A Nation Of Corrupt Mindset ?

Last Sunday I watched the first episode of Satyamev Jayate. It was about Rapes in India. It was disturbing. As Aamir Khan was discussing about the the issues, causes, mindset,  it reminded me of one incident .

20 years ago , back in 1994, when I was 11-12 years old child , I was watching a movie Krantiveer in a local Cinema Hall in the small town of Mau with my brother and cousin. It was a National Award winning movie. During the movie, came a scene when the lead actress was being raped. That got instant attention of 5-6 middle aged men sitting behind us. They giggled as the actress screamed on the screen and used lewd words to describe the "event" that was happening before them . It seemed they were enjoying the crime on the screen. For them it wasn't a heinous act , it was an act of pleasure.


The number of those men in that hall might have been small but that was India then. That was the mindset. Sadly that mindset hasn't changed much !!

Evidence of such mindset where woman is seen as an object of pleasure is abundant in our history. You wont have to dig deep into history book to find that. If you look into 80s & 90s, you will find evidence of that mindset in our movies. If the hero of the movie had a sister, you knew that at some point in the movie she will get raped. A rape scene was a must in most of movies. Why ? Film producers claimed that such scenes helped ticket sales. That says something about the mindset of men in the society. The same society churns out Policemen, Lawyers, Doctors and other guardians who are meant to protect women and help them. Ironic !! Isn't it ?


Not all the men who enjoyed those scenes went on to become criminals but with such a mindset its hard to believe that they wouldn't have committed the crime if they got the chance.  Shall we be ashamed that we are part of that society or shall we be glad that we do know any such person and continue to live in a fear that we may come across one ?

Today we might have reached Moon. Trying to take on Mars. We might have claimed world with our Computer skills but "that small number" is not content with just watching the scene on the screen. They are executing it fearlessly as they believe that they can get away with it. And they do, courtesy to the same society !!


Over the last 2 years much has been said about corruption, both moral as well as financial. Some people seem to have realized the gravity of the situation and want to bring a change to that mindset. They are spreading awareness and educating people. This is a good signs. Gives a hope that this mindset can changes. But this is 5000 years old . Keep that in mind !!

Photography : Nexus 5

Jersey City Seen Through Nexus 5.

Sunset At Exchange Place

(One of the Beautiful Places to Visit In Jersey City)

Colgate Clock, Downtown Jersey City

(One of The Landmark Of Jersey City. Can you Spot the Statue Of Liberty in the Background?)

Tennis Court, Jersey City 

Manhattan Ave, Jersey City

Pershing Field, Jersey City

Satyamev Jayate !!

"Sirf hungama khada karna mera maksad nahin, meri koshish hai ki yeh soorat badalni chahiye" !!

Nation watched a 17 year old Girl being Molested in public by 20 men and next Sunday A Man geared up for another attempt to "educate" a 5000 years old "Civilization" on social issues !!!

Another irony is that in the land of "Bharat Mata", most of time its the woman who has been victim of these social issues in fom Rape, Molestation, Dowry, Honor Killing, Female Foeticides, Domestic Violence, Sexual Harassment and the list goes on. Just imagine how would they have fared in this country if they wouldn't have been worshiped in form of various Goddesses !!

Heard that the show is not getting as much TRPs as the other 'Star' shows. But that's what was expected of Indian Audience who on any day would prefer "Rowdy Rathore" over "Shanghai".

Sometimes, one may feel that the show is biased, that at times its loaded with exaggerated emotions and that camera often zooms over tear filled eyes of host and female audience. But overall I salute Aamir Khan for doing something that most of celebrities couldn't do in 60 years of Independence. Celebrities can do more than donating money in some high profile Charity Organization owned by some other Celebrity. Just imagine how successful Polio Campaign would have been without Amitabh Bachchan.

I have been reading the 'comment' section of news columns related to the show. Not everyone is impressed. People have their own opinions. With easy access to Internet and a fancy Laptop everyone can afford and flaunt their opinion these days. And in their opinions the show is all about manipulating facts for TRPs and personal hidden agendas. I don't blame them , after all these are the people whom he is trying to educate.

There have not been any specific criticism regarding any episode. But one episode related to "Doctors" caught attention of FB Citizens. The same people who appreciated the the show for bringing the "Social' issues in our Drawing room were offended when the show brought up "Malpractices Among Medical Professionals". There were agitations on FB. Why ? Somehow my Medicos Friends believed that Girl Child abortion is carried out by people from Mars. And that Medical Professionals get themselves married in Arya Samaj Mandir without any Dowry. And that Doctors come into this profession for Social Work unlike Engineers who are here for money !!

