A Wonderful Year Gone By

While I am not exactly sad to see this year go, I have to admit that this has been one of my better years.

It's almost ironic that the only nights I saw a sky full of stars were the ones I spent in Africa. That stunning equatorial sky over the Serengetti-Masai Mara was the most star-filled sky I had seen in years until I saw an even more amazing sight in a place called Malindi. There the stars twinkled and the air was absolutely as pure as anything I have ever breathed.

I got so closely drawn to Portugal by being in its former colonies. Time stood still when I sat at the plaza in front of the Sao Tome Chruch in Diu. The well-lit white-washed baroque church is one of India's many hidden treasures. The feeling of anticipation of the 15th century Portuguese Fleet felt the same way it did from the walls of the Fort Jesus of Mombasa as it did from the Diu Fort. It is one ocean after all.

Maybe it was the wettest Bombay monsoon I had ever experienced or the rediscovery of various festivals in the great city like Ganesh Chaturthi, Diwali and Ramzan Eid. Or that beautiful Saturday afternoon in Kuala Lumpur when I explored its Chinatown and walked from the city market to the Merdeka Square.

Could have been the week in Vietnam, when old friendships were strengthened and I saw for myself the spirit  of the Vietnamese people. The bikers of Saigon, Pho, Vietnamese Pop and the wonderful strangers I made friends with.

Delicious street food in Chandni Chowk after long conversations with gold and bullion merchants. Listening to  global leaders at the World Economic Forum's India Summit. Running every one of those 21 kilometres in the most beautiful areas of New Delhi.

French lessons every evening, Italiano on weekends, evening and morning runs on Juhu Beach.

A Sunday when it looked like I had seen every stretch of beautiful coastline from Kalutara to Matara and back. Barbeque dinners by the ocean in Hikkaduwa. Welcoming a new day at the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy, after a gap of 5 long years. Sunset at the Galle Fort.

Crowded local trains in Bombay, the sight of shepherds in the university campus in Kalina. Cheap movie tickets for nice films in the morning. Watching the not-so nice films with "hard-core" locals in the Marathi heartland in Dadar.

Walking through the pols of Ahmedabad's Old City and having a feast of a Gujarathi Thali on the west bank of the Sabarmati. Paying tribute to the Mahatma at Sabarmati and Porbandar. Soaking in the phenomenal architecture of Junagadh and climbing Girnar Hill and being at the highest point in Gujarat.

Looking back at this phenomenal year, there is just emotion that comes across my mind: Gratitude!

Third Generation Service from a Third Class Company

I have several reasons to dislike Anil Ambani, one of India's richest oligarchs. Since his Reliance Energy took over power distribution in Bombay's suburbs, my electricity bills have progressively risen with almost no explanation. They can brag about there being no power cuts but even when BSES was distributing power, we had no power cuts. In exceptional circumstances when there was a power cut, BSES employees were more polite and prompt in their response.

The Anil Ambani group is also constructing the Versova-Ghatkopar Metro Rail project that goes through my area. Besides being slow, their work is incredibly messy when compared to the job done by E Sreedharan's team in Delhi. The latter ensured there was very little inconvenience in Delhi. The former doesn't give a hoot.

My latest experience with a company run by Anil Ambani takes the cake. Reliance was one of the first mobile operators to introduce 3G services in Bombay. I subscribed to their service yesterday and the number was activated in an hour. Good service so far. Overnight, I was horrified to see that the 1000 rupees I paid to a Reliance retail outlet was not credited to my account. The same outlet in Andheri (West) only gave me a receipt after I was forceful. They also refused to give me their phone number!! So when I called up Reliance customer care, they said, they have no record of the transaction and that I should call back in 6 hours!! (they weren't kidding)

When I went back to the retailer, the employees were busy having chai and asked me to wait.... Wow. This is a private enterprise and not a government undertaking! Finally, they ensured that the transactions were completed!! But my balance showed as Rs 100 and the Rs 899 I paid for 3 GB of Internet was no where to be seen. When I asked the shop employees, they made me call Reliance Customer Care, where the lady at the other end of the phone denied the existence of a Rs 899 plan!! This was followed by a heated argument between the shop employee and customer care.

So how do I know what my 3G balance is? Customer care refuses to answer as I am using a non-existent plan and the shop employees have no clue. They then suggested I use the net and disconnect and then see if my Rs 100 balance has changed. It turns out that it hasn't. So I guess, I used some of my 3 GB.

I heard that Reliance Communication is having major financial problems.. Gee.. I wonder why? So for those of you in Bombay that really want 3G services on your phone, hang on a bit.

My Article on Modern Retirement Homes

This article was published in the December 26 edition of the Free Press Journal.

"More middle class Mumbaikars are discovering the benefits of moving into semi- urban retirement homes that offer everything from medical care to internet rooms and swimming pools, writes Ajay Kamalakaran

The modern gated communities, which have 24- hours security, shun using the words that conjure up images of social stigmas and taboos like " old age homes." The new buzzword is ' retirement resort,' an attempt to indicate that the community is a place with comforts and amenities, rather than a place where old people are banished to."

Read More here Details

Christmas in Bombay

Another wonderful product of the so-called "westernisation" of this city is the fact that all the malls in the city have a Santa Claus and Christmas tree and fake snow sprayed from a tin containing some toxic substances. Commercial enterprises haven't wasted any time in taking advantage of the new holiday, where parents need to but presents for their kids. Thanks to television, many Indian kids who know more about Santa than Jesus Christ expect expensive gifts! Then you have the so-called Christmas Eve parties and Christmas lunches at 5-star hotels and expensive places. Another fabulous occasion to just blow money on nothing.

Buried in all this is the vibrant Christian community in the city. Many of the city's original inhabitants are East Indian Christians, who were converted into the religion by the Portuguese. Areas like Orlem, in Malad, Bandra, Borivali and Amboli have wonderful midnight mass services, that is a Bombay institution. Often non-Christians attend these masses. Thanks to Bombay's Christians, Christmas hasn't been completely hijacked by the multi-nationals. 

Nuove Tribù Zulu's Bombay performance

It was as beautiful a full moon winter night as Bombay has ever witnessed and with long weekends and holidays in the horizon, there was a definite excitement in the air.

Blue Frog in Lower Parel was set on fire by Rome-based Nuove Tribù Zulu (a gypsy rock band) with numbers that were a fusion of languages, instruments and musical styles. As a student of the Italian lannguage, I was one of the privileged invitees for the magical evening. For me, Italian music had always been about opera and classical music. Of late, I have also been endeared to the music of Sergio Endrigo. But rock and Italian were two things I couldn't put together until last night.

We were treated to rock, folk, gypsy, punk, ska, classical, polka and tarranta merged with Rajasthani folk music courtesy the Nomadic Orchestra of the World (NOW)

NOW  is a project born in the remote nomadic villages of Rajasthan in January 2007, conceptualized by Meenakshi Vinay Rai, Andrea Camerini and Laura Di Nitto: an overwhelming fusion between the musicians of the Bhopa, Kalbelya and Banjara tribes and Nuove Tribù Zulu.

Music is one of my passions and it's great to see different cultures coming together and creating such incredible melanges.

A Tribute to an Unsung Hero in Palakkad, Kerala

It was 1946 and India was on the verge of gaining independence from the British Empire. The adult literacy rate in India was just 16 percent and those with a bachelor's degree or even a higher secondary school certificate had bright prospects in the national capital New Delhi or the financial powerhouse Bombay. A lot of options lay before C. Ramachandran after he completed his Masters in Arts in English Literature from Madras Christian College but he answered Mahatma Gandhi's call for service to the poor in India's villages.

Ramachandran-Mash (the Malayalam word for teacher) went back to the village of Coyalmannam, near Palakkad, Kerala and set up a primary and secondary school. Besides being the principal, he taught several subjects and stressed on the need for each student to have a good character. A strict-disciplinarian, devoted to God, Ramachandran-Mash worked tirelessly to educate children from Coyalmannam and surrounding villages. Alumni from his school went on to become successful businessmen, naval officers, public sector executives and one of his favourite students, my father, became an international banker working out of an office in New York's Park Avenue.

A simple and God-fearing man, Ramachandran-Mash carried out his duties as a father, brother and teacher with a degree of selflessness that is rare to be found in any age. Today's Mathrubhumi reported that the great man passed away at the age of 86. He takes with him a legacy and the gratitude and love of thousands of people who can trace their roots to Coyalmannam, Alathur, Kotai and other scenic villages around Palakkad.

While he may not have been showered with national awards and laurels, to me, he is a great hero who chose country over self, sacrificing riches and fame to live the Dharma for 86 years.

