Life's your movie... but I can't act

Rain!

The gloomy evening seems to enhance the boredom manifold as I wait, my smartphone loosely clenched, for one text. Just one! I'm agitated. My head is flooded with a million thoughts all about the same thing. Why is there no text?

Then it finally came. "Hi"

Now my mind is blank, all the million thoughts seem to have vanished. I don't have anything to say. "Hey," I reply. "Wassup!"

Another long pause. Thoughts populate my head once again. This is getting frustrating now.

After a while though, the conversation picks up.

"How u?" He asks.

"Good, how u?" I reply. "good," he says.

The texts go on a similar one-phrase path for another ten minutes. Neither of us wants to express what we really feel. We don't have the courage; at least I don't! The truth is, I'm afraid of what would happen.

In the not so distant past when conversations were more open, I did express what I felt to him. It was like a film. The drama, the action. "Was it real?" I would ask myself. "Can life really have so much drama?" In the end I concluded, "He's being fake!" But I still could not get my mind off him. I still deeply felt he was the most wonderful person I met; I felt there could be no one better in this world. I was partly right.

He was sweet to me, but only when he needed something. He would talk to me and make me sway, but only while being grateful for the favours I did to him. He would say the kindest words anyone would want to hear, but only when it was opportune for him to do so. But he was still my world, my everything.

It did not matter at all that this relationship we shared was all a game of pretend. It did not bother me though I knew he would change colour in a flash and disappear without warning. I wanted to be at his service always. I wanted him to be happy no matter how much I suffered to achieve that end. I persisted and I must say, I killed myself persisting.

I try to avoid, because I want to. I want to get away from this play, this film, this drama; whatever you want to call it.But I'm unable to. They say some people have a grip on you. They don't want you, they also don't want to let you go. That's where I'm stuck. I'm no actor, I can't be a part of this play!

His film is beautiful. His script, perfect. But I don't see where I fit in. Regretfully, I choose to soldier on. With a heavy heart I choose to continue despite these scars on my back, which are a gift for my slavery. I choose because I'm stupid, I'm trapped. I can't get out! I need help. But more foolishly, I choose to stay because I care even though I know he doesn't.

Can this goon forever? I'm sure it will. Because of his control. He is the puppeteer, I'm his wooden prop who he can control as he wishes. 

I still want to be his prop. I don't know why.

But I can't act.

The difference between secularism and tolerance

Whenever I converse with some tweeples who call themselves "staunch Bharatiyas," "nationalists" and so on, I hear the term 'pseudo-sickular' hurled at me often for questioning their faith in certain aspects of their ideology (read Hindutva). When I talk of carnage in the name of Hindutva like Babri and post-Godhra Gujarat in 2002 they use this term and bring in 1984, Kashmitri Pundits and some other riots where Hindus were also killed in large numbers.

Apart from being a logical fallacy to argue on those lines (two wrongs don't make a right) and the endless blame game (I'm only talking about Hindutva here not something else but we digress often because of this blame game), I am accused by the tweeples of being pseudo-secular.

First of all, secularism is a practice of the state, it is when the state or a country, separates itself from religion in all its activities. An individual is tolerant, he/she respects other's faith. This tolerance, however, does not mean that people ought to buy each and every tenet one's faith teaches. 

This game has been played by many of the so called "nationalists" for many years now, they have stolen the term 'secular' for their own selfish purposes and have played the role of a victim beautifully. 

I urge you to not fall prey to such peoples' jibes. Stand your ground. Oppose all aspects of violence in the name of anything, be it religion or politics.

India will be a secular state if people are tolerant. The state need not tolerate any of these atrocities in the name of secularism. 

What is India to me?

Photo Credit: National Geographic 

When I turn on the TV to National Geographic, Fox Traveler or some similar channel, often enough, I come across a programme about India. Indian food, Indian lifestyle and the diversity of India is hailed by the presenters who go on to call India "exotic" and "mesmerising."

I asked myself the question, "what do I feel about my country?" And frankly I went blank. I could not find one answer. India, no doubt, is diverse. I feel it is this diversity that makes us rich. Geographically and demographically we are a conglomeration of so many different notes that come together seamlessly to form a chord.

Noted historian Ramachandra Guha calls India a "salad bowl" with its variety in colour, flavour and texture. Rabindranath Tagore epitomised our country's spirit in the great hymn Jana Gana Mana,  the first stanza of which was adopted as our National Anthem. In the second stanza, Tagore writes how the various religions of India come together weaving a "garland of love."

This was the India envisioned by our founding fathers. A country so diverse, where the entire landscape changes every few hundred kilometers and where so many cultures are intertwined, come together and sing that beautiful hymn by Tagore in their own way, but which combines into one voice which praises our unity in diversity.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VUPbrbsXmA 

The full hymn by Tagore can be seen in the above link.

However, when I ask myself if this the way India is heading today, I feel regretful. The natural beauty of India is tarnished by vandals for profit and the secular fabric of India is torn by religious fundamentalists who think India should belong to only a few. Some people have a problem with the way women dress and what they do. Evidently they do not respect our diversity

Photo by: indo-africa.com

We see images of India's success story almost everyday. The growth and the way India has progressed is
being talked about all over the world. But still there is poverty. The divide between the super rich and the extremely poor is wide. We must look into these aspects too. Growth and development should not be exclusive to the rich and the middle-class but should include everyone.

India is comprised of over a billion people with over 70% of them living in villages. But all we hear in the 24/7 news and travel/lifestyle channels is about how cities are growing and how the middle-class is performing. This must change. We have to be inclusive of everyone.

