umm.. I have a pet peeve - and I have been trying so hard to get over it - but whenever I turn my thoughts away - there it is !
The topic in question is a mobile advert by a superstar of sorts. Just what is being communicated through that ad?
Is it that I will have the magical ability to get in touch with my friends from 10 years back? Or is it that the superstar has not bothered to contact his friends for more than 10 years.. or ohh! is it that with this sim - I will magically know the new numbers of my friends from 10 years back - or that they will retain the same number 10 years back - wait - where there mobiles back then?
I could go on and on with the ad trying to give a global look to the ad like having different religions - but let me not go there..Maybe the most pathetic shot had to be trying to talk to the spotlight man from a phone.. Umm.. wont it make more sense to do it when the guy is off duty - perhaps a more civilized convo might help? But a phone?!?! And does the superstar carry the numbers of all people on the shoot? Bah!
According to the ad makers - the idea was - "think of something - go for it- do it"... Methinks - I could do a better job at it..
Actually - I JUST did!:)
Friday, 10 July 2009
Wednesday, 8 July 2009
Saturday, 13 June 2009
Sunday, 31 May 2009
Ironic - maybe not..
Most of us have heard about the aussie attacks to students in australia. What intrigues me that these attacks are only hinted at the students? What about the Indian professionals working there.. Have they been mysteriously excluded from these attacks? That possibly cant be true. Racisim cant be just limited to the student community. So - how has Australia- the continent with perhaps the lowest population come to be a racist country? Surely they need "outsiders" to fill in the gaps they themselves cant fill. Be it a university or be it any job. They cant go about with the excuse that they dont have enough money to educate themselves. All of us Indians know how we educate ourselves at these foreign locations. Its through loans, a lot of hard work and our parents hard earned Indian money. Plus we vie for scholarships. To add to that we need to understand the culture and how we can make ourselves the extra money on the side. Surely this is much easier for a citizen of that country. So what makes them not go for it. The answer is simple. The government helps them out in terms of compensations or community jobs or something easier that makes them not go for the hard work in life - that is study or a 9-5 job. So why the anger at people who want to work hard and get themselves a degree and a better quality of life. It looks like pure jealousy to me.
Now this has raised an interesting point back home. We are a multi-cultural country ourselves. "Racist" tendencies perhaps are more likely to be present here than anywhere in the world.Most countrymen say - why blame other countries - apne andar jhanko. But inspite of that - as a country we are tolerant - perhaps more than the world, else we would have such incidents on a regular basis reported in India.
Yes, you might look at incidents like the MNS declaring war against the Biharis or the South Indians turning their nose up at the North Indians or internal dislike between certain South Indian states. But do we consider them "serious"? Some we find politically motivated. THe MNS incident is more the need of a person wanting to make a political name at the cost of certain people. It insitgates some to think, maybe act - but turn violent? Nope, not unless they are getting paid for it. The inherent divide of the Northies vs the Southies is again something that is relative and perhaps will never ever merit a violent attack. Its more fodder for our gossip for our grannies or parents. So is the internal South divide. If you try to dissect I am sure we can easily get each state declaring a war against the other due to some reason or the other. Reasons could be as mundane as "we dont like the way they talk" to "what do they eat, you said??" to "is that the way they dress there??".
But Indians - I am proud to say - dont harbour a mean streak. We wont resolve to passing a screwdriver to some poor mans head just because we dont like the way they talk or because a community happens to earn more than ones community. So no - we cant compare international incidents to ours and say its the same. Most cases that I know have been politically instigated (that includes the horrific Godhra riots) rather than a normal bypasser or teenager bashing another guy - just because he felt anger within him to do it.
Its time we woke up to understanding and appreciating our Indian culture. And stopped lapping up everything given by the western culture. They have some positives but as apparent there are gaping holes in their acceptability of other cultures. I would like to point out that these incidents have come to light in Australia, but these exist all over the globe. There is low acceptability of cultures which are not western in the western countries. Take a look at UK/Europe/US and you would know what I am talking about. What? have you forgotten the great Shilpa Big Brother Shetty incident?
As a world - its the western countries that need to learn from a country like ours on what tolerance is and then label themselves "developed". Plus I dont get the third world country tag - who gave it and why are we one(topic for another post:) )? Why look down on someone who is not in the race for development - YET. Look where that got our world anyway - we are in a bad mess of global warming gases. Is non development criminal OR is being non human and a barbaric more criminal?
So garv se bolo - Jai Hind!
Now this has raised an interesting point back home. We are a multi-cultural country ourselves. "Racist" tendencies perhaps are more likely to be present here than anywhere in the world.Most countrymen say - why blame other countries - apne andar jhanko. But inspite of that - as a country we are tolerant - perhaps more than the world, else we would have such incidents on a regular basis reported in India.
