Just pissing in the wind!

A few days ago, there was a sense of déjà vu, as I was between choosing a book to buy at a Crosswords store, here in Bangalore. The book in hand was 'Summary of Broken Republic: Three Essays', by noted speaker and freewheeling democrat, Arundhati Roy. The Booker prize winner is either loved or hated for her outspoken views on issues in India and many belive she is of little value other than being a nuisance at best.

The déjà vu, came about because as I flipped through pages, a procession went by, with the national flag and all, in support of the man of the moment in India 'Anna Hazare', who in his fight against corruption has pushed politicians of all hues into a rather tight corner.

In this battle for survival the politician has received assistance from rather unlikely sources, one is Ms.Roy. Her reason for opposing Hazare being that he did little for his village when farmers were committing suicide and more importantly that he was an RSS sympathizer many years ago, thus in a way echoing the voice of politicians in the UPA.His message, well thats not important, as far as she is concerned.

Ms. Roy's logic is a tad inexplicable. She has no take on how corruption is to be fought but when there is a movement she is seen making feeble attempts to derail it by targeting its leader. With her limited wisdom Ms.Roy ought to see that the move on corruption has gone beyond Hazare and the message has captured the collective imagination of India.

Should Ms.Roy, feel very strongly about her views on Hazare a good idea would be to fast in protest and take her chances! In her book she talks about her time with Maoist guerrillas which made a profound impression. She vividly describes spending nights sleeping on the forest floor in a "thousand-star hotel", applauds "the ferocity and grandeur of these poor people fighting back", and says "being in the forest made me feel like there was enough space in my body for all my organs". She seems to root for the underdog. Yet when the common man looks to make life better for himself she makes an attempt to thwart it by pretty prose in a daily newspaper.
Just pissing in the wind, I would say.

Are you a Sammy?

In apartheid South Africa, being called a ‘Sammy’ was as derogatory as it could get. If you were not an African or a white European then by default you were a ‘Sammy’, and so Indians were Sammie’s. How did this term come about? Apparently, the indentured labor shipped to South Africa, from India by the British, many years ago, to work their mines; plantations and so on were from South India and in all probability had names ending with ‘Swami’. The Swami gradually turned to Sammy, probably innocently and stuck as a derogatory name for anybody who was brown in color, thus reinforcing apartheid and racial discrimination.
A few days ago, while discussing terrorism, a participant said that, terrorists were all ‘Jihadists’. An innocent remark, but with dangerous portends because it directly then links terror to a particular religion and then leads to broader stereotyping. As we now know terror attacks across the world have more to do with political ends and end result of social disparity rather than meeting religious goals. The England riots and massacre in Norway by a right wing lunatic are a case in point.
Stereotyping unfortunately happens all the time, innocently at first so that a person or people can be identified and pigeon holed and then get a life of its own with tragic consequences. In conflicts, people tend to develop a negative percept of the other side. The opponent is expected to be aggressive, self-serving, and deceitful. These stereotypes tend to be self-perpetuating. If one side assumes the other side is deceitful and aggressive, they tend to condition their own response. This turns to a vicious cycle grows worse, as communication is either shut down or filters develop which color interaction.

The Quiet Bangalorean!

Two things struck me over the last week or so. The first being the fact that men in power clutch at anything and everything including straw when they fear they are drowning and two, the entertainment that the mundane provides.
Both have to do with the Indian cricket team’s performance in England and the recall of Rahul Dravid to the one day team after two years. It is not coincidental that India did not play top class teams abroad during this period and now that they are, performance clearly separates’ men from the boys.
While the cricketing pundits in India do not seem to be overly surprised, the man himself (Dravid) has since announced his retirement from pajama cricket, post the series for which he has been selected. He probably realizes that he will be jettisoned once the team returns to India and its flat tracks where the big boys with bigger endorsements will come out to murder hapless bowlers in the heat. He saved the selectors the trouble of dropping him.
Former India batter, Sanjay Manjerekar was at his best when he observed a few days ago that when people saw the God of cricket, Sachin Tendulkar when he was 14 years old there was no doubt that they were watching a genius in the making. Manjerekar later captained Rahul Dravid and says he never thought that Dravid would reach the heights that he has and the tough bloke that he has turned out to be. In short Dravid has over achieved.
In doing so he has shown us the importance of intelligence, dedication, simplicity, hard work and focus. Characteristics that never seem to go out of fashion, the size of endorsements not withstanding! You can also be certain that he will be there trying to keep the English bowlers out, while the Indian Institute of Management @ Ranchi, India, attempts to map beleaguered Indian captain M.S.Dhoni’s brain, to determine his leadership traits and style.
Slapstick and comedy are never in short supply.The probable reason why we smile amidst our daily chaos and silently salute quiet blokes like the Dravid's who keep us afloat!

