On My Mind

I am still coming to terms with my inadequacies. Before coming to LBSNAA, I thought it wouldn't matter, but your inadequacies and awkwardness come under immense scrutiny here. I always knew I was terrible at sports. As a child, I primarily had access to playing cricket, and when it comes to cricket, I have the running skills of Inzamam ul Haq, the bowling skills of Sir Don Bradman, and the batting skills of Glenn McGrath. I now aspire to be the fat uncle who growls at kids playing cricket in the society complex. Just to put this into perspective, I am barely passable at a sport that doesn't even grant me access to the "high circles" which a sport like Tennis, F1, or Golf does.  Dancing doesn't come naturally to me. I am very stiff, quite unlike the justice system across the world, which bends like Beckham for the right people. Like the courts and the police, there is a lack of coordination between my brain and limbs. The resulting motion is what scholars term as B...

Covid-19 struck us hard. The numbers tell only some of the story - number of cases, number of deaths, and many more statistics. These will be disputed, revised, and clarified, much like the rules deciding the Cricket World Cup 2019 final.  And just like that match led to a review of rules, the Covid-19 pandemic has to be thoroughly examined to make sense of the far-reaching implications it has had thus far. Economic System "The truth is we are all caught in a great economic system which is heartless." - Woodrow Wilson. The economic system has always been a subject of discussion. It has evolved over the course of history, and presently, neoliberal capitalist system in some countries coexists with the state taking the leading role in the economy in others. Economist Jayati Ghosh sternly criticizes the neoliberal model. "The crisis has exposed the weakness, the fragility, the hollowness of neoliberal capitalism, the fact that it does not deliver basic services to the people...

The ongoing pandemic has been a little more than just pain in the ass. Countless deaths, and huge economic costs aside, the ensuing lock down has made us be with ourselves. And I must be the first to admit, it hasn't been a pretty picture.  At the outset, unlike what the meditation gurus suggest, I don't think I have as many thoughts as I earlier estimated. As any serious student will know, this has led to filling the gaps with passive voicing what I earlier thought in active voice. Unfortunately for me, that's all the grammar I know to keep beating around the bush. However, the little introspection that I could do, has resulted in several observations - about myself and the world.  Throughout my life, I have ridiculed Batman for having irrational fear of bats. I admit I was wrong. The Dark Knight was a visionary. Hence, I am also hopeful that the world wouldn't descend into the chaotic madness envisaged by the Joker. The land of the free could prove me wrong though. B...

Delhi is at a crossroads today. The air pollution levels are roaring high as the temperature sinks. The mood is sombre and there is no more Jaanta hai mera baap kaun hai . This has led to an uproar on social media as it's not advisable to step outside to protest. (Source: "Annual Traditions We Don't Know Who Started") This independent study is aimed at identifying the primary causes behind the situation followed by a dispassionate critical analysis of the effects of air pollution. We then propose some radical solutions which will help get rid of the problem as it emerges. Causes Since pointing out the stubble burning, poor construction practices, biomass burning, and vehicle exhausts angers the farmer lobby, real estate lobby, and activists angry at everything, it is important to think hard and come up with real causes for the Delhi air pollution. The primary culprits are the people from Bihar and UP because we can pin the blame on them without much outcry. (So...

My Dear Prime Minister, Yesterday, our jawans were martyred. I don't want to throw around the number. That's for honorable ministers to use in Lok Sabha replies and press conferences. I seek to humanise the situation. The jawans were returning from their homes to hostile territory somewhere in India. Some were fathers, some were brothers. Some had mothers. What they all had in common was their humanness. They could all perceive pleasure and pain. They must have felt the latter when the car exploded. People said the unfortunate tragedy shouldn't be politicised. It mustn't. But surely we must find how it happened? If asking for accountability is scoring petty political points, sue me. Sue the mothers and sisters of those who fell in the line of their duty. They want to know how this happened. Who should they seek answers from? The terrorists, believe it or not, are not accountable to us. Nor is Pakistan. But someone else surely is, my dear Prime Minister; someone w...

