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A detailed analysis of the controversial Tanishq Advert

Neel Patne
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A detailed analysis of the controversial Tanishq Advert

In the beginning, the Hindu daughter-in-law walks out all dressed and accessorized with jewelry, what was she dressed for, work? Did she not know there’s a program or ceremony being held in her house? All that decoration and planning will require at least a day to set up. Was she locked in the room prior to it?

Why did the mother-in-law take her to the kitchen and then gently swerve her towards the outdoor? I mean the outdoor looked more attractive than the kitchen. She wanted to show the recipe of Pulikudi (a customary tamarind drink for married ‘Hindu’ women for their first pregnancy) on the fridge. This seemed like an attempt to show their effort and make sure she sees what the family is doing for her.

Then she asks the mother-in-law; ‘This kind of ceremony doesn’t at all happen in your house. Right?’: Does it mean that they are doing her a favor? Was she married in a Hindu tradition? Obviously, we wouldn’t know those details but one can say it definitely is against the Quran to do so.

To be honest, a Godh Bharai or Hindu baby shower is conducted during a woman’s 7th month of pregnancy and clearly, she looked around her 5th. Maybe so, but she really looked fit for her pregnancy. I surely think they got that wrong. Miranda Kerr gained weight in her pregnancy. Anyway, I digress.

Another important point I would like to raise is that in this ceremony at least for Hindus the mother, sister and other female relatives of the girl are also invited. In fact, that would have given it a more accepting look and feel; a Muslim family accepting the girl’s family too and vice-versa. In this scenario, it looked like the Muslim family decided to bend the rules a little bit just so the daughter-in-law feels a little better from a precarious situation she probably already was in.

I noticed some other quirks that you may think are for art direction purposes and may even offend Muslim households; the mother-in-law wearing such drab clothing looked more like a funeral attire, all the family members wearing beige clothing for a Hindu festival shows much disapproval for it. Yes, before you jump it’s probably a Keralite household and the beige color is tradition, but people forget even on the beige traditional saree there is a red embroidered lining that strikes out.

The daughter-in-law being Hindu didn’t apply Sindoor on her forehead; does that mean she has converted? The mother-in-law could have been wearing a sari to show her solidarity with her instead of a simple salwar kameez. It’s quite impossible that in India any Indian mother would not own a sari of her own regardless of their religion. Also if you look closely at the preparations there is nothing Hindu about it? In Kerala, during Onam, a Muslim household would more or less have the same look and feel as any Hindu household.

I don’t mean to sound chauvinist but generally, in a Muslim house, the father of the house has a leading role. At least a say in most cases, especially if there is a Non-Islamic ceremony being held in his house. Maybe they could have shown a smile from the wretched father who was on the ladder risking his life fixing flowers on the ceiling.

In all honesty, the ad failed because they tried to show that the “Rasm” or ceremony was some sort of a favor to the daughter-in-law. It just might have succeeded if they managed to show that they invited the daughter-in-law’s family, went the full nine yards to show their love for her. But this seemed quite unwanted and disinteresting to all the members of the Muslim family.

At the end, I do hope all hostility settles down and Tanishq realizes advertising is not a joke. The world is run and manipulated by this industry, I’m a part of this industry too. It too requires reforms and order.

Prime Minister must listen that the Bengal bleeds

Rudra Prasanna Banerjee
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Prime Minister must listen that the Bengal bleeds

While all Indians are worried about covid, we the people of West Bengal are not only worried about covid but also we are terrified because of the ruthless aggression of the ruling party in the state. It is high time to bring the attention of all Indians towards West Bengal because the Bengali Hindu community in West Bengal are fighting the battle for their existential crisis and afraid to face the same treatment that has been done with Kashmiri Pandits.

Our state WB contributed around 40% to India’s GDP during 1960 which gradually dropped to around 4% at present. Continuous promotion of violence among workers, inefficient land policies, derogatory comments on industrialists, no administrative, legal and financial reforms, and complete absence of logistics, technology and financial hubs converted this fertile state to a sterile land. West Bengal became a sick state after suffering three decades of communist rule and Mamata Banerjee government has fared hardly any better. 

As soon as Mamata Banerjee came to power, she stopped SEZ and took a stand against FDI. The land is not being allotted; even the port construction on the Bay of Bengal has been stopped. There are no four-lane state highways; the land is not being allotted for national highways. Jiagunj-Azimgunj bridge construction has not finished in 10 years due to legal problem with only 1 Katha of land! Metro rail was not allowed to invest 50% (like in other states) nor is the land being allotted, airport expansion was halted. The land was not provided for Kolkata Delhi freight corridor. No significant investments have come in even after 4 industrial summits. Bengalis cannot set up a business within their own state. Syndicate, non-payment, high handedness is constant impediments that vitiate the environment. Scores of industrious Bengalis have gone bankrupt due to these troubles, what has the government done to improve the situation? 

Neither industrialization has taken place, nor is there focus on infrastructure development. The last hope people had was government service. Now with the rampant corruption, that has also become a distant not so feasible dream for most. You may be surprised to know that for last several years, WB Government did not recruit teachers in Government schools, so due to lack of teachers and deficit in infrastructures, parents are afraid to send their child to there. So, the only alternative is to send kids to private schools and while the schools are closed during this pandemic, the owner of the private schools did not show any sympathy by reducing their fees. The little children below 10 years of age were forced to take online classes. Can anyone explain the pedagogical relevancy of such online classes for those little kids? This was just for money.

You might be surprised to know that on the day of our independence one person was killed because he wanted to host Indian flag! Since the 2019 General election more than 100 innocent BJP workers have been murdered in the state. Recently one elected MLA was hung near his own house and without any investigation the state administration initially declared it as a suicide. One woman was shot for being a member of BJP Mahila Morcha and she is still fighting with her life in hospital. Two days back, one elected counsellor from BJP party was shoot to death in front of the police station. Apart from those reported numbers of murders, countless numbers of common people like me without any political affiliations have been threatened for raising their voice against the anarchist government. Several cases of rape of women were reported and our chief minister considered those cases as either small incidents or stated one two incidents can happen here and there. Before this, MP from her party Late Tapas Pal said in a rally that he will send boys to the house of opposition party workers to rape women.

Since the beginning of this pandemic WB government is utterly failed to provide basic health care to its resident. While the government hospitals are running out of bed, the private hospitals charge several lacs to treat covid patient as per many media reporting. The discrepancy in the results of covid testing also vouches for the fact that many testing centers are not even doing the testing properly and instead, they just put random positive results to admit people to their hospitals and to get money from them.

You all know that Durga Puja is the biggest festivals in West Bengal and unfortunately foe last couple of years, we had to go to court take permission to immerse our Maa Durga because our Chief Minister’s minorities appeasement policy. While our state Government allowed other religious festivals to carry on during this pandemic, they intentionally implement state wise lockdown on 5th August on the day of Ram mandir Bhumi Puja. Common people have been sent to jail for chanting “Jai Shree Ram”.

One after another, terrorists have been captured from different places of West Bengal and our chief minister is busy in fighting with the central Government to mislead everyone by saying central has no right to interfere in state administration. What is her problem to cooperate with National Investigating Agency (NIA) to find out those terrorists from our state? Not only that, this government is reluctant to take any action against any minority people because of vote bank. Several riots have been taken place in different areas of West Bengal and the government maintained absolute silence to keep their vote bank safe.