As people of India, we must realise that all our compatriots do not belong to the same religion, have the same lifestyle, live only in cities and work in multinational companies. We must realise that all of us in some way are different and that is what makes India great. Finally, I urge each and everyone to ask themselves this same question. What is India to you?

I end this article by asking you to listen to this English hymn, 'I vow to thee my country.' Although it is a British patriotic song, we can learn from its lyrics that each of us owes a promise to our country to live in harmony.

I vow to thee my country - Youtube

Open the video in a new tab/browser and the lyrics are given here below.

I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above,

Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love;

The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test,

That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best;

The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,

The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.

I heard my country calling, away across the sea,

Across the waste of waters she calls and calls to me.

Her sword is girded at her side, her helmet on her head,

And round her feet are lying the dying and the dead.

I hear the noise of battle, the thunder of her guns,

I haste to thee my mother, a son among thy sons.

And there's another country, I've heard of long ago,

Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know;

We may not count her armies, we may not see her King;

Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering;

And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase,

And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace.

The argument about Intelligent Design

I'm sorry that this blog has not been updated in a while, situations were such that I could not do it. However, I will do my best henceforth to regularly update my blog.

Source: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG136jtP1ywl6AnuZwErFAoRXNxfRc4FWlNvk8I4czPq4JQgRBM7ZzPabpBONM3ZdGIR6_8fWhAJVuBJUWBX-qWLF2x65WmGfeXwSPamym8RVXQgTCG-zO2X-agHdI58YaK4_TRAQ9WP0/s320/intelligent+design+vs.+evolution.jpg

A few weeks ago, I was part of a debate on the topic 'Is Religion Relevant in Today's World.' Needless to say, it was very stimulating and from the comments I heard after it was over, I think everyone had a great time participating in the debate. I wish to extend my thanks to everyone who made it happen including the students and faculty of the Departments of Mass Communication and Visual Communication in my College; the moderator Prof. Venkat Lokanathan; the honourable proposition who showed brilliant oratory skilll; my team who challenged the proposition to a great extent with equally good arguments and finally all those who were in attendance.

Through this blog post, I wish to bring to notice one of the arguments by the proposition during the debate, that of 'Intelligent Design.' It was put forth by the proposition as an 'equally good theory' to evolution if my memory serves me right. I wish to explain what Intelligent Design is and why it is not even a 'theory' (scientifically speaking), let alone being 'equally good.'

Intelligent Design is the theory that since living organisms are too complex to have evolved by random chance, there must have been something (or someone) who 'designed' the organisms in their present state itself. It is promulgated by the Discovery Institute, a politically conservative organisation from America and is an extension of the creationist argument that the Judeo-Christian God created this world is six days about 6000 years ago. More on Intelligent Design can be found here.

The arguments from Intelligent Design include the concepts of complexity and the fine tuned nature of the universe and I will try to refute these notions here.

Complexity: One of the complexity theories was propounded by Michel Behe (1996) which said that is that biological systems are too complex to have evolved from simpler systems. The examples they give for such complex systems include the human eye and the flagella in bacteria. However this was refuted by Niall Shanks And Karl H. Joplin (1998) in their paper Redundant Chemicals (use your JSTOR id or if you have UGC inflibnet id, that also works). In their paper they said that systems satisfying Behe's characterization of irreducible biochemical complexity can arise naturally and spontaneously as the result of self-organising chemical processes. They claim that Behe overestimated the significance of irreducible complexity because of his simple, linear view of biochemical reactions, resulting in his taking snapshots of selective features of biological systems, structures and processes, while ignoring the redundant complexity of the context in which those features are naturally embedded. They also criticized his over-reliance of overly simplistic metaphors, such as his mousetrap.

This, put simply means that nature can naturally give rise to complexity by itself. Many examples can be given of this property of self-organisation in chemicals like the the Belousov-Zhabotinsky (BZ) reaction.

The complexity theory can also be refuted by what is called 'exaptation' that is the process where precursors of complex systems may be useful to perform other functions. Examples for this include the middle bone in the mammalian ear M. Brazeau and P. Ahlberg (2006). 

The Fine Tuned Nature of the Universe: This is the proposition that the conditions that allow life in the Universe can only occur when certain universal fundamental physical constants lie within a very narrow range, so that if any of several fundamental constants were only slightly different, the Universe would be unlikely to be conducive to the establishment and development of matter, astronomical structures, elemental diversity, or life as it is presently understood. (Source)

This was refuted by Victor J. Stenger (1999). Some of the counter arguments for the fine tunes nature of the Universe are that if the Universe were fine tuned for the sake of existence, then the entire, or atleast, a large part of the universe must be conducive to life. However, as far as we know of the universe till now, we have only found the earth as a planet that is able to harbour life. Stenger's full paper can be accessed here.

Intelligent Design also argues based on the 'God of the Gaps' principle, that is, it argues that whatever science has not explained so far, is the work of the 'designer.' This is a foolish statement to say the least. Just because science has not found everything it does not mean that anything other than science can answer that question. To answer a question that science has not found evidence to with an argument that in itself has no evidence is only an insult to the intellect of humans and our curiosity that has led us to so many discoveries.

Science has eradicated many diseases and even conquered outer space. It has not yet found answers to everything but it is certainly working on the answers and to attribute the unanswered questions to a 'designer' or 'God' is simply not good enough as an answer either because it begs the question 'Who is this designer or God then?' And we have no evidence for that either.

Are we so perfect as Intelligent Design claims? If we are 'created' or 'designed' to lord over this world, then shouldn't we be perfect? But then, why is our eye not as good as an eagle's or our ear not as good as a dog's? Why are we not the strongest of species on the earth or the most agile?

