Deck Of Cards

With face down, each card looks alike. The unknown factor of what card will be pulled is only a game of chance. And so is life.
In one month, I saw a range of ups and downs in personal and professional lives of various people including me. This is not the first time that I have been awed by things around me. However, this is the first time when I thought about the events in the perspective of probability.
I am not a believer of faith or destiny. These terms mean that there is always something written for me and I feel that what comes tomorrow is a result of today. However, there are cases when the tomorrow doesn’t correlate with my actions today. There were some events over which I didn’t have any control. These events were beyond my understanding and I can only attribute them to something called “uncertainty”. How big is this uncertainty? The dilemma I have is that on one hand I toil today to make my future better and on other hand I miss out on my today when there is this “uncertainty” that can change my tomorrow.
Tomorrow has always fascinated millions like me; most wish that they knew their tomorrow. This wish to catch the impossible deprives us to look at what is eternal truth; Today. While we strive and toil to make the tomorrow a better place, we miss out on the present that is staring at us. I ponder over what Mahatma Gandhi had said. "Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”
Today is clear as crystal while tomorrow is like a pack of cards that can bring anything to the table. But I do not want to kill tomorrow before it is born since I know that the way I spend today will shape up my tomorrow. I will have to live the current moment and I will have to make my actions count towards the unknown tomorrow. I should see today as the most important day in my life similar to a proverb that says, “Today is the first day of the rest of your life”
Yes, today is what I have control of and all I can say about the rest is that I will have to wait and watch the card that is thrown at me when it is thrown at me.

नेता चप्पल!! (Neta Chappal)

I do not know whether “Hawaii Chappals” are from Hawaii or not. However, I know that these flip flops are now truly justifying the name “Hawaii” as they are becoming more air borne (“Hawaii” in hindi) in recent times.
A new form of rebellious activity was started by Muntadar al-Zaidi, a Iraqi journalist who threw shoes at President Bush. The active followers of that event were seen recently in India during various election rallies. Three separate incidents that followed in India include

• a journalist throwing a shoe at Home minister P Chidambaram during a press conference in New Delhi
• a retired school headmaster lobbing a footwear at Congress candidate in Kurukshetra Navin Jindal during a poll rally and
• a former functionary of the saffron party throwing a slipper at BJP leader LK Advani during a public meeting.

I think that the chappal industry should take note of such occurrence and come up with marketing strategies for better chappal sales. Changes to pitch and product can help them sky rocket their chappal sales.
Brand
Branding of the chappals will determine the success of the company. Chappal should be branded after a Neta. The designation and the post of the Neta should determine the price of chappals e.g. Nagarsevak chappal will be less expensive than corporate chappal while Prime Minister chappal will be more expensive than Chief Minister chappal, etc. The style of the chappals should be based on the deeds of the politician i.e. Lalu chappal will be made up of Chaaraa (fodder) while money bills will decorate Amar Singh chappals.
Product
The old thong based chappals should get a makeover. Quality and properties of the chappal should change to serve the redefined purpose. The chappal should have typical qualities that will determine the ability of the product to cater new cause. For instance, a chappal that can travel 100 feet will be more reliable than the chappal that can travel only 20 feet. Similarly, the accuracy of the aerial route of the chappal will also determine the quality. Chappal companies can also become creative by creating new age chappals for the cause. New age Chappals should be able to trace their target in the crowd. Although the sole of the chappal can wear out fast, the chappal should be able to tear apart the dirty soul of the Neta.
Awareness
In the era where everything is “Go Green”, the chappal industry should not be left behind. The retaliation with chappal should be marketed as more eco friendly than bombing, shooting or blasting. Also, these chappals should be bio degradable and should leave no trace after hitting the target.

In this chappal world, there would be a chappal for every crook in town. Chappal sale will determine the political situation of the nation. The chappal sale will also determine who should or shouldn’t be given an election ticket. In this world, the chappals will say what people cannot express. And all we can say will be that “Chappal Chappal pe likha hai khaane waale ka naam”.

PG-13 : Parents Strongly Cautioned

Today I read another horror story of a student committing suicide in India. This must be 10th case that I have heard or read in last 30 days. It seems to be a common event in India.  I have not run the statistics but I can say that if guns are killing innocent kids in US, then education is killing innocent students in India.    

What drives these actions? How disturbing is the student who commits such an action? What is bothering him/her? I attribute the actions to 3 basic root causes.

- Society 

- Parents 

- Competition 

Although all 3 are interlinked, they individually fuel the system that drives the students to fall victim.   

Society: 

As a kid, I always heard only 2 professions; doctor and engineer. What is the big deal with these 2 professions? I know of many doctors who struggle to practice while engineering field has mocked itself after the IT boom. I am an Industrial Engineer who is working in a financial field and I know that there are several who do the same.   

