A Warrior Prince indeed !!

He looked up at the sky....admiring the fireworks...lowered his gaze and looked around....soaking in the euphoria and the enormity of the moment....and then a sigh...

One can feel his thoughts returning to a similar battlefield,8 years ago,where his dream was shattered by a few marauders in yellow...the Maharaj and his army in blue were humbled....but that was history now and this is present and nobody knows better than him that people have short lived memories. He was happy of course,Team India had done what every Indian has been waiting for since 1983. Hardly anyone rushed to congratulate him....nobody dedicated this victory to him.....only one person was the cynosure of all eyes there and once more the architect,the real man behind this whole era was pushed into the background and he chose to remain there.

                      Sourav Ganguly....DADA for me and for all his fans over the world....would have loved to hold that coveted trophy in his hands 8 years ago  but couldn’t and nobody even thought about calling up this man and let him feel it with his battle scarred hands....because if there was anybody who deserved  this for India,then it was this man. Only a true champ can understand another....how true....no wonder the great Kapil Dev gave credit to DADA for what Team India is today . But then isn’t life been like this for this lion hearted warrior all these years??  Being dropped after just a single game and then spending 4 years in wilderness,DADA made a sensational comeback in 1996 and then he never looked back. The defining moment of his career came when he was handed the reins of the Indian team which was under fire due to match fixing controversies. It was a gamble but it paid off...DADA converted this subdued unit into a bunch of fearless fighters who  didn’t have look far beyond than their leader for inspiration. He infused a new life into the team by bringing in talented youngsters,groomed them and instilled confidence in the team. 

Result?....India started winning matches...not just at home but abroad as well. He just followed his instincts,never cared to be in the good books of the administrators and cared only about winning matches. His aggression rubbed on to his teammates and the new era of Indian cricket dawned. A born leader,his captaincy never affected his performance though it did,to a small extent towards the later part of his tenure. The administrators,whose egos were deflated by DADA’s care-for-hell attitude tried their best to make life difficult for him....and they did....the last nail being the Greg chappell episode. DADA was dropped...only to make the mother of all comebacks a couple of years later. It was impossible to keep the phoenix in the ashes....it rises eventually. Still...after all this he was forced to retire from the test arena too,being already out of reckoning for the ODIs. He didnt make much fuss about it. He bowed out against his favourite opponents,Australia and in the last test he made an 85 in the first innings. He did a Bradman in the last innings of his test cricket career...the walk back was long and he looked up at the sky... realising the fact that he wont ever walk out in whites to bat for India again. 

                      DADA did come back to play for his beloved city,Kolkata in the IPL....leading the Knight Riders and though he led admirably and played out of his skin for the 3 seasons he was snubbed again during the IPL4 auctions....the backstabbing continued !! 

And when everybody thought they had seen the MAHARAJ for last time on the field,he did what he does best.....make a comeback again !!!! the name was fitting.....WARRIORS....PUNE “ WARRIORS INDIA”

....apt for the WARRIOR prince...and even if he performs miserably or admirably....we will remember DADA for his commitment,selflessness and and for coming back again and again like the sea waves... on to the sands of excellence...it has been a sheer privilege to be born in this era...DADA’s era.

PROUD TO BE AN INDIAN... ???

08.02.2011 -

Facebook status of one of my frnds....Jana Gana Mana chosen as the BEST national anthem in the world....so she is proud to be an Indian !!! Am i?? answer - an emphatic NO !!!

    And i made a scathing comment about what i felt regarding this and how could u feel proud to be an Indian when u look around,when u look at this society...and guess what i found out later in
the evening when i logged into FB?? A bunch of like-minded "PATRIOTS" (unlike me !!) who called me a "naysayer",
and that i didnt understand the "real value of a national anthem"...that it defines a nation...etc etc
...some even doubted whether i was a true Indian !!!! And one moron even pulled a smart one on me,asking if there was a mirror around me when i looked around...MAY HIS GODDAMN SOUL REST IN PEACE...
so much for speaking out my mind....whew...

I gave them all a piece of my mind (which comes very easily to me !!) but what i fail to understand is that
did they really mean what they said?? Should we feel proud to be an Indian just bcoz our National Anthem
was selected as the BEST by UNESCO??? So if it was not selected then i suppose we wouldnt have felt proud
of our national anthem nor about the fact that we are INDIANs...right?? Are we really so desperate to feel proud to be an Indian that we should go looking for such trivial reasons?? Maybe yes...we are....bcoz such instances are rare in this country.
    I might sound like a NAYSAYER to some but i ask them...isnt there truth in what i say?? What defines a nation...its national anthem...or its citizens and their deeds?? What we have achieved over the years in the different walks of life,how we conduct ourselves in the global society and the formulation and implementation of policies for the upliftment of the masses are just a few things that truly defines a NATION.If u ask one of the above mentioned PATRIOTS,why they feel proud to be an Indian...lets hazard a few guesses as to what their reasons would be -

