The Kingdom...a compelling watch

Hi All,

I had watched the movie 'The Kingdom' on TV a couple of weeks back and since then I have been itching to write a review/post about it. The movie started close to midnight and went on well past 1 am. The fact that I was glued to the idiot box all that time and didn’t even dare to switch channels, lest I miss a few seconds of the film, should be sufficient to convey the intensity of the movie.

'The Kingdom' is based on a semi fictional plot on the bombings of the residential quarters of foreign workers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The blast leaves the many dead and several more injured. The America Diaspora is devastated and furious. It doesn’t help that the atrocity was carried out by men masquerading as Saudi policemen. The monarchy, understanding the gravity of the situation, promises action but at the same time utilizes ambiguous laws to prevent American sleuths from investigating this carnage.

But remember this is an American movie and the Americans always win...:). So in comes the FBI with all their men [and women] and their gear only to find that the maximum role they will be allowed to play will be that of mute spectators to the whole spectacle. During a dinner with the Saudi prince, the FBI lead successfully persuades the prince to allow them to play a more proactive role. From this point onwards, the team realizes apart from the burden of collecting and deciphering evidence they also have become soft targets themselves.

The movie is action packed pretty much throughout the entire duration. The car chases are pretty exhilarating and will certainly ensure adrenalin courses through your body the same way blood does. Exchanges with terrorists are decent enough to satiate the goriness quotient of any typical Hollywood movie.

The film doesn’t leave you wanting from the emotional aspect as well. The scene where a father narrates to the visiting FBI team on how his son was trying to put back his mother jaws using a band-aids tugs your heart and touches the sorrowful aspect of terrorism. For a moment you are able to relate this to the loss of innocent lives as 26/11 unfolded. The film also smacks the conservative attitude of the monarchy through the example of a female character being denied invitation from the prince due to her gender.
The movie ends with promise of more revenge from both the sides. I would certainly recommend this movie any weekend watch.

P.S. I have taken the liberty to describe a good portion of the film in this post as it was released 2 years back and hence any description would not amount to a 'spoiler'.

IF smoking is injurious, it is for everyone.

I had taken this picture zooming my camera from my window seat in a train i was travelling near Agra Cantt. station while travelling back from Kota. What was going through my mind at that point of time was the nonchalance of that unknown woman. She was lighting her bidi, sitting outside her home. But then what made me click the picture was the thing which upsets me is targetting the youth, the hypocritical behaviour of people who have a problem if the young are smoking and say 'its okay' when they smoke. Now this woman in the picture is not young and urban or a woman living independently on her own. SO don't just target the young and independent for smoking. If smoking is an issue , don't say its bad when a young woman or a young smokes. One cannot say that 'these young women are into smoking because they are living alone, they have money to spend and noone is to stop.' This may be the reason but then what is the reason for the woman smoking in the picture?
Smoking is injurious for everyone's health, whether its a man or a woman, a teenage or an old person and its better not to target any one segment or one particular gender.
This is my opinion which may be liked or disliked.

- Shaista Dhandha

Dat 7th Class Incident...

"U noe Weneva i see ne1 teasin gals or get teased. That caligraphy teacher's face comes into my mind. Huh. In fact he has ruined my life i see ne guy looking at me i get so intimidated like y o y is he looking at me Huh"

I got this message a few hours ago, sent by my best friend. Yes, it did stir up memory that been buried deep down in my mind, consciously.

This anecdote is of the time i was in the 7th class . Some well known personality had come to our school to teach us all calligraphy...In which bamboo ticks and ink are used for writing. I guess a room had been arranged...yes it was the room behind old auditorium...a large number of benches had been put...i remember me n my best friend sitting alongside...after da session my friend was shaken sorts...i asked her what had happened...she said that teacher had touched her chest from under the table while he was standing there to teach us how to write properly...i can't even find more modest words for what he had done...not to say da disgusting feeling I'm getting right now...
He was around 50 yrs old, all white headed and seemed to be a grandfather-ly figure to one...in fact he must have carried on dat image in minds of many...no one must be remembering him even till now...
My friend dus...
We had a male teacher as our class in charge so we couldn't tell him anything...
We alone, cz she said she didn't want to tell anyone else, went to da Vice-Principal, a Sister..i dun know what my friend had tld her as i had waited outside, but i came to know what da Vice-Principal had told her didn't include taking any action...
After all, why wd da school create a scene involving an eminent artist?
My soul screams 2da, as i think we weren't able to do anything...
I dun know what to say to my friend...after 6 years also da incident haunts her...i dun have words to express...what do I call it?Anger?
Or is it pity? Or helplessness?

Inner party democracy, anyone?

Hi all,

We always pride ourselves with the fact that we are the world's largest democracy. Every five years when we go out to vote, we leave the rest of the world in awe. We make them wonder how such a staggering exercise is being conducted without major hiccups. The statistics alone is sufficient to rattle any planner and put him/her out of sleep for days.

For all the chest beating that we indulge in, there is a darker side to our democracy that we usually don't visit that often and would certainly like to keep it under the wraps from prying outsiders' eyes. Probably you would have guessed what I am talking about right now.

