Romance

Picture courtesy www.corriere.it

I tried searching by "Calcutta" on Google Images. This is the second image that comes up. Moves are afoot to make this mode of transportation extinct. Any body who has stayed in Calcutta for a decent period of time will verify that this is the only viable transport during rains. And the most romantic.

Anybody remmember a similar trip down a wet memory lane?

I will never forget the anglo indian school girl in a similar situation. She was in her school whites. Her rickshaw did not have the protection this one has. She was wet and appeared vulnerable. I vouch I saw her for some 30 odd seconds. But how did I know she was anglo indian? I did not know at that point of time. But after I heard Mr. Dutta. I was convinced it must have been another Mary Ann.

The wet coy Mary Anns are extinct long back. It will be the rickshaws next.

Today is Valentines Day but where is the romance?

Kolkata Rising? Who Cares

Times of India, Kolkata has a weekly supplement called Kolkata Rising. It glorifies the new Kolkata and tries to bring in the advertisers. Good for the city but who cares. My hometown is still the lovely city of rolling trams, wet egg rolls, tinned public buses, greasy taxis and crooked autodrivers.

It was nice to come in and out of ITC Center. Move around book fair. Parse the books at Oxford. And listen at the audio posts in Music world. I made sure I availed all modes of public transport. All these years I used to crane my head inside jampacked public bus waiting for the moment of freedom. This time I was loving it. The taxi driver was taking me for a royal ride circumventing the actual route. But I was loving it. The walls declared Mamata's attempt to topple the Red Bastion. Inspite of my deep rooted dislike for either parties I was loving it. My car negotiated umpteen potholes on Eastern Bypass. But I was loving it.

I realized I was out of all it. My perspective had changed. I was no more the suffering denizen but the tourist soaking each moment. I have stopped judging it. I have stopped expecting things from it. So the malls, the multiplexes, the new software companies or even the Rajarhat developments are not exciting me.

Each city has its own uniqueness. I am comfortable that unlike others Kolkata will never stop being unique inspite of its "rising".

Blogger Block

Opu was wrong!

Am going through my worst blog phase. Its almost like losing my urge. My pen is flaccid and words refuse to flow.

Inspiration! Come ho!

Air Dhakkan & King Class

I was waiting for this for long. On 2nd Feb when I walked into Dumdum airport it was a revelation. The strike call by the AAI employees finally evened things out. You couldnt tell whether you were in Sealdah station or Dumdum airport. It was noisy, peopled and ofcourse dirty. There were still the airline kinds who were trying to stand out of the crowd. But they were dwarfed out as islands of snobbery.

The airports always had a bourgeosis feel about them. Everything looked new, smooth, sanitised and cold. A suffocating atmosphere when I started flying. The look-down stares. The "do not belong here" looks. Air travel was a class thing because of the sheer cost. It was 2-3 years of extensive flying that finally helped me to get it out of my system. Finally I dont get conscious.

After all its just another mode of transportation - nothing more, nothing less.

Ever since Air Deccan prised open the Indian skies its not the same anymore. The only time when I flew them I felt I was on a long distance bus. Gone was the uppernosiness. Even the Volvo service between Pune and Mumbai would appear more sophisticated. Inside Air Deccan I was squirming trying to judge each moves of the air hostess. But June and Mun were enjoying their ride. So what the heck, wasnt I getting into the same loop? A loop that used to tie me knots and make me so much more conscious about my place in the sky.

However when I flew Kingfisher for the first time I was impressed. Amidst all the "budget" talks I really flew "King Class". But this kind of service would be difficult to sustain for long. However Mr. Mallya has deep pockets. Afterall we need our Kingfishers to keep pushing the Jets. And amidst all this the government behemoth is still chugging along. The good thing about flying Indian is that it doesnt have a come-on approach, that usually gets instrusive.

After telecommunication this is the next big thing in India. Distances are reducing and India is becoming smaller. Its much easier to reach the sky.

And finally flying is becoming just another mode of transportation.

Rang De Basanti

Photo courtesy www.india.gov.in.
For more information about India's national flag click here

What does this National flag mean to us? What does dates like 15th August and 26th January signify?

One of the review of Rand de Basanti talks about how the youth (in India) have been projected to "... have no feelings for their country. India is a no-hoper where corruption is rampant, and nothing can be done to salvage the situation, they believe. " But the same guys during the course of the film "..as they play some historical characters.." is shown to change "... their perspective about the present, and their own role in it..".

I cant verify whether this reading is true as I dont believe reviews and I am yet to watch the film. But if this is so then it will be worthwhile to watch Rand de Basanti.

Any of you who chance upon this post of mine should visit www.india.gov.in. Some of us can write a 10 page critique of the site. However I would not like to deride an honest attempt towards creating India's first National Portal.

In a recent conference I had the opportunity to hear Dr. N. Vijayaditya, Director General, National Informatics Centre the man behind the effort. I was touched by what he said. I had worked very closely with another government agency NRDC (National Research Development Corporation). Since then I started respecting these government bodies who are at the forefront of formulating policies that shape the future of the nation.

I think the significance of these dates like 15th Aug and 26th Jan lie in the fact that they offer us opportunities to pause and think about relevant things about our country. Many of us in our blue collar environment have no idea how difficult it is to manage and run organisations like CSIR, NRDC, NIC etc. The vastness and diverseness of the country poses the biggest challenge. They are not in the business of running a business but in the business of running a country.

Very few of the best minds chose to opt for this path. But there are honest, intelligent and brilliant minds who have chosen to take up these jobs and take them very seriously. We should all try to get informed ourselves and generate awareness about them.

But organisations like these need the best minds of the country, people who are ready to realise that they can make a huge difference. These jobs offer something more than our blue collar occupations. The satisfaction to have made a difference to the course of the country....

Dont we all talk of job satisfaction these days??