It’s a season of expectations. Although, having expectations is contrary to the teachings of Bhagvad Gita that sermonises us to only perform and expect nothing, these expectations are albeit of a different kind. Here to do anything or perform is not in our hands, yet we nurture high hopes of spectacular success. What are these? Let me enlist a few as under/

(1) There are huge expectations from Modi 2.0 and after spectacular win in the elections, Modi has acknowledged fear psychosis affecting minorities and need to include everyone on this journey of growth and development. As its said, well begun is half done!

(2) Cricket fans have high hopes from Virat Kohli and his boys to repeat the feat by his illustrious predecessors Kapil and Dhoni and bring home the World Cup. Unfortunately, well begun theory does not apply here as the Team India has lost its first warm up match to New Zealand.

(3) Nation has huge hopes from rain gods to bestow generosity upon the parched land and give water in abundance – for drinking and irrigation. Drought in certain parts is severe and declining underground water table is hardly a cause to ignore.

(4) There were election promises around payment of monies directly in the accounts of farmers and popes. With Modi, the pioneer of direct to account payment of subsidy back in power, people shall shortly start checking their Jan Dhan accounts expecting inflows.

(5) There are expectations from Finance Minister, stock markets, Bollywood, Trump, Imran and what not?

Hope, expectations and optimism are some of the best gifts bestowed by God on the mankind. As Charles Dickens in his great work called “Great Expectations” wrote :

The broken heart. You think you will die, but you just keep living, day after day after terrible day.

My friend and an avid blogger himself , Sunil Babbar, is highly active on social media and he frequently sends interesting material that sparks an idea of writing a new blog in me. He today sent an interesting poem on the backbenchers in school, who are unique in many senses. The poem reads as under:

*The Back Benchers*- *a tribute*

In school, there was, is and will be,

A unique and discreet subset.

A few rows of back-benchers,

Students, who were never afraid of a test.

The backbenchers took the longest breaks,

Took the longest to settle down.

Rarely would have done their homework,

Still, from teachers didn’t evince a frown.

They were current on movies,

And knew great stuff on sports too.

And if our city had secret places to visit,

They already been there an done it too.

They weren’t good at academics,

But weren’t bothered about it.

They were good in sports,

But would not bother others about it.

They were taller and heavier,

Some had seen more summers.

Puberty struck them earlier,

One of them was a drummer.

They had magazines which front benchers didn’t,

More glossy and re-readable at that.

There was an air of mischief,

And a smile that complemented that.

Except in the art class,

The ones in our class were great artists too.

They’d draw on the desk,

Art mentionable & unmentionable too.

They knew how to fly planes,

Land missiles on teachers.

And with a poker face,

Lie with panache & credence.

Catcalls and comments,

Came from them with a regular flow.

Assignments were jointly completed,

Later than sooner they would show.

They were a nice lot,

Happier than most others, I’d say.

More at peace with themselves,

Except on the results day.

Sports Day was the day they’d excel,

And make their class and house proud.

Win points and medals,

Be cheered by the crowd.

They had the colours on holi,

Their pen wielded ink too.

Their crackers resounded in toilets,

They had the gadgets & games too.

In time we met again,

In social media groups & reunions.

They’ve done as well as those in front,

The differences have melted since.

Happy then and happy now,

The backbenchers had a fair deal.

They must’ve slogged in between,

As good or better than front row, I feel.

It generally evens out in life,

Whether you were at the front or back.

The benchmark was never the bench,

Or where they sat, front or back.

Who will not connect to the above poem? The poem immediately refreshed the faces of backbenchers in my class. And the fact is that on reconnecting with many of them on social media, it is amply evident that they have done as well or badly as any of the front or middle benchers.

Incidentally, I came across another great thought from evergreen great spiritualist Mahataria that read:

Success is not what you have achieved, as compared to others.

Success is what you have achieved, as compared to what you are capable of.

