Sreesanth, Karan Johar and Telangana

Poor poor Sreesanth…always getting a dress down from his team-mates, from the crowds and the umpires. Are we being unfair here? Why do we love to hate him sometimes? After all, he only sledges and ocassionally crosses the line but who doesn’t? The Aussies do it, Proteas do it, some English players and Pakistanis too. So why is it that we do not support our own? Aren’t we tired of being the nice boys of cricket? We’ve always been the quiet ones. We take everything with a smile on our faces. Nothing wrong with showing some agression on the pitch. Sure, Sreesanth does annoy me sometimes. He comes across as being arrogant and childish. He is ready to give but not ready to take. For eg; when he said something to Bhajji and Bhajji retaliated with a tight slap, he cried and how!!! I mean, if you are ready to abuse people you should be ready to take it aswell. The most interesting part of this whole incident was Dhoni giving Sreesanth a piece of his mind in the dressing room later. Apparently, he did not appreciate Sreesanth abusing Smith’s mother and told him to control his errr tongue 😀 Poor li’l chap! I guess, silent aggression is the most productive…like Zaheer’s gaze, or a cheeky smile or a gesture but mouthing a few abusive words…I am not sure.

Karan, Karan Karan…where do I start??? I was watching SRK’s interview on Koffee with Karan this morning. Karan was curious to know how SRK manages to be happily married inspite of being in a film industry filled with gorgeous women. Apparently, Mr Johar does not believe in the institution of marriage since married people around him just do not seem to be happy. They are either divorced or are persistently faced with marital problems. Why doesn’t he just come out of the closet and accept the fact that he is Gay?? I know Indian society doesn’t provide enough support system for its gay population to come out and get married but that doesn’t mean you sit on your comfortable couch and pass judgements against the institution of marriage. I am not saying marriage is easy but if you really love someone, you over-come any number of obstacles. I know it sounds cheesy but it’s true. Mr Johar works in an industry where there is lot of money, lot of choice and less of trust. Most actors have to stay away from home due to their shooting schedules. There is a lot of scope for marital problems to arise but what matters is how you sort them out. These days, when women are more independent and make their own decisions and are not scared to walk out of an unhappy relationship, it does take a lot of effort from both the sides to have a healthy marriage but just because marriages around you (aka the posh localities of Mumbai) are crumbling, doesn’t mean the majority of the Indian public is suffering the same fate?

There were just two things I was sure of in my life and one of them was getting married to S. We have our good days and bad, ours lows and highs, but what I cherish most is the companionship we share. He is my strength when I am down and out, my sunshine on a gloomy day. I am most happiest when I am in his arms. No amount of money or jewellery can give me the same happiness. I could not have imagined my life any other way. Life is just more beautiful with him by my side.

Karan Johar reminds me of some of my friends, who in spite of having girlfriends for years and years together are simply scared to commit and instead of addressing their fears, they say marriage is a waste of time. I laugh at such poor souls.

So the Telangana verdict is out and surprise surprise…TRS is not happy because they wanted the report to agree with the ‘Telangana Vaadulu’. So what is their plan of action? More burning of public properties, more student killings (I will not call them suicides), and more masala for the NEWS channels. When will we learn to live together in peace? The Sri Krishna Committee report is out and there’s no going back. So just shut up and get on with your lives and let us get on with ours!

Peace!

Life ante….vedi vedi pakoda with chai….

….annantha simple ga unte entha bagundu 😀 Sorry…I had to write this post in telugu and english to retain its essence. The weather could be the reason behind this post…or the lack of noise on the streets…or the chatter of people. It’s dull, it’s gloomy….almost dark…and it’s just 4 and supposedly the middle of summer. Just one of those days when I miss home 😦

Podunne pani pilla sarduthu chese sabdam tho lese feeling okati…pin drop silence tho lese feeling inkokati. Mummy kitchen lo help cheyii cheyii ante cheyyanu cheyyanuu antu maha rani laaga day begin ayyedi india lo. Manchi coffee tho news paper browsing….tv channels marchinde marchi…suthi kottinantha varaku…anni channels lo almost yoga gurincho lekapothe lucky stones and best Gods gurinchi. Naalugu thitlu thitti vallani….mummy tharimithe freshen up avvatam. Evaro okaru vachi vellatam…vallatho kaburlu…friends…eating out…walking on necklace road…going to the near by mall…to a book store probably…cursing the traffic…the auto drivers…the guys who purposely rub themselves against you while walking…so on and so forth. Rojulo oka vanda sarlaina politicians ni, TV channels ni definite ga thittukovatam….maali ade tv channels chudatam 😀 Flats lo unte adi inko sarada…evening kalla poolu amme vaadu…snacks amme vaadu raavatam….vaadi venta watch man padatam ‘kaiku aaya re yahaan…kisne permission diya teruku’ antu 😀