There is a natural segregation in the education system as well. If you think that caste system has corroded the system in India, then think about how the education system has divided the mass. For example, MBAs, MDs, IAS officers and few other Masters professional are the elite class of today. Engineers, doctors and CAs fall below the elite class. The B.Coms, B.A.s and other bachelor degrees are left behind in the rat race for supremacy.   

I remember that after my 10th grade results, it was a clear prioritized list; try for Science then Commerce and then Arts. In a way, the sequence is still maintained barring few who rebel and make a career in whatever they choose. However, if you ask the society to choose for you then the list is very clear.   

Parents: 

If you thought that parents should take care to ensure that the kids don’t hurt themselves, then you will be wrong. Today, the parents are more hyper about their kid’s exam than the kid itself. I have seen parents get nervous breakdown when their kid under performs. And please understand that “underperform” is a relative term over here. The kid might be good but is not as good as another kid in your colony or family. I have seen parents compare and even give example of other kids. How will a kid feel when his/ her parents are praising someone else? Is it right to compare siblings?   

Parents are nowadays seeking help of expensive tuition. A first grader is working more than 40 hours a week (probably more than the parents). A daily schedule of a primary school kid begins with school, then tuition, homework and finally with some extra curricular activity than is deemed “cool” in the society. The kid doesn’t have time to be kid.   

The advertisement and marketing business is not falling behind as well. They are coming up with products that will enhance your memory or make you more active at school. Once my mom was asked what she feeds me during the exams. This is one of the most hilarious questions that I have ever heard. Of course, my mom truthfully answered “dal, bhaat (rice), bhaaji (veggies), poli (bread)”. The point is the extent to which parents struggle to make their kids survive the stiff competition.   

Competition: 

It is a rat race. The bar keeps on rising. In 1993 when I completed my 10th, getting 85% in SSC was considered good enough. Today, my nephews and nieces cannot think of anything below 90% to catch up with the average. They will work crazy hours, spent sleepless nights, read thousands of pages, attend several tuition. All this and more only to pass a school exam that will take them to a higher grade. The competition becomes stiffer as you move up the grade. The backpack that weighed 10 pounds in first grade will weigh 30 pounds in fifth grade. With this rate I can assure that if the student cannot make it in the highly competitive society as a professional, then he surely will become a successful coolie.   

Special classes conducted by schools show the desperation of schools to outperform the competition. Just like students who are pawns in this competition, the schools too strive hard to maintain the top position. The selection criteria to get into school are stiff as well. My brother and sister-in-law were asked to produce their degree documents for their kid’s admission. The concept was to judge the kid’s intelligence based on his parent’s education. Such is the competition to be at the top.   

Finally, after all the struggle of getting into a good school, attending the best tuition and eating the most nutritious food, the student can fail. This failure is taken as a disgrace for the student, his parents, his school and everyone related. The student knows it all but is too young to bare the pressure. Imagine a 12 year old who failed a test facing his parents. He doesn’t have the guts to withstand that storm; a storm that is created by his parents themselves and will bring shame to his parents. Scared of the outcome and being a novice in this cruel society, the student pays the ultimate price.

Society, parents and competition are just fuel to the ultimate fire. This fire of educational excellence has been there for years. But recently the game has reached another level. The number of suicides has increased over period. The educational pressure is not only taking away the childhood from these kids but sometimes is also taking away their lives. Where will it stop? How will it stop?

Six Inches of Separation

Thousands of feet above ground and miles away from those that matter to us. In this high and long journey, we are only inches away from someone we have never met before and probably will never ever meet again. The 6 inches of separation between the 2 of us is more than just distance between adjacent seats. I cannot resist thinking the relevance of the fellow passenger in our life for those few hours.    

Air travel might be exciting for few. But after having traveled for a while, I am too tired to get into the plane and spend helpless hours staring at the seat in front or gazing at the sea of clouds. I do not mind traveling by road as I can have control over my actions and am free. However, on a flight, I would be clueless as I am stuck in mid air with no option but to make most of what I have. No Superman, Spiderman or miracle is going to come to my rescue. The only people who might help are the flight crew who has the responsibility of all passengers and probably my fellow passengers. But do I even know this passenger?   

All types of people have accompanied me on such journeys. Different age groups, different races, different sexes, different social statuses and even different personalities have shared those 6 inches of separation with me. I am always ready to understand this next seat neighbor. I have learnt that these people tell a lot about the world we live in. Lot of topics are discussed and talked with people around you. These talks become great discussions since there is nothing at stake and people express themselves freely. A fellow passenger is someone from whom you can learn a lot; about life experiences, different views and also about different cultures.   

In my few years of air travel, I have been engaged on several topics of discussion with these fellow passengers. I remember a middle aged woman who discussed religion with me for couple of hours. She and I discussed Christianity and Hinduism and their messages. I learned a lot about their religion in those couple of hours than ever before in my life. I am sure that I influenced her thinking about Hindu religion as we both shared our thoughts and experiences. On similar lines, a European guy who had been traveling was keen on knowing about India and the sub-continent in general. At the end of those brief 45 minutes discussion, he was all set to plan his next trip to India. He also educated me on his trip to Africa and South America. Once, I met an old man who knew more than 10 languages and was sharing his experiences about how he was motivated to learn so many languages. I became a zealous fan of that 60+ year old man. I did teach him few words of marathi (he already knew little bit of hindi).   