We are not perfect, we have organs like the appendix which is of no use to our bodies. An infected appendix can even kill us! Why would any 'Intelligent Designer' give an organ that is completely useless and can potentially kill us? Why do men have nipples? Why is the male scrotum in such a vulnerable place and not even protected while its there? Is this 'intelligent designer' playing the fool or just plain stupid?

These are a few questions I shall leave you all with. And remember, as Carl Sagan once said, "Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence."

Caste and justice

Sushma Tiwari (Image from The Hindu)

I came across this article in The Hindu about a woman, Sushma Tiwari, who was responding to a petition filed by her brother, Dilip Tiwari. Dilip has murdered Sushma's husband and four others of her marital family. It was a case of honour killing. Sushma's husband, Prabhu, was a man of a lower caste from Kerala while Shilpa was a Brahmin from UP. The complete article can be found by clicking here,

A clear case of honour killing has taken place. The case at the Magistrate level and at the Bombay High Court resulted in a sentence of capital punishment for Dilip, but after appealing in the Supreme Court, the sentence was reduced to imprisonment for 25 years.

What struck me is not the sentencing by the SC (I am against the death penalty personally) but the judgement it delivered. The Court said in paragraph 41 of the judgement, "It is a common experience that when the younger sister commits something unusual and in this case it was an intercaste, intercommunity marriage out of the secret love affair, then in the society it is the elder brother who justifiably or otherwise is held responsible for not stopping such affair. It is held as the family defeat. At times, he has to suffer taunts and snide remarks even from the persons who really have no business to poke their nose into the affairs of the family." I was stunned! What did the Court just do? 

So what if the brother receives snide remarks or taunts? Does that justify his act? What made me even more worrisome is the fact that this case can be cited in the SC in case of further honour killings. What then? Will every honour killing done to avoid remarks from others be justified and the sentence reduced? I urge all of you to read the entire judgement http://indiankanoon.org/doc/1100478/ and see for yourselves the way this case has been handled.

In my opinion, the SC has in effect made  the use of violence as a retaliation to snide remarks justifiable. The Court which is supposed to protect the people and especially the Dalits from such atrocities has dealt a blow to them. In Sushma's own words quoted from The Hindu this reasoning by the Court, "is wrong and totally illegal under our Constitution and various laws of the land like the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989” and “can never be made a ground for lessening a sentence. In fact, these feelings of caste hatred are themselves criminal." I do not  oppose the commutation of the death sentence. But I cannot say I agree with the statement made by the Court which I have mentioned before.

Sushma had filed a review petition challenging this decision. I hope this case is a lesson to all. Marriage is between a man and woman who have given their consent. The caste, religion or any other societal label should not be a hindrance to the marriage of two consenting adults of marriageable age. The courts should set an example in enforcing this. Honour killings must never be encouraged.

Communalism, the bane of free India

The recent clashes in Kishtwar on the day of Eid are another grim reminder of how our country is still in the grip of communalism. The violence in Kishtwar resulted in two people being killed, around 80 injured, curfews being imposed and the Amarnath Yatra being cancelled for some time. Political statements about the riots were also abundant and Parliament flared up in debate on the issue with Arun Jaitley, objecting to the prohibition from visiting the region, saying that his detention was a “censorship” by the state government. He was in turn rebutted by former Chief Minister of Jammu & Kashmir Farooq Abdulla who said “Nobody was allowed into Gujarat after the riots,” referring to the post-Godhra clashes that occurred there in 2002.

India has a terrible history of communalism and has seen brutal clashes in the past 100 years. The ones that come immediately to mind are those that followed partition, the anti-Sikh riots in 1984 and those of Gujarat in 2002. All these clashes resulted in tremendous losses of life and also left many homeless.

The minorities have borne the brunt of fundamentalism in recent times. In Karnataka, attacks on the Christian community escalated between 2008 and 2012 when places of worship were vandalised and the clergy assaulted. Coastal Karnataka has also seen violence against the Muslim ‘Beary’ community where young boys and youths were assaulted just for being in the company of Hindu girls. These heinous crimes were committed by fundamentalists on the pretext of protecting their culture and even the police and the state government at the time were mute spectators.

India is a secular country according to the preamble of our Constitution which also states that every citizen is secured the liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship. By secular, it means the Government of India will not encourage religion, but will not restrict anyone from practicing and propagating any religion of their choice. India’s history is full of writings praising its religious tolerance. From the times of the Roman Empire itself, historians have recorded how India was peaceful and where people of all faiths could live in harmony. However, this secular fabric is being torn by religious fundamentalists who with their own personal agenda have begun to launder hate of other religious communities in the name of protecting their own.

Religion is supposed to be a personal affair. It is not supposed to be brought out into the streets and it is not meant to be used to justify violence. If religion is itself the cause of creating tensions among people, then one wonders what the purpose of religion itself is. Religion is claimed by its adherents to be a guideline to a righteous life, but the same teachings from the same holy books are used by those who claim to be equally fervent adherents to commit murder and other atrocities on fellow citizens.

Religion must be separated from politics and the government. But unfortunately vote bank politics make parties depend on religion as a tool to infuriate the masses. Communalism will continue in our country only as long as we the people let it. We must not let this dangerous idea go any further.

Life must go on

I know how it feels!

I was in love too, still am. I still am and with the very same person, that one who means the world to me and she that suffers my fate today. It hurts! It hurts to see you go through what I went through once. It pains me to see your pain. I feel what you feel, at least, I know what it feels like.

But what can we do? We're human after all. And like you and me, every human being has their own desires and their own plans. You had yours too.