There are so many things wrong about India. I can point out at least 10 different things just about today. I sometimes tell S that I never want to go back..that is how angry I get. My parents tell me not to come back. They say life is difficult in India…’manushula manasulu roju roju ki kalushitam authunnayi’ – mummy’s wise words 😀 But day’s like today….I miss home so much 😦 I miss the gulmohar trees…I miss the Irani chai with biscuits…the pani puri…I miss the smell of earth after the first drops of rain…I miss standing in our balcony and looking at road that is ever changing…we could once see the Hussain Sagar from our balcony…but all I see now are tall buildings. A new fly-over’s come up…feel like it’s right outside our flat.

I have forgotten what it means to have neighbours. Here, I do not know who lives next door…there’s no exchange of curries 😉 no bringing babies over…no checking out each others shopping. Aren’t we supposed to be social animals??

We’ll be travelling to India next month…just for a few weeks though…and it’s will terribly busy…but looking forward to it.

May be tomorrow, it it’s sunny, you might see a really cheerful post from me 😀

Ciao 🙂

The phase is over…for now!

OK…I am back to my writing phase…I have these spells…like cricketers…when I feel like writing and when I don’t atall! My last post was when IPL was happening and now FIFA World Cup’s started 😀 Awesome! I am just glad that I’ve never  really abandoned my blog….I always come back to it. Currently listening to some crap telugu songs…apparently they are this week’s top 10…huh..how it happens I don’t know. Watched MAA Stars cricket match yesterday for a while. It was alright I thought. I did not expect them to get so involved…like getting angry when a team-mate dropped a catch or mis-fielded…that Taraka Ratna guy was so angry at one point when he got the last wicket…I thought he will go break that poor chap’s bones. Paapamm…hits kuda levu kada athaniki 😦 hehehe It was alright…until the CM came and spoilt everything…and the worst part was when Dasari started talking….I just switched everything off and watched FIFA WC. I just cannot stand that guy….acts like he’s the King of all..the best director/producer/actor that ever walked the earth etc etc but frankly I never liked him or his films. Why can’t these politicians and wannabe politicians just keep out…they have to show up every where and once they arrive…we have to drop everything…how ever important it might be…and concentrate on them…and what do they do…give boring speeches…burp…fart…yawn and leave. Baahh!! When will this culture change in India???

Anyhoo, something good did happen yesterday…first, I bought two nice handbags for myself and my mom 😀 and Germany scored 4 goals..yes 4!! I was really tired of 0-0. 1-0, 1-1 results and was craving for some real football. Germany made it look so easy against Australia and apparently no one had any real expectations from the team since they are all just a bunch of freshers. I somehow feel they are the team to beat this time round…although we haven’t seen Brazil, Spain, Italy and Portugal yet. I was totally disappointed with England’s performance. They made it look so hard…the one goal they scored and the blunder from the goalie….poor Robert Green…I can only sympathise with him. Hopefully, they will do better…they have to if they want to beat teams like Germany and Brazil…God only knows how they will turn up this time.

Song of the day is

3 reasons why I like this song…

1. Rhythm
2. Awesome dancing from Mumaith
3. Venky bhai couldn’t have looked any cooler with his groovy moves and all 😀

Religion and its Aftermath

Picture Courtesy: http://www.crystalxp.net/galerie/en.id.3470-religion-wallpaper-gruzz-wallpapers.htm

When I was at school, probably in the 7th standard, applying for public examination hall tickets was a big deal! Applicants’ information had to be precise….’cuz if we screwed it up…the repercussions were endless visits to the board of secondary school offices. Most of my teachers always made sure that I got my name right, every year a new teacher… weird isn’t it? Now, why would I get my name wrong? But my teachers were a little skeptical basically because I had a Hindu first name and a Muslim surname…since my mother is a Hindu and my father a Muslim. Most teachers did not even know if such a name existed…what it meant.  But, never before in my life did I feel like I was different to others…like I was not normal…probably a little ashamed as well…especially when it came to filling the section which asked which religion I belonged to…do I tick Hinduism or Islam? I used to hate that part and still do. My friends never had any such problems and I did not want to ask my teachers for advise or suggestions since it meant telling them my life story which in turn gave me unduly attention.