Along with these culturally diverse discussions, I had few global discussions with few enthusiasts as well. As I was browsing through the WSJ, my fellow passenger couldn’t help peeping in. This was a good enough ice breaker for us and for the next few hours, we were debating over economic policies of the US and UN. Several ideas were put forth and although we didn’t change the world in those hours, we certainly gained good knowledge about people’s perception towards current Global economy. Another hot topic around global awareness has been global warming. Few students in my flight were discussing the polar melting and Al Gore’s documentary. It is an interesting topic in which everyone agrees about global warming but noone is ready to change his/ her own life to help slow down the process.   

In the recent times, passengers are looked upon with suspicion as well. Even the sanest person in this high fly journey is wary about the co passengers. In the light of events like 911 and other crazy hostage situations, every person on the flight is on high alert about their fellow passenger. Recently, I heard a case where a passenger raised an alarm when she saw her fellow passenger reading a book that had the word “Crash”. The fellow passenger turned out to be some official who was reading some work related notes. My discussions about terrorism are the most passionate. Although this is a very sensitive topic on an aircraft, I have seen that everyone has a unanimous opinion and stand.

The journey in the pressure controlled capsule where passengers cannot do much, provide a conducive environment for sharing thoughts, experiences and more without getting distracted. Some passengers are more willing to talk than others. But you will find someone who is ready to share their story. Everyone has a story to tell and you can relate to or contribute your few cents to every story you hear. There is always a “you” hidden in all those stories or discussions and in a weird way, you can relate to this stranger on the flight. 

Are we truly related to this stranger? Does the 6 inches of separation symbolize the 6 degrees of separation?

I wonder!!

For Hook and by the Crooks

Indian politics has always fascinated me for the publicity and the glamour attached to it. Cricket, Bollywood and Politics are the most famous and most earning personalities in the country. The first 2 are modes of entertainment and are a matter of choice for Indian mass. Politics is a mandatory topic and everyone; from the filthy rich to the downtrodden gets impacted by it. There are 2 main questions that I ask myself to reason out the glamour of politics. 

• Who are these people? 
  
• Why do they do it?     
  

Who are these people? 

The question is “who should these people be?” A person who represents the common man, voices their concerns and works for them, should be someone from them. Is it true?   No politician is a common man. When was the last time anyone from Gandhi family could relate to the general mass of India? A well known actor or actress cannot be a common man either. Raj Babbar or Jaya Pradha can have glamour attached to them. But can they really represent the true Indian? Govinda didn’t have the spine to hold the dam when the city was down under water. On the other side, cricketers like Sidhu can only mock the constitution of India. This is the story of selection criteria of politicians.   

I will still be fine with well known personalities to run the race if the whole idea is to get people to vote based on their bias. However, it is scary when these representatives are not only least related to common man but also active or passive law breakers. Sanjay Dutt was released from jail less than 2 years back and is a suspected accomplice of Mumbai Terror in early 90s. Several hundred candidates with voting tickets have a case pending in the court of law. Some of them commit crime during the election time itself. Mr. Varun Gandhi can openly pass raciest comments and instead of condemning him, several political parties whole heartedly support him. Arun Gawli, a known gangster is fighting election from jail. How crazy can the system go? Why is the land of saints represented by bunch of crooks?   

Why do they do it? 

Power, Paisa (money) and Prasiddhi (fame).  Power is an addiction and those who taste it cannot let it go. They want it at any cost. Same goes for money and fame.   We saw many talk trash and comment about stupid things just to be in the limelight. We hear radicals talk about needing a “marathi” PM (pointing to himself) while others gauging relocation of IPL outside of the country as “shame to the country”. The trick to arouse the sentiments of Indian mass has been the strategy of many for years.   The politicians are hooked on seeing their image on the television screen and big hoardings. It doesn’t matter for what reason they are being screened as long as they are seen by the junta. A political hook keeps them happy and famous.   

This system is similar to corruption. Why only blame the person who takes bribe? We should also blame the person who gives bribe. A similar story can be told in this context. Along with the glamour crazy crooks who want to be big, we should ask the question to the mass on why they get fascinated by these people, follow them blindly and flock to get close glimpse. In the population of over a billion, we worship these handful people who nowhere belong to the general mass; these people who are being put on the pedestal by us in the first place. Do they really mean good of us? Will they understand our issues? Can they stand along side with us when the calamity hits the common?

 

In the end, we always see the common man as an old, bald helpless person who is simple and unglamorous. He is no crook and he only wishes for roti, kapada and makaan (food, clothing and shelter). So why are the politicians anything but the above?