Buy the law

All 9 accused got acquitted in Jessica lal Murder case.

Salman Khan gets bail in the hit-run incident.

I am sure, none of you would have missed these and many more such headlines in the newspapers. These incidents are just a trailor of the bigger movie running in this society where the rich is the judge and money is the law.

These high-fame politician sons and actors seem to live in a different world. They are always in a euphoria, life is like a bed of roses with all the thorns have been distributed to the poor and the unfortunate. You may have seen things like killing people on petty things like refusing a drink, only in movies but it happened with Jessica and a murder committed in front of a full party before scores of people went unpunished due to the so-called lack of evidence. Is it really credible that the whole machinery of Delhi police could not find the murder weapon? Why does not our judiciary ponder over the intriguing problem of eye-witness turning hostile, whether it is Jessica lal Murder case or Best Bakery case? The whole matter weakens the dying belief of the poor and the downtrodden in the administration and judiciary of the country. For the poor and middle class, the police is perceived to be a bigger criminal than the local dada or bhai. who just demands a regular hafta.

The cruel but simple fact is Money rules. When Salman Khan was delivered a year sentence in the black buck case, the media instead od finding out whether he was guilty or innocent, was busy in calculting that Bollywood will have to suffer losses of crores if he is indicted. So, does that mean that economic power brings you the license of committing heinous crimes and run away unpunished even after breaching the laws of the land? Do these larger than life figures have gone bigger than the laws of the land?

If you believe that criminal trials are a testimony of the power of law then let me try to bring out of this utopia. Remember the DPS R K Puram MMS scandal, only the poor boy Ravi Raj had to bear all the ignominy of trial and nation wide infamy while no one knows the name of the two juveniles enjoying themselves before the camera. In this country, money can make witnesses turn hostile, it can destroy evidence, it can hire lawyers, it can even extort the plaintiff to withdraw the case itself saying Babu, jo beet gayi so baat gayi. as happened in the case when a drunk bollywood hero who plays the compassionate all charming playboy on the silver screen ran his car over some poor man sleeping on the roadside. The life of the poor soul was sold to satisfy the hunger of the devil. He had his driver ready to take the blame, the victim's family too went in his support. Hence, you can even buy life in this country called India. In India, everything is on sale whether it is life, morals, justice or whatever. Hey Mastercard people, are you listening, nothing is priceless.

Speaking English

Did you know that India has a larger English-literate population than England? And, this huge chunk of individuals wrapped in flesh and blood did not go unnoticed. A new version of English, the Indian English owes its provenance to we, Indians who have popularised it world over. We have also successfully introduced hindi words like raja (king), jungle (forest) in the English vogue. We are acclaimed to be among the best non-native English speakers throughout the world. In fact, the whole BPO industry thrives on this faith entrusted in us by the mighty developed world.

But, have you ever thought why are you speaking English by compulsion or by choice? Neither reason is unworthy but there are instance when we use the language to flaunt our so called well-bred education and power and attempt to hide our weaknesses under it.

Yesterday, I found someone who started blabbering in English after a few drinks, mumbling some order to a waiter (someone who finds it hard to follow English). The person got enraged when asked why did he choose to speak in English? May be he was trying to save his kiddo face under the veil of his competence and fluency in the language of Masters.

You must have observed people shouting abuses at the top of their voice in English. Do they feel the language is more apt to portray the authority and to establish their hegemony? Or is it that English language lends support to their fallacious arguments?

Also people are found to use the language in their attempts to woo the opposite sex. If people think it to be the language of romance, then they seem to have forgotten that Heer-ranjha, soni-Mahiwal were no less immersed in love than Romeo-Juliet. I think it is their lack of confidence which encourages them to use English so that they can at times,conceal their faults under the pretext of linguistic error.

It seems as if though our English masters left us 59 years ago, but we still use their language as the symbol of prominence, power and strength. I am not against the popular usage of the language but rather my attempt is only to question the purpose of its use.

