Denim Jacket!

Representative Picture 

By the time I reached grade 9, I had developed an awareness for fashion and things. Movies did  help in the sense that they  showcased all that is in vogue! I regularly watched foreign movies and read a lot of western books and magazines  that I had access to. Marlboro man with his hat, jeans and jacket was almost my hero. Almost; because Marlboro is a cigarette brand and I never liked the idea of smoking. It has always been very disgusting to me!

Among the things I wanted was a Swiss army knife; wrist watch with digital numerals; leather shoulder bag, sports shoe called Gola shoe in my childhood,  track suit from Adidas and above all a  blue denim jacket from wrangler! There was this store near Regal cinema in Cannaught Place.... I had it all figured out!

All those items on my wish list had one thing in common - expensive! They were all beyond my reach as a piss poor student. Given my nature I did not broach  the possibility of purchasing  anything from the list with my family. I knew they did not have the resources, it would just embarrass them! I carried my wish list in my heart for a long time.

 

When you are young time is all you have, nothing else! Smart people use that time effectively. Educating themselves; planning their activities; making good choices and preparing for future. I was not exactly smart. I was too emotional and I still am; did not have any guidance either and I choose things unwisely; only using my heart and very little brain. Nevertheless I finished my student life; started in my profession on a high note and gained funds to fund my wants. Out came my wish list promptly.

 

First thing I got was a leather messenger bag. We two became inseparable. Even when there was nothing to carry I carried that bag. Maybe it was a sign from universe that I will have to carry a heavy baggage all my life ! Interesting what insights passage of time affords  oneself !

I do not like to wear a watch, just wanted one. So that digital watch I got a few years later. From my first trip abroad. In fact I got a few. Some I gifted to family some I kept. None of them have survived the ravages of time. Although  I still have an 80 year old vintage Favre Lueba in working condition; the kind you wind up by hand every day and tally the time by listening to the radio. This originally belonged to a grand parent who handed that out to an aunt. This aunt did not like the visibly masculine design and she traded it with my mother's  ladies wrist watch . My mother promptly gave the watch  to me. I was 14 years old and I have had it since.

 

Shoes are a weakness usually reserved for ladies ! I am that exception. Given a choice of picking one thing among several of equal value I would choose...... you guessed it! I got that Gola shoe pretty quickly. In fact sports shoe is the first kind I got when I started buying for myself. So checked that off my list in short time. I have a dozen shoes and some pairs do not even come out of their box for months but I have them! If I had space I would probably collect another dozen! That's one of my weird quirk even I do not understand fully! What is the tie between shoes and me? Maybe another sign from universe signalling what is fated for me. Shoes will keep raining on my head, perhaps !

 

I had a blue track suit I remember. It still is someplace in our walk-in closet. I got some other sporty apparel from my foreign travels. Eventually I got older and also realized I am not exactly very sporty. Now I eschew that full track suit; just buy the top and ditch the lower. Smart, isn't it? In Ku'Damm area of Berlin there is a store that sells only knives. Amazing store indeed. I got my Swiss army knife there. The knife is cheekily called " The Night Manager"! I am not kidding! That is what it is called! So that's my list all Checked out.

 

Yeah I know ; the denim jacket! Well.... I do not have it, not yet! Maybe some day, maybe not ! There is a back story that may not be  too comprehensible to you but the fact is that only today it has finally dawned upon me as to why I have not bought it. So there is a small pavement bazaar on Janpath in Delhi. Long time ago I saw an Indian style ladies shoe called jutti . It was deep red toned and had an amazingly colourful Rajasthani folk design hand embroidered on it. As usual I imagined it on my special person. Something I still do for everything I like. I still remember the shoe was priced 50 Rupees. Usually you could haggle the price down a little as these sellers expect it too! I would have bought it instantly but stopped short since I was unsure of the correct shoe size.

 

So my plan was to buy the shoe which would look sensational paired with a blue denim jacket on my person.  I decided that next time we are together I would buy denim Jackets for both of us as well as the shoe and possibly some chunky silver jewellery to go with it.  My special person could approve the fit and design for both of us. It was a good plan!

 

Only, Next time never arrived!

 

I have almost bought the denim jacket dozens of times since ! Every time I have gotten out of completing the purchase on one pretext or the other. This happened yesterday too at the store. I saw the jacket displayed; I got pulled to it as if by magnet; I told myself ," you are too old for this "; I walked away!

 

At home I dissected my own behaviour and really looked at how many excuses I have given myself for not getting it; from 'it does not fit' to 'It is too expensive' and 'I do not like the design/ material'! I have gone through all of them and recycled the excuses a few times too! 

 

It is hard to face your own frailties and immaturity! The real reason hiding behind the facade of my excuses  is my very ambitious purchase 'Next Time'  plan that I gave myself 40 years ago! It sounded very doable and sensible  at the time. I am afraid denim Jacket will be have to rubbed off the list since it can not be checked out.  'Next time' may arrive only in next life and who knows in next life if these kind of clothes are still in vogue!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Middle Finger!

