The Curious Case of Ishrat Jehan

Ishrat Jehan the name has once again raked up the controversies which were buried along with her dead body after a bloody encounter with the Gujarat Police.
Tongues started to wag soon after the encounter and pseudo political parties vied with one another to rake up the minorities issue and muslim organizations and Urdu newspapers united behind the family which portrayed this as an attack on faith and minorities.
The Khalsa college where Ishrat was studying lent support for its student who it claimed never indulged in any anti-social activities and was an average performer who maintained a low profile.
The Let – Lashkar- e- Toiba a well trained terror organisation scouted for individuals who had innocent backgrounds and brain washed its likely victim on the basis of false religious discrimination and other imaginary plots often citing that the existence of Islam itself was in danger.
While being interrogated by the FBI, David Coleman Headley the king –pin of Let gave full account of his recruits across Asia and confessed that Ishrat Jehan was indeed a Let operative and was working clandestinely to destabilize the Country by resorting to usual hit and run policy adopted by the experienced terror group. The FBI too later verified that the confession or inputs provided by David Coleman Headley were factually correct.
Of the other 3 killed one Pranesh Pillai a native of Kerala had converted to Islam using the alias name of Javed Shaikh. He was booked in a number of assault cases at Pune and Mumbai and was also charged in a fake currency racket . It is conclusive that a person who indulged in various nefarious activities and had strong criminal connections with people with questionable intents was hell bent on committing a terror act.
It is quite possible that the foursome were killed at point-blank range after their activities were proved.
To me it is very fair because had they been tried in some local court it is likely that they could have jumped bail and would have gathered enough time to spread their dirty tentacles in communally sensitive areas.
Its better to have such people eliminated rather than keeping them like Kasab who is thriving on tax payers money.

Occupy All streets

The Occupy Wall street movement Fallout seen in USA and other European Countries speaks of the volume of disenchantment and distrust of the common man over the accumulation of disproportionate wealth by the elite. The rule –books are cast to the dustbins when it comes to distribute the profits, maximum is stealthily relegated to their personal shelves and the people in the lower hierarchy are fed breadcrumbs to feast upon.
Working for a British Logistic Multinational Exel Plc. revealed the usual dirty corporate greed.
All earnings used to be dispatched to the Parent Company in Britain which in turn used to send a certain percentage to each specific region to be distributed as Bonus /Performance incentive.
The Indian regional top brass hatched upon a sinister Plan to distribute the bonus amongst themselves and the bizzarre gauntlet almost paid off but for a whistle-blower who blew the lid perhaps because he was a recipient of a smaller share of the booty. The middle management were informed that due to lower margins during that financial year incentive for that relevant yea r was being scrapped. The junior cadre, were furious on learning about the scam but the situation was quickly defused and frayed tempers were soothed by denials, sweet talk and coercion though not necessarily in that order.
Capitalism has failed miserably in this context where inequality and lopsided development has mushroomed and the gaps between the haves, and the have-nots has widened paving the way for the simmering discontent.
During the economic slowdown in 2008 billions of dollars was pumped in to save financial institutions/ affected banks from going bust as if the economic revival was based on their sole existence!
Citibank NA was on the verge of sacking their Chief Vikram Pandit during the global meltdown but when the bank was back in the black he was showered with unprecedented benefits that defied logic and rationale. Once the Supply- demand cycle was restored the first thing to be sorted was regaining all the lost ground for these bankers who made merry with their innovative skills of grabbing the opportunity with both hands.
A HR Chief S Mohan of BPCL a Govt. Undertaking was given a grand bash on retiring from the Co and an astronomical amount of Rs.40 lacs was splurged on the same. An amount of 40 lacs would surely hurt the bottom line of a company but who cares?
The salaries were more or less rationale during the early 2000’s but then all of a sudden Corporates vied with one another to carve out salaries in Crores. Once the bench mark was laid it was difficult to peg back the extravagant perks . Western Corporate Culture was bluntly copied by Indian corporates and the Obscene & vulgar display of wealth creation hogged the headlines. Jetliners to Luxury Yachts being gifted by industrialists to their wives and girl friends became a norm or some sort of ritual. A multistorey building was built as a residence in South Mumbai for a single family of 4. A race ensued as to who would list in the TOP 100 List of Billionaires which prompted even a mature and restrained person like Ratan Tata to issue a statement to all industrialists that such a Vulgar display of wealth is unfair to scores of people in our country who don’t even get one square meal a day.
This movement does not see any strategic support in India as most of the upper middle class people and those belonging to the elite certainly would not like to reduce the surging cash flowing into their coffers while those coming from the lower strata of society cannot sustain these kind of tactics as they are more concerned about holding onto their present jobs even if it is providing diminishing returns.
The Occupy Wall street movement which even saw Violence in some of the European countries is spreading its tentacles far and wide as the commoners have got fed up due to stagflation, unemployment, reduction of social security measures, disproportionate income levels across the board.
If not controlled the movement will ‘’Occupy All Streets’’ instead of limiting itself to Wall Street.
Bouyed by the success of the Egyptians/ the Libyans and the Anna Hazare movement the people in the Western Countries have held the corporate honchos and other wealthy bankers who more than often seem to get the optimum benefits by the scruff of their necks and time will tell whether they can effectively strangulate them to their benefit.