In demand of free and fair recruitment of educated youths in Government jobs, “BJP Yuva Morcha” held a rally “Nabanna Cholo” on 8th October. Spontaneous participation of common people was brutally thrashed by state administration. Many MPs of BJP and other top leaders like Kailash Vijayvargiya were beaten by the administration. Shri Balwinder Singh, the personal safety officer of BJP leader Shri Priyanshu Pandey, was mercilessly beaten by police and his religious symbol ‘the holy turban’ desecrated. Shri Singh was later arrested by police in charge of possessing illegal firearm. It is worth mentioning that Mr. Singh, who is an ex serviceman of the Indian Army, holds a firearm with nationwide valid license. His glorious career spans from taking part in Operation Vijay in Kargil 1999 and being a member of the elite Para SF and NSG over the last 44 years. Continuous oppression of voice became a neo normal for the people of WB. To get rid off the terror of communist party, we voted for TMC government which run the government in same communist style with special emphasis on minority appeasement! The situation is alarming, and it is nothing but an organized plan to destroy Bengali Hindu community from the state. 

Under this circumstance, my humble question to my Prime Minister Modi Ji, why are you silent on violation of our all fundamental rights? Once Swami Vivekananda said “We have to give back to the nation its lost individuality and raise the masses. The Hindu, the Mahommedan, the Christian, all have trampled them under foot. Again the force to raise them must come from inside. i.e. orthodox Hindus.” That Narendra left us with his vision but we have another Narendra who is trying his best to fulfill that dream but as you said many times without developing West Bengal, it is not possible for India to be the number one in the world. So, please do something before the descendant of Swami Ji becomes wipe out from the soil of West Bengal.

Regards,
Rudra Prasanna Banerjee,
Researcher, University of Alberta, Canada.

बेव सीरीज को उनकी अश्लीलता के लिए कोसा जाता रहेगा

Kumar Narad
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बेव सीरीज को उनकी अश्लीलता के लिए कोसा जाता रहेगा

सिर्फ सोचकर देखिएगा कि आपका पंद्रह साल का बेटा या बेटी आपके सामने मां और बहन की गालियां दे रहे हैं और उनके आंखों में जरा भी शर्म तक नहीं है। कैसा लगेगा? क्या यह खुलकर जीने की आजादी के तहत मिली हुई स्वतंत्रता है? समाज में इनका बीजारोपण इतनी तेजी से क्यों हो रहा है? इसका जबाव है सस्ता इंटरनेट और उस पर परोसी जाने वाली बहुत सस्ती, घटिया और दोयम दर्जे की अश्लील वेब सीरीज फिल्में। जिन्हें रचनात्मकता के और फिल्मों के नाम पर परोसा जा रहा है। पॉर्न फिल्मों को अब तक खुले में देखना नैतिक अपराध माना जाता था, लेकिन इन वेब सीरिज ने नैतिकता के इस परदे को भी हटाकर फैंक दिया है।

राह चलते कौन गाली देता है!

रचनाधर्मिता को भारत में हमेशा सम्मान की नजर से देखा जाता रहा है। लेकिन इसकी आड़ में पिछले ढाई-तीन सालों में वेब सीरीजकारों ने समाज में जिस तरह की सड़ांध मचाई है, उसका असर आने वाले कई वर्षों तक रहने वाला है। सिर्फ एटीन प्लस का टैग मात्र लगा लेने से वेब सीरिजकार मानते हैं कि उन्हें वेब सीरिज के नाम पर पॉर्न फिल्म दिखाने का अधिकार मिल गया है। और गालियां…। मां, बहन और बेटी की गालियां तो जैसे इन फिल्मों के कलाकारों के संवाद की हर दूसरी पंक्ति में है। जैसे उन्हें गाली के बिना कोई संवाद बोलने से पूरी तरह मना किया गया है। राह चलते लोगों से कौन गाली देकर बाते करता है? लेकिन वेब सीरिज ‘मिर्जापुर’ या फिर ‘सैक्रेड गेम्स’ देख लीजिए। इन सीरीज की दिलचस्प कहानियों के बावजूद इनमें गाली, सैक्स और हिंसा को इतना ज्यादा ठूंसा गया है कि वे कहानी से कहीं भी तारतम्य नहीं बैठा पाते।

गालियां, सैक्स दृश्य और हिंसा

अनुराग कश्यप की ‘गैंग्स ऑफ वासेपुर’ से शुरू हुआ हिंसा, सैक्स और गालियों का सिलसिला सीरिज दर सीरिज लगातार बढ़ रहा है। ऐसा लगता है कि वेब सीरिजकार यह मानकर ही चलते हैं कि हिंदी दर्शकों को मां-बहन की फूहड़ गालियां, बेडरूम और चकलाघरों के खुले सैक्स दृश्य और हिंसा पसंद आती ही होगी! मनोज वाजपेयी की ताजा सीरिज ‘फैमिली मैन’ में उनका दस साल का बेटा अपनी बारह-तेरह साल की बहन और पिता के सामने मां शब्द को अपमानित करने वाली गाली देता है। बलात्कार के दृश्यों को खुलकर दिखाया जाता है। जिस शब्द से ही समाज को घृणा होनी चाहिए, उस पर से सीरिजकारों से लाज का परदा भी हटा दिया है। बेवसीरिज ‘द फॉरगोटन आर्मी’ में दावा तो नेताजी सुभाषचंद्र बोस के संघर्ष पर आधारित कहानी का किया गया था, लेकिन अंग्रेज अधिकारी द्वारा एक भारतीय स्त्री के बलात्कार का खुला दृश्य दिखाकर सीरीजकार क्या संदेश देना चाहते हैं? यह सच है कि आधुनिक समाज में बलात्कार और हिंसा की घटनाओं के अस्तित्व से इनकार नहीं किया जा सकता है, लेकिन समाज ने हमेशा से उनका प्रतिकार किया है। लेकिन सीरिजकार उन्हीं चीजों का महिमामंडन कर दर्शकों की नसों में सनसनी क्यों भरना चाहते हैं?

हिंदु प्रतीकों का अपमान

समाज पर मनोवैज्ञानिक असर

इसके अलावा वेब सीरिजों में धार्मिक प्रतीकों के साथ दुर्व्यहार बहुत सामान्य सी बात हो गई है। विशेषकर हिंदू प्रतीकों के साथ सीरिजकार जिस तरह का व्यवहार करते हैं, वह सभ्य समाज के लिए असहनीय है। और इसमें कोई मर्दानगी जैसा भी महसूस नहीं होना चाहिए। हिंदू देवी-देवताओं के अश्लील चित्रण के कई मामलों की अदालतों में शिकायतें भी की गई हैं, जिन पर अदालतों ने सरकार से स्पष्टीकरण मांगा है। सनातन परंपराओं से जुड़े प्रतीक चिह्नों के साथ भद्दा मजाक पहले भी फिल्मों में होता रहा है। असल में तथाकथित आडंबरों के खिलाफ रचनात्मकता दिखाने के लिए फिल्मकार हिंदु प्रतीक चिह्नों को निशाना बनाते रहे हैं। असल में भारतीय लोगों की सहिष्णुता के कारण वे फिल्मकारों के सबसे आसान निशाना होते रहे हैं। और अब वही काम वेब सीरिजकार कर रहे हैं। सीरिजकारों को समझना होगा कि रचनात्मकता के नाम पर वे अपने ही समाज का इस तरह तिरष्कार नहीं कर सकते।

असल में फिल्मकारों की तरह सीरिजकारों को भी अपनी फिल्मों को वास्तविक दिखाने का चस्का लगा हुआ है और इसके चलते अनावश्यक गालियां उनके संवादों का हिस्सा बन रहे हैं। गालियां समाज का हिस्सा है लेकिन सीरिजकारों ने जैसे गालियों का ट्रेंड ही स्थापित कर दिया है। सभी वेब सीरिज में उन्हें ग्लैमराइज किया जा रहा है। ऐसा लगता है कि वेब सीरिज में आपस में कोई स्पर्धा है कि कौनसी सीरिज ज्यादा से ज्यादा गालियां दे सकती है। कोई भी सीरिज उठाकर देख लीजिए हर पांचवे संवाद में मा-बहन की गालियां धडल्ले से बोली जाती हैं। आश्चर्य की बात है कि महिला पात्रों से सीरिजकार गालियां बुलवा डालते हैं। समाज में लड़कियों, औरतों और मासूमों के साथ यौनिक अत्याचार की बढ़ती घटनाओं को भले ही इन वाहियात सीरिज के असर से सीधे-सीधे नहीं जोड़ा जाए, लेकिन हम इन सीरिज के मनोवैज्ञानिक असर और उसके रिएक्शन से इनकार भी नहीं कर सकते कि इनका समाज पर कितना बुरा असर होता होगा!  

