Category: India

The True Hero of the CWG Games

The True Hero is the faceless Indian as Anuradha Bakshi points in her blogpost  ‘Salute-them-we-must’

Must Read for every Indian.

We sit in our plush offices, our fancy cars and houses and criticize out loud when the media hypes CWG disasters. We forget the people who worked at a price that you pay for your coffee at Barista and Starbucks and in conditions where you would never step into.

We crib about our government’s shortcomings and forget to pay our respect to the labourers who toiled hard to make these games a success.

In our constant comparison to the western world – we forget, we forget to appreciate the efforts that have gone in this event from people who will never get any recognition forget rewards.

Therefore, take a moment from your busy lives and salute these wonderful people – that’s the least we can do for them.

http://www.tehelka.com/channels/TheHub/2010/Oct/09/images/slideshow/slideshow1.asp

 

 

Celebrating 60 years of being a Republic

Happy Republic day to all. The post comes late in the day cause I was at work. When you are abroad, one of the perils is being at work on Independence Day and Republic Day. Missed the parade again. I remember running from school after the flag hoisting ceremony to catch the parade live.

However, luckily got to attend a short but lovely ceremony at DIFC, Dubai. SBI Dubai organized the program for all.  While we sang the National Anthem along with the clipping below; as always my heart swelled with pride, got goose bumps and felt a tear in my eye.

India is special undoubtedly, and it pinches me real hard to be staying away from her. My mother, my beloved country. Saluting her indomitable spirit and leaving you all with two of my favourite renditions of our national anthem.

Jai Hind

Video 1 : Rendered by India’s finest vocalists.

Video 2 : Rendered by India’s musical geniuses.

In Memory of My Mumbai – My Beloved Bombay

This blog was quiet on the one day when every other blog was not. Though the first thing that I wanted to do was write – I refrained. It causes me too much pain – to revisit the blood bath of those 3 days, recall the nightmare through the eyes of those who survived and relive the torture that the victims went through.

I’ve personally not come to terms with accepting 26/11 attack and I know I never will. Yes my life did go on normally maybe because I was not among the ones directly affected – I did not lose any loved ones in that attack and I was not present in Mumbai then. But every gory detail I saw on the television set those 3 days, left me a nervous heartbroken person from within. Helpless and hurt – almost a victim; cause in my capacity there was nothing I could have done to help reduce the mayhem caused on that Black Wednesday night in Mumbai. People at least took the streets to join in the candle night vigils and support the ones who sacrificed their lives in this attack – I was simply at home far away from my city and my country – helpless.

I know there are ways that I can help but I wonder how much of help would that be. The perpetrators of the crime are still living scot-free and the one man who is held captive, still awaits a ‘fair trial’ despite millions having seen him live in action on television and at the CST murdering millions. Yes, we are a great democratic country with a fine judiciary system. I cannot change it, nor have I tried to, so I won’t blame it. I’ll just be patient and wait, just as I’m still awaiting those numerous decisions on the bomb blasts that have shaken my city in the last 16 years.

People talk about her undying spirit, her indomitable soul. Earlier she was beaten and she was hurt but last year she was raped. Brutally raped by 10 cruel demons in full view seen by millions and yet none of us could save her. She has got back on her own feet – forgetting the scars. A rape is the worst crime of all and cannot be forgotten – not for the victim and yet my darling city has managed to do that – lift herself up and resume normality yet again. How she has managed to do it, I do not know, but I do hope she knows that we have not forgotten and we will never ever forget.

Every year, every day we remember her and the ones who died saving her. We don’t need an anniversary reminder to remember that pain – it is living within us every single day since it happened.

I pray for the victims and their families that they will someday be able to find the peace they have been longing for and in the effort we all will too.

My beloved Bombay, My Mumbai, you make me proud – for all that you have endured. One day I promise you will be proud of us – for I know we will somehow figure a way out to get our revenge, we will in some way or the other – all your kids will find that way out.

Has justice finally been served ?

I came across this post by IHM – Who will POTA empower. IHM puts a voice to all the thoughts that went around in my head when I read about this case.

If Ishrat is indeed innocent then is the cold-blooded murder under POTA justified by the police? Was there enough evidence to shoot the young girl in such a manner? If she was indeed guilty why did she not get a fair trial?

Kasab goes and murders a thousand people in front of our eyes – there are numerous eye witnesses and evidence is caught on camera yet his trial continues for a year, so why did Ishrat not get one?