Yes, you might look at incidents like the MNS declaring war against the Biharis or the South Indians turning their nose up at the North Indians or internal dislike between certain South Indian states. But do we consider them "serious"? Some we find politically motivated. THe MNS incident is more the need of a person wanting to make a political name at the cost of certain people. It insitgates some to think, maybe act - but turn violent? Nope, not unless they are getting paid for it. The inherent divide of the Northies vs the Southies is again something that is relative and perhaps will never ever merit a violent attack. Its more fodder for our gossip for our grannies or parents. So is the internal South divide. If you try to dissect I am sure we can easily get each state declaring a war against the other due to some reason or the other. Reasons could be as mundane as "we dont like the way they talk" to "what do they eat, you said??" to "is that the way they dress there??".
But Indians - I am proud to say - dont harbour a mean streak. We wont resolve to passing a screwdriver to some poor mans head just because we dont like the way they talk or because a community happens to earn more than ones community. So no - we cant compare international incidents to ours and say its the same. Most cases that I know have been politically instigated (that includes the horrific Godhra riots) rather than a normal bypasser or teenager bashing another guy - just because he felt anger within him to do it.
Its time we woke up to understanding and appreciating our Indian culture. And stopped lapping up everything given by the western culture. They have some positives but as apparent there are gaping holes in their acceptability of other cultures. I would like to point out that these incidents have come to light in Australia, but these exist all over the globe. There is low acceptability of cultures which are not western in the western countries. Take a look at UK/Europe/US and you would know what I am talking about. What? have you forgotten the great Shilpa Big Brother Shetty incident?
As a world - its the western countries that need to learn from a country like ours on what tolerance is and then label themselves "developed". Plus I dont get the third world country tag - who gave it and why are we one(topic for another post:) )? Why look down on someone who is not in the race for development - YET. Look where that got our world anyway - we are in a bad mess of global warming gases. Is non development criminal OR is being non human and a barbaric more criminal?
So garv se bolo - Jai Hind!
Saturday, 18 April 2009
We need to learn so much!
Have you been hit by this new lesson in lifes learning called Susan Boyle? You havent ?? You need to watch this -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY
When I first watched it - I was shocked by the unanimous crowd booing and laughter!
I am not saying that people should not be judged - hell if we didnt judge people then our brains wouldnt churn analysis and make us understand right from wrong! But to do it so wickedly -when the person is on stage! The most confident person on stage does get stage fright! And plus I am not one for being bullied or bullying people anyway. I think its unfair to do it and speaks volumes about your upbringing as a person.
Anyway, as it started - the first thing that Susan Boyle did before she began singing her song was smile - a very confident smile, as if to say - you think I am stupid - hear this..And the rest as they say is history. If you carefully listen to her voice - its a sweet voice with lovely modulations and ability to emote. But there is a confidence and a certain love with which she sings the song. I am totally blown away! The reaction from the audience is equally impressive - and I was very happy about it. It was a standing ovation throughout the song!
This basically raises 2 important questions or thoughts to introspect on -
are we as humans so biased about appearances that we tend to overlook the person inside. Are we so superficial?
I am no saint either. I have been a victim and made other ppl victims too!
Why are we so hell bent on identifying peoples worth with their outer beauty? Who made this rule? But I guess if this rule didnt exist then outer appearances wouldntcount and I could go to office in my pyjamas;)
But I digress- I think we need to change the way we judge other people. However, If you look at it from the other viewpoint- when you meet a person, you hardly have time to understand the person in depth and the first thing that a person lets you know about him/her is their ability to present themselves and their ability to communicate what they think about themselves!
But, what if you are lazy and still think you are the Queen of Egypt? Wouldnt that translate into a good self esteem but a bad appearance.
I think its at such times, we should not be quick to judge.. and that is where Susan Boyles appeal lies. Her appearance is deceptive for what is hidden underneath is a volcano of talent and confidence! I am amazed her spirit has not died over the years due to the constant bullying and loneliness she has had to face!
That is where I feel for - and that is where I guess most of us identify ourselves with her! We want to give her another chance - as life certainly doesnt - and that makes us feel better about ourselves as humans and overcome the guilt of judging her too quickly. I hope life is better for her now(though I dont think she thinks it was bad as of now) and she rocks the world!
The other question that this raises is why justice in this world is delayed and when it does happen it happens in abundance! Why doesnt luck favour everyone in equal measures and at equal frequencies. I am sure there must be some statistics to explain this much better.. However I will save analysis on that for another day.