You are strong, I know. You have the heart of an innocent child but the mind of a strong general in battle. You are the perfect mix of the fair and the strong. You can move mountains if you so wish. You have the faith and you have the will. Things which I don't.

Yet, you suffer. Just as I cried, you cry. Just as I despised the world, you despise it too. More dangerously, just as I wanted to ruin myself, you want to. Why?

What does all this show, other than the fact that we are miserable human beings who have deep desires but have to face the reality of putting others desires before our own?

But trust me, life goes on!

I know, I tried to end it. I tried slowly killing myself with drugs, with all vices that would take me straight to the pits of hell in your world. You think of something bad, and I've done it. Just to get over what I had for the one I love. It turned me into someone who in your own words "no one could recognise." And I wanted to be alone too. I wanted nothing to do with the world. I wanted no one. I wanted to die!

But life went on. It did not stop to let me die either. It did not let me throw the world away. Life did not leave me alone. And I'm sure life wont leave you alone too. I know for a fact it wont.

"You are the salt of the earth and a sainted. God shall seal your endeavours until you sit on his right hand. So, fight the good fight for his sake. And he shall be your aid."

These words kept echoing in my heart every time I thought of giving up. These words kept me going strong. And if an atheist unbeliever like me can take refuge in these strong words, I'm sure  you can find great support in this short verse.

No matter what, just remember what a wonderful human being you are. Remember how kind you are and what a great daughter, sister and friend you have been to all those who have loved you with all of their hearts. You are surely a saint - a saint of strength and of everything that is sweet in this world. To me you are the best and there can never be anyone better.

I write this to tell you to fight the good fight! Don't give up on life no matter what you do. Because life has not given up on you. The gift of knowing that I've a friend like you makes everytime I wake up that mush more special. And the fact that I know you will be there tomorrow to me makes every night blessed. This is the gift you are in my life. And I'm sure you bless a lot more lives just like you have done mine.

I have not given up on you. I never will. My friend, my greatest friend! I will never give up on you.

I promise you all that I have, both earthly and above.
What's perfect and what's not, and my service and my life
Because you are all to me, and you're my greatest friend
I will ask no questions, but give you all I have

That was a very bad attempt at a poem. But in any case, I'm left without words. All I will say to you is I will not leave you. Forget me, no one will let you go. Forget everyone else too. Life wont let you go. Life will carry you on and on..... 

Rearing cows helps build moral values?

The RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat  recently said rearing cows in every house helps inculcate moral values in people. At at a function to inaugurate the country's first cattle sanctuary in Madhya Pradesh, Bhagwat said that Indians lacket values and also stated, "Cow is our mother. Service to cow is service to mankind, which in turn helps build morals."

True, the cow is indeed a sacred animal to many in the country. Many states including Karnataka have enforced a ban on cow slaughter. Now the Karnataka Government is even trying to extend the ban to bring all cattle under its purview. Well, being a beef-eater, I oppose the extension of the ban. Isn't a ban on cow slaughter sufficient? Why extend it to all cattle? Respecting the sentiments of people is a very good practice, but this should apply to everyone, shouldn't it?

Coming back to the speech made by the RSS chief. In saying that Indians lack values he is spot on. We do lack civic sense. We spit on the streets, dump garbage, urinate and defecate... the list is endless. Women are scared to move in the cities and towns of the country, simply because some men do not respect their space and privacy. We casually violate traffic rules thinking it's easy to get away from the police by just paying a bribe. And after all this, we only go on to blame the government and the authorities. We don't realise that a change within ourselves will end all these problems.

Changes should occur from one's self. Simple tings like keeping localities clean and not damaging public property; being a gentleman to women and respecting her privacy and rights are enough. If one does not violate any traffic rule, where is the need to pay a bribe? We do not need  any grand measures if we just follow a few healthy social practices. Do we really need to rear a cow to learn such values? Most houses in India cannot even afford to do that. Personally, I would love to have a small farm of my own with many domestic animals and birds; but at the moment, sadly, I cannot afford to. 

I feel rearing cattle is not a requirement for moral values. Values must be thought by humans, they need to be thought by elders to the young and be cherished and upheld. India has a strong system of values already existing, but they are being slowly neglected and at this rate will soon be forgotten. True, a cow renders yeoman service to humans and so does every other domestic animal. But for moral values we need not go as far as taking a cow as the example. A simple change -  respecting ourselves and others around us will solve most of our civic problems. 

Roast Chicken for a special Christmas lunch

Published in The Communique December 2012 issue.

“Christmas comes but only once a year,” goes the famous saying. Indeed, it is a special time of the year for many people all over the world. Homes are decked up with brightly lit Christmas trees and colourful ornaments. The streets echo with the sound of carols reverberating from people’s homes and harmonises in a way that brings cheer to the hearts of everyone.

Christmas brings out the best creativity in everyone. Everyone wants to have the most beautifully decorated home. Mothers are busy prepping their kitchen to make the most sumptuous Christmas lunch. And on the menu of almost every household is this star: Roast turkey.

Roast turkey is considered to be the traditional Christmas day lunch all over Europe and America. In India, it is catching up fast. Every family in my neighbourhood prepares it these days and each family has their own recipe.

Sometimes chicken is substituted instead of the turkey since the latter is quite expensive and in many cases too big to fit into ovens. Roast chicken is just as visually appealing and mouth-watering as turkey but cheaper and a quicker to cook. Chicken is also easily available when compared to turkey, which in Bangalore City, can only be purchased at markets like Shivajinagar.

