India and its tyst with adult movies

"Cartoons are better than Indian Adult Cinema"- My nine year old 

In the age of smart phones with high speed internet connectivity,one night stands,live in relationships,pre-marital affairs,it is very unfortunate that we do not allow aesthetic adult movies to be made in India.

I think the Indian audience of the age group of  21  upwards is mature and should be given the opportunity to watch good adult cinema.

I believe censor board and the government should change as per the times and not get hypocritical or myopic.In this dynamically changing environment India cannot be deciding on self righteousness in preaching morality.

I believe every generation has its own do & don’t,I am sure when Raj Kapoor did have a bikini shoot of Sharmila Tagore,the entire country did oppose it and did become a topic of discussion in parliament ,but I believe over a period it did change the course of cinema for the better.

I think banning or preventing the filmmakers from making such kind of cinema,robs them of their creative expression.

I am in no way saying we make indecent or vulgar cinema,I am saying erotica is also a genre of creative expression with nudity as a part of it.

We have to allow and give adequate freedom of expression to  filmmakers to make elegant,beautiful,ascetic adult cinema rather than ending up making crap movies  like :kya kool hai hum, grand masti etc.

I believe audiences today are mature enough to understand ,discriminate and appreciate quality cinema.We have to come out of our myopic and stereotype visions and act as per the changing generations.

Also there has to be stricter implementation and enforcement of laws like agebar.
I wait for the day when genuine Indian adult movies find its way into the multiplexes.

Long queues and Demonitization

 I am in queue for Shah Rukh Khan's latest "Dear Zindagi".

A person collapsed before my eyes today....he was also standing in a Queue,...but wait this was not a queue for withdrawing cash from an ATM or bank...he was standing in long queue for buying alcohol.In Kerala queues for alcohol have been very famous and it streches for km and miles,but still I have never seen any political party protest these queues.

Many deaths have happened and continue to happen over the previous decades by the menice of alcohol,but nobody questions it,nobody bans it.Many families lose their near and dear ones for alcohol,many don’t even get to have a decent livelihood due to addiction to alcohol.Many childrens education gets stopped,due to lack of money,many face social stigma ,and no to say about the domestic violence it causes.Many families have got destroyed,but nobody talks about banning them.I am never come across political parties who protest these.

We do stand in longer queues for getting our railway tickets in any of the suburban trains in Mumbai and waiting in Airports,Road Traffic and the queues have been long for ages now but still I do not find any protest for these by any political parties.

Talking about queues closer to my workplace we have long queues in our canteen to buy lunch everyday,but we still find no people protesting.

When will my time come…

“There are no mistakes, only opportunities." – Tina Fey

When will the sun shine

When will the moon soothe back

When will the stars twinkle bright

Are the flowers going to bloom

When are the winds going to blow

When are  the rivers going to flow

When will the waves comfort

When will the thunder strike again 

When will the lightening light again

When will the ocean sing back

When will the nature preserve

Will the birds chirp again

Will the elephant trumpet

Will the lions roar again

When will I start to fly

When will my opportunity come

When will I get to show my work,

When will I be in the media in their Prime Time

When will Indians start looking up to me

When will the World turn up towards me.

                                     

When will my time come…

I Proposed a girl ...And She…

   
   Beauty lies in the eyes of a beholder

I had practiced reciting  my lines since the last evening ,I had rehearsed it pretty well,

I was nervous,my heart racing ,I blurted out…

"I love you and I love you very very much.

Jab bhi main ankhe band karta huan toh tumhe dekha huan (whenever I close my eyes I just see you)

Jab bhi main ankhe kholta huan toh tumhe dehna chahta huan.(whenever I open my eyes I want to see you)

Main tumse aur bas tumse mohabbat karta huan,Aur marte dam tak karta rahunga”(I love you and only love you,and I will love till  death)

And suddenly my eyes opened,and I was awake ,the girl still standing

I proposed a girl ...And she …blushed…

…The seven year old beautiful “Mahalakshmi”.

Parippally orphanage a symbol of love not Taj Mahal

Love is opening up of the soul,not an obsession.

I celebrated my Diwali along with some bright  children of Parippally Orphanage adopted and run by Mata Amritanandamayi Devi Math ,burst crackers with them ,played football and enjoyed every bit of it.

It is the just the joy and smiles on the faces of these children that make Paripally a symbol of Love.

I believe the people who meet the children here light up,rather then the other way round.

Some curious thoughts come to my mind.

