Aapke sur mein gadbad hai, she said.

So, I saw the Phir Mile Sur video that everyone has been ranting against. And I feel their pain. I had to pause it and barf the moment Abhiash - or whatever they hell they're called - came on. Fifteen minutes later, I was ready to continue. Only to repeat my performance when Deepika Padukone appears in what could easily pass of as a negligee and then proceeds to get wet in the rain. All in a video dedicated to my wonderful country.

I would rip it apart myself, but my friend seems to have done a wonderful job of it already. Read her post here.

In a nutshell, I am insulted by this video. Well-intentioned as it may be, Zoom seems to have the basics all wrong. Last time I checked: 

• India was more than cinema, Bollywood or otherwise.
  
• Anoushka Shankar was a British national who lives in the United States, not an Indian.
  
• The northeastern states were just as much a part of India as Punjab, Kerala or Delhi.

You would expect that a video of this sort would focus just a wee bit more on the last 1.5 minutes - you know, the part where they hint at our army, navy, sportspersons. The things that the video should have actually been based on. Example: the original, and wonderful, Mile Sur video I grew up on. Classic.

I want to know why we didn't have people from politics, literature, art and science. Or were they going to spoil Zoom's pathetic attempt at a glam national anthem? I'm all for reinventing the old, making it new again, giving it a fresh tweak. But not at the cost of its essence. And not at the cost of ending up with a cheap attempt at nationalism. Zoom has messed up. Big, big time. This was not a nice Republic Day watch, to say the least. First, I miss the parade. And then, I watch this. Awesome.

But anyhow, after the rant that was not supposed to be, I am going to try calming down. Even though, as Ra put it, a little piece of my childhood has died.

I think I'll go drown my sorrows in A. R. Rahman's timeless patriotism.

Happy Republic Day. I guess.

Just a thought

Every progressive move that India makes is not necessarily a consequence of Western infleunce. Every tradition we adhere to is not a step back, not an undoing of our progress.

Labels need to be removed. Things need to be naked. Minds need to be open. Then, maybe, we can make some judgments about where we are headed without sounding stupid.

It's sad. It's true.

You know that thing they say? The one about how a guy who has had relationships with many women is a stud, but a woman in the same position is a prostitute? It's true. It's actually true.

I have had the fortune of growing up among fair-minded men. And while they may not be the most liberal, they are nothing if not rational. They may take issue to certain behaviors, thoughts and phenomena, but not to the people who engage with them, and they definitely do not consider the gender of those people.

But the more I step out of the cocoon I was brought up in, and a lovely cocoon it was if I may so add, I realize that the real world is not as rosy as I had expected. My own observations, and those of other women around me, have compelled me to believe that all men are actually, not as intelligent as I expected them to be. I wouldn't even say "liberal" because that would imply that they need to make some sort of an effort to understand a pretty basic logic, which is this: if you have done something, anything, and are proud of it (even though it merits no pride), then why must you stick on an unpleasant label on a woman who has done the same? All the while pretending to be a broad-minded, accepting individual?


Disgusting.

A thousand apologies, sire

Guilty as charged. I have been away for far too long, and there is absolutely no reason to have missed out on the Happy Birthday, Daddy post, which was due 12 days ago. Not even being on the road (in the air, really) for the past two weeks. Not even the pathetic lack of ownership of an iPhone/Blackberry/whatever else it is that has the tech geeks' fancy these days, that would have let me update from wherever, whenever. Not even the thousand job applications that I have to send out, the sole reason for my logging on to the Web in all this time.

But I'm back. I thought I'd never find the peace of mind to just sit, breathe and calmly blog again, but I know now, that there is a god. God. Whatever.

As this post is not meant to be about a soporific description of my life, I will get to the point. Which is this.

I hope every single one of you has a very, very good 2010. I hope you all work for what you want, and eventually get it. And for the things/people you don't get, I hope you fool yourself into believing the whole everything-happens-for-a-reason gibberish because let's face it, it does calm us down. I hope you are mostly happy and that sadness visits you rarely and fleetingly. I hope you use the power of forgiveness on yourself, as much as on others. And I hope that in your own way, you realize that life, and we, are not meant to be taken seriously.

Here's to a year filled with hysterical laughter, cinema-induced crying, hearty meals, wonderful conversations, stirring music, engaging books and safe travels :)

Oh, and to compensate for the lack of a special birthday post for Papa, I leave you with this song :) Promise not to cry.