The Madness Called Media

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Irresponsible is no longer enough to describe the way media handled the Mumbai mayhem. But hold on the madness is not over yet. What I am shocked at is the fact that exactly what is the media is trying to prove by giving an exact count of the number of Muslims and number of Hindus killed in the Mumbai attack? Does a religious break down of the number of dead make a difference to the entire situation? Does this make the acts of the perpetrators more heinous? When will we realise that this is not about caste, colour, religion or nationality! Terror has no religion... a terrorist has no nationality. These are heinous acts of crime against humanity. We can't win this war with the help of caste, colour, religion or humanity. Is the human in me dead? I am all about being Hindu, Muslim, Irish, Greek, coloured....

Terror Strike: An appeal

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It was just another evening out with friends. My phone rings. Mom calling. It's her regular call to check whether I am home safely. NO. This one is a panic call. She saw what happened in Mumbai on TV and wanted me to rush home ASAP. What started last night is not history yet. It can never be history. As I watch the TV screen with reporters trying their best to get the viewers the latest... I am forced to see beyond present. No am not talking about the natural fall out of the terror attack- no trading on Dalal Street, adverse effect on tourism and FIIs, loop holes in intelligence etc. This time I am looking at a more drastic fall out. I am scared. Terror has set in. I am scared to walk into a mall, I want to leave the station....

Maryada Puroshottam Shri Ram

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As far as I can look back in the Indian political history, Ram has been a predominant political ace. Pre-independence he was used to fuel the two-nation theory. Post that, kind courtesy to the politicians' favoritism, Ram has made countless wild card entries to election campaigns. Ram is a natural star campaigner. And the irony is that his role ends there... just as a campaigner. Ram holds a symbolic significance amongst the Indian masses for a lot more than just being one of the most popular heroes of hindutva. Ram for us translates into an ideal man... righteous and responsible ruler... an apostle of truth and forgiveness. Ram is not just a religious figure. The mirage of Ram that our politicians are reflecting today is undoubtedly a myth. Ram would have never let Gujarat turn into a communal cauldron. He would have forgone power for the security of....

Maryada Puroshottam Shri Ram

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As far as I can look back in the Indian political history, Ram has been a predominant political ace. Pre-independence he was used to fuel the two-nation theory. Post that, kind courtesy to the politicians' favoritism, Ram has made countless wild card entries to election campaigns. Ram is a natural star campaigner. And the irony is that his role ends there... just as a campaigner. Ram holds a symbolic significance amongst the Indian masses for a lot more than just being one of the most popular heroes of hindutva. Ram for us translates into an ideal man... righteous and responsible ruler... an apostle of truth and forgiveness. Ram is not just a religious figure. The mirage of Ram that our politicians are reflecting today is undoubtedly a myth. Ram would have never let Gujarat turn into a communal cauldron. He would have forgone power for the security of....

Rain and the blame game.

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Just as sawan dawns according to the hindu calendar, monsoon decided to come in letter and spirit. Battling the heat and humidity delhites loved the sight of the slate sky. Dark clouds covered the capital city dementing the sun. The fresh drops of rain planted a wet kiss on the parched landscape. Nature unfolded a beautiful love story. But this love story was no different from any bollywood masala movie. The villain made a mean entry. Endlessly blaring horns... serpentine traffic jams... water logged roads... and we all woke up to a complete mess. In popular jargon, "one rain threw the city off gear!" And now comes the part where we all come together to play our all-time favorite "Blame Game." So here we go- the administration is poor, the politicians are corrupt, where is the tax payer's money used, the MCD has failed... and the....

Rain and the blame game.

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Just as sawan dawns according to the hindu calendar, monsoon decided to come in letter and spirit. Battling the heat and humidity delhites loved the sight of the slate sky. Dark clouds covered the capital city dementing the sun. The fresh drops of rain planted a wet kiss on the parched landscape. Nature unfolded a beautiful love story. But this love story was no different from any bollywood masala movie. The villain made a mean entry. Endlessly blaring horns... serpentine traffic jams... water logged roads... and we all woke up to a complete mess. In popular jargon, "one rain threw the city off gear!" And now comes the part where we all come together to play our all-time favorite "Blame Game." So here we go- the administration is poor, the politicians are corrupt, where is the tax payer's money used, the MCD has failed... and the....

Desert Storm

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Being a native of Rajasthan, I make numerous weekend trips to the pink city. Wrap work early on the weekend, throw denim and two tops in a handbag and my perfect weekend is on. But the scorching summer months see a reverse migration. Cousins drop in to escape the sun and soak in the summer fashion at 'Janpath' and 'Dilli Haat'. After one such trip I saw my cousin off at Bikaner house (the place from where buses leave for Jaipur). Putting her safely in a Volvo, I headed to office and got busy with my regular submissions (in news our deadlines are always over yesterday). Couple of hours later, I decided to check on my cousin. The call left me surprised and shocked. It was hard for me to believe that NH-8 was closed due to mob violence. The Gujjar community in Rajasthan was protesting and demanding....

And Juliet is dead

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Another Juliet is dead... And a love story is born. The chapters are written in red... From the ink of my tears and blood, ...the heart so brutally torn! Another Juliet is dead... And a love story is born. You read the chapters of love... Nay, her tragedy... For the love is so long gone! The pain remains... My heart bleeds and eyes weep in vain. The phoenix of my love refuses to die... As another Juliet is dead... And a love story is born! She knew not when she fell for it... for her love story would thus end in such tragedy. And now I know not... Whether to curse or bless... For my Romeo couldn't care less! ....

THE VERDICT

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As I write this article, I don't know if Mohd Afzal Guru will be hanged or not on 20th October. But at this moment, I certainly hang my head in shame... Sometimes I used to be amazed at the way politicians used to deny evident facts and negate their own beliefs. But after I heard former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Farooq Abdullah say "You want to hang him, go ahead hang him but the consequences of hanging you must remember... Judges will need to be protected like anything; some crook will come and will murder them". I don't think I'll be ever surprised by what any politician ever says! If this be the state of affairs in my country then every man who stands by honesty should need protection. But what I fail to understand is exactly whose interests is Mr. Abdullah....

OLIVE ASHES

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"... he's a jolly good fellow, he's a jolly good fellow... he's a jolly good fellow so say all of us..." Normally these are the words and tunes to which army officers bid adieu to their colleagues... but in the summer of 1999, a small operation to foil an infiltration bid turned into a bloody battle forcing the army to bid adieu to some of its bravest soldiers by the "last post'. 7 years hence, the guns may have silenced but the wounds are still fresh. I remember the principal telling us in the morning prayer that our army buses would no longer be there to take us to school. But that only meant more masti as we would now be cycling our way to school! A little later I learned that it also meant that I wouldn't be seeing my bus driver ever again... Soon....