Women & Society

Why do we go by this meaning-less society? What does one gets out of it? Why does a woman suffers in our society? There are countless examples out there which can make you insane, if read. Infact, if one surfs though a news engine, the only news that attracts attention is ‘a woman gets beaten up’, ‘women got raped’, ‘women commits suicide’, and women this, women that... Why can’t there be equality among both genders? Is it because of a simple reason that we live in a ridiculous, degrading and shallow society? Many girls living in 21st century do fight back and balance their relationship with men. However, what about the women who still breathe under a huge pressure? And the women who constantly live in fear of their husband’s rage and don’t step a foot outside without the permission of their swami. There are so many bastards living in many countries who knowingly murder their daughters. And if, by some miracle she survives, she will get murdered by her so-called-life-partner.

Ever wondered what is the actual meaning of a life-partner? According to my perception, a life-partner is someone who won’t let go of your hand under any given circumstances. And mind you that is for eternity. A relationship requires equality on every step of the ladder. A couple, if commingled together, can overcome any crisis. However, if dominated by one other then a complete havoc for each other. Anyhow, the whole point of this concise article was not to give lecture or a tutorial on ‘how to become a good life-partner’. At times, one can feel too aggravated with the way things are turning around the globe. I just felt like blurting things out in this article.

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With the show of hands, do you have such life-partner?

My new found addiction…

So, a couple weeks back my brother downloaded a mega file filled with countless documentaries on Space. From Sun to Pluto to Earth to Mars to the under-production, biggest ever Space center. Name the discovery and it’s embedded in the Space package. At first it was ridiculously boring to sit through a forty seven minute long video and listen to some guy who discovered something above our big blue marble and the world went gaga over it... However, slowly and gradually, I started to gain some interest in it and before I knew it I was totally hooked to their new discoveries.

It was fascinating to see the two Robots, Spirit & Opportunity land on Mars and their findings on how water might have been on Mars some million years ago. The expected time of this mission was only 90 days; however, the two Robots astonished the entire NASA team by being operable for six years. Also, I was very amused to see how scientist just sensed that Pluto should not be a planet and later proved the theory right. Impressive, isn’t it? I must say, NASA employees relish their jobs way too much. One day they are experimenting in Arizona and another in a container with no gravity. Is it really exciting or just looks good in the documentary? Hard to answer! Oh well, I’m still amused… While browsing a little more into the package, I came across a documentary on Sun. It’s really a miracle how our planet Earth is at a perfect distance to Sun to sustain life on our planet. At the same time, Sun can also act as a perfect destructor of human race. No wonder NOAA keeps a very close eye on our Sun.

For the past few days, each time I look at the sky, I’m too engrossed in our Moon. Luckily we had a full moon and infact a lunar eclipse on 21st December. Even while driving, I gaze at the moon more than on the road. Call it a crazy thought but if there’s a lottery ticket for space, I’d buy it in no time…

Switching gears now…

I’m posting my 50th article and absolutely elated to share this happiness with all my readers. It’s a sheer feeling of bliss to see each and every comment on my blog site and Facebook. Thank you to all… I hope to compose many more articles in the coming year!

Infidelity

Ever wondered why infidelity is increasing everywhere? Why is there a dire need of betrayal and duplicity in any relationship? Why can’t the marriage institution remain a faithful, pure and sin-free institution? Considering the fact that every other institution is filled with filth and disgust…

Infidelity is as old as the human race. Be it poor or rich, high class or low class, celebrity or a common man; it’s amongst all kinds of people. But, why is it out there? A rich person might get a little more opportunities than a common man. Because of the simple reason i.e. money. No money, no honey. Even politicians keep mistresses and relish their life to the fullest. To name a few: one can never forget the most heated and debatable affair of Clinton & Monica. If the president himself is shacking up Monica in the Oval office then no need of pointing fingers on the rest of the country. Ditto for the CEO of HP who was luxuriating with an intern while the entire company was busy working there a** off so that the CEO can latch on to his bonus. Be it US, UK or India, a sex scandal is a toast to the town.

The only way you can peek into someone’s personal life is through our beloved Media. They don’t let any celebrity go scot-free because of the continual agitation of increased TRP. It has become a habit of constantly reading about big people and their so called affairs. Our very own Shehanshah of the industry was jerking around with Ms. Rekha ji and later denied the accusations on a talk show. A couple other names would be Aamir Khan, Saifoo “The Nawab”, Shiney “The Rapist” Ahuja, Ranbir “The condom guy” Kapoor and many more. The bollywood industry is bombarded with such names. Good thing, we Indians have the tendency of forgetting too fast too easily.

One name which came too hard on the fans was Tiger Woods. Apparently, when a person of such caliber is found under the umbrella of infidelity, the public will be surprised. However, a difference here is that if prominent personalities get caught red-handed, they do not deny their infidelity and infact admit to it. That’s how the rich people roll in Amrikka and their career are not fully ruined. Whereas in India, careers do get stalled and even end which is why corruption has become a compulsion.

Ganda hai par dhanda hai yeh…

10-year old gets preggers!!!

Yup, the title says it all…! A 10 year old girl got pregnant in Spain and delivered her baby recently. The news spread like fire on all the news engines and caught my attention. Frankly speaking, countless girls don’t even get on with their periodicals at the age of 10, let alone indulging in an intercourse. Simply appalled at the way the world is changing.

It’s quite commendable to see how openly schools teach sex education, safe sex and of course the special accommodation of free condoms outside many facilities. However, I don’t doubt that the sex education is given to a ten year old kid. Then, how did they come to know about the love-making process? How did they know about sexual intercourse? Believe it or not… it’s the Media/Internet; which pumps people to the images of sex, condoms, and in-appropriate scenes. All these fundamentals are enough to jumpstart a curious mind. It’s very lamentable to see how an 8 year old has full knowledge of such things.

While surfing through some different opinions, I came across many parents who believe, stocking up on condoms and being on birth control is perfectly normal. Call it a cultural difference but I did not grow up in an environment where such things were called ‘normal’. Sure, the world has progressed enormously. Western culture has impacted every single continent but I’d still oppose this. Simply because that’s not the right time or the age. Getting preggers doesn’t mean only enjoying that very moment with your partner. It’s a huge responsibility which takes tons of patience, calmness, endurance and a savings account. Babies cost too much in this day n age. I really wonder what goes through a minor/teenager’s head when they glance at the ‘positive’ sign on the stick. Is it, OMG, I’m pregnant! Or is it, Oh my freaking Gawwdd, did I just get pregnant??? And if you’re more interested in knowing what happens next then watch ‘16 and Pregnant’. For some reason, Discovery has a repeat telecast of this show, which is useless because now it has come down to ‘10 and Pregnant’. Maybe everything shouldn’t be about sex and we wont’ have a problem.

Just maybe…

KWK klashes with Kapoor klan

Well well, so everyone is aware of Karan’s episode with Sonam and Deepika and a fuming R. Kapoor. It seems like the Koffee antagonized Rishi more than Ranbir. Why shouldn’t it? The man has stayed extremely loyal and trustworthy all his life. A very dotted husband to Neetu Singh. However, Ranbir isn’t! He is a complete Casanova. The fact is a little hard to digest, but, Sr. Kapoor himself flaunted his son’s flirtatious skills in the previous KWK episode. Tit for Tat!!! Anyhow, let’s leave the Kapoor men aside. I’m more interested in prattling about the two ladies. Sonam and Deepika have been clashing from the beginning. Both had their first releases on the same date in the same year. Deepika marked her name with SRK in Om Shanti Om and Sonam acted [or tried to] in Saawariya with Ranbir Kapoor. Sonam is a complete spoilt brat and takes full advantage of her daddy’s name and fame. She and Ranbir go way back. They flirted, they dated; end of story!

Coming back to Deepika. Coincidentally, she bagged the role of a complete blockbuster and became the khara sona of B’town. She’s got the bod, the looks and considered a hell of a dancer! BUT, the minute she opens her mouth, her personality goes down the drain. And now, switching gears to her love-life. Apparently, she grabbed the Casanova of the Kapoor clan and held on to him firmly. However, Mr. Casanova had other plans!!! Naturally, for a guy who was born with a golden spoon in his mouth, hopping around different women is not a big issue. Ranbir has the Kapoor tag with him; image is the last thing he’s concerned about. Am I right?

Karan’s episode surely created the hoopla around the tinsel town but opened a can of worms with the Kapoor’s. The girls had a ball at the show and did the usual thing: bitched about their ex! Which, by the way, is the common factor between them two’… So, one can imagine the amount of gossiping and back-biting. However, it seems ‘private and confidential’ has leaked and became ‘open to public’.

Sirji, Koffee badi mehngi pad gayi…

Welcome to Hell

Dost, the four-day weekend was too good. Thanks to Thanksgiving Day! Waking up on a Monday after a longgg weekend sucks!!! Anyhow, let me recap a bit and ponder upon my relaxation days. Ahh, the weekend was filled with too many nitty gritty things happening here ‘n’ there. As you all must know that Thursday was the Thanksgiving Day for all Amerikan’s! For the first time our family decided to throw a potluck and enjoy another get-together on the T Day. It was a pleasant evening filled with rations everywhere. The whole family successfully showcased their culinary skills. Needless to say, every entrée was delectable and savory.

While gazing at those countless ‘happy T-day’ wishes on Facebook, one of them grabbed my attention. It had something to do with North Korea documentary. Instantly I browsed through Google and luckily found the documentary. As I started watching, I got extremely antagonized at how people are obligated to hail at the ‘The Great Leader’ of their country. The citizens have no life, no future, that country is a complete hell. Infact, if hell does exist then it is North Korea. A picture taken from the space clearly shows no signs of electricity except for a small [probably a lamp] lighting the capital Pyongyang and the residence of the great leader, Kim Yong-il. This country has no economy, no faith and zero belief. From birth countrymen are obligated to serve the army. One of the most popular diseases is Cataract. There are no hospital facilities to cure people and very minimal equipments which are afforded only by rich people. By rich, I’m referring to the people living in Pyongyang and probably working very closely with the great leader. No outside books are available to read.  From childhood, everyone is taught to obey and salute the great leader.  Humanity word doesn't exist in this country.  Only the capital has wide roads but no signs of any cars. It’s only used by the leader himself. A common man cannot even travel from one city to another. There are several prison camps for the residents who dare to disobey the leader. Entire families get exploited for chemical testing in special gas chambers. No one is allowed to keep any outside contact and even the radios and television are controlled by the government.