वेब सीरिजकारों से बेहतर की उम्मीद

वेब सीरिज पर बहुत सी अच्छी फिल्में भी बन रही हैं और उन्होंने अपनी कहानियों के लिए दर्शकों को गुदगुदाया है। ऐसा नहीं है कि एटीन प्लस टैग वाली सीरिज की कहानियां दिलचस्प नहीं है। ये कहानियां इतनी दिलचस्प है कि इन्हें देखना बहुत मजेदार लगता है, लेकिन कहानी के बीच में जबरन ठूंसा गया सैक्स, हिंसा और गालियां पूरी सीरिज के स्वाद को बेस्वाद कर देता है। कई बार ऐसा लगता है कि इन सीरिज को सिर्फ इसीलिए ही बनाया गया कि वे दर्शकों को सैक्स, हिंसा और गालियों से रूबरू से करवा सकें। सीरिजकारों को समझना होगा कि फिल्में समाज का दर्पण होती हैं, लेकिन जब दर्पण ही यह तय करने लग जाए कि समाज को कैसा होना चाहिए, तो समाज का ढांचा बिगड़ने का खतरा हो जाता है और ऐसे में इन सीरिज के नियमन, इन पर नियंत्रण के स्वभाविक स्वर उठने लगते हैं।

कई संगठन और राजनैतिक दल वेब सीरिज के नियमन का मुद्दा उठा चुके हैं। कई सीरिजों के विरूद्ध अदालतों में याचिकाएं डाली गई हैं। केंद्र सरकार ने भी डिजीटल मीडिया के नियमन की बात कही है। लेकिन अभी तक इन पर किसी भी तरह की कार्यवाही होना शेष है। देश में कई ओटीटी प्लेटफॉर्म विदेशी हैं, जिन पर यूरोपीयन और अमरीकन सीरीज, शोज और लाइव कार्यक्रम धडल्ले से दिखाए जाते हैं। इन पर अभी तक सेंसरशिप नहीं है। ऐसे में केंद्र को हस्तक्षेप कर उनके नियमन की दिशा में जरूर कदम उठाना चाहिए।

उम्मीद करनी चाहिए कि वेब सीरिजकार समाज को अपनी रचनात्मकता से बेहतरीन, दिलचस्प और विचारोत्तेजक कहानियां देंगे। उन्हें और ज्यादा जिम्मेदार रचनाकार की तरह व्यवहार करना चाहिए। उन्हें विश्वास होना चाहिए कि उनकी उन कहानियों को लोग जरूर पसंद करेंगे। क्योंकि हर अच्छी और सकारात्मक चीज को समाज में पसंद किया जाता है।

Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam: Making of a legend beyond religious horizon

Shubham Shukla
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Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam: Making of a legend beyond religious horizon

As India moves on to mark 89th birth anniversary of a man who manifested a living example of transcending the self, there’re plethora of anecdotes which find nexus in shaping Dr. Kalam’s life. These stories need to be brought in the mainstream discourse to explore the genius of him particularly when it is his visionary year 2020. He would not have dreamt of hardships people are facing in 2020 due to the pandemic even in the most extreme corners of his heart. A man who dedicated his whole life in fortifying India on almost all the valuable fronts seeing India a developed nation by 2020, narrates incidents which transformed him into a visionary man in his autobiography “Wings of Fire”.

His autobiography reflects the generosity of his parents on him. He was a master of striking a balance of perception. On the one hand, he lauds his parents and their wisdom whereas, on the other hand, he is well aware of his parents’ formal illiteracy. One comes to know that despite belonging to middle class family with limited resources, Indian culture of Atithi Devo Bhavah was greatly imbibed in his parents’ way of life.  

In the modern parlance, when some elitist sections of society feel privileged and find it their prerogative to sit on fancy dining tables disregarding the abysmal condition of other beings of same species, Dr. Kalam’s childhood aids in showing mirror to them. In case of Kalam, he would sit cross-legged on the floor and take his meals with his mother. Then the food would be served on a banana leaf. They would eat simple, vegetarian and holistic food which comprised of sambhar, homemade pickles and coconut chutney. These acts comprise the spirit of traditional Indian households where an enormous respect is given to the food. Kalam remembers the holistic way in which his family members would sit on the floor in a half-lotus position and enjoy the food resembling strong family bonding, a distinct feature of Indian family as a sociological institution.

But above all, his childhood stories also suggest an altogether deviant behaviour from the one that has been propagated by various groups against dismantling of social fabric by Brahmins. Dr. Kalam tells his readers about Sivasubramania Iyer, his science teacher belonging to an orthodox Brahmin family whom he considered an illuminated soul. One day, he invited Abdul Kalam for a meal at his house despite slight objection from his wife in order to homogenize the stratified society of Rameshwaram, breaking social barriers. He served food to Abdul Kalam with his own hands and sat beside him to eat. He again invited him for another meal and this time his wife had reformed and she cooked and served the meal herself to Abdul Kalam and sat beside him in the kitchen to eat. As per Kalam, this incidence penetrated deep within his heart and he felt weightlessness, free and equal, a sense of comradelier germinated inside him. He acknowledged this impression which made him a successful team member, which results in his triumph during later years. Had this incident not been narrated by someone with a grand stature as that of Dr. Kalam, the liberal propagandists would have never accepted existence of such a religious harmony.

Another childhood episode which he tells to his readers is of a Shiva temple near his village not too far off from his village Rameswaram. He circled around the temple just like another pilgrim from distant India and felt the flowing of energy through him. The head priest of that temple, Pakshi Lakshmana Sastry was a great friend of Kalam’s father and priest’s son Ramanadha was Kalam’s one of his three best friends who belonged to orthodox Brahmin families. One day, when a teacher separated Abdul Kalam from Ramanadha due to religious differences, the head priest summoned the teacher and scolded. He warned him not to propagate venom of social inequality among children.

He was a spiritual seeker and not a believer— which has always been the primary foundation on which all Indic religions particularly Hinduism are based. When Kalam was disappointed as he could not make it to Indian Air Forces, he went to Rishikesh and after taking bath in Ganga to revel its purity, went on to Sivanand’s Ashram. He was amazed to see that his Muslim name didn’t arouse any reaction on Swami Sivananda. Swamiji told him that the destiny had something big waiting for him and it sparked a hope in Kalam’s life. After his conversation with Swami ji, he felt like he got an answer to his troubles. This incident makes us understand that it’s certainly not religion but ‘hope’ that is actually the opium of masses.