The Christmas roast is perhaps the most desired treat on Christmas day. The recipes are as numerous as the lights on a Christmas tree. One of them, a personal favourite, is the Butter Roast Chicken Stuffed with Paneer and Herbs. The butter keeps the chicken juicy and the aroma from the herbs can make one’s stomach groan incessantly. The recipe is simple and the chicken can be prepped a day ahead to help the marinade soak in to enhance the flavour.

For the Roast Chicken you will need,

1 chicken, whole with skin

150 grams butter (the table butter you get at the grocers will do)

150 grams paneer

1 onion and garlic peeled

1 cup ground mint

1cup curd

2 tbsp red chilli powder

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tbsp garam masala

1 tbsp coriander powder

Juice of one lime

Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Take the chicken, clean and place in a large bowl sprinkle salt and pepper to it and leave it.

Take all the dry ingredients in a small bowl, add the curd, lemon juice, a little salt and mix them well to form a paste. Let the butter come to room temperature. Take a little bit of the paste and fold it with the butter. Apply this butter onto the chicken, especially under the skin of the chicken breast and thighs. Apply the rest of the paste to the chicken.

Cut the onion in half and along with the garlic; stuff them into the cavity of the chicken

Cut the paneer into cubes, mix them well with the ground mint and stuff them in the chicken too.

Wrap the chicken with aluminium foil or cling wrap and leave it in the fridge for not less than two hours. Preferably leave it in the fridge overnight.

When it is ready to cook, pre-heat the oven at 220 degree celcius, place the chicken in the oven for 10-15 minutes at that temperature. Remove the chicken and baste. Put the chicken back into the oven, this time at 180 degree celcius and let it cook for an hour per kilogram white basting every half hour.

After it is cooked, let it rest for a half hour before carving and serve. This can be served with a raitha of mint and cucumber. 

Hark! Here come the carollers

Published in The Communique December 2012 issue.

Winter is here, the woolens are out and it’s that time of the year again. There is cheer all around; the homes are filled with laughter and in the words of Edward Pola and George Wyle, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year.” Yes, it’s Christmas.

Everyone gets excited even when the word is just mentioned, each for their own reason. Maybe it’s the thought of decorating their houses with bright and colourful lights, or because of the sweet aroma coming from the kitchen, where mummy is getting the traditional Christmas dishes prepared. For some, the time of Christmas is synonymous with carols.

Christmas carols are songs whose theme is Christmas. They are traditionally sung during the season of Christmas at services in churches. The choirs are all deep in preparation; some of them start as early as October. “We began practice more than a month ago. This a special time of the year for us and we want to sound perfect,” said Philip Rasquinha, who conducts the Infant Jesus Church Choir.

Apart from singing at church, most of them go carolling. Many choirs across Bangalore visit houses a week or two before Christmas singing carols and spreading the Christmas cheer to everyone around. Lenora Fernandez, from the Pallotine Youth for Jesus Choir says, “It is a wonderful combination of music and togetherness. It is an awesome way to bring in fun and frolic that Christmas holds.” The singing is accompanied by a choir member dressed as Santa Claus distributing sweets to little children along the way. Every child jumps for joy when they hear the roaring peal of Santa Claus’ signature “Ho ho ho.”  The joy that is shared is immense and some of them feel as if each house is a manger ready to welcome the baby Jesus, and they are bringing the good news to everyone in that house. Nivia Vas, a member of Infant Jesus Church Choir (IJC) says, “As a child, I used to look forward to our Church choir serenading us with carols, and Santa, who usually accompanies them. As the years passed by, I received the opportunity to spread the same joy to other families.”

Carolling is used in a way to announce to the people the good news that is the birth of our Saviour points out Fr. Gabriel Christy, Assistant Parish Priest of Infant Jesus Church. “The season of Christmas brings the same joy that was brought to the lowly shepherds two thousand years ago. The songs of the angels heralded to them the birth of Jesus and in the same way we do that to every household through carolling.” He says.

Christmas brings with it several little joys, carolling being one of the most favourite to many. It heralds the coming of the Christmas season. As a tradition, carolling has been there for a long time, most have learned the tradition from their parents who in turn got it from their own parents. Usually popular carols are sung so that everyone may join in and sing along. The people too, look forward to the carollers coming to their homes heralding the birth of our Lord. Some homes prepare a small feast so that the famished carollers may dig in and get refreshed.

Many touching stories can be heard from the choristers about the houses they visited. Jenita Maria from IJC can never forget the first year she went carolling and sang for an old couple. The joy she saw in them remains in her thoughts to this day. Nivia is quick to add that the smile that is brought upon a person's face through carolling is a testament to the fact that Christmas is a season of unity; that no one is a stranger; we are united in our love for the season and its traditions. “One memory that remains etched in my mind is that of Christmas 2011. A few of us went to the home of an old lady, who was very ill. As we entered the hall singing 'Deck the Halls', her face lit up with joy. She requested for a few of her favourite carols, to which we happily obliged. As we were leaving, her husband approached us and thanked us for making his wife the happiest she had been since her illness. The feeling of having made someone's day gave us a great sense of satisfaction, which is probably what made Christmas that year all the more special for us.” She says.

Christmas is indeed the season to be jolly and a time to give. Not just material happiness but also give the happiness that comes with Christmas. Let us get out there and spread the yuletide cheer and in the eternal words of Charles Dickens, “God bless us, every one!”

Stop taking religion too seriously!

Today, for my assignment I read a very interesting article titled Ethics of Political Communication and Indian Secularism by Paulachan Kochappilly. The article spoke about how we Indians were fundamentally secular and how we were manipulated towards fundamentalist ideals by political parties for their vested interests. The article also went on to say how we can revive our secular way of life through our ethics. Very interesting indeed.