While Nero fiddled.............

All ages down history have had their spectacles. If it was the gladiators of Rome then today it must be the Indian politician. Hopefully the comic spectacle of two of our senior politicians in Karnataka heading to the famous temple of Dharmasthala, to duel, has ended and we can get back to more serious stuff. The news papers too, can get back to being less of comics. ( A few days ago much of the front page of a national daily was covered by the build up to Dharmasthala and that Aiswariya Rai was to be a mom!!!!)
The jamboree was apparently spurred as charges of corruption were levelled by each against the other in fits of self righteousness, following which a duel in the form of taking an oath like a truth serum was arranged at the temple.Why not a polygraph at NIMHANS?
Many years ago I was caught in a terrible storm, on the west coast of India. The ship was battered and bruised. Many thought we would sink and that was the end of that. Well, we survived and secured ourselves in the port of Kandla, which had in turn been pounded out of shape and the destruction was humongous. As all of us tried to pick the pieces up and get on with life, we heard, much to our collective dismay that the then Prime Minister A.B.Vajpayee was visiting Kandla to comfort the beaten population. There was chagrin & dismay because the politicos visit would only serve as a distraction to struggling state machinery in Kandla. I’m afraid the circus in Karnataka is one such distraction where time could be spent in dealing with more pressing issues rather than troubling devotees heading to Dharmasthala to get succour for their overflowing woes.
The Roman emperor Nero is said to have fiddled while Rome burnt itself to cinders. While most historians have discounted this as untrue the piece of trivia refuses to leave Nero and whatever good he might have done is forgotten.
A similar fate lies in wait for our ‘leaders’ unless they address real world issues rather than duelling in a virtual world.

The Big Loser!!!!!

In masculine societies like India to be seen as second best is painful. Our people are not only aspiration filled but also very competitive. The scramble for success is evident in almost every walk of life. In fact you rarely see a person walking these days. They are either cutting corners, jumping Q’s or traffic lights, in order to get wherever they have to get first.

The American’s, masters of jargon, went a step further and called all those who were not first as losers. There are no prizes for being second best as far as they are concerned. And nothing hurts more than being labelled a loser. The term is a slur which is indefensible and once labelled a loser one simply slinks away to lick his or her wounds, because there are no comebacks.

So today I was taken aback when one of my colleagues said he was a ‘Big Loser’. I admired the man’s candidness and was inclined to agree, but still, where did the nonchalance come from? Was society in flux? Just to get to the bottom of this rather strange admission, I decided to cosy up to him and complimented him on his new svelte look. His face lighted up and he described his exercise routine, in deep detail. The flow was so good I hadn’t the heart to stymie it and I did not.

I was beginning to nod off, when he suddenly stopped and said that, that was how he was the big loser. ‘What was that again, I asked?’ As if addressing a person with limited cognitive ability, he said, that the Gym he frequented had awarded him the prize of ‘The Big Loser’ for having lost the most weight amongst his peers at the Gym, over six months. So the loser tag here was a prize and he was proud to wear that badge of honour, despite what people think of being called a loser.

I too ‘am a pretty competitive guy, and the battle of the bulge is one battle that I would like to lose or should I say win and what the heck, I even will not mind being called a loser in this respect!

Shooting the messenger.....................

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A couple of days ago I inadvertently barged in on a small group discussing the shenanigans of Baba Ramdev. He was labelled a nincompoop and various other names, accompanied by derisive laughter.
I remained silent and the only one to do so and my silence was noticed with some surprise. Was I a chela of the Guru? Did I admire the yogi? By my silence I was trying to indicate that while Ramdev, need not necessarily be a role model for the general public to emulate, the message that he was trying to pass on to the lay Indian was very important and worth attention.
Corruption has hit me, the middle class Indian the hardest and I'm interested in anybody who speaks up against the corrupt in this country.
Ramdev has got corruption to the centre stage and has the powers to be worried and thinking. In short he has pushed them out of their comfort zones and there is hope that we might see a less corrupt society and more value for our money.
It is important to closely look at the message rather than shooting the messenger from the hip and losing what could be a game changer.
Let's not shoot the messenger just as yet, folk!

The top view!