AI generated caricature of Frank Gehry 

You think looking into a mirror is easy? Mirror as a metaphor for people, situations, memories, plans, actions, words.... No it is not that one can not face the mirror ; that is the easy part. Mirrors generally are benign, empathetic and even benevolent at times. It is what the mirror reflects back, that is bloody uncomfortable! Specially what it says about who you really are as a person. Truth be told one is in fact dead scared to face oneself! That makes people look away, avoid, run and hide from a mirror.

You can of course show the middle finger to the mirror! Not everyone is as lucky though. During a press conference in Spain a journalist did ask Gehry to comment on the criticism that his Bilbao museum design is more of a "show off"! Gehry gave him the middle finger! Plain refused to look in the mirror.

Gehry was the pioneer user of 3 D design software originally developed for the space industry. His parametric design language completely turned the "Form follows Function"  dictum on its head. Curvilinear  sculptural form came ahead with  function adapted to it almost as an afterthought. His use of non standard material like titanium added a level of exclusivity to his projects and therein lie some other criticisms around project costs; longevity of the buildings and maintenance challenges.

Gehry worked unbothered by the noise. Although his work has been labelled deconstructionist , he hated labels and considered himself to be an artist with his work as his creative expression. To share a secret with you ; I think of his work as a super sized sculpture too. Trouble is sculpture does not have to function as a building. Should a building function as a sculpture?  I fully appreciate and recognize Gehry's great standing in modern architecture but I am unsure if it  essentially is where architecture should be heading. There; I said it! I  hope no one comes after me with hammer and tongs. Well Gehry just passed or he would have flashed his middle finger at me!

Ancient scriptures explain what 'Dharm' is? It is simply doing what is right ! "Right", is informed by Desh and kaal; ie the location you are in and the time period you are living in. We were given an intellect and an instinct which we are required to educate, hone and sharpen all the time. It will show us what is right and what is not. It always comes through in my experience. Largely we ignore the little voice in our head at our peril!

Some times it is alright though. You should choose oneself and show a middle to what is troubling you! You should gather the courage to strike out a different path even when you are on it all by yourself. Show a middle to the company that leaves you mid stream one way or the other. Challenge here is false pride & inflated egos that cloud judgment. 

There is just a thin line between self respect and selfishness; between reason and excuse; between being carefree and being careless;  between love and manipulation; between being assertive and being aggressive; being sagacious and being scheming; and certainly between being careful and being a coward!

May God grant the wisdom and honesty of this distinction to everyone! May everyone really love what they see in the mirror!

And just on that note today I was gladdened to see a little boy and his younger sister being walked home from school by their mother as I was parked by the sidewalk. Both children were picking up snow by the fistful; rub it onto their clothes; throw it down; repeat; laugh; wade in the next little snow bank after two steps; lie down in snow after another step; get up cuddle their mom..... all in the space of ten meters that I could watch. Without actually showing a middle they were showing a middle to cold; a middle to worries; middle to undue haste and a middle to all pretensions! 

Do you think such sterling innocence will ever be afraid to look in the mirror?   

 

 

 

More or Less!

Germany has contributed immensely to the human intellectual and cultural capital throughout the ages. Right away one is reminded of Einstein ; arguably the greatest scientific mind ever. Emmanuel Kant; Hegel; Nietzsche and Arthur Schopenhauer are indisputably the pillars of modern philosophy. It would not be amiss to add Karl Marx to the list as well. 

 

Bertolt Brecht; Goethe; Franz Kafka; Friedrich Schiller and Guntur Grass are  well known luminaries of world literature. Any reference to classical music would be incomplete without mentioning Beethoven; Bach; Brahms; Wagner and Mendelssohn. Each name is literally carved on the list of great world composers.

 

You might have guessed my fascination with the German intellect.  Fact is that most of my own work ethic and design language is highly inspired by it. I have learned immensely  by working on projects in Germany and  I am quite indebted to those opportunities !

Bauhaus, which literally translates as 'construct house' was a German design movement during early part of the twentieth century. It was not limited to architecture but extended to interior design, furniture design; typography and graphics as well. Actually there is a font called Bauhaus too. Just do not tell anyone that I dislike it! This movement believed in rational; functional aesthetic and simple clean lines with nothing superfluous or ornamental . Form followed function. This was nothing short of revolutionary and maybe the most important advance in the theory of design - ever.

Architect Walter Gropius established this school of  design ! Nazi Germany had sadly other ideas. They promoted classic ostentation. Bauhaus's aesthetic was considered an effeminate sparsity. Obviously it ran afoul of the Nazi understanding of what constitutes a master  race Germanic design.  They  brutally shut it down. Walter sailed for safety of the US shores!

 

"To be or not to be", Shakespeare asked this fundamental question in his play Hamlet. Should one continue living and face the harsh vicissitudes that living entails  or end it once for all and be at peace ! Existential question indeed!