North and South Korea are divided by a Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) which has electric wires all across the line. People have actually tried to escape North Korea and in return either faced death or imprisonment and torture for the rest of their life. Few people who were successful have horrific stories to share. No sign of freedom, no food, no economy, no outside contact, no internet; the entire country runs by one dictator. Period. The documentary showed how the residents would get drastically emotional while conversing about their great leader. One could clearly make out the fear and terror of Kim Yong-il in their eyes.  He rules and controls...end of story!

Highly recommended and a must watch – Inside North Korea Documentary!

Recap of 2010

It sure has been a roller-coaster since Jan 2010… Gosh, where do I begin??? The year 2010 kick-started with the entire media going frenzy over IPL games and Rajasthan Royals bringing home the Cup. Making their curvy lady completely glorious and well-pleased. Should have seen the smile on Mrs. S S Kundra's face! The lady got all the limelight and left no stones unturned in flaunting the victory of her team [of course with the help of immense ghapla and ghootala]. Since we are on the two G’s, I do have a little more to mention on that. Remember the dispute for IPL Kochi team which brought along a name not-so-known in the media until Mr. Shashi Tharoor brought her along with him! Shobhaa De likes to address her as Mrs. Pushy-kar mam. However, hands down, the winner of two G’s was none-other-than Modi sir. Ditto for Kalmadi and the entire corruption issue on CWG games 2010. Can you imagine the biggest ever opening ceremony of Common Wealth Games in New Delhi? I mean, it was fantastically mesmerizing and breath-taking. The cover of the games were complete dhamaal, however, if you dig deep, it is left and right golmaal. Oh, that’s an addition to my two G’s. By the way, it was a pleasure to see Obama Uncle visiting India and celebrating Diwali. Apparently, his visit got higher ratings than Clinton’s.

On a lighter note, my heart goes out to all the people who lost their loved ones in the Mangalore crash. Also, to all the Bhopal tragedy victims and survivors. I still feel despondent towards the court’s decision. After all, the cost of poor has come down to Rs. 25,000 for injured and Rs. 1 lakh for the dead! Consuming poisonous gas is as deadly as a hurricane or earthquake or a landslide. Don’t we encounter enough natural calamities every year, then why create one manually? In addition to the Bhopal Gas tragedy settlement, there was another pending case which announced the verdict this year. Ayodha’s Babri Masjid longed for more than a decade and finally when the Judge gave his verdict it was [as expected] not fully acceptable by many. The court case is never considered a blissful solution as one has to lose, whatsoever! A special mention about Khap Panchayat and Honor Killing, which brings anger and tears to the eyes. Why, just why is such insanity still alive in our country?

Moving on to some B’town gossip! Munni got fully badnaam in order to make Dabangg a successful hit! A well composed effort from the Khan Parivaar. The feud continues on between Salman Khan and Mr. Bachchan. Way to make it obvious guys! With Bigg Boss airing and providing with any and every ridiculous, cheap and derogatory ideas, it came down to Pamela Anderson [the porn star] and Dolly Bindra [C grade actress] to boost the TRP against AB’s KBC. Karan came back with his hot brewing Koffee and opened doors to the secret life of our much known celebrities. As if we were short on buzz town gossip! Vivek Oberoi decided to get hitched and got over the bhoot of Ash. Not many block buster hits except for a few. Aside from Bollywood, I can’t stop myself from mentioning the most famous site of the year: Facebook. So, Facebook, let’s tweet?

WOW… What a year! From 3G’s to IPL to CWG to controversies’ to verdicts to honor killing to Munni… sigh! This is India, dost !

Koffee with Karan

I like…nah…I love this show! A-class celebrities babbling with ‘The Man’ and sipping koffee in a very gay mood. Since the news channel and B’town media is ranting a little too much on Ash calling her father-in-law ‘Hot’, I knew season three is brewing… Gawd, can this lady grow up at all? I mean, who calls their father-in-law HOT publicly or privately? Anyhow, irrespective of this, I’m anxiously waiting for the season three to start. One thing’s for sure, Karan does everything with panache! Whether it’s throwing a party or sipping koffee.

Yesterday evening, after a thirty minute run in somewhat a chilly yet sexy weather, I surfed through some YouTube videos. Out of nowhere, I came across Rakhi Sawant’s episode with KWK. I got too startled and watched it all over again. That girl is Something. O yeah, believe me you, she is considered the gutsiest lady of India. She’s blunt, bold and just out there… However, at times, the boldness should remain inside only. Like she mentioned on the show, “my parents tell me, you don’t have to act like a Damini.” On a side note, remember the legendary dialogue from Damini, ‘tareeqh pe tareeqh’ alleged by Sunny Deol. Well, the Deol clan is coming out next year with a bumper dhamaka of their ‘Yamla Pagla Deewana’. Oops, got a little side-tracked here! Back to Rakesh Sawant, ohhh I meant Rakhi Sawant!

According to Rakhi, if she talks in English then only she can understand, audience will misinterpret every word of her. This was proven when she performed at the opening day of Bigg Boss and called herself ‘Solitid’. Salman and I, both took a while to figure out that she actually meant ‘Solitaire’. Everyone just loves to hate her. Karan fancied her company to the fullest on his show. There wasn’t a single dull moment around Rakhi. I believe this is the only episode where Karan could not stop laughing. And yeah, the entire Rakhi chapter was too hilarious even for the audience.

Going in a loop…Season three will start with a big bang! The first guest [like I mentioned earlier], will have Jr. Bachchans followed by an awaiting episode of Aamir Khan. I hope this time Karan brings on Rakhi Sawant and Dolly Bindra together. They’ll bring the entire house down with their cheesy comments. And yeah, the producers will have a ball with the highest TRP ever!

“Jo God nahi deta, woh Doctor deta hai!” – Rakhi Sawant

Happy Diwali, Folks!

Guys, it’s that time of the year again. Homes lit up with lots of diya’s, everyone dressing up in their newest clothes, Lakshmi ji sitting right beside Shree Ram accompanied by Sita ji and bro Lakshman and a smile on everyone’s face! Ahh, the feeling of Diwali every year rejuvenates every inch of my body. Loading up on mithai, distributing gifts among family and friends, divulging in countless phone calls, lighting up the house and much more. It’s a delight to see celebrities throwing taash parties, news engines showcasing Diwali Dhamaka’s in all the cities, Facebook status’s changing, every single market flooded with lights, patakhe, mithai, gifts, happy diwali posters, rangoli, diya’s, candles, Lakshmi Ganesh sculptures and tons more… sigh! Absolutely, fantabulously, amazingly the biggest ever, breath-taking festival in our India.

On that note, I wish everyone a very happy and safe Diwali minus pollution of the mind, heart, body and soul. Enjoy tons with your families, load up on every mithai [especially Kaju barfi], and kick in some taash! Have a thrilling Diwali, everyone…

Halloween – Day of the dead

Really, what’s the deal with this day? Halloween – the name sounds weird; everyone dresses up to scare others; the night seems eerie; and candies flying across all neighborhoods with a bizarre saying, “Trick or Treat”??? Odd combination, isn’t it? So, I decided to write an article on it and got started with a bit of R&D.

Now, please don’t assume that I’m writing an essay on Halloween. Essay is the last thing I’ll be writing as it is highly boring and irritating. Oh well, so the whole festival started out long back. Around 15 or 1600’s; I don’t think there’s a specific year mentioned anywhere in Google search results for Halloween [Lol, there, I cited my research as well]. Primarily only four countries observed the day: Ireland, Scotland, Canada and United States. However, from the past couple of years several other countries have started to enjoy this day as well. India too, has started to fancy this day. As if we had shortage of festivals??? Oh well, more the merrier! Anyhow, the roots of this day are connected to Celtic festival. Which, by the way means a religious belief adhered by the Iron Age people of Western Europe. So, the Celts believed that Halloween was the day when our world and the ‘Otherworld’ became thin and allowed spirits and ghosts to enter… And then to ridicule the incoming of such people or objects, [whatever you may call them] Iron Age people decided to mock them by dressing up as one of them. The whole purpose was to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit and thus avoid them. By tradition, one may only wear a costume of ghost or witches, however, as the technology is advancing in the world, so are the festivals. People started to dress up as anyone and everyone. The custom is to dress up and walk around the neighborhood houses asking for candies. The famous saying is ‘Trick or Treat’? The word trick refers to a “threat” to perform mischief on the homeowners or their property if no treat is given. Oh and by the way, there are rotten teenagers who throw eggs at your home if you don’t supply them with some candies. So, beware guys!!!

It’s really a treat for your eyes as homeowners to watch small kiddos dressed up as their favorite movie/cartoon character. Speaking of which, I had a very cute and adorable kid [might have been 3 or 4] on my door asking for candy. He dressed up as Spiderman and definitely looked handsome and a complete darling! Wanted to kiss him but as you know these gora’s act berserk if you touch their kids, let alone kissing! Nevertheless, I fancied all the kids who trick or treated at my door last night. Happy Halloween, mate!

The Baap of controversies – BIGG BOSS

Bigg boss – a complete funtoosh, masala filled and a highly controversial show. It’s said, seven out of ten people want to be a part of this lunatic show. Initially, the concept started in UK as Big Brother. However, by the time, India latched on to this delirious idea; the name got changed to Bigg Boss. The amount of publicity this show gets will make you go bonkers. Some allege that its’ a scripted drama. Many would perceive it as ‘propaganda’, however, the actual reality can only be revealed by the director and the actors [inmates].