For those can read Malayalam, here is the text of his obituary from the Mathrubhumi

സി. രാമചന്ദ്രന്‍

കുഴല്‍മന്ദം: കുഴല്‍മന്ദം സി.എ. ഹൈസ്‌കൂളിലെ മുന്‍ മാനേജരും റിട്ട. പ്രധാനാധ്യാപകനുമായ സി.രാമചന്ദ്രന്‍ (86) ഗുരുകുലം വീട്ടില്‍ അന്തരിച്ചു. കുഴല്‍മന്ദം ആധ്യാത്മിക പ്രഭാഷണ കമ്മിറ്റി, യുവരശ്മി മാതൃഭൂമി സ്റ്റഡിസര്‍ക്കിള്‍ എന്നിവയുടെ രക്ഷാധികാരി, മരുതൂര്‍ ശ്രീകൃഷ്ണക്ഷേത്ര സേവാസമിതി, ബ്ലോക്ക് കെ.എസ്.എസ്.പി.യു., കേരള ബ്രാഹ്മണസഭ കുഴല്‍മന്ദം എന്നിവയുടെ പ്രസിഡന്റ്, ബ്രാഹ്മണസഭാ ജില്ലാ വൈസ് പ്രസിഡന്റ്, പാലക്കാട് ചിന്മയമിഷന്‍ അംഗം എന്നീ നിലകളിലും സേവനമനുഷ്ഠിച്ചിട്ടുണ്ട്.
ഭാര്യ പരേതയായ ലക്ഷ്മിക്കുട്ടി. മക്കള്‍: നിര്‍മല (തിരുവനന്തപുരം), ലളിത (വൈക്കം), സരോജ (ചെന്നൈ), മീനാക്ഷി (കോവൈ), മോഹന്‍ (റിട്ട. അധ്യാപകന്‍ സി.എ.എച്ച്.എസ്.), ശേഷന്‍ (ബിസിനസ്), ഉഷ (അധ്യാപിക, പി.ജി. മറൈന്‍ എന്‍ജിനിയറിങ് കോളേജ്, എറണാകുളം), മരുമക്കള്‍: പരേതനായ ഗോപാലകൃഷ്ണന്‍ (ജിയോളജിക്കല്‍ സര്‍വേ), മഹാദേവന്‍ (വെള്ളൂര്‍ ന്യൂസ്​പ്രിന്റ് റിട്ട.), നാരായണന്‍ (ചെന്നൈ), മഹാദേവന്‍ (എസ്.ബി.ഐ., റിട്ട.), നാഗനാഥന്‍ (ഐ.ഒ.ബി. കൊച്ചി), അന്നപൂര്‍ണേശ്വരി, ജയലക്ഷ്മി (ഇരുവരും സി.എ.എച്ച്.എസ്. അധ്യാപികമാര്‍). സഹോദരങ്ങള്‍: ബാലകൃഷ്ണന്‍ (റിട്ട. അധ്യാപകന്‍, ആയക്കാട് സി.എ.എച്ച്.എസ്.), സരോജിനി പരശുറാം (മുംബൈ), പരേതരായ സി.പി. ശര്‍മ (ആയക്കാട് സി.എ.എച്ച്.എസ്.), സി.രാജഗോപാലന്‍ (പെരുവെമ്പ് സി.എ.എച്ച്.എസ്.), നാരായണസ്വാമി പെരുവെമ്പ് സി.എ.എച്ച്.എസ്.).

High Food Prices? Congress still has charisma

I have all the sympathy for the आम आदमी and the poor people of this city. Food is getting to become ridiculously expensive. Rs 80 for a kilo of onions is the icing on the cake. Everything from food grains to pulses to sugar has gotten more expensive since the Congress-led UPA government was reelected in 2009.

The Congress has always been a party that supports hoarders, black-marketers and other criminals and they get reelected because of "charisma." The poor and middle classes are infatuated by the appearances of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty and swear by them to the grave. This slavery is a product of decades of brain-washing in schools, television, radio and to an extent the print media.

So if an educated middle class person who spends Rs 150 for a bottle of beer in a pub has a problem with petrol costing Rs 55 a litre or someone who spends Rs 2000 in a restaurant cringes about onions costing Rs 80 a kilo, all I can say is tough luck. You are the people responsible for voting these charismatic criminals into power. India is a backward, third world country with the largest amount of poor people on earth because the Congress keeps getting elected into power unopposed.

There will be a day in the near future when milk costs Rs 100 a litre. But why should the Middle Class care? They can be proud of their half-Italian prime minister and all his charisma!

I'm in Dadar er Bombay Central

बस अभी दो मिनिट में पोहेंचेगा. (I'll be there in 2 minutes). When someone in Bombay says that he usually means 10 minutes. It's a very Indian trait to buy time when late. One thing I have noticed on the city's local trains is how much people actually lie on the phone about where they are.

It's common to hear someone in a train say that the train has crossed a few more stations than it actually has. This is something I think I hear almost every single day. Last week, I heard someone desperately plead with a loved one that he would get home soon and that he was in Dadar. Seconds later, there was an announcement in the train that the next stop is Mumbai Central. The announcement was loud enough to be heard on the other end of the phone. Guess that man would not have had a nice dinner when he got home. 

The Hindu : Fake tweets aired on CNN-IBN news show

The Hindu : News / National : Fake tweets aired on TV news show

Well well well. Look what the "ethical" team of CNN-IBN have been upto.

According to The Hindu,

"A recent controversy about fake Twitter comments being run onscreen during a news show has raised questions about the reliability of instant viewer feedback. From live SMS polls to tweeted views to texted queries, many of the methods used to increase the “buzz” of viewer-interactivity in real-time can be misused unless adequate filters are put in place."

Fake tweets to make a point? How low will Rajdeep and Co go?

The article describes the modus operandi of the channel.

"IBN sources say the question of the day is usually posted on the channel's website around noon. On this particular day, however, the question was posted at 5.07 p.m., according to the time-stamp on the website. Since there were not enough responses posted, an IBN staffer quickly concocted his or her own comments and aired them on screen, attributing them to five different Twitter IDs, according to IBN sources.

A suspicious viewer checked out the IDs and discovered that while three accounts were non-existent, the others had posted no tweets at all. He indignantly posted about this at dalalmedia.posterous.com (which, incidentally, has just two blog-posts), from where it spread within the blogosphere and among twitterati"

Caught red-handed Rajdeep apologized. One has wonder as to how much the Dalal-Media of Indian television is indulging in blatant lying!!

Navi Mumbai and what lies in between

I remember billboards in the city back in the early 1990s that tried to persuade people to move from congested old Bombay to beautiful New Bombay. New Bombay was supposed to be to Bombay what New Delhi is to Old Delhi.

The new city did have urban planning, prices were low and many companies and government offices were supposed to shift there. We're in 2010 and the only big company to shift base there is the State Bank of India. A building called the Konkan Bhavan which was supposed to house Maharashtra's legislative assembly is a white elephant. The income tax office has also not been moved from the old to the new city.

Navi Mumbai might yet grow in prominence thanks to the fact a new airport is coming up there. I had the misfortune of travelling to an area of Navi Mumbai called Nerul by train. The 39-kilometre train ride from Andheri takes about an hour and twenty minutes and you can see Bombay at it ugliest worst before actually entering New Bombay.

Garbage completely covers the railways tracks and slums are within inches of the moving trains. Since most of these slums comprise of cardboard boxes, most of the communities live on the tracks. It would not be inaccurate to say that children are born there and learn to crawl and walk on railway tracks and those that don't get killed by trains end up living there for the rest of their lives.

I saw with horror the real poverty and squalor of the city. I am pretty sure that most if those people living there are migrants from the rural hinterland. Many of these slums had visible Islamic flags. I am assuming that these people are migrants from Uttar Pradesh or Bihar. Some accuse them of being Bangladeshis

I can't possibly imagine how bad life is for these people in their native places to want to come and live in such filth and danger (trains kill people on tracks daily, with the annual figure being around 3000).

As my train crossed Mankhurd and reached Vashi, the first station on the other side of the creek, I felt like I was in another world altogether. Navi Mumbai looks like a fairly prosperous middle class version of what Indian cities can be. But I would rather not go there by train again, if I had a choice.

Home field advantage

I always believed that home field advantage was over-rated. How much of a difference could a venue make for athletes? It was a convenient excuse (or so I thought) for teams to blame the heat or the cold or the light or the winds.

After running in unfamiliar conditions this morning, I realised how much of an impact familiarity has on performance regardless of the sport. All I did was change my marathon training schedule to run in the morning instead of the evening but my performance wasn't even close to what I could manage on Tuesday.

Everything seemed to bother me from the morning chill (my body didn't warm up as fast as I wanted) to the fact that the beach was dirty! The cleaning crew was just starting to remove piles of garbage from the shore. While on the topic of garbage, I wonder why is that Indian people abuse nature like this? The sea just dumps the coke bottles, plastic bags, pooja flowers and assorted garbage that is thrown in it. I appreciate the fact that Juhu Beach is cleaned every single day and is one of the cleanest big city beaches in the world.

Back to my running, when I finally did get warmed up, it was past sunrise and not past sunset so the beach wasn't exactly as nice to run on. And the winds weren't blowing the way they do in the evenings! I managed to run 5 kilometres before deciding that I had enough. I'm going have to the hit the beach this evening again but my fantastic evening runs may have given me a slightly false sense of preparation for the big day.

I better start running more in the morning since the run starts at 6:15 am AND also start running on the marathon route to familiarise myself. The run is in my hometown but the route is 25 kilometres away from where I normally train and I better get used to the sights, sounds and smells.