I was a middle bencher with ordinary abilities, but I consider myself successful because I seemed to have achieved greater success compared to what I was capable of ! I don’t know what readers should make out of this blog – if nothing else, they should enjoy one great poem and one great thought ! After all , what’s life all about other than what we think it to be!

The entire nation seems to be getting saffronised or should we say lotusised? I am sure if this wave, that started in 2014 and is only seem to have got stronger in 2019 , continues for some more time, Oxford may be compelled to add two new words into its lexicon- saffronisation (already accepted in slang) and lotusisation! However, for once it may neither be about saffron nor lotus! Though a staunch supporter of organisational strength , always believing that an organisation is much bigger than an individual, Modi seems to be belying this age old adage. BJP and NDA may be basking in glory of having decimated UPA, not only in the face of grand opposition unity but also strong anti incumbency mainly arising out of Demonetisation and GST, the fact remains that the verdict is for the man of the moment – Narendra Modi. He spanned the country across all 4 directions, addressed numerous rallies, connected with the people through all possible channels and dwarfed the unified opposition campaign through his sheer tall stature. People of this country have reaffirmed their faith in Modi (not necessarily in BJP and its allies together constituting NDA) for his honesty, sincerity, hard work and intent. If the vote is for Modi, the entire onus to deliver the goods would also be on him. Hope he now has adequate first hand experience that big disruptions in a big country like India can create big issues. Government should act in a manner that causes maximum damage to mischief makers with minimum of inconvenience to law abiding citizens. Government should also care for sensitivities of this large nation that houses different religions, castes, creeds and communities that whose freedom is guaranteed by the constitution of this country. Any attempt to rewrite the history of India may not bear desired outcomes but collective and unified efforts to rewrite the destiny of this country by uprooting corruption, intolerance, lawlessness, dishonesty and favouritism will ensure that Modi’s name is recorded in golden letters in the annals of the history of this great nation!

Congratulations to Modi led NDA! Hopefully Modi 2.0 will be less disruptive and more progressive, less acidic and more prolific, less noisy and more productive, less divisive and more harmonic and above all less exclusive and more inclusive! Message for opposition – elections have ended and electorate of this country will vote on the issues and not on rabble rousing. They should play a constructive role in nation building rather than asking for proof of everything, including surgical strikes!

Long live India! Long live Indian democracy!

We are on the eve of the D day. Tomorrow election results will be out and we shall all know who will helm the nation for the next 5 years- Modi 2.0, Rahul or someone not belonging to either BJP or Congress. Mini verdicts in the form of scores of exit polls are already out, most of these giving a clear majority to BJP led NDA. Stock markets have already reacted to these forecasts by breaking 10 year’s record for a single day rise in Sensex. Media is all agog about the likely priorities of the new Government. In as much as even Pakistani media is discussing the fall out of Modi in his second term on their country.

But we seem to be getting it all wrong. Maharashtra and some other states are facing devastating drought and with the forecast of inadequate rains during the current monsoon season, nation is going to see a helluva problem . Kashmir seems to be going out of hands and Maoist are on rampage. Unemployment is reaching new heights. Twin impacts of GST and Demonetisation seem to have killed small businesses beyond retrieval. Hindu Muslim polarisation seems to be reaching an inflection point. Already certain incriminating evidence on EVMs has already raised ugly noise, which is likely to get louder should the results be unexpected, The campaign undertaken by political parties was malicious, vicious, obnoxious and atrocious.

It’s not to say that Modi Government is responsible and that there are better alternatives. But whosoever forms the Government must set the priorities right, This nation doesn’t require rulers; it requires selfless servers who have the courage and vision to take the country out of quagmire.

May be by the time thus blog is read by you, trend about who is form new government will already be clear. But relevance of the thought captured in this blog is not incidental to any outcome but is timeless.