Dr. Kalam was an intense nationalist and loved India deeply. Even while retaining his Islamic practices, like Dara Shikhon did, he adopted Hindu philosophy with open arms. This was an express manifestation of him living India’s core value systems — “Ekam Sat Viprah Bahudha Vadanti” (Truth is one, sages call it by various names). His spiritual Master was a Hindu saint — H.H. Pramukh Swami Maharaj, the head of BAPS, a Hindu organization of the Swaminarayan order. He read the Gita and practiced playing the Veena (purportedly a Hindu symbol of music & learning associated with the goddess of learning — Saraswati) everyday. The Ramayana which recently drew controversies over its telecast during national lockdown was a thing of Kalam’s everyday bedtime stories.

But unfortunately, today he seems to be missing from mainstream discourse as the eminence of ‘Eminent Historians” who dominate the mainstream narrative do not allow such a great personality to be revered. Such is the audacity of liberal retards that they find eulogization of Dr. Kalam, an intrusion into their “safe spaces.” When Dr. Kalam became 11th President of India, many intellectuals wrote several opinion pieces which scoffed at him being not enough Muslim. One such opinion piece was written by Dr. Rafiq Zakaria who praising his patriotism (actually honeydripping) noted that:

“He was born a Muslim and bears a Muslim name, he should not be put in the same category as the two former Muslim Presidents, Dr Zakir Husain and Mr Fakruddin Ali Ahmed. Both of them were as great a patriot and Indian to the core as Dr Kalam. But they were also Muslims in the real sense of the word; they believed in the tenets of the Quran and faithfully followed the traditions of the Prophet”

In an interview with MJ Akbar, Dr. Kalam was asked…So why is it that the so-called Muslim leaders in the North always have the feeling that you are not a practicing Muslim?

He replied- “First of all, I am an Indian and try to be a good human being. People can call me XYZ, that’s their freedom of expression. There is no conflict of any kind regarding my faith in Islam. I often visit temples and churches as well. God is everywhere.”

One of the primary reasons why Dr. Kalam is curiously missing from the popular discourse among Indian Muslims is the exclusivist tendency of their faith. This exclusivism of the trueness of only their faith is so imbibed that corollary of it intends as falseness of every other religion and faiths. It goes fundamentally flawed against the distinct Indic values of inclusiveness like Vaudhaiv Kutumbkam i.e. whole world is one. It is ironical that people like Zakir Naik are awarded highest honour of Saudi Arabia for their “service to Islam”.

Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam is a perfect embodiment of a seeker in true sense who rejected this exclusivist tendency of only Islam is true. He notably acknowledged diversity of spaces which is a fundamental pillar on which Indian cultural and traditional society rests. There must be transformation from just only tolerance to respect and acceptance. His childhood encounters truly made him a legend beyond religious horizons.

Growing menace of rape in India

Ravi S Gupta
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Growing menace of rape in India

“While a murder destroys the physical frame of the victim, a rapist degrades and defiles the soul of a helpless female.” – Justice Arjit Pasayat

Sexual harassment and rape are two sides of the same coin. Both showcase the power of men to dominate that of women. Both have one victim- women. Both are barbaric in nature; but many people extenuate sexual harassment to rape, just because the victims are not physically harmed. Whereas in rape- the victim is ravished like an animal for the fulfillment of desire and lust of another man. Both have the same object- to undermine the integrity of the victim, physically as well as mentally.

It is troubling enough that such a small proportion of reported rapes make it to court, worse still that so few victims come forward in the first place. But most disturbing of all is the reason why so many people keep their suffering to themselves: because they do not think they will be believed. That rape is still a dirty secret, hedged about with so much blame and shame that victims feel they cannot come forward, is testament to how far we still have to go.

There are, of course, great legal difficulties in rape trials. Sexual assault is one of the few crimes where proof lies not in the physical facts of the matter, but in the subjective intentions of those involved. One person’s word against another’s, with no corroborating witnesses, is highly problematic for a legal system predicated on the concepts of innocent until proven guilty and proof beyond reasonable doubt.

Some facts related to rape

Rape is the fourth most common crime against women in India. According to the 2019 annual report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) an alarming increase in registered crimes against women. On an average, around 1,000 crimes were registered everyday over 3.5 lakh in a year. On an average, 93 women were victims of rape every day. On-third of them were minors. Around 87,924 women registered cases of sexual harassment, an average of 241 a day. Every day, on an average, 28 women were burnt to death in cases registered as ‘dowry death’. On the other hand, rapes by juveniles remained high in India with 3 minors being arrested for rape, assault and attempted violence on women and girls each day.

The figures, shocking as they are, reflect only a small percentage of crimes committed against women. As is known, most cases go unreported. For example, the National Family Health Survey- 4 revealed that every third married woman had experienced physical and/or sexual violence but only 1.5% had sought help from the police. Accurate data collection is very important to inform policy initiatives.

Reasons behind sexual violence problem

  • Few female police: Studies show that women are more likely to report sex crimes if female police officers are available. India has historically had a much lower percentage of female police officers than other Asian countries. In New Delhi, just 11.65 percent of police officers are women (According to Union Minister of State for Home Reddy-2019), and they are frequently given inconsequential posts that don’t involve patrol duty. Of the 161 district police stations in Delhi, only one has a female station house officer. When women do report rape charges to male police, they are frequently demeaned.
  • Not enough police in general: There aren’t enough police dedicated to protecting ordinary citizens, rather than elites, and the officers that are available often lack basic evidence-gathering and investigative training and equipment: Delhi, for example, is home to one of the largest metropolitan police forces in the world with some 84,000 officers. But only one-third are involved in any kind of actual “policing” at any given time, while the rest provide protection services to various politicians, senior bureaucrats, diplomats and other elites. There is one officer for every 200 citizens and about 20 officers for every VIP. Many of those who do perform police duties can be found shaking down motorists, participating in protection rackets and simply looking the other way as crimes take place.
  • Blaming provocative clothing: There’s a tendency to assume the victims of sexual violence somehow brought it on themselves. According to a survey, 68 percent of the people believe that provocative clothing is an invitation to rape. In 2012 after Nirbhaya gang rape a legislator in Rajasthan suggested banning skirts as a uniform for girls in private schools, citing it as the reason for increased cases of sexual harassment.
  • Acceptance of Domestic violence: Thomson Reuters Foundation named India one of the worst countries in the world for women in 2018, in part because domestic violence there is often seen as deserved. A report by UNICEF found that 57 percent of Indian boys and 53 percent of girls between the ages of 15 and 19 think wife-beating is justified. A recent national family-health survey also reported that a sizable percentage of women blame themselves for beatings by their husbands. When a boy grows up seeing his father assault his mother, he starts to accept such a behaviour and repeats it.
  • Lack of public safety: Women generally aren’t protected outside their homes. The gang rape occurred on a bus, and even Indian authorities say that the country’s public places can be unsafe for women. Women who drink, smoke or go to pubs are widely seen in Indian society as morally loose, and village clan councils have blamed a rise in women talking on cellphones and going to the bazaar for an increase in the incidence of rape.
  • Stigmatizing the victim: When verbal harassment or groping do occur in public areas, bystanders frequently look the other way rather than intervene, both to avoid a conflict and because they — on some level — blame the victim. Male politicians contribute to the problem, making statements that make light of rape or vilify rape victims’ supporters.
  • Encouraging rape victims to compromise: Rape victims are often encouraged by village elders and clan councils to “compromise” with the family of accused and drop charges- or even to  marry the attacker. Such compromises are aimed at keeping the peace between families or clan groups. What’s more, a girl’s eventual prospects of marriage are thought to be more important than bringing a rapist to justice.
  • A sluggish court system: India’s court system is painfully slow, in part because of a shortage of judges. The country has about 15 judges for every 1 million people, while China has 159. A Delhi high court judge once estimated it would take 466 years to get through the backlog in the capital alone.
  • Low status of women: Perhaps the biggest issue, though, is women’s overall lower status in Indian society. For poor families, the need to pay a marriage dowry can make daughters a burden. India has one of the lowest female-to-male population ratio in the world because of sex-selective abortion and female infanticide. Throughout their lives, sons are fed better than their sisters, are more likely to be sent to school and have brighter career prospects. In recent days, Indian politicians have put forward slew potential remedies for India’s sexual violence problem. But it’s worth noting that it will be hard to end discrimination against women at police stations when it starts in the crib.

