The Reality Of Reality Shows!

About 10 years ago, in 2000, India witnessed the start of one of its first and finest reality shows, Kaun Banega Crorepati hosted by Amitabh Bachchan....

...After that, we've had a plethora of reality television shows here in India.

Now, the equation of reality TV is slowly and steadily changing. It is turning to be more manipulative and unreal these days. We have all types of reality shows now. Competition shows, musical shows, challenging shows, talk shows, game shows and so much more...

The latest of the lot, Emotional Atyachar, as we all know, is aimed at taking a loyalty test on partners and their infidelity. Though it may sound a little awkward to expose these stints, it has turned out to be one of the most popular shows among younsters. I don't understand what kind of entertainment is derived by watching someone cheat on his/her partner, and that too, live.

At the helm of reality TV, we also have music shows and competitions. Sa Re Ga Ma Pa, the popular music show has been running for a very long time now. Earlier, when it started in 1995, it was a real thing and devoid of manipulation. But through the passage of time, along with other shows like Amul STAR Voice of India and Music Ka Maha Muqqabla, politics and manipulation has found its way into all this. Results are decided beforehand, partiality has entered, talent is misused and organizers do nothing but mint money.

Look at Indian Idol, it is currently busy in auditions for its 5th series. People participate hoping to expose their talent. But in return, they get looted and cheated badly. An insider source tells me that most of the music competition shows have a procedure for contestants who have passed the auditions. These contestants are trained by the show organizers in light vocal training with a fee of Rs. 3 lakhs. This simply indicates that shows are out to loot people... And what if, those trained contestants don't last for long in the show? Their invested money is all gone...

Another revealing fact is about the method of voting in such shows. When you vote for a contestant by SMS, the cash goes in the pockets of sponsors and show organizers. Even so, reality shows also make up fake voting statistics and award victory to a finalist on their own will. 

It is really interesting to see how reality programmes are turning into a matter of rehearsed commentary and unethical practices. They are on the verge of entering fiction now. 

What are your views about the turning tide of reality television in India? Do you have any further examples to cite about such manipulation? How do you think can we eliminate such weeds from reality television programmes?


[Image Source]

Place Of Honour - INDIA!

A guest post by Nalini Hebbar:

Reclaim you place, Oh Motherland,

your rightful place of honour,

From you rose the spoken word

and from you, computing began,

With no bloodshed on battlefields

you conquered the world of yore,

With peace and love the only weapon

you invisibly ruled every continent,

Reclaim your place, Oh Motherland,

your rightful place of honour,

Reclaim you place, Oh Motherland,

your rightful place of honour,

Countries with history written in blood

lead with coercion behind the smiles,

But you, with a mixed bag of genes

have greeted strangers as progeny,

Into the grains of your soil integrated,

the sweat and tears of races aplenty.

Reclaim your place, Oh Motherland,

your rightful place of honour,

Reclaim you place, Oh Motherland,

your rightful place of honour,

Where wisdom flowed from sharp minds

to distant shores far and wide,

Be that land that a beacon was

teaching the world, the art of living.

If there is a country that deserves to lead,

It is you, Oh Motherland,

reclaim your place, Oh Motherland,

your rightful place of honour.

March 5, 2010

The author, Nalini Hebbar is an Aquaculture Consultant based in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh. She blogs at Open Mind, a poetry blog and SayCheese, her photoblog. You can also check out her other guest post, A Salute To You, a hard-hitting and powerful poem about struggling women.

[Image Source] 

What are your thoughts about this beautiful poem on our Motherland's compassion and glory?

The 'Perfect' Technology Of Spirituality!

Technology of Spirituality...
...What do you think this term could mean?

Anyway, here I am sharing with you a couple of videos titled 'Technology of Spirituality'!

These videos speak about our ancient India, our spirituality, our saints and our civilisation. In short, these video series are here to prove that India was definitely 'The Golden Bird' in the olden ages with incredible and amazing facts laced with a little of humour. 


This is actually a talk presented by Khurshed Batliwala, director of World Alliance for Youth Empowerment at Ruia College, Mumbai. He is a post graduate in Mathematics from the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay. In his own words, he decided it was better to teach people meditation and make them happy rather than teach them mathematics and make them miserable and thus chose the unconventional and challenging career path as a faculty member of the Art of Living, sharing the vision of its founder, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, which is to see a smile on every face on the planet.

Here are 2 videos from the 7 part series. If you are unable to view them here, you can watch them directly on Youtube here!


Video 1:




Video 2:

I am sure you must have loved these videos!