CON Banega Karodpati????????????

The reality shows which has flooded the idiot –box in recent times has managed to keep its select band of viewers strapped to the seats. Whether its Little Champs which parades the talent of Kids to the variety of dance and talent shows showcasing team and individual events to the whimsical Big Boss which includes contestants who are in the news for all the wrong reasons.
The reality show which stormed into fame was Kaun Banega Karodpati? modeled on its western avatar- Who wants to be a millionaire?.
The show was meant to be a show stopper and one of its kind without the usual Cry baby Stuff , jealousy, business rivalries and the routine mundane stuff that accompany Saas bahu type serials.
People who were true aficionados of general knowledge were thrilled to match their skills and fill their vacant cells of their cerebellum with oodles of information that was hitherto unknown.
The organizers having struck the gold-mine went over board after TRP’s came down post the initial hurrah and turned to innovative techniques to keep the interest going. News leaked about the person who became the First Crorepati- Viz. Harsh Vardhan Nawathe.
If any of the readers can recollect some of the episodes featuring the eventual 1st winner- in one of the episode which revealed a murkier side. Harsh Nawathe took a opinion poll to seek an answer to the question to which he was clueless.
After mulling for a moment he surprisingly selected the option which the participants had given a measly 5% votes and MORE SURPRISE ..his option was Correct. Never ever a person who doesn’t know an answer would exercise his option like this!!Even when he won the 1- Crore Prize the celebrations were questionably restrained and muted. The Overall Joy and camaraderie of a true Winner was missing. Tongues started wagging and the Programme was slowly taken off the slot citing date problems for Bacchan. The winner too sulked and was not seen anywhere and the fixing angle gained momentum.
But the Current episodes have breached or surpassed all barriers of cheating.
One of the Contestant (obviously pre-selected one) claiming to be working for a Premier IT co, had no clue whatsoever about the Full Form of USB ( even Kids nowadays know this stands for Universal Serial Bus) she goes in for a opinion poll wins the round and leaves after garnering 25 lacs. A woman who had very limited access to information barely getting to read a newspaper through her own admissions surprisingly answered mind boggling questions and too quit after gaining 50 lacs. There were Several Participants who were easily recognisable from their traits/actions about their level of knowledge, yet received prize money in excess of 25 lacs. The organisers were clever enough to recruit some People who suffered early exits to prove that nothing was amiss.
The producer/presenter in tandem with the sponsors have chalked up a clever Plan which tries to play on the psyche of the viewers by selecting contestants from their own stables given adequate training on speaking etiquette and which revolves around Praising Bacchan every now and then for no rhyme or reason, wanting to chat with Aiahwarya Rai, and coming up with few anecdotes pertaining to Madhushala – a poem written by Senior Bachhan. Sometimes we all wonder whether there was any poet born other than Harivanshrai Bacchan??
Further Mr.Amitabh Bacchhan does, what he only can do best- ACTING .
Every Participant is given a Philip..a boost .Prodding .a false impression is created that the organizers caters even to people based in the lower rung/lower strata of society.
Siddhartha Basu is an entrepreneur in a true sense. It sure requires abundance of talent to fleece the innocent people without even raising an eye-lid of suspicion. But faulty Planning and lack of foresight has shred this amazing fool proof plan and set the cat amongst the pigeons.
The revenue generated through SMS’s sent by gullible viewers is astronomical.
Each SMS is charged at the rate of Rs.6/- to the sender.
Assuming there are only 100 entries from say 10 cities of some 20 districts and 20 states...

