Truth be told, I am a skeptic and having lived in our 'Mahaan Bharat' for 30 odd years I have ample reason to be. From fraud yogis to corrupt MDs we the people of India have lived through it all. Or have we?
After countless scams and numerous cheating and lying ministers, along comes a man born of humble beginnings to an unskilled laborer and his wife, in Ahmednagar. Along comes a man who has not studied beyond std 8 and has no fancy call center accent. Along comes a man who served in the Indian army as a driver and who retired voluntarily with nary a star on his shoulder. Along comes a man who began by steering the people of his village towards water conservation. Along comes a man who returned the Padmashree award to the President of India. Along comes a man who believes that development is marred by corruption. Along comes Anna.
And my skepticism wavers.
For the more affluent, educated, dare I say snobs of India who drive their SX4s ( bought on loan mind you) and send their kids to the newest latest IB school ( whats wrong with our regular schools that produced the likes of Abdul Kalam and Ratan Tata) who eat at 'Icannotpronouncethenameitssoexotic' restaurants - Anna is a mystery. I cannot count the number of times over the last 2 months that I have overheard these shiny happy uniformly uninformed people, lament the disruption of life and times that 'movement Anna' has caused.
And from what we read in the papers and see on the news, the government feels the same although for vastly different reasons. But if one looks closely at the reactions of people who do not support 'cause Anna' one will see that it is either because they are at the giving end or at the receiving end. Or they are skeptics - like me.
The questions are many.
Do we agree with all of the Lokpal bill?
Why are the dalits not supporting the bill?
Why are some 'learned' and 'educated' people reserved in their support of Anna?
Why is he fasting?
Are political parties supporting him only as a show for public support?
Does he stand for everything I believe in?
By supporting him, will I be aligning myself with certain political factions that I do not like?
Me, I do not have the answers. Anna's fast against corruption has raised more questions than ever before. Questions I must ask myself.
One thing I know for certain - I support the fight against corruption. If Anna is leading it today - then I support Anna.
And I say to you - Do not condemn his manner. Commend his courage.
Thursday, August 25, 2011
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Horn Ok Please
I love the French. Everything about them reeks(no pun intended) of culture and class. Their food with the pate and baguette, their clothes with the robe and the chemise, their language with the o la la! and Mon Dieu, their names with the Pierre and Philippe! Everything sounds so much more sophisticated in French.
And not to forget their quaint quotes for every and all situations - mostly Indian.
So when my French amie remarked over coffee the other day,"o my Gud! Pune his so orny place." I have to say I was tres tickled. With Pune being nominated as the most 'active' city in the east I thought wow! Up to date with the news and vocal about it! Hmmm. I ventured to clarify what exactly she meant. Much to my relief she was referring to the noise pollution in Pune generated by our horn loving public. "oh!!!!!!!!", I said. "Comme ca."
And just like that, here I am blogging about the excessive use of horns in Pune. There is a horn for every emotion and verb in the English dictionary and some for words that do not exist in any dick-tionary. People in Pune use their horns more than they do their rear view mirrors and almost as much as they use their clutch. I have endeavoured in this blog to identify the reasons why people honk. If I have missed out any please do feel free to add..
Lets start with the most common.
move - Honk
move I say - Honk honk !
arre move na... honk!
not moving!! HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONK
$%^& move move move - Honk Honk Honk!!!
deaf MCBC! ( while moving past him from the left) Honk!
Then there is the classist honking my soon-going-to-be-related-to-me Parsi friend subscribes to.
$%^ driving a VW? - Honk!
Cheapo cant afford a Mercedes - Honk Honk!
Oh God a BMW! - MC Hoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooonk!
I will race you with my hero honda - hnk!
Ofcourse the 'I am high and happy' honking which happens after 9 pm.
High - Honk!
High and happy - Honky Honky!
High and gay - Honky honk!!
Just acting High - HOOOONK!
Drunk - Hoonk Hoonk Hoonkyyyy!
The most annoying one however, is the 'I need attention' honkers.
Here I come - Honk
Just behind you - Honk!
Still behind you - Honk
Loving the back view - Honk Honk!
Coming up to you now - Honk Honk!
Celebrating independent India - Hooooooooooooooooooooooooonk!
Feel like making noise - Honk Honk Honk!
No cop in sight? - Honk Honk!
Tailing you - Honk!
Racing you - Honk Honk!
Last but not least are the rickshaw hater honkers. And I must admit I am one of them. If I see a rickshaw in my way ( or even out of my way) I honk. I bloody honk till the bugger moves almost onto the footpath - wait! there aren't any in Pune. Ok so you get the picture. Rickshaw hater honkers I think are born from their deep rooted disgust of rickshaw drivers who will rob you of your handkerchief if they could. The Puneites hate them, the expats suffer them, the cops... well, are almost as bad as them and all in all - they deserve to be honked to hell!
So, to wrap up this honk of a blog, Pune has got to be the honkiest city this part of the world. I would fast for a noise pollution tax but that would take the focus away from Anna's current fast which I must admit deals with more 'current(cy)' issues.
And not to forget their quaint quotes for every and all situations - mostly Indian.
So when my French amie remarked over coffee the other day,"o my Gud! Pune his so orny place." I have to say I was tres tickled. With Pune being nominated as the most 'active' city in the east I thought wow! Up to date with the news and vocal about it! Hmmm. I ventured to clarify what exactly she meant. Much to my relief she was referring to the noise pollution in Pune generated by our horn loving public. "oh!!!!!!!!", I said. "Comme ca."
And just like that, here I am blogging about the excessive use of horns in Pune. There is a horn for every emotion and verb in the English dictionary and some for words that do not exist in any dick-tionary. People in Pune use their horns more than they do their rear view mirrors and almost as much as they use their clutch. I have endeavoured in this blog to identify the reasons why people honk. If I have missed out any please do feel free to add..
Lets start with the most common.
move - Honk
move I say - Honk honk !
arre move na... honk!
not moving!! HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONK
$%^& move move move - Honk Honk Honk!!!
deaf MCBC! ( while moving past him from the left) Honk!
Then there is the classist honking my soon-going-to-be-related-to-me Parsi friend subscribes to.
$%^ driving a VW? - Honk!
Cheapo cant afford a Mercedes - Honk Honk!
Oh God a BMW! - MC Hoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooonk!
I will race you with my hero honda - hnk!
Ofcourse the 'I am high and happy' honking which happens after 9 pm.
High - Honk!
High and happy - Honky Honky!
High and gay - Honky honk!!
Just acting High - HOOOONK!
Drunk - Hoonk Hoonk Hoonkyyyy!
The most annoying one however, is the 'I need attention' honkers.
Here I come - Honk
Just behind you - Honk!
Still behind you - Honk
Loving the back view - Honk Honk!
Coming up to you now - Honk Honk!
Celebrating independent India - Hooooooooooooooooooooooooonk!
Feel like making noise - Honk Honk Honk!
No cop in sight? - Honk Honk!
Tailing you - Honk!
Racing you - Honk Honk!
Last but not least are the rickshaw hater honkers. And I must admit I am one of them. If I see a rickshaw in my way ( or even out of my way) I honk. I bloody honk till the bugger moves almost onto the footpath - wait! there aren't any in Pune. Ok so you get the picture. Rickshaw hater honkers I think are born from their deep rooted disgust of rickshaw drivers who will rob you of your handkerchief if they could. The Puneites hate them, the expats suffer them, the cops... well, are almost as bad as them and all in all - they deserve to be honked to hell!