For now, I hope Susan Boyle is an inspiration and a lesson for us on what can go wrong and how we can make it right!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY
When I first watched it - I was shocked by the unanimous crowd booing and laughter!
I am not saying that people should not be judged - hell if we didnt judge people then our brains wouldnt churn analysis and make us understand right from wrong! But to do it so wickedly -when the person is on stage! The most confident person on stage does get stage fright! And plus I am not one for being bullied or bullying people anyway. I think its unfair to do it and speaks volumes about your upbringing as a person.
Anyway, as it started - the first thing that Susan Boyle did before she began singing her song was smile - a very confident smile, as if to say - you think I am stupid - hear this..And the rest as they say is history. If you carefully listen to her voice - its a sweet voice with lovely modulations and ability to emote. But there is a confidence and a certain love with which she sings the song. I am totally blown away! The reaction from the audience is equally impressive - and I was very happy about it. It was a standing ovation throughout the song!
This basically raises 2 important questions or thoughts to introspect on -
are we as humans so biased about appearances that we tend to overlook the person inside. Are we so superficial?
I am no saint either. I have been a victim and made other ppl victims too!
Why are we so hell bent on identifying peoples worth with their outer beauty? Who made this rule? But I guess if this rule didnt exist then outer appearances wouldntcount and I could go to office in my pyjamas;)
But I digress- I think we need to change the way we judge other people. However, If you look at it from the other viewpoint- when you meet a person, you hardly have time to understand the person in depth and the first thing that a person lets you know about him/her is their ability to present themselves and their ability to communicate what they think about themselves!
But, what if you are lazy and still think you are the Queen of Egypt? Wouldnt that translate into a good self esteem but a bad appearance.
I think its at such times, we should not be quick to judge.. and that is where Susan Boyles appeal lies. Her appearance is deceptive for what is hidden underneath is a volcano of talent and confidence! I am amazed her spirit has not died over the years due to the constant bullying and loneliness she has had to face!
That is where I feel for - and that is where I guess most of us identify ourselves with her! We want to give her another chance - as life certainly doesnt - and that makes us feel better about ourselves as humans and overcome the guilt of judging her too quickly. I hope life is better for her now(though I dont think she thinks it was bad as of now) and she rocks the world!
The other question that this raises is why justice in this world is delayed and when it does happen it happens in abundance! Why doesnt luck favour everyone in equal measures and at equal frequencies. I am sure there must be some statistics to explain this much better.. However I will save analysis on that for another day.
For now, I hope Susan Boyle is an inspiration and a lesson for us on what can go wrong and how we can make it right!
Tuesday, 10 February 2009
Top 5 reasons why Slumdog Millionaire doesnt work - yes, really!
1. Dev Patel was a miscast -
I truly believe Dev Patel was not his best in any of the scenes. Be it his accent, his jaw dropping vacant expression - nothing clicked with me. On the other hand the adult Salim brought a certain rough flavour that Dev Patel did not bring. That was needed considering we were talking about a street smart kid.
2. Important question- where was Freida driving to- towards the end? Any answers? In concept, yes - somewhere towards Jamal. But Jamal was busy with the crorepati program. Where was she going?
3.They dont teach 3 Musketeers in a school. Atleast not the school I went to. Its more of something that you would have by your bedside as a late night read rather than as a textbook in your school bag.
4. Why would Americans arrive in their own car in India only to be robbed is beyond me? Did they get their own car from America? Its more likely to be a tourist taxi. Is it that difficult to rob a car of its parts in India? Do you actually need to net a tourist in order to do that?
And finally- No Mr. Boyle, "slumdogs" in India dont suddenly start speaking in English when they are adults- Perhaps they can never speak English or can speak a smattering of it. Definitely not British English. Thats clearly a mockery of what the production house think of India.Perhaps its also a statement of the market this movie was expected to capture- definitely not the Indian market.
One also wonders- is SM a hit with the masses and the critics of the world because of the "harsh" realities it portrays? or is SM a hit because of the rags to riches story- sort of like the fairytale that one always imagines life to be?
For me, it portrayed India to be all about slums, poverty and call centres. That doesnt work- not because it is wrong to portray these, but because India is more than this. Perhaps its time one of our desi directors showed the world what we are about. But would the world care? For them, India is still a developing country and being able to talk in English still a surprise.
So poverty is not a shock - the developed India might be.
I truly believe Dev Patel was not his best in any of the scenes. Be it his accent, his jaw dropping vacant expression - nothing clicked with me. On the other hand the adult Salim brought a certain rough flavour that Dev Patel did not bring. That was needed considering we were talking about a street smart kid.