6(Rs/SMS) x 100(entries) x 10(cities) x 20(districts) x 20(states) = 6
x 100 x 10 x 20 x 20 = Rs.24,00,000

24 lakhs in 20 minutes.
(People trying for the 2 lakhs cash prize)
Imagine what if 1000 entries try out from 100 cities?

The figure simply grows by 2 more zeroes and yields a whopping 24 Crores!!!!

And it does not stop there...

In practice it could be another multiple of 100 or a multiple of 1000 on an average.

In that case it is 24 x 100crores earnings in just 20 minutes on every episode!!!

And the prize money: A mere 2 crore..
(and from whose pocket?)

And the best part of this calculation is just the SMS earning!!

We still have to account the revenue generated through advertisements.

A rough annual profit calculation goes like this:

2400 x 5 x 4) (episode/month) x 12 = 5,76,000 crores.

Let even 50% get dissolved in taxes and other payments, still you will be left with (which includes even the meagre 480 crores of prize money i.e.if every episode bags 2 crore prize)!

2,88,000-crores profit !!! (only from SMS)


Common on guys, at least do your homework and analysis properly before resorting to CONNING .
Eat only that much which you can digest and fool only those who can be conned.

Man with the Golden Voice- Jagjit Singh A Tribute

The man bestowed with the golden Voice –Ghazal maestro Jagjit Singh passed away in serene calm on 10 Oct 2011. His age and his voice blossomed and radiated with every passing year akin to the Preserved Vintage Wine which gets matured in barrels.
In the 1970’s when Kishore Kumar/Mohd. Rafi reduced all competition to dust with their melodies Jagjit made his presence felt by belting out his first composition – Unforgettables in 1976.
Though the album made waves it did not translate into work for which he had to sing jingles in scores of advertisements to sustain his livelihood.
Singing in tandem with his wife Chitra he created his own select band of fans by composing songs which could be easily deciphered even by a layman with limited knowledge of Urdu and poetry.
Perhaps the greatest drawback was he could not raise his voice to a high pitch which incidentally worked in his favour in creating that soft and silky voice custom made for his trade mark Ghazals.
A car accident in 1990 killed his teen aged son Vivek which destroyed the singing career of his wife who seemingly lost her voice trying to cope up with the irrepairable loss. Jagjit went solo after a brief lull of around a year.
Any avid fan of his would vouch for the sudden change in the depth of jagjit’s Voice post 1990,which inculcated all the grief, gloom and the melancholy notes so effectively that it was relatively easy to identify the soul of a father who silently mourned for his dead son through the rendition of his songs.
One has to hear his ‘’Na chhiti na koi sandesh ‘’ and ‘’Kagaz ki kashti’’ and I bet it would be difficult to hold back the excess moisture breaking the contours of the eye lashes and cascading down the cheeks, as one could sense the overpowering grief let out in these classics.
It was always seen that he never showed any emotions and was a man of few words and was instrumental in organising concerts for charity as and when requested by scores of NGO’s.
While it would be difficult for his wife who has to continue the journey of Life without him his ardent fans hope that Jagjit Singh would have found solace after REUNITING with his beloved son.
The best compliment perhaps bestowed on him in 1989 was by the renowned Writer Khushwant Singh who said’’ He is a better singer than Mehdi Hassan and a better looker than Dilip Kumar.
As someone rightly said’’ God called Steve Jobs as he wanted an I- Pod and then had to call Jagjit Sngh to fill it up with his melodies.