Accidents do happen in foreign countries also. In fact, some accidents can be really fatal or causing extensive damage to the vehicle as the speed on their roads is very high. However, what’s amiss there is road rage. When two vehicles collide, drivers just alight, shake hands and leave the rest to police and insurance companies. While we all talk about lane driving, well-maintained vehicles, no honking, observance of discipline (following signals, tying seat belts) etc, we seldom talk about complete absence of road rage there.

Unfortunately, while good things take time and effort to spread, vices spread at epidemic pace. What was earlier restricted to North and Delhi has quickly spread to other parts of the country and Mumbai that has always been known for its disciplined traffic, in spite of serious constraints of traffic volumes and width and quality of roads, has merrily adopted this evil. Even if a vehicle lightly scrapes another with absolutely no or minimal damage, the two colliding vehicle owners will be out on the road, abusing each other and catching each other’s throats. Grievous injuries and murders are also being frequently observed.

I have written on the menace of road rage earlier too. The immediate provocation for this blog is a news item as per which two politicians were are at each other’s throats post a minor collision in the satellite suburb of Ulhasnagar. If the law makers and keepers are to demonstrate such behaviour in public, what can be expected from common public. To give vent to the frustration built up by long travel time, fatigue, bumper to bumper traffic and/or late for an appointment, by taking it out on a fellow driver is abhorrent to say the least. Let there be more CCTV cameras capturing the accidents to pin down the errant driver, quick response action by police and quick action by insurance companies to kill this new social malaise or already dangerous Indian roads will become even more risky to driving.

Do the title of this blog makes any sense to you? It may not if you are not a Jack Ma follower! Now don’t ask me who is Jack Ma? He is one of the richest men of the world and the richest Chinese by virtue of being the promoter of Alibaba.

Exhorting his staff, he philosophised that if any company is to make it into big league, its employees must work from 9 am to 9 pm 6 days a week. When the World at large is debating work life balance and pitching for 4 days of working week, Jack Ma’s exhortation to staff to clock in 72 hours every week seems seriously flawed. Several recent studies have concluded that anything above 54 hours a week seriously impedes productivity and total work hours per week must be lesser.

Now addressing his staff at a Group wedding, Jack Ma suggested an antithesis of 996. He said that while 996 was key to professional life, it must be balanced by healthy personal life represented by numerals 669. As per Ma, sex for 6 days, 6 times, duration being the key is the secret to improved personal life!

Assigning numbers to the complex management and personal improvement theories possibly started with famous best seller 01 minute manager. Jack Ma’s 996 and 669 theory seems to be a simplistic solution of these complex issues, which is becoming a fad. Especially coming from a super successful Jack Ma, it cannot be dismissed lightly. But expectedly there have been wide and varied reactions ranging from outright lewd to jingoistic ! As someone saucily mentioned, ” after 996, only a super human will be able to follow 669! I don’t expect Jack Ma to do any further elaboration on this !

Let’s work hard without caring for 996 and enjoy the life sans the fantasy associated with 669!

Like festivals and folklore behind festivals as also their traditions are my favourite topics, the dedicated days are another theme that interests me. Of course, the interest is not that of curiosity or to spread the message of unity, harmony that is associated with festivals and their celebrations, but it’s the one filled with cynicism! How can you remember and pay obeisance or attention to your father, lover, teacher and above all your mother only on a designated day?

For us, Indians, mother is god because we pray goddess as mother. East has Durga and Kali, while North has Mata Vaishnodevi. Gujarat has Ma Ambay and Bhavani, while our very own Mumbai is named after Mumba Devi. Shitla temple at Mahim is amongst the oldest temples in the city. Lakshmi is the Goddess of wealth and prosperity, while Saraswati bestows knowledge, wisdom and arts. Jai Santoshi Ma based on miracles by Santoshi Ma competed with Sholay when all other movies were biting the dust. Mount Mary in Mumbai and Velankanni church in the state of Tamil Nadu celebrate miracles around Mother Mary. Who in India does not feel beholden to Mother Teresa or simply Mother, French occultist and an associate of Sri Aurobindo, who made Pondicherry her home?