Here's to not judging visiting sports teams and athletes that make valid excuses for under-performing.

More from the Secret Scrolls

"Know yourself! Watch how you manifest the small things in life and think about how you felt inside with those things. Think about how easily they came. You will find that you thought of a small thing once and never thought about it again, and then it manifested.

What really happened was you didn't think any thoughts or speak any words which contradicted what you wanted, so the law of attraction was able to do its work.

 

May the joy be with you,"

-Rhonda Byrne

Winter's here or so they say

I was quite amused to see people wearing sweaters and woollen caps to stay warm in a bus with all windows closed. It was about 18 degrees Celsius this morning and cold northerly winds made it feel a lot cooler. This is a rare phenomenon in Bombay called winter. Winters last here just about as long as heat wave conditions last in New York in the summer.

I have to say that these December days are absolutely glorious and it's a rare pleasure to walk on the streets of this city and bask in the sunlight and not sweat three buckets of water. In fact temperatures are a lot cooler on the beach in the evenings. When training for the Mumbai Marathon ( which is just 32 days away), I definitely feel the effect of the chilling northerly winds when run from the Santa Cruz-end towards Versova.

Here's to a nice season of warm soups, hot chocolate and nice movies on the tele.

Complaints against Bus, Taxi or Auto Drivers in Bombay/Mumbai

To be fair, taxi and rickshaw drivers in Bombay are probably the most honest in India. They rarely overcharge and even if they do, it's unlikely that will do so like the guys in Madras, Delhi or Bangalore. But there are rogue elements here and if you do face a problem, there are ways to register a proper complaint.

The traffic police has a website, where you can enter all the details. http://www.trafficpolicemumbai.org/Complaint_Auto_taxi_form.htm

Whether an auto or taxi driver overcharged or was aggressive or refused to go to your destination, you can file a proper complaint. This site can even be used if a bus driver refuses to stop at a bus stop. Make sure you have a pen and paper in hand for these offenders.

There's also a toll free number that you can dial and where you can register your complaint in 3 languages: Hindi, Marathi or English. 1800-22-0110

My Delhi Half Marathon Medal

It looks like the pressure on Procam worked. They sent me my medal and certificate by courier. This was in addition to an emailed response to my blog.

An Austrian in Jhandelwalan

It was well past 2 am on a cold November night when Gunter from Gratz left New Delhi's Oberoi hotel. A night when winter had set in and the werewolves, djinns and other creatures of the Delhi night were particularly excited as the Karthik Full Moon was just around the corner.

The Austrian had been a veteran of many India trips and had a basic idea of Delhi's roads. All he needed to do was get to the Karol Bagh Metro station and he could find his way to the hotel.

A semi-drunk auto-rickshaw driver took him to what seemed like the Karol Bagh station. It was 3 am and not a creature was stirring in the dark lanes of west Delhi. As Gunter walked the streets he thought he knew well, he realised that the hotel was nowhere in the vicinity. But who on earth would be able to help Gunter? The only souls visible to him were a few homeless and packs of stray dogs. Would Delhi's Djinns provide a path out for the now-weary traveller?

Finally some recourse arrived with a "semi-decent" looking young man in a car who told Gunter that he was near the Jhandelwalan Station and not Karol Bagh. After all those beers, it all began to make sense. The Austrian was betrayed by that fiend of a rickshaw driver. The young man offered to drop a frustrated Gunter to Karol Bagh. But how could he get into the car of a drunk, who could possibly be some sort of psycho from Dwarka?

Braving the cold, the muttering of some homeless men and angry stray dogs who resented the sight of a blond European in their territory, Gunter walked ever so slowly and on guard till he reached the Promised Land of Karol Bagh. The words of Sting must have run through his mind.

Oh Oh, I'm an alien
I'm a legal alien
I'm an Austrian in Jhandelwalan
Be yourself, no matter what they say!

Finally after a painfully long walk in the bitter cold, Gunter was within sight of the much-desired metro station.  One aggressive obstacle lay in his path. This was the king dog of Jhandelwallan. His eyes glowed in the dark and his growls and barks were of the menacing kind. Gunter's familiarity with Asian stray dogs came to his aide at that one precarious moment when rabies was imminent and the hotel seemed a hospital trip away. He picked up a stone in quick haste but the mutt was undeterred. The barking got louder and more aggressive and the mutt decided to make a charge. A charge that was successfully thwarted by a direct hit. Gunter threw the stone hard enough to have an impact but not with enough force to hurt the mutt, who retreated in anger, insulted more than hurt.

There lay Karol Bagh and the hotel and as Gunter moved into the lane, he witnessed the sight of 200 Chinese monks ready to embark on a pilgrimage to Bodh Gaya. He truly had seen it all from the Oberoi to Karol Bagh but he was happy to get back unscathed by the wild Delhi winter night.

Message for the Thackerays: The Game is in the Name- Bombay Forever!

Find below a brilliant article by Sujata Anandan, one of my favourite newspaper columnists. Anandan is a brave columnist who has tremendous insight and a great understanding of Indian politics. She was the first person to point out the Shashi Tharoor scandal was a behind-the-scenes job by Sharad Pawar (who as always, got away unscathed with everything he did.)


In this article, she takes on the Thackerays or should I say the Thakres for their double standards in keeping an Anglicised version of their last name, while trying to shove the word Mumbai down our throats. This city will always be Bombay for me, a third generation Bombayite. And yes, the government officially recognises both names. Thank you Sunanda for this wonderful article.

http://tinyurl.com/32ybvr8 

Final thoughts on Delhi

It's wonderful to be back home. The first thing I noticed when I got back here from Delhi is the cleaner quality of air and the "lightness" in the air. Bombay doesn't have anything close to a violent and cruel history the way the national capital does.

Delhi is a rough and tough city and can easily wear anyone down. I guess there's a price to pay to admire the gardens and parks and the stately and radiant beauties. Yes the metro has improved life in the city, but is even crowded at 6 am on a Sunday! Yes you can travel to any area with ease but what's the use of getting to within 3 kilometres of a place and finding it impossible to get a three-wheeler to get to the final destination?

At times, the city feels more crowded than Bombay and it's more of an energy-sapping, tired and worried crowd. Life is awesome for a VIP or someone with the right amount of $$$ and connections but the rest of the city basically falls into the peasant category. I really understand why Bombay is the ville-préférée of India. There's so much freedom here, safety and despite the rush, a mental calmness.

Delhi, no doubt, has its good points but it's more of a city for 40-somethings with a house in a nice locality and a chauffeur-driven car. It's conservative and traditional and too much of an adjustment for a fun-loving Bombayite liberal

Airtel Delhi Half-Marathon 2010: An absolute disgrace!

Procam and Airtel should be ashamed of themselves for the worst possible organisation of the Delhi Half Marathon. The marathon came in the news because some model was groped but what was more disgraceful was the way the athletes were treated. Let me recount the shameful events one by one:

1) The organisers promised a shuttle bus service from the Central Secretariat metro station to the venue and back. The bus driver didn't know the route to the venue and lost his way making all of us in the bus late. To make matters worse there were no services to the station after the run!

2) The crowd management was so poor that many of us didn't even enter the holding area before the 7:30 am scheduled start of the race.

3) The organisers said they ran out of medals that were supposed to be given to those that finished the run. Apparently there were enough medals to be given to the VIPs who were in attendance! How shameful of the organisers and the VIPs to behave like this!

4) They gave no refreshments to those who ran the 21k. They were allegedly out of snacks and water as well.

The organisers even threatened to have police lathi-charge athletes who demanded their medals! I have never seen such disgraceful behaviour towards athletes in my life. Shame on Procam and Airtel! Only such poor organisation can spoil an event where people run on the best 21 kilometres in all of India.

I dread the thought that Procam is also organising the Mumbai Marathon. I hope they treat the athletes better than they did in Delhi yesterday.

Yes I ran a great race and finished 20 minutes quicker than I did last year but the behaviour of the organisers really spoiled the fun.

Riding on the Delhi Metro

I really want to compliment E Sreedharan and the Delhi Metro team for building this wonderful metro network in this city. The metro is clean, efficient, safe and quick. Spitting attracts a Rs 200 fine (YAY!!!).
In keeping with Indian traditions, the metro now has a separate ladies wagon in order to protect the local beauties from the hordes of desperate men.

A few nights ago, as I was about to board a train from Rajiv Chowk, I noticed something really unusual. There was a security guard making people queue up and making sure that people were allowed to alight from the train first. This is India, after all, and I guess such measures are required. Who knows? The novel concept of queuing may just spread in this city of rough hooligans from Bihar and Haryana.

There is one big difference between travelling first class or even second class on the Bombay local and travelling on the Delhi metro: The stink! Bombayites taking the local trains have much better habits when it comes to hygiene. I can’t imagine what it takes to stink as much as some of these people that take the Delhi Metro.

Some of the lines are already handling way more than capacity: a fact attributed to the fact that many were forced to use the metro during the Commonwealth Games and started seeing the merits in avoiding traffic jams. I am quite sure that increasing the frequency of the trains isn’t going to help much.

Being a public transport New York-Bombay guy, I am impressed and will continue to ride this wonderful metro in Delhi.