The Dirty Picture

On a popular talk Show in Australia Radio Jockey Kyle Sandilands recently uttered some uncharitable words about India that incensed many of the Indians staying in Australia.
Kyle called India a shithole besides adding another expletive –calling the Ganges a ‘Junkyard’.
A Spanish diplomat recently aghast at the lack of dustbins in Delhi, volunteered to buy them and arranged to place them at strategic locations across the city to further the cause of hygiene as the roads earlier were strewn with trash.
This was perhaps the most humiliating incident which should have woken up the govt. authorities from the deep slumber rather than making an issue over the war of words expressed by the westerners who shudder at the apathy and the callous attitude of most of us Indians.
The Holy Ganges as it is called comes from the Himalayas and is in the most sublime and pristine liquid form, full of the mystic faith, that pervades within itself. The water is pure and clear and is known to cleanse all evils and sins in its path.
The gushing water later enters the plains, and at various pilgrimage destinations like Varanasi and Hardwar untreated effluents from various leather tanneries are released into it shedding all inhibitions, half burnt corpses are disposed off the burning ghats without any remorse and untreated sewage from the cities too makes its contribution to the muck factor that is lot more polluted than a ‘’JUNKYARD’’.
The word FILTH is synonymous with the Indian sub-continent .There is no need to zoom into the ‘subject’ you will find the same, at every opportune place.
People relieving themselves at the nearest corner, the so called educated people travelling in the 1st Class compartment throwing/spitting the wrappers /fruit peels/ghutka /pan contents out of the train windows, people residing in the slums/chawls recreating their own virtual dust bins on the roads by throwing the waste from a long distance (akin to a professional NBA basket –ball player) very often missing its target.
The Municipal Corporation with its corrupt and lethargic attitude cannot be expected to clean this muck alone, which mounts at an alarming rate often threatening the area with epidemics like cholera and malaria.
The Plastic Industry has successfully managed to stem the reported BAN on plastics by meeting high- profile politicians who deliberately dilly dally on such issues. Plastics act like a catalyst creating huge stagnant pools which serve, as a perfect breeding ground for mosquitoes and rodents which forage on decaying matter emitting nauseating and sickening odour leading to people gasping for breath of fresh air besides aggravating the ailments.
Crores of money has been spent on cleansing the Ganges at strategic places which has gone down the drain as NO real effort has been made to arrest the release of the various pollutants which negates the effect of the Cleaning Campaign.
Western countries have openly aired the dirty culture pervading the Indian sub-continent which is mistaken as an attack on our glorious past and incredible Culture.
Apologies followed later on as usual but honestly I feel Kyle only expressed his disgust at the mindset of Indians who when holidaying abroad adhere to all the rules and rave about the cleanliness but do not think twice before chucking cigarette stubs/spitting out of the car windows on landing back.
The comments though provocative certainly doesn’t fall within the purview or ambit of any racist slur.
Our self- respect and ego are easily hurt by the comments but the DIRTY PICTURE is not viewed in the right perspective.
Perhaps we have got so accustomed to the filth around us that, we have started to ignore it as a malady which is incurable.

SRK- The Legend Lives On......

14th August 2011 was the date when the ‘body’ and ‘soul’ of Shamsher Raj Kapoor better known in the Hindi film industry as ‘’Shammi Kapoor’’ decided to part ways – the body fading away into oblivion and the soul- immortalized in the hearts of millions of fans who were stunned to believe the colossal loss.
Though, many knew that the end was near with the aging star battling renal failure for almost a decade with only the faith and his ever cheerful attitude, which kept him going.