While we revere all the above, what about our own mothers, who have brought us into this world? A mother makes supreme sacrifice right from carrying the foetus in her tummy for 9 months to breastfeeding the infant to spending sleepless nights tending an unwell or cranky child to worrying about child’s studies, career, marriage to giving her best affection to her child’s children, her grandchildren. Only a mother could be such an epitome of selfless love, affection, patience and persistence. And what children in return do for their parents, especially mothers? Ignore her requirements in pursuance of money, career, ambition, wife, own children, assets creation and world hopping! There are heart rending real life cases of children, especially sons, abandoning old and frail mothers to fend for themselves; more caring and prosperous put them in age old homes.

Our houses have become bigger,

With all spaces filled with utmost luxury,

But our hearts have shrunk,

That’s causing a great deal of misery.

We are busy in winning the rat race,

And have no time for anything else to tell;

We celebrate mother’s existence on Mother’s Day;

Rest of the year she remains only in her shell.

Mothers are irreplaceable for that’s the only relationship that’s selfless, caring about nothing else but the child’s well being and betterment. Her child is Centre to her life for whom she cares 24×7, 365 days. Let’s reciprocate that by talking to her at least once every week rather than needing a Mothers Day to reflect on her existence and well being.

As an aside, the modern Mother’s day began in the United States, at the initiative of Anna Jarvis in the early 20th century. This is not (directly) related to the many traditional celebrations of mothers and motherhood that have existed throughout the world over thousands of years, such as the Greek cult to Cybele, the Roman festival of Hilaria, or the Christian Mothering Sunday celebration (originally a commemoration of Mother Church, not motherhood). However, in some countries, Mother’s Day is still synonymous with these older traditions.

Whatever be it’s genesis or historical significance, let’s make a resolution of making each day a Mother’s Day by at least thinking about her and thanking her for our life and existence.

Happy Mothers Day!

My connection with Jaipur dates back to the year 1970, when I was merely 8 years old, travelling to the city with my parents to attend a social commitment. This was one of the earliest memories of travel, the only earlier being one to Amritsar, to attend the marriage of a cousin. This memory is very hazy, though Jaipur’s memory is comparatively clearer. Memories of visit to hawa mahal and amer fort and lazy stroll through colourful Johari Bazaar still fascinate me.

Next visit was more than good 15 years after the first visit. This was a month long visit to attend training programme and this entailed serious sightseeing , shopping and eating errands with friends. As my then employer was head quartered in Jaipur, between 1985 and 1994, there were umpteen visits and I must admit that I fell in deep love with the city. The comfortable pace of life, clean and green environs, colourful bazaars selling great collectible, varied eating options, forts, palaces and temples having fascinating past and of course, friendly people all made Jaipur a great proposition to an extent that I dreamt of making the city my permanent abode.

Fast forward to 2019. It’s been 25 years since I last lived in Jaipur. My visit to Jaipur since 1994 to date has been rare. Therefore, I was naturally excited when an official engagement landed me in Jaipur a couple of days ago. It was a short visit and entailed an official engagement too, still I didn’t forget to take a quick detour of the city. Iconic MI Road is still there, but it’s one way and yet traffic is extremely heavy. Old joints such as Niros, Jal Mahal, Lassiwala, Indian Coffee House still adorn MI Road, but there are newer , glitzier and swankier restaurants paling the old icons. Chhoti Chaupad, Badi Chaupad, Johari Bazar – all look haggard being dug up for underground metro that’s under construction. LMB and Rawat Mishthan Bhandar are still there, but I doubt whether the new generation will support these traditional places or whether these will fold up like other iconic places in Delhi and Mumbai. I am told another icon Raj Mandir no longer inspires awe that it used to in its glorious past.