a. a diverse country with various religions,languages,customs     blah....blah
b. fast emerging nuclear power with an enviable assemble of     armed forces
c. rapidly increasing economy and a force to reckon with in all     fields
etc...etc...
    ...to be precise....Indians are everywhere and fast multiplying !! No arguements there but blind optimists would prefer to look just at the rise of this peak and completely ignore the steep decline on the other side,bcoz the best way to tackle a problem is to pretend that it doesnt exist !! Or as we all do...just watch it,condemn it and then forget it....simple !! Somebody had aptly said that MONEY is the root of all evils....add to that,human never-ever satisfying greed for more,and u have a deadly combination. Why is it that the 2 financial extremeties exist on such a large scale in India?? The richer keep on getting richer,the poorer keep on getting poorer....the exploited keeps on getting exploited...a section of the society thrives on the luxuries while the major part struggle in vain to get the 3 basic "luxuries"of life...food,clothing and a roof above their heads.
    As if financial inequality was not enough,social inequality is rampant even in this 21st century. People shout slogans against the government,declare strikes,go on rampage to protest against reservations...as if the moment all these are removed every Indian would treat the other as an equal...and we would have a just and equal society....bloody hell !!!
    One look at the no of zeroes in the account balance of our Indian babus in the Swiss banks and we are forced to believe that there are really 7 lives for a man,rather,for an Indian atleast...and these are those few lucky ones who have figured out a way to carry over these deposits to their next lives !!
    Women enpowerment - sounds nice for  the camera and prints...but hardly a trace in real life...where women are exploited,abused,raped,molested at ones own free will and does anyone care?? Women rights activists...media...for a few days and then the waves of time wash them away and replace them with new interesting stories.
    Every other day a group of politicians and their chelas feel that they cant live as a part of this state anymore...they want a state of their own...or the name doesnt suit their "culture",so it ought to be replaced with a local version....or the jobs in a state belongs only to the natives of that state,outsiders should not be allowed...or some believe its high time to stop "westernisation" of our society and something must be done to stop it,so boycott Valentines Day,Friendship Day etc,beat up the couples on the streets and parks and pubs,vandalise the shops and hangouts which support all this,burn cinema halls which screens films which "hurt public sentiments and Indian culture",declare strikes whenever their vested interests are not entertained no matter whatever hassles it causes to the public,instigate the young minds against each other and then wait to claim their share of "martyrs"...even the deadliest criminals who have committed henious crimes are tried out in the courts according to our "JUST and UNBIASED" judicial system and then let off due to lack of proof or given life impisonments while the victims family struggle to live out each day watching that bastard getting what he had so cruelly taken away without any remorse...a LIFE...atleast an existence...
.
.
the list is endless....and if we still feel proud to be an Indian bcoz JANA GANA MANA is the BEST national anthem in the world....then....CONGRATS....U R A TRUE INDIAN,but alas...not even close to a HUMAN BEING.....!!

FB : highly addictive !!

FB....in case u are thinking what that means,then u r one of the few lucky mortals who have not been bitten by this bug...or it might be that u r simply ignorant...or u must have slept through few revolutions(mind u,not rotations !!). For them,FB is FACEBOOK - which i can safely say,is the greatest social networking website at present. ( does that ring a bell somewhere ?? if not,then u surely belong to that above-mentioned 3rd category)

Hmmm....social networking....what exactly does that mean...have u ever thought about it?? i havent...so i just Google it now,and check what Wiki (not Wikileaks !! damn,they are everywhere...) has to say about it,and this is what i found -

"A social network is a social structure made up of individuals (or organizations) called "nodes", which are tied (connected) by one or more specific types of interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, common interest, financial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, or relationships of beliefs, knowledge or prestige."

          Phew...and i thought it was all about posting on wall,poking each other,commenting on pics,finding out who is ur best friend,who loves u the most,building farms...etc....etc...as a result i dont dare to check for the definition anymore.

For me,Orkut was the perfect thing. I had my friends there,was able to upload and view pics and chat with my frnds...what more did i need...or so i thought !! During my 4 yrs in clg,FB was not that popular...Orkut was on everybody's lips and fingertips.Then my stay in chennai for an year...heard abt it but didnt pay much attention to it...and then i came to Kolkata. I noticed that the absence of my frnds,those who had sworn their loyalty to Orkut.I checked with my buddies and they directed me to this phenomenon - Facebook...and i cant thank them enough for that.

        But lets say,the first impression is not always the best impression...the simple white and blue theme didnt impress me right away but then as they say - the proof of the pudding is in eating. And u guessed it right...I LOVED IT !!! I am yet to check out all the nook and corners of FB,but whatever i have seen till now is enough to keep me hooked. And as if eating the pudding was not enough,last day i saw the film,"THE SOCIAL NETWORK" -inspiring,humorous and REAL...hats off to u,Mr.Mark Zuckerberg.

Its popularity can be gauged from the fact that it was started in 2004 and by 2009 it had more than 500 million registered users across the globe....beat that !!!

So when i sit back now and look at my "Wall" on that blue and white background,i cant help but admire the inspiration...the hard work...and the brain behind this whole concept. For once,necessity was not the mother of this invention...rather,it was a young Father !! ;-D

A few words abt me....

A simple guy who lives in two worlds at the same time....one the REAL world....where nothing is perfect,not even close to perfect...where,if we compare life to piano,the black keys always outnumber the white keys...where there is a lot of sadness,frustration,inequality,pain,suffering and very little joy and even less time to enjoy this rare gift called life...

and then there is my other world,my dream world...a world which will never become a reality,atleast not before my eyes r closed forever....where life is a little more enjoyable...where there is happiness,all are equal in all respects,all are together,where there is love.....and where people care for everything around them....take some time off to stand and stare....to think...to understand...to try and do something which will make a difference...(as the great DUMBLEDORE said..."It is our choices Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities."....(sniff)....great man...)where man wont be too selfish and try to dominate nature(AND NOT GOD...COZ THERE IS NOTHING CALLED GOD,THAT IS IF U HAVENT REALIZED IT ALREADY !!)....
life has more to it than what meets our eye....
(sigh...................)