By the way, what's your take on this?

A Paradox Residing In Mumbai

So, here is another picture for the Photograph Of The Week series...

[Photograph sourced from mfitch at Flickr]

This is an under-construction picture of Atilia, the world's largest private residence in Mumbai. This is being made by Mukesh Ambani  for his family and his fleet of vehicles.

So, as the title goes, what's the paradox about this news...?

Mumbai, where Mukesh Ambani is personally funding the world's largest private residence, is also home to Dharavi, Asia's biggest slum, that shelters over 1 million people.

- from 5 Paradoxes Of Our India 

A whooping $1 billion is the cost required to construct this high-rise and customised skyscraper. It is also going to be one of the tallest buildings in Mumbai. In short, the Ambanis are taking luxury to an altogether new level...

...But the biggest joke is that this tower is going to house only 6 family members with a massive fleet of 168 cars, three helipads, a theatre and 600 staffers for its upkeep.

At the same time, India is facing enormous land shortage problems. There's hardly any space left for constructing residential buildings. In fact, builders are now encroaching on forests and jungles to make way for high rise buildings. Land is a scarce commodity now and we need to use it resourcefully...

On one side, we have industrialists building customised towers and on the other, there are people who are dying in slums and other pathetic places. 

With such modern technology in civil engineering, Antilia-like structures can be home to at least a thousand people thus making full use of land.

I don't know where are we leading now...

What are your comments about the land being used, misused and abused by our people? Do you think building such state-of-the-art structures is practical enough in a nation where a secured home has become a rare thing now? Please do share your thoughts on this...

An Interview With A Politician!

This post is about a short interview session I had with a politician. This politician has played an active part in Congress from a long time now.

Let me also clarify here that I do not support Congress in any way. In fact, I do not support any political party at the moment. This is just an excerpt about the politician's view of politics...

Name: Bhanwarsingh N Rajpurohit

Active Since: 1965

Currently holding the following positions:
Trustee - Mumbai Port Trust (Ministry of Shipping, R.T. & Highways, Govt. Of India)
Vice President - Mumbai Regional Congress Committee
Member - All India Congress Committee

I entered his cabin. Too huge, but looked simple. A photo of him with Sonia Gandhi adorned the wall. Gods and goddesses were gently placed on a cupboard. The desk boasted of a boring telephone, a notepad, two pairs of spectacles, a cordless bell, a pen stand and nothing else. The man in question, Bhanwarsingh N Rajpurohit, was an old, strong man. Here are the excerpts of the questions I asked him...

Why is politics treated as a dirty subject by the general public?

That's because ministers and politicians have made it dirty. There are a few honest people in this system, but they are often suppressed.

We always find political parties engaging in catfights and blame-games. Why so? Why would a party give a chance to criticism if it does its job properly?

Look, this blame-game will go on, no matter how much we try to solve it. Even if we do something good for the people, there's always this opposition to find faults and condemn our actions. There's no remedy to this now.

 Do you realize that this blame-game is actually generating hatred and prejudice among the masses? Instead of developing the nation, it is actually creating a divide. There should be love and brotherhood among the people, and here we have the complete opposite...


Nods his head.


Politics is turning into a nastier and dirtier game every other day. In fact, it has also seeped into religion, sports, communities and every other thing now. What's your take on this?

Hahaha! Yes, true. Politics has entered almost every aspect of our society. Politics has even entered households now! Greed has spoiled the minds of people.


Why don't we change this corrupt system? Why don't we at least make a start to shut down this nuisance? You are at a pretty high post and have the power to do things. Why don't you raise your voice against corruption and dishonesty?

Nah! I don't think anything can be done about it. If you want to make a start to change all this, you need to be a powerful person with a strong support base. In fact, even I can do nothing about it. Power is support. If I raise my voice, all my power will be snatched away, you see. And even if you wish to change something, what all will you change? This corruption, this red-tapism, this bribery is happening all over the country. What can you do about it? If you want to end corruption, you need to be the Prime Minister or something of that sort. This corruption and manipulation can only end if the highest level people take some action...

Later, I left his office thinking about the enormity of this situation. Our country should not go in the dregs because of weeds like corruption, bribery and red-tapism. I did feel disappointed, but I also learnt a little about the mentality of politicians. 

Still I believe, everything is not lost yet and we need to have hope.


What are your views about this short-interview? Were you satisfied with the responses this politician gave? Or would you also like to share some of your thoughts and ideas here? 

A Woman's Day and her Bill...

First of all, I would like to wish the women in every household of this world a Happy Women's Day!