 

Walter added a principle for the living: "less is more"! Essentially it means that focusing on fewer quality activities will lead to beauty, meaning and effectiveness. What more can we do? What ought to be less?  To paraphrase Hamlet- more or less, that is the question!

Ludwig Mies Van Der Rohe actually applied it in several fields of design including architecture and  has been immensely successful. Some times this kind of work is referred to as minimalism. Personally I do not like that term. It somehow feels miserly ; like an pejorative. As if some elements are missing on purpose ! Actually a design that follows "less is more"; is complete in all aspects. In fact there is nothing there that is not required to be there - simple! 

 

More recently architect Richard Meir; a Pritzker prize winner, has designed several iconic buildings which I feel adhere to "Less is more" rule. I like his clean , crisp, white and  sharp work immensely.  I am  a visual artist and an exhibition designer primarily so I will not comment on the architectural details.  Purely in visual terms I can easily see a direct connection in his elevations with Bauhaus school of design. Diametrically different from other contemporary stalwarts like Frank Gehry or a Zaha Hadid  for that matter.

 

IKEA understood the potential. They bring  clean design to good people. Walk into a store and you can see 'less is more' applied to industrial design with a Nordic flavour. In my experience public loves the offerings and is very receptive of the practical beauty of no nonsense Swedish design.  I personally have several items, from furniture to cutlery and floor covering to lights that I really love.

Can we apply this mantra in our day to day life? Yes; more Biophilic design! I know ,I know sometimes there are unnecessary big words! Do not let it dissuade you. All it means is a design that nourishes your relationship with the natural elements. Simply put green space, plant life and natural elements need to have an expanded role in public spaces, interiors and architecture. It is being done extensively in the west; Where they are not so desperately in need of it. They are doing it because it should be done! How about India? 

 

You may have heard of Peter Singh and Nino Kaur. This couple have achieved an indoor AQI of 10 ; when the outside numbers are north of frighteningly toxic 500. This is in Delhi of course. This couple reside in Sainik farms,  where they  grow fruits and vegetables organically in their green house using innovative techniques like hydroponics. They have created their own sustainable and nourishing micro  environment. More green equals less pollution. Apparently they even make a pretty penny by selling what  produce they can not consume.

 

I know what you are thinking! Not everyone can afford to live in Sainik farms. If you have a roof   you can start an urban farm at a very low cost; about INR 5,000. There are several people that have done it already and some are willing to help too. If you prefer there is an entity called Living Greens that claims to have set up 4000 such farms in 25 different cities. If you have no access to roof, there are balconies and if all else fails there are indoor plants. Snake plant; available easily is one of best options to improve indoor air quality and who has not heard of money plant ( Pothos Jade) and ferns. All great choices. The thing is we must make more of an effort and depend less on some messiah to come relieve us of pollution. Imagine if everyone did what they can......

 

When nothing is going my way I always remember my Grand Father for inspiration. So in his last days he was bed ridden and clearly no hope of getting well. He wanted to read Ramayan ; a scripture in Hindi script that he did not know how to. He asked one of my uncles to read it to him. After a few times My grand dad realized he is wasting his son's study time  by not asking him to stop recitation for  upwards of an hour. He decided that his son will stop reading to him, instead he will teach him the script every day for half an hour. He passed soon after and I am not aware what progress  he made in his learning before leaving this world. Missed asking my uncle , who has passed too! But  this was a  man that never  flinched from doing the right thing; never stopped improving; never gave up  ; never wallowed in grief at his dire circumstances and remained fair to people around him even at a personal cost . He knew what to do less and what more is apt. I wish life gave me more time to learn from him. 

There are other examples if we care to look closer to present times. Indian Idol's season 16 is on air. A contestant Abhishek Kumar is doing very well. If you look closely you can literally see his impoverished circumstances. You can see his working class background with father a street food seller. You can see his ordinary dress; cheap glasses and small town demeanour. No, none of it matters. He has put less stress on what limits him and focussed more on what elevates him - his music. He is providing meaning to his life. He is talent rich and achieving his goals. What more do you want from life?

If ever in doubt, just remember to focus on what you do best and leave the rest. Act; doing nothing gets you nothing. Less is more!

 

'AQI 401'

Representative Image

Doctor's office is a phenomenon in itself. As you are waiting , you get to observe all the other patients; some are on their phone; some trying to deal with rowdy children; some visibly impatient - all are waiting for the nurse to call their name.  It is nothing short of a live reality show. It can be an hour and more at times before you get called because the doctor is always ' running late'! This is the excuse the reception will give you and it has not changed in about 18 odd years that I have been going there. You of course can not go late for your appointment!  So the other day I did what I do after about 15 minutes of watching the reality show; I start watching the  news on TV they keep in the waiting area.

The thing about Western media is that it is very commercial and will slyly put out stories that serve their paymasters. Now a days there is invariably a negative story or two about India. That day after they talked about ' a car bomb going off in a busy part of Delhi,  killing dozens' in the first part of the bulletin, they finished with Delhi's absolutely horrible air quality index  at 401 in the last part of the news! 

What the fish! Air quality index - Delhi's Achilles heel ! What are we going to do about it? This August I was there for about 3 weeks. It was still August - when smog and stubble burning is not that big a factor. When it rained from time to time and washed away the pollutants in the air.  Yet I had such a horrid time scratching the rashes all over my body and just trying to breathe.Hell! I grew up in the city and I used to travel in super crowded DTC buses hanging from the door handle; without breaking a sweat. But then things apparently were not so bad in those foregone days of my youth.

As it happened, nobody had any time  for me on this trip and I never had to leave the house to meet anyone. I stayed in my AC room most of the time and was likely saved a worse ordeal than I may have endured by regular exposure to the elements outside.  Talk about a blessing in disguise! 

Just for confirmation, all the scratching; rashes and heavy breathing resolved itself quickly - few hours after I returned from Delhi.

 

I know that huge influx of internal immigrants and its attendant challenges  have made matters worse. Traffic congestion induced idling and massive growth in  the vehicular traffic is a major contributor. So is the industry including coal burning thermal power generation plant at Badarpur. Delhi metro has helped quite a bit by taking many vehicles off the road, but  it has not really made much difference to the overall outcome. 

 

Let us address the elephant in the room - Stubble burning in the farms of Punjab and Haryana ! A number of solutions have been tried ; half halfheartedly I would say because farmers are giving serious push back. Of course there is a need for crop diversification and water management that will  manage the crop rotation better and reduce or even end the need to burn stubble.

As we have seen farm reform laws meant to address these concerns were resisted vehemently in the recent past. No government in their right mind will antagonize over 80% of the electorate and hope to survive.  Farmers burn stubble because they need to clear the fields quickly  and that allows them to sow another cash crop. Stubble really is of no  financial value to them. Some time ago I heard  of a chemical spray that hastens bio degradation process of stubble as a solution. No one knows what happened to it. It is anyway an additional operational cost that will be burdensome. Setting stubble on fire costs a match box to the entire village !

 

How about we show farmers a way to monetize stubble? Do you think they will be interested? It involves them to carefully roll the stubble into bales and sell them for extra cash without  having to burn it. That will benefit everyone and  make a huge difference in the air quality of all the downwind areas.

 

 

 

Strawbale houses are not a new idea. Straw mixed with mud has been in use for thousands of years. It is time to expand and refine the process. It will be quite effective in the rural areas where straw is generated as a residue after harvesting the crop. Its local use will generate revenue and  also save on material transportation and building costs too. 

Tightly packed strawbales can be used instead of bricks and mortar for making wall structures. Usually a light lime and mud plaster is applied on too. Tests have shown a very high degree of fire resistance in such structures, as well as exceptional thermal insulation. R values typically are between 36 - 48 depending on the moisture content of the bales. In comparison concrete masonry has an R value of 1.11. It is a no brainer - suited to both very hot or colder geographical locations. There are no design limitations or concerns about structural safety either. You stymie pollution right at the source by repurposing the straw material. No straw; nothing to burn! You may checkout strawbale.com

https://www.strawbale.com

I am convinced this is the silver bullet that will significantly diminish  pollution. It will of course require public awareness; government initiative; regulatory / techincal approvals;  co operation and training of skilled trades. Yeah; add socially aware architects to the list. Builders and building materials lobby will hate It but It is doable and if I win a lottery I promise to put most of it in this... Seriously I will put my money where my mouth is! 

That brings us to the cities. Encouraging Public transport is a great tool. Other cities have tried a number of things with varying degrees of success. Intensification is a process that increases  building activity in a specific zone, rather than spreading out construction activity further and further away as normally happens. This allows for optimal use of the municipal services; effective maintenance monitoring and  reduces transportation needs of the residents by concentrating all human activity in a defined area.

Fly ash brick uses waste material  from burnt coal and also avoids the significant pollution generated in the traditional brick making process. Container homes use old containers used for transportation and turn them into housing. They are successfully being used for regular housing as well as temporary needs. Some of these projects are stunning spaces. ICF ; 3 D printed homes; use of prefab building components - all need to be encouraged and invested in. They all are part of our response to this crisis.

Slum redevelopment is as much about human dignity and social justice, as it is about regeneration of cities and pollution control . People having to live in cement pipes is a shame but maybe not. Hong Kong has a proposal that actually uses a stacked 2.5 m pipe to house people.

 

OPOD tube concept is not such a bad idea. Apparently similar projects are already  in varying stages of development in other countries as well.

That brings me back to Delhi and how some of the private redevelopment is taking place. Euphemistically called builder flats; it is a hit or miss. More miss than hit sadly! In a way it is welcome that it is adding to the available housing stock but most of the flats are concentrating on squeezing as many bedrooms as possible. Circulation , proportion, curb appeal and landscaping does not figure in the scheme of things. Most are poorly planned concrete boxes. Hideously decorated with ugly ceiling elements; garish wall treatments and impractically small kitchen areas squeezed in; I won't recommend them. I have yet to see a single correct bathroom layout. Parking needs are invariably compromised for the residents themselves and  guest parking is unheard of.

I am not referring to the pricey upmarket localities of Gulmohar park; GK 2 and south Delhi farm houses. Things are better there because plot sizes tend to be generous with  low population density.  By any chance have you seen the price tags on those properties? You would think you are looking at something in London; New York or the Bay Area.

I am more concerned with smaller , narrower <100 sq. m row housing redevelopments in areas like Chattarpur; vasant kunj and Raj Nagar. Similar design language is echoed in several other areas including suburbs like Faridabad and Gaziabad. All these developments are being executed with a 'slum' mindset. Cram as many beds as you can in as little space as possible.  Maybe a strict elevation / plan regulations like Chandigarh is required in Delhi. Though I am not sure if anyone follows any rule in Chandigarh any more. Anyway all new development there is outside the city limits in areas like Mohali.

Sadly even planned neighbourhoods like Rohini and Dwarka have quickly gotten degraded with mushrooming slum pockets; missing drain covers; broken pedestrian paths; twisted road divider elements rendering it entirely useless. They are following exactly the pattern that was seen in Saket and Vasant kunj previously. I expect the new developments in kakardooma to mirror this  decay faster. Delhi society generally has  very poor civic sense; refuses accountability or responsibility  for their own environment.  Nobody cares! I have a good theory about it. Maybe I will take it up  some other time.

Good aesthetics; new building materials and construction techniques  with  responsive design is being practiced elsewhere in the world facing similar weather; noise ; air pollution and over crowding challenges as Delhi. Why can't we care? Why not?

H house, Vietnam

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बातें सबाब की!

AI generated image

भारत में रेल का सफ़र करना बड़े फायदे का सौदा रहता है। आपको अपने सारे रिश्तेदार मिल जाते हैं। वो भी ऐसे जिन्हें आप आज से पहले मिले ही न हो! कोई आंटी, कोई भैया,कोई चाचा; कोई बेटा... खास कर सेकंड क्लास के डिब्बे में। ये दुनिया में शायद और कहीं न होगा।

सो ऐसे ही एक सफ़र में अलीगढ़ में पढ़ने वाले  कश्मीर के छात्रों का एक ग्रुप चढ़ा मेरे सामने ही उनकी सीटें थीं। मैं दिल्ली से बैठा था। सब के सब मेरे से बहुत छोटे थे उम्र में। सो लगभग घंटे भर में मेरे को भैया भैया कहने लगे। बातचीत होती रही, खाना उनके पास नहीं था , कुछ मैने दिया कुछ फल वगेरह और एक आध ने रेल वाली थाली भी मंगवाई।

इसी दौरान पढ़ाई लिखाई की बातें हुई तो एक लड़का फार्मेसी कर रहा था। एक और कुछ जो मुझे अब याद नहीं; और बाकी के चार इस्लामिक स्टडीज। थोड़ा पूछ ताछ की मैने तो बड़े डिफेंसिव हो गए। मैने समझाने की कोशिश की कि बेटा जैसे तुम्हारा ये दोस्त फार्मेसी कर के न सिर्फ अपने गांव और परिवार की मदद कर सकेगा , बल्कि अपने जीवन को भी सही चला पाएगा। तुम्हारे गांव में यूं ही तीन मस्जिदें हैं। तुम्हारी जगह कहां बनेगी? बनी भी तो मामूली। उस पर  न तुम कोई हिंदी या अंग्रेजी जानते हो, उर्दू भी मामूली है। किसी तरह का स्किल नहीं , कोई रोजगार का जरिया नहीं बन रहा। खेती पर विश्वास नहीं किया। सिर्फ अरबी का ज्ञान तुम्हारा साथ कितना दे पाएगी?  उन्हें मेरी बात जमी नहीं। अंत में उनका था कि हमें सबाब मिलेगा। इस दुनिया से ज्यादा आख़िरत का फिक्र होना चाहिए; और कुरान के अलावा कोई ज्ञान  कहीं नहीं है। 

वो लोग पूरी तरह मत शिक्षित हो चुके थे। जो दो बच्चे उनसे पढ़ाई में अलग थे उनका भी मूक समर्थन ही था। खैर! चूंकि मैं खुद कश्मीर का हूं तो मेरे को बाकी स्थिति का भी अंदाजा हो गया। मेरा दिल अनिष्ट की आशंका से बैठ सा गया, हालांकि वो सारे बच्चे जम्मू पहुंचने तक भैया भैया कह के घर, बाहर और दुनिया का पूछते सुनाते रहे। इस घटना के कुछ महीने बाद ही कश्मीर में हिंदू होलोकास्ट अंजाम दे दिया गया।

वो पीढ़ी आज ऊंचे नीचे पदों पर तैनात होगी। कोई स्कूल में  हेडमास्टर होगा  तो कोई बिजली विभाग में होगा। कोई एग्रीकल्चर डिपार्टमेंट में गांव में होगा; कोई श्रीनगर डेवलपमेंट ऑथोरिटी जैसे शहरी विभाग में। कई पुलिस में होंगे , कई बैंकों में तो कई राज भवन के दफ्तर में भी होंगे ही।यानी समाज के हर वर्ग में, हर शहर, हर गांव में। हर मुहल्ले में। दिमाग में आ रहा है कि नहीं!

आज किसी ने मासूमियत से पूछा कि ये कश्मीरी डॉक्टर क्यों टेररिस्ट बना?  तो  मुझे याद आई वो रेल यात्रा जिसमें मुझे भविष्य का अंधेरा नज़र आया था। तो भैया डॉक्टर हो, इंजीनियर हो, चपरासी हो या ड्राइवर हो..... सबके लिए काफ़िर को मुसलमान बनाना सबाब; मुसलमान न हो तो उसका घर जला, लूट पीट कर घर से भगाना सबाब; रुक गया तो उसको जान से मारना सबाब। विरोध करे तो जहां मिले, जैसे  मिले उसका कत्ल सबाब। इस सब में अपनी जान बच गई तो गाज़ी  का खिताब; जान जाए तो शहादत का सबाब ! फिर इस सबसे अल्लाह  को राज़ी करने का सबाब और फिर जन्नत में 72 हूरों के साथ जिंगा ला ला सबाब! सबाब ही सबाब!

ये पक्का अप्रूव्ड ब्लू प्रिंट है। कोई इससे अलग कुछ करे तो करे, वरना जो है यही है।

ये बात कई बार की जा चुकी है; कभी थोड़ा खुल कर, कभी दबे लफ्जों में ; कहीं कोई नाराज़ न हो जाए। तुमको बीजेपी का बंदा और पुराने विचारों का हामी ; एंटी इस्लाम न समझे। फ़िर वोट बैंक का मसला भी रहता है। पर साफ़ बात है कि कश्मीर में हर मुसलमान को टेररिस्ट न समझें पर टेररिज्म का समर्थक जरूर समझें। यही उसकी बचपन से परवरिश हुई है। यही उसका सारा परिवेश है। यही वो है; ये ही सच है।

उनके साथ उसी तरह का सलूक रखे तो ठीक ; नहीं तो यही होगा जो होता आया है। डॉक्टर एक-47 छिपाएगा; इंजीनियर बॉम्ब बनाएगा; ट्रांसपोर्टर दिल्ली पहुंचाएगा और प्रोफेसर ट्रिगर दबाएगा ! 

समझे कि न; जब तक समझ में नहीं आएगा धमाके होते रहेंगे।कब तक अपने को धोखा देते रहेंगे? कब तक पाकिस्तान पे ठीकरा फोड़ कर्तव्य की इतिश्री समझेंगे? कब तक?

आप कन्फ्यूज़ हैं, पर  सामने एकदम स्पष्ट लोग खड़े है! जिस देश में कश्मीर फाइल्स को प्रोपेगंडा कह के झूठा बताया जाए;  उसे बॉम्ब धमाकों से भी  कुछ सुनाई दिखाई नहीं देगा। अभी आयेंगे देखना इन बिचारे डॉक्टरों के वकील ! बताएंगे कैसे इसकी बिचारी माँ ने कर्जा लेकर डॉक्टरी करवाई; कैसे मोदी/ बीजेपी/ हिंदू अतिवाद ज़िम्मेदार   है इनके बंदूक उठाने का! आप लोग सिर हिला के मज़े लेना ! मोदी फेल हो गया... वाह भाई वाह! मजलूम इंसानों की लाशों पर राजनीति करना। इधर उधर इसे या उसे भला बुरा कहना ; फिर उबर इट्स से पेस्ट्री ऑर्डर कर मस्त हो जाना।

जाओ भाई चादर तान के सो जाओ। ऐसे होता रहता है! फ़ज़ूल छाती पीटने का ड्रामा न करें!

Free Stuff!

My car has a little problem that has never gotten fixed even at the Lexus dealership. They can't find anything wrong with it. Front tyre are both fine, but the back right tyre loses air in cold weather. Not a lot but enough for the tire pressure monitoring system to register it and the warning orange lights to light up. This annoys me no end! Hate this light!

So I used to drive to the gas station just at the intersection outside home and fill air before I proceeded to wherever I was going. The air pump was  self serviced and free! Did I already tell you 'it was'? Then all the gas stations decided that they will charge a dollar for air unless someone fills gas first.  In that case It will still be free. I continued filling air this way; sometimes by paying, at other times gratis because I filled my tank at the same time.

Then the price went up to 2 dollars to be charged to your credit card, irrespective of you filling gas at the same time or not. Just for comparison gas was about a dollar for a litre. It started to pinch ; specially as I had to fork this out the entire winter; just for that one tyre twice a week. I can afford 2 dollars , but it is the principle and it stinks. You get the feeling ; don't you?

Even the air was not free any more! Eventually I had to spend good money on purchasing my own  car battery operated air pump to avoid the gas stations bankrupting me by selling me free air!

Amazon still does free returns! Just keep in mind that you need to have bought some stuff already and they have included the return postage into their selling price. It isn't free really!

13th amendment abolished slavery in 1865 and African Americans were 'freed' a long time ago. They are still paying a price for being who they are. Free is not really free! Everything costs something and God forbid should you go for  free money.  It costs too much! Your life... almost always! Nothing is free!

So you have already heard about Zohran Mamdani; newly minted mayor of New York. He is Mira Nair's son from her current husband Mahmud Mamdani. My biased opinion is that her name would have been Maira Mahmuda Mamdani but likely got saved by the fact that she was already an established film maker under her own name at the time of her marriage! 

Any way I would hope that she had some self respect and kept her name consciously. Her film making does show a clear impact of her Islamic company. Apparently she did not convert at marriage and her husband is non practising.  Zohran still was raised a Muslim by her and that's what he self identifies as! A little strange self goal I would say!

I can see people's reservations with that in a city like New York. Specially his previous statements about Israel - Palestine issue and his aunt's hijab. There is another complexity - his wife! Rama Duwaji is an established  artist  of Arabic heritage and her work is largely focused on Arabic and Islamic themes. Just understand that 9/11 happened in New York by Arab terrorists in support of Arab and Islamic causes and picture begins to darken. I do not blame people to see the ghosts of 9/11 in 11/4 !

Zohran can cause a lot of uneasiness just by being himself. He also played Bollywood numbers after his win; maybe as a nod to his Indian mother. India is not exactly the flavour of the day in the US under Trump and it has not gone down too well either! A direct comparison is already being made with Sadiq Khan; currently the mayor of London, UK. It is giving many New Yorkers sleepless nights as London under Sadiq has mostly turned into londonistan according to reliable word on the street!

We can ignore most of these facts for now as unproven bias and allow his actions to show his true self. We need to give him that. The real challenge lies some where else! In one word it is called ' free stuff'!

Mamdani looks like he graduated  from the kejriwal school of politics. Kejriwal perfected the art of promising freebies that he had no money for; to select sections of the electorate and win at the polls. He also pioneered cultivation of the urban Naxalite ; anti rich image that appeals to a certain demographic.

A cursory look at Mamdani's platform will show that he wants to tax the rich. He believes nobody has a right to be a billionaire. He has promised free universal child care; free city bus services; freezing of rent and city run grocery stores.

He would pay for it by a tax on wealth and an increase of the corporate tax rate. All this B.S. appeals to the immigrant and lower and middle class demographic. Those are the one that need a helping hand and they get out to vote in large numbers. This is another parallel between New Delhi and New York. Large immigrant voter base struggling to keep their head above water in an expensive megalopolis. This demographic is the one that voted kejriwal to power and this demographic is the one that has voted Mamdani in. Just remember voting percentage in New York has not crossed 38 %. That means 62% of the eligible voters did not cast their vote! 

Here is the problem. The moment you tax wealth; wealthy will vote with their feet and leave the city. Their money opens many doors to them and they do not have to live in New York. If you raise corporate tax understand that corporations have a clear responsibility to their share holders to maximize profits and this increased cost of operation will result in either the corporations relocating or passing the cost on to the consumer. Likely both.

These promises are hollow with slim chances of success or any tangible benefit to ordinary citizens.  There is no money  for them either.They however are a good rallying points and create big voting blocks that can and does hand you the elections!

Those that know how those kejriwal world class schools; mohalla clinics ; free DTC bus for women, free water; free electricity  etc. fared ; know that these schemes are populist but not sustainable. Only thing that worked  well was buy one get one booze bottle scheme! You do not need me to tell you that having a wine shop on every street corner does not do much for social uplift. It was used to generate slush fund for election spending in Punjab.

 

Here is wishing Zohran Mamdani a better result for New York than what kejriwal delivered for the citizens of New Delhi. I would not exactly recommend  keeping high hopes to the good old New Yorkers though! Keep your fingers crossed. Free is always expensive! You will certainly pay more than you would have if you get what you can afford. It is all coming out of your pockets! Remember that!

 

Broadly Speaking!

HEIDI KLUM'S HALLOWEEN COSTUME!

Words kill;silence does too!

Amongst the most potent abilities humans developed on their evolutionary journey, speech is at the very top of the list. It certainly has made us the most powerful species on earth. We have used it to express ourselves; connect; socialize; conduct interactions; tell stories; educate, preserve and propogate ideas and knowledge  in a seamless fashion. 

As is part and parcel of the human failing, we have turned communication also into a tool of power for asserting control ;domination and manipulation.

Most of us would have experienced 'denial of communication'; even as a  child. This is where an adult, usually your own mother would stop talking to you in order to punish you for some transgression or to encourage modification in the behaviour pattern; or simply to assert authority. We quickly learn that it works! Specially were there is a strong emotional bond! We later do the same to our friends and anyone close to us. They always return the favour. Wives and significant others use this tool very commonly for emotional blackmail and oneupmanship.

You can always disagree and hold on to your point of view. I may dislike it but I respect that. However denying communication entirely is the  most cruel; selfish; heartless; rude and insulting choice that you can ever make. This only makes humans the worst behaved animal in the universe and the only one to do so. It is the quicker way to end a relationship and firmly marks a singular lack of respect for the other. Worst cut is that we proclaim love for the victim at the same time we are perpetrating this injustice. 'Human' is a synonym of hypocrisy!

Silence is a ticking time bomb! So speech must be a relief! No! Not so fast! Human depravity has no limits! It is not for nothing do they say 'silence is golden'!

It is so because human speech is largely a dishonest, self serving drivel;

if you are lucky on that day. On other days it a complete white lie meant to obfuscate; misguide and lead you to get exploited  one way or the other.

Coca Cola has long been advertised as ' refreshing'! A bottle of carbonated water with synthetic caramel coloring agent; unspecified acidic flavoring chemicals including phosphoric acid; unhealthy gas for fizz and 36 grams of sugar in one little can. Did anything amongst the ingredients sound refreshing to you?

A chocolate bar I remember was infused with ' oxygen'! Sounds pretty good doesn't it? If you guessed it is just air bubbles to inflate the volume ; you would be correct. It is meant  to make you pay more for a small amount of chocolate since it looks and feels big.

Unfortunately this practice is not limited to the commercial world. Politicians are masters of deception and double speak. In fact we encounter falsehoods everyday at every step. Unfortunately in our personal interactions too. More so in the personal realm! Gas lighting, false claims, wrong information, promises that one has no intention of keeping are so common place that by now you likely have already labelled me as some weirdo; nit picking perfectionist oldie!

Listen, I do not want to hide things; lie or unnecessarily mislead anyone. Is that such a bad thing? Many years ago I was in Mumbai for an exhibition that was getting installed on site. I was a young man and a bit older contractor kind of became friendly. One evening after he had downed a few he started praising me. Initially I thought it is the usual flattery as I was to sign his project completion certificate enabling his payments! But than he said why he liked me! I was open to respectfully discussing things ; I did not lie or ask for any kickbacks; I did exactly as I said I would  by the time  I promised!

There, that was it! Really nothing special. Everyone I thought is like that. It is later in my career I realised I would come to much grief because that is not the way of the world. 

What you say matters enough to be acted upon. Least you can do is follow through ! Tell this to Chris broad! He is a 68 years old  ex  left hand opener for England in test and ODI cricket. Mate is old enough to understand; or is he? His sports career got over 38 years ago when he was just 30 years of age. He later became a broadcaster and a cricket official. Well he has a healthy average of around 40 in both tests and ODI's. That tells me he was  pretty handy with the bat.

Apparently he would have gone far but he self sabotaged his own career by not having control at the crease. Very difficult for a leopard to change spots later in life. Most likely he has lost control again. So he has come up with a revelation recently. According to him 'someone' called him not to penalize Indian team for a slow over rate; when he was officiating as a match refree. He then somehow managed to find the 'lost' time and Indian team was not penalized. This narrative implies the  excessive clout India has in ICC and the undue advantage their teams get by obscene bullying of everyone around.

Why is he saying it now?  Attention seeking - perhaps ! Remorse - perhaps! Trying to rewrite history- perhaps! 

I read this or words to this effect that kind of sounds so true. 'Some people do not feel sorry for what they did. They just hate how it makes them look. They do not carry guilt. They carry discomfort. Instead of fixing what they did; they try to fix your version of the story. They are not sorry for the hurtful mess they caused. They are sorry they can't control how you remember it.'

If he had any morality or ethics or if Chris broad is telling the truth; maybe it is  about time he realised that as the match refree it was his duty to uphold all the laws governing the game. If he did not report  this illegal approach to the ICC; if he then went on to tweak the results in order to give undue advantage to one team over the other - he has brought the game into disrepute; shown unprofessionalism and participated in a criminal act. He is as complicit in this illegality as anyone else. He is accountable! Yes! He is! 

He should do the right thing and start by refunding the fee received for those matches where he says it happened ; because he got paid to do something and the fellow dropped the ball. Secondly he should name the person that phoned him. Aid prosecution of the culprits and recuse himself from any further cricket game official duties as a tainted candidate for the job.

We will start to believe him then! Will he do it? Your guess is as good as mine but if you guessed 'no'....... You are smart , you ' ld go far in this world!

New Quantum research reveals that time does not move forward but folds onto itself. Meaning your present actions might already be reshaping your past. Interesting; isn't it?

Make sure that you are not making  mistakes in the present that will double down on the mistakes made in the past. Remember words are powerful. Use them carefully! You will be forever held accountable for them. Silence on the other hand is way more powerful. Use it intelligently. Overuse can be devastating! Always weigh before speaking and know when staying quite is patently unjust!

Humans learned how to speak about two million years ago. Since than they have been trying to learn  when they ought to speak and when they have to keep quite! Most haven't got the hang of it yet! Maybe, if we checked back in another two million years..... Perhaps!