I am very astonished that people believe “Taj Mahal” is an epitome of love.Taj Mahal was constructed out of sheer madness and it cannot be a symbol of love.

It is symbol of selfishness, of anarchy and obsession as demonstrated by the Shah Jahan by cutting of the hands of the labourers who built the Taj Mahal so that they are not able to replicate the structure.

I am still astounded by the ignorance of people who call Taj Mahal a monument of love.

A symbol of love ,is a place where people feel happy and smiles come from within the heart and soul –like the Parippally Orphanage. 

Anandam-Parmanadam

Cinema is an art it doesn't give you what you desire - it tells you how to desire.

A malayalam movie film which is fresh and innovative.

It has a fragnance of a “mulla poo”(jasmine) and beauty of a horizon.The charm and innocence of a child’s smile.

It has a refreshing humour which keeps the people coined to their seats for the entire duration of the film.

The film with 20 year olds give a fresh breadth to new age cinema,the director,productor,actors all bring fresh air into the young generation cinema.

It takes you to a fantacy world for the duration of the cinema and keeps to entertained in its real sense still the end which I believe is missing in either hollywood or bollywood movies.

Other fimmakers around the world can look towards Malayalam cinema and can give reins to young hands.

There may not have been a story, no social message but I it provides me enough reason to smile coming out of the cinema hall.

Just a six day Industrial trip to Humpy and Goa –Anandam is Paramanandam.

Misplaced Compassion

Righteousness is the truth within.

Today we are in danger of falling prey to misplaced compassion. Like pleading for the case of Afzal Guru,by some prominent people like P.Chidambaram and a few JNU students.

Also the recent case of Burhan Wani ,being projected as a martyr by some media channels.

I believe totally in the word compassion in both letter and spirit, but shouldn’t we be careful of misplaced compassion. Burhan Wani being treated as  a Hero is pretty unfortunate.

Shouldn’t we  exercise compassion towards our innocent people who have lost life’s because of Burhan and Afzal Guru.Shouldn’t the people killed by these terrorist deserve more respect , thought and prayers.

Shouldn’t the country be righteous towards these innocent citizens whose near and dear ones have been lost.

Shouldn’t the media and the people think a little about the innocent people who have faced the brunt of theses hardcore militants. Also in the cases of some famous film personalities the media does exercise false compassion thus influencing a major chunk of people instead of sticking to the truth and being righteous towards the innocent people who have been affected by them.

Today in the name of compassion we are pardoning hardcore terrorists, (the media projects them as matyrs) we are showing compassion towards them and being absolutely heartless towards the innocent people who were killed by them. Thousands of pages of print media , plenty of prime time has been devoted to these fundamentalists but not a single ounce for my innocent citizens.Are they not our citizens?

Many army men,many paramilitary jawans have lost their lifes doing their duty.There children and mothers  have not done any sin,do they not have any expectations from my country and its people.

Don’t they deserve better. Is law not same to all. Give it a thought.

India and its Ideals

ॐ असतो मा सद्गमय ।
तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय ।
मृत्योर्मा अमृतं गमय ।
ॐ शान्तिः शान्तिः शान्तिः ॥

Meaning

Lead me from falsehood to truth,

Lead me from darkness lead me to light,

Lead me from death to the immortality

Om Peace,Peace,Peace.

India -A land from where spirituality and philosophy have again and again rushed out and deluged the world.A land of the greatest sages from where wisdom originated and spread its wings.

The land with the mighty snowcapped Himalayas at the top and rivers roaring like the oceans. The ideal of India is based on the ages of tapasya and sadhana of its Sages ,Rishis and Mahatma’s-their Renunciation ,not based on its filmstars,cricketors,or politicians.India has been blessed with numerous gems over a period of time-like Lord Krishna,Buddha,Shankara, Chaitanya,Ramakrishna Paramhamsa,Ramana Maharshi and Mata Amritanandamayi Devi to name a few.

Religion is instilled in the blood and veins of every Indian.And their religion is not about fanatism or convertions,their ideal of religion is based on –“Loka Samasta Sukhino Bhavantu” meaning everyone in this world be happy and prosperous.

Indian history also practically validates this argument ,that India has never attacked any other country-it has never believed in the use of force  to get more land or show supremacy though it is the same India which has withstood the shock of centuries,of hundreds of foriegn invasions.It is the same land which stands firmer than any rock in the world with its undying vigour and indestructible life.

Women form a soul in this holy land.Matrudevo bhava –meaning be one for whom the Mother is God.Every women is looked upon as mothers ,there is no question of lust or any carnal desire- that is the ideal of this ancient land unlike the west where women are observed a mere objects for sensory satisfaction.The highest ideal of a wife is purity and being chaste unlike the west.