My parents never brought me up a ‘certain way’. They are not religious people and I grew up speaking Telugu (my mother tongue), applied bindi and went to Temples occasionally with friends. My mother remained a Hindu; she wore her Mangalsutra and bindis too. So my brother and I basically were ‘non-religious’. My father rarely goes to the mosque and most people get a shock of their lives when they come to know he is a Muslim. He is a Hyderabadi but speaks fluent Telugu and that confuses people a lot.

If once I was a little embarrassed that I did not have a sense of belonging towards any religion, I have grown up to be a person proud of my heritage. My aversion with religion started with the demolition of Babri Masjid and the riots that followed. We were living in Hyderabad then and I cannot forget the sense of fear in me. Scared to go out and buy food, wondering if anyone would come home and hurt my family…wondering if my mom could be hurt if Muslims came home or if my dad could get hurt if Hindus came home. There was curfew in the city and the tension was high. A local cable TV network continuously broadcasted images of the demolition of the masjid along with Shri Ram’s Devotional songs. The tension was high. My father rushed to the cable TV network’s office and asked him not to show scenes that could easily instigate people. But the operator was adamant and continued to show the pictures. My father did not have any other option but to confiscate his equipment and bring it home. That night remains one of my scariest nights’ till date. I was sure that some religious fanatics would come home and definitely hurt my dad….but it went without any incident. My father’s relatives who live in the ‘Old City’ of Hyderabad had some horrific tales of violence to share with us…which only scared me even more.

The riots ended gradually and life came back to normal. Since then, I never found it important to associate myself with any religion.  But for some it is very important and I never really understood why. Why would someone want to associate themselves to something that is so violent, something that is only used to kill and increase distance between people.

I believe that my parents symbolize what India is all about. We are ‘supposed’ to be a secular country so when there are inter-religious marriages, it is an institution to look up to and not to be sneered at.

Some tell me that religion is a way of life, a discipline….but these words do not have any value for me now. I have only seen people fighting, killing in the name of religion. Religion has only been used to hurt others and not unite people in love and peace. Probably, once upon a time, religion meant discipline, obedience but now it’s been diluted and used when and where possible to satisfy humans selfish needs. It is used only to divide and destroy people’s lives. I believe in God, but I am not ready to believe that different religions have different Gods and that if I pray to one God, the other God(s) will get angry. My God is Universal and I pray for peace everyday.

And the Most Farcical Awards are…

Couple of days ago, I was browsing through the NDTV website when I came across something called the ‘GR8 Women’s Achievers  Awards’. These were new to me but apparently Kelvinator has given them for the last 2 years. I was browsing through the photos of the event to see who got the awards….some inspirational stories maybe?…stories of women who achieved something against all odds…who contributed positively to our society…?NO! But who do I end up seeing…Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen, Bhagyashree (yup..the one from Maine Pyar Kiya), Diya Mirza (she’s every where these days), Yuktha Mookhey, Aarti Chabria, Zarine Khan etc in their beautiful sarees showing off their blouses and some in their skimpy clothes showing off their well-toned abs and yea..how can I forget….Shabana Azmi..she’s all things feminist isn’t she?

I was so disappointed…there was no one who I could admire, who actually contributed something to our society. Did Kelvinator conviniently ignore people like Dr. Sunitha Krishnan, the founder of Prajwala and many other women who are aplenty in our country? Do GR8 Women Achievers all have to be bollywood starlets? Dr Sunitha Krishnan, the founder of an NGO called Prajwala, who was gang raped at a young age fought back her horrors to become a psychiatrist and help children who are severely abused and sometimes sold and trafficked. Isn’t she inspirational to other women? Isn’t she deserving of this award?

What exactly have the bollywood startlets achieved may I ask? Most of them were models before they became actors or progeny of stars. They get paid crap load of money for their work…live in posh homes, drive extremely comfortable cars and dress in designer labels. For me, a GR8 Achiever is someone like Dr. Sunitha Krishnan…who is ACTUALLY doing something good for our society against all odds.

She is the only one I can think of now but this doesn’t mean there is no other woman in our country who is helping another. I am sure you will find one in every street corner. Such awards should carry some value…give it to people who really deserve them, to encourage them, to motivate them, to recognise their efforts and to show to the world what they do so that their organisations/NGO’s get the much-needed support. It doesn’t matter if you don’t give these awards to actors, they will still be fine…they won’t be missing out on anything. Who will it be next yr? Katrina, Kareena, Deepika etc?

Shame On You Kelvinator and the GR8 Women’s Achievers Awards panel!