Posts

Man and Machine

Image
It's a generation disease.. more pertinent to our generation and the next.... our  multiple attempts to replace the human touch with machines.. This is partly caused by our hurried lives... due to which we often loose the plot as to what is the reason we are running this race... but it is also about our superiority complex... from hand drawn rikshaws to cars... hand woven cloth to mills... workers in factories to robots... we call it automation and efficiency... which is true... But is it really effective in all cases... I think this video says it all.... 

Intolerance

Image
Couldn't resist sharing what Barkha Dutt recently said on the National Debate 2016 organized by The Telegraph in Kolkatta on Tolerance and Intolerance. She was spot on... Exactly what I was trying to say in News Today

Evolution with Time

As children, we epitomize our parents... but at the back of our head we also sort out their habits subconsciously into the ones you wish you'd get, and those you wouldn't want to inculcate. Imagine my surprise when, in a recent discussion with my parents, I realized that I had subconsciously started doing some of the things in exactly the way they do... except, as a kid, I didn't like it... What would you call it then... growing up ? inheritance ?  Or has my memory just dulled and I have chosen the path of convenience over the right one... All of us change with time.. but am wondering if I'll suddenly realize one fine day, that I've turned into a person I don't like ! 

People

I like travelling... different places... different people... different food :) Actually I revel in it... By places, I don't necessarily mean globetrotting... even different streets of Delhi qualifies... because each nook and corner seems to have a species of homo sapiens specific to that latitude and longitude, with a food specialty too... Chatting up with people is the perfect way to understand their ecosystem, and how they tick... My latest sample space of human curios are Ola/Uber drivers, who seem to belong to varied sects/segments of society, from college students to part time workers to fleet operators.... each of them has a different story to tell... and different side of the coin....

News Today

In the last few years, especially the last five years, Media, especially in India, seems to have turned a new leaf. With the availability of 24 X 7 news channels to feed, and 24 pages to print, there is a growing strain on content.  Terms like newsworthy and breaking news have been totally redefined, items and issues are openly plugged, without any scruples. When Gail Wynand openly accepted that he plugged an event or an issue, he was clear it was about circulation and making money. Now, all media personnel seem to have turned into the same Gail, atleast on paper. The other issue, which has become a bigger problem nowadays is the lack of unbiased narrative reporting, as the events panned out. What was earlier restricted to the center-spread of the newspapers (and to add, well modulated by the editors) has now become what is common content. Everyone has an opinion (which they did earlier as well), and are happy to express it on first page and prime-time, where one would have

Life

We fret over tiny things... we cry over minute issues... And then we face the big one... to realize it was all for nothing.... that all this strife was all for a peaceful life and a dignified death... whatever we might do, we Will end up... in that small piece of land.. 

Fear or Urge

What is Vertigo ? Fear of Falling ? Then why do we feel it even when the observation tower comes equipped with a sturdy handrail ?  No, vertigo is something other than the fear of falling. It is the voice of the emptiness below us which tempts and lures us, it is the desire to fall, against which, terrified, we defend ourselves. These lines from The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera  ring true to me... There is a thin line between the fear of doing something, and the fear because you realize you have the urge... despite knowing that the end result might not be very good. This is not an argument of the devil and the angel sitting on your shoulders... this is pure impulse... and the fear of the impulse... because suddenly, you face the moment of truth.

Frustration

Image
Frustration is a frustrating feeling... It sucks you unto a loop of negativity leading to even more negative thoughts.. further leading to an increased dose of frustration.... It is like a maze which you can't exit by finding light at the end of the tunnel... there is no end of the tunnel...  one just has to break a hole through the damn tunnel, and try and feel better about themselves...

Influences and Influencers

We learn different aspects to different people/moments we come across in life... afterall we are but sponges, who absorb what we come across, both positive and negative... The love for history from a fabulous teacher in school who kept narrating history of the world like small anecdotes she witnessed herself.... The love for reading from a doting grandfather who would mark out snippets in the newspaper for us to read... The fear of traffic defaulters from the accident of a dear friend... The list is endless.... But we somehow ignore the inherent reason we are able to soak all this up... the gene pool and the environment we grew up in, thanks to our family and near and dear....

The "Odd" Even Choice

Ok... So the Delhi air still looks quite smoky and polluted. But the one thing no one who has travelled the Delhi roads in the last week will deny... is that irrespective of what impact this odd-even formula has had on the pollution levels, it has definitely made driving on Delhi roads a pleasure again. So for all the critics, presenting to you, the clean.. oops, empty Delhi roads.. Kudos to all the people travelling on the Delhi roads these days... for putting up with the buses, metros, autos, cabs.. whatever it takes.. to make it work !

Odd Even... Even Odd

We Delhites are born critiques...  you place in front of them even Michelangelo's David, and you'll find them commenting about the tall height and hair too curly.... Scepticism seems to be inborne... like second nature to all of us... Which is why I have decided to make an earnest request.. to a all those residing in the capital... to keep their extraordinary pessimistic thought process aside, and try and abide by the new rules being set to improve traffic, and effectively reduce pollution... We might talk about insufficient public transport, overcrowded metros, unsafe roads... the list is endless... but for once, keep all the thoughts aside, and try, just try, to make it work... Use odd for odd and even for even.. carpool... use public transport... cycle... walk.... But just try.... not because some Kejriwal has the courage to do something radical... but simply because we need to... 

