perils of life

2008-04-06T12:13:00.000-07:00

Thinking generations beyond, we have come a long way since the age of the caves. With evolution as evidence and technology as a fertilizer we have grown into well developed species with different minds and perspectives. Our mind with its numerous neuron cells teach us to coexist in this undying mystery of life. Nature by itself in its shape and form created several methods of existence. But our human mind triggered by the numerous cells decided to create more.......

Caste systems – Initially they all started as different ways of living. Brahmins believed in a superior being and dedicated their lives to spread their wisdom. Kshatriyas were born to rule and they led the human race. Their caste determined their purpose of life. Today it has become just a matter of segregation.

Parents send their children to schools, to get educated about life and prepare them for the future. Upper class education teaches the children to treat everybody equally irrespective of their caste or creed. The irony remains that it is the same parents who believe in orthodox rituals and boundaries and expect their children to carry the tradition forward blindly. How can a child do justice to his values when his mind tells him to critically question everything around him and analytically comprehend his experiences?

There is a famous claim that in India your will find unity in diversity. We have survived centuries with these diversities and we have adopted it as a lifestyle. What about the future? Why accelerate more diversities when there are numerous created by our ancestors?

Caste is a personal choice of life. Today we should ask the question. Do we want to thrust our future generation with our beliefs or do we want them to find their own identity?

2007-08-29T08:13:00.000-07:00

Food For Thought : Biriyani!

India is known for its authentic food. Although sometimes the spices used to pep up the food affect our emotions more than ordinary. Indian food has its distinct taste and popularity in this world.

One such dish is the all time favorite Biriyani. Although I wonder why someone would want to have half cooked chicken with mixed rice, this dish creates its impact among the men. Majority of them relish this dish and the first thing that comes to their mind during lunch is Biriyani.

This authentic dish generally associated with the place of origin distinguished by its style is also a model of celebration. Oh well..it is his birthday! Let’s get a Biriyani. Oh he just got married lets get a Biriyani! People make Biriyani to celebrate an occasion, be it the conglomeration of two families in matrimony or the introduction of a new human being in this overly populated nation.

Its distinct style of preparation has created a lifestyle among the individuals. Hyderabadi Biriyani has provided employment to many individuals in Hyderabad. Thalappa Kattu Biriyani, Bombay Biriyani and Dham Biriyani are some other knocking opportunities in different parts of the country.

Biriyani has introduced Indian cooking in distinct styles, distinct contemporaries and distinct flavors to the entire world. Biriyani has created occasions for celebration and has been highly acclaimed to be authentic and Indian. The popularity of the food has created rave reviews in the world but the irony remains that the origin of the word 'Biriyani' is from Persian.

2007-08-23T08:33:00.000-07:00

We are only human!

Somehow in this materialistic world the significance of materials have become more important than real values. Upper class education teaches you values and quotes examples of Gandhi or Nehru to inculcate the basic human values or virtues. What can I do? I am only a human is a phrase that is commonly used. Well what can you not do...you are human.

Every person has a purpose in this life and as an educated individual it is up to us to make a difference in this society. Make a difference to this world. Or at least make a difference to one human being.

With the development of IT going abroad for an individual is not a big deal anymore. People travel largely. While we talk about the high class education and employment provided by the foreign countries they talk about the cultural and spiritual bonds inculcated among the individuals here. I guess in life you cannot satisfy everybody. Even a person who has everything will long for something more. That is the way our human mind works. But guess what! We are humans and we have the ability and the capability to control that. We have been taught to think and develop, define and redefine our perspectives because we are human!

Today we talk about all the social issues we read in the newspaper and gossip about the celebrity makeover in the magazines. And most importantly criticize the social, economic and political controversies in this world. Politicians rule the nation and we are ready to make a statement about Laloo's dressing sense or Jayalaitha's tiffin box that reaches her office. As much as criticism is a stepping for success criticism without any action is futile. We are ready to comment about the ineffective traffic system, the corruption that is rooted in our culture or this regular habit of jumping the queue that makes you feel special. We are today and have been a part of this celluloid and we are equally responsible for each and every move of it. So what if you do not live in this particular city anymore? If you have a valid voter's id you must exercise your right as a citizen. And if you cannot make time to make nation decisions that are entrusted upon your hands you do not have the right to comment on any of the issues. Because you are today responsible for the proxy vote in your name.

Today we talk about uneducated people, their uncouth behavior and their lack of social etiquette. Well we as educated individuals probably know about social behavior but what about our social responsibilities. Ignorance is not an excuse!

We are only humans and we have the right to make a difference in this world!