Season four started with a big bang as the chor aka Bunty was banished from the BB house on the very first day. That is when I found out the main culprit of Oye lucky, lucky oye. Oh well, the Waqeel, Chambal queen, the two faced bit**, malai-marke, the seductress, love birds, the Khali, naag and the so called pehelwan are still there to create tremendous nautanki and atrociousness. Back – biting, bitching, abusing, gossiping, lying, slandering are some common factors one should have to stay intact in the show. The lesser you create the drama, the more chances you have of getting evicted. Simple rule of the show!!! Oh by the way, Pehelwan tried his best to become the Captain of the house by getting everyone on his side and leaving the masoom Sameer all alone. But all the melodrama didn’t lure much public’s attention. Infact, it didn’t even generate much TRP for the channel or the show. And then the director thought of a sudden surprise for all the inmates. Bigg boss dropped the bomb on all of them at six in the morning – the entry of Dolly Bindra.

The lady is a complete terror and a monster. Probably getting a very high amount for every fuss she creates. Although I do think that passing remarks on someone’s personal life is a little too cheap. So far, the whole nation is aware of all the drama’s these guys portray on television for even the smallest portion of publicity. Personal grudges are not necessary as it is not required to run this show. From dawn to dusk, she makes every inmates life terrible and creates tremendous ratings. Infact, the small clipping shown at the end of each episode gives me the chills. And let’s not even measure the curiosity level!!!

Let’s switch gears now. Since we on BB topic, how can we leave behind the Khan man. Dude is definitely flying high these days. After the colossal success of Dabangg, Sallu has already re-created the magic on screen and off as well. Plus, one can always view some sort of Dabangg-ness every week on the show. Directors have managed to keep the high spirits of the movie even after a month. Anyhow, let’s wait and watch, who comes out to be the most Dabangg man on Bigg Boss 4???

Happy Karvachauth to all my ladiesss!

After circling through a whole entire year, that one day comes once again! With the bundles of joy and elation, Karvachauth comes yet again. So, what is the feeling of going through ‘no food/no water’ for an entire day? What is the purpose? What is so special? From my perspective, it’s an individual feeling fondled by each women in India. Girls devote this entire day for the longevity of their significant other. I believe a relationship gets durable once the husband perceives what his partner goes through. It surely is tough to go without water for an entire day. The respect grows right after this one day of fasting especially in newly wed couples. Karvachauth is also quite famous among engaged and committed couples. With too much of westernization, it feels so pleasant to see the younger generation latching on to the old traditions.

Every girl awaits the moon in the evening so that she can open her fast. And the enshrined husband performs all the rituals with his wife. From standing in front of her to feeding her food & water and praying for their happiness and togetherness. It’s all done together as two bodies in one soul. On this one day, life seems beautiful. Period. Ever year I see so many ladies fasting and not once do they feel irritated or aggravated of ending their fast early. I’d say it’s a pure symbol of earnestness and dedication. It is considered one of the most charming customs in our culture filled with our rich heritage. Happy Karvachauth to all the ladies...!

...Veero kudiye karvara, Sarv suhagan karvara, Aye katti naya teri naa, Kumbh chrakhra feri naa, Aar pair payeen naa, Ruthda maniyen naa, Suthra jagayeen naa, Ve veero kuriye karvara, Ve sarv suhagan karvara...

Was it a legit Ayodhya’s verdict?

Finally, the much heated debate came to a conclusion. The respectable judges decided to announce the verdict on the most awaited litigation. Frankly speaking, until the verdict came out, I had minimal knowledge of Ayodhya’s case. After reading through couple of articles and TOI news chain, I got enlightened with the case. Not much, but enough to write this article. Instead of coercing myself in reading the long lost history of the case, I decided to cluster upon different opinions on the verdict. I came across many distinct notions and could not come up with an adept conclusion.

According to the court’s verdict, the location was divided among Muslims, Hindu’s, and another Hindu party. On the judgment day, Delhi went into a mute mode. No traffic, companies declared holiday, mobile network disconnected, cops on every nook n corner. It was expected that whatever the decision comes out to be, one party will get antagonized regardless. The expectation came to a reality, however, surprisingly no protest and no maara-maari!

India is an insane country when it comes to religion. This is the simplest trick people use to wage a war within the country. The current issue as well is between Hindus and Muslims. So, if everyone is completely acquainted with the fact, why not elude such issues? After conversing with a few people, I came across many other solutions. Why not build a memorial museum at the location? That will make life simpler. Don’t you agree? The constant debate needs to find a border line. Day in, day out, it’s getting bigger and out of control. Isn’t Kashmir enough to keep the grudges alive?

There is only one Almighty. If one thinks, their God is more superior, so be it! At least don’t impose the superiority on others. Nevertheless, it is clearly worthless saying such words. We have gone way too far in religious battle. There is no end to this issue. The saga has become a part of our daily life. How come we don’t see people protesting for a better education or a better life? The mandir/masjid kissa is oldish. Today’s generation require temples of learning. The world has become so competitive that without education you are not even worth a penny. Youngsters will settle for a job and a better life, anyday. They are least interested in politics of religion. It’s enough we have to deal with IPL politics, CWG politics, Khap Panchayat politics, Kalmadi – Modi – Diks*** politics.

It will be ridiculous to see round 2 for this case. We are fully aware of the outcome. There is no verdict which will be acceptable by both parties. It’s high time we put our foot down and drill some sense in these chaps. We were the best and we can be the best…again!

P.S. Let us all burn the Ravan this year. Happy Dussehra to all…

Anjaana + Anjaani = Mismatch

Last Tuesday my girls and I went for Anjaana Anjaani. Why on a weekday? Because the tickets are cheaper, and believe me, the hall was packed. We, desi’s, gladly accept our cheapness! No shame at all! The movie was okay. Same ole’ love story with a twist of ‘wanting to commit suicide’. Priyanka over-acted the first half and Ranbir got over-powered by her in the second half. Both of them are fine actors, however, both should not act together! A complete mismatch, if I may… Infact, at many encounters, one can spot her matured look.

Songs were absolutely melodious. Lucky Ali came back with a big bang. A special mention for the Hairat number. I’m not sure why the director chose to cast Zayed Khan for the supporting role. There are n numbers of decent and dashing looking actors. To name a few: Madhavan, Arjun Rampal. Towards the end, when Priyanka came out in her ‘almost backless’ choli, my jaw-dropped and I leaned over to my cousin [her’s was too]. Her lehnga looked ravishing and complemented her proportionate body from every angle. On the last scene, I told my cousin ‘if she jumps off the bridge in that lehnga, I’m going to kill her’. Well, instead of jumping, Idiot voluntarily ruined her outfit by walking in the river. The End!

Let the game begin – CWG 2010 New Delhi, India

Marvelous and jaw-dropping opening ceremony of Commonwealth Games in our India. I am wholly speechless to see the entire nation unite at this very proud time. I doubt if there was even a single true Indian who did not get a glimpse of the biggest gala ever in our very own country. The moment I got up and caught myself surfing through the TOI website, my whole body rejuvenated to see even the smallest clipping of the fire crackers shooting at the sky at Nehru Stadium; the 40 crore aerostat [helium gas balloon] showcasing multitude of pictures/videos of our rich heritage and bestowing a warm welcome to all the participating countries [money well-spent]. Jumbo Dhols, Drums, Dholak’s and Nagada’s echoed from ten different corners of the stadium. A small kid with Tabla in his hands had the entire nation grooving to his Taal. Couldn’t resist myself and gave it in by doing a couple of thumka’s…! Every country marched in were given a clamorous applaud while the drums rolled and the lights twinkled. Loud and proud, the Oscar winner, Mr. A R Rehman gave a spectacular performance. Also, not-so-forgotten Shibani Kashyap mesmerized the assembly with her hatke awaaz. In those three spellbinding hours, Delhi was lit up with lights and colours to present a properly conceived and exquisite show.

Traffic was a complete havoc as everyone was rushing towards the stadium to capture the best moment of their life. With all the cultures coming together and representing India as one dignified power, the whole planet went into a silent mode. As one of my aunt’s wrote on her Facebook status, “CWG opening was just "STUPENDOFANTABULOUSLY FANTASTIC", India ROCKS, Delhi ROCKS. Proud to be an INDIAN. Sabsey Aage Honge HINDUSTANI... to that my reply was, ‘Indeed’. The real show-stoppers of the ceremony were Prince Charles with his wife Camilla and Pratibha Patil accompanied by Manmohan Singh and Suresh Kalmadi. Even though, the public hissed while Kalmadi gave his special speech, it mattered to the very least. No one was willing to ruin the entire ceremony only because the small kids pulled together a praiseworthy performance to present every culture of our country and the aerostat which was closely monitored by masses because their a** was on fire. They knew the world had their eye set on them. Had there been any accident, it would have invited chaos for the whole nation.

Everyone bypassed the controversies, corruption, Kalmadi, the entire hoopla of CWG games and ceased the moment to enjoy every bit of the ceremony. Even with so many predicament and complications, we showed our alliance to the whole world. Oh well, let bygones be bygones, for now. I’m not alleging to completely neglect the whole corruption issue but I won’t spoil the mood since the whole country united once again. Dost, this is what India is all about. We bash up each other if required and we stand united when needed [the most].

As a proud Indian, I sign off on my article.

3 Cheers for Mera Bharat Mahaan…!

RIP Tyler Clementi

Tyler Clementi committed suicide. Well, I believe with each passing day, someone somewhere in the sphere commits suicide. Okay, so what is so extraordinary about this person? Alrite, a small intro for my readers… An 18 year old boy, fresh out of the college, got admitted in Rutgers University and… he’s gay. In this day and age, coupling with the same sex partner is no big deal. However, Tyler didn’t have the comfort ground set just yet. Being a teenager, he might have felt ashamed or not welcomed in his regular group. By regular, I mean, guys who prefer the opposite sex. Still understandable!!! So, the story goes like this…Tyler stayed in the dorms with a roommate. Roommate finds out about Tyler being homo and decides to punk him by shooting his make-out session via a webcam. Not just once but twice. Next thing you know, the roommate tweets it on twitter as well. Undoubtedly, he’s got like a million fans by now. Well, in his so called heroic stunt, Tyler gets immersed in humiliation all around the campus and decides on something very ill. Next day, the whole nation recovers his dead body in the Hudson River. My deep condolences to the Clemeti’s. May his soul rest in peace.