Paradise Lost

Goa: Sex & mafia on cocaine coast: Cover Story : India Today

I read with horror an investigative report in India Today about the state of Goa. We all love what Goa stands for: freedom, partying and fun in the sun. There is an incredible air of relaxation in that magical land of prawn curries, baroque churches and beautiful Indo-Portuguese architecture.

It doesn't take a genius to figure out though that international criminal gangs and local politicians have turned the place into a hub of drug-trafficking and prostitution. The extent to which this is happening is absolutely shocking. The presence of hippies in the state added to its aura in the immediate aftermath of the Portuguese being evicted but what is now happening is just too much. It scares me that the law enforcers of that state are hand in glove with drug smugglers.

One can only hope that the virgin coastline of the Konkan in Maharashtra doesn't fall prey to this curse.

I have always been an advocate of an India open to tourism and foreigners but I think we may just have to have a stricter border control regime. The druggies have already taken over places like Manali and Goa and the last thing we want is for India to be a magnet for the tourist-trash of the world.

Paranoia at the cinema hall

I am not a bigot by any stretch of the imagination and I think India's diversity is a great asset. The events of the last decade though have played on my psyche. 

This afternoon, I was watching a dreadful Hindi movie to get my mind off the WEF, French exams, Delhi run and all other minor irritants in my life. Just after the interval ended, two women in burkhas left the cinema hall. 

It seemed odd that they didn't go to the bathroom or to buy popcorn during the 10-minute break. I heard voices in my head saying they've planted a bomb and are making an exit. I waited for a few minutes (it seemed like an eternity) and the moment I was ready to alert security and call the police, the women came back in. That was a huge relief. 

I'd rather be safe than sorry in such situations. 

Would I have the same fear if a couple of young men went out the same way? Absolutely. Such are the times we live in. Plagued by fear of bombs and other forms of terror. 

Bodo militants kill 23 'outsiders' in 2 days - Hindustan Times

The Hindustan Times says: Militants of the banned National Democratic Front of Bodoland continued their killing spree on Tuesday, taking the number of 'outsiders' they are gunning down to 23.

Bodo militants kill 23 'outsiders' in 2 days - Hindustan Times

The terrorists pulled out Hindi-speakers and killed them in cold blood in what was an absolute act of cowardice. They didn't even spare a crippled man. I have been to Assam and other parts of the northeast of India. These states have spectacular nature, good weather and a friendly and liberal populace but almost no development. The best areas of Guwahati are dirtier than most Indian cities and while you don't see "slums" there, the poverty is visible.

Most of the problems in the northeast have been caused by the politicians but the role played by the defense and para-military shouldn't be overlooked. I remember how aggressive some army men were with locals at the ancient Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati. These people were off duty but insisted on jumping queue and even threatened local pilgrims.

If India really wants to integrate its economy with the ASEAN region, a real "healing-touch" is required in the northeast, where many feel like second-class Indian citizens. While looking east, India needs to sort out the mess that is its own east.

Mizoram: A stable region in a tumultuous neighbourhood

Just for the record there are stable areas in the northeast like Mizoram, where there is no insurgency or anti-India sentiment. The state, which has a lot of autonomy, has an adult literacy rate of around 90 percent and virtually no poverty.

This is the same state that revolted against India and drove out the Indian Army, leading the Indian Air Force to bomb the state's capital Aizawl in 1966. The point I am trying to make is that no situation is beyond repair.

Ajay in Delhi

In a few days I head to the national capital for what's becoming an annual sojourn. This time it's the World Economic Forum's India Economic Summit and the Delhi 21k that takes me there. I guess I am a lot more prepared for the summit than I am for the run. A series of running injuries and health problems have thrown a spanner in my mini-marathon preparations.

I love Delhi. It is one of the world's greatest cities. I love the ancient monuments, the delicious street food, the greenery, the open spaces, Lutyens' Delhi, India Gate, tandoori cuisine, the nice November weather, the stately and radiant beauties and the historical aura.

A Fortune-Teller Told Me: Earthbound Travels in the Far East

I was lucky enough to find this book at a bookshop at Kuala Lumpur's Low Cost Carrier Terminus. Before reading this book, I had never heard of this great journalist/writer and I was definitely missing something.

"A Fortune-Teller Told Me" is a well-written and passionate travelogue that shows the Asian Tigers in 1993, while they were in the process of dismantling their past and speeding towards westernization. Tiziani's views on core oriental values is something I can completely relate to. The author loved the cultures of Indo-China and all the countries that form ASEAN and this book is a travelogue of his overland journeys from these countries to Europe via Russia. You can feel how countries like Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand were in 1993. I, for one, am glad that Vietnam is nothing like what he described (with horror) in the book. But I would have loved to see the Malaysia of yesteryear that he writes about romantically. 

Terzani knew the Chinese people well and at times I think he is overly harsh on them in this book. I was also a bit disappointed with how little coverage his Trans-Siberian journey gets in the book. Of course there are a couple of factors that need to be kept in mind: For starters, Russia looked a lot like a failed state in 1993 and the author made the mistake of just passing through the cities via train without getting off, unlike I did during my epic-journey ten years later in a more stable version of the country. 

The author has witnessed and covered three significant historic moments of the kind that every journalist dreams of . He was in the USSR when it collapsed, he saw the fall of Saigon in 1975 and the Khmer Rouge's takeover of Cambodia. I am sure his Goodbye Mr Lenin is also a great book.

Terzani had a longing to live in India, a country he believed at that time to not be following the western-style modernisation that East Asia was undertaking. I hope he was happy in India when he lived here. He died 3 years ago and I am really sorry that I won't be able to meet him in this life. The man has already become one of my idols.

The calm of a holiday

I can't believe that I am still in Andheri. The roads are empty. It is possible to get into a bus and it takes 5 minutes to get to the station. This city needs more holiday weekends. The ease with which I could get a bus reminded me of the good old days (before the work on the metro started) when I could rush to the station and back.

Happy Diwali and Samvat 2067!

Journalism in India has gone to the dogs

The hype on television and the papers over Barack Obama's visit to India is nauseating to put it mildly. I personally respect and admire Obama but this is just too much.

The Indian media has exposed itself globally as a  farce. It all started with a very poorly sourced report by PTI that the U.S. was spending $200 million a day on Obama's trip. Despite the fact that there is no way that such a figure can be backed up, the Indian TV channels and newspapers have jumped on the bandwagon citing that figure in all reports. Sigh.

The latest rubbish report came from NDTV that 32 U.S. warships were heading to the Bombay harbour to protect Obama. The sad part is that people believe this kind of non-sense. I, for one, am glad that I stopped almost all the English-language news channels in India. I can't do without the papers, especially the wonderful Sunday editions.

32

Woah. It looks like I am moving slowly into the mid-30s. It was a wonderful birthday yesterday. Low-key but nice and pleasant and I got a dose of November Rain.

I guess what I can really aim for is to look the way I did in 2006. In these conditions it won't be easy but I can do it  :)

Another Bangalorean schmuck

Picture this: A beautiful and sunny November afternoon in Colaba. 4 European friends of mine, working in Bangalore, were in Bombay for a short holiday. We were having a wonderful lunch at a place with a good view of the harbour.

These gentlemen do not like Bangalore and asked me why I left the city that I fondly call the Big Urinal (Bigga LOO ru). I told them it wasn't so much the corrupt landlords, the cheating rickshaw-wallahs, the lack of real entertainment or the blind aping of American culture. It was the "wonderful" people of that city that made vow to never set foot there again.

And guess what? One lone ranger sitting next to us, claimed he was from the great garden city of Bangalore and that it was heaven. He said the foreigners and IT people made it hell. In a slightly threatening and aggressive tone, he said he didn't like hearing negative things about the place. My friends and I heard out the poor soul and let him go. What's really ironic is the fact that the man proved me right with his diatribe. Instead of minding his own business, he wanted to get into a fight with 1 Bombayite and 4 Europeans.. Very smart, I must say, considering the fact that his Kannada Rakshana Vedike goons were 900 kilometres away.

Beautiful Sunday Morning

I'd forgotten the feeling of being home on a Sunday morning. As much as I enjoy the Italian classes that are a mainstay and take the lion's share of my weekends, it's good to be home. The weather's getting better these days  and there is a hint of cooler mornings and evenings. I, for one, can hardly wait.

November and December are particularly good months in the city.

One more exam to go

I kind of don't like the fact that I have been placed on a such high pedestal by my professors. I haven't disappointed any of them by any means. Aced all the exams I have had this October. It all comes to an end with the Italian exam domani  :)

The next big test for me is the Delhi 21k. I've started my training and feel like I am in decent shape.

No pressure = Lots of Fun

From the Secret Scrolls

"Any words you speak have a frequency, and the moment you speak them they are released into the Universe. The law of attraction responds to all frequencies, and so it is also responding to the words that you speak. When you use very strong words, such as "terrible", "shocking" and "horrible" to describe any situation in your life, you are sending out an equally strong frequency, and the law of attraction must respond by bringing that frequency back to you.

The law is impersonal, and simply matches your frequency. Do you see how important it is for you to speak strongly about what you want, and not to use strong words about what you don't want?"