Here it is very interesting to note that the western media ,asks India to take care of its women-to a country that taught the world how to look upon its women.

In India ,women is the embodiment of sacrifice, from the time of her birth ,to her family , to her husband and then to her children-she sacrifices.In India if father is the breadwinner, mother is the soul of the family .

Indian culture instill values of Atithidevo bhava meaning be one for whom the guest is god.It has been generous and magnanimous in giving back to the world be it knowledge,spirituality,wisdom,yoga or Ayurveda,or the architecture and design of its temples-it never charges.

The values of Indians are rooted in purity ,compassion and truth.

False rape cases on a high…

Strengthen the muscles of your heart not the muscles of your hand-Mata Amritanandamayi Devi

In 2012 India as a whole was shook by the Delhi rape case.And there were lot of outrage shown by media and society to deal sternly with the accused. As a part of a civilized society I take great pride in appreciating the actions of the people of my country,be it activitists,media ,politicians or the judges.

But what is alarming is that such uproar and havoc had been created of the right reasons but the after effects have been gruesome, cruel and harmful.

There has been an increase in the number of false rape cases being reported by women to settle personal scores.

Two of my friends have been at the receiving end of this law .(both different cases).

Under  law of IPC section 376(1),stating ---raping after promising marriage,he was arrested.

And on what basis do they arrest the person ,just on the basis of single police complaint by the girl.No verification,no history of the women is taken in to account.

In an age of live in relationships and premarital stands ,a literate city girl easily misuses this law to get back at the guy ,whom she had physical intimacy with consensually at a time when they were in a relationship. The guy has the full right to say that they were in a mutual relationship and after finding each others differences and attitude had moved on. 

My friends life’s have been shattered, their family have a social stigma attached to them.They have difficulty in seeing what the future would be. The parents face social humiliation everyday. I wonder what is their fault?And what is his?I know the courts would acquit him,but the damage has already been done."Its difffcuilt to walk on the streets outside …people look at me as I am a rapist”—he says."I ask him to tell them to fu*k off”.

The girl on her part has no such baggage,she is not forced to have feel any humialiation,she is full of political vendetta. Her family is not facing any social stigma.And above all if the case which she files goes against her she has nothing to lose.Neither will she have to face any criminal proceedings, neither is any compensation penalty imposed on her.

I call upon all activists,media , lawmakers , law implementers and society to shown the same alertness in dealing with this rising menace of false rape cases  in order to sustain the harmony in a civilized society.

Media so called fourth pillar of democracy plays an important role in creating awareness about provisions of law and consequences of filing false rape cases against innocent alleged accused .It is important to mention the observations of Fast Track Court Judge while acquitting the alleged accused and highlighted the role of media in following words:

“I hope and trust that the media, which is an important pillar of our democratic set up, would strive to highlight the plight of rape accused after their acquittal by courts in the same way in which they report filing of rape cases.” [Para 12]

Court further observed that “Be that as it may, the accused herein is acquitted. This is all what this court can do in his favour. Rest is upon the society in general and media in particular how they would treat the accused hereafter.” [Para 13]

I have written a few posts on my blog on women empowerment,I believe in it completely that women have to be empowered---empowered in the heart rather than in the head,as my spiritual guru Mata Amritanandamyi Devi puts it clearly “Strengthen the  muscles of your heart not the muscles of your hand.”---only then true empowerment happens.

This post on Quora does provide an insight

Sharing

https://www.quora.com/What-are-some-cases-stories-where-some-women-have-misused-the-Indian-laws-that-were-made-to-protect-women

My Home

Sometimes I feel my home is like the GAZA strip.

I always listen to the fights between my father and my mother ( for almost few decades now).

They fight, quarrel, abuse and it continues for hours .

At least there is a ceasefire in Palestine-Israel conflict, there is no ceasefire at my home.

It continues for hours, days and months, nonstop without any interruption.

Words are exchanged, mother in laws and father in laws names are taken.

I watch in silence, just witnessing, sometimes trying to calculate who will win this one, just like an Indo-Pak match, but I am sure not to take sides, least I may get ripped apart.

But over the years it has become a joy now to listen to their fights, fully understanding that emotions and understanding are not about artificial-ism they have to be real, one does not fight if you don’t have the love for the other person.

Now if they don’t fight  they may not be able to sleep well and if I don’t hear them fight I cannot sleep well.