Let’s recap a bit and glance at some other aspects of the story. Dormitories are abhorred with filth and polluted with adulteration. Indulging in a relationship is quite exceptional. Make-out sessions are also very customary in any affair. Breaching someone’s privacy is not agreeable. However, broadcasting a personal video clip in public is not at all acceptable. And that too on the most popular social network. These days even an eight year old possesses an account on Twitter. Oh yeah, and how can we leave behind Facebook? Tyler updated his status before committing suicide. I really took a few moments to digest this part of the news. Is Facebook that substantial? Would you think of Facebook before doing anything, let alone attempting a suicide? It’s commendable that technology is booming every minute but it’s also taking a very huge toll on multitude of people. One can debate on many issues in this suicide case. Should we re-think the bullying caused in every college? Or the growing society of homosexuals? Or the big bang technology? Questions will come and go. Enormous appeals will take place between the university, students, media, higher committee etc etc. However, Tyler is gone forever. Clementi’s will never see their son again and this is the only truth which actually matters.

I whole-heartedly pass my condolences to his entire family…

CWG = Havoc

Where should I begin? Countless questions unanswered, overabundance of corruption, forged certificates etc etc. Aren’t we Indians already dealing with enough fraud in our country? Then why more? And it’s no where near manageable at this point. During my vacation in India, I encountered extravagant melodrama regarding CWG games in New Delhi. Special lanes for buses! Don’t we have enough traffic problems and to add to that misery, distinguished lanes just for CWG crowd. Why? Special lanes are only sitting there; why not open them for the locals? However, our government flagged them as ‘privileged lanes’ for bloody Gora’s. Fines increased to Rs. 1000. Earlier builders mixed cement with sand, and now, sand with cement. How pathetic can it get? Had it not been for Mother Nature, no one would ever discover the robustness of CWG special lanes…

For the past bloody four years, the only thing one hears is the transformation of Delhi for the games. However, no one comprehended the actual meaning of transformation until now. Delhites are troubled by the vicinity of the games area. The so-called-development is extremely worrisome and disgusting, but my real worry stems from the way quality standards have been trampled upon. The foundation of our system itself is based on bribery, fraud and corruption. Every single tender passed for the CWG project was forged and approved by our own government officials’.

On September 21st, a footbridge collapsed which injured around thirty people. Immediately after the incident, Delhi officials’ promised to get the entire infrastructure ‘up n about’ by October 3rd. It’s easy, let’s paste back the debris as it is! On September 22nd, a small portion of a ceiling collapsed at the weightlifting arena. Sidewalks often lead to a dead end or into a tree. No thoughts gone behind building a ramp. The chaos began a couple years back and now its result time! Our Civic administration had 7 years to prepare for this grand event. I bet, 3 were wasted intentionally, the next two years were dwindled in discussions, meetings, budgets, risk and so on… and now, pants on fire!!! With monsoon showing no signs of abating and the infrastructure quality being shockingly sub-standard; we are finding ourselves in the gutter. It won’t be surprising if the same incidents would happen during the games. These episodes have made its way to the local newspaper all over England and Wales.

I want some help from my readers. So, what do we lack? Actually, I rephrase my Q, where do we lack? Aren’t we considered one of the smartest people in this whole wide world? We literally rule the IT industry all over the globe. We have one of the best engineers, doctors than anyone in so called Amerikka. Where is the problem??? Is it the higher committee ruling India or corruption or money…? Or is it simply the reluctance of making our country a better place to live? Raise hands or rise up…

This & That

This article is not dedicated to some distinctive person or any exclusive topic and it’s nowhere near any controversy. It simply talks about the nitty-gritty stuff occurring in day-to-day life. People get so habitual of their routine life. An ordinary week drags on for five days. And a weekend passes by in one blink of an eye. Because I hail from the business world, I do realize the seriousness of having a two day weekend. At the crack of the dawn on Friday, my colleagues, friends, family get fully prepared to start off the weekend at 5 PM. Some people tend to leave as early as possiblel. I do too, at times.

Last weekend was like no other for me. While entering the house around six-ish, I found a housefull gala with my extended family as well as immediate. As I sat down and enjoyed the oil plus calorie filled pakora’s cooked by mom, we all gazed at the television. Later on, everyone resisted the oily-ness…ughhh! At night, bro and I decided to watch Jurassic Park III. Re-lived the magic created by that movie in the old days. While dozing off, I decided to catch up on one more episode of Lost. Yes, I’m still marathoning it. I was determined to hit the gym next morning. During wee hours, mother knocked on the door and my dream got crushed in a flash. Its fine, probably some random dream… My mind debated on when should I go to the gym? Morning passed by, afternoon passed by and before I knew I got excessively bored. After much thought, I concluded that I should go for window shopping. Called up my little cousin, picked her up and ended up in Wal-Mart. Probably the most favorable place of all desis. Purchasing was done in no time and the damage was adequate. Kiddo and I decided to walk over to a food plaza and the Thai restaurant became enchanting. I blissfully relished my Drunken Noodles entrée with a virgin strawberry banana colada while my company decided to load up on some Pad-Thai and a non-diet coke. Mouth-watering… Saturday ended!

Sunday – for the first time ever, I tasted Georgetown Cupcakes. Mmm…mmm…good! That was my reaction. I got amused by the number of people on the street. My friend and I also stood in line for about forty minutes. However, it was worth the wait! That’s when I discovered about the DC Cupcakes show on TLC. The prices are very affordable and delicious-ness savored in my mouth like heaven. A while later, the two of us got on with the usual thing girls do on a day out. Shopping! Yup, apparently Georgetown is not too pricey. Very affordable, if you plan to visit the clearance section!!! Lunch was at Clyde’s, food was an average because of their constant modifications in the menu, and I can never summon the names of my favorite entrée’s. Oh well, while strolling towards the waterfront area and enjoying the sexiness of the weather, both of us conversed about our busy life. Two seconds later, I tripped and made a fool out of myself in front of everyone. Nothing worse happened but yeah, our date was ruined in an instant. While resting at home, my awesome sisters came over with some yummy food cooked by one of them. Chole were finger-licking good. Aur bas, weekend khatam, work shuru! Sooo, have a wonderful week, everyone!

Daaarling tere liye…!

Chulbul Pandey – probably the most dashing, amicable, and a complete Dabangg man on-screen and off as well. Yeah, it’s true; Sallu miyan has an endless fan-following. Dabangg created magic on the screen. Khan-dan knew their audience and used all the right masala for their movie. In our B’wood industry, no other actor can pull off this role. The promos had the entire nation hooked to the screens. Each time Munni came on screen; junta went completely bonkers with her. She sure got badnaam but I guess in a good way. Munni – only five minute coverage in the entire movie, however, acted as the tadka [key part] of the film. The lady looked outrageously fabulous in her item number. She sure knows how to nachao the mango people on her finger tips. Infact, munni badnaam sms jokes are already in circulation on everyone’s mobile.

Switching gears onto a fresh face introduced to the nation. Sonakshi Sinha, daughter of the very famous veteran actor, charming looks combined with killer eyes, and a perfect bod [actually this particular attribute doesn’t need a special mention as it’s pretty much the only thing required in our film industry]. I think she did justice to her role by not over-acting or creating much brouhaha during the promotion of her debut release. A special thanks to Manish Malhotra for her backless blouses and the simple yet elegant sari’s. I am passionately moved by her tere mast mast do nain song. While vacationing in India, I got amused by the repetition of this song on every radio station. Literally gave the goosebumps.

The movie is a complete funtertainer and a mast watch. Chulbul Pandey with his cheesy lines, his cry me a river kind-of love for his mother, his absurd first encounter with Sonakshi, his ray-ban sunglasses, amazingly choreographed dance sequence where he fiddles his buckle of the belt in the most provocative way and a special mention for the shirt ripping off scene. I must say, give it away to the Khan Parivaar for this, a very hatke scene. If only I knew how to maaro a seeti… Solid impact hai, bhai! By the way, delighted to see Dimple on the screen. Hope she’s here to stay. Sonu Sood gave a khulla competition to Sallu with his almost 6-pack. However, he lacked in ripping off his kurta with the help of his will power. It takes a whole lot of gut to base the entire movie’s load on one man’s shoulder – Salman Khan. It is proven that at times junta cares less about the script and only cares about their superhero. Chulbul was spotted in every scene in his own chulbul-ness. The director probably did another peeni hai party after glancing at the box-office report. The gamble paid off, that too with a hefty amount. For once, badnaam munni benefited all…!

Bonjour

Sitting in Paris, sipping Café Latte and enjoying the crispy-ness of a buttery croissant. Gosh, time flew by so damn quickly. It feels like yesterday when I was rushing through work, emails, and my boss; only because I was flying to my desh. Yup, certainly a life changing experience on this trip and a smile on a face added with a pinch of ticklish feeling. Two week vacation flew by rapidly. I still have a crystal clear memory of the day I was leaving. Left work around noon followed by a nail salon stop [which by the way was highly required since I have the tiniest nails]. As I was driving to my home, I ardently wanted to get over with my packing and get on that plane. Even though the destination was still too far away, resting in that uncomfortable chair of economy class was getting me one step closer to everyone back home. Reality check: it’s not too much fun travelling from one continent to another when you can only afford the common man class. Ugh, I envy those people travelling via business class, enjoying the comfy seat with a huge space where you can practically lie down flat and relish the coziness. Its okay, one day I will too. Expect less; dream more – simple funda of my life!!!