Some of the issues are deep rooted. As old as 5000 years of civilization. Some of them are practiced by people I personally know. Can a 1 hour weekly show make any difference? And is it worth on part of Aamir Khan to to earn animosity from various section of society for his attempts? Here is an old inspiring war story for the "worth" of "attempt" you make.

During World War I, a soldier saw his lifelong friend fall in battle. Soldier asked his lieutenant if he might go to bring his fallen comrade back.“You can go,” said the lieutenant, “but I don’t think it will be worth it. Your friend is probably dead and you may get killed too.”

An hour later the soldier returned, fataly wounded, with his dead freind's body.“I told you it wouldn’t be worth it,” said the lieutenant. “Your friend is dead and you are mortally wounded.”

“It was worth it, sir” said the soldier.“when I got to him, he was still alive and said to me , “Jim…, I knew you’d come.”

On that note , I feel even if 0.1 % of Indian Population gets 'educated' its WORTH having such shows.

No More 20s .....

I started writing this one with a dilemma . Whats should be the Title ?  'Turning 30' or 'No more 20s' . First one reflects assurance and sense of direction. Where else the second one is nostalgic and gives a sense of  mourning of the old days.

Nostalgia comes easy to me. And I do find occasions to feel nostalgic. Brings a distant sense of pleasure and relief to me. And this occasion is something special as I turn 30 !!!

30 Years !!!

Almost half of one's life. By this time the previous generation, including my Father, was happily married with 2-3 kids. But I am still unmarried and hence kids are out of questions. Not sure what kind of feeling I should have. Happy that I have survived, excelled or managed to stay float ??  Majority of my friends would be experiencing the same feeling during this year or may be next year. The little ones would have to wait for another 2-3 years .

My 20s, like most people, started in college. College, Hostels, Teachers, Classes, Assignments, Books, Projects, Grades, Festivals, Cricket, Movies, Crushes, Many friends, some close some distant. And lots of memorable moments. Have fond memories of the birthday celebrations back in AMU Hostel and the parties at 'Centre Point' restaurants. Life moved fast. HCL, Noida, Gurgaon, New York, More Friends, more moments to cherish. 

Will it be just another day, just another year ? Honesty I don't know. Neither I do get any signs like wise men do. Not sure that how much things will change from tomorrow but one thing is sure I wont be '20 Something' ever in my life....... again.

Men never grow old. Thats what I have heard. They always have fun. Kind of a true notion. But loosing hairs and gaining weight with age doesn't help in having fun. 20s are crazy. People get naughty in 40s. Never heard what wise men said about 30s.

How good were these 30 years? What different could have I done? What have I achieved so far ? Any regrets? Questions keep pouring to your mind once you start the introspection. I wish I could have answered 'No' to the last one.

Wishing for a better tomorrow !!!

Goodbye 20s !!!

To Friends....From Archives !!

Yesterday it was Minhaj's Birthday. I was going through some archives and found this one..


I wrote this one on Saad's Birthday. 30th January 2009. It was an Orkut Testimonial for Cheeku( Minhaj ). A year later as Facebook took over the nation I deleted my Orkut Account .....but managed to save this .

Sharing this again with Friends who have known Me , Saad & Minhaj over the Years.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Well.. these days most of the people don't write testimonials ... infact.. they post testimonials.

But there are some people who write Testimonials to acknowledge someone's worth in their Life. In fact this the least they can do.

Coming to Minhaj. I can visualize the events and the times we have been together. From studying in AMU to Working in IT Industry.From Minhaj being "Cheeku" To being "Min The Rock". And these days "Min Rock Beta Version ".

Take One.

Back to Senior Secondary, AMU.We first met way back in 99. He was a chubby Boy, with strange hair Style. We were Just schoolmates. Salam Dua, thats it.. He had his own group. I had bunch of mine friends. Saad was the common friend.

Take Two.

Fast Forward to College. Jump on to Second Year. And I found him Driving me on his Enviable Enticer. Many more Eventful Rides Followed. To Sightful Amir Nisha. To charming Centre Point. To Sweet Saad's Home. Across the University. And the one I will never forget.. to Upper Court along with Saad ... for Nahaari...

(He is crazy about foods.. it reflects too). That was like "Arre kahan Arre kab !!!"

Many Birthday Parties.Many Kodak Moments. A Few Colg Fests.A few Movies (He is not movie freak like me, will go out if only gals are around) .A few Dhaba Nighout (He wasnt hostler.. So Not avilable for .. Daba Nightouts !!!). Many Jokes. Many Pranks. I still remember the fun we have while preparing the List of Names/Songs for our fellow Students in 2nd Year. And he was like "Yaar mere ko ye mat do" when I and Saad decided "Main Nikla Gaddi le ke !!!!!!" for him. Hmm ..one of our Colg secret revealed.