2007-02-06T09:08:00.000-08:00

The perfect street:

I am familiar with a particular and peculiar street in the heart of Chennai where traffic rules are followed with complete control and principles. Well it is quite close to my house and it gives me this immense pleasure to ride on that street in my car every time. The pedestrians respond to sound so well that it seems like you are simply talking to a deaf man. You can stand at one place on the road and honk for the dog to move for ages and in the end she will pass you a look of pity through her droopy eyes. If you are lucky she might even make a whimpering sound for disturbing her during her sunbathing in the middle of the road.

The residents are so compassionate for the drivers that they patiently stop their work to turn and give you a glare for disturbing them during their hair combing ritual in the middle of the road. Women generally style their hair with company. I guess it gives them critical feedback which will help them improve their appearance while adhering to corporate social responsibilities of Chennai. Then you have your pleasurable watchmen around the corner of the street. You will generally see them deeply in thought with a smoke in their hand looking up at the sky. I am assuming he is generally the manager of the watchmen, I am guessing he is always thinking beyond the box, aiming to achieve higher heights for his colleagues. Then you have the faithful assistant standing right next to him watching him think. We can assume him to be secretary or the assistant manager. Then you have the smart looking chap down on his knees’ trying to mend the broken motorcycle which is already embellished with colorful deigns and accessories. And the rest of the crew watches each and every vehicle that passes by with great attention to details. But they are very jovial you know, as soon as an MLA decides to hold a meeting there they all work as a team and decide to give their dancing shoes a chance to experience the flavors of the street.

The flexibility of the street lies in its underlying ability to take the form of any venue. A playground, an auditorium and recreational centre for the resident and I guess that is what makes it perfect for the residents.

2006-06-14T11:00:00.000-07:00

When reality strikes!!!!

You live in this preserved little world of yours, brought up by affluent parents who never compromised with you upbringing and life is set! And that little world is reality and it is basically your understanding of life. You come up with these big ambitions about changing the world and the society around you. Talk about social issues that have been encouraged by your ability to think critically bred by your upper-class education. Is one’s understanding the actually reality? If not is reality actually relative?

I think it is. What is reality for one person may not necessarily be the same for another. Reality for me is the ability to understand the social and emotional issues beyond your little world. There is also a compromise that has to be made with such understanding. You ability to adapt to such issues with acceptance is challenged under these circumstances.

Personally when I waste food the next time the ability for me to understand that there are people starving in some part of this world and adapting to the reality in an optimistic manner is the compromise reality brings me.

And life is all about adaptation and sometimes ignorance is the savior for people who cannot accommodate adaptation and compromise with reality.

2006-05-18T10:49:00.000-07:00

Thirupathi escape

Escape our way to god, if you think being pious is a good thing and you want to escape to a location, probably a hill station for a darshan of the famous god along with his famous ladoos , thirupathi is the place.

Minus the crowd, the jam packed queues and the long waiting hours for those few minutes with the god is worth it. And you will have the mentality to say that only if you have been saved from those pricking and prodding by the people pushing their ways through the crowds to reach their common destination.

Sometimes it just becomes like a race, I wouldn’t want to call it a rat race for personal reasons as I have been a part of that race more than once. Sometimes it is like 1500m running race, you run and you run and your destination always seems too far away and finally when you are there you are just too exhausted to enjoy the moment.

I have always liked traveling to thirupathi until the day when I was locked behind those huge walls with bars for 12 hours. I actually spent the night there with about a thousand others including my family. I have always had nightmares about lock ups and prisons; I guess it the effect of that exhaustive list of movies that have been played on my TV. But reality was much worse and although life is short and I believe in experiencing every aspect of it, I would pass this with pleasure.

Well sometimes it a pity that tensions of the crowd is overcome by spiritual meditations of human mind. But there are and can be different perspectives on this issue of religious beliefs. But some begin to enterprise on these religious needs and that is when it becomes an issue of morality and religious norms. But like my friend said the other day, if you have monetary and influential profits you can have your own thirupathi at home.

2006-03-21T06:10:00.000-08:00

Gone in a second…

I was standing by the door step of my house thinking that it is just another day of travel, games and hobbies. But I had to get my body examined due to a viral attack that had lasted a good 10 days. So dreading the blood test where the nurse pokes and prods my veins in search of some blood I stepped outside my house. On my way to the hospital I was thinking, life, it teaches you so many things. I always believe that what goes around comes around, but I was just wondering why I have been having all these health related problems lately. Cursing my eating habits a little I was driving enjoying the heavy traffic in good old, hot and humid Chennai as I love driving.