Running out of battery and cannot find the junction which is needed for my laptop. Paris Airport and no power junction. Wah, kya baat hai!!!

***After two hour break***

Alrite guys, so this is what happened in the past two hours. Like I mentioned above, my battery was dying. So, I went on a hunt to find a power junction which would charge my laptop. Mission failed! Remarkably, I found out that UK also uses the same power cord we use in India. In order to start up my laptop, I was told by a passenger that I’ll have to buy a converter. To that my reaction was, “dude, being a pakka desi, I highly oppose wasting money on something I’ll never use again.” While sipping another latte and chewing a tomato mozzarella sandwich, I came across a decent American. Striking up a conversation with him was not too complicated. Thanks to my ‘talkative personality.’ Hehe, I’m proud of it! Since we are on Paris airport, I’ll describe it a bit. Firstly, this place is huge, and I mean Humongous. A passenger needs to travel via bus or subway in order to get to their terminal for the connecting flights. Infrastructure is a treat to your eyes. And let’s not even get on with the cleanliness. However, regardless of how long is the halt, every passenger is only allowed to stay in their respective terminals. Which kind of sucked since one cannot fancy the entire airport! Everyone is speaking in French, infact everyone is conversing with me in French as well. After a split second they realize, I’m a visitor because my face expression goes inane. Till date, this is the first airport where I was able to get a glimpse of every type of plane. Boeing 747, Airbus 380, Airbus 330, tiny jets, that double-decker plane, pretty much everything.

I had absolutely no intentions of writing my next article on Paris airport. Howbeit, since life is not planned; this wasn’t either. When I was vacationing, I had numerous topics in my head which are worthy of my article writing. That will happen once I land in US of A. For now, these are my random thoughts in Paris on my eight hour halt before I board my connecting flight. Oh, by the way, it was quite motivating to hear comments on my articles from my readers in India. Got me so charged up! Anyhow, for now, I’ll take leave. Will publish this article once I get back home. Hoping not to get jetlagged at all. Got a lot more to write, so stay tuned.

Farewell dost…

Transitioning from Ms. to Mrs.

So, finally the journey began for one of my closest sister/friend/guide/mentor. Each time we Indians have a wedding in the family, it’s a week worth of functions. These gora’s can never understand the intensity of our festivities. My Gosh, the stress, the tensions, frustrations, the constant calls of at least hundred vendors. I encountered this very closely. Wedding prep can be quite aggravating and nerve-racking! No wonder these gora’s get wedding planners and in India, people involve fifty family members to share the stress.

The prep started about three months prior to the wedding. The longest prep was of our dance performances. Ahhh, the fugly videos of our practice sessions on my desktop crack me up!!! The second big item on to-do list was ‘the venue’. I think banquet hall owners believe that even the mango people earn like Ambani’s & Mittal’s. Reality check, ‘No we don’t! Name the price affordable to us. Else, tata! And to shock you a little more the hall comes with nothing other than table and chair. A separate bill comes for table cloth, center pieces, cutlery, stage and hall decoration. Every decoration requires fresh and exquisite flowers. That’s when you start flaming over the extra-ordinary price tags of center pieces, hall decoration, mandap decoration and so on… No wonder Hillary C. dropped half a million on flower decoration for her D-day. These bloody rich people should live on some other planet.

I believe catering involves all the fun part and free food. Trying out several different restaurants; eating shahi paneer with a naan and afterwards who can say no to some gajrela? It’s another technique restaurant owners use to bribe customers for their selection. I think my sister tried three to four different Indian restaurants and later on cribbed about eating too much… ughh! We girls can never get satisfied! Khe khe…

While writing this article, it daunted me that the preparation went on for three months but the actual function only lasted for a split second. It’s over already and here I am writing an article on it. Time flies and this year it’s flying too fast. In this absolute hosh-posh, peace of mind is no where to be found. However, when the D-day finally arrives and you are physically there to encounter it; that feeling is priceless. Pretty much your khoon pasine ki mehnat and kamai… [if I may].

Our Indian weddings are the best celebration in this whole universe. No one can beat the fun, excitement, and full-on dance masti of our shaadiyan. Dulhan woh le gaye…

Mocking or Shocking – Peepli Live?

While I was having Monday blues, I still managed to execute a plan with my girls for Peepli Live. A movie, I was waiting to watch from the first glimpse of the trailer. The very first glance was so strong that it caught my attention in a split second. I personally, liked the movie. Reason being, I myself belong from a small town and hail from a farming family. People are having mixed feeling about the movie and the whole gimmick created on farmer suicide issue.

Infact, I had a pretty healthy debate with someone on the movie. So, let’s look at the movie from two perspectives. First, hats off to Aamir Khan for publicizing the concept of farmer suicide which is actually one of the very sensitive issues in our country. The whole mockery was constituted to lure the attention of public. Which, in return was very successful because the movie received 4.5 ratings. However, the mockery didn’t go waste. From an audience perspective, I believe, I left the theatre thinking about Prakash [one of the characters of the movie]. His dialogues moved the viewers. Even though the script delivery was given in a very calm manner and did not bring tears to the eyes; it still left a durable connection with the viewer. A satire of farmer’s destruction was nicely and neatly explained. The movie showed the farmer’s tragedy sarcastically. It was depressing to see how a farmer gets entangled between bank’s loan which turns into a debt and then pressure from family and to make matters worse, the Thekedaar!

Second, some people are not taking this movie positively at all. Infact, they think it created hoopla only because Aamir Khan promoted the movie. Also, that the movie was presented with wrong intentions. It was left in people’s mind as a publicity gimmick and not a serious issue. Farmer’s didn’t commit suicide because they were greedy but because they were frustrated, agitated of loosing their only land inherited from their forefathers. By manipulating and mimicking this concept, the director was not able to show the actual reality. For a farmer, his land is the only property which makes him proud and provides him roti, kapda and makaan.

How is it that our Rajneeti never concocted any policy for such delicate issue? The media played their role effectively. Aam junta is already aware of deceit played by the news channel on every sensitive issue. That was not new to the audience. Indians are very smart people plus very well aware of the tricks played by our very own media. I openly ask my readers, what’s their say in this? Which perspective do you agree upon? Is it okay to produce a gimmick out of an issue or did this film really change people’s point of view towards the farmer’s of our country?

Clown of the town

Rahul Mahajan; a complete loser, ridiculously immature and a downright jerk. I believe, this is still an incomplete introduction for a person like R Mahajan. I fail to understand…actually, I don’t even want to understand, why the hell should I waste my energy on a fool like him? The reason I even gave a thought of allocating my precious time on writing this article is the very current ruckus created by Dimpy Mahajan. So-called-wife of Rahul M and an absolute shame for the women of our country. Both of them pre-planned the entire drama. Since the termination of ‘Rahul ka swayamvar’, both got minimal publicity. And decided to construct a well-proof plot on an extremely delicate issue in India.

It was very nice of them to start off their plan at midnight as it will be perfect to appear in headlines next morning. What news with a cup of chai? So, in the middle of the night, Rahul starts to beat up Dimpy [his solemnized wife via a reality show] because she refused to disclose her password on the phone [as per Dimpy’s statement to news channels]. Next thing you know, Dimpy starts to run away and in that hurry she sure didn’t forget her phone. Instead of contacting her family member, the first thing she does is calls the tabloid reporter. And as we all know, media desperately awaits the mirch masala. They all arrive at Dimpy’s specified location. By the next morning, their so-called-tamasha took a higher toll on women who face this obstacle on a daily basis. It doesn’t end here, from no where, Rahul’s ex-girlfriend Payal Rohatgi comes into the scene. As it appears, Rahul started to desire his past. Bet that was pre-planned too. The next step of the plan is even more surprising, Dimpy goes back to her ‘parmeshwar’ [if I may]. Ohh, and not to mention the newfound [inappropriate] pictures of Dimpy with some dude on the World Wide Web. Can you imagine the timings of this? I would like to make a point here, who ever put in their effort in composing this entire melodrama is worthy of at least one clap. I bet if that person tries s/he has higher probability of becoming a script writer for Ekta Kapoor serials.

It’s sad that this issue has become a subject of mockery, a publicity gimmick, pushing aside the most sensitive matter which actually matters the most. There are so many wives who get beaten up in the confines of their cozy homes, by their respective husband, whom they like to call life-partners. One should definitely not forget that there are many jug head’s in our country who take their wife for granted.

Reality is not that funny afterall…!

Vivah

The word itself is purely sacred, divine, and solemn. Vivah; a commitment between two souls for the next seven lives. What kindled me into writing this article is my receptionist at work. She simplified the meaning of marriage in only a few lines. The whole perspective diverged in my mind after that two minute conversation. She has been married for the past twenty nine years. She told me, “we two grew together all these years; it’s like a job, like you come to work everyday; it’s pretty much like that but different. Now, my husband doesn’t feel the need to explain me things, I can just figure out what he’s thinking. It’s a beautiful thing. We have become friends at this age.” She also told me to enjoy bachelor days to the fullest as life will never be the same once you’re hitched!

Now-a-days, it’s so common to hear unsuccessful stories. A fear emerges inside after listening to such stories. A common man would tend to lean towards negativity only because it’s innate. There are very few people in this world who would allege two beautiful lines about their journey of marriage. Up until this incident, even I was uncertain about this journey. However, because of ‘her’ chastity and modesty, it felt good, it felt right. Isn’t it strange, how a stranger becomes your life-line? Life takes a complete 360 and one doesn’t know what future holds in its Pandora box? Every marriage is different. Each couple stems their marriage in their own solitary. It’s not necessary that one specific factor is common amongst all couples. Some people live far apart and still maintain a commendable relationship whereas some cannot distant even for a week. At the end it all varies at how you cultivate a healthy relationship.