Religion today, I feel, is the cause of most of the problems in the world. From the very beginning of civilisation itself, we have read of wars fought over religion. Recently too, we have witnessed communal clashes and cross-border terrorism. All because of religion. But is religion bad?

I would answer that question in the negative. No, religion isn't bad. I feel religion helps people have a way of life, have principles and ethics. Religion is a very important part of philosophy and culture. It was through religion that we have amazing texts like the Rigveda, one of the first texts related to music. It was composition of religious hymns that influenced poetry greatly. The Book of Psalms from the Bible is a great example of this. Religion had influenced human traditions greatly.

 Having said that, I do feel one shouldn't take religion too seriously. That's what is wrong about religion, not religion itself. According to me, religion has existed only because man could not find answers to complex scientific and social questions. He created religion to give a universal answer to all those doubts he has in his mind. But that with time has turned this religion into a symbol of authority. We know the case of Galileo and the Catholic Church in this regard. People began to look at religion as the only answer and that has caused all the strife.

Fundamentalism, fanaticism and religious terrorism, all carried out in the name of 'protecting one's religion' are results of taking religion too seriously. We need keep religion as one of the least priorities in life. That way I feel, free thinking will increase. Let's face it, the fanatics can't think straight. We know how easily they are indoctrinated to perform acts of violence. I feel if we leave religion in the back-burner, we can explore more and more avenues for development and freedom. No political entity will be able to manipulate our emotions too.

Only this way can we be a truly secular nation. Otherwise, fanaticism will continue.

What qualifies to be in the Post-Graduate level?

It's been almost six months into the MS Communication course and I must say, the heat has just turned up a notch. As my good friends from class point out, "We're getting fried."

Today's special morning session, one I sorely regret for missing, was memorable indeed. A few of us decided we need a few changes made to the Saturday seminar and wrote to the Head of the Department (HOD). But our learned professor, as expected, took offense. Well as they say, 'There is no point flogging a dead horse.'

Which brings me to question myself and my friends, what is a PG course meant to be like? If we are fed each and everything that has to be done, what is the point? No doubt it's us giving the presentations, but do we have any independence in choosing what we'd like to present? Do we have the freedom to carry out our presentation the way we choose  to? Well, everyone who has read the class notice board knows the answer to that.

It's the job of our professors to maintain quality, no doubt. But should it come at the expense of inhibiting free thinking? We are assigned topics which require little research of our own, given a fixed way those points need to be presented and if we deviate, we are bad students. Now what can we conclude from this?

Regretfully I feel we too need to share this guilt. We are not willing to challenge ourselves, me included. We always want the easy way out. We accept everything given to us since we do not want to go further and risk being the 'Nerd' of the class. If a situation arises where we either have to choose between increasing the quality of our education and bring in more research for our internal assessment or just write a class test and get the same marks, I'm afraid we would choose the latter. It is no doubt, the easy way out. 

Personally, I abhor writing notes in class and class tests. It's just not something we require at this level. I do not feel spending an hour working on a presentation or an assignment out of material copied off Wikipedia is good use of my time. That was the reason I did not submit a few assignments given in the beginning in our class. 

I urge my friends to critically think of where we're headed. I'm just as disappointed with the teaching as most of you. But I'm also disappointed for not pushing myself to a level fit for a Post-Graduate course. We can easily sail through the remaining three semesters. But would we have learnt anything?

The Tradition of Christmas is Dying

Christmas comes only once a year. And certainly, it's the best time of the year for me. The thoughts of decorating the large Christmas tree, preparing the treats and caroling are memories I harbour for an entire year and let out to run amok during this time.

Christmas without tradition, according to me, is like a broken pencil - pointless. The traditions of Christmas are what make the festival so special to me. Traditional decorations like the holly and mistletoe. Baking the traditional Christmas cake and singing traditional carols I feel are the best way to celebrate and bring the yuletide cheer.

I feel although people want to stick to tradition, it is becoming more and more difficult these days. I want to focus on the musical aspect more since caroling is the favourite part of Christmas for me. I love traditional Christmas carols. Songs like Ding Dong Merrily, Hark! The Herald Angels Sing and Oh Come all Ye Faithful sung by a large choir acconmpanied by a powerful Church Organ is what I would prefer. These days, however, I rarely if not never see such traditions followed. Today it's more of solo performances or remixes of traditional carols to today's music. It's more of popular music and trying to sound catchy.

I am not averse to modern music. But I don't think they make my Christmas special. I would prefer a stiff tenor sing Oh Come All Ye Faithful than maybe Justin Bieber and would certainly prefer King's College Choir to Don Moen. Sticking to tradition gives everyone that feeling of Christmas like no other and I'm afraid that one day it will completely die out.

I hope to keep the tradition alive. In my choir, when we do traditional carols, we try to stick to the way it was originally composed as far as possible. I know a Church Organ is hard to come by these days and even harder to find is a good organist, but if people start working for the sake of spreading the cheer instead of  merely putting up a show, I feel traditions can be resurrected. Have a Merry Christmas season! 

Are we really 'Idiots'..?

Justice Markandey Katju, Chairman of the Press Council of India, is known for his outspoken criticisms on many issues. He has recently written vehemently opposing the arrest of two Mumbai girls on a Facebook post. I admire Justice Katju. He is not afraid to voice out courageously on injustices prevalent in society. I also appreciated his article on the Op-Ed page of The Hindu titled "Why I can't pay tribute to Thackeray" dated 18 November, 2012 where he criticised the policies of the Shiv Sena supremo.