When I reach home and listen to them fight, I know everything is alright.

Love has many dimensions; it can be expressed in different ways just that is needs to be original.

And thank gods that India does not have gun and bullets freely available as in the US.

A trip to Goa village,Malcopon.

"If you wait for the certificate from everybody,you would not get the certificate from God" - Mata Amritanandamayi Devi

I am working with the best minds of Amrita. Six third year mechanical students, all guys. Had a fun filled 7 days. These were the best days of my life spent after joining Amrita.

My internship to a small village in the interiors of Goa, Malcopon ,was really worth it.

Away from the clutter of my office staff and superiors, it was seven days of heaven. As I said working with an extraordinary team with the minds who were around 20 years old, matching much to the caliber of the IITians and IIMs,infact a touch above them always, in the nature of being ready to serve spontaneously.

We were all new, buzzing with the uncertainty of how the villagers would be to us. That was the excitement of not knowing how things were and what to expect.

We were glad that they accepted us wholeheartedly with open arms. We got started with playing a football game with the children. And that served as an icebreaker.

Work started with meeting few locals asking them about their problems, issues that the villagers face. They were very open with their inputs and honest.

Later on work caught momentum and was carried out and various things were accomplished:health camp was conducted,PTA was conducted,Yoga session was held,Amalabharatam session was conducted,Tree Plantation drive was conducted.

We also had our focus areas on education and youths. As part videos were shown and a street play was conducted with the village youth and in their language konkani.

I am very happy with the time spent with these guys and wish them all the best for their future endeavors and hopefully we will have a lot more opportunities to explore the world around.

We would thank Amrita University and our chancellor Mata Amritanandamayi Devi for providing us with the practical opportunity to learn from the society.Hopefully many more universities will follow suite like the IITs,JNUs and Jadavpur University.

Myth: Patriotism restricted to Indian Residents

The identity that was largely believed in post independence Indian times was that anybody who was patriotic had to join the Indian Army. A person not in the defense services was not considered patriotic and was self centered.

I like to believe a farmer who provides us food is as patriotic as the army men.

Times have changed and many people today feel that a person who resides in India is only an Indian. I believe it is a conservative mindset, which has led us to believe the same.

I believe that Gandhi came through after sometime in South Africa and England and he was considered as a patriot. Swami Vivekanda preached his Vedanta in the west and his patriotism was never questioned.

I like to believe an NRI who stays in Silicon Valley, funds or invest in the startups in India is as patriotic as anyone who resides in India. He helps in policies governing the relations with Indian subcontinent or with its neighbor Pakistan.

Many persons pretend to be patriotic by shouting slogans and being residents if India permanently.

I would like to believe in the present context the person who works with devotion for the country irrespective of where he stays is truly patriotic and ought to be supported.

Story of a Compass

The best teachers teach from the heart ,not from the book.

Early in my school days my interest in mathematics was very limited, I used to do algebra alright, but geometry would just turn me off.

My maths teacher always stressed on the point that in geometry one can score the full marks and that it was very simple and easy.Still I never liked it,I stuck to algebra to get though.

In one of the Parent teacher meetings,she asked me why I did not like geometry,I said I did not like it because I did not like the compass,I just feel like taking the compass and poking somebody’s eyes with it.

She became a little afraid.

What did she do?

She brought me another compass, a red coloured one, plastic made.
Suddenly I started liking my new found toy,compass,my new found love towards the compass resulted in me spending more time with geometry and my interest towards mathematics grew.

Slowly Mathematics became my favourite subject in a few years time, every thanks to my school Maths teacher.

The Surya Putra:'KARNA'

Destiny decides who you meet in life but it’s only your heart that can decide who gets to stay in your life….

"Everything won’t go the way you want to.Everything is destiny.That’s what the law of Karma states.Even if you do nothing wrong, you may be at the receiving end", I have heard many people saying.

When Nokia was being sold out or taken over by Microsoft , its CEO remarked that it did not do anything wrong but we lost out.(Android had taken over the smart phone category and Nokia was out of business).

My mind goes back to KARNA,the character in Mahabharata,a skilled Archer,supremely talented,known for his generosity,know as danveer karna.But when the battle of his life was fought he lost out to Arjuna.
Though he had more expertise and skill than Arjuna.

He had two curses in his life ,one that he would not be able to recollect the teachings when he needs it the most:By parasurama as he had not declared himself to be a kshatriya while learning the archery.And second that his wheels of his chariot would get stuck in the land and would be a reason for his death:By a brahman farmer whose cow was accidentally shot down by Karna,his only source of living.