 The other day, Vidya Balan added her views about Women's Day in Bombay Times:

Women’s Day doesn’t mean too much to me. It shouldn’t be a one-off thing over which we make a lot of hoo-ha. As women, if we don’t celebrate our womanhood throughout the year, what’s the point? And then, an argument: I don’t mean to sound sexist or feminist, but why don’t we celebrate Men’s Day too? Is it because every other day is men’s day? Humanity is about mankind. But, to use a sociological term, a veiled attempt is being made here at the perpetuation of patriarchy!

Today, it is also a historic day in the political system of our country. Both the houses of Parliament are going to consider the issue of 33% reservation of seats for women in Parliament and put it to vote. This day has come after a serious and long wait of 14 years...

But do we actually require this Bill to be passed in a country where the minority has become majority and the simple, common man is now a minority? Just think about it... We talk so much about gender equality and liberty, so why this madness? A Congress spokesperson justified this issue by saying, "Women form 50% of the population and they should also be given adequate representation in the Parliament". 

Let me clarify 1 thing - India needs the representation of the people, and not of gender. This Women's Reservation Bill is capable of creating another gender divide in the society. If seats are reserved for women in Parliament, then soon we shall have this kind of reservation in every company for employment, and in every aspect of social living. Why this inequality? In the history of India, there has never been a time when men and women were treated equally.

In the first place, why do we even need to reserve seats for women? Do they lack skills and opportunities in today's world? Women are proving to be as capable as men, and they are exploring various horizons. Women are given enough opportunities to achieve all this, so why should we extend this to reservation of seats? I feel women have the potential to achieve whatever they want. So why don't they stand up and contest for elections on their merit? Who is stopping them to get involved in politics?

The only barrier between women and unparallel achievements is a belief.  Women have this mentality that they are supposed to be submissive and inferior to men. When this belief will be cleared, everything will fall in its place. In fact, Chronicwriter also quotes something relevant in a paradoxical manner:

You know she is an Indian woman when she demands for equal rights even though she knows that she dominates man.

I am not against the Women's Reservation Bill. It's just that, it makes no sense whatsoever in passing such a Bill. If the Government really wants to reserve seats, let those seats be for women from backward regions who hardly get a chance to express their thoughts and have no opportunity to excel. The urban, literate woman need not be privileged to such reservations. They are intelligent and strong enough to participate in elections and win a seat in the Parliament on their own merit. They have plenty of scope to excel in politics and in fact, women should take part in managing our nation's democracy.

India is a nation of reservations. In fact, these minority groups like SC's, ST's, NT's, OBC's etc are a group of privileged people. They have a reserved share in almost every sector of the society. Prestigious government posts ranging from Chief Minister and Governor right up to the President of India are mostly dominated by these minority groups and women. It is sad to know that a common man has become a minority case in today's world...

Let equality prevail...

जय हिंद!

Please do share your views and thoughts about this issue... In fact, I'd love to hear women's opinions about this Bill. Do you guys really feel that passing this Bill will be beneficial for our democracy?

[Image Source]

Time Travel

This post has been published by me as a part of the Blog-a-Ton 8; the eighth edition of the online marathon of Bloggers; where we decide and we write. To be part of the next edition, visit and start following Blog-a-Ton.

To travel or not to travel, that is the question.

-- Mr. Time

Time is a beautiful yet mysterious concept. Time transcends all borders and boundaries. It has seen what no one can ever see in his/her lifetime. If there's anyone who has seen the reign of Ashoka as well as that of Sachin Tendulkar, it is time. I'd like to share one stanza of a poem I had written about time for my post, 'Watch Your Time':


Time is a dimension,
Of seconds, minutes and hours.
And not a calculator,
To measure conflicts and Wars.


When we talk of Time Travel, is this actually possible? We have numerous movies and books based on time travel, but this concept is still not a plausible one...

Something to ponder on - What is Time Travel? Is it time travelling through the ages, as the name says..or is it humans travelling through time which is practically impossible! 

Time is constant. It is always travelling. It has changed civilizations, created cities, modernised the world..and what not? Here are a few instances of time travelling through decades and generations:

 

India

Residence

Mahatma Gandhi

Mumbai

This is how Time has changed India...

...And now is the time for India to change the Time!

What are your views about Time Travel and its effects on India? Do you think travelling through time can actually benefit us and what are its possibilties? I'd love to hear your ideas and opinions on this topic...!

[Image Source]

The fellow Blog-a-Tonics who took part in this Blog-a-Ton and links to their respective posts can be checked here. To be part of the next edition, visit and start following Blog-a-Ton.