I was standing by the door step of the hospital waiting for my mother to show up as I had to meet a doctor; a friend of my mother’s to examine me. I hate hospitals, it is always gloom and sad. It is very hard to see a happy face in that building. I had to take a couple of tests and an x-ray due to my mum. You see she is a doctor and paranoid about my health. Well I don’t blame her because my eating habits are such, but to allow radiation particles to go through my body is something that I never encourage.

I was standing by the door step of the doctor’s room after the examination when an accident case was brought in. Blood splattered all over the room, a man was being attended to by the duty doctor. An accident, a road side tea stall owner was critically injured. He was hit by two men in a motor cycle. There were people all over the place. Colleagues of the motorcycle men surrounded the hospital. Some discussing the incident, some were taking care of the motorcycle men one of whom was in shock and the other crying while the others were running around the place along with the doctors and nurses.

I was standing by the door of my car, getting reading to leave the hospital and my mind was flashing with the events that had occurred in the past 5 minutes. The face of the crying man, the eyes of the man in shock and the state of the tea stall owner. Their lives changed by an accident. The men who have to live with the thought of a tea stall owner heavily injured because of their motorcycle. And the life of a man injured mentally and physically by a motorcycle. Although I hope that the man is alive today after all the injuries his life was changed by that accident in a second. And that second I was reassured that my life is precious and I am happy to have every second of it because I will never know what will be gone in a second.

2006-02-20T04:20:00.000-08:00

Pondi the heaven ……

One day I was watching NDTV and I came across this report on prostitution in Podicherry. A hidden camera had captured women stripping in a bar for ‘sirichi sirichi’ song from Vasool Raja MBBS. Talking about the song, nowadays every movie has a so called “Gana” song with women half clad dancing obsequious moves to lure the men off the screen. Singers with a coarse voice that can be tuned to a sexual call are becoming popular as they uplift the desired effect for the song. The popularity of these songs has been increasing consistently and actresses today find dancing to its tunes a status symbol in the film industry.

Now getting back to Pondicherry, the low prices of liquor in the union territory attracts loads of men, young and middle aged. The popularity of the strip clubs and bars makes Pondicherry a haven for frivolous fun lovers. The report also featured an interview with the chief minister of the state, where he denied all allegations in just an “aa uhh no….no”. I mean give me a break!!!! Is that even an answer?

Flesh trade has become a popular culture in India. Women run down with poverty, women aspiring to become big actresses and some for just survival are being exploited by this industry. Women are brought into these strip clubs due to their financial constraints and have become show pieces for desperate men. The industry targets Dalit women and minors, the most oppressed group and out of all the women involved 85 percent are minors. In flesh trade virgins are preferred and hence the demand for minors. Brothel owners admit that there is a huge demand for virgins in flesh trade.

Flesh trade and prostitution is a lucrative business; the clubs according to the report make Rs. 300 per person for every hour averaging a night’s turn over for the business over one Lakh. Not to mention the profit gained due to the consumption of gallons of alcohol during this indecent display of women. However the women do not make half as much as the club after undergoing sexual harassment, physical abuse and mental depression. Although the trade is illegal most of them are functioning with strong political support. The trade is quite profitable and the constant flow of money is enough to buy all the political leaders involved a new beach house every year.

Every year, an average of 22,480 women and 44,476 children are reported missing every year (India Together, 2004). The report, commissioned by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) studied the period from 1996-2001 on missing persons. The six year period saw an increase of 400 percent in cases in Pondicherry alone.

Human Trafficking is the third most profitable business after arms and drug trafficking and places like Pondicherry is definitely a heaven for such trade.

2006-02-08T10:44:00.000-08:00

My servant maid Lakshmi…..

My servant maid wakes up at the crack of dawn to supply milk to the police quarters adjacent to the temple on the main road, Kilpauk Garden Colony. She then hurries up to my house, cleaning, washing and of course waking me up in the morning with a bright smile on her face and a broom stick on her right hand consists of her daily chores.

She comes from a very poor family background with farming as her family occupation. She had settled in Chennai after marriage and today she has two kids, one boy and one girl. Her husband’s primary occupation is plumbing water lines, drinking and fighting with my servant maid. Although she is not educated, she has the urge to educate her children and see them grow.

She sends them for regular schools and tuitions hoping to see them become educated workers in this world. Today morning she told me that her son has been into bad company lately and is doing drugs behind her back. I was shocked!!!!! Although she knew that she was facing a problem, she did not realize the seriousness of the situation until now. Now she has to treat him, as he has become addicted to the habit and all her aspirations were shut down in one second.