 

- Rhonda Byrne

My Vietnam Chronicles

Over the next few days, I'd like to write about my wonderful week in Vietnam. You can follow it all on http://ajay78.livejournal.com/

Take the bus stupid!

For the last 3 months, I have been coming home exhausted after French class every evening. It isn't so much the class that gets to me or even the train travel from Bandra to Andheri. It's the dreadful walk to my apartment from Andheri station. 

Through 75 percent of that walk, I have to encounter massive crowds, pot holes, hawkers and vegetable vendors of all kinds, bikes, rickshaws, broken sewer pipes and open sewage, all in the backdrop of construction activity for the metro. The walk, often on rainy days, zaps me of every bit of energy I have. But yesterday I decided to do something different and what a difference it made! I took a bus from Bandra and came home another way. Instead of the chaos of Andheri station, I walked through the tranquility of the Bhavans College Campus. Greenery, peace, and a nice walker's path replaced my daily dosage of madness. I managed to get home the same time as I would have if I took the train. 

This doesn't mean that I should be an ostrich and not take on the municipal authorities to fix up the area around the station. But for the next 5 weeks, I can have a peaceful walk home. 

Apathy is India's greatest curse

An old Indophile diplomatic friend of mine once told me that the only thing that he didn't like about the country was the absolute lack of a sense of responsibility that people have here. And since then I have heard all sorts of excuses for this from genetic make-up to the equatorial heat.

A couple of months ago, my building wasn't getting an undisturbed water supply despite the fact that water cuts had come to an end. I asked the managing committee of the society if he contacted the municipal authorities and he deftly said that we should wait a week or two and then request the services of a water tanker. I furiously replied that I would approach the municipal authorities with or without his help. When I did call the authorities, they sent someone across to check the underground pipes and found a leak. Problem solved.

Why didn't anyone else in the building think of doing anything similar? We can put it down to the fact that their sadistic mindset prevented them from taking an initiative that would have benefited people living in 16 apartments but I think it just boils down to not having the slightest sense of responsibility.

So it is the case with residents of Andheri who make no demands from the municipal authorities to evict hawkers from sidewalks or to make sure that sewage pipes don't leak and turn the suburb into a giant open sewer.

Rights and responsibilities go hand in hand and at the end of the day, we all get exactly what we deserve.

Fiddler in the Train

There was nothing particularly unusual about my Monday evening train ride from Bandra to Andheri or so I thought when the train crossed the first station. It wasn't a particularly hot evening and the crowd on board the train was bearable. 

Then all of a sudden, as the train stopped at Khar Road, a teenager walked into the first class compartment with an Indian violin in hand. Within the next 10 minutes, the compartment was electrified by the quality of music he played. This handsome young man had the features of a Rajasthani gypsy and there was definitely wear and tear on his face. He was in the city to escape a life of absolute poverty in his culturally-rich yet materially-poor and backward state. 

As he played on, the passengers in the first class compartment stopped talking and listened to the wonderful music. For once, I was rather sad that the train reached Andheri and the music stopped. The musician was rewarded by almost everyone on the train. I so wish that some Bollywood somebody discovers this young man and his life turns around like a perfect Hindi film script. 

Bye-Bye Ricky

I get back home to find out that Ricky Ponting's Australian cricket team were comprehensively beaten in Bangalore. I also heard he was very gracious in defeat, so I won't mock him. I did read about some people from the Aussie contingent at the Commonwealth Games village throwing a washing machine out of the window after watching the second test... Sigh!

I am really proud of the Indian test cricketers and can't wait for the series vs South Africa.

Exam season

Alritey. Now that my feet are firmly grounded, I have 2 huge exams to tackle over the next fortnight. Starting with a killer of a French exam on Friday and the Italian exam on October 30.

On the bright side, I get a month of "Diwali vacation" after the exams. That will give me the time to prepare for the Delhi 21-k. At the moment, I am not in bad shape but I need to start running.

Back in Bombay

Although I was away for just a week, it felt like a vacation of 15 days or even a month! I had a fabulous time in Vietnam with a couple of short but sweet encounters in Kuala Lumpur.

I always get bummed with the pathetic infrastructure that I see when I get back to Bombay. One of the terminals at the airport smells and is decrepit. They say it's under renovation but surely they can at least change the dirty carpet that greets visitors outside the sky bridge.

I am not comparing Bombay to a place like KL but how sad is it that Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) or small towns in Vietnam have far better roads and better paved sidewalks than the financial capital of the "next superpower"?

They should all be like this

Sporting prowess is just something India isn't famous for. This is a country that had its most successful Olympics in Beijing by winning 3 medals. A lot of this has to do with the much-maligned politicians who run sports federations in the country.

October 5 wasn't just any other day in Indian sport. It was a day that few of us can forget. First of all, there was the India vs Australia test match. I personally can't stand what's known as 20-20 cricket. I like cricket in its purest form- that is a 5-day test. I won't be glued to my tv for 5 days but it's great watching contests between great bowlers and batsmen. The test match that ended on Oct 5 was one of the best matches I have ever seen. India snatched victory from the jaws of defeat in what was an unbelievably tense encounter. And when India finally won, the ecstasy is something that lasted for days.

Here's what the Australian press had to say about the match.

"It was hard to watch, impossible to look away." The Australian


"The thrill-a-minute versions of the game were put in their place by this slow-burning contest." Peter Roebuck

This was a day that other athletes brought glory to India. Our talented and hard-working athletes managed to win 5 gold medals on that day. I wouldn't do them justice unless I mentioned them one by one. 

Abhinav Bindra and Gagan Narang won the 10 metre air rifle competition

Rani Sarnobat and Anissa Sayeed won the 25 metre pistol event


Ravinder Singh (60 kg), Sanjay (74 kg) and Anil Kumar (96kg) made a clean sweep of all three gold medals on offer from the wrestling.

And the icing on the cake was the Indian hockey team's come back from behind victory over Malaysia.

What a Day! They should all be like this. 

The Second Summer

Now that the monsoons are gone, we are officially into the second summer thanks to Bombay's famous October Heat. The second summer doesn't give the city mangoes, the flowers are not in bloom and there is little relief in the evenings. However, the sunsets are beautiful and it's nice to see the twilight on cloudless skies.

The heat in October has the complete ability to wear down the most energetic of people. My take is that it feels worse as the body is used to the rains and cool breezes of the monsoons. By the end of the month, the weather starts improving and we have "relatively" cool evenings to accompany warm days. Until then, I'll just have to brave this weather and stay as energetic as possible.

In memory of a great man born on October 2 - Lal Bahadur Shastri

In India, we mark October 2 as Gandhi Jayanti, the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi. Another great man was born on October 2: Lal Bahadur Shastri.

Shastriji was the second prime minister of India and was a human being of unmatched integrity. He was an incorruptible and hate-less man who personified Gandhiji's principles of austerity and honesty in public service

Here are some excerpts from Wiki on his life.

"Following India's independence, Shastri was appointed Parliamentary Secretary in his home state, Uttar Pradesh. He became the Minister of Police and Transport under Govind Ballabh Pant's Chief Ministership. As the Transport Minister, he was the first to appoint women conductors. As the minister in charge of the Police Department, he ordered that Police use jets of water instead of lathis to disperse unruly crowds."

"He served as the Minister of Railways and Transport in the Central Cabinet from 1951 to 1956. In 1956, he offered his resignation after a railway accident at Mahbubnagar that led to 112 deaths. However, Nehru did not accept his resignation."

"Shastri was known for his honesty and humility throughout his life. He was the first person to be posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, and a memorial "Vijay Ghat" was built for him in Delhi. "

A lot of mystery surrounds his death and his family insist that he was poisoned in Tashkent. For more on that please see: http://www.ndtv.com/news/india/clear_air_on_fathers_death_shastris_son.php I have heard "talk" about how the Soviets poisoned him to put Indira Gandhi in power. Mrs Gandhi aligned India with the Soviet bloc.

Now that the USSR doesn't exist, the Indian prime minister's office needs to come clean and let the country know what exactly transpired in January 1966.

Shastriji is hardly mentioned in history books and is almost a forgotten figure. The Congress has done its best to deny the very existence of leaders outside the Nehru-dynasty.

And finally a wonderful tribute paid by Pakistani journalist Javed Choudhury

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PifBawxDsxI&feature=related

Open spaces and freedom

As much as I love my city, there's one thing that I know I'll never have if I live here: open spaces. I long for the open spaces of Inner Mongolia, the savannah of the Masai Mara, the plains of Buryatia and the Russian Far East. If only, I could spend a week in Patagonia or by Issuk Yul in Kyrgystan!!!

October is a hot month in Bombay and a necessary evil to be endured before the more pleasant months of the so-called winter. A good rainy season this year, will ensure that the weather will be lovely from late-October all the way till March.

My View on the Ayodhya Verdict

First of all,  I would like to say that there was too much tension in the air yesterday. It was an uneasy calm. You could count the number of people on Andheri's streets and there were more policemen than passengers at the Andheri station. This is the fear that a verdict created in a country where mobs can be assembled in minutes!