Of course, the haunting tune of ” Kesariya Balma padharo maare des” still evokes the nostalgia of the past. The new Jaipur will have metro, malls and more cars and people, but will the Pink City maintain its traditional attraction is anyone’s guess! Having seen and experienced the best of Jaipur in the prime of my life, I wish the city, with which I seem to have a cosmic connection, all the best!

Rape charges against TV actor Karan Oberoi by his long time partner has once again rekindled the memories of public and media to #Me Too movement. However, there’s one change this time. A large number of members of artist fraternity, friends and others knowing Karan have openly come out in his support, The high point of this seemingly anti Me Too campaign is maverick Pooja Bedi’s assertion that men too have their reputations to protect and this blog owes its title to Pooja Bedi using this term Men Too as a movement as an antithesis of Me Too.

When two legally adult, matured, educated and intelligent people meet, the choice is completely with them as to the direction and extent they want their relationship to take. The relationship can lead to financial, physical and emotional gratification, with or without underlying commitment or understanding. Sometimes certain things can happen unexpectedly at the spur of the moment. But after years of togetherness and relationship, calling the same a rape or suffering should the things go sour subsequently is incomprehensible.

Is verbal contract a bona fide contract? Can it be termed as contract made in a free state of mind without any pressure or coercion? All this is for law to see and I am sure more often than not impartial judicial system is able to dispense justice , but are the matters of heart and conscious required to be judged by legal standards? The bigger question is should the promises of love, care and lifelong camaraderie be treated like legal contracts? My only worry is that such instances may dilute the gravity of the sin that a rapist perpetrates on an innocent victim for people at large may start treating all such cases as an extension of #Me Too. Second of course is the new perspective by Pooja Bedi that says # Men Too! After all, men too suffer when such things raise their ugly head years after the incident.

Me Too and Men Too between them should not lead to public apathy of reprehensible crime that rape is!

PIA

✔

@Official_PIA

Just when you start missing it, we serve you a taste of home! A dash of salt and little bit of pepper, we tantalize your taste buds with our delicious meal to welcome the glorious morning!

Advertisements can be anything – classic, funny, entertaining, meaningful and memorable. They can evoke extreme reactions- fear, bliss, envy and anger. Some advertisements (and their campaigns) acquire cult status (our very own Amul). Some mascots have also endeared themselves to us and have demonstrated remarkable longevity, more prominent being Amul girl and Air India Maharaja.

In the above background, reaction of the Pakistanis to the recent ad of PIA is understandable. The above ad has been panned by Pakistani public and the reaction ranges from extreme sarcasm to anger against the national carrier for advertising “taste of home” by depicting the picture of baked beans, sausages and cheese omelette, all typically European/American food items! I have heard that following the adverse reactions to its ad, PIA has since withdrawn the ad.

But why such adverse reaction to relatively harmless ad that at least does not hurt the sentiments of any community? For once, the cuisine aboard a flight is meant for elite and upper crust business class passengers, who though mainly of the same origin as that of the airline (read Pakistani in this case), are a creed apart. For ordinary folks, it’s mostly a pre packed ordinary stuff, which is hard to consume and that too in full cost carriers, low cost only offering food at a price! Look at our own elite. Who is eating traditional breakfast items – stuffed paranthas, puris and halwa? Luckily some of the Indian cuisines are relatively healthier (read mainly South Indian cuisine) and idli, poha and sabudana are coming to rescue of some of us? But most of the elitist would normally eat muesli, salad greens, baked beans, a piece of grilled chicken or fish, eggs minus the yolk, juice for their breakfasts! Ditto other meals. Airlines are only advertising what the elite passengers require and demand and what precisely are they eating at home! We, generally train and bus and at best cattle class travellers, can only pan the elitist ad and claim that sausages and baked beans are not our food and we eat paranthas, curries and puris!

Are the companies not advertising the correct proposition or is the public at large reacting incorrectly is a question that will haunt the creators of advertisement content!