Two days ago, Justice Katju at a seminar in Delhi stated, "I say ninety percent of Indians are idiots. You people don't have brains in your heads....It is so easy to take you for a ride," he was referring to how gullible we Indians were, that we could be lead into a communal disharmony by forces without much effort. He said that a mere two thousand rupees would suffice to incite a communal riot in Delhi and that a people start fighting each other even if a mischievous gesture is made at a place of worship. This made two students file suit against him on the grounds of defamation, and Justice Katju has also replied to them on his blog - Satyam Bruyat - Justice Katju.

I feel Justice Katju is right in pointing out how gullible we are. The 'Idiot' remark may sound harsh because Indians after all are doing great in various fields and across the world. But if you take his remarks in the context of his speech, I do feel we are idiots. The Babri Masjid demolition; the train burning at Godhra and the riots that followed and the attack on churches in Orissa and Karnataka are all blots in the modern history of secular India.  

I disagree, however,  with the number that Justice Katju mentioned. I do not think 90% of Indians fall into the trap of communalism with or without incitement. On the other hand, I feel only 10% are the gullible people whom Justice Katju remarks about. Although voices are not as loud as his, most Indians do not harbour hate for other religions but only wish to live in harmony and reap the benefits of a progressing India. It is the minority, the 10%, probably even lesser, who want to break the rich history of tolerance in India and most of the time, I feel, it's for personal gain.

Therefore, I feel I'm part of the 90%, not the 90% that Justice Katju pointed out, but the 90% who I feel are the ones who appreciate India's culture of secularism and tolerance. Yes we are silent and Justice Katju is right in pointing that out. But we are definitely not willing to surrender to communal forces.

Mesmerised by a great showcase of choral music

I've just returned after a performance at The Festival of Christmas Music conducted by the Basel Mission which was held at the Bishop Cotton Girls School auditorium. A well known carol competition, the festival features top choirs from Bangalore, all vying to be the best.  This is the third year I've participated in the prestigious event and it never fails to impress. 

Being a big fan of western classical and choral music, I look forward to this festival each year. Although I've been part of the audience since I was in school, participating in the festival was something I always wanted. In the final year of my graduation, I joined a small choir called Vocal Enigma - brainchild of a brilliant musician and friend - Maneesh Dasanayake. It was the opportunity I dreamed of and though we were only fifteen in number, we were ably led and soon became one of the most prominent choirs at the college level.

The first Basel Mission was also our best. We tied for first place along with the Christ University Choir, a powerhouse among choral circles here in Bangalore. Victory was sweet, and as days went by our repertoire grew. We participated in numerous other festivals and shows and won many accolades. But the win at this festival was always dearest to me.

After graduating, we hoped we could still keep the choir alive. But work schedules often clashed with practice and most of us couldn't find time. Maneesh too had to return to his home - Sri Lanka. However, some of us still wanted to keep going, we did the best we could to practice on weekends, when most of the working people had a holiday. And this year under the name Choral Blueprint, we gave what we felt was our last performance at Basel Mission.

There are three categories for judging - Junior Schools, Senior Schools and Colleges. We were an independent professional choir and were not judged under any category but were allowed to participate as guests. Nevertheless, doing our best was the aim. Although we couldn't compete we felt like champions. The competition, however, was as fierce as ever. Choirs performed works by Handel and Rutter. Just listening to those arrangements gave me goosebumps. At the end Christ University were declared winners. They deserved it.

The best part about every Christmas season for me is the carols. And the best part of caroling for me is the performance at Basel Mission. Winning never mattered, not this year atleast. But the mere fact I performed there for one last time probably was a rewarding experience indeed. So kudos to the winners and thank you Basel Mission.

Aspirations need to be fulfilled someday, somehow.. (My first blog post)

The jump from the IT field to media has exposed me to experiences I never thought I'd have. Blogging being one of them. I have started this blog with a vision: Improve my writing skills and also show them to the world in the process. And I'm happy as I write my first post.

Let me start with an introduction to myself and my blog. I aspire to be a journalist. From the time I was in high school, I was always interested in it. I would watch the news everyday seeing journalists jostle with their colleagues to get the latest news. I would attentively watch press conferences where journalists would eagerly wait their turn to ask a question. A turn which may never come. But their zeal would never die. They would chase the person who held the conference just to get the answer to that solitary question they may have.

Pressure from family and friends led me to pursue Science at the Pre-University level and though my parents wanted me to do engineering, I somehow managed to convince them to let me opt for a BCA degree instead. For three years it seemed my aspirations were lost. After graduating, I joined two companies in a span of one year. It was then I realised this wasn't for me. Eight hours staring into a computer screen only gave me more reason to get back to by boyhood dream of being a journalist. So I made my choice.

I applied for a post-graduate course in Mass Communication at St. Joseph's College, Bangalore and  sailed through the admission process. And here I am now. Enjoying every moment of it. And I know with every passing day, I'm inching closer to my ambition. Now it has become my calling.

Now, about the blog. I plan on writing about anything and everything. And also everyday. I will write about everything I see, hear or taste. Subjects would include travel and politics...yes, politics, another interesting thing I picked up after entering this field. Basically, I want to write purely for pleasure.

Well, here it is, my first blog post and also what I think is a fairly good introduction. I will enjoy filling this blog as I hope you would enjoy reading it. That's it for now. See you soon.

 

Freedom to speak and express... do we have it?

Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution of India says "All citizens shall have the right to freedom of speech and expression." This freedom, however, is not absolute but is subject to certain "reasonable restrictions" which are given in Article 19(2) of our Constitution. They include restrictions on acts which interfere with "the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence"

In my opinion, free speech must not have any restrictions other than for those speeches that directly incite violence, are slanderous and libelous. I do not believe that speaking anything against the sovereignty and integrity of India by any person is going to cause a collapse to our sovereignty or integrity. I believe these restrictions should be removed. Unless the speaker (or writer or anyone using any form of expression) causes people to commit violence which threatens the sovereignty of our country, there is absolutely no reason, in my opinion that his/her speech needs to be restricted in a democracy.