Take Three

Colg passed. He got Distinction , I missed. Now In the IT World.We were out together again. Noida was the place to be.Enticer replaced Scorpio.Hundreds replaced thousands. Fun was Bigger.We were the same old friends.

Take Four

Gurgaon. A year into Corporate world. More Confident. More Dreams. More Work. I got busy.He got busier. And he is like "kabhi hume bhi yaad kar liya karo...".

But he has been there whenever even I needed him.

All these years, even though he has changed his versions (or tried to...) for quite sometime, he has being the same man for me. Caring. Funny Jamalpuri.Nobody is perfect. And he not an exception. But this is not the rite place to reveal all the secrets.

Today its Saad's Birthday.A person close to both of us. I am writing this from New York. Minhaj wud be sleeping Back In Gurgaon. And Saad would be Preparing for evening party in Melbourne. Three different world. We used to be at same place. And I still remember these two bringing Cake for me In Hostel on my birthday.

Memories Remain.

We will be together again.

We will have more memorable moments.

Iran Question ??

This morning I heard about the attack on Israel Diplomats in New Delhi. Its sad newz and at the same time frustrating that that India as a nation still fails to counter these acts of violence. We have forgot the number of attacks that we have been through in the last 10 years. Attacks of any form should be condemned and thoroughly investigated.

But as I was going through the news and hopping from one article to another reading about the blasts , Indo-Iran ties and recent developments in US-Iran relation, I noticed a sequence in the occurence of events. May be I am mistaken or thinking way too much but this is what I compiled from the leading news websites.

Sequence of Events in last couple of weeks leading to Delhi Car Blast. ( Sequential Headlines from leading Newspapers)

Feb 3   : Fear of Israel War With Iran Grows Amid Heightened Nuke Concerns [ Zee News]

Feb 6   : U.S. tightens noose on Iran. More Sanctions. [ New York Times ]

Feb 6   : India says Iran ties not in contradiction with US relationship. [ The Hindu ]

Feb 8   : US senators irked by India’s Iran ties, stalled nuclear trade. [ Times Of India ]

Feb 11  : India Defends Oil Purchases From Iran. [ New York Times ]

Feb 11  : Indian trade delegation to Iran may put Indo-US ties under strain. [ Economics Times ]

 

Feb 13  : Israeli diplomat's car attacked in New Delhi. [ Times Of India ]

 

Feb 13  : Israel blames Iran of bombings in India, Georgia. [ New York Times ]

Feb 13  : Iran has denied it was behind car bomb attacks against Israel. [The Australian ]

Feb 13  : Delhi Police says Bomber knew area, evaded CCTV. [Times Of India ]

Feb 13  : Indo-Iran trade ties under pressure. US Jewish lobby wants Delhi to join embargo. [Times Of India ]

I am not sure if I am misinterpreting anything but one question still ponders me.

Why would Iran want India, one of its ‘only friend’, AGAINST it ??

It really doesn't make any sense that Iran would get hostile with a nation that has respected its Trade Relations despite western pressure.

Do we need another war ??

Give it a thought !!

An Election Propaganda.. ??

You must have seen this .. in umpteen Facebook Shared Pics & Posts with a tagline like "Please share if you are True Indian", "Please share the True Face of Gandhis","Please be aware of these Frauds" and many more tag lines with statutory warning !! I wonder if I have lost my right to be called an Indian because I never shared any of these pictures.

Something shared in good humor is appreciated but these I don't think were shared in good spirit.

You don't need an IQ of a certain Einstein to make out that these are random pics. This could be anyone of us. I may have some pics from a beach or a club which I wont be comfortable sharing in public after 10 years. Does that mean I don't fit in better scheme of things ???

Are we at such a loss of Intellect that we cannot comprehend a bunch of pictures or .....the hatred for someone is so great that it empowers our logical thinking !!

Take a look at some other images below. I didn't search these pics on Google . These were posted on Facebook walls.

What kind of messages people are trying to convey with these posts. Don't we wear different dresses for different occasions??? Don't we have casual moments with fellow workers ?? Why do I get an impression these posts are trying to malign a family for all the ridiculous reasons ?? Be it Rahul's pic with his female friend or Nehru's pic with Lady Mountbatten or Sonia Gandhi's pic from Beach ?