Having said all that, I think the verdict was fair and in the best interest of the nation. The Archaeological Survey of India was able to able to establish that a temple stood at the same spot that mosque was built. It is a historical fact that Islamic invaders destroyed religious structures in countries they conquered and built mosques. It is as evident in Istanbul as it is in Delhi. The verdict calls for the division of the land and is in the true spirit of Indian plurality.

Despite the fact that communal monsters like Barkha Dutt and Sagarika Ghose have been trying their best to provoke a riot, no such thing has happened. The BJP has behaved in a very responsible and mature fashion. I wish the Wakf Sunni Board would do the same.

Unfortunately the Muslim parties have reacted angrily and have taken a very belligerent tone. Their lawyer went on national television and said that the reason that Muslims in India haven't taken to the streets is because they asked them to wait for the Supreme Court verdict. The lawyer said he would accept the Supreme Court verdict but didn't respond when asked about how the Muslim community would react if the verdict went against them. The fact is that people who make provocative and belligerent statements need to be condemned.

The verdict is fair and India needs to move on.

Maharashtra Home Minister Patil caught on camera with Dawood Ibrahim aide

http://ibnlive.in.com/news/rr-patils-underworld-connections/131936-37.html

R.R. Patil here was caught on camera fraternizing with  Salim Patel - a man known to be close to infamous gangster Dawood Ibrahim and Mobin Qureshi - a suspect in the murder of a BJP MLA Prem Kumar Sharma.

Folks, this is the same man who said in the wake of the 26-11 attacks on Bombay that "in big cities, these kind of small things happen."  He was sacked after those comments but quietly reinstated after the last elections in 2009. Those were the same elections in which Bombay witnessed a poor turnout. After 26-11, many acquaintances of mine spoke about how they would hold the government to task for the lapse in security that led to the killing of 166 innocent people. Alas... the same people didn't even bother voting and now we have a government with ministers that are close to terrorists!

They say a country gets the kind of government it deserves. I couldn't agree more. Until the middle class of this city realise that they have responsibilities as citizens, we're going to have criminals in power.

The impact of the Ayodhya verdict on Bombay

The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected the petition to defer the Allahabad High Court's impending verdict on Ayodhya regarding the settling of the Ram Janambhoomi-Babri Masjid title suit issue.

http://in.reuters.com/article/idINIndia-51784820100928

There is a genuine fear in this city that a verdict in favour of the Hindus may trigger riots by Muslims or vice-versa. Students at the Alliance Francaise and the university are demanding holidays, etc. It's an open secret that riots are triggered by politicians who use criminals to kill people and destroy property.

In fact, local criminals more than welcome riots as an opportunity to settle old scores and benefit from the widespread looting. Murders, rapes and looting during riots usually go unpunished. So has it been since the riots that took place during the partition of India. The Congress party would benefit the most from riots as these could be used an excuse to convince Muslims and other minorities to vote for them in the next election. "Vote for us or face the communal BJP," the Congress would convince scared minorities after taking an active role in the riots.

I  don't think there will be riots in the city at this point regardless of how the verdict goes. The fact is that the Congress is more than eager that the Commonwealth Games pass off without any incident and with a large media contingent in India, they'd hardly want images of riots and arson being beamed to all corners of the globe.

Having said that, it would still be prudent to watch one's back in this city, especially in so-called sensitive areas. The Bandra skywalk is close to some Muslim-inhabited slums and I see increasing amounts of aggressive adolescents indulging in aggressive activities on that bridge which border on violence. A few weeks ago, some kids attacked a passer-by for no obvious reason. It's these kind of things that hooligans would love to take advantage of.

Delhi Half-Marathon 2010

One of my moments of glory last year was when I ran my first half-marathon in Delhi. It was a wonderful experience and I enjoyed every second of it.

http://blogs.reuters.com/india/2009/11/01/delhi-half-marathon-well-done-delhi/

I have 57 days to prepare for the 2010 version of the event. A few factors will work in my favour. For starters I am a lot fitter than I was at this time last year. I will be in the city a week before the event on account of the India Economic Summit of the World Economic Forum. So I can run in the evenings and early mornings and get used to the early-winter conditions in the city.

Wonderful Ganesha festival evening at Chowpatty and Gamdevi

The city was alive, kicking and there was a complete carnival as people took their Ganeshas to the Arabian Sea. I was completely caught up in the energy and festivities and enjoyed every second of it. I'm not sure that the pics I took were outstanding by any stretch of the imagination. But the best part of yesterday was that I was completely involved in the celebrations and had a blast.

The locals in Gamdevi and Chowpatty were more than happy to be photographed and this made it a win-win situation. In all fairness, this is the most fun I have ever had on a Ganesh immersion day.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7444188@N05/sets/72157625015872892/

Goodbye Ganesha

This is the first time since 2001 that I am in the city to witness the immersion of Ganesh idols into the Arabian Sea. I am really excited about being on Girgaum Chowpatty and witnessing the spectacle. The colours, the sounds, the energy!!!

For those that say that it isn't safe since the Lakshar-E-Tayaba or some other terrorists may try and attack the place, all I can say is that Paki loonies are not going to dictate where I go and what I do in my city.

Ganapathi Bappa Moriya.. Pudcha Varshi Lokariya!

Ganapati Bappa

Everybody has the right to celebrate festivals. The poor in this country need these festivals as a way of relieving the stress in their difficult lives. But surely those indulging in violence and hooliganism needed to be brought to the book.

A friend of mine narrated a story about how some people in a procession attacked a terrified dog that was hiding under a rickshaw. They threw a fire-cracker at the poor animal and it died. These sadists seemed to enjoy this. People in these Ganesh processions also molest women and attack pedestrians.

Ganapathi Bappa would strongly disapprove of such actions.

Sympathy for Maoists

One misinformed professor at university went on an anti-government tirade while giving us exercises. I won't go into further details so as to avoid revealing this person's identity. I was flabbergasted when the murdered Maoist Azad was classified as some martyr.

The Maoists are blood-thirsty terrorists that are power-hungry and will murder as many innocent people as possible to meet their goals. What alarms me is that there is an increasing number of people from the Arundhati Roy school who glorify the Maoists. I'll admit that the tribals and people living in the poorest states in India are victims of government oppression. But to glorify killers who want to turn India into a Maoist state... That's just taking things too far.

For those Bombayites that cry over innocent deaths, I wonder how many of you would help an injured man on the streets let alone someone who is dying. More people die in Bombay via road accidents, food poisoning, contagious diseases and falling off local trains than those killed in violent acts. Where is your concern for human life here?

Salman Khan's 26-11 comments

Bollywood actor Salman Khan was in the news once again for the wrong reasons.
http://news.rediff.com/report/2010/sep/12/anniversary-26-11-salman-khan-comments-spark-outrage.htm

Anyone who knows me knows that I am no fan of the actor. The man belongs in jail for running over and killing  a couple of labourers who were sleeping on a pavement in 2002. Having said that, I believe that there is nothing wrong with his comments. (He has since apologized)

The fact is that the hype over 26-11 has very much to do with the fact that Taj and Oberoi were attacked. The elite of South Bombay never bothered when blasts went off in Ghatkopar, the local trains and Zaveri Bazaar. It's when their so-called comfort centres were attacked that they even bothered to care.

Jump off the Empire State Building

When I was in 7th grade, my teacher asked whether I would jump off the Empire State Building if "everybody" was jumping off. I replied that I would with a parachute. That remark didn't endear me with Mrs Eliason.

Back to 2010, for days I was watching people get into a service train at Bandra station that was supposedly going to the railway yard. A fellow commuter told me that the train skips three stations and goes to Andheri station before it goes to the yard. So, yesterday I took the "plunge from the top of the Empire State Building" seeing that I could get a seat on a empty train at rush hour and get home faster. The danger was of course that the train would stop at the yard and that I would have to walk on railway tracks.

I felt a slight tinge of uneasiness when the lights were switched off but the train ride was a pleasure and in 8 minutes I had a comfortable ride to my preferred platform in Andheri.  I am definitely going to make an attempt to get to Bandra station before 8:45 pm every evening, so I can take this plunge everyday!

Ramzan treats at Bhendi Bazaar

I was very apprehensive about taking photographs at Bhendi Bazaar during the Ramzan evening festivities but decided to take my camera along anyway. The highlight of my trip there wasn't the photography but the amazing food. I had my heart's content of haleem, a delicious and spicy soup available only in the holy month. I also had kababs, malpuwa and falooda.

The atmosphere near the Minara Mosque is electric and I was touched by the friendliness of the locals. Not only were they open to me photographing their area but many of them wanted to be photographed. In fact, even the women were keen to be photographed. So much for the stupid stereotypes and fears that I had.

I am so proud of the diversity of this wonderful city. I was transported to another world yesterday evening but at the same time, I was right at home. The "differences" between people of different communities is a fabrication of the media, manipulated by opportunistic politicians.

Bombay- I love you.

