SLUMDOG MILLIONNAIRE: A MILLION QUESTIONS

When I watched this movie a lot of questions popped up in my mind and when the Oscars were showered on it the number of these questions increased.
First of all a common Indian is puzzled whether it is an Indian movie or a foreign movie? Should we own or disown it? The million dollar question is: Is it a glory or shame to India? Should we be happy or sad about it?
All the negative and darker aspects of India are shown in this movie. The poor children of slums and their indecent living,the riots, the ugly face of police,the horrible atrocities on children and even the K.B.C. has been put under a shadow of suspicion, justice has not been done to Amitabh Bachhan or ShahRukh Khan who never made any sarcastic comments and were always polite and made the contestants at ease.


It seems western world's sense of supremacy is satisfied by such movies about developing countries.

It is true that these things do exist in India, and I appreciate this movie for touching our sensitivity. I was reminded of the children on railway platforms, some times begging or sweeping the train compartments, children- begging, selling odd things at traffic signals ,searching the garbage on the streets but these thoughts also give rise to more questions like why there were no positive experiences in the life of Jamal? Things could be learnt through some pleasant experiences as well but is it that these people have no positive experience at all in their lives? Why only the darker side of Indian life is shown?

There are many more questions, why the movie has been named Slumdog? It could have been Slum"boy" or Slum"kid" ...why Slum"dog"?

The name of the hero in the book, on which this movie is based is Ram Mohammad Thomas. It is the essence of the novel, it catches attention and it depicts all religions and no religion. Why in the movie the hero is named Jamal? Is it to give a communal color?

People are asking some more questions, they feel Lagan or Taare Zamin Par or Rang de Basanti are better movies and why Oscar was not given to any of them? Perhaps because they didn't have a foreign director.

Talent of A.R.Rahman is well recognized and he has given much more melodious music before. Let's not ask the question why award for this song and not for the other one? He has brought honour to the country and we are proud of him.

So the movie has done justice only to the title of the novel Q&A .It has made our minds a question bank and answers we have to find.
I am sure there are many many more questions in your mind.
Are you feeling stressed? Don't worry too much.

Just enjoy the music, Jai Ho!

VALENTINES DAY

The fire of Valentines Day is still simmering in India.Every year valentines day brings the message of love.All over the world flowers,cards,gifts are exchanged between the loved ones.They sing and dance to celebrate the supermacy of love.Few realise that it has covered a difficult journey as path of love is always full of thorns.Ironically world has always opposed true lovers.There are no better examples than the stories of legendary lovers Laila majnu, Shiri Fahrad and Sohini Mahiwal.
In India we were not aware of" Valentines Day' a few years back but suddenly it became popular as well as controversial. So I tried to take a glimpse into the history of the valentines day and I realised that it has taken a sweet & sour journey.
Valentines Day traces it's origin in Rome. In 3rd.century, When Emperor Claudius11 banned marriages in his state as he thought that married persons did not make good soldiers,then St.Valentine conducted secret marriages.He was punished for it.In jail he fell in love with the blind daughter of the jailor and it is said that she was cured due to his intense love.He was executed on 14th feb.A.D.270. When he was taken for being executed he wrote a farewell note to her signed 'Your Valentine'.Since then this phrase came in use.
It is also associated with the Roman feast of Lupercalia which was given in honour of Goddess Juno,the Goddess of marriage.In this feast a lottery game was played in which through lottery girls and boys were selected as pairs for the festive season and sometimes they got married also. In the beginning Church was opposed to these traditions but later on it accepted it with changes and moderations.
The month of Feb was seen as a romantic month , on 14th feb.hand written notes were exchanged between young boys and girls.Men tried to impress and win their girl friends.

From Rome these traditions spread to England,France and other Europian countries.In England and France They thuoght feb 14, a romantic day.No, doubt today when the world has become so small the Valentines Day is celebrated all over the world.
Previously only hand written notes were exchanged but later on it was replaced by flowers,beautiful cards and gifts.Miss Eisther Howland is given credit for sending the first Valentine card

For India Valentines Day is relatively new phenomenon but the way in which some groups and organisations are opposing and harrasing people is highly condemmable They have no right to interfere with lives of other people and impose themselves in unlawful manner.Instead,people should be taught to celebrate it in a proper way and maintain it's spirit.
' Valentines Day ' should be seen as victory of true love and sweetness and sacredness is the soul of Valentine tradition.

VOTE FOR ME

‘Vote for me’
these are not the words of any politician looking forward to power and position, but they are artists- singers and dancers seeking your votes.

Recently the finals of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa were over and Vaishali was declared winner. Sa Re Ga Ma Pa is a nice, melodious, entertaining program. These reality shows are criticized on many fronts, such as, for putting lots of pressure on the performers –physical, mental, psychological, for imperfect judging, for biased voting systems,method of evaluation...and so on.

In my opinion the most dangerous thing these shows are doing is that of dividing the nation, on the basis of states, language and religion. In fact sometimes even the judges ask to vote on the basis of region or language. In Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, the three finalists gave performances in their own states. Some national level artists and politicians were called to canvass for the particular candidates. And it was shocking to see that most of them appealed for vote on the basis of region and language. Had it not been better if Soumen,Yashita and Vaishali had performed in some other states, not their own, and votes were asked on the basis of performance. Artists and politicians belong to whole nation and they can be a bond for uniting the country.
People should vote on basis of talent and performance. The power and vote hungry politicians are doing a great deal in dividing the nation on the basis of caste and creed, and now this new platform has emerged for doing so.