In the initial stages of this analogy, every partner determines to adjust accordingly, which in return is quite profitable. The very famous quote, ‘if there’s a will there’s a way’ plays a very substantial role in a relationship. There are many people who bequeath tremendous amount of time to their affinity. It’s a myth that after ten years love disappears. I’ve come across many couples who stay happily even after ten years. Infact, one of the examples would be my receptionist. She maintained the happiness up till now and she will be glorifying her thirtieth anniversary next year.

Marriage is all about companionship, stability, support, love and affection towards that one person for the rest of your life. Who wouldn’t want to indulge in such relationship where the other person is available 24x7? There are countless couples who adore being married. Assuredly, there are pros and cons in such relationships as well. However, isn’t this alliance all about overcoming every hassle, every altercation together, as one?

Life is too short. Take your wife/husband out on a date. Enjoy this very moment with the one you truly love. This journey is too magnificent to miss out on.

Facebook & Full Nautanki…!

Few facts: Facebook has 500 million active users. 30 billion pieces of content shared each month. 70 and more translations available for site. WOW…what a network! Infact, from my personal experience, I’d tell you, even I’m a FB fan. FB is nothing more than a stalking site. It has its own pros and cons but no one really gives a damn about the ‘cons’. There are numerous people who lost their identity on this site. Few days back I heard the most deviant story on the radio. A couple decided to get divorced because the wife wouldn’t get off the FB. What??? That was my reaction while driving to work. Didn’t get the idea of loosing your husband [a human being] over a networking site… Strange! Once, I updated my status and mentioned about the perks of working with FB. In less than five minutes, a girl messaged me with her resume. Height of desperation or height of getting famous?

‘It’s not a mandate to have a FB account but because Rachel, Susan, Shipra own one, I should have it too’. This is how people feel these days. I vaguely remember when FB was newly introduced to college students. I bethink the day I created my FB profile. The site completely reformed from that day to now. In the past year, everyone has been bewitched by the FB spell. Every 14th person in the world holds a FB account. Wonder who’s in the category of remaining 13?

Many companies banned FB access. My company was one of them. One fine morning, I was startled to see an email announcing full authority of FB access at work. I was so jolted by this news that I decided to broadcast it on my status to the entire world. I’d like to call it a complete time-pass. Some call it a plague. Lately, I’ve come across all the ridiculous games, fortunes, horoscopes, crazy taxi, and the list goes on. Each time, I’d get a notification to accept request on any of these antics, I’d sincerely ignore it. Some thoroughly enjoy such nuisances but some [like me] keep it clean on other’s mini-feed.

Yesterday I encountered an erratic converse among my cousins. I told my younger cousins to respectfully address a new member of our family and the reply to that was, ‘I address him respectfully on Facebook.’ To this my reaction was, ‘so reality doesn’t matter anymore? Is this what kids are learning these days? Is the Facebook so real that the ‘actuality’ [per se] doesn’t subsist?’

Bridal Shower – Dulhan Phuwara – Wotti Phuwara

Okay guys, so I’m back on my blog!!! Bet, you all missed me tons, I missed writing too. Anyhow, so the past weekend was quite entertaining. Two of my cousins and I threw a bridal shower to our eldest cousin – soon-to-be married! Infact, in less than two weeks. Definitely a turning point for her and the family.

So, the bridal shower turned out to be partly surprising for the bride-to-be. If only, she could bear some patience in herself it would have been a complete surprise. Anyhow, all izz well… We, Indians, are not so familiar with the concept of throwing a bridal shower. We sure have heard about baby shower but not bridal one. Thanks to our parents for migrating us to the states ten years back. And thanks to the US culture for introducing us to a completely new idea. Indians residing in India are still desolated from this concept.

For the people who are still alienated from this abstraction. Here’s a synopsis: A bridal shower is pretty much like any other party. Except it only demands girl-friends to be on the invite list. So, the bride-to-be attains countless gifts which she can adore after the wedding. There are games involved as well which makes it more saucy and sexy. I won’t disclose much; let your brain run berserk.

Ours turned out to be an eight hour long affair. This is how it all began… Firstly, picking a date suitable to all the ladies followed by comprehending the details of the shower. Once, the day was finalized, I was all geared up to initiate the decoration/food/games/guestlist/gifts with my ladies. After the shopping spree, we were all set to decorate the basement. With much artifice, I managed to gather guys of our familia to help out with the decoration. Not to mention the hardship of these guys blowing air from their lungs into the balloons. All three of them deserve a huge applause!!! Afterwards, my cousin/hostmate and I started showcasing our culinary skills in our respective kitchens [which by the way was quite appreciated by all the ladies]. For me, the D-day started at 7AM sharp followed by cleaning, vacuuming and constantly keeping in-touch with my girls on the phone. The basement gets filled with the girls and as we are watching the clock ticking, we anxiously await the bride’s arrival. Something daunts me and I check up on her by calling, next thing we know she’s not ready and have no clue about the arrival time. In the meantime, we loaded up on some appetizers and finally she arrived. So she began fancying up on her crown and the attention. Of course, who wouldn’t, eh? My hostmate did a splendid job with the games. Hats off to her! After three hours of non-stop fun, everyone’s stomach was growling. So we begin the food process. Cooking – heating – decorating – setting – and finally serving. Coincidentally everything came out to be delicious and savory. Afterwards, it was time to bid farewell to the friends. And again, the basement was left with us four or fantastic four [if I may…]. It will not be the same after she diverges from being Ms. to Mrs.

As my hostmate said, ‘foursome won’t be the same, in a good way’…

Depleted in LOST

It all started with my cousin going gaga over the LOST series. My Gosh, she went fully bonkers with the show. I guess that’s how those million other fans felt when the series actually started. Her status messages changed frequently, her petrifying dreams, her conversations had tons of stories about broken plane, an island, ghost, odd noises, Charlie and the list goes on… In less than four days, she was completely lost in LOST. So, she bewitched me as well.

With the very first episode, I didn’t like it. Since, I’m a huge PRISON BREAK fan, I didn’t think LOST could re-create that magic with its series. However, with Indian Idol airing only twice a week and no Hell’s Kitchen, I forced myself into watching LOST. With the second episode, I believe, I got dazzled with it. The characters seemed to have a very calm and composed personality. I’d say my favorite is Jack [the main protagonist] and Souyer [not sure if I spelled his name correctly] however, I recently found out his real name in the show is James Ford. The Australian accent used by many characters mesmerizes me. When I was living at my college dormitory, the international students had their own charisma and magnetism. Whenever I go into my dorm flashback, I always recall the Australian students and their conversations.

Back to LOST! For the past two weeks I’ve been marathoning this show. Each time the show ends, it plays a very horrifying music. A couple of times, I tried listening to it but I got a bit scared. Oh well, here’s a synopsis of Lost. A plane crashed on its way to LA from Sydney on a stranded island. Months passed by but no one came to rescue the forty some people on the island. Every actor’s life is described via a flashback. Apparently, no one seemed to be happy with their life. The show took a different turn when ‘the others’ got introduced. Seemingly, the island belongs to ‘the others’ and the forty some people are intruders. Two characters found a hatch in the middle of the island which seems to be resting under ground and has all the basic necessities for a common man. From food to washer-dryer to computer, everything is available! Oddly, a button has to be pushed every 108 minutes else only ‘the director’ knows what will happen? [My humble request to my readers: Please don’t give away the surprise; I’m only on the second season, Thank you].

My last night’s dream kindled me into writing this article today. I saw myself abandoned on that same island and I was all alone. Apparently, ‘the others’ shown in this show were trying to hunt me down. When my dream bubble exploded, I realized I’m in my room. However, crazy as I was, I still remained in the panic mode. I could not move one muscle, nested in the same posture, tightly clenched onto Ganesh ji, started mumbling lines from some prayers, and finally dozed off… And then, in the morning I decided not watch this show anymore. But, curiosity intrigues every human being.

Requirements of a ‘Desi Dulha’

I bet while reading the title, some girls recollected on their old memoirs, some anticipated on their current situation and some fretting about the future dramas. This is more like a ‘kahani har ghar ki’. At one point in life, every girl goes through this phase. The minute a girl blows twenty two candles and shows off a huge smile on her birthday, her parents start to frown. Their mind starts recalling all the langotiya yaar’s and their sons followed by the age and the profession. Can’t say about other things, however, in our desi culture, a girl’s age spreads like a fire in the jungle. All the aunty’s start to look at you differently in parties/mandir/gurudwara. Random photographs of random guys lying in the living room or your inbox. A regular house turns into a production house of Karan Johar.

But wait; in this entire film making process…oops, I meant Jodi making process; how does a girl communicates her requirements to her father? Every girl has an illusion of her ‘andekha anjaana’. Few elements are highly required in any marriage-material type of guy. First and foremost, he should be decent looking. Com’on guys, we all know that the least one can ask for is ‘a presentable person’. We, girls, know exactly how we look so we don’t dream of a John Abraham or Hrithik Roshan, unless we are talking about some snobby, Richie-rich, daddy’s girl. Second requirement is the education. It’s vital to have a good education. In fact, he should be adept to the new technology. Should be able to carry a good conversation with the wife. Should be one step ahead or on the same level with his partner. Speaking on behalf of other girls, at times it feels good to discover that your partner is so intelligent. By the way, it’s okay if he’s not smarter than a fifth grader…

Third is definitely the family. We can act sophisticated or stuck up as much as we want among our friends or at work but the minute you step in the house, it should be a homely feeling. It’s a pleasurable encounter to find yourself surrounded by people who care. Also, where else would you brandish the gorgeous sari’s and heavy jewels you get in your wedding? Wink wink… Fourth requirement would be ‘a loving and romantic guy’. Which gal does not like to be loved? Or given a red-rose on a first date? Or liked to be held closely? Yeah, now the article is sounding a bit cliché, right? Call me cynical, but frankly speaking, these old customs are still very much in fashion. A red rose is just perfect on a date followed by a nice dinner and a walk holding hands. Sending archies cards, calling at an unexpected hour, hearing the three words in the middle of a conversation. All these are A-OK qualities of a romantic partner.

