tourists.

Aradhya Bachchan will be cast opposite Rajinikant as the heroine in his new movie.

Ver.22 of the ‘Swachcha Bharath’ campaign will launched under a new name, and celebrities – Aryan Khan and Aradhya Bachchan –  will be found endorsing the campaign with vacuum cleaners and electric brooms. Meanwhile, the ‘aam aadmi’ will continue to enjoy unbridled freedom over his environment.

Some things will, of course, never change:

India’s geo-political disputes with Pakistan and China will remain unresolved.

A vast majority of Indians will still believe in the institution of marriage; Gold will touch Rs.150,000 per  tola, but Indians will not give up their love for it.

Unimaginative and irrelevant education will continue to make our children’s lives miserable.

Mumbai realty prices will continue to defy gravity and Mumbai Metro will still be under construction.

Chaos theory

My earlier blog, 'Of boisterous Indians....' wasn’t exactly singing eulogies of us Indians. When many friends shared their similar experiences, it didn't feel good; I wondered, surely, there are also nice things to write about India.  Of course, there are many nice things to write about India and Indians, more now than ever before.

During our visit to Japan a couple of months back, my husband and I met a tall, young Netherlander, a backpacker who had been around the globe and was camping in Japan for two weeks. Recognising us as Indians, he was keen on sharing his travel experiences in India. India, in his words, was an ‘extremely interesting place’— the country was so colourful and interesting that he claimed he could spends days sitting on the road side just watching people. But, the gush of pride we felt for our country was cut short by his following remark that, India was also very ‘chaotic’ and ‘a bit of a hassle’. Yes,” he repeated, “India, for all its charm is very chaotic”.

It is understandable that a Western mind home grown in one-culture and one-language would find India an incomprehensible enigma, a huge kaleidoscope that throws up bewildering patterns of diverse cultures, languages, ethnicity and people. 

In April 2014, NTT Docomo, the Japanese telecom player, decided to hang up its boots in India, bringing to an end its five-year partnership with Tata Teleservices Limited. One of the reasons cited for Docomo’s exit was that it could not cope with the regulatory uncertainty (following the cancellation of 122 telecom licences by India’s Apex Court) in the Indian telecom industry. Yet another outsider bamboozled by the ‘Indian’ way of functioning!

Uncertainty and chaos are really the same things.  And a linear approach is useless if one wants to make sense of ‘chaos’ and live with uncertainty.

Anyone familiar with chaos theory knows that there is an underlying order to chaos. And nothing can be truer for India. Behind all the apparent chaos, order (a.k.a system) exists; systems which may not be evident at once, but are nevertheless there and reveal themselves to those who bother to look for them.

So, what is the system I’m so upbeat about? Well, read on....

Recently, I wanted to have a copy of my house keys made. So, I approached one of the key makers who put out their wares and sell their skills on the roadside. In choosing this key maker, I exercised abundant caution and opted for a guy from the next suburb, so as to put maximum distance between him and my house!

But, when I reached the place, neither the key maker nor his shop was to be found.
Rule no: 1: Expect the unexpected!

A couple of guys hanging around pointed to me a card hanging from a tree nearby with his name and number on it. One of the guys, continuously working on the tobacco in his mouth, mimed to me asking me to call the number.

Rule no: 2: In India, when you are lost, don’t expect signboards to guide you to your destination; always look to people around for help. In most cases, they are more than willing to help you.  


Minutes after I called him, the guy turned up carrying a small suitcase. Inside the suitcase, he kept his tools neatly arranged. But, first, he produced a note book and asked me to write my address and phone number down and furnish my 'Aadhar' number as proof of residence. I was flabbergasted! After all the precaution that I had taken to keep my domicile a secret from him, here he was asking me to share that confidential information with him!

So, I asked him why he needed my coordinates.  He simply replied that the law required him to collect it. He then produced a permit granted to him by the local police station allowing him to carry on his key-making business in that locality. The fact that this guy, with no physical infrastructure that he could call a shop (other than his suitcase), had been given a legal sanction by the government authorities to do his ‘dhandha’ was a bit of a surprise. (But then, this is probably how licensed roadside hawkers operate.) 

What was more surprising was that the police had developed a simple system to keep a check on him and his client(s) by keeping track of the latter’s residential details. I would have never have expected an innocuous (not always) act as duplicate key-making to be in the radar of the law enforcers.

So, Rule no: 3: Systems reveal themselves if you dig deeper


I am sure, this is but one of many hidden systems we are unaware of, even as we cry ourselves hoarse about the lack of order in this country. On the contrary, Indians have worked out very smart and imaginative systems for their survival; if outsiders don’t understand them, well, what goes my father?!