Way forward

To even begin an attempt to alter this, we need a robust conversation around men, which has to begin in schools, public fora and highest offices. Boys have to be taught that it’s wrong to talk disparagingly about women, feel up girls surreptitiously, make lewd remarks and leer at them. This cannot be left to parents alone.

It should be a part of the school curriculum from primary school onwards, where attitudes are shaped. For older students, gender sensitisation classes and tests should be mandatory. Violence against women is so deeply rooted in India, that this sensitisation should be prioritised as much as basic reading and writing skills. Girls must be encouraged to be strong, vocal and intolerant of transgressions, however small.

Workplaces must crack down on men who make sexualised jokes, even of the ‘water cooler’ kind. We should stop taking sexually offensive banter lightly, because it leads to a desensitisation, which starts casually and eventually normalises sexual violence.

Most importantly, public office bearers and role models need to stop blaming women for their choice of dress or work hours, because that does nothing to make India safer for women.

Instead, it emboldens male vulturine behaviour and robs women of their potential, by forcing them to cut short their work or leisure activities.

In the meantime, the most immediate solution is to set up a special law enforcement arm that deals with sexual offences. India’s police force, heavily overworked, mostly desensitised and routinely pulled in different directions, can no longer be counted on to devote the time and dedication needed to deal with this deep and wide social issue.

To conclude, it may be asserted that no reform can be successful, unless it is accepted by the people at large. The societal attitude towards rape and its victims must change. To achieve this goal, social workers and /or organizations must make sincere, intensive efforts and organize educative programs, mass awareness camps, and advertisements to change the societal values.

However, we must remember that it is not the sole task of one sector of the society, but of every individual, to cooperate with the criminal justice system, to protest against this inhumanity called rape. Rape is an expression of domination, power and aggression; a serious violation of the dignity and freedom of a person. Hence, each one of us must bear the moral responsibility of raising our voices against the occurrence of these vulgar incidents and support their ill-fated victims in all possible ways, so as to establish a society where womanhood will be respected, with equal concern and sensitivity.

Aha! Secularism

prashantbihari
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We believed in secularism like no one else did. In the melody of “Gagnga Jamuni Tehzeeb”, we allowed the immersion of our religious disciplines and practices fearing an emotional backlash which these practices may create for our brethren in minority community. We have been so deeply secular, sensitive and frightened at the same time out of our brethren in minority that most of the time, in the remote of my village we had to re-course and redesign the religious processions and ritual according to their comfort and convenience. Though, we realized much later that it was us who walked into the circuitous road of secularism and sensitivity whereas they bypassed this and continued to follow rather a linear path of radicalism and insinuating hate towards us without having iota disdain and hint of remorse on their head. Not only them, but they have been ably supported in their insidious agenda through a well-planned education system, amplified by a targeted storytelling through Bollywood films and have been complemented through sustained rhetoric and propaganda towards their objectives.

Over the period armed with these facilitations, we have been made to realize that those adhering to the discipline of ever evolving and widely accommodating Sanatan Dharma are regressive whereas all those practicing a divisive and carnage supporting religion are illuminated. Through sustained efforts, our religion and its follower which essentially believed into free thinking and liberal practices have been reduced to mockery and derision. A religion which attaches divinity, significance and purpose in all possible variations on the earth and even in extra celestial bodies ,in living and non-living has been painted as intolerant and anti-reformist. A few chinks which unfortunately have developed over the years within Sanatan way of life obviously due to vintage and liberty within it has been orchestrated as if it is the core of our philosophy and practices. But what is overwhelming is the tricks and deceits against us, it is so subtle that an oppressed majority have been used as aggressor as and when we tried to bring a hint of correction for us.

Though history stands witness to the mayhem and catastrophe which invaders brought along with them. They plundered, demolished, burnt and desecrated thousands of places of worship and apostle of knowledge and center of excellence but secularity is so embedded and fragile within us that let alone asking for correction, we cannot talk about it. The stories of pervert and extremist Muslim invaders who could brought shame to minimum definition of humanity in any era are being narrated to us in such a guise that we delightfully pay them to watch it.

Even those shrines are most visited and revered which essentially and purposefully were carved out of radical Islam to lure the confused Santana mind. How else do you justify Sanatana followers thronging shrines whose Peer/masters had invited the rulers to order the massacre of KAAFIRS then? All these and much more, within and beyond my knowledge have been sugar coated and floated around us, not because they want you to be in the harmonies company with a compellingly radical minority but they are doing it for buying time till they attain a parity in number. But worst for us and best for them is the way some of us deal with the challenge.  

Till It knocks the comfort off for some of us, we would flatly refuse entertaining the criticality which is inevitable. Scuffle, Battle and ultimately a war is reality which is weaving already, it is just that how later or sooner you may find it reaching up to your door. Their strategy is to catch you in slumber, they want you to hallucinate, their objective is to keep you sleeping and unaware but the wisdom is how soon you realize the impending and prepare yourself at least to counter it if not being able to avert it in one go. At least, to give yourself another chance you need to survive the battle of the day which is being waged. If you look around, they are ideologically synchronized with their nexus, they have means, they have medium and have access to almost everything.

I have found people resenting me for being hateful towards a community, a few derided me for being bit too extrapolative, even those of us who believe into the veracity are pressing me for down for being alarmist, but none out of those have ever been able liberate themselves with a assuring way out.

When Rahul Ji, Modi Ji and Lalu Ji met at a roadside dhaba!

Anant Chetan
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When Rahul Ji, Modi Ji and Lalu Ji met at a roadside dhaba!

[Disclaimer: This post is work of fiction. Other than a few facts mentioned in Bold, nothing is real, I literally mean nothing. The following event/meeting/conversation never happened. It is for fun and entertainment, please don’t be a spoil sport. If you like it please do share it. Thank you!]

One fine evening just before the commencement of the election campaign, Rahul Ji, Modi Ji and Lalu Ji ended up taking a halt at the same roadside dhaba in Bihar. All three took a cursory glance at each other, looked around trying to figure out if there were any cameras around. After a slight hesitation all three decided to have dinner together. They approached each other, greeted and chose a table secluded from the rest; towards the very end.

The menu was already on the table, Lalu Ji looked at the card and broke the ice “Lets see what’s in the Menu” and asked, “Have you eaten in a roadside dhaba before, Rahul Ji?” “Of course I have!”, replied Rahul Ji taking no time.

In the mean time waiter arrives, “what should I bring for you sir?” Modi Ji who was sitting on the side closer to the waiter, was to reply first. Lalu Ji pushes the menu towards Modi Ji. Without looking at the menu Modi Ji says – A masala chai for me, if possible with ginger and Tulsi leaves. I like it that way.

“Okay sir, that won’t be a problem.

For you sir?”, waiter asks while looking at Rahul Ji. Modi ji pushed the menu card towards him. In the exact similar fashion Rahul Ji without looking at the Menu, ordered “Sambuca, white, with coffee beans” and after a few seconds pause added “get it with flame”.

Waiter was stuck at “Sam– what?” Lalu Ji came to his rescue looked at Rahul Ji “This is a dhaba in Bihar and not a Cafe in Italy,” shifting his glance to the waiter without blinking said “get a desi tharra for him and a hukka for me”.

