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Frivolous Ads...
Hi All,
Something has been ticking me off these days. The ubiquitous irritant is delivered through the idiot box right into my living room and the only way to avoid it, is probably to switch off the box altogether. Yes, I am talking about ads. The little messages which come in between your favourite shows, the ones that television channels broadcast when you are on the edge of your seat and biting your nails not knowing what will happen next. It makes economic sense for them as ads are the revenue lifeline for them.
Let me get something clear from the start. I don’t have any issues with ads across the board. Most are ok and some are even revolutionary, innovative and way ahead of their time. My sticking point is with the ones that are misleading, stereotypical or just downright disgusting.
Take for example the ‘Pond’s Age Miracