Indian Culture : Moulded, Bred and Confused.

There have been many arguments erupting over the past month or so on how the impact of Western Culture on India is eroding our values. A few counter arguments suggest it is India’s Culture which is flawed and needs a makeover. If both these sides were allowed to lock horns, it would probably be a stalemate.

This brings us to a question. Is Indian Culture a cusp of the Western and Eastern Cultures, slowly inclining more towards the western end of the balance scale? Why is it that we Indians find it easier to live in countries like United States, UK or Australia than living in a country like Malaysia, Saudi Arabia or UAE, even though the latter is much more similar to us than the Western nations? Language is one of the most important determinants of Culture. English is the Business Language in India, and the preferred form of communication for a majority of the urban population. Isn’t that another box ticked in the Western Culture checklist?  So, what exactly is Indian Culture?

Let us try to break this down. When we hear Western Culture, USA and UK are the two countries which spring to mind. UK is different for it has always been an independent state. USA was a British state and it gained independence in 1776 from the Kingdom of Great Britain. Prior to the British Empire, which started roughly in the early 1600’s with the invasion of Bermuda, America was inhabited by Native Americans who were nomadic and not particularly “civilized”.  So, with the British settlers coming in there was a sea change in America. It gained independence from the British Empire in 1776. That is a good 230 odd years ago. So, the current USA civilization, and even the UK is quite old and has had significant amount of time to adapt, develop and cultivate its own culture, i.e. the Western Culture.

If we talk about India, the Culture is a direct derivative of the Vedas, Hinduism’s oldest scriptures. These scriptures were written way back in around 1700-1100 BC. Since then, India has gone through the Persian and Greek invasions, Maurya dynasty, the Kushan Empire, the Gupta Empire etc in the medieval period.  Moving on to the early modern era. In 1600s, Mughals and Marathas were ruling over the Indian subcontinent, followed by the British Raj from the 1800s till India’s independence in 1947. Hence, by the time India had gained Independence, it had gone through a multitude of cultures and the real Indian Culture was nonexistent. It was a new India now.

The new India is just 66 years old. In Country years, it is quite young. India’s civilization is still evolving and is just about reaching the stage when it has started adopting and developing its own Culture. If one goes through the American History, it wasn’t until the latter part of 1900s that USA truly started developing into the nation it is today. Secondly, India has had many a cultural influences on it over its history. Considering 1600 to be the baseline period for Modern History, USA had the Influence of only the British settlers. India had the Mughals, Marathas, the British Raj and many other small kingdoms south of the country. These varied influences gave varied cultures in different parts of India. There was no one single culture for India as a country. Even as of today, each and every state of India has its own language, cuisine, music, i.e. Culture.

There are also social and economic reasons for cultural cocktail in India. India opened its economy to the world in 1990, and that was also the time when the dotcom revolution was taking shape. By 2000, Internet was gaining social acceptance in India and was moving from a luxury to necessity. Young India was exposed to Western Culture and they embraced it because it was “cool”. The connect with the Rest of the World was quite literally a touch away. The same is not true with USA or UK. They were seldom exposed to the Rest of the World when they were developing as a nation. With the increased exposure, people in India were also willing to invest in foreign products and education, hence further broadening their awareness of foreign, i.e. Western Culture. All this whilst sticking to their roots, or at least trying to. Further confusions for us poor Indians.

India as of now is a confused nation caught between the “Let’s get back to our roots” and “Lets endorse Western Culture” frames of thought. Considering the various things going on in India, it isn’t necessarily a good place to be in. Going back to the roots and endorsing the “real” Indian Culture is not a practically viable option. Completely adopting the Western Culture will make India lose its real identity, and is again not the most viable option. Entering its 67th year as an independent nation, India is reaching a stage where it is beginning to adopt the best of both cultures. The New Indian Culture if one may.

It is high time India stops harping on the Western vs Eastern debate. A person going to a temple early in the morning, in a sari or dhoti and having Dosas or Dhoklas for breakfast, is as much cultured as a person going to a night club in jeans or gowns and having a drink or chowmein. The “esteemed” politician, higher authorities and a vast majority of the Indian Population who declare that India should shun Western Culture need to understand that Culture doesn’t commit crimes; it’s the individual’s mindset which does. Culture ain’t got anything to do with it. India with a mix of both cultures will do just about fine; it’s our minds which needs some cleansing. Jaago India Jaago.

Delhi - Start Behaving Yourselves

I am proud Indian. Have always been, will always be. For the past few days though, I feel like I have been let-down  The beautiful girl from Delhi who was brutally gang-raped breathed her last yesterday morning in Singapore. Tributes poured in, Candle Marches all over India, plethora of blogs just like this one, but what mattered was “Damini” had lost the battle. The score now stands at India – 0 Rapists – 1 (Would be much more, but will keep it at 1).

I digged out a few numbers and found out that barring the “Western” and “Civilized” societies of USA, UK and Australia, where Date rapes and Under-age sex, which also constitutes to rape, is incredibly high at about 40%, it is India which has the maximum number of rapes. 2011 stats suggest that Delhi by itself is responsible for about 2.3% of the total rapes in India. This is without taking into account the nearby NCR region. The number would then be around 4%. Shocking numbers for a region which is home to one of the nation's premium universities, and is considered to be a hippy and the “place to be” for youngsters.

I came across this yesterday and have read quite a few articles about the safety of women in New Delhi. Reading these accounts, It is scary to imagine the plight of women in that region. Being able to walk the roads without any fear should be the basic right of a human being. Not getting it in a democratic country is extremely sad. There are rapes happening in Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, heck even Los Angeles, London and Sydney. But rarely do we see women being scared of venturing into the roads at late hours in these cities. The whole of India has a patriarchal Society, So where does Delhi get this ridiculous mindset from? Why are women treated like Objects?

The problem isn't the Patriarchal Society as such. The problem lies in what people make out of such a society, and what they are taught by the buzurg and their peers. The roots of a patriarchal society is stemmed around Men protecting their women and not Men being superior to women. New Delhi on the other hand seems to be following Aristotle's line of thought. Aristotle's works depict women as “morally, intellectually and physically  inferior to men. He believed a woman's role to be that of reproduction and serving men in the household. This is the attitude that men in Delhi flaunt. They are of the belief that the female sex is morally obligated to get laid by them, and If she doesn't they are morally obligated to "punish" her. I have never been in Delhi and hence may not be the right person to give you an accurate view of what goes on in Delhi. But this video and the gang-rape incident are examples enough to give one an idea of the narrow mindedness that runs in the veins of Delhites.

Though there have been quite a few rapes and molestation incidents, the brutality of this one brought out the fire in many an Indian. Protests, violent and non violent, were staged in Delhi and other parts of India too. The reach of this incident was so widespread that Robin Van Persie's celebration after his goal against West Bromwich Albion was initially presumed to be a dedication to the rape victim. The protests may at max lead to a speedy resolution of this case. But unless there is a change in the fickle-headed minds of “Men” in Delhi, the rapes will go on. Delhi already has the dubious distinction of being the Rape Capital of India. If this goes on, It may well go up the pecking order and get a similar recognition across the globe.

It is often said in Sports that the Captain should lead from the front. Same goes for you Mr.Capital City. Behave yourselves Delhi. The World is Watching you. We don't want India's name to be stained because of you. 

P.S: I am not defending the existence of Patriarchal Society. I truly believe in Gender Equality. I just believe that It is not possible to change the set up as a whole, it will take decades to do that. We just have to make the best of what exists now. 

What If EPL went the IPL way?

The IPL has a new team, or rather a refurbished team. SunRisers Hyderabad. Yes, a highly ridiculous name for a Sports Team, but they kind of made up for it with their Logo. The IPL menagerie will continue to have 9 teams and will continue to be 2.5 decades long.

The auction is scheduled for Feb 3^rd when 37 players will go under the hammer. That’s a pretty good way of putting it because I feel that’s exactly what happens to the player’s dignity when teams bid for them. It gets hammered. And the players who are left unsold, its one solid hit right on the middle of their head with a Huge hammer.

I got this random idea the other day. What if the Barclays Premier League were to be remodeled based on the IPL? What if say Sir Alex Ferguson did a Lalit Modi? What if the UK wanted to get rid of the highly structured and Century old League Football structure and make way for a more snazzy, sexy, youthful Carlsberg UK Premier League? Sounds fun right?

Lets look at how things would have shaped up in the Carlsberg UK Premier League :

• Clubs would be named Manchester MoonWalkers, Manchester Super Fakers (The Other Manchester club i.e.),Chelsea Knight Sackers, Liverpool Historians, Arsenal Untitled, Tottenham Daredevils etc.
• The team mascots would be people like Robert Pattinson, Jude Law, Kate Beckinsale, Daniel Radcliffe etc.
• "You Will Never Walk Alone", "Glory Glory Manchester United", "Good Ole Arsenal" etc will be replaced by crappier theme songs with Robert Pattinson dancing in it. 
• The cheerleaders will be actually Hot.
• Vijay Mallaya would have tried to bid for a team just because he can (Or Can he?).
• There will be a camera fitted into the football to help viewers get into the game. Lets name it the FootCam.

Players & Auctions  :

• Lionel Messi will be the most sought after player, but he will withdraw from the auctions because he likes only “Pure” Football. No Messi = No Xavi, No Iniesta. 
• Cristiano Ronaldo will hence finally become the most sought after player for a change, and will finally get the money he thinks he deserves. Balon d'or will continue to be just a dream though.
• David Beckham will make his comeback to English football as an Icon player for Manchester MoonWalkers.
• Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs will be the other Icon Players.
• Arsenal Untitled will do a Rajasthan Royals and bid only for young English talent. Paolo Maldini will be their Icon player.
• Mario Balotelli will command the highest price for reasons unknown (When Jadeja can, why not Balotelli).
• Players like Andy Caroll, Kieran Gibbs and other young English talent will become the flavour of the nation after performing in one match. Equivalent of the Yusuf Pathans and Manish Pandeys. 
• Internationals like Samir Nasri, Robin Van Persie, Ibrahamovic will have a standoff with their national team because they don't want to miss the UPL for International commitments. Money Matters for them.
• Players like David Seaman, Alan Shearer, Roberto Carlos, Roy Keane, Cafu will come out of retirement hoping for a 2^nd Football life. They will play the first season and will continue as a "mentor" for the remaining seasons.
• Fernando Torres will still be shit. 

Changes in Rules :

• Football will now be played in 2 halves of 30 minutes each. A shortened format increases interest level doesn't it?
• A goal scored from outside the box will equate to 2 goals.
• There will be a strategic timeouts after the 12.5 and 25 minute mark of each half.
• Substitutions will now be made on the fly.
• A goal of a corner will be called an O2 kamaal goal.
• A goal of a free kick will be called Coca Cola Stunner goal.
• A penalty will be Barclays moment of success.

Fan Reactions :

• The usually loyal English football fans will now start supporting teams based on their favourite players and not their own city.
• The elderly fans and purists will start blaming the Carlsberg UPL for demise of classical football.
• The English national team fans will now have a certified excuse to cover up their national team’s ineffectiveness. “Too much of UPL has made the players money minded, They are just not committed”

What else would change in the EPL? Comments please !!!!

RajniKanth Day in History !!

December 12^th, 1950 is one of the most important days in the history of mankind. After all Shivaji Rao Gaikwad aka RajniKanth was born on that day. He turns 62 today and millions of fans are celebrating. No better treat for them than the release of Sivaji in 3D. RajniKanth is not just the SuperStar, he has become a cultural Icon. Tamil Cinema = RajniKanth.

I can go on with the adulation  but moving on. Being RajniKanth day, there have been many more landmark events which have changed the course of history in some way or the other on December 12^th.  Nothing more altering than his birth of course, but you do get what I mean. So, here is looking at a few of those events :

1901: Gugliemo Marconi succeeded in sending the first ever transatlantic radio transmission. He had transmitted the Morse Code Signal for letter S from Cornwall, England to Newfoundland, Canada , Over 2000 miles apart. He disapproved the cynics who believed that the curvature of earth would limit transmission to 200 miles or less. This was Marconi’s way of Rajnikanthing the non-believers. What’s more, he received the nobel prize in Physics in 1909 for the same. Only because he did this on 12^th December.

1912: The original Mona Lisa painting was recovered 2 years after its theft from the Louvre Museum in Paris. It was recovered in Florence, from the hotel room of an Italian waiter by the name of Vincenzo Peruggia. Legend has it that on Dec 12^th of the previous 2 years, Vincenzo heard booming voices in his room which went something like “Kanna, I am coming”. He ignored the first 2 warnings, but the 3^rd one was a bit too much for him and he left the painting unhidden in his room to make it easier for the search party. Though unproven, you know it’s true.   

1943: Tide detergent was introduced. The detergent which gives you the whitest of white. How did they get the formula to make such a detergent? They just got lucky that their launch date coincided with RajniKanth day. 

1963: Kenya gained independence from the British forces. Kenya African National Union (KANU) headed by Jomo Kenyatta took over the country. Why did it happen? RajniKanth on his 13^th birthday wanted a lion as a gift. His parents asked him to go get it. He swam his way from Mumbai to Nairobi. As the clock struck 12, RajniKanth had reached the Kenyan shores. The British knew it was a lost cause. You know what happened next.

1981: Yuvraj Singh was born. How do you think he managed to hit those 6 sixes against Stuart Broad? How do you think he managed to win the World Cup for India, in spite of not being in the best of health? How do you think he can hit sixes so effortlessly? You really want me to answer these questions? I am sure you know why.

And just in case you want some more trivia, Washington DC and New Delhi, the capitals of the two biggest democracies, i.e. USA and India were established as capitals on this very day. Washington in 1800 and Delhi in 1911. I am sure you won’t ever forget this now.  

My First Marathon- Ok, 10km Run !!

I am a pretty lazy individual. Someone who wanted to do things, but later. Walking from my house to the nearby market was a strict no at most times. So, running a marathon was going to be as tough as Pi Patel’s rendezvous with Richard Parker.

I came to know about the Wipro Chennai Marathon a few days ago. Though I was not much confident of doing any good in it, I just had to give it a shot. After all , this couldn't be done later. There were 3 categories. I chose the 10km run. The full and half marathons were never going to be my thing. Riding 42kms on a bike is hellacious, I mean how could I possibly walk/run that much. Having done 5-6kms on the treadmill, 10km was just a bit further. I was pretty “confident” of doing it.

2^nd of December was the D-Day. IIT Madras was the venue. The entire course was within the beautiful IIT campus. The run was to begin at 7:00 AM. I was there at 6:30 and joined my fellow runners who were doing their Warm-ups, choreographed by an instructor. I was joined by a couple of my friends, who were inevitably late. A shot of an energy drink and a banana later, we were all set. As the countdown trickled down to zero, off we were along with hundreds of fellow runners. It was showtime.

The first couple of kilometers went pretty well. The adrenaline was pumping and the confidence of finishing the run was growing. The legs held up well and weren’t behaving funny as yet. As we reached the first fueling station, around 3 and a bit kilometers from the start line, things were just getting a bit tougher. Jogging had been replaced by more of walking. Though the stamina was still there, legs were starting to make noises of their own. Every passing kilometer made it more of a “mind over body” matter. I pushed, pushed and pushed, alternating between jogging and walking.

The finish line made its much sought after appearance, and so did a bit adrenaline rush. A dash to the finish line was made, and when I did cross the line, immense satisfaction. Being able to complete the run was an incredible achievement in itself for me, considering that I never practiced even a bit and the longest distance I have ever walked in my life wouldn’t have been more than 3kms.

A special shout out to Wipro and other organizers. The marathon was organized quite brilliantly and It was great fun to be a part of it. The IIT campus was as beautiful as it has always been, making the run extremely easy on the eyes. The Chennai weather too was extremely considerate and spared us from exhaustion due to heat. Overall, it was a Sunday well spent.

I did make a 10km run sound like a hike to Mount Everest, but that was how difficult I had considered it to be. Now that I succeeded in getting done with it, I have my sights set on the next marathon event. This time, with some practice, I might just give the Half Marathon a shot.     

Facebook : Social Network to Daily Chore

When I was first introduced to Social Networking 6 years back through Orkut, I was excited about it. I used to genuinely look forward to Log in to Orkut, Check for scraps, get immensely happy If I got one, stalk people’s profiles and uploading “real” photos used to be like the coolest thing ever. A person’s coolness factor used to be directly proportional to the number of scraps in his/her scrapbook, and the number of friends he/she has.