“Sure sir, we have ‘tharra‘ but no hukka“, replies waiter.

Lalu Ji with his swollen nostrils- do you have a family? Waiter’s face turned pale, and in no time he replied “Sorry sir, I will arrange a hukka for you”.

Good!

Rahul Ji seemed amazed at this, asked Lalu Ji “What does his family has to do with Hukka?” To this Lalu Ji smiled and said “I was once the ring master of the jungle raj that I ran here for more than a decade; from 1990 to 2005 to be precise. The rules were different, kidnappings and extortions were daily chores, everyone knows it. And so does the waiter. He will get a hukka for me, does not matter from where and how. Wait and watch!”

“Oh! that’s interesting. Is that why you are in the jail?” Rahul Ji trying to crack a joke on him, after all it is/was unusual for a popular politician to be a convict, not just accused or under trial but a proper convicted felon serving a 27-year sentence.

No, for fodder scam! Modi Ji replied. Adding on, “he indeed made more sequels to the fodder scam than George R. R. Martin made sequels for his novel “a song of ice and fire.”” There is Fodder Scam Case I, what’s the amount I am forgetting… The waiter arrived with Masala tea and desi tharra, interrupted the ongoing conversation but completed the sentence (₹ 4.50 billion ($111.85 million, Chaibasa Treasury) then Fodder Scam Case II (INR8.927 million, Deoghar District Treasury), followed by Fodder Scam Case III (INR356.2 million, Chaibasa Treasury) and then Fodder Scam Case IV (Rs 3.13 crore, Dumka District Treasury) and then Fodder Scam Case V (INR1.84 billion, Doranda Treasury).

He placed the tea in front of Modi Ji and desi in front of Rahul Ji, Lalu Ji looked at him with anger “Where is the Hukka, Budbak?”

Sorry sir, it is taking a bit longer than we expected, we found one and are preparing it for you, it will be here in less than a few minutes.

It better be!

The waiter turned around and started to leave. Modi Ji stopped him, Wait!! that’s not the complete list, tell the complete list. The waiter looked at Lalu Ji with fear. Lalu Ji gave a disgusted look to Modi Ji and then looked the other side. It was a cue for the waiter to recite the list. He began, then there was 1998 disproportionate assets case, 2005 Indian Railway tender scam, 2017 Delight Properties case, 2017 AB Exports cases, 2017 Patna zoo soil scam.

That’s enough for now said Modi Ji, go and get hukka for him. He needs it now.

The waiter left, Modi Ji had a grin on his face. Rahul Ji was busy listening to the waiter and sipping his desi. He poked Lalu ji “You don’t have the finesse to orchestrate a scam. Have you ever seen UPA’s scams? You have to learn a lot, Lalu Ji. Sibal uncle successfully convinced every one that there was no loss to the nation even when the rules were misused and abused, the famous zero loss theory, BJP tried its best but couldn’t do anything, every one knows there were scams, but no body can do shit about it, no body can prove anything”. Modi Ji’s smile vanished and couldn’t do anything more than “a kadi ninda” just stare at Rahul Ji’s arrogant face with anger. And Lalu Ji raised both his arms and uttered “Hail Mogambo”.

Lalu Ji while breaking the awkward silence once again said, “But I don’t have any problems in the jail, its quite comfortable there, I get what I want, when I want. More over I have been to jail more than enough times in the past, it isn’t a big deal for me anymore”. Do you know when was the first time I was sent to jail, Rahul Ji? Even before Rahul Ji could say anything, Lalu ji continued “Your Dadi sent me to jail in the 70s, infact to keep reminding my people of the evils of your Dadi I named my eldest daughter Misa, for Management of Indira Sanjay Act, and now this budbak Tejashvi forgot everything and is giving your party 70 seats, your party doesn’t even deserve seven”

Come on Lalu ji, we are partners now, past is past. He (pointing towards Modi Ji) is the villain now, I am on your side. But Dadi and Tau had an act named after them, that’s amazing. But is it listed in the list of all the laws and acts? I never saw it as is.

The waiter interrupted, arrived with hukka, kept it next to Lalu ji, and stuttered, as if was thinking if he should speak or not, but spoke anyhow. ahm.. it was MISA (Maintenance of Internal Security Act), this act was massively used to crush the political opposition. Apart from Lalu ji, many other noticeable personalities like Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Chandra Shekhar, Devi Lal, George Fernandes, M Karunanidhi, Lal Krishn Advani etc. were detained using this act. Also, Ram Vilas Paswan who recently passed away was detained for the entire duration of emergency using the very same act.

What would you like to eat sir?

Again, without looking at the Menu card, Modi Ji said “A Sattu Parantha for me”, as soon as he said this, Rahul Ji got furious and said “This is not fair Modi ji, it is below the belt, you cannot order a pappu parantha”. There is no pappu-parantha. Lalu Ji couldn’t control his giggle and said “its sa -sattu and not pa–pappu”. After correcting Rahul Ji, he placed his own order “Get me a plate of Litti Chokha“. Okay sir, replied the waiter. And you Rahul Ji? Rahul Ji did not want to make the same mistake that he did while ordering drinks, so he repeated what Lalu Ji ordered, Mitti Chokha for me to. The waiter smiled, but said nothing and wrote Litti Chokha in his diary. It was a little too windy, hearing was a bit difficult. And Rahul Ji had little to no knowledge of local cuisines. Honest mistake with the names!

Rahul Ji coming back at Modi Ji after the sattu-pappu screw up. How is the tea? Did they make it better then you? Tell me honestly did you ever sell tea or was it just another jumla?

Hahahaha, everybody burst in laughter. Modi Ji kept mum.

Continuing, Rahul Ji looked at Lalu Ji, “If you think we don’t even deserve 7 seats, who is going to win this time?”

Of course we are!! Laluji replied, taking a break from his gud gud .. hukka. MY alliance has never betrayed me.

“Its our alliance now, not your alone” Rahul Ji interrupted.

He meant MY – Muslim-Yadav Alliance; Modi Ji corrected Rahul Ji.

Oh! exclaimed Rahul Ji and winked Modi Ji. You always do caste politics.

Lalu Ji continued, “to be honest, it would be a khichdi sarkar (coalition government) and of course my son would be the chief minister. I know Bihar inside out, no one knows it better then me. I have already setup the games of rules in the name of social justice. Social Justice in simple terms means Yadav-ization. As an icing on cake, Shiv Sena, NCP, AAP, AIMIM, BSP etc. etc. would also do my bidding. Shiv Sena is contesting on 30 seats, NCP on 150, they will win zero or may be one seat, but they will take away crucial BJP/JD(u) votes. And so will other parties. Bihar politics is all about castes; Kurmis, Koreas, Yadavs, Backwards, Other Backwards, Extremely Backwards, Dalits, Mahadalits blah blah and blah blah. And people like it, every four and a half years, we pick up and highlight cases against Dalits or Muslims and win the election. Last time it was beef, remember Akhlaq Lynching case (UP) in September 2015 and Bihar elections in October-November 2015. This time it is Hatharas (UP), dalit gang rape and murder case in September 2020 and the elections in October-November 2020. Do you think its just a coincidence?”

Wow! that’s one good political system you established in Bihar, Lalu Ji.

No, No don’t give me all the credit. The seeds were sown by your own party. For example the Freight Equalization Policy. It never allowed the industries to come to Bihar and created a huge vacuum in the state, where nasty stuff took precedence by default. What happens when you leave a fertile land untilled for a year? Unwanted weeds grow up!!