A friend of mine wrote to me in response that sometimes it is worth to sacrifice innocent lives if in the longer run it saves a million. I agree not – taking innocent lives is simply not acceptable when the real criminals are running scot free. It is fairly easy for us to pass judgements since our near an dear ones are not involved. God forbid if that were to happen would we be so cold-hearted and judgemental about Ishrat’s case

That time of the year again…

Every year post Jan ‘06, despite being inactive since May’06 , the blog has witnessed maximum hits as 15Aug and 26Jan approach!

The reason is this post – Patriotic Fervour

I get back to my school days when we would eagerly await these 2 days so that we could go all out to sing these beautiful songs. Anytime, any day these songs are top on my favourite lists. Here is getting nostalgic again. If I’ve missed out- please add in yours!

A very Happy Independence Day in advance to all of you!

 

P.S: The most searched song is “Hum Sab Bhartiya Hain”which remains my favourite till date, of all the songs we learnt at school!

That time of the year again…

Every year post Jan ‘06, despite being inactive since May’06 , the blog has witnessed maximum hits as 15Aug and 26Jan approach!

The reason is this post – Patriotic Fervour

I get back to my school days when we would eagerly await these 2 days so that we could go all out to sing these beautiful songs. Anytime, any day these songs are top on my favourite lists. Here is getting nostalgic again. If I’ve missed out- please add in yours!

A very Happy Independence Day in advance to all of you!

 

P.S: The most searched song is “Hum Sab Bhartiya Hain”which remains my favourite till date, of all the songs we learnt at school!

Remembering the Brave Martyrs

Remembering the martyrs

Today, India will observe a two minute silence to remember all those who lost their lives in the recent Mumbai blasts. I can’t recollect the last time the nation came together to do so for victims of terror.

It’s been a week and it still hurts. I thought I could put down my feelings in a day or two but could not. There was anger at those who committed this ruthless crime, sadness for the families who lost their loved ones, admiration for the people who came forth to help people at the blasts sites and the ones stranded on the road, pride for the railways people who got back the services on track within 7 hours, and applause for the city to get back on its feet the next day.

I kept thinking if there is any way to prevent these acts of terror? But even with the highest security force in place I don’t think we can! We simply can’t. The ’93 blasts, then the Ghatkopar and Gateway of India in between and these serial blasts last week. Everytime we were hit we have got back on our feet. Do we really have a choice there? What should we do, sit at home frightened and not go back to leading our regular lives?

Is that possible and what do those terrorists achieve? Victory? Victory over whom? Victory for what purpose? Killing innocents , killing the unarmed, attacking from the back! Acts of terror? Nope acts of sheer cowardice. Yes that’s what they have proved time and again when they have attacked innocents. They have failed to bring the life in a city to standstill or to scare the people, so what are they achieving?

The trains are the lifeline of Mumbai and the hour when they were attacked was the peak rush hour. The Western line was my line when I was in Mumbai. I took the same trains daily back home; the very trains that were attacked. A friend of mine was in one of those trains, she was lucky she survived the attack but some weren’t. My husband’s school mate died in the blasts and I can’t imagine what his family must’ve gone through, just like numerous others who lost their dear ones in the blasts. The pictures on the news did not stop haunting me for days.

I felt so helpless. Sitting away from home all I could do was call up and find out if everyone I knew was doing fine. On the news I saw little kids come out on the streets and help the stranded. Women offer food and the elderly offer all the assistance they could at the hospitals, on the roads and at the blasts sites. The blood banks were overflowing within hours of the attack. In every possible way people helped and it moved me.

It is a city I’m extremely fond of because I’ve spent my entire life there. Its spirit is indomitable and it is undying. At times we do get caught up in our own affairs, you see there is no time to look around; but in times of calamity the people always have held each other’s hands and those idiot terrorists are not going to win ever.

Everyone is a survivor and if it were any other city they would’ve fought back in the same manner as Mumbai did.

I hope the intelligence agencies and police bring forth the perpetrators of this crime sooner than later and a repeat of ’93 case does not recur in this case.

All those who died in the blasts will be brave martyrs and I join in to remember them in silence. I hope we can try in every possible way to ensure that their sacrifice won’t be a waste.

Godhra Massacre

Three years post the Godhra Massacre, the scars are still alive.
One of my very good friends has written a very nice post after seeing a documentary “Final Solution” on these riots that were the worst ever to hit the country post-independance.
Read it here.

p.s: He watches a lot of films and documentaries and writes very interesting posts about them. You can find them on his blog.

Will UP, Bihar, Rajasthan ever change?

Why am I not that shocked after reading this.

How is the woman a partner in a crime called rape?? Any answers, no we don’t have any!

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