What was the fault of Karna? Is it Karna’s destiny?
The first curse that he was a ‘Kshatriya’ was not even know to him.
And second says that he killed a cow was accidental,it was not even in rage.

The scriptures and the gurus say it is “Karna’s Karma”.I leave it to you to decide.

Coming back to Nokia I am sure it will bounce back to be one of the leading Smart phone manufacturers again.

Harsha Bhogle- A Global Indian Icon

A river keeps flowing with fresh water,irrespective of the obstructions.

Harsha Bhogle is easily one of the most iconic figures Indian youth 

looks upto.He has defined passion and interest with a blend of 

professionalism in a country marred with politics and religion.

Harsha a graduate from IIM's rose above corporate blue collor 

jobs in multinational companies to follow his passion.

He is easily one of the most unrated,iconic,rolemodels 

Indian youth feels to emulate.

His simple demeaneor with a class,makes him miles above the rest.

His professionalism that he brought to the work made him the 

only Indian to be on a foreign channel commentating on Indian cricket.

His commentatory makes him a world class Global Indian  much on 

power with Amitabh's and Dhoni's.

The recent events of Harsha Bhogle's contract been cancelled by the 

BCCI has been very disapointing and reminded of the times of licence 

raj system when everyone needed to bow before the powerful 

irrespective of talent.

I am sure he will know better,but as a fan of Harsha ,I think he should
look this as an opportunity to commentate for maybe an English premier
league or Spanish premier league or La liga championships.
Maybe an Indian might make it to a international football league in this century itself.

Some of  Harsha's Best:  

Harsha Bhogle on Chris Gayle's style of play during the IPL


Harsha Bhogle: "6 and 4 seems to have become the new binary code for this man (Chris Gayle)."


After Sachin Tendulkar played a trademark, glorious drive off Ishant Sharma in the IPL


Harsha Bhogle: "Open the textbook, turn to page 32!"


During the tri-series involving India, Australia and England in 2015, Harsha took a clever jibe at Sourav Ganguly


Sourav Ganguly: "To be honest, I really enjoy hearing you talk about the game Harsha. So much passion, so much in touch with the game. You've been around for a while though."


Harsha Bhogle: "But i never took my shirt off."


After multiple reprieves for Virender Sehwag in New Zealand


Harsha Bhogle"It's that kind of a day. Sehwag can walk blindfolded across a busy highway today and not get run over."

On Rajat Bhatia's gentle bowling:


Harsha Bhogle: "Any bowler has three pace variations - fast, medium and slow. But Rajat Bhatia has slow , slower and slowest."


Harsha Bhogle displays his quick wit once again to Nasser Hussain


Nasser Hussain: "When can I see India playing in a football World Cup?" (this was during 2014 FIFA World Cup)


Harsha Bhogle : "It's better not to participate rather than getting knocked out in the first round."

Disclamer: The above commentary has been  compiled from yahoo.

Mata Amritanandamayi Devi

"We should never forget that after every night,there is a dawn.We should never lose our optimistic faith. " -Amma

Oh! The giver of rains.

Oh! The giver of food grains.
Oh! Who brought back my mother from the jaws of death.

Oh! The destroyer of evil.

Oh! Who is immersed in Krishna.

Oh! Because of whom Devi is alive today. 

Oh! Who medidates on the syllable OM!

Oh! Who sings on Krishna

Oh! Who radiates light and energy every moment.

Oh! Who can fly with the speed of light.

Oh! The purifier of the Pampa and the Ganga

Oh! Who cleaned the premises of the Sabrimala and restored its lost glory.

Oh! Who erupts like the volcano to protect her children.

Oh! Who lovingly caresses and corrects her disciples.

Oh! Who hugs tirelessly and effortlessly day and night.

Oh! Whose hugs make you feel Self Realized.

Oh! The pacifier of the wounded and distressed.

Oh! The giver of solace to the poor and the sick.

Oh! Who is completely absorbed in the self.

Oh! Who is as still and solid as the mightly Himalayas.

Oh! Who protects and preserves nature

Oh! Who stands tall and strong as a rock in the face of calamities and difficulties.

Oh! Who fights and conquers natures fury be it Tsunami,floods or earthquakes.

Oh! Who rushes with relief and rehab in times of disaster .

Oh! Who rescued millions in calamities and disasters like the Tsunami.

Oh! Who waits patiently for her disciples to sprout.

Oh! You are MATA AMRITANANDAMAYI DEVI.