On Nice and Not
*totally random
Recently on facebook a group of my buddies nominated me as one of the nicest people they know..sweet..I'm not sure how many others agree with that, because speaking ill of people, getting cheap thrills from malicious gossip and just being indifferent are qualities that have become rather common with us these days.

The Mangalore incident has received loads of publicity..but I think when it comes to morals, we are addressing the wrong ones..we are indulging in plain-speak about the superficial and tangible but what about qualities like compassion which are often found woefully missing in many segments of our populace.

We are concerned that our young are going to 'immoral' places like pubs and clubs but are we concerned about their insensitivity towards others - from the old, to the haggared to the handicapped..Why is it that few people raise their voice when a fit young person refuses to give up their seat on the bus to a older, more in need person, but when the same young person has a few shots at a pub we mercilessly beat him (or her) up?

Basically, the problem is that we're little concerned about moral policing and more about the outward shows..India - the land of family values - bull crap I say. Till people tackle the intrinsic issues plaguing our conscience, we have no right to blow the trumpet about our 'sabhyata'.
Just because a girl/guy enjoys drinking and hanging out with members of the opposite sex doesn't make him/her immoral and it certainly doesn't (in my eyes) prove that the person is worse than someone who doesn't indulge in such public practices but who in the security of his/her house mistreats his/her old parents and beats up the servant or backstabs a trusting mate. period.

Of Commercialisation and Cellular Silence Days
*This is not an advetorial

Hindustan Times.com is perhaps the best online portal any newspaper in India has...in my opinion (let's hope it matters!). Among other things, I love reading the various blogs and columns by various media personalities that appear in it. A recent entry by Pratik Kanjilal (publisher of The Little magazine that I know nothing about!) caught my attention.

It touches upon (who else but) Narendra Modi...the much revered as well as reviled CM of Gujrat. But the text of Kanjilal's story is how certain groups have started a movement inspired by the erstwhile 'Swadeshi' and are boycotting the heart of Modi's success - commercialisation.

They are boycotting products from various commmercial enterprises like Reliance and Airtel and asking people to follow suit. In yet another example of harnessing technology to propound a revolution, a certain Ranjan Kamath is using the internet to ask people to switch off their mobiles on 30 January to mark the assassination of Bapu...(atleast someone remembers his death anniversary..most people take note of his b'day on 2nd Oct, as it's a holiday...)

Apparently it has worked, with the Tata's slapping a legal notice that warns of a defamation suit on Kamath..But news of such an action can only work against the group because in my opinion, Kamath makes a point and very important one at that - we need to slow down and reduce the ever increasing commercialisation in our lives...Probably the recession may help...

Modi as PM or for that member Ratan Tata as India's Obama (I'm even a member of a FB group supporting Tata's Obamanisation!!)...Not quite...I think when we think of leaders we need to think of people who can step outside the commercialisation of it all and actually give us all a break...

About SLUMDOG wins...
While everyone is out rejoicing the win of Rahman and 'Slumdog Millionaire' (SM) at the Golden Globes, the journo within me, while happy, can't quite escape a sense of seething cynicism. I tried writing to the editorial pages of a few papers, but I guess I can't do justice to ALL my cynicisms in a short e-mail, so I'm using this convenient blogspace to vent and spew and not get cut-short by any gate-keepers although my reach would be small..but heck..I care not.
- SM is at heart a typical masala, bollywood movie with all the accompanying dhoom, dharaka, song and dance. The very thing that many 'firangis' make fun of in our desi movies. BUT it has Danny Boyle directing it, therein it has a naturally infused 'hollywood sensibility' and immediately qualifies for SO many awards. Leads me to wonder whether Aamir Khan's 'Lagaan' and presently his 'Taare Zameen Par' would have stood a better chance at the international awards if they too had a Danny Boyle or a Martin Scorcese in their crew.

- Also, the slumdog realities of India are suddenly exciting most of these firangi jury members. Arvind Adiga's 'White Tiger' dealt with the daily struggle in poverty striken India and it won a Booker, Danny Boyle's SM too looked at these Slumdog realities and voila! it's now contending for a Oscar...amazing huh? So I get it, people outside India are sick of its 'shining' story and want to show what filth really exists here..ya? So anything that satisfies this craving in a satisfactory way, wins an award..yay! I may have finally discovered a genuinely current, winning formula...(I may be writing a book about my deaf and mute jamaadar soon).

Adiga may be Indian but he emigrated to Australia and currently has an Australian/Indian citizenship. He came here for a few months, strolled the streets, spoke to a deluge of people, observed the more-than-obvious, glaring poverty and disparity between the rich and poor and penned a novel that made it to the booker...and Boyle, borrowed the 'Q&A' script by an Indian author, came here, had a (until recently low-profile) Loveleen Tandon do the casting, location hunting and co-directing of his film on India and it's slums and he may just win an Oscar....I maybe wrong, but I find that these people 'maybe' inspired by the idea of India, but they're certainly not part of it and in actual reality they're just profiteering from it's poverty.