Anger

Image
We are talking... and suddenly, without realizing, our voice approaches a crescendo... our pitch changes.. the heart starts palpitating... faster.. faster.... till we can hear the sound in our ears... and no longer hear what the other one is saying..... So it no longer remains a dialogue... we can't see the other person's perspective or hear their thoughts.... our head is just buzzing with our own.... Suddenly the realization dawns... that this is pointless... 10... 9... 8... 7... 6... 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Sigh.... What was I discussing in the first place ?!?  Anger Management, by Phil Singer Source: http://psingerart.com/his_work/anger-management/

Independent Being

Image
We come into the world, tied to our mothers cord...  tightly hugging her... ensuring we get all the warmth, help and support through life....  Somewhere along the way we become "intelligent", and we try and become self sufficient and intelligent... being "able" to take on the world and trudge on... and accomplish what we seek.... Just when all is going well, suddenly, we trip and fall....  we stumble and try to get up on our own... THIS is the wake up call.. for us... to realize we all need the help... That we might be intelligent and independent, but we need the support, just in case time throws us off balance...   Now my prayer has changed from hoping that I remain independent all through my life.... to the wish that I remain independent, till I have the grace and sense to take someone's help when I need it... Amen.  Source: http://mimiandeunice.com/2012/07/20/independent/

Freedom

We are all born in different homes... with different cultures and habits.. functions and functionalities.. But the one thing that seems to bind us all is the thought that our parents are outdated and need to update their outlook in life.. What most of us tend to ignore is that it is because of these same set of people that we are able to think the way we do... It is the freedom that they have given us which has enables us to question everything... even them.... How easily we forget our roots.... especially when we are in full bloom....

In Memoriam

Ring out, wild bells, to the wild sky, The flying cloud, the frosty light: The year is dying in the night; Ring out, wild bells, and let him die. Ring out the old, ring in the new, Ring, happy bells, across the snow: The year is going, let him go; Ring out the false, ring in the true. Ring out the grief that saps the mind, For those that here we see no more; Ring out the feud of rich and poor, Ring in redress to all mankind. Ring out a slowly dying cause, And ancient forms of party strife; Ring in the nobler modes of life, With sweeter manners, purer laws. Ring out the want, the care, the sin, The faithless coldness of the times; Ring out, ring out my mournful rhymes, But ring the fuller minstrel in. Ring out false pride in place and blood, The civic slander and the spite; Ring in the love of truth and right, Ring in the common love of good. Ring out old shapes of foul disease; Ring out the narrowing lust of gold; Ring out the thousand wars of old, Rin

Tolerance

We all talk about tolerance, towards people, their thoughts, habits... but somehow, tolerance seems to be easier to practise towards strangers than people you love and care about. Tolerance, when it comes to family and friends, is tougher to implement... because one hopes that they see the sense in what you are doing and saying...  This hoping against hope hopen is strenuous, and eats into the relationship... If only we could let go... and let others decide what they want to do, and be okay with the same... If only...

The Ball is rolling till it Stops

We all talk about making amends in our life... like exercising, quit smoking, eating healthy... the list is almost endless.... In this pursuit of an ideal life and livelihood, we keep trying to mend and amend our lives, and those of our loved ones.... All this when we know, but don't accept, that the clock is ticking, the ball is rolling... and somewhere in the distant (if not near) future, this will all come to a grinding halt... I mean our life ofcourse... But for all the levity and naivety that carries us through, we often miss the actual essence of our lives... to love and be loved.... to hope... to dream and accomplish.... What we should do once in a while is to pause... step back... and admire the view  :)

A full Circle ?

India is a predominantly Agrarian society... still....  And though parts of the country have evolved really quickly, parts are still trying to come to term with the changes that are coming away... The part which is in touch with what is happening around the world, has suddenly realized that Organic food is the way to go... that a healthy diet should be free pesticides and other chemicals.. that the best way to grow food, is to not use any artificial fertilizers, and instead make do with the likes of cow dung. However, what is truly ironic is that the other part of the country is still coming to terms with the fact that crop can be genetically modified... that there is the possibility of using fertilizers to make the growth and yield more efficient..... At the end of the day, one part is trying to quickly unlearn what the other part is still trying to learn !!!!

Source Outsourced

So what would you prefer - to hear directly from the horse, or an intermediary ? Even if we ignore the Chinese whisper part, hearing directly is more satisfying and justified... both for the horse and the ear :) But in all fairness, if there has been no value add by the intermediary, and the news was delivered as it was told, does it really matter. Why do we, so often, make such a big deal of not being told directly... I am still unable to figure it out...

Work - Life

All of us (or atleast most of us) slog at office.. We explain the donkey work in one of the many ways... financial independence... fruitful (fruitful ? for whom ?!?) utilization of time... alternate social circle..  Whatever the excuse, we always find reasons to work more... push the limits.. try and prove that we are the best ... Little do we realize, that the trade off if ticking someone off... someone you'd want to be a part of your life... for life :) Jobs are temporary... but in the strife to excel at work, we loose track of our home... and annoy (often more than once) the person you'd rather be with..... and in effect, loosing them for life.... So is it all worthwhile...  in the end...  what matters more ? "Your" life or your "Life" ?!?