World Cup toh aa gaya, par tu ne kuch kiya?
The Big Q of April 2011. Hallo ji, The Warld cup may come to THE India , par aap ne bhi kuch kiya?
For sure. Every one is doing something, real , imaginary, corny, funny. Or if they hadn’t already, now. A week of wearing blue, thanxgiving prayers, even naming babies dhoni—well, sounds better than vishva kap anyday.
When my sister, a self-styled lucky mascot doesn’t take a call even if it is from nature till break time, or makes my b-i-l wait on her hand and foot, claiming a wicket will fall if she gets up , I think its cute. When my senior citizen friend shies away from watching the match till the very end (but takes guilty furtive and VERY frequent glimpses throughout) coz she believes her watching will make India loose, I think that is magnanimous of her. When Amir Khan who must have a zillion tees, wears the same lucky one for semis and finals, I say, that’s the spirit!
When BCCI announces I crore to each, I think its very fair that they should share some of that ad revenue they rake in. And when Hyundai offers sleek numbers to the players, I think cool! Then I read Mamta offering life time free first A/c berths I think, chalo, light leh loh --Dhoni aur Sakshi train meh kub jaana? (now if Mallya were to offer free lifetime rides on king fisher, I’d say uber cool—but that’s not public money you see, and cannot be bequeathed so easily). When I read that Karnataka government is offering 4000 SFT of government land to each player I frown at projects that will be stalled,people who will be deprived and I think man, this is really not done. Then other governments follow suit and announce freebies chappar phad ke, blowing tax payers money I think they are pushing it .
And this morning I read that saddi dilli government waives off taxes for cricketers , because they have “done India proud” , I think the country has completely lost it. So tax waiver is a reward and payment punishment, is what they are implying? Do the cricketers with their assets need these waivers and subsidies? Isn't it the honest tax payer and ticket buyer who does India proud, rather than the priyankas , the hasan ali’s and all those evaders? Maybe Mayawati will now give them the Taj Mahal? Orissa their beaches? Whatever happened to a basic commonsense premise -you cannot give away what is not yours? Or do I not love my country or my cricket enough to think like this? Am I just plain spoil sport? Please tell me I am not alone in feeling outraged!
Dhoni , can you find it in you to lead Team India again to say a polite thanx but no thanx to all the freebies with government land and tax payers money, donate it to development projects in that state-call it World Cup 2011 Bridge/slum relocation/night shelter/school for street children. make each project give a progress report to Team India ensuring timely and corruption free completion and commission? You already have won our hearts, now our minds and souls will be yours too.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Confessions of a serial offender
Confessions of a serial offender
I confess- I am a (television) serial offender! Almost addicted. I say almost only because my frequent work travel to places that don’t air these channels prevents me from logging in the requisite number of hours for a “quantitative measure” to claim addiction! But I must gleefully add that they have factored for such absences rather well in their story maze and rarely take any major decisions while my status is BRB . I find them grappling still, with the same who should make the pudina chutney and kheer or what jewelry to wear for the party tonight or the jagrata tomorrow . Sometimes, they have leapt 20 years, and a fresh brigade of simpering goodies and sniggering badies has joined this existential battle . But no confusion here on who-is-who. Simple thumb rule- opposites attract. Bitch saas gets goat bahu . And vice-versa.(wow! I’ve always wanted to use this phrase in a sentence since I learnt it in 5th grade but never found the perfect occasion- some tits tatting yes, some going-ups coming down may be , but never the right vices versaing, if you know what I mean!)
But I have really learnt from the serials, been inspired and motivated by them, seriously! They provide invaluable lessons on attachment to possessions and on moving.
The current home that I am living in is my 19 th! not counting the one I was born in,same as my mother, maternal uncles and aunts, cousins and siblings in Rapaka-Andhra Pradesh. Each move has meant agonizing amounts of planning, work, decisions to throw and regrets thereof, and a huge drain on finances. Both by way of things one discards and re-purchases! (The last time around, I was offered INR. 30, yes, thirty only, for a good functioning water purifier acqua guard and INR 500 for a dining -table set with 5 -good and -1 -broken chairs).
And yet, in these serials that I watch, with fixed regularity some one is either thrown or walks out . And the movers just march to their palatial rooms, throw a strolley on their kingsize bed, open their princely wardrobes , dump a few things (with clothes hangers),pause for a last minute addition of a picture frame- and are ready to move! One carry on bag per person moving -man, woman or child . That’s it, not even a check-in bag.
The trick, I have figured is to identify and store at a single point (but most importantly limit) all that you want to fit into a handy strolley. I see an amazing co-branding opportunity here. What if Samsonite, VIP, or Delsey were to provide these cases- and a pop-up appears as they are wheeled to the door—“holds all that you will ever want”! of course, the legend must pop right before the thunderous “thairoo” or the remorseful “ruk jao”!
You know, a guy called Jib Fowls in his book “Why Viewers Watch” has advanced many theories for television viewing, among them the habit forming nature of television and likening it to a gentle brush, that removes the day’s cares and helps one unwind-suggesting that television is watched as much for what it takes out of you , as it is for what it might put into you! But driving home important life truths –travel light, shun excess baggage, just escaped him!! Perhaps his extensive research did not cover our serials.
But I am still working out the mystery of why women are being cajoled to rise up to an oft repeated challenge “tum jake taiyaar ho jao” from a mother, m-i-l or husband when it is clear for all to see that adding even another coat of lipstick will cause the face to crumble under its own weight and it would be hard to find a blingier outfit to change into, no matter where the outing is to!
Ah, yes, I also have to figure out what’s with the clothes hangers .
Any comments ?
I confess- I am a (television) serial offender! Almost addicted. I say almost only because my frequent work travel to places that don’t air these channels prevents me from logging in the requisite number of hours for a “quantitative measure” to claim addiction! But I must gleefully add that they have factored for such absences rather well in their story maze and rarely take any major decisions while my status is BRB . I find them grappling still, with the same who should make the pudina chutney and kheer or what jewelry to wear for the party tonight or the jagrata tomorrow . Sometimes, they have leapt 20 years, and a fresh brigade of simpering goodies and sniggering badies has joined this existential battle . But no confusion here on who-is-who. Simple thumb rule- opposites attract. Bitch saas gets goat bahu . And vice-versa.(wow! I’ve always wanted to use this phrase in a sentence since I learnt it in 5th grade but never found the perfect occasion- some tits tatting yes, some going-ups coming down may be , but never the right vices versaing, if you know what I mean!)
But I have really learnt from the serials, been inspired and motivated by them, seriously! They provide invaluable lessons on attachment to possessions and on moving.
The current home that I am living in is my 19 th! not counting the one I was born in,same as my mother, maternal uncles and aunts, cousins and siblings in Rapaka-Andhra Pradesh. Each move has meant agonizing amounts of planning, work, decisions to throw and regrets thereof, and a huge drain on finances. Both by way of things one discards and re-purchases! (The last time around, I was offered INR. 30, yes, thirty only, for a good functioning water purifier acqua guard and INR 500 for a dining -table set with 5 -good and -1 -broken chairs).
And yet, in these serials that I watch, with fixed regularity some one is either thrown or walks out . And the movers just march to their palatial rooms, throw a strolley on their kingsize bed, open their princely wardrobes , dump a few things (with clothes hangers),pause for a last minute addition of a picture frame- and are ready to move! One carry on bag per person moving -man, woman or child . That’s it, not even a check-in bag.
The trick, I have figured is to identify and store at a single point (but most importantly limit) all that you want to fit into a handy strolley. I see an amazing co-branding opportunity here. What if Samsonite, VIP, or Delsey were to provide these cases- and a pop-up appears as they are wheeled to the door—“holds all that you will ever want”! of course, the legend must pop right before the thunderous “thairoo” or the remorseful “ruk jao”!
You know, a guy called Jib Fowls in his book “Why Viewers Watch” has advanced many theories for television viewing, among them the habit forming nature of television and likening it to a gentle brush, that removes the day’s cares and helps one unwind-suggesting that television is watched as much for what it takes out of you , as it is for what it might put into you! But driving home important life truths –travel light, shun excess baggage, just escaped him!! Perhaps his extensive research did not cover our serials.
But I am still working out the mystery of why women are being cajoled to rise up to an oft repeated challenge “tum jake taiyaar ho jao” from a mother, m-i-l or husband when it is clear for all to see that adding even another coat of lipstick will cause the face to crumble under its own weight and it would be hard to find a blingier outfit to change into, no matter where the outing is to!
Ah, yes, I also have to figure out what’s with the clothes hangers .
Any comments ?
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