So, to wrap up this honk of a blog, Pune has got to be the honkiest city this part of the world. I would fast for a noise pollution tax but that would take the focus away from Anna's current fast which I must admit deals with more 'current(cy)' issues.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Petrol Pump Lechers
I am willing to bet my last indian rupee that there is not a single Indian woman....nay... make that a single woman in India who has not been leched at, at a petrol pump in India. I just stopped at a pump near my house in Pune, Wanowrie and asked the guy to fill 500 bucks worth gas. Was with 5 kids in the car ( not all mine mind you ) looked ragged after taking eleven 9 year old girls to watch Smurfs and I had my thick glasses on ( poor eyesight - hereditary not age ). This guy took my money and proceeded to gun the gas into the tank while all the while staring at the general area between my neck and navel. Now some of you may say I should have sat in the car - why ask for trouble right? But these effers from who knows effeing where will cheat you on the gas if you don't step out and check the zero and check that they are not fingering the petrol gun. I think a pre-requisite for employment at a petrol station in India has got to be funky frikking fingers - they all have them!!!
Anyway, the icing on the cake was that he was doing it blatantly! Now for those of you who know me and for those of you who know me through my blog, I wasn' taking this standing up. I snapped my fingers at him and asked him if there was something the matter. He looked up at me blankly and for a moment there he had that 'beam me up scotty' look. Only there was no scotty and I was so not-e going to let this shorty get away with his sortie. I walked up to him and told him to stop filling petrol and give my money back. Stunned - he just did not move. By which time he had filled in the amount of petrol 500 INR will buy ( those of you living in this land of the not so brave and definitely not free would know its not much at all )
Me, I refused to pay. The way 'I looked' at it was that 'he looked' and boy was he going to pay. So long story short - they stopped me. I lost my cool, they hit him on his head and I eventually paid and drove off.
The thing is that I made my point ( or two ) and the guy will now be careful in future. And to all you guys who are thinking ummm what was she wearing - you deserve a slut slap ( in support of the slut walks happening all over the world) and for all you girls - next time you stop to fill petrol get out of the car and dare the guy to stare. Then you know what to do.
May the force be with you!
Anyway, the icing on the cake was that he was doing it blatantly! Now for those of you who know me and for those of you who know me through my blog, I wasn' taking this standing up. I snapped my fingers at him and asked him if there was something the matter. He looked up at me blankly and for a moment there he had that 'beam me up scotty' look. Only there was no scotty and I was so not-e going to let this shorty get away with his sortie. I walked up to him and told him to stop filling petrol and give my money back. Stunned - he just did not move. By which time he had filled in the amount of petrol 500 INR will buy ( those of you living in this land of the not so brave and definitely not free would know its not much at all )
Me, I refused to pay. The way 'I looked' at it was that 'he looked' and boy was he going to pay. So long story short - they stopped me. I lost my cool, they hit him on his head and I eventually paid and drove off.
The thing is that I made my point ( or two ) and the guy will now be careful in future. And to all you guys who are thinking ummm what was she wearing - you deserve a slut slap ( in support of the slut walks happening all over the world) and for all you girls - next time you stop to fill petrol get out of the car and dare the guy to stare. Then you know what to do.
May the force be with you!
Friday, August 5, 2011
The wonder that is Master chef Australia
I have oft wondered why Master chef Australia is so huge in India.
For one, its made by Australians the entire population of which is smaller than that of Bombay. Its made by and features people from a country who are sore losers - sporty nation mind you, but sore losers never the less ( ask the D gang and by D, I mean Dhoni ) It's a section of society representing people who we know can sledge and boy can they sledge. Additionally, they have some crazy custom and duty prohibitions and Indians are treated like suspects from the time they walk in the airport ( sniffer dogs et al ). Now I must admit that this is all hearsay mate but I hear what they say and what they say ain't always pretty.
So why then, pray tell, do we love Master chef Australia?
Is it because Gary and George are so warm and generous? Or because of the celebrity chefs that come on and the eccentricities of the likes of Adriano Zumba? Or maybe its the sets and the exotic locales - Cockatoo islands! Now thats a place I'd love to cockatoo at. Or maybe its the Aussie accent mate! Or the niceness of the contestants - no apprentice type "he stole my ideas &^#$%^&* " or "you can't cook! you're fired!!!"