If you don't agree with me but just feel that I'm spoiling the party like a grouch, forgive me. I'll own up if TZP wins a foriegn language Oscar or a book about our nation's inspiring idea like Nandan Nilekani's 'Imagining India' or past books like Pandit Nehru's 'The Discovery of India' or APJ Abdul Kalam's 'Ignited Minds' are ever nominated and win an internationally acclaimed award.

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GYM RATS
So, like the hundreds of others who made a resolution to cut the flab this year, I too found a reasonably priced gym and became a member (it's recession time after all).

I find gyms to be wonderful playfields when it comes to people-watching..yes, I know the intellectuals among my readers find this a very lowly hobby, but excuse me...I LOVE to people watch and just to clarify..bitching about others IS DIFFERENT from merely observing them. Besides, as social animals it's our 'janm-sidh adhikar' (birth-right) to indulge in such frivolity!

Now, gyms can feel like a downer if you're on the wrong side of the scales (like yours truly) and feel tired after an intense hour of cardio and pumping iron. But if you're fit and fab...it's the best damn place to show off..So I find some fab bodies wearing lycra gear to show off their amazing gams and abs...Nice...I'm happy for you..But trust me, it looks outright cheap when one can decipher exactly what underwear you're wearing through the thin cover of the lycra. Also, please, if you're well-endowed, it's best to avoid such displays....I won't venture further. For the intelligent, just a hint is enough...

Then there are the narcissistic and arrogant trainers (some of them) who can't stop hinting (or screaming aloud actually) just what a mess you've made of yourself and how much mind-boggling effort it will take to get back into decent shape. OK! I get it..I need 2 sets of 30 push-ups to work those blessed love-handles...but is it a must to scream it out and let the whole place know what a supposed loser I am just because I'm out-of-shape and getting tired of the damn work-out?! (My instructor, bless her, was kinder, she only gave me 20...)

Oh, and how can I forget the aunti-jis and uncle-jis..I've utmost respect for our senior citizens but sometimes I find, with some of them, they fail to realise their age. Tight gym gear in loud colours looks awful and more so if you're 50 and above, with all the obvious signs of ageing. Sagging, wrinkly skin, walking with a hunch, a healthy gift of excess flab etc are a few hard-to-miss signs. But I was shocked to see one of the aunties flirting shamelessly with a guy instructor half her age...ewwwwww....

The last of the specimens I have observed are well-toned people in tight gear (will somebody just wear a pair of gym pyjamas already?!) who think it's alright to keep checking out others, talking and laughing loudly with friends and generally making themselves stand-out...I think someone should tell them that this is just harming their reputation...that's all..

Just a signing off note...all this in meant in jest, please don't take offence..Maintaining a healthy body is an excellent thing to do...so goodluck if you've joined some regimen :)

Clinging on by a 'hair' breadth

I've been shedding hairballs like a puppy dog and although my mom and my hair-dresser have calmed my concerns about going bald...I'm still agitated by the regular loss of my, so to say, 'crowning glory'..haha. Trichology (the science of hair-management - I kid you not) isn't as developed in India, so I haven't yet visited a doctor (also called a trichologist) to confirm that all's fine and that this is just a 'phase'. Nevetheless, I've gone for my regular 'short-bob' and am praying fervently to my dear God, asking him (alongside everything else) not to snatch my beloved hair...Hah, you say, I'm superficial...please..I'm not..I'm just like any other girl...we girls (much like you boys - although YOU may not show it) are concerned about our hair (and everything else above and below it!).

This past week has also exposed me to the 'hair-breadth' by which we are clinging on to our fragile lives in this city of muck (as Ms De calls it). The city of slumdog millionaires (and I'm not referring to the Danny Boyle AND Loveleen Tandon's movie) where a problem with the daily local, a strike by TV workers, truckers and petrol PSUs can virtually bring the common man's daily life to naught. On top of that we have the incredibly thick idiots across the border playing havoc by sending their terror pin ups to Mumbai and these, even more idiotic (for want of better word) boppers think they're conducting mission Kashmir, confusing aamchi Mumbai to aapri Kashmir...PLEASE forgive me if you think I'm making light of the situation. I'm moved to tears of painful, stomach-gripping laughter by such confessions...

In these times, I'm just glad that I know a few nice and decent folks...with whom I've spent some memorable moments in recent history, especially the some of the CEB peeps - Shaivi, Tanvi, Disha and Abhinav - tks much :)

A bucketful of fatigue with a pinch of hope

Yeah...that's me, at the moment. Don't call me a pessimist, just because today I don't feel "spirited". 2008 was a tough one...it had it's ups and downs but by and large, as the year draws to a close and people take to revellery, my heart seems to skip a beat...I lost my grandmom this year and Mumbai, my beloved city, bruised it's soul. There remain several personal and family matters to resolve and the air is rent by uncertainity and complexities. I don't know what the future holds, my mind is fatigued and the corners of my heart feel lonely today.

Today...maybe I'm not at my best...but soon I shall be. After all, like all past years this January the first is also the beginning of yet another new year with new hopes, new challenges and therein new reasons to rejoice. I've smsed a few pals this view, a few have smsed back...Life goes on..see you on another new day...