I understand that we are educated people. Can't we get into more logical discussions .. some meaningful ones rather than posting some insane comments on any random picture? It doesn't matter who uploads these images with ridiculous tag lines .What is baffling is that people fall for this kind of stupidity and share them !!! I would be more than happy to read some logical thoughts & opinions and go for a debates rather than have these shits thrown in my face.

We have Freedom of Speech & Expressions but also we have common sense. We may have right to criticize but these posts are unnecessary and are result of very a cheap mind void of any sensible reasoning!!! These are something straight from India TV News ...Insane !!.. No one writes about Mayawati's Govt ..how good has she been with her 'Haathi' ride !! or even against Mulayam . We dont even see pictures of Kalmadi and Raja with such taglines . ...Don't we have real issues to deal with ??

Take a look at these:

AB Vajpayee in New Delhi                                                           LK Advani at Jinnah's Mausoleum

What if someone posts these with some derogatory tag lines like  "A Brahmachari In Company Of Women" or "Wannabee PM Advani is Jinnah's Lover" .. ??

Just a thought Guys !!!

May better sense prevails !!

Sorry State Of Indian Affairs..... Beyond Movies

These days it seems … India is into lots of Chaos. Elections. Congress. BJP. IPL. Varun Gandhi. Everyone seems to fighting for a piece of India. The last one in this list is most desperate one.


I was really upset and out of seer frustration I told myself "Thanks God that I am not there in India to witness all this shit".But this is a feeling of disregard. Disregard of the fact that I was born in India. Disregard of fact that its my Country.


Seldom have I loved India beyond Cricket and Bollywood. I rarely got any other reason. Nuclear Test ,Chandrayan, 20K sensex,etc are the things that we come across once in a decade.And between those decades , too many things happen to force you think beyond those achievements. Thats why Patriotism, for me, rarely meant anything beyond Bollywood and Cricket. I feel over the Clouds when I see Indian Actors being hailed at Oscars and Golden Globes. It makes me a proud Indian when I see Sehwag demolishing bowling attacks all over the world. And every time I try to love India beyond Cricketers and Movie Stars…, someone starts pushing me back. Someday its Narendra Modi, someday it’s Advani, someday it’s Raj Thackeray and someday there are Shri Ram Sena Fanatics and now its Varun Gandhi. I know, many would argue that these are just bunch of unworthy Politicians. To this I will say it’s not about what these people do or say. It’s about India. India does nothing about these people. They do whatever they want. They say whatever they want. People and Media Debate for few days till they get something new to debate on.


End result. Nil. Void. India moves on, till someone strikes back again.


When Sri Ram Sena hit women with their Moral Values, entire India responded. Debates followed. TV Shows. Exclusive Reports followed by routine arrests and bails. But as expected India moved on. Moved on to prepare herself how to avoid Shri Ram Sena’s and Bajrang Dal’s ire on 14th Feb. Karnataka State Govt supported Sena. Congress Govt acted spineless. They just wished why doesn’t 14th Feb fall in Leap Year? Sena activists roam freely on the streets, teaching Moral Values every now and then. And here am advoting either Valentines's Day or Women Freedom. We will come to that, some other day. Till then be prepared for some Moral Lessons, courtsey SR Sena.


In 1942. Mahatma Gandhi gave a slogan. Quit India. It generated Revolution. India won Freedom, only to see Raj Thackeray giving another slogan in 2K8. Quit Hindi ,Quit Maharastra. Poor , hard working UPwalas and Biharis were aliens this time. It generated Chaos. Many got Hospitalized, Train Coaches were set afire, and one was murdered in Cold Blood by Maharashtra Police. Maharashtra Nav Nirman Sena were torchbearer for this REVOLUTION .Bunch of Activists. Goons I must say. And they are also a “Sena”. I wonder why aren’t all these Senas fighting Terrorism in Kashmir and Assam?

Again, Media was active. “Ye Desh Kiska Hai” was the new topic. Media Covered Raj Thackeray as if he was Hero of Maharastra. Raj Thackeray dared Govt to arrest him. "If Raj is arrested, entire Maharashtra will be set on fire," he said. Congress Govt preferred to be mute. Spineless. India moves on. Again.



And now Varun Gandhi. He said "If someone slaps you, what do you do? (They say) turn the other cheek ... I haven’t heard a stupider thing”. Why in the Hell he uses the “Gandhi” as his last name if he hates Mahatma Gandhi so much. Most of us have seen the rest of the video clip. I have no desire to quote what he said regarding some community. Everybody has either seen or read. But what really hurts is that he is being hailed as Hero by few people. Bal Thackeray and Muthalik are front runners. Video Clips, considered as evidence, have been declared as “Doctored”. BJP is criticizing Election Commission for acting tough. Congress got a chance to criticize BJP. Media got a new topic. India is again moving on.