It is not that Zee or Sa Re Ga Ma Pa or other such shows do not try to instill nationalism or patriotism. From time to time they fill the atmosphere with patriotic songs and any national festival is celebrated with enthusiasm and zest.
However I was amused to see the grand finale of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa entitled ‘Sa Re Ga Ma Pa - Challenge to Terrorism’. Don’t they realize that terrorism or any challenge can be taken up effectively only by being united and knowingly or unknowingly they are doing the job of disintegrating the nation.

WHY

Why do I see darkness under lights
Why do I see sorrow beneath smiles

I go to beach…
It is sunny, nice and pleasant
People are happy and radiant
In the sands they are relaxing
With the waves they are playing

Why I think of those boys….

Posing like statue, making images on sands
In front of them some have thrown few rands
The sea is deep and vibrant
The boys are cool and patient

Some people are sitting in groups
There are smiling, glowing couples
Children shouting with coming waves
Enjoying the sea are the older ones

Why, I get a glimpse of those……

Who are lonely and depressed
Whose eyes are wet and sad

Why, after the match at beach is over and….

The successful ones,
everyone loves and admires
My heart goes for
struggling and the defeated ones

May be because……

I want to wish them Happy Days
With understanding of God’s ways.

Happy 60th Republic Day!!!

Happy 60th Republic Day !!!

Today we all Indians are celebrating Republic day, as usual. It is marked by celebrations, awards and speeches. We review our achievements and failures and decide the future course of action. At the same time we don’t forget to remember our freedom fighters.

Today I wish to pay my tributes to Mahatma Gandhi. After coming to South Africa my faith in the greatness of Gandhiji has multiplied. Since childhood, we have read and heard so much about him and I had full faith in his greatness…. his truthfulness, nonviolence, Satyagraha. After visiting the places where he lived, where he was thrown out of the train and where he united all Indians to resist injustice, I relived the experiences of a young man, in a foreign land, hurt by insults thrown to him and deciding to fight for his dignity. He was focused and determined and gave a tough time to the racist government of South Africa.



Gandhiji lived in South Africa for about 21 years (1893-1914) .He came here as a young barrister on the invitation of a businessman, Dada Abdulla to assist him in legal matters.

After coming here he saw that here Indians were treated badly as ‘inferiors’. They were called ‘coolies ‘and they did not have the voting rights. The turning point in his life came when at Pietermaritzburg railway station he was thrown out of the first class compartment although he had a valid ticket. He sat in the waiting room on that cold night shivering and scared. He was battling inside whether to leave this country or to oppose racism and he decided to fight.





He was influenced by the writings of Leo Tolstoy and one American writer Henry David Thoreau, specially his one essay ’civil disobedience’ made an impact on him .He took the path of passive, non violent resistance.

He united Indians and formed Natal Indian congress in1894. In 1906 when govt. promulgated a new act making it compulsory for all Indians to get registered and carry pass, he resisted. In Johannesburg a mass meeting was held and they decided to defy the law. Passes were burnt and many Indians including Gandhiji were jailed. At last Gen. Jan Christian Smuts had to negotiate a compromise. In the same way he resisted the marriage act and fought for voting rights. When a magistrate of a Durban court asked him to remove his turban he refused to do so. His struggle for Independence and equality influenced the African people also, although they had to fight a long battle against Apartheid. It was this strength and determination which he carried to India, fought British Empire with the methods which he experimented here -satyagrah and nonviolence, got us Independence.



Gandhiji’s contributions are well recognized by the Indian and South African community. Indian Consulate in Durban is also playing a vital role in keeping the heritage and spirit of our ‘Father of Nation’ alive. His monuments, his photograph and writings on walls at Pietermaritzburg station, the printing press, Gandhi settlement—all remind us of the inner strength of a great man and makes every Indian feel proud.

Uncertainty

Today I was sitting near my window, watching the deep blue sea. I could see the high and low buildings, the road outside and few cars parked on both sides of the road. I could see three persons standing near the bus stop. There was a girl in green skirt and one man and a woman with darker complexion .Suddenly it occurred to me, how uncertain the things in Life are. Few months back I had not thought that today I will be sitting here in this new country. When I started this blog I was in India and then I had not imagined that someday I will be writing these lines from Durban in South Africa.

Uncertainty and Change are the keynotes of LIFE. Yes, about a year back my husband got a job offer and we decided to move to Durban for a period of two years, as we had never been to this part of the world, we thought it would be a good change. I got too busy moving and settling, meeting new people, visiting new places. It was a nice change .Our children also visited us and in their sweet company time flew like any thing. We travelled a lot and were fascinated by the natural beauty of this place.

In 2008 I had decided to write regularly but in all this hustle and bustle of life I completely ignored my writing venture. I will not say that I did not get time as time is always there, only I did not get the mood. Now I am determined and may be the year 2009 will see something more penned down by me in these pages. But as uncertainty is the under current of Life, let’s see what happens.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

A NEW BEGINING,A NEW CHAPTER IN OUR LIVES.LET'S START THE NEW YEAR WITH HOPE AND ENTHUSIASM WITH NEW RESOLUTIONS AND NEW DREAMS.
MAY WE REACH OUR GOALS AND GET HAPPINESS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR
A
VERY VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL OF YOU.

''EVERY MAN'S LIFE IS A FAIRY TALE WRITTEN BY GOD'S FINGERS''
---HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSON