5/28/2004 

India's Sports Ministry headed by Mr.Dutt shouldrealize that there are sports in the country other than one played by Sachin Tendulkar. Most of these guys play for their own national pride and not for any monetary benefits. Guys like Dhanraj who have been toiling for years playing superlative hockey at the international level need to be recognised. I hope we come back with a bounty of medals from Athens

EXPRESS CRICKET

5/27/2004 

Satyendra Dubey- A Follow up
GoodNewsIndia~8~Dubey may yet inspire Indian whistleblowers

 

Lakers Outsourced

The Hindu : Sport / Cricket : Narrow win for LA Lakers

5/25/2004 

Whirlwind Weekend

I had quite a long and happening weekend.. On Friday night, I hit the movie theatres to see Ayutha Ezhuthu- the latest offering by India's numero uno Manirathnam.. The movie reviews were not good but only Mani can present a movie with such class and depth in an era of masala potboilers. The story is very uncomplicated... the offering is about three young men whose lives are changed by an old man... no points for guessing that the old man is a politician.... I have absolutely adored Mani's style of narration in his earlier movies especially Dalapathy, Mouna Ragam and Alaipayuthey and this movie seems to be no less.... The tales of the three men in their late twenties are presented in an episodic fashion with story of Arjun( a pseudo American played by Siddarth) following Michael( a reformist played by Surya) following Inba( a convict played by Madhavan)...I could identify myself with Michael Vasanth more than any other character... Madhavan brings out the best in him for Mani's movies... be it a lover boy in Alaipayuthey or a short tempered journalist in Kannathil Muthamittal or a convict in AE... Meera Jasmine plays his wife and she plays it well... Siddarth is definitely an improvement over his earlier Boys and Trisha has nothing to do but to look good... Surya plays Michael Vasanth and I am sure would win many hearts with his neat portrayal... The only distraction in the movie is Esha Deol who plays Surya's love interest and could have been completely avoided.Ironically, Esha is the only one common to both movies... I should say hats off to Bharatiraja for playing the politician's role with great elan... The veteran director should stop making films and start acting in them.. I hope his son is able to pick up some histrionics from his illustrious father...I think Mani should make his movies without songs although ARR has come up with some good music... In Mani's movies, songs slacken the pace... Just for the theme of youth taking to politics in an age when the country is ruled by 70 year olds, this movie needs to be welcomed....

Saturday... I should say was inspiring, to say the least. Had a chance to attend a talk by Balaji Sampath and really see the vision of the man through his words. Even though I have been involved in a little bit of community service, I am still driven by materialistic pleasures and goals. Balaji to me is one man who has given it all to the cause. I am 24 and someone asked me now to leave the United States and work for villages in India, I would either go crazy and kill the person or think the person is lunatic. But Balaji is a role model, a person who at 24 decided to forgo a life in the United States amidst Mercedes' and BMW's for a life serving the 750,000 villages in India. His simplicity coupled with his ability to really use his background in Engineering to solve some issues is simply breathtaking...

As I write this, I like to be anachronistic and talk about Friday. May 21, 13 years before Rajiv Gandhi was gifted to the pangs of United States favorite topic "Terrorism". It sometimes seems to amuse me that the United States takes this topic very seriously after 9/11 whereas we have been facing the effects of it ever since Independence. I am also happy that sense finally prevailed in the land of honey and milk...

I also observed a fast on that day to show my support for Satyendra Dubey, a relatively unknown yet special IIT who was made known when he was murdered in Bihar for unravelling a scam. I hope the corrupt are brought to book and corruption is dealt with seriously atleast by future Governments. I sincerely would love to see that the issue is not swept under the carpet. If at all it is, then it is time to clean the house. Lets move the carpet and take out the skeletons. Let us start teaching the wrongdoers a very strong lesson.


5/21/2004 

Bhopal... We Need Justice

The International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal

5/20/2004 

Manmohan the Man
How qualified are our PMs?

U.S Presidents

Presidents by Birthday / College

5/18/2004 

Indian Drama.... U.S Fascinated

Indian electoral drama fascinates US

 

Every Hindu decides what is Hinduism. That space ought to remain inviolable. It is a space worth living and dying for
The Telegraph - Calcutta : Opinion

 

CTRL ALT DEL - NAIDU


India Together: AP's electoral earthquake - May 2004

 

A Slap in the face of Democracy

As an Indian living in the United Sates, I am really perplexed and frustrated at how we have handled the issue of Sonia's foreign origin. The ground relaity is that an Italian Born was able to relate better to the issues of the common man in India rather than the "swadeshi" politicians in the NDA. It is a shame that while India was shining, the poor had actually been waning.
Sonia spoke the language of the people, she and her allies made the people realize that the incumbent government has not done anything much to them. BJP has been reaping a bounty of votes by stressing repeatedly on religuious and social divides. How long a country with more Muslims than Pakistan could have tolerated such a divisive attitude

There has been huge outcry from my friends here about Sonia donning the mantle. Most of us forget that it is always the poorest of the poor who always throng the election booths to vote. The reason behind this is very easy to comprehend. The rich never care about who runs the country because whoever runs they will stay rich. The middle class according to me is one of the most selfish section of the Indian society. This class of society commments, complains but when the time arises when they can do something, they behave worse than insects. They act as spineless bodies who would rather watch "Bade Miyan Chote Miyan" on election day rather than casting their votes. The next day when the results are out, they begin their political analysis. The educated middle class in India does not have the right to talk about anything in this country. The poor are the only folks who go and vote in huge numbers atleast in a hope that the new Government might bring back some smiles to their faces. They really don't care whether Infosys is doubling their bonus or Intel opens a new facility. They care about their basic needs. They want three meals a day, a decent harvest and a peaceful atmosphere. BJP and its allies were not doing it and they bit the dust.

When Sonia's foreign origins come up, most of the Indians in the U.S have to say that this thing can never happen in the U.S. To me, it reflects two things 1) The inability of the United States to embrace diversity at the highest office 2) Indians here want to be just slaves. They do not want representation at the highest office. Some of the problems that immigrants face in the United States might have been solved if there was a lingering thought that someday an immigrant can hold the highest office.

I have found the arguments over her foreign origin illogical and stupid and here are my cockeyed ripostes to why she should have been the PM

1. India has a foreign cricket coach who has done the (w)right job to the bunch of "losers".
2. India has a lot of foreign jobs. We can give the western world one in return.
3. Ask the teens and kids in India, what they like better "Pizza or Idli". The answer has to be Italian.

Over the last few days, one of the more positive articles written in the English media of the country is here ... Read it
What's wrong with Sonia?

5/14/2004 

Sonia's Triumph: US Reactions

Upset in India, reactions in US

5/12/2004 

Why BCCI should really become MLC ( Major League Cricket)

Indian Cricketers- the ones who don't make it big find it hard to make ends meet. Money has to be pumped into the domestic league and ideally we should be following the franchise format that American sports follow. it increases competition and also gives options for people who want to take up to sports as a career. 11 people representing a country of a billion is very very cockeyed and its high time we started packaged it and marketed it a little better. Sport has to become a mainstream career option in India to produce better sportsmen and to make people start thinking out of Engineering Colleges.

Here is the other side of Indian cricketer. I hope the Dalmiyas and the Muthiahs wake up.

Columns - Jobless in India? Go abroad : HTCricket.com

5/07/2004 

Iraq : A Different Angle

Empire Notes

Iraq Dispatches


 

Abuse... Abuse and More Abuse

Khaleej Times Online