As soon as Lalu Ji mentioned Fright, Rahul Ji leaned back a little, put his hand in his right pocket and took a coin out. He put the coin on the table. Lalu Ji asked what’s that for? He replied, we have a rule at home, when any one says the F-word, every one has to put a coin in the jar.

Oh Rahul Ji, that rule applies to one specific F-word not every other word starting with “F”.

Seriously? I have been scammed it seems. Recently my entire month’s pocket money went away.

How? asked Lalu Ji.

Every body around me was speaking F-words day in and day out and I had to empty my pockets.

What were they saying? Asked Lalu Ji.

Farm bills!

An epic face palm moment. The waiter turns up with the food, sees Modi Ji and Lalu Ji with their hands pressed against their foreheads, asked “is everything okay sir?”

Yeah, everything is fine. He kept Sattu Parantha in front of Modi Ji and Litti Chokha in front of the other two.

Rahul Ji looked at Lalu Ji and asked what was that policy again Freight… The waiter completed the sentence again Freight Equalization Policy. And continued “This meant a factory could be set up anywhere in India and the transportation of minerals would be subsidized by the central government. The policy was introduced in 1952, and remained in force until 1993. The policy hurt the economic prospects of the mineral-rich states like Bihar, WB and Jharkhand”.

So, if this policy was hurdle in Bihar’s development, why didn’t Bihar excel after 1993, when the policy was abrogated? To this Rahul Ji’s question, the waiter said “After removal of the subsidies in 1993, the increased transport cost was not a motivation to any of the big factories to move to Bihar, moving to Bihar would be a much much bigger cost at that time, plus the mafia was a big problem now. The government did not do anything for Bihar; natural resources along with the Biharis moved out, but nothing meaningful entered Bihar making it a caste-ism and crime capital of the country. The kids knew only one thing – UPSC/government jobs, Bihar alone produces more than 25% of the IAS/IPS. The government could have at least tried to make Bihar an educational hub especially when it had institutions like Nalanda, but the state ended up being called a BIMARU and Biharis a BIMARi, forced to roam and live as outsiders in other states.“

Rahul Ji got angry listening to this, “Who the f-fright do you think you are? Do you know what I can do, I can frighting bring an earthquake, a cyclone, throw China away and that too in just 15 minutes, ask these guys. Don’t angry me.”

Seeing Rahul Ji all worked up, Lalu Ji pitched in “Calm down Rahul Ji, he probably is just another UPSC aspirant.” Ae Budbak, go away, shhhh..

The waiter went away keeping his head down.

Cheer up Rahul Ji, see Anarkali of Arrah, has arrived, she is going to present a song for entertainment.

Rahul Ji replied, no, she is a bad omen, ask her to leave. Whoever she supports, loses the election. To this Modi Ji asked “Rahul Ji, where is your friend from JNU?” Rahul Ji didn’t say much, “He was just a waste of money like all other stooges we invested in”. Modi Ji, I am telling you, you have broken the unwritten rule. “A ruling party never burns opposition parties’ cash”. Ever since, you have come in power, every year you do the exact same thing, first you did demonetization, this year you cancelled MPLADs and now you cancelled all the Mandi Fees and taxes. After Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar, Bihar became an agrarian state. The middlemen and agents aren’t going to vote for you. Also important people like Captain uncle and Pawar uncle are very upset with you. We are running so short on cash to that my people have started cutting on my travel funds.

This has to stop. You are destroying the economy Mr. Modi. You are breaking everything we have built so far. It was not easy to build the system the way it is. My family has made sacrifices for this system.

I am done with you, I can’t sit with you anymore. I will not stay here any longer.

Saying this, Rahul Ji got up and left, Lalu Ji followed hime. The dhabawala looks at Modi Ji.

Bill?

Of course! The one who stays last pays everyone’s bill.

Thanks for Reading!!!

Also read:

Revisit Film “Rang De Basanti”

ninshr
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Revisit Film “Rang De Basanti”

Talking of Bollywood film Rang De Basanti starring Amir Khan, Kunal Kapoor, Sharman Joshi, R. Madhavan, Soha Ali Khan, Siddharth, Alice Patten and Atul Kulkarni. This movie came in 2006 and is considered as one of the finest films Bollywood has ever produced. But like every Bollywood film, this film has a plethora of Hinduphobic propaganda to influence Indian young minds.

The movie begins with a scene where a British journalist named Sue McKinley reads an old diary of her grandfather who was an officer under British Raj and was deputed in the same prison where Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev were hanged till death. Now, Mr. McKinley’s old diary dictates that “I was so astonished by these young men (talking of Chandra Shekhar Azad, Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev, Ashfaqullah Khan and other freedom fighters) fighting for their motherland and they did not have a piece of fear in their eyes”. After reading the diary of her grandfather, Sue McKinley thinks of doing a cover story on Indian freedom fighters. So, she comes to India for making a short film on all these brave young men who fought against British. In India, she first meets her friends Sonia (played by Soha Ali Khan).

Now Sonia and Sue go to meet Sonia’s friends DJ, Karan, Aslam, Sukhi which are played by Amir Khan, Siddharth, Kunal Kapoor and Sharman Joshi respectively. Sonia’s friends are partying with beer in their hands and a Bonn fire around when Sue and Sonia reach the place to meet them. when everyone is enjoying the evening and potraying with friends, a man named Laxman Pandey which is played by Atul Kulkarni comes at the place with his goons which are shown wearing a saffron gamchha around their necks and all these saffron guys start misbehaving with the people who are doing nothing but enjoying the good time with their friends. Laxman Pandey says “AAj se ye naach gana band, Poori Bhaartiya Sanskriti ka satyanaash karke rakh diya hai tum logo ne” which in English translates as “from today onwards there wil be no dance and booze, you guys have destroyed the whole Indian culture”.

This scene subconciously makes us believe that the guys who wear safron like people from Bajrang Dal or any other Hindu organization are goons, derogatory and they intimidate people for nothing. But the reality is that Bajrang Dal or any other Hindu organization never say that parttying with friends is wrong, they just want to act against Love Jihad and other like mindsets which are dangerous for Hindu women’s future. Now when Laxman Pandey tells everyone to vacate the place or face the consequences, Aslam (played by Kunal Kapoor) comes forward and ask Pandey to leave soon. On this, Pandey furiously says :Oye! Tu chup kar, Pakistani” translates in English as “You! keep your mouth shut, Pakistani”. This calling an Indian Muslim a Pakistani by a saffron guy makes us believe that all these Hindu people hate Muslims so much that they do not even consider them as Indians.

On the other hand the reality is that Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam was made the President of India by BJP itself which was considered as a Hindu extremist political organization by Muslims. Now the movie continues and a scene comes where these friends go to to party and night out because their friend Ajay Rathore has come on a leave since he works as a fighter jet pilot in the Indian Air Force. They party all night and in the early morning after the party they go to drop Aslam to his house. when Sukhi and Karan reach Aslam’s house and ring the doorbell, Aslam’s father (played by Om Puri) comes out and recieves him. Now, Aslam’s father says “Tumko yahi log milte hain dosti karne ke liye, gairmazhabi” translates in English as “do you only find these no Islamic friends” Aslam replies “Ismein mazhab dharm ki baat kaha se aa gayi Abba” translates in English as “where did a matter of religion come from in it”.

After this Aslam’s elder brother say “Mujhe dekha hain tumne kabhi kisi Hindu se dosti karte hue? Ye desh hum musalmano ko na kabhi apna samjha hai aur na samjhega” translates in English as “Have you ever seen me befriending a Hindu? This country has never considered us Muslims as its own people and neither it will”. Aslam replies “Main aapke jitna zahar ghol ke nahin jee sakta apne mann mein, is ghar mein mera dum ghut ta hai” translates in English as “I can not live with the toxicity that you have brother, I feel choked in this house”. This scene smartly makes a huge impact on our minds. Thi scene makes us think that Muslims in India are being called Pakistani no matter how much love they shower for India. A Muslim young man Aslam even fights with his own family members because of his non Muslim friends despite being called a Pakistani by Hindu saffron guy. It makes us believe that Muslims in India are not being treated with respect that they deserve and we start feeling apologetic about it somewhere in our subconcious mind.