A Salute To You

 A guest post by Nalini Hebbar:

The art of survival

Of lying and of seduction.

An art learnt practiced to perfection

Six mouths waiting open and demanding

Screamed in her ear words of loathing

A life in the slums of death and starvation

Early lessons in survival

Lessons a plenty

With eager teachers ever lurking

Lusty old hands in the narrow lanes

Seize the tender body forever hurting

With a sinking heart she discovers

Hectors many, with favours in the asking

Vend and receive

A saviour in sight

Young man of thirty, double her age

On a horse, her escape came riding

Kick starts the art of coy and daring

Soon he was hers with tongue dangling

Done with the scum, the penny-pinching

Newfound wings of flight

Life in paradise

New home, food on the table

Bright dreams of future and babies

Life now happy, too happy and stable

But cruel fate has a way with destinies

The husband so fine and so able

Give her no money for sustenance

She with two children in renewed trouble

Forced back into the life of the streets

Harsh life-dance

Hardened heart

A shield of dispassion around the heart

To wear day and night in the arctic effort

Just a job to be done with no warmth

Just something to keep-on fire and hearth

Alive in death

Toughened mind

Scores of males with dissatisfied vices

All kinds of jobs and new learned skills

In and out, tried and tested

Bar dancer, hospital worker

Maid, juice vendor, singer

Ready to master anything offered

This fight in life forever challenged

Unscarred and strong

Tempered steel 

In the menacing jungle of life

Always positive with the head in charge

She is a creation of the modern world

Made by the world that’s a man’s world

Learned survival using him in his world

His debauchery her prized weapon

A double-edged sword

I respect your strength

I salute you.

(May, 2006, Nellore)

This poem is a tribute to one strong woman in Maharastra, India, and to millions of brave women all over the world, who are forced by circumstances to take up the world’s oldest profession. The woman I am talking about is Vaishali Haldankar, now writing her story in a book in Marathi, which will be out soon. She is a good singer and now earns a living singing with an orchestra after the Government enforced a ban on dance bars.

The author, Nalini Hebbar is an Aquaculture Consultant based in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh. She blogs at Open Mind, a poetry blog and SayCheese, her photoblog.

   
Image by Hanadi Traifeh via Flickr

Do drop in your views about this thought-provoking and hard-hitting poem...

Hindustan Ka Dil Dekho!

In my earliest post India Revisited, I had received the following comment:

The best of India, grain, fruit, cloth, intelligence, spirituality, yoga - is always exported first - it never reaches the common man. If you look at the people interested in mining India's wisdom, most of them are westerners than local. Be it the knowledge in the four Vedas or new applications of Indian classical music, the rest of the world is more interested in it than India. Startling example: people wanting to preserve Taj Mahal.

-Sanket Korgaonkar

True, isn't it?

India is a vast country with diverse richness in culture and heritage. But what's the use of this culture which we can't even be proud of? Foreigners are way ahead of us, and they know better about India than we do. All we can do is scribble our names on heritage sites and then ask UNESCO for funds for its preservation. Is that ethics?

Talk about Yoga and spirituality. Nowadays, yoga is being revived here because of the startling interest and popularity of it in the West. The above-quoted comment speaks of simple reality which should bring us to shame. Everything is exported first. Even our supercomputer-brains and talents.

It is a fact that we don't appreciate the paradise in our backyards, but tend to love foreign and artificial stuff.

We need to know India. Discover its mysteries and appreciate its impeccable beauty. Encourage the talent and allow the wisdom to grow. Understand the spiritual nature of things and explore the human nature. As I would put it, India is a complex simplicity.

Here is an advertisement that is relevant and very insightful. Innovated by the Madhya Pradesh - India Tourism to promote tourism, this awesome commercial is a little more than that. Have a look:

This ad not only highlights the structures and monuments of the Dil of Hindustan (Madhya Pradesh), but also underlines the fact of considering and appreciating these marvels.It is a great feeling to know that our, Indian minds can think of such beautiful and creative ideas. We are a great intellectual resource, being constantly looted by the West. Let that not happen anymore...

It is definitely a matter of shame that foreign scholars are better equipped than us in our Indian knowledge and wisdom.

It is time to renew our interest in our country and revisit its splendid culture, wisdom and knowledge. Hindustan Ka Dil Dekho!

What do you think we could do in learning and exploring our India? Do share your views and comments...

P.S. If you want a small laugh, watch the above video without the sound. It's hilarious!