The Indianised version of Elvis Presley struggled to make a dent in the film industry which boasted of stalwarts like Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor at the helm in the 1950’s.However success didn’t elude him for long and Tum sa Nahi Dekha was his stepping stone to stardom from where he never looked back with a string of hits such as Kashmir Ki Kali, An Evening in Paris, Professor, Brahmachari, Dil deke Dekho,Teesri Manzil and so on.
It must be mentioned that the songs which he crooned on screen were sung by the inimitable genius, Mohd Rafi who it seemed gelled with the character and sung with such enthusiasm and versatility as if, his entire life depended on it. The result was flawless rendition, the effervescence of the actor and the vivacious melody of the singer synchronizing and belting out arguably some of the best songs ever composed. Perhaps the Rajesh Khanna/ Kishore Kumar and the Raj Kapoor/Mukesh combo are the only competitors till date.
The only time he reportedly lived the life of a recluse was when his beloved wife- Geeta Bali died of Small –Pox in 1965. After a brief lull he was back to his very best and carried on with life as only he could.
He lives on though, in the hearts of millions of his fans who clamored for his almost silly antics ‘’on screen’’, the Swinging and dancing coupled with wild and vibrant mannerisms, seldom seen on celluloid till the advent of this maverick star. His style was a rage in the late 50’s and the early 60’s and could not be imitated by any one in Bollywood ,though a couple of wooden faced Bengali babu’s did try to ape his grandeur and mannerism’s which ended as abruptly as it began.
Besides being an actor he was very tech savvy. He was one of the first to have subscribed to and access the internet in India, and was very familiar with the latest technology available on hand.
He even had a HAM license and was instrumental in helping and reaching out to people in danger in those days when mobile technology was in an infant stage.
Numerous stories float around about his generosity in helping out many junior artistes as he too in his initial days as a struggler had been in their shoes before achieving stardom.
The cry of Yahoo!! and the scene of Shammi Kapoor sliding down the icy slopes like an avalanche will remain entrenched in our hearts forever.
RIP- SRK …The Legend lives on…………………….

Freedom of Speech

Speech is an art of expressing oneself amongst a gallery of astute listeners.
A good orator is one who captivates his audiences with his mannerisms, wit, intelligence and connects with their inner soul in the minimal time frame.
He should have complete knowledge of the topic under discussion and should be able to have the entire gathering completely under his sway with anecdotes and humor that adds freshness to any monotonous vibes that may prevail in the audience.
The Speech should nether be too long lest the audience would be left squirming in their seats with yawns reverberating all over nor should be too short to leave them a disgruntled lot wondering why on earth they are there for.
The Indian leaders since time immemorial prefer to read out their speeches which are drafted out by eminent people, checked for any grammatical mistakes, but are often riddled with some absurd words and sentences which do not synchronize either with wit or common Sense.
In 1947, Nehru roared from the ramparts of the Red Fort with some of the most insuating words ever: ‘’At the stroke of midnight hour when the world sleeps, India awakens to freedom’’. Perhaps the erstwhile PM or his over ambitious ghost writer got his geography all wrong and thought that the World is flat and every country woke up and slept at the same time.
Come Independence eve, the president arrives with a zombie like expression armed with a pre drafted speech laden with quotes ,self congratulatory messages, some absurd commitments /welfare measures that fail to take off , so on and so forth. All the TV channels are forced to broadcast this miserable display of word power that is hardly understood by the common man. The studio is decked up for the occasion and the President is more interested in displaying or showcasing her/his well Starched and well ironed attire.
The only exception to this strange practice was President Abdul Kalam who was both convincing and astute in his presentation.
We also have this moron of a Foreign minister who has made himself a laughing Stock in front of the dignitaries of United nations Security Council when he unassumingly picked up a paper belonging to a Portugal diplomat lying beside him and calmly read it till he was interrupted and intimated about the faux pas by a colleague.
Yesterday this very Foreign Minister requested Pakistan to release a prisoner serving a life sentence, on humanitarian grounds.This was made in complete ignorance of the fact that the so called prisoner is currently lodged in Ajmer Jail and not in Pakistan.
Honestly I presume the right hand of this guy doesn’t know what his Left hand is doing.
Most of the political parties have self-appointed spokesmen specially designed to brief the media , to calm down frayed nerves and to protect the party’s image when the going goes rough.
The crux of the matter is: It is fascinating to watch the debate involving the western parliamentarians who display shrewd technique and restraint while handling even the most complex of issues and possess immense knowledge of the related subject as compared to the hooliganism and immaturity displayed by their Indian counterparts.