Decency and morality have not been given a fixed definition. On what basis can one judge whether something spoken or expressed is decent or moral? What is indecent to me may seem alright to another.And something I consider immoral may not be thought the same by my peers. For example, wearing shoes and entering the kitchen is a complete no-no to my mother since she considers the kitchen as a sort of holy place. but I see no reason why I must not wear my shoes to the kitchen. To me the kitchen is only where I get my next meal and, being an atheist, I see nothing holy about it.

In the name of protecting this decency and morality and "culture," we have seen atrocious acts committed by people. The recent attacks on young women sitting in pubs and partying at a homestay in Mangalore is a grim reminder of how vigilante groups have full sway over innocent people. What a girl chooses to wear or where she chooses to be is entirely her wish. Assaulting people for any reason is a criminal act. People can surely have a dissenting opinion in a democracy, but committing violence should not be allowed. That attack, I felt was an attack on the girls' freedom of speech and expression.

Sedition is another law which must be repealed. Article 124A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) explains sedition as, "Whoever by words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards, the Government established by law in India." Why does this law even exist? People have the right to speak against the Government in a democracy. If there is no opposition to the Government, then we are under an authoritarian government and not in a democracy.

There are many other laws like section 66A of the IT Act and so on which must be repealed. Section 295A of the IPC allows prosecution for the smallest offence rendered to any religion. What if you have no religion and think all religions are false? You absolutely have no place to voice that opinion and thus, your freedom of speech is restricted by this law. Religion should not feature in any law in a secular state according to me.

I feel the government and our judiciary must do more to ensure that the citizens' freedom of speech and expression is preserved. I feel we must not take lightly these laws as they are truly oppressive. Many other laws similar to the ones mentioned here are in practice in India today. Many people do not even know that such laws even exist. I hope this article will make you search for them and understand their implications and more importantly, I hope this article will help you fight for free speech and expression in our country.

Development must include everyone

India has been termed one of the fastest growing countries in the world. It is touted to be superpower along with China. The development that India has achieved is being hailed all over the world. But still so many of us live below the poverty line. So many mothers and children are malnourished. So many prople are starving and homeless. What kind of growth is this?

We hear our politicians speak of their achievements in bringing about so must growth. The TV news channels and newspapers are full of reports about our success story but rarely do we see or hear anything about the plight of the poorest of the poor in our country. 

This eyewash by the media has led people living in cities to believe that each and everyone of the 1.2 billion people in India are prospering. This is surely not the case. There are more poor in India than in the poorest regions Africa, this is a fact. The growth we see on TV or read in the newspapers is only the growth of the middle class, the upper middle class and the rich. The poor continue to remain poor.

Our villages are plagued by drought and lack of basic facilities. Most villages do not get three phase electricity for even 6 hours a day and we in cities complain even if there is no power for 15 minutes. We hail politicians like Narendra Modi who have done so much of development, while completely overlooking the kind of development that has taken place. People are still malnourished in Gujarat, there is still a high infant-mortality rate. These statistics are alarming to me. How can one call that growth when everyone cannot benefit from it?

India's growth according to me is exclusive. I cannot call this growth because it has excluded the majority of the population while only focusing on a small group of the urban population. We must strive to change this trend of inclusive growth. We must educate those who cannot afford an education and teach them their rights. We must demand from the government to first provide basic amenities to people who do not have them. Then we can think about expressways and flyovers and malls and so on.

Secularism means separation of religion from the State

The preamble of our constitution declares India to be a secular nation. The Constitution through Article 25 allows every Indian to practice and propagate any religion of his/her choice. This means that the State of India is devoid of a religion and ideally practices no faith but welcomes all faiths and treats them equally.

However, recently, we saw The CM of Karnataka doling out money to Mutts. Former CM of Karnataka BS Yedyurappa had donated close to Rs. 300 crore to various Mutts in Karnataka according to an article in the Times of India dated 25 Feb 2013. The article also states that overall, a sum in excess of Rs. 500 crore was earmarked for Mutts by the BJP Government of Karnataka.

Now, donations to religious institutions is not wrong, as long as it is from one's own pocket. But the money that was given to the Mutts was from the State exchequer. Meaning it is the tax-payers money. This is, according to me, a violation of the secular principle of our Constitution.

This must not be encouraged. Politics and religion should not be clubbed together. The job of a political leader is to serve people no matter what community they belong to. And it is the job of our governments and judiciary to uphold the secular fabric of our nation.

Article 25(2)(a) of the Constitution says "Nothing in this article [Article 25] shall affect the operation of any existing law or prevent the State from making any law regulating or restricting any economic, financial, political or other secular activity which may be associated with religious practice." But does any law exist restricting any political activity associated with religion? If it did, all the issues related to politics and religion can be controlled. There would be no political instigation or involvement in any religious activity. Politics of religion can be removed from our country.

The State and religions will truly be separate and all faiths can live in harmony only if politics does not play a part in people's faith. I extend my support to a passing of such law under Article 25(2)(a) of our Constitution. If we restrict political activity in religion now, probably our children will live in a secular country. As of now, we only have a secular country on paper, not in reality. Remove religion from politics and government and secularism will come. Mark Tully, a former BBC correspondent in India said that India was fundamentally secular and I tend to agree with him. It is the politics that is harming this fundamentally secular nature of our country. This is my opinion and this is why I urge a separation of religion from the State.