Just for the record, these four qualities do not embody four different guys. All these factors should be commingled in a single person. Only then we will be able to sing ‘Dulha mil gaya, Dulha mil gaya’…

Jaane kya chahe mann bawra…?

Feeling blue…! Don’t know why? Do you ever feel that even after sitting in a group you are all alone? I do…at times! It’s a bizarre feeling. Not at all explainable through words. But, I’ll give it a try. Within a split second, I feel alone, very alone. Sab kuch ho kar bhi, kuch nahi hai.

Zindagi, kaisi hai paheli, haaye? Yup, it is a puzzle which every man is trying to solve. For instance, I try to search my own identity several times. So, what is it that I want? What is it that makes me happy? What is it that heals my wounds? What is it that hurts me? What is it that I love? It’s too hard to answer any of these questions. Am I a confused soul? Maybe, maybe not… Life itself is a roller-coaster. It’s a quite rough and tough ride. When it’s bumpy, it gets scary, agitation falls in, insecurity clouds hover on the top and so on. Nonetheless, when the clouds disintegrate, it becomes a smooth ride. Life is back to being beautiful. BUT, is it really beautiful, or is it just a myth? At times, I feel like, I’m in a dilemma. At this point, I think I have bewildered all my readers. Its okay, as I mentioned earlier, am I a confused soul? I believe the answer is ‘yes’.

I’ll publicly ask this question… what is it that bothers you even when your life is beautiful? Why do you feel alone even when sitting in a group? Or, am I the odd one out here!?!?

Erin Brokovich

This past weekend I went out with my girls. While returning, the movie Erin Brokovich striked my mind and I decided to search the movie online around 9:30pm. It took me about an hour to find it and when I finally started watching, it kept on buffering… ugh! Anyhow, with much struggle I was able to watch half of the movie that night. When I dozed off, I kept on presuming what will happen next? Infact, I kept my laptop on hibernate mode, so that movie could buffer throughout the night. The next morning, I couldn’t wait to get back to Erin’s story. However, fate was not on my side. So, I restarted the entire page, and set it aside on buffer, again… eventually the movie started running. At the end, my expression was WOW... what a Lady!!! The film reminded me of Bhopal Gas Tragedy in India. Now, I have a crystal clear picture of what those people went through. Extremely sad and lamentable…

Erin Brokovich didn’t have a pleasant life but undoubtedly carried the looks and figure of a Diva. She didn’t have a concrete job, got married twice, divorced twice and bore 3 children from the two failed marriages. Erin did win the Miss Pacific Coast title in 1981; however, she showed minimal interest in the beauty business. Therefore, she moved on. But, fate had something else planned for her. Erin got involved in a car accident which brutally injured her. She hired Masery & Vititoe to fight for her case and later on worked for them as a small clerk. Because she had the body of a bomb-shell, she wore the sexiest clothes out there and showcased her assets in full swing. In return she got ‘hate-looks’ from all the other ladies in the firm. While working there, Erin came across Pacific Gas and Electric case. She got herself tightly wrapped around the mess and started to go on an investigation. PG&E had been poisoning the residents of a small town named Hinkley, California. It was because of Erin’s unwavering tenacity that PG & E had been exposed for leaking toxic Chromium 6 into the ground water. This poison affected the health of the population of Hinkley. The case was settled for $333 million which is considered the largest settlement ever paid in US history. Once again, Thanks to Ms. E!

However, how can a company ‘knowingly’ open a plant which will be poisonous for the local residents? Is it ethical? Of course, not! But since when did we humans start blabbing about ethics? In this day and age, a single individual or a firm or a politician, only looks for their profit; finessing the fact that it might crush others. I believe, very few Erin’s are left in this world who comply such selfless good deeds.

Even though the Hinkley residents were granted $333 million; they still cannot bring back the same health or peace. Damage is done! The money only acts as a medicine but the paroxysm will never go away. However, I still respect the idea of allotting compensation. In India, Bhopal Gas Tragedy victims received a small gob from the entire lump-sum. Just for the record, such things did not end with the Hinkley case. It was just the beginning. Erin got herself suppressed in just one slice of pizza. The entire pizza was still left to be taken care of. Ms. Brokovich is working with dozens of other cases which deal with water contamination. California, Texas, Florida, Michigan, Illinois, Missouri, all have high-rates of complaints against water contamination.

Kudos to a very prestigious and prominent Erin Brokovich!!!

Love – Relationships – Break ups – Suicide???

Love beholds no boundaries, no limits. It’s merely a saga, experienced from ages and ages. And before you know it, that love blossoms into a relationship. A relationship which makes you fly high; makes you more confident and brings immense happiness. It appears as a magical wonderland. Erects Goosebumps!

However, the happniess is short-lived. The thunderstorm building right beneath a relationship is poisonous as venom. Break-ups are awfully hard which leads straight to a depression, stress, or constant mood-swings. These are still manageable, but some lead to the worse: ‘suicide’. Recently the media went bizarre with the sudden death of Viveka Babaji. A prominent model shook the entire film/fashion/media industry. Viveka committed suicide on June 25th, by hanging herself from the ceiling in her apartment in Khar Mumbai. Now the question arises, what impact will her suicide leave on the other upcoming or outdated [if I may] models? Or what impact will this news leave on the common man, who goes through break-ups quite often? Every relationship demands equal respect for the both partners. If one fails to do so then why bother abiding such relationship? It surely takes a whole lot to recover from a failed relationship especially when it comes to Indian women. We, Indian women, demand the same respect. Why it is that always a woman commits suicide? There is an endless list of much known personalities and very common girls who chose this route. Why does society manipulate us in a way that it’s the women who has to suffer in a relationship?

Viveka was in a relationship with a guy named Gautam Vora, a stock broker. Marriage was on the cards for Viveka with Gautam. However, he denied such rumors. Infact both had a spat two days prior and coincidently 25th June was Gautam’s birthday and Viveka's judgement day. My blood boiled when the media unfolded the most moronic story of Gautam wanting to get Viveka checked up by a gynecologist to see if she’ll be able to bear kids or not? Isn’t it enough that such things still happen in rural India? If the same still exists in the most hyped-up city and that too with such well-educated people then what’s point of calling ourselves modern? Be it Mumbai or Meerut; both follow the same old grotesque heritage. We demonstrate ourselves as ‘a westernized society’ but we forgot that some people are still very much tightly conjoined with their old customs.

There are hundreds of Viveka’s out there. Only reason why Viveka Babaji’s death created such hoopla all over is because she belongs to the fashion industry. May her soul rest in peace. However, this should act as a lesson to all the girls in India. Bypass the split and walk-out with confidence. Suicide is never a solution to any problem. It’s a mere escape from the reality. Life goes on regardless. Face the bastard, face the society, and face the world with enormous fortitude. Become bold & blunt.

I luv hate stories/I hate luv stories…

Firstly, what’s the deal with the most ridiculous title? Is it just me or is everyone baffled with it? Well, horrendous script to begin with. I’m not sure how Karan Johar got convinced after reading the fabricated manuscript? Sonam cannot act! No questions, no doubts…! It was clearly portrayed in the film. She claims to be a diva only because of the ‘Kapoor’ surname else she has no talent of her own. The second she started spilling words out of her mouth, I knew I’ll only fancy her personal attire. If my memory is sharp then I think she’s got Delhi Belly in her kitty and then the road closes for her. Unless dumb directors like Karan Johar desperately want to direct some baloney w/ Sonam Kapoor.

Imran on the other hand is trying too hard to become like his ‘mamu’. Well, my advice to him would be ‘don’t try at all.’ The guy definitely has a cute look reserved only for teenagers. The same teenagers who spell love as luv… however, that’s it! Imran has a long road ahead of him. Also, he can stop declaring to the entire world that he’s ‘taken’, no girl is willing to marry him, it’s just a crush for the time being. The day he turns 30, teenagers will hunt for some other cute, adorable face.

About the movie, like I said horrendous script. Not a single character was pro at his/her job. Even the luv scenes were not convincing in any way, I think I cracked up on a few… Infact, each time Imran spoke to his mom, I knew she had to be some high profile actress ‘BUT’, it was Anju Mahendru. My goodness, I don't know what went wrong with her? She carries her role very responsibly. However, even she fell flat the minute I glanced at the ‘wig’. Yeah, even an 8 yr old could have pointed that out! The film was clearly saved by the songs. After Rajneeti, a huge disappointment from Raavan and IHLS… ughhh!!! Oh well, Bollywood is not famous for giving blockbusters in a row. The movie was conclusively rubbish; at least it could have been entertainingly rubbish!

Woh bachpan ki yaadein, woh baarish ka paani…

Ahhh…those days, childhood days! Still remember the first drop of monsoon, the first day of summer chuttiyan, and the never-ending homework/charts/projects. The days of pony tails and frocks, and the school uniform combined of white shirt with grey skirt; socks covering half the leg. Fighting over one crayon, getting jealous from a fancy binding of a book. Wow…

Life was possibly easy back then. We were too much occupied with siblings, cousins, school, friends, paints, playground, the terrace and the sky. These days kids are engrossed with Hannah Montana, Jonas Brothers, Raven, and all the high profile Disney characters. Back then, the day started with waking up, getting into school uniform, school, recess, chutti time followed by playing hike n seek in the evening and lastly homework. I don’t deny the fact that children these days are way smarter and globalized. Significantly more aware and considerably more tech-savvy! And also very weight conscious. Kids today are granted with gym class which means serious business for a lot. Whereas in my childhood days we had PT [personal training, can’t believe we used to call it PT] class, which basically meant an escape from studies for 50 minutes. Loosing weight was never an issue for anyone in my childhood days. We were all fit in our own ways, actually quite perfect!

In the past decade, life took a 360 degree turn. Everything is glamorized, publicized, socialized today… Anything can be fixed by Google. Facebook has become the core network for socializing, gossiping, networking, and infact matching as well. Even 8-10 year old can be spotted on Facebook with their personal profiles. What life, eh??? Let’s not even get started on the mobile privileges. In my childhood days, it was a big deal to have a landline let alone owning a mobile.

