Food for thought...... some random lines

Was reading ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ by Al gore. There is an image in the book. On a black full spread sheet there is a tiny dot in the middle. The description reads “Earth as captured from space”

It made me think - Earth is such a tiny thing in this vast universe and we are a miniscule part of it, yet we have created and manifested so many problems for ourselves even in that tiny space! We have even been successful in wrecking the lives of many innocent animals and plants, who don’t even have a say or an option to retaliate against what we have been doing to this Earth.

Apart from this mess that we are already in, we fight between ourselves over borders, religion, caste, colour etc. Even on an individual front there is a daily battle – battle for survival. We are marred by competition, ego, self-pity, jealousy, greed, hatred etc. All this only to try and create supremacy in this minute space?

Now I am not on a spiritual or self-discovery trip. Nor am I making any attempt to say that I am devoid of all this! Yet some recent experiences just reinstated the feeling of life being unpredictable, unexpected and sometimes cruel. Hence I couldn’t help but laugh when I realized that we spend the whole life conquering something and at the end of if, when you see the big picture you realize it just doesn’t make a difference. Then why harness so much of ill-faith and hatred when at the next moment you could be gone without a trace!

By trying to make our and others life simple and spreading peace and compassion we would have atleast left behind some happy and cherished memories… This need not be at the world level, as an individual this can be practiced at least within family inturn creating a ripple effect!

Something to cheer about apart from cricket….Is Indian sports finally coming to age?

Abhinav Bindra, Sushil Kumar, Vijendra Kumar... names unheard of by and large in India; are today the face of India in Beijing Olympics 2008. The media can’t get enough of them and the layman is aware about the achievements of these guys today.

It couldn’t have come at a better moment too, with injury ridden Indian cricket team finding it hard to get a stronghold in the on-going Sri-Lanka- India match. In a cricket crazy country like ours, its remarkable to see these young guns find an off-beat sport (atleast in India) and excel at it!

After our usual glamour stars poor or dismissive performance in the events, nobody would have expected such fantastic results from these unexpected quarters. Hopefully the Olympic results will infuse new life into the various sports that are played in India but are never promoted or never receive their due.

Many sporting achievements, including our national sport hockey have been pushed in the realms of obliviation and obscurity thanks to the efforts of some lobbyists and our ignorance. As public at large we fail to notice or applaud the efforts and achievements of our sporting heros who have represented India in sports other than cricket.

Cricket today has become a major cash cow for many. The sporting stars there, are earning exorbitant amounts. The brands that these stars endorse lobby in many ways than one to ensure that their star plays the game in turn ensuring better profits and brand associations for them. The sportsmanship and spirit of the game was further crippled by the betting and other associated scandals.

The paradoxical situation is the BCCI is touted to be the richest cricket association in the world while many other sporting federations can’t afford international standard equipments and support for their players so that they could compete with international players.

With the recent achievements of Abhinav, Sushil and Vijendra, the many state governments rushed forward to announce huge sums of money as awards in recognition to their efforts, some completely unrelated (eg: Maharashtra, Bihar). It is good; however I just hope that instead of just announcing cash prizes these state governments could do something better.

• Why not instate a cash award or scholarship to deserving amateurs in these heros name?
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• Why not offer them a regular contract of coaching or conducting workshops in the respective state sports academy or federation?
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• Why not create a fund for your respective sports association and ensure that the sport is given its due?

I am sure these efforts on part of the state government would go a long way in keeping the current momentum high. Finally some other sport apart from cricket is being recognized in India. The media is doing its due now it’s largely upto the public and state government to acknowledge and promote sports other than cricket (and their heroes.)

For want of better reporting – News, the next big flick?

Now this might seem the usual rant to many, but as a journalist I really don’t understand or can quite relate to some of the media clamor that we have come to witness day-in and day-out in the name of media coverage!

Gone are the days, when a formal but simply dressed man/woman read the news with nearly no human expressions and absolutely no emotions. Or when reading newspapers was passé as there was nothing in it apart from dry, plain stories that had unfolded a day before.

I agree that this was absolutely the other end of the spectrum and not something to boast about, however with media and news turning out to be a million dollar industry it certainly deserves better treatment than a B grade movie!

As this is a vast topic with many significant sections under its umbrella, I start with one of the most paradoxical of all, the print media.

The print media were popularized in India mainly for want of a view that challenges the government decisions in pre-independence era, where British managed and pro-colonial newspapers were in vogue. The newspapers and the journalists were looked upon as intellectual and objective people. The respect was tremendous though for a long time there was no dough in it.

Contrast to it is the state of current day newspapers. The Times of India supplement for eg: (i.e the city special, like Bangalore times, pune times etc) seem to find no news worth reporting that is happening in the city. The news there, starts with Bollywood, Hollywood, Kollywood, Sandalwood ( and the many other woods that exist) stars food, wardrobe, vacation or even their wedding plans and ends at some of the pubs, nightlife and party images.

It is sad that the most pressing issues for them that the citizens face is not poor infrastructure, corruption or portable water but non –existence of night life, pubs being closed early and drinks not being served late in the night! A society magazine too has something to give to its readers; I however can’t phantom the reason of this supplement apart from the fact that it provides ample space for advertisers.

I agree that advertisements are a major revenue source and the whole idea of a supplement was also aimed at getting maximum local advertisements. But compromising news and features for want of advertisements beats me!

Now, before I am branded as an anti-Times group let me clarify some points -

It is also true that some of the times supplements like education times, accent, property plus etc are extremely good and informative (they atleast have articles worth reading!) yet there is usually much left to be desired.

I must also mention and applaud their latest effort and initiative Teach India. Launched at the apt moment with brilliant ads and promotion, this one takes the cake. The very simplicity of getting people to sign up for just 2 hours in a week works out well for those who want to do more for the society yet are hard pressed for time to dedicate long hours. I just wish such bursts of brilliance occur regularly and not far in between. It’s only such initiatives that instill hope about this newspaper. You can be a volunteer by signing up here -

http://www.teach.timesofindia.com/login_join.aspx?strvalue=join

some unfulfilled ... and some beautiful dreams

Another wound.... another blow, that would take a long time to heal and even after that would leave some grotesque scars behind. The questions like why this happened? how this happened? Couldnt it have been avoided are all rendered meaningless. What is left behind is tearful eyes, helpless faces, broken hearts and mercy pleading hands! All directed to someone above us, who we call god!

Many dismiss such incidents as fate. Some lose hope and some lose belief. Whatever done and however we react, the basic feeling of loss is similar in all. They might be somebody for the world but for somebody they were the world, thou cliched is the only statement that resonates.

A sudden blow shatters your whole life and by the time you realize it, it is mocking at you reminding you that life is so fragile. It is unpredictable and unexplained. You could be a meticulous planner taking great care in everything you do but eventually it is just a card house that can be blown away at the slightest tremor.

Can there be a silver lining to this you ask, then you are happy that you spent time with them, collecting some beautiful and invaluable memories. Moments that then stay in your heart and pop - out whenever you seem to be missing them. Afterall memories are the only things left behind