The Puzzle that is India

Damn! I missed all the action on TV thanks to this stupid viral-bacterial infection I'm down with. I slept and intermittently coughed through all the steamy speeches by Omar, Rahul and Manmohan. Although it was nice waking up to the good news of the UPA victory. The bigger and better news of course was the much needed side-lining of Mayawati. I don't think I know enough dirty words to malign her to my heart's fill. 

There is another way of looking at this though. I mean, apart from the I-can't-believe-she-has-prime ministerial-ambitions. For a country that has a 2000 year old history of caste discrimination and related cruelty, it is absolutely fantastic that a Dalit, uneducated woman has the gall to vie for a place in national politics. That her indubitable strength as the UP Chief Minister, largely lies also in her ability to get the Brahmins on her side is the other part of the miracle. 

Yes, it ridicules the Indian self perception of being a first world, educated democracy but, maybe maintaining that self-perception is not as important as exposing the ugly underbelly of the real India. The real India has more underprivileged Mayawatis and Laloos leading a tortured existence every single day of their lives than we think we know of. India is not just the english speaking, jean-clad, brown boy we see in Khan market. Its way more. And its this India that is inspired and dares to dream of a changed fate everytime it sees the likes of Mayawati calling the shots in the political high circles. So while I don't support Mayawati's political theatrics and find it utterly nauseating that she should lead an alternative front against the UPA or any other national party for that matter, I also think that it represents an interesting paradigm in the changing power-play of the Indian socio-political fabric. 

After a sikh Prime Minister and a Muslim President an opposition led by a Dalit woman is all we needed to complete the Indian puzzle!

Anyway, I hope the Left has learnt its lesson for the day. I also hope that its the beginning of the end for them in Bengal and Kerala too. What Bengal needs is an independent Marwari CM and Kerala, an honest Chandrababu Naidu, if thats even a possibility. 

One person I felt really bad for is Somnath Chatterjee. I really liked the guy.

Its a little past 4 in the morning right now and having slept all of the previous night AND day I think my eyelids are a bit too tired to take anymore of it. So I'm sitting in the living area, treating myself to TV, peanut butter Reeses and oh yes, my brand new Apple Air! 

Sleep well world!

Blue Frog and all that Jazz

Trivializing your circumstances does make living them down easier. So if the tap's not throwing out the usual quantity of water or you get dumped by the one you knew you ought to have dumped long ago , all you say to yourself is "shit happens, dude" and suddenly, almost all is well with the world.
Seriously, shit does happen. Sometimes it even hits the fan and then no matter how much you groan and moan, it seldom cleans up on its own. But what actually makes it stink is when we make a big deal of it( which is admittedly natural but also quite easily avoidable). The day we write it off by realizing how minuscule a part of the universe it is and how inconsequential it is in the larger scheme of things, dealing with it becomes a lot easier.
Disappointments are rarely a part of the climax. Every story has a happy ending, sooner or later. You just have to wait long enough for the story to unfold to completion.


Why am I talking so much nonsense? Its because I have little else to write about. The world is going nowhere, politics is as horrifically predictable and flamboyant in its hype as it was meant to be and there are no heroes good enough to deserve mention. Maybe I should simply grumble.

Bombay, by the way was a helluva lot of fun this time. Blue Frog for brunch from 11-4- bang in the middle of the day! I got frequently twirled by Kevin and another and was thrilled to bits with the charged, happy atmosphere they'd managed to create. These are the places that make you wonder if magic does in fact exist, and with things like Apple butter and blue cheese mousse on the buffet menu its difficult not to firmly believe so. The previous night it was Jazz by the bay/Jazz night-needless to say, absolutely brilliant.

The other highlight of the week was "Jaane tu..". It had all the trappings of a Bollywood classic. Fresh, intelligent faces, a great script, music by Rehman and the midas touch of Amir! Imran, his nephew is clearly a cut above the rest, both in terms of sheer talent AND good looks. He's got this soft intensity in his eyes which has the potential to drill a hole right through you. A bit like Michael Scofield of Prison Break, really. Hmmm... the movie on the whole was nothing spectacular, but a must-watch-once feel good sort.

Must get going now.