Then came facebook. It started gaining prominence around 2007-08. People were hooked instantly. The magnitude of the Orkut to Facebook migration of the human race will make the Emperor Penguins proud. Things were a bit different here, FB Chat replaced Scraps, Wall posts replaced testimonials, People could now stalk without the fear being revealed, and we got introduced to perhaps the 2 worst social networking Inventions of all time, Poking and “Like”. Facebook became the in thing, and the coolness factor was now measured by how fast one made this transition from “Boring Orkut” to “Happening Facebook”.

Then we had Twitter, Google +, So.cl (Does anybody use this?), Linkedin, Pinterest, MojoStreet, Instagram and a plethora of networking sites, designed for different purposes.

Things have changed though. Social networking has lost the novelty factor it possessed even 2-3 years ago. From being “Cool”, It has become a given to be a part of a social networking site. Also, with usage of smartphones and tablets increasing exponentially, one doesn't even need to have a Desktop or Laptop with them to get access to these websites. With such ease in access, people have become so addicted to these sites, that it has almost become a chore.  

With people logged into their facebook and other social networking accounts in multiple devices, the existence of logout button is on the verge of becoming a myth. We have traversed from “going online” to “being online”. As I said before, Social Networking has become a chore. It would no longer be a part of a person’s “To do List”. You eat, You sleep, You bathe, and similarly you facebook (Yes, It can be used as a verb).

There are many ways in which one can look at this. One can go on with the pros and cons of Social networking addiction and blah. The point here is we have surpassed the addiction phase, and It has now become an inherent part of life. As much as one would want to restrict themselves, there is always a limit to how much one can fast. Anyone with views, the comment section has been served to you on a platter.  

Jab Tak Hai Jaan - An SRK - Yashji Special !!

Jab Tak hai Jaan. Yash Chopraji’s final directorial venture. Expectations were really high. Afterall, SRK and Yashji were coming together after 8 long years. Veer Zaara was their last outing together. JTHJ does not disappoint at all.

This movie is about Major Samar Anand, A stubbled bomb defusal expert of the Indian Army. This movie is about his undying, unconditional love for Meera (Katrina Kaif). And about Akira Rai’s (Anushka Sharma) realization on what true love is.

So, the movie beings with Samar on his Royal Enfield clad in black tee and aviator glasses makes his way to diffuse the 98th bomb. The theatre echoed with whistles and claps. After all, it was King Khan.

Akira ,who is a 21 year old intern who wishes to work with Discovery Channel, is rescued by Samar as she passes out trying to take a dip in the chilly waters of Ladakh. He helps her out and makes her wear her jacket. Akira gets hold of Samar’s diary from his jacket, and we go to flashback mode.

Enter Meera, and a younger Samar. Meera a rich spoilt brat, who drives a Bentley. Samar, yet another asian in London trying to do petty jobs and meet his ends, still hoping for that elusive London dream. Their paths cross, Love happens. However, As fate would have it, Meera is already engaged. Also, she makes a series
of promises to Jesus, one of which leads to Samar going back to India and joining the Indian Army.

A complex tale of love at its purest ensues. The protagonists have done a good job. Katrina has actually managed to act, and done a wonderful job out of it. Anushka is at her chirpy best, and is proving that she is a very capable actor. Which brings me to Shahrukh Khan. Love stories seems to bring the best out of him. We have had Raj Malhotra, Veer Pratap Singh and now Samar Anand. He has given a very honest and compelling performance. After an Indifferent Ra-One, SRK is truly back with that loverboy persona. Cameos from Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh are worth a mention too.

Rahman’s music, though not at his belligerent best, gives a really good music score. “Challa” and “Saans” will delight your ears. Special mention must also go to the piece of music before “Ishq Shava”. Now, that was ARR at his best. Yashji also does a phenomenal job with the camerawork. The locales of Ladakh and London are extremely pleasing to eyes.

I would give Jab Tak Hai Jaan 3.5/5. And a must watch for SRK fans. Considering this is the last time we will see the Legendary combo of Yashji-SRK, it is a definite dekho for Movie buffs. Samar’s character is said to be the “The Man Who Can’t die”. Similarly, Yashji may be no longer with us, but his Legend just can’t die.