As a small time worker, she had only a couple of hours to dedicate to her children. Without much help from her husband she has raised her children, provided them with food, clothing, shelter and education. But her son did not show much interest in the subjects of educational importance. And her daughter has already repeated two classes in school despite the regular tuitions.

Her name is Lakshmi and her case is not the first. A lot of families undergo such problems. We cannot brush it off thinking that every family faces such hurdles. A part of the Indian population is below the poverty line and the younger generation today is our tomorrow. Personally I think it is quite important to let this younger generation grow, especially those from the rural areas for the development of our country. So what can we do to stop the social influences that affect these young minds?

More affirmed schools with a better syllabus that teaches them how to grow their mind, body and soul. A social culture of development has to be inculcated into these young minds. This will not stop the young minds from wandering off in different directions but a good school culture is definitely a good influence on the society.

I do not have any more suggestions to counter this underlying problem of social influences. But I do believe that any hindrance to the development of young minds is the biggest threat to the society. The social influences cannot be altered drastically, but can be reduced. Hopefully this will stop destroying the aspirations of many Lakshmi’s.

2006-02-07T09:11:00.000-08:00

Favorite pastime for guys in college!!!!

For guys sitting in a group on a side walk, or by the nearby tea kadai looking at the women coming out of the most popular women’s college in their locality is hobby for most of them. They judge the women by their complexion, their sense of dressing and their physique. It is one of the most favorite pastimes for guys in college.

What tempts them to do it? Is it those beautiful women who spend hours shopping for the perfect attire, that they believe makes them look like Ash, Sush or Trisha, or maybe the boys just don’t have anything better to do during free time. Shall we talk about women’s liberation again? Or is it the influence of the movies and romantic novels that make men and women search all their lives for the perfect soul mate.

Why is this culture so popular in India? Maybe we should enforce stricter sexual harassment laws. I really don’t have an answer for this question but I wish we could do something about it.

2006-02-06T10:12:00.001-08:00

Finally the phone rang……….

From Melbourne to Chennai for the last one year all I have been hearing from Deeptha’s mouth have been the words U.S, GRE, and my sister. And finally tonight just moments ago she got the offer when the phone rang.

Her admission letter with partial aid into her course, MPA; we picked up the receiver and instead of congratulating we screamed, with joy, with excitement, with happiness and with euphoria. The very words that I have been waiting to hear for the last one year, I heard it when the phone rang.

This weekend just passed us with sporting action at the Anna University club, a sentimental movie that made Deeptha cry out of misery (To get out of the place), great food and hours of shopping for one set of salwar. Along with the yummy chocolate cake at the Spencer plaza, the bownie at Auroville we also had to digest Deeptha’s rejection from one of the U.S universities she had applied to. The pessimism of her mind and the grave look on her eyes that arose when she thought about the impossible rejections from all the universities had vanished when the phone rang.

I and Sharu congratulated each other on the fruitful result of one of our best friends just moments ago when the phone rang.

All that she had worked for in the last one year, the sleepless nights preparing for the exams, the tumbling sensations in her stomach before the exams, the non-stop creation of good essays by Deeps and her sister, the tensions of effective time management for a good result and of course the gapsa’s that she had ottufied in her letters to the universities under the heading ‘social service/voluntary organizations’ had all ended when the phone rang.

For the last 2 hours I have heard Deeptha say hehehe for the hundredth’ time and seen her type the same online for the umpteenth time. She is drunk with excitement and finally her dreams will become reality. Although I will miss her presence in Chennai when she leaves to pursue her goals I will be waiting for the words ‘Ash I am coming back’ after 2 years of her course finally when my phone rings.

2006-01-28T01:37:00.000-08:00

Tamil film industry and politics:

If you see an obese actress with scanty clothes dancing to the tunes of a deep voice mixed with the melody of music, then you are definitely in the right industry. The Tamil film industry. Let’s talk about how powerful the industry is; the present chief minister of Tamil Nadu is an ex-actress representing a party formed by the late M.G.R, also an actor. Before Jayalalitha the office was also held by a script writer from the Tamil film industry.
Politics is a deep ocean which provides both fame and power to those who seek it. The irony remains that to enter and succeed in such an office you will need both fame and power. Tamil film industry has been a stepping stone to most of the significant politicians in Tamil Nadu. It provides the candidate recognition in the rural parts of the state where the only right given to them is the right to vote. They are more than willing to exercise this right to fulfill their basic needs.