My brother in the USA once narrated an incident about how one Friday, the faucet in his kitchen started to leak and he had to wait out the weekend before the plumber assigned for the apartment came and fixed it up.  All through the weekend, they lost gallons of water, as nobody other than the designated plumber was allowed to touch the faucet. Here also, there was a system at work, but, you could hardly call it a smart or a sustainable one, eh?

Of dental distresses....

Dentistry, in my opinion, must be the second oldest profession in the world.  Ever since man started to eat starchy cooked food, dentists have flourished and prospered. To me, the sight of the dentist’s chair, the whirring sound of the drill, the tongs and pincers are stuff what nightmares are made of, and to reason— I’ve had more than my fair share of the dentist’s ‘hot’ seat.

But, after spending big bucks on numerous sessions with various dentists, I’ve reached the conclusion that dentistry is the biggest con job in this world, ok, maybe, after politics. 

It all started quite a few years back with a small discoloration that I spotted in one of my molars. I ignored it till it gave away to form a small hole. This story is about how that tiny hole ballooned up into a cosmic blackhole that sucks everything in its proximity, and… there is no exit.

So, once the hole started to trouble me, I visited a nearby dentist, who filled it up. But, soon after on a not-so-fine day, at dinner, I bit into a hard substance, which I realized was actually the filling that had slipped out of the hole.

I had to run back to the dentist, who had one look at my tooth and declared solemnly that the decay had worsened and the hole in the tooth was now too big to be filled. He gave me two options : one to have a root canal done – a new dental procedure then, which involved removing the gooey interiors of the tooth and replacing them with some dummy stuff; or two, have the tooth extracted. Hoping to avoid more visits to the dentist, I opted for the latter.

That it seems was a strategic mistake I made, according to another dentist. In the absence of one critical molar, he proclaimed, the ones on the other side had gotten overused and eroded. So he suggested I go for a bridge which would take the place of the extracted tooth. Here, the catch was that the bridge would rest on two adjacent teeth which would be carved to support it. I agreed unwillingly, but hoped that it would all end there. 

In hindsight, that was another grave misjudgement.  What happened was the teeth that the bridge was resting on started to decay (because of the food particles caught under it), which did not come to light till the teeth had decayed beyond redemption.    The third dentist I visited was visibly upset over the poor judgement of the previous dentists.  In his opinion, the only way I could save the support teeth now was to go in for root canal (RC) treatment immediately.

With that started my innumerable sittings that go with the treatment, which left me poorer and my dentist richer.

Now, with the RC done, I hoped (and prayed) my dental distresses would be over and I could resume normal life. 

But no, that was not to be. Barely a few weeks after I got my RCs done, I started to have strange sensations in those teeth. But when I rushed back to the dentist, I found to my dismay that he had shifted – to a plusher clinic in a posher area, where he was assured of a supply of clientele with fatter wallets. That left me little choice but to visit my fourth, and a more modest dentist closer home.

He took one look at my teeth and passed the verdict that the RC had been badly done and needed to be redone! At that moment, I felt something close to the proverbial (?!) ‘kolaveri’ (a word that means ‘murderous rage’ in Tamil)!  I was left with not much choice but to put more bad money after bad money, and agreed to have the procedure redone. I hoped without much hope that my troubles would end there.

Of course, the reader would by now have guessed where this is headed. A few months elapsed after the second RC procedure. Meanwhile, I continued to support my dentist’s living and life style by having a few more holes filled and some wisdom (?!) teeth extracted.

Recently, my third wisdom tooth started to give me a lot of pain forcing another dental visit. After poring over the X-rays he had asked for, he regretfully declared that the ‘RC’ed teeth had lived their life and now, they had to go.

Seeing my crestfallen face, he brightened up and assured me that there was still hope for me, and it was called ‘implants’.  I just had to sign a cheque for a few thousands and she would order some dental implants which would be sewn up in the place of my eroded dental bone. And then there was simply the matter of fitting an upper structure in place of the tooth and capping it and then, we would be done!  

Exercising enormous restraint over my ready-to-combust emotions, I asked him what the life of the implants would be. My question immediately put him on backfoot;  he said that it ‘depended’ on various things like my body’s receptiveness to the implants, its tendency for infection, not to forget my oral hygiene habits, etc.  Assuring him that I would get back after discussing the matter with my family, I scooted, never turning back once... 

That day, I learnt my valuable lesson, which is best summarized in one of my favourite jokes – ‘You should see the doctor when you are sick, because the doctor must live; you should also buy the prescribed medicines from the chemist because the chemist must live; but, DO NOT consume those medicines because you must live too!’

Amen!