Deepa Mehta's Trilogy

Yesterday, mid sems got over and I set myself on a movie journey. Unlike most of my friends, I prefer Indian movies and hence I chose Deepa Mehta who makes meaningful movies addressing social issues.


The first one was "Fire". This one disappointed me a little, the lesbian relationship between Nandita and Shabana seems to be exaggerated. The issue of the status of woman in Male-dominated indian society needs to be addressed. But, the character of Nandita seems to be very much rebellious and confused. Why does not she raise a hue and cry when she finds her husband to be cheating on her?? Was she more interested in pursuing a lesbo with Shabana? In fact, the whole movie seems to be filled with creeps who are obsessed about sex. Whether it is Javed Jaffrey about his gf, the servant "Mundu" always busy in searching an oppurtunity to masterbate or the two ladies eager to satisfy their lesbian lust. To sum up, this movie seems to be a cheap ploy to create a furore by Shiv sainiks.

The second one was "Earth". The movie has captivating performances from Amir Khan, Rahul Khanna and Nadita Das. The director succesfully delineates a story capturing the prevalent religious intolerance in the Indian society. Deepa also portrays the age old fact "Love knows no bounds" with a small scene between Rahul and Nandita, no sizzlers. The villain played by Amir in the end shows the cheap selfishness of humans, it also shows the venegeance of a refuted lover, the anger of a lost warrior. The small girl played by Maia Sethna shows that age has nothing to do with acting abilities. Deepa aptly uses her as a narrator and her perspective of the story as a small child seems innocent and impartial. In total, an excellent movie capturing the human emotions in the setting of Indian society.


The last one was "Water". Indeed, the actors in this movie were not the usual Nanditas and Shabanas, so used to playing meaningful roles but John Abraham and Lisa Ray, two famous models who entered the film industry and have often suffered criticism for poor acting. But, in this movie, they seems to be defying every accusation levied on them earlier. John Abraham tries to do justice to the role of Narayana, a passive nationalist quite contrary to his macho playboy image. And, Lisa ray too seems to be anything but a sex doll. She plays the role of a widow, someone who is filled with energy and freshness like a rain. She displays an innocence and enthusiasm of youth with a touch of a child residing in the body of a scintillating beauty. But, the best actor of the movie turns out to be the young prodigy "Sarala" who leaves an indelible imprint in your mind in her role as a young widow. She implores you to question the society for her misfortune, her childish rebel and tantrums make her all the more loveable. This movie urges you to take your foot forward and move ahead to free the woman from the shackles of the society.

With this trilogy of earth, fire and water, Deepa seems to be getting better everyday. Looking forward to see more such movies in future.

Economy BOOM

I found this great article about rising Indian industries, may be u wanna have a look.
http://in.rediff.com/money/2006/feb/18spec.htm

Are you telling a lie?

Lies have ingrained so much in our lives that German Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche got tempted to quote

"He who cannot lie does not know what the truth is”

. All of us, almost with no exception are found telling lies almost everyday. It has become too omnipresent to be considered a sin, people no longer abstain from telling a lie due to moral or ethical reasons.

Papa instructs Bunty "Verma Uncle aaye to bolna ki papa ghar par nahi hai, lekin sharma uncle aaye to mujhe bula lena."

Teacher asks the student " when the Principal comes to class, tell him all the syllabus is covered, I will teach you half and you will need to study only half for exams".

Most of us would agree these incidents are not uncommon in today's life.And when parents are lying, they can't teach their children to be truthful. So, right from home, children learn lying. Ya, I said learn because lying is an art, and it needs precision and planning like a science. So, no small deal.... just like a game, an apt lier needs to practise it several times a day, may be almost all the time. But, then many people only lie for a purpose, sinister or benign is another question. But, there are habitual purposeless liers, people who have just got into this habit and these people lie even when they do not need to. And, at times, they make it very obvious for the listener to figure out that he is listening to a lie, and when the talker realises that he has been caught, he makes a wasteful attempt of saving himself from the ignominy by saying that "Ohh, you silly fellow, you took it seriously, I was just joking"...next time, remember there is difference between a lie and a joke and your listener knows it.