P.S. Some of the pics can be seen here

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7444188@N05/

Panic in Powai after crocodile kills a 32-year old man

http://www.mumbaimirror.com/article/2/201008272010082704232841215f6cb1b/Panic-in-Powai-after-croc-attack.html

I spent some wonderful moments in the IIT campus in the late-1990s and an old friend of mine told me on many occasions that the lake has crocodiles. I had no reason to not believe her but today's news is shocking. From being a peaceful, quite and romantic place, the Powai lake has been destroyed. There was a time when I would enjoy the sunset and twilight from outside the IIT guesthouse. There was a lurking fear of snakes, leopards or the mad cow but never once did I fear getting attacked by a croc.

The real problem is that the area around the once-idyllic lake is now a concrete jungle. The lake is covered by water-hyacinths thanks to the untreated sewage that gets dumped there everyday. There's a 5-star hotel, a promenade and a jogger's track. This basically leaves out the IIT campus as the only place that a croc can rest on and take in some sun. So yes, the area in front of the guest house is really dangerous. But I am sure that this man was fishing in the lake.

The Sanjay Gandhi National Park and the green belt around the Aarey Colony need to be protected from greedy builders and politicians, lest we see more deaths that take place as nature claims back what is rightly hers.

I live in Cuffe Parade so I'm better than you

I live in Cuffe Parade and you live in Bandra so I am better than you. I live in Versova and you live in Mira Road, so I'm better than you.

I am not paraphrasing 9-year old kids here. These are people in their late-teens, 20s and even 50s!

I've always heard of people living in the better developed southern part of the city having chips on their shoulders. Their areas are cleaner, more civilized, etc...They conveniently forget to mention that most of those areas were built by the British.

What I have noticed at university and language classes is precisely that this particular chip on the shoulder is something people from every part of the city seems to have. So South is better than north, Bandra is better than all the other suburbs and Juhu takes second place.

All I can say from this hogwash is that there are several people with massive insecurity-based issues. Give me a break Bombay! 60 percent of the people that live here are slum-dwellers. This city is extremely dirty because of 2 precise reasons... A large section of people litter and another large section are too apathetic to the situation and neither stop others from littering or force the municipal authorities to do their job.

Where have you gone Mahatma Gandhi?

Borrowing and adapting from Simon and Garfunkel, "Where have you gone Mahatma Gandhi? This nation needs to turn its lonely eyes to you."

Open Letter to the Rain-Gods

Dear Rain-God (s),

You may be amused at getting a letter from an infidel, kafir, non-believer in a superior being. You may think why this Voltaire-quoting, God-denying creature is getting in touch with you. The fact is that this kafir has no recourse but to try and get this message across to you since you are believed to control the weather.

First of all, let me thank you for blessing this hot, humid and dusty city with a healthy and above-average monsoon.  The lakes are over-flowing and the water supply is almost normal across the city. There is obviously less dust inside the house and my lilly plants are flowering generously. Average temperatures are around 25 degrees above zero. All this is attributable to you.

Having said all this, I request you to stop blessing this city with any further heavy rainfall. We want to walk on the streets without getting our clothes dirty. We want flights, buses and trains to run on time. We want the temperature to more or less stay the same though. So let's make a deal. Keep it cloudy till October-November and give us teasing drizzles so that the weather stays cool.  At the same time, tell the sun that it can have a monopoly over Bombay from December when cold winds from the Himalayas reach down here.

So please be a sport and give us nice weather. You'll make 20 million people happy.

Thanks

Ajay Kamalakaran

Astor Piazzolla

Wow! There are very few things in this world that can uplift my mood the way this man's music can. Astor Piazzolla was one of the greatest composers that ever lived. I fall into a trance when I listen to this music, which blends classical music and jazz into traditional tango. 

Sarkari Naukri

It's a no-brainer that the laziest human beings in the country all dream of 1 thing: A Sarkari Naukri or a government job. It pays well, thanks to the pay commissions set up by the government every 10 years. There is 100 percent job security and the work hours.. nothing can match them.

The lazy clerical duo at the university French department turns up at 11:00 am and "work" for 2 hours before a 1-hour lunch and then come back to "work" till 5 pm. Of course at 4:30, they will refuse to open a cupboard and take out a certificate!

If there was a law of natural justice such people would have to endure torture!

A barrage of public holidays

Today's Pateti, the Parsi New Year. Tuesday is Raksha Bandhan, the festival that celebrates the bond between brothers and sisters. We then have Ganesh Chaturthi, Eid and several other holidays to start off a season of festivities that lasts until the end of December.

Given my hectic schedule, I won't complain about the fact that the university will remain closed on all those days besides giving a month-long Diwali vacation. Seriously though, India needs to curb down on holidays. The sheer number is mind-boggling.

Ramzan photography

Do I or don't I? That's the big question.

Some areas in the city like Mohammed Ali Road and Bhendi Bazaar are predominantly Muslim and are very charming in their own right. Going there at the time that Muslims break their fast would be a wonderful experience considering the religious fervour associated with the holy month.

Taking photographs there may not be the best idea considering how conservative the people are. The last thing I want to do is inadvertently photograph a woman in a burkha and face the ire of the public. My SLR camera is a magnet for attention.

I'll have to think this through. Of course nothing stops me from visiting the area and enjoying the sheer vibrancy of the season.

UPDATED on August 4, 2011

Since google searches are  being directed to this page, I am posting a link of some of the pictures I took last year.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7444188@N05/4959860078/in/set-72157623823412347

http://www.flickr.com/photos/7444188@N05/4959860088/in/set-72157623823412347/

Discrimination against men

Given the fact that women get groped in markets, public transport and in other crowded areas, I fully support the fact that there are ladies' compartments in local trains in Bombay. But every policy has to have limits. I was shocked this morning when I noticed that local buses now reserve almost the entire left side of the bus for women! This is ridiculous. For women who support this policy, I wonder whether they think that equality means extra privileges?

Independence Day

It's ironic that there are people out there who are bitter that independence day happened to fall on a Sunday. That's exactly what has become of the day the country attained independence from the British. So many generations have passed since India was a crown colony that no one values the sacrifices made by thousands of freedom fighters.

The freedom fighters gave up a great part of their youth for the cause so that India would become a country with the very freedoms that we enjoy today. Would I or any middle-class young Indian sacrifice the next 20 or 30 years to bring about freedom from corruption, freedom from the evils of the caste system, freedom from intolerance and freedom from the political class that is exploiting this country in a worse manner than the British ever did? The answer is a big no. I am too selfish and concerned about my own comforts to ever think about a greater cause.

Happy Independence Day! Jai Hind!

Dealing with beggars

We've all heard stories about how beggars are trained in the "art" and they just get a commission on the money they earn, while their "pimp" (used for lack of a better word) gets most of the money. I am pretty sure that most of this is true. Which is why particular streets and signals are demarcated for some sets of beggars.

Once in a while though, even the most hardened end up witnessing a scene that they just can't ignore. In a first class compartment of a local train, I saw a blind, old beggar. The man was coughing so badly that I suspect he had tuberculosis. He must have been well past 70 and this is what his life came down to. I never ever give money to beggars, especially young children, but here I just couldn't bare the thought of not giving some change.

My father once told me of a blind beggar who he gave money to in 1964. The man came to the same bank where my father was working and deposited his earnings. He had 60,000 rupees in his account. This was at a time when a bank officer earned 600 rupees a month! I somehow don't think the sick old man I saw on the train was that lucky.

Energy Express

I was quite disappointed when I found out that my French teacher at university was just substituting for someone else for a month. I enjoyed the lessons taken by the substitute. She had a calm demeanor and was very kind and encouraging. But boy was I in for a shock when the official teacher back.

A hurricane of energy called Jyotsna just flew in from Italy. She's young and a final year Masters student of French, who spent a month in Italy on a scholarship. 'Jo' absolutely set the classroom on fire with her energy and passion. "Anglais est interdite" English is banned in class. 

I sure am looking forward to these firebrand French sessions.

Judge Not

On day one of my French class at university, I had the misfortune of sitting with someone who took being annoying to altogether new level. Mademoiselle X spoke little French, understood even less and on top of that had a major attitude problem. If that wasn't bad enough, she smelt like a skunk. I have, since, made it a point to avoid this person at all costs.

But as the weeks have passed, I have made it a point to NOT have any negative feelings for this girl. He who finds faults in others is insecure himself... I am just paraphrasing something I read somewhere. Someone else complained to me about Mademoiselle X today. They said she was this annoying even in the previous academic year and one day, the whole class ganged up on her and made her cry! I thought that was cruel and told the narrator of this story that we don't have to love her but we can at least be respectful to a certain extent.  The narrator shocked me by telling me that X has a drunk for a father who often beats her. So there it is, X is a very troubled person.. nothing else. I sincerely hope that she has a reason to be smile and be happy.

Out of Africa

Out of Africa is a memoir of Karen Blixen's love for East Africa and its people. Her imaginative and descriptive prose bring East Africa in the waning days of colonialism to life. 

Filled with poetry and tributes to her close friends like the legendary hunter Denys Fynch Hatton, the book is treasure trove of stories. Blixen, who wrote the book under her pseudonym Isak Dinisen, broke many social taboos that were the order of the day in colonial times. 
Her vivid descriptions of the equatorial sky at night, the Rift Valley and the city of Mombasa are absolutely unforgettable. 