It is amazing how an entertainment industry can be so powerful, because entertainment is only a small sector of a person’s life, but significant. A majority of the population relate to the characters played by the actors and actresses in movies. They believe in the characterization depicted by the playwright and are willing to accept the creation of a personality that has emerged basically to earn money. Don’t get me wrong, I am not criticizing the rural population who vote based on the popularity of these personalities. But I do think that fame is a deception by itself and one needs to open his eyes to the reality of it before exercising his rights as an Indian citizen. Maybe I am wrong in segregating the rural population as the only sector drained into deception but it is true that a majority of votes are derived from the rural population. It is only during the election that the political parties realize the vital significance of the mass. As far as the urban population goes, a majority think that it is simply a waste of their precious money making time to go and caste a vote.

The film industry readily gives a politician the image he/she desires. It gives the candidate fame, fortune and power. The future of a majority of actors is in politics and the beginning is always movies. Entertainers are those who perform a show that amuses the audience, control the outcome by their performance and create new characters everyday to keep the audience intact. That is the role played by most of the politicians today. They start as entertainers and they grow as entertainers and today I feel that it is shame that we have left the future of our nation in the hands of entertainers.

2006-01-27T04:13:00.000-08:00

A Woman’s individuality and male domination:

Sorry if I am cynical, but I don’t think men can handle independent women. Human beings have different needs but for men emotional satisfaction comes by knowing that they are taking care of their loved ones. As noble as it may sound it sure does boost the already enlarged male ego. How many men encourage women to work?

Well!! Ask a couple of them and they come up with this logic of ‘why work when we have enough to satisfy our materialistic needs?’ true. But then what about the emotional needs of a woman. What about her lost individuality in her role play of a wife, daughter and parent?

A marriage is a bond spiritualized by rituals that is created to satisfy the physical and emotional needs of a man and women and after Elton john, man and man. The bond itself is accompanied by a series of compromises that is bound together with the happiness of the couple. But the compromise should not destroy one’s individuality. Happiness is lost with the lost of one’s self. Although one can argue happiness in self proclaimed and its literary meaning does not comprehend the overall feeling. A loss of women’s identity in her social surroundings can affect her individualistic pleasures and joys.

Ask a man how do u want your wife to be? ‘Simple, traditional and most importantly beautiful’; Simple because she will not make him spend too much of his money, traditional because he can take her to her parents and will not have the fear of infidelity and beautiful because they can have sex with them everyday, finally they get the girl of their dreams and they look at a beautiful secretary with a figure that will blow their minds off. Then comes infidelity, 80 percent of the men fantasize themselves with a hot woman, the 20 percent with other men. Mid life crisis, after their wives have had 2 children and are not particularly attractive anymore their fantasies increase and finally they are driven to cheat. The male ego plays a vital role in it as well. The knowledge of their money and power behind them brings them closer to all the women. And the women do comply; emotionally they are satisfied. In an independent society if you are ready to take care of a woman they are ready to adjust. As poor as they might sound the need of an individual is what that drives love, marriage and infidelity.

Relationships are bound by various needs of an individual but in today’s society men take advantage of these security and social needs of women in satisfying their needs. A woman’s individuality is lost by a sense of belongingness that she terms as compromise that is forced by men.

2006-01-19T00:06:00.000-08:00

Shifting houses:

One would have thought shifting was all about moving boxes around in a car, packing and unpacking. Melbourne drives the students with an undying energy of a fear of loss. The loss of their hard earned collection of money: the Bond Money. It is all about money.
Cleaning toilets, the goon on the sides of the walls and untangles of unwanted hair in the shower cubicle. All is fair, after all it has emanated from the different parts of the god sent gifts in each human being.

The irony lies in its sense of tolerance in each Indian student. The smell of paan, unclean urinals in India makes them sick to the core; especially if they have lived abroad or traveled often in flights and star hotels. Then what makes this occasion so special. The sense of belongingness; the bottom line is you know that it is your shit that you are cleaning up. So maybe that is what unity is all about. Don’t get me wrong I do not say that cleaning a fellow Indian’s shit creates a sense of unity. But I do believe that the prejudice is raised due to the lack of belongingness and that is something that can be easily lost in a fast paced world.

In this rat race adaptability is very essential. It is a style of compromise that every human being is willing to make to survive in the world. Well you cannot live in an island and keep making babies just because an over powered man with hormones working overtime likes to have sex, right? So the constraints that you face are they self made or industrial made? By far universally made; a life style followed by our ancestors and carried on to their children and their great grandchildren and so on. This sense of adaptability and compromise is hindered due to the implications of the so called ‘trend’ that has been set forth by our ancestors. So a sense of prejudice emerges that influences your lifestyle and being, the prejudice that by far most Indian students have about first world countries.