When I first flew in India in the 1980's I was generally first in to check in just to get myself a window seat away from a wing, this to look at the scenery below as we took off and landed, at various airports. One exception though was Mumbai. It was the depressing sight of the large Dharavi slum that greeted you as you slid into the city.
The other day, when Ratan Tata, called Mukesh Ambani new mansion, as 'sad', it struck a chord. The point that Tata was trying to get across was, are the rich and powerful morally entitled to ostentation in a a land that still has the poorest of people on this planet. Is it business Dharma?The 'Reliance' group is definitely not a shining example as far a charity is concerned and it is a cause for concern, when you consider that they are a role model for aspiring entrepreneurs in India.
It is interesting to think of the view that the portly Mr.Mukesh Ambani would have from his top floor? Shining Mumbai or a slum swept landscape?
To say that the well to do got that way, due to their sole efforts is perverse and is arrogant and on most occasions it is a fair piece of luck that got them the riches. One Mr.Bill Gates, readily admits, that his tiny town had one of the early computers in the US and as a youngster he got an early shot at it, which started an enduring journey to success. Chance it was!
Post my early experience with flying in/out of Mumbai, I opted for an aisle seat. This, at least, allowed you to chat with the air hostess and make less inhibited trips to the toilet...........

Thank God Its Friday!

A couple of days ago, I met up with colleagues of mine from my sailing days. Time having taken its toll, there wasn't a single one of us not having lost hair or with a distended paunch. The re-union ended fairly late and I stepped on the gas to get home pronto, after much bonhomie.

The only hitch was that, I was stopped by the police for an alcohol check and had to go through a breath analyzer. As there was no alcohol consumed at our party, I got through the test without issue, which was not the case with many of the other folk hanging around, mostly youngsters in the mid twenties to early thirties. Most sulked, having consumed unacceptable levels of alcohol. Many argued, in polished English, with the few cops present, who looked tired and trying their best not to lose it.I have not seen cops having TGIF parties. Can there be a better reason to get drunk than to celebrate the weekend? Thank God Its Friday!

I was impressed with the way the much maligned police dealt with the reckless and irresponsible louts who are educated enough to speak polished English, but ignorant to the traffic rules in Bangalore.It only goes to show that education has become domain specific rather than holistic and many of us miss the larger picture.

In the group, there was this rather affluent looking girl, who was mooting the idea of bribing the cops to avoid the fine. This when we rally behind a gent called Anna Hazare, to root corruption out.The cancer of corruption and the ability to take the shortest cuts to get what we want, has seeped so deep, that it is going to take more than Anna Hazare and a Lok Pal Bill to get it out of our system.

What we need are tougher laws, more cops, greater fines and less parties!

Dock Death!

In a tragic accident yesterday, the 'Casion' or gate at a Navy dock in Visakhapatnam gave way, allowing sea water to rush in to the dock, killing four Indian Naval personnel. The dock union has alleged that contract workers have also been killed, an allegation that the Navy has denied thus far.
I have seen work at many a dock and can unhesitatingly state that Indian docks have the worst standards as far as safety is concerned. A few years ago, I saw a man killed right before me, when a steel pipe fell on his unhelmeted head from about a 100 feet high.Tragic again beacuse safety had been flouted at every turn.
These days, as part of my HR course, I teach safety to young students, for about two hours, in a class room. Many times the kids, have a look that suggests, 'Why are you telling us all this crap?' Unfortunately it is this disinterest that transfers to the workplace, resulting in accidents and death and a huge loss in operational efficiency, time and money.
Safety is a habit and like all good habits needs discipline and effort to inculcate. In most Europe based organizations that I have seen, unsafe people are sacked, without any remorse. There is zero tolerance and is probably the reason why, more people return home to their families at the end of the day, than in India!

Bhangra from Bhatinda!

On a visit to Punjab if you see a traffic cop, atop his pulpit,gyrating to a Bhangra beat, you need not be surprised.

Naunihal Singh, a young Indian Police Service officer posted at Bathinda, a south Punjab district, introduced the Bhangra as a unique exercise regime for obese, overweight and pot-bellied policemen.

Those police personnel who need to shed weight take part in the exercise, including dancing to Bhangra numbers, every morning for over one hour. One could probably see pot bellied cops, sweating it out to get back into shape.

In just a while, the personnel undergoing the weight-loss regime have collectively lost over 2000 kgs. For the uninitiated, that is what a fair sized Indian elephant weighs and is a stupendous result.

The Punjab police is mulling implementing this program for all its policemen to balance the rich Punjabi diet which is generally preceded by copious amounts of alcohol.

The Bhangra, is a traditional dance form of the Punjab and is a wonderfully energetic dance, which while being easy on the eye need not impress purists who swear by Indian classical dance forms.

The young police officers quest to get his force back into shape is to be appreciated and shows uninhibited thinking!