Here the contestants are gracious and genuine. And when Gary tells them that its their turn to go home if their dish is not up to the mark, they don't threaten his family and vow to avenge their expulsion from the masterchef kitchen. They don't sob on camera and claim partiality or favoritism and come to think of it no one has accused Matt Preston of sleeping with any of the contestants...yet!
Could it be that India, a nation known for her warmth and generosity needs a prime time dose of it herself? Could it be that Indians tune into Master chef to be a part of a one hour happy, friendly and sometimes genuinely funny experience. Now I know a lot of you reading this would probably say its also for the lovely recipes but I say to you, " anything they cook on master chef can be seen in a variety of combination permutations by a variety of other chefs ranging from the oh so gay Ainsley to the rude and ruthless Gordon Ramsay to the "I stay plump so I look young" Nigella to the 'not naked' Naked chef.
But Gary, George and the pretty in pink Matt rule the roost.
Me, I believe its got to do with a formula that makes this show about the food and the people wanting to cook it. Its not about the judges or any celebrity host - wait! there isn't one, or about the life and times of George and how he came over from Greece. It has stayed true to it's objective of picking regular chefs/cooks from all over Australia and giving them a shot at being master chefs. Its done well, cleanly, nicely and with much grace and kindness.
And in the India of today, thats what we are lacking. The over dose of reality TV and the likes of Jerry Springer that have filled our homes and lives have left us wanting to tune into a genuine, clean and truly entertaining program - the wonder that is Master chef Australia.
For one, its made by Australians the entire population of which is smaller than that of Bombay. Its made by and features people from a country who are sore losers - sporty nation mind you, but sore losers never the less ( ask the D gang and by D, I mean Dhoni ) It's a section of society representing people who we know can sledge and boy can they sledge. Additionally, they have some crazy custom and duty prohibitions and Indians are treated like suspects from the time they walk in the airport ( sniffer dogs et al ). Now I must admit that this is all hearsay mate but I hear what they say and what they say ain't always pretty.
So why then, pray tell, do we love Master chef Australia?
Is it because Gary and George are so warm and generous? Or because of the celebrity chefs that come on and the eccentricities of the likes of Adriano Zumba? Or maybe its the sets and the exotic locales - Cockatoo islands! Now thats a place I'd love to cockatoo at. Or maybe its the Aussie accent mate! Or the niceness of the contestants - no apprentice type "he stole my ideas &^#$%^&* " or "you can't cook! you're fired!!!"
Here the contestants are gracious and genuine. And when Gary tells them that its their turn to go home if their dish is not up to the mark, they don't threaten his family and vow to avenge their expulsion from the masterchef kitchen. They don't sob on camera and claim partiality or favoritism and come to think of it no one has accused Matt Preston of sleeping with any of the contestants...yet!
Could it be that India, a nation known for her warmth and generosity needs a prime time dose of it herself? Could it be that Indians tune into Master chef to be a part of a one hour happy, friendly and sometimes genuinely funny experience. Now I know a lot of you reading this would probably say its also for the lovely recipes but I say to you, " anything they cook on master chef can be seen in a variety of combination permutations by a variety of other chefs ranging from the oh so gay Ainsley to the rude and ruthless Gordon Ramsay to the "I stay plump so I look young" Nigella to the 'not naked' Naked chef.
But Gary, George and the pretty in pink Matt rule the roost.
Me, I believe its got to do with a formula that makes this show about the food and the people wanting to cook it. Its not about the judges or any celebrity host - wait! there isn't one, or about the life and times of George and how he came over from Greece. It has stayed true to it's objective of picking regular chefs/cooks from all over Australia and giving them a shot at being master chefs. Its done well, cleanly, nicely and with much grace and kindness.
And in the India of today, thats what we are lacking. The over dose of reality TV and the likes of Jerry Springer that have filled our homes and lives have left us wanting to tune into a genuine, clean and truly entertaining program - the wonder that is Master chef Australia.
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