2. Important question- where was Freida driving to- towards the end? Any answers? In concept, yes - somewhere towards Jamal. But Jamal was busy with the crorepati program. Where was she going?
3.They dont teach 3 Musketeers in a school. Atleast not the school I went to. Its more of something that you would have by your bedside as a late night read rather than as a textbook in your school bag.
4. Why would Americans arrive in their own car in India only to be robbed is beyond me? Did they get their own car from America? Its more likely to be a tourist taxi. Is it that difficult to rob a car of its parts in India? Do you actually need to net a tourist in order to do that?
And finally- No Mr. Boyle, "slumdogs" in India dont suddenly start speaking in English when they are adults- Perhaps they can never speak English or can speak a smattering of it. Definitely not British English. Thats clearly a mockery of what the production house think of India.Perhaps its also a statement of the market this movie was expected to capture- definitely not the Indian market.
One also wonders- is SM a hit with the masses and the critics of the world because of the "harsh" realities it portrays? or is SM a hit because of the rags to riches story- sort of like the fairytale that one always imagines life to be?
For me, it portrayed India to be all about slums, poverty and call centres. That doesnt work- not because it is wrong to portray these, but because India is more than this. Perhaps its time one of our desi directors showed the world what we are about. But would the world care? For them, India is still a developing country and being able to talk in English still a surprise.
So poverty is not a shock - the developed India might be.
Tuesday, 3 February 2009
Not enough time..
When I was a kid, I used to wonder how adults made it through a year - working all 365 days a year. I mean as I saw it from my small eyes then, they had to do house work, office work each and every single day without any holiday!! That was amazing to me then. I would often say to myself that when I grew up I would take an off exactly the same way our school gave it. You know - summer vacations and winter vacations etc
Ha! Tough luck. As I found out after growing up, not only can I work 365 days a year, there are some days when I actually crave more work ( where did that come from?). And I can go working through an entire year without knowing how quickly a month has passed by, then a quarter and then a year. Those milestones seemed too big when I was a kid. My world ended and began with exam timetables and crossing them out once they got over (I still remember the bliss the crossing out gave me!)
And now sometimes I cant even find enough time to get things done, and wish a day was greater than 24 hours (havent you wished that?) or perhaps most importantly - evenings were much bigger than they usually are. I mean an evening should be more than the 3-4 hours we get. It should have like 5-6 hours! Wouldnt that be great?
Then there is the matter of work hours. Why in India are we working from 9-6 or 9-7 in certain companies or for certan people, even more than that? Other developed countries make the people work from 9-5. There should be labour laws against making us work more than required and making us think that time is not enough. Sure, there is time- only we have sold it to our employers. Thats actually quite a sad thought. However if you view time across various types of people- I mean working (labourers, IT prof, non IT prof), non working, then you would definitely not land up with a single definition of time. It gets more abstract as you reach out to more types of people. What would you then term as adequate use of the time given to you on a daily basis? example - I got my work done today, so it was enough or I got to relax a lot so it was enough.Or I got to do what I liked the most, hence time was enough. Or perhaps time is like one of those definitions given in a movie- Time is the only thing you cant touch, but can sense and feel.
Maybe the definition changes daily- but I know I am never going to look at time the way I did when I was a kid.
Ha! Tough luck. As I found out after growing up, not only can I work 365 days a year, there are some days when I actually crave more work ( where did that come from?). And I can go working through an entire year without knowing how quickly a month has passed by, then a quarter and then a year. Those milestones seemed too big when I was a kid. My world ended and began with exam timetables and crossing them out once they got over (I still remember the bliss the crossing out gave me!)
And now sometimes I cant even find enough time to get things done, and wish a day was greater than 24 hours (havent you wished that?) or perhaps most importantly - evenings were much bigger than they usually are. I mean an evening should be more than the 3-4 hours we get. It should have like 5-6 hours! Wouldnt that be great?
Then there is the matter of work hours. Why in India are we working from 9-6 or 9-7 in certain companies or for certan people, even more than that? Other developed countries make the people work from 9-5. There should be labour laws against making us work more than required and making us think that time is not enough. Sure, there is time- only we have sold it to our employers. Thats actually quite a sad thought. However if you view time across various types of people- I mean working (labourers, IT prof, non IT prof), non working, then you would definitely not land up with a single definition of time. It gets more abstract as you reach out to more types of people. What would you then term as adequate use of the time given to you on a daily basis? example - I got my work done today, so it was enough or I got to relax a lot so it was enough.Or I got to do what I liked the most, hence time was enough. Or perhaps time is like one of those definitions given in a movie- Time is the only thing you cant touch, but can sense and feel.
Maybe the definition changes daily- but I know I am never going to look at time the way I did when I was a kid.
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