Inner party democracy has not been on the agenda of many political parties for a long time. They, conveniently, forget the fact that charity starts at home and that being propagators of democracy also means that they themselves have to practice it both in letter and in spirit first. Most of the political parties today somehow give inner democracy a miss. Dynastic politics seems to be the order of the day. If not that then it is a single strong man whose whims and fancies decide who and how the party is run.

Is this what democracy is all about? We all know it wasn't meant to be this way. Why are our political parties behaving in a manner that can be best described as being devoid of democracy? And whose responsibility is it to put the house under order? Where do we draw the line between democracy and indiscipline? Should academic exercises like writing a book come under the purview of a party's ideology?

p.s. I didn't want to get into the gory details of dynastic politics and strong men who control their parties with an iron grip...we all know it too well don't we...:)

"What Independence means to India?"

"We end today a period of ill fortune and India discovers herself again. The achievement we celebrate today is but a step, an opening of opportunity, to the greater triumphs and achievements that await us. Are we brave enough and wise enough to grasp this opportunity and accept the challenge of the future?" - Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru in his very famous speech of "Tryst with Destiny" August 14, 1947.
Today, we decidedly have gone eons ahead in the journey that began with tragedy and chaos but slowly and steadily progressed towards peace and development. Sure, there are some impedements that are stumbling roadblocks, but with the dedication & determination of our fellow Indians we shall overcome. Hum Hoonge Kamayaab ek Din!
But, there are some questions which creep in our glitzy world and beg for more thought and pondering. Have the fruits of development reached all? Some random strokings of Indian-pride by some advertisements and campaigns may at best arose patriotic feelings, but are we really working towards it. Campaigns like "Mera Bharat Mahaan" and "Jagoore" and even the repeated appeals by film-stars and other celebrities and Election Commission have fallen on deaf ears if the the poor turnout rates in recent elections are any indication.
Why is that 100 crores of population can't create an environment suitable for development while many of our brothers are damn successful outside India. Sure, in recent past, India has justifiably claimed its position as a power to reckon with by successfully even averting the full effects of slowdown. But then, equality is not an ideal which is to be adored in public, while it has no implication in real life. We may rationalize the negative points, pretend that they never existed, or safely say "Mera Bharat Mahaan". But then, greatness can't be bestowed by anybody, it must be commanded through our actions. When, millions of our brothers are starving, being molested, exploited etc we may choose to close our eyes but that doesn't alter reality.
Some genuinely sincere intellectuals who tried their hand in India, failed and moved abroad to find new avenues, claim that India as a state has failed them. I beg to differ. We Indians, failed INDIA. The lofty standards set by a host of great Indians such as Gandhiji, Nehru, Sardar, Bose, Bhagat Singh and many many others who weren't lucky enough to enter the hall of fame was through sincerest dedication which demanded nothing selfish from others but their own welfare. As aptly summed up by one film, people always want a Gandhiji to be born, not in their own house, but neighbour's.
Abdum Kalam, in a speech noted that the very same Indians who give a damn to rules of India, very obediantly follow rules while residing abroad and most ironically claim that the other nations are neat and clean. Why? Some claim that system is such the it breeds corruption! Many politicians are so powerful that we can't face them. "Yatha Raja, Thatha Praja" was the maxim of past. The history has turned one full circle and now the maxim is "Yatha Praja, Thatha Raja" in a democratic republic like ours. Indian electoral history is replete with examples wherein a very powerful incumbent was thrown out of power once he lost his sympathy with masses. If he could be thrown out, then it does mean that masses are really capable of coming out of their safe confines and determine the fate of the nation.
So, this means, that the system is such, because of our own tacit approval. Indians have always misunderstood the law of Karma and there has been opposition to this pattern of thinking from leaders. So much ingrained is the idea in India that people come to accept whatever becomes of them in resignation saying that this is fruit of karma. Very true. But it is only after we have fulfilled our duties to the fullest possible extent, that we can sit aside and watch the result. Patience is not a virtue if it means tolerating everything with no sense of esteem. We always wait for the arrival of some great person to lift our lives from the misery. But, it must be understood, that we can't sit idle until that person arrives. Because of this mentality Indians suffered unspeakable misery because they believed that some day justice will be done. But so long as well place our fate on the "other" factors we would never be able to shoulder our responsibilities.
unan-o-Misra-Ruma sab mit gaye jahan seAb tak magar hai baqi namo-nisan hamaraKuchh bat hai ki hasti mitati nahin hamariSadiyon raha hai dusman daur-i-zaman hamara
Iqbal, Indian poet and thinker
The poet says that whereas the ancient civilizations of Greece, Egypt and Rome have all disappeared from this world, the basic elements oJf our civilization still continue. Although world events have been inimical to us for centuries, there is 'something' in our civilization which has withstood these onslaughts.
That 'something' which Iqbal mentions, points out to the most inherent strength of Indians. Its "character", its "unity in diversity" and the most tolerant culture. What Gandhiji created was not something new. What he factually did was to help Indians re-discover themselves. We needn't battle the ills in India by imitating from others. We need to create our own home-grown solutions to the problems that abound us. Most importantly we need to feel a strong sense of belongingness towards our motherland. Then, rest would follow.
Madhav ( www.metamorphosisinside.blogspot.com)