Over 19 crore Indians sleep hungry. [1]  I checked for who could be held accountable. Google tells it's been 71 years now since the British passed on the responsibility of keeping Indians hungry to ourselves. We have tried all sorts of conventional means to fail in our responsibility including the public distribution of subsidised food grains, raising the income of poor, and food for work among others. Unfortunately, this has worked second only to Indian batsmen against swing bowling in England. In light of this revelation, it is only imperative that we try something unconventional. Serve Pizzas Indian efforts have so far been limited to providing foodgrains. This is so 20th century. This inward-looking attitude is responsible for the persistence of hunger. The 21st century is globalised. Hungry people don't want rice. They want global cuisines. They want their share of modernity and Pizza is a good start. Make people eat their words I am talking about killing tw...

Among the virtues celebrated by the human society, honour is one of the most important. But to different people, honour means different. From one such perception, emerges the concept of honour killing. In my interaction with different people, I have come to realise that most people don't understand it really well. Hence, here's an attempt to answer some FAQs relating to honour killings. 1. What exactly is honour killing? When a person kills another to protect her (*aspiring feminist alert*) honour, it is very intelligently termed as an honour killing. You may think that the killer is actually bringing dishonour to herself by murdering someone, but there's a reason we humans are convoluted beings. 2. What kind of honour qualifies under honour killing? All kinds! There is an absolute equality of opportunity here. Marrying into other religion, caste, same gotra, or simply marrying against the wishes of your family is enough to bring dishonour. If you are more hono...

It was six men of great repute To learning much inclined, Who went to see the roots of India (Though all of them were blind), That each by observation Might satisfy his mind. The First approached the nation, And happening to strand But guided by its broad and sturdy side, At once begins to understand: "God bless me!- the ethos of the country Is very like a Hand!" The Second, feeling the pain of peasants, Cried: "Ho!- what have we bred So very oppressive and bland and dark? Grows hence my sense of dread This colour of the mystic land Is very like a shade of Red!" The Third approached the wild spirit, And in a manner very elegant Awoke the collectivity of outcastes, Which he found relevant "I see," quoth he, "Indianness Is very like an Elephant!" The Fourth reached out his eager hand, And found the other claims bogus "What most this wondrous civilisation is like Has come to my notice; 'T is clear enou...

It is the USA of the 1960s. Segregation of blacks in public places is the policy of the government. Blacks have different taps in restaurants, there are different queues for them. In the buses, they are to give up their seats for a white gentleman and move to the back. This goes on. Except for one fine day, when a certain Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat on a bus. She was tired, more than the white gentleman standing next to her. Ultimately she was thrown out of the bus. Is this to be the end of it? Back in India, a barrister came back from South Africa in 1915. The country was ruled by the British. Freedom was a dream not officially recognized yet by the Indian National Congress. The barrister undertook a tour of the entire country. The goal was to understand the pulse of the nation in making. The first action he took was Champaran Satyagraha where all he could do was save interests of a group of peasants who were forced to cultivate indigo. But the journey had started. It ...

Lights, Camera, Action! Except this time, it isn't actors performing. IPL is about to start and cricketers from across the globe will take the center stage of the discourse in India. The who's who among cricket giants will hit boundaries, and take wickets as cities fight it out for the glory. IPL has all components required to be a hit reality show - which some would say it is. But is it more than that? I wouldn't get into the cricketing part. That has been discussed and debated much. The Puritans hate the hybrid that is IPL, and the supporters have the list of all cricketers who rose to prominence through IPL ready. What I have in mind is all the other impact IPL has. The first three matches of the previous edition of IPL reached a staggering 185.7 million viewers!  [1]  In 2012, when Kolkata won IPL, they were given a rousing welcome by the crowd. The euphoria in West Bengal can be gauged from the fact that even the CM couldn't afford to skip the celebratory ...