I, too am Indian.

joyjeetdas
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I, too am Indian.

I, too am Indian.
That, No one can deny.

I am the one with the infinite skin tones.
I, too am the one with every gender you can define.
I, too am the one whom you see discriminated by the thousands of vindications,
Which No-one can rectify.

I, too sing the national song,
which everyone abides.
I, too am the one for whom you breaking laws is a deed.

I am the one for whom this motherland is paradise.
I am the one who prays in front of Allah and Shankara,

I am the whom you see fighting for a piece of land.
I am the one whom you see as so resilient with opinions.
I, too am the one whom you see getting knowledge from WhatsApp at all.

I am the one whom you see killing thousands without any hesitance.
I, too am the one whom you see running in riots with endless artefacts.
I am the one whom you see as daring,

I, too am the one whom you see saving the lives without carrying.
I, too am the one whom you see asking for bribe and brides.
I, too am the one who stands when nation outcries.
I, too am the one whom you can see playing in the streets.

I, too am the one who shares the blood when it needs.
I, too am the one who swears in the name of deities.
I, too am thee who share grief with natives.
I, too am the whom you see begging but laugh,

I, too am the whom you see bleeding in the streets but you move fast.
I, too am the whom you see raping a god’s child.
I, too am the whom you see bombing cities and our paradise.
I, too am the whom you see searching food in the trash but eat well,

I, too am the whom you see shouting for equality, justice and good conscience.
I, too am the one whom you see instigating the havoc in the name of freedom and disguise.
And, I am growing strong.

Tomorrow,

I’ll be at the table, from where I will rule this paradise.
When that time comes.

Nobody’ll dare say to me,
Where? How? What? and Why?

Then.

Besides,

They’ll see how beautiful I have become as a Disguise.
And be ashamed, I, too, am India, which no one can rectify.

By Joyjeet Kumar Das.

Why Indian democracy is dying

nabhanyu
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Why Indian democracy is dying

We have seen many nasty dumb fights between the so called government supporters and government opposers. Many of us might have been labelled as one of the above due to some of our actions or speech, even though we might not belong to it. In this article we’ll see how we are destroying our democracy by this division. After reading the article’s topic, you might think that I’m a left winger. Well, all the problem starts there! By separating/identifying a person based on his act or thought [i.e. left / right]. First let’s see what’s a democracy. A democracy might be easily explained as a government “of the people, by the people and for the people”. India being a democratic country, the leaders are chosen by its people. So, if India is a democratic country, why am I saying that it’s a dying democracy. Let’s find out:

India has the largest democracy in the world but the problem nowadays is that the people of India have been divided into two parts namely the left wing and right wing. In my opinion this separation of people is a very stupid concept, which is not applicable to a diverse country like India. This terrible attempt at copying the west is literally destroying us. In a democracy the people are given a free choice that, they can choose their leader with full freedom. The person who has the majority support is declared the leader. Then all the people should accept that person as their leader, even if some people doesn’t like them personally.

But these people want only their party to rule, even if they lost by giving silly excuses like EVM rigging. If people don’t accept the person as their leader even after the elections are over, is that called democracy? People should stop thinking that their ideology/opinion is more important than the majority of the nation’s opinion. Our democracy has stooped to such a level that the so called leftists start opposing each and every act that the elected government do. They don’t care even if it is good for the nation, they manipulate the media to spread their personal propagandas and create an unrest in the whole nation.

These people are openly wishing for the death of their prime minister and home minister! Former Madhya Pradesh MLA openly calls for our prime minister’s assasination! Is this called democracy? And yet, they call others fascists. These people start or incite a riot everytime the government passes some acts, creating anti national feelings within many. These anti national (Breaking India forces as termed by the respected Rajiv malhotra ji ) force’s presence can be felt now like never before. Their selective outrage makes things worse, like the recent happenings at Hathras. Even though forensics have stated that it is not a rape, the so called left wingers are outraging for it. Outraging for that horrific murder is not wrong, what is wrong is to say ‘rapists don’t have religion but always have a caste’ [especially if the rapist is an upper caste Hindu], what is wrong is that they are completely ignoring the other rape cases like the one that happened at Balrampur and the hundreds of women raped in Rajastan, their selective outrage for the minority appeasement is pathetic.

Only because of Nehrus and Gandhis selective outrage and minority appeasement has resulted in the deaths of millions across the country. We must not let history repeat again! Celebrities like Farhan Akhtar was inciting protests against CAA (Citizenship Ammendment Act) without even knowing what CAA is! Rahul Gandhi and priyanka Gandhi went to visit the Hathras case victim’s family to console them but later, a video emerged where we can see them laughing while going there. He is also being suspected of preparing to incite riots in UP.

Journalists are shamelessly referring to the brutal killing in Hathras as a god given oppurtunity for the congress in UP. But if we outrage against these people, the so called leftists defend them for the sake of their ideology! They won’t even acknowledge that they did something wrong. Once you are identified to a ideology, the problem is that, you HAVE to support it and you HAVE to defend it’s faults. We live in an age, where if a person does or says anything related to a party or ideology, people quickly place them in the LR box [left/right]. After placing you in the box, if your so called ideology matches their concrete ideology box, they will hear you out, sympathize with you, support you, defend you but if your ideology doesn’t match theirs, they won’t hear you, they’ll attack you for all stupid reasons, they’ll harass you, abuse you and blame you for everything. This is the real pathetic state of our country!

We can’t do ANYTHING without being placed in a party’s ideology. When a person belongs to a certain political ideology, this literally means that they will appreciate everything their party does and abuse everything that the opposition party does. In that sense, OUR DEMOCRACY IS DEAD because all the people are fixed about who they want to vote. They are not even ready to hear others out, this feudalistic way is happening right from the schools where many teachers are ingraining their ideology in their student’s minds and behave indifferently towards those students who have different ideologies. I thought this was happening only in my school but later realized that this was the situation all over the country. This is cruel for a student to endure and this is happening all over the nation.

This concrete concept of ideologies definitely just doesn’t work. When people have already fixed who they want to vote forever, where’s the Democracy in that? People should look at the parties with an open mind and not a FIXED MIND. The democratic election method is also called the secret ballot but where’s the secrecy in the ballot, if you are already fixed to a party. It is the policy of the law to protect the right of voters to the secrecy of the ballot but here we are parading who we are going to vote. Wouldn’t you call that a dead democracy, well that’s what we are creating in India. “A dead democracy where all the people already fixed their leaders and won’t accept others“. People should stop sticking to some party and stop voting on the basis of caste, creed, religion, etc. We, as a responsible citizen of India, should act as a free individual, think as a free individual without being bound to a specific ideology. We must not identify ourselves with any party and we must not identify others with any party! Only then democracy will stay alive!

This is the unfortunate reality that is happening in front of our eyes. So many open minded people are stuck in this trap because of others. We as a responsible society must break free from these petty left, right ideologies and view things with a open mind. I have personally suffered a lot due to people fixing me to a certain ideology and so have countless people in this country. This feudalistic way of thinking must go, if we want India to thrive fast. Those parents and students who are reading this article, I plead with them to not fix ideologies on anyone or yourself and see, analyze everything with a free mind. Don’t break India into two with this stupid idea of right and left.

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