And now The Icing on the cake. IPL has been moved to South Africa. India does not have enough Para Military forces to provide security for cricket matches and Elections at the same time. A nation of over 1 Billion, after 60 years of Independence and with world’s 3rd largest Army is INCAPAPLE of hosting two major events. Jai Ho.If they can provide security for Elections , why cant they provide for IPL. And I am not talking about Indian Dream of Organizing Olympics in 2016.Not even about dream to be Super Power by 2020.



I would have surprised many of my friends with this blog. Coz I have been know as someone who loves movies n cricket and doesn’t care about anything else. But I was sick at reading the pathetic headlines on indiatimes.com, hindustantimes.com. Some headlines were really disgusting to read.And as I am writing this Blog here is the latest headline from ndtv.com


Varun's 'hate speech' makes him a big craze in BJP


How to tolerate this nonsense? I dont have any answer . Not right now.


Many would disagree with what I have written.They are welcome with their comments . And offending any of my friend would be the last thing in my mind. So my apologies if I have offend anyone.



Regards

Tauqir Akhtar

Mar 25, 2009
New York

Rab ne Bana Di Jodi

Since the Release dates for this much anticipated movie were announced and since I saw the Promo for the first time . I was sure that I have to watch this before I receive any review. From any Nikhat Kazmi, Khalid Mohammad or even Taran Adarsh or any XYZ. But I had to move to New York and .... I couldn't resist myself reading their review as there were timing difference in Release over here .

Nikhat Kazmi was usual Herself. I donno why Her Ratings dont match her Reviews. Then there we have Khaild Mohammad. He is good. At least he knows what he writes. According to him this was one of the most Accomplished performance by SRK. I agree. He wasn't hamming .. he didn't Overact. Even wen he did .. he had rights to do so.. as his character demanded.. SRK rarely had this luxury in the past.

Then there was Taran Adarsh. I guess he wasnt is good mood when reviewed the movie. I even Had a chance to watch his review on TV. What he said about the movie, you at time can agree with it , if you are in mood of argument. But he was totally wrong in Declaring . Yes Declaring , is was in such a command wen he said that " business in India will totter, tremble and fumble after the initial weekend'.

How can you do that? You cant challenge a SRK-Yashraj Combibation on Boxoffice no matter wat the content of Movie is.

I always knew , whatever Contents movie had ... its gonna succeed. If SRK can carry Main Hoon Naa. He can carry anything. And he has proved more often than not.

So here I was set to watch . The Most anticipated Movie of the Year. The problem that I had was... Where? I was new to Jersey Cuty. It has been hardly 3 days I have been In here. Earlier I was in New York. And New York has that Special Charm where She allows herself to get more close n familiar to anybody without asking much. The Subways, The Maps. The People. They all Conspire to get what You want from the City. So watchinh the Movie In New York wasnt a thing that reqired ay effort. You just Go and Watch.

But I was in Jersey City. And Going to NY wasnt the rite Option with the kind of Travel Option s I had. No Subways you Know.

You know the famous Cliche. "Where there is Will There Is A Way". Cliche . But it works. And it worked for me too. A Longtime Friend Came to my Resue. Guess Who . Google. Yes, if u are travelling outside India, Google is not marely a search site. Its a part of Life and necessity.

You get answers to almost everything. All you should know what to ask for.

So here I was with the Address stating : Phoenix Theater, Columbia Park, Jersey City . And 3:30 PM show. I was excited. Excited like a Teenager falling in Love for the first time.I do that everytime I go for a SRK movie.
It wasnt very cold , like its today. Instead it was all Sun Shining making up like a perfect day. Inviting me to raise my Hopes for the Movie. The bus ride was fine. Ans within 15 mins , I was there . Not exacltly to the theatre . But to the Columbia Park. Now finding the theatre In that Park was another Fun. I could see with the help of Sign Boards, how to go there by cars. But what abt the bare footers. I had to walkinh around all over the park and then go the basement Parking to the Sign og Box Office.

Tickets were cheap. $6.5. Almost half of what it would have cost me in NY. Even though the movie was running in Screen Two, I was amazed to see the number of Screens in that multiplex. 12 to be exact. We hardy see 7-8 Screen back there in Indian Multiplexes.

Anyway.
Although I used to read alot about the overseas Business of Bollywood Films, I was surprised to see only around 40% attendence for the SRK film. An irony for the Biggest Bollywood Overseas Star I guess. I donno may be that was an Off Day for him.


Well I will continue with my experience .. wen i write next.