Let’s see what all developments/innovation we’ll encounter in the next decade. Till then, relish life!

Ekta Kapoor and her World…!

From the bahus to a 20-year leap in one day to the love triangles; our highly regressive households. This is what Ekta Kapoor has done in the past decade. The daughter of our former legendary actor; Jeetendra. Till date, she’s the youngest most successful business woman across India.

I do no count myself in her fan list. I hate the fact that the life shown in these serials is surreal. The dawn of the day starts with the daughter-in-law humming bhajans and a feet-touching exercise. The breakfast table is decorated as a center-piece on a wedding reception – and mind you, this is an everyday day task. The rest of the day is spent showcasing the culinary marvels in the kitchen followed by some gossiping and bitching. There’s always a vamp who entangles a love story with the eldest son/daughter of the household; in the hope of taking over the so-called-some-100crore-property. Three generations will go by but ‘Baa’ apparently survives each generation. Wonder what tonic she’s been taking? Almost every episode has one function or wedding or festival. The bahu of the clan is portrayed as a sacrificial lamb. Be it early morning or late at night, the makeup never gets tarnished. Not to mention the diamond jewelries/trendy hairstyles/lavish sari’s/and an absolutely dirtless villa. With the obvious not seen by the fabricated artist in these dumbfounded serial, the viewer’s blood pressure rises to a point where they literally want to crush Ekta and her team into pieces. In today’s day and age, where do you derive such cordiality in a household? Such is the insidious blandishment of Ekta’s serials.

Ditto like Google, Kapoor has the entire Indian domiciliary in her palm. Infact, not just India, even the neighbouring countries are ambushed in the charisma of our television serials. Another major factor is that 70 percent of the publicity is done via serials in this modern age. Be it a movie, a product, a designer, a song, everything is commercialized in today’s world.

One can rattle on all day on this cunning topic however; one must also not forget the good deed hidden in such business. With the way poverty level is growing in our country, Ekta has done a colossal business by bestowing a role [or a job, if we may call it] to hundreds and hundreds of people out there. No wonder all these serial actors consider Ekta as their Guru. Despite the fact, Ekta is on everyone’s hit list, I still think she’s the most felicitous person in our country. She surely has done wonders to the television industry. Its no more called a ‘chota parda’!

Honour Killing: Sheer act of cowardness!

A part of me was trying to avoid writing an article on honour killing. It’s too caustic and grievous. I gathered all my courage today to engross on this crimson issue in our democratic country. Yah, I’m from a democratic country, per se. It was none-other-than media who came up with the phrase ‘honour killing’. What’s the honour in killing your own daughter or son?

Didn’t we learn in schools/colleges, ‘Live and let live’? Then why not follow the same mantra throughout our lives? Let’s not ridicule ourselves by captivating the new generation into the same ole’ traditions. What’s the point of giving good education to the genX if our ancestors choose not to become open-minded? What’s the point of having democracy if we still have to obey Khap Panchayat and their so-called-laws? Guys cut the crap and get practical! Forcing a girl into a marriage will be equivalent to forcing her into adultery. Getting infuriated to see your son/daughter elope is still legible. Howbeit, killing your own offspring for such reason and afterwards claiming an ‘honour’ in this murder in front of media is an absolute disgrace to our country, our religion, our tradition and evidently to our society. People should understand that back in the day’s; laws, culture, rules, regulations were made in order to make life better, convenient and happy. But where do we stand today? Instead of boycotting against honour killing and proposing a restrictive order against it, the number of killings are increasing by the day. On top of that, the murderers aka the family of the dead are openly alleging their so-called-good-deed. Com’on, good-deed???

I hail from a country where parents live for their kids. A country where a father dreams for his daughter’s marriage from the day she opens her eyes. A country which bows down for Mata Rani, Lakshmi Devi, Sita Mata, and Parvati Ji. A country where Gotra also plays a major role. However, I can bet that 90 percent of genX doesn’t even know which Gotra they belong to? Here’s an example: the other day I went to Temple for a Pooja. Pundit ji were performing the Pooja while I sat there with my hands folded facing Shivji & Parvati ji, expressing my heart to Them with my eyes closed AND… suddenly Pundit ji asked, ‘beta, aapka Gotra kya hai?’ I opened my eyes with a blank expression and in a confused state nodded ‘I don’t know’. Does this mean that my Pooja was not successful? Is a prayer bounded to a Gotra?

Ditto for marriage! A relationship is not dependent on a lineage or clan assigned to a Hindu at birth. I guess, people are just looking for reasons to kill each other these days. Is it really painful to see a happily married daughter? Is it that easy to gather that motivation and aggression to murder your little girl who grew up with you? The brutal sins executed by the family members won’t be forgotten. Jo jaisa karega, woh waisa bharega…!

Unthinkable, Unimaginable, Unattainable…

As always, every week I eagerly look forward to weekends. This past Friday, I left sharply at 4:30PM from work. Went home, got into my PJ’s and had chai with my dad. Ahhh, how a cup of chai can melt away the tiredness of an entire week is still a mystery. Minutes later, my cousin showed up at the door and we started to chit chat. Later at night we girls went out for Thai [the-only-food we are fond of].

Saturday flew by in a flash and before I knew, it was Sunday already. How can I ever forget the strenuous exercise this past weekend? The intense workout with the girls on Friday night in a parking lot followed by a hardcore workout at the gym on Saturday morning and then the dance party at my friend’s place later in the evening. Phew… All my bones were screaming to me…Rest, Rest, and Rest! However, I’m me! Rest is not something I’m too fanatic about. Sunday evening, I lied down on the couch and asked my brother to put on a movie. We started watching ‘Unthinkable’, somewhat related to ‘A Wednesday’ from our Bollywood films but directed on a larger scale.

The plot starts with an average guy recording himself and declares to the entire world about his set-up of three nuclear bombs in three different cities of U S of A. Moments later, the tapes aired on the entire news network. The antagonist forces himself to get into the police custody and goes through a violent interrogation. While watching this movie, I started getting panicky. With so many terrorist activities occurring everyday, I firmly believe this could be based on a true story. One thing which startled me was, that the antagonist clearly stated his motive behind the nuclear bomb setup and while describing he mentioned ‘Allah’ loves His people. I want to question everyone, “Why these deadly act in the name of ‘Allah’?” Why terrorize the entire nation? Why become responsible for someone else’s death? Why impose on other people that ‘our’ God is better than yours?

In the movie, the antagonist was suffering through such agony and torture. The interrogator cut his fingers, got him naked and threw cold water on him, gave constant electric shocks, pulled his teeth out of his mouth. And no, the suspect did not break down. He remained unshaken, unaffected. The stoical body of the antagonist was rock-solid. The interrogator slit the neck of his wife in front of him. And still, he did not speak. His kids were placed in the interrogation room as well. I won’t give-away the ending… Watch it and find out!

These terrorist have no purpose in their life. They want to blow up innocent people and later on take the name of ‘Allah’. As if ‘Allah’ will grant them heaven for executing such brutal operation. There is no mercy for such transgressors. Either today or tomorrow, they will rot in hell…! Period.

Cost of poor: Dead bodies sold for Rs. 1 lakh. Injured sold for Rs. 25,000.

‘Rich gets richer and poor gets poorer’. National anthem of our country. I feel ‘disheartened’ to write this article, however, at the same time ‘tempted’ to spread the awareness of Bhopal Gas DISASTER in India. An industrial catastrophe which occurred in 1984 at the Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. At the time, UCIL was the Indian subsidiary of the US Company Union Carbide Corporation (UCC), presently Dow Chemical Company. The ‘raavan’ [as Bhopal people would like to call him] Warren Anderson ruled the company in 1984.

About twenty six years ago deadly toxins from the plant were exposed to over 500,000 people. Around 22,000 dead. More than 1, 20,000 injured. Studies show that symptoms are related to eye problems, immune disorders, cardiac failure, female reproductive difficulties and birth defects among children born to affected women. Basically, it never ended; it’s an on-going suffering.

Along with Anderson aka Raavan, six others were convicted in this ghastly act. Anderson bribed the government and flew off to US and only 2 years of jail for the remaining accused. Wow… This is called justice. This was the verdict on the most deadliest gas tragedy till date in India. From the past 26 years, people of Bhopal are living on a hope to see Raavan behind bars, waiting for our Government to take stricter action on this holocaust. However, what is our government doing? Relishing the fringe benefit paid by Raavan. $450 million!

All these years, people of Bhopal did everything possible to get justice and so-called-compensation. They protested, they cried, they begged, they filed court cases, they sat hungry and faced police lathis on roads and most importantly: they hoped! Little did they know, there culprit was living life king-size in a mansion in New York. And the bastards ruling the government in India were having a ball with corrupting gift.

British ruled us for 150 years and gave us independence. However, did we really get independence? Aren’t we still being ruled over? The only difference is, instead of British, now it’s America. Kehne ko we live in a democratic country. Kehne ko we have freedom of speech. Kehne ko sky is the limit for us. But the fact still remains that it’s the Americans who are driving our country and the dollars. Actually, it’s not a particular currency, its just money that matters in this kalyug.

The victims have always alleged that Bhopal tragedy happened because of negligence by the Union Carbide and that was cost-cutting measure taken by Anderson. Anderson is a criminal, surely he’ll do anything in his power to protect himself but what is our government doing by letting this mass-murderer go scot-free. Is it because he’s an American? Does this mean Americans can visit our country anytime and kill the poor? Will we not fight back? Is it because higher level authorities had no family members who suffered from this disaster? Is it because people of India are worthless?

Poor has no say in anything because poor doesn’t have money.
Poor will rot in hell because he was born as poor.
Poor has no value.

We never got independence and we never will, until India decides to stand on its feet!

http://studentorgs.utexas.edu/aidaustin/bhopal/bhopal.JPG