Though Blixen has been criticised for comparing people to animals and allegedly glorifying colonialism, Out of Africa stands out as a masterly work of literature, written by Denmark's greatest writer after Hans Christian Andersen

For Raj, even malaria is due to migrants - Hindustan Times

For Raj, even malaria is due to migrants - Hindustan Times

Raj Thackeray is being criticized for his latest remarks. I don't really see eye to eye with just about anything the man says or does. His party's usage of extra constitutional methods to impinge on things like freedom of speech is completely abominable.

But for one second, think about these remarks. If a foreign country said, some Indian immigrants brought the plague or some other disease, would we be so up in arms? There was a case not too long ago when a central Asian nation said a polio strain was traced in the country from Uttar Pradesh, India. Several countries went bananas last year to prevent the outbreak of the so-called Swine Flu. China even stopped all Mexicans at its airports and quarantined them.

The need of the hour is better hygiene and health practices. If only Raj Thackeray's MNS would focus on such issues with real aggression, we'd have a cleaner and healthier India. But I am asking too much.

Water woes

It can be really frustrating to see the city getting flooded everyday and at the same time deal with a water shortage. The municipal authorities will review the water situation on August 15 and then decide whether or not to continue with the cuts.

We've had the best rainfall in 5 years. With two more months to go, the city has already received what's considered a full monsoon quota. So where's the problem? The water hasn't filled two of the lakes that supply water! It's 2010 and the city is not in a position to collect rainwater! There's a complete lack of vision and planning and no middle class resident of this city gives a hoot. So the criminals dominate the municipal corporation and sell drinking water to the 'tanker mafia,' who in turn supply to the slums for a fortune.

We are talking about the largest city of the second fastest growing major economy in the world. Future Superpower my a$$!

Italiano

Io mi chiamo Ajay Kamalakaran. Io abito a Bombay. Si, I am studying Italian now at the university. Every single weekend from now and April 2011 will be spent in the quest to learn the true language of love. Consider the fact that I will be doing the next level at the Alliance Francaise and I will be studying 7 days a week from now till the end of November.

This is really going to be a challenge and I am looking forward to this. Incidentally, I have missed about 18 hours of class already since I joined the course late and there's a test tomorrow. I have way too much pride to not go prepared. So here's to a long night of studying.

Plain Indian?

I've made it a policy to tell people that I have no religion, no caste, no linguistic or regional background and that I am just an Indian. It is irritating that in 21st century India, educated people are obsessed with such things.

I've heard quite a lot of arguments about regional pride and pride in one's culture and one's religion etc but the simple answer from me is that "if you are proud of your background, good for you. My own is personal and really none of your business."

One of the extra-curious kids wanted to know whether I was a Muslim and she then guessed by my first name that I'm not. The 17-year-old went on a tirade about how much she hated Muslims and wanted them out of India. When I told her that variety always enriched India, she told me that she couldn't be tolerant towards intolerant people.

She narrated a story to me about how Muslims living in her housing society slaughtered goats in the common compound and the goat's blood was all over the compound. Apparently when the Hindus complained, the Muslims said, the compound was as dirty after the Hindus celebrated Holi, the festival of colours. The narrator was furious that goat blood was compared to coloured water.

I told that in this day and age, we need to compromise somewhere and reach an understanding. She refused to budge and said her family moved to a society that banned membership to Muslims.

I am not going to judge this girl or the Muslim goat-slaughterers. There has to be a better way of solving such conflicts.

The Pakistan Syndrome

When I came here from New York in 1993, there wasn't much love lost for Pakistan but no one here hated the country. Things changed in March 1993 when 17 bombs ripped across some of the busiest locations in the city, killing over 300 people. The blasts were revenge for the killings of Muslims during communal riots a few months earlier.

Since then, we've had several instances of Pakistani agencies targeting this city. There were bomb blasts in August 2003 and July 2006, when bombs were detonated in local trains . The most audacious attack on the city came on November 26, 2008 when 10 terrorists took the sea route and attacked ordinary citizens in south Bombay.

The point is that these attacks were all carried out by Pakistani state and non-state actors. In the case of the 2008 attacks, ordinary Pakistanis insisted that Hindus and Zionists were the masterminds!

So we, Bombayites, are all the more sensitive when we hear about peace talks with Pakistan. The onus is on the Indian government to protect Bombay from Pakistani terrorists and the Pakistani state.

As for Pakistan, I wish the ordinary people of the country well. But seriously, stay the heck away from us and leave us alone.

Craze for foreign languages

Foreign-language institutes have mushroomed across the city. You can see the posters near bus stops and on walls near railway tracks: "Learn French, Russian, Spanish, Chinese, etc"

People have various motives to learn languages. At French class, there's a young man who wants to work as a tourist guide and is learning English, French and German. There are those that are into it to take private classes and of course there are those that are looking at migrating to greener pastures.

I guess I belong to a minuscule minority that wants to learn a new language for non-commercial reasons. I just want to speak to more people in their native languages and try and do away with English as far as possible. Of course, I also want to watch TV programs, understand music and read books in other languages. There isn't money in these things but there are lots of points vis-a-vis diversity in life.

Migration into Bombay

For years I've heard from many people cutting across religious, linguistic and economic barriers that migration into Bombay needs to be stopped. The fact is that in a democracy you just cannot enforce laws to stop from people coming in.

The solution lies in the development of 20-30 new cities. There are stop-gap measures that can de-congest Bombay. For starters, move the Western and Central Railway headquarters out of this city. There will be a lot of political pressure from the Hindi-belt against such a measure but since the Railway Minister doesn't seem to care either way, this is one step that can be taken.

It's encouraging to know that many mutli-nationals are choosing the Hyderabads and Bangalores to set up base in India. Let's encourage that. People follow economic opportunities. I am sure that people would prefer living in bigger homes and paying less rent and having a somewhat decent standard of living than doing the opposite in this city.

Raindrops in the mornings

I love walking in the university campus in Kalina with its greenery. There's a particular freshness in the mornings with the gentle drizzle and the smell of fresh raindrops on the grass and the trees.

The campus is an oasis of calm in a pretty busy neighbourhood that is one of the main thoroughfares between the western and eastern suburbs of Bombay. Studying in colleges outside the university's campus, I never experienced this kind of feel when I was pursuing higher education. It's indeed a wonderful feeling.

Double-Decker buses

The red double-decker buses are an icon of Bombay. The authorities wanted to phase them out but relented when they were faced with pressure from citizens' groups.

I, for one, love the rickety buses and which is why I am thrilled that there is a direct double-decker bus from the Santa Cruz station to the university. One of the greatest pleasures in Bombay is to sit in the front seat of a double-decker's upper deck. Yesterday was the first time in years I could do so.

The French course at the university is interesting, all the more so, because of an experienced professor who seems to possess the grace, dignity, kindness and patience that is a requisite of being a good instructor. The class is a mixed-bag with some knowing more French than the course will cover and others who have no business in the room.

I can't think of a better way to start off Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays for the next year than being in that wonderful learning environment.

French Course at the university

First of all, I have to say that the University of Mumbai's Kalina campus is a pleasant place. The campus is large, sprawling and has a lot of greenery. The professors there look very classy and dignified and with the sheer number of departments, the place is a temple of learning.

Getting admission into any course is however an obstacle thanks to the government-created bureaucracy and the clerks who act more like professors than the professors themselves.

The first response to anyone who wants to do a course is a "cold hesitation" to help. It's obvious that they don't want to encourage people to enrol for any course. I wonder where this kind of attitude comes from. I can see it going back to India's obsession with excluding people that has its roots in the caste system.

I was told the Diploma had already begun and that I needed to have completed the university's certificate course to qualify. The clerk was kind enough to let me have a word with the head of department and after a 3-minute conversation in French, I was allowed to enrol.

I went back the next day Here's the easy part: Fill in a form and submit copies of academic mark sheets. The tough part is going to a nationalized bank and waiting in a long queue to pay the fees and then coming back and showing the receipt before the clerks close for an hour-long lunch.

It's shame that in 21st century Bombay, banks like Allahabad Bank can get away with treating people so shabbily!!!

All said and done, my new French course starts on Tuesday and that makes me un joyeux homme!

Bombay Monsoons

We're at that stage of the monsoons when the sun doesn't appear for a few days. The weather is moderate and the autos and taxis have the supply-demand ratio strictly in their favor.

After taking two flights to get to the city from Colombo, I was shocked to hear at the pre-paid taxi booth that there was a shortage of taxis. Fleet cabs were also not available. The reason: It's raining heavily!! The taxi drivers that were outside the airport were demanding exorbitant amounts of money even from those that had paid for a prepaid taxi. Of course, there were no traffic policemen(there never are unless you park your car in the wrong place).

We finally had to wait 30 minutes in a queue to get an auto. Rain makes people in this city panic. Some blame it on that disastrous July afternoon in 2005 when it rained so heavily that the city turned into one gigantic river. I remember that horrible evening when the phones went dead and the electricity was switched off for 30 hours. It was a nightmare and the worst flood the city had ever faced.

The city needs the rain. It needs a healthy monsoon to ensure that there are no water shortages in the hot summer months of April and May. But you just wonder why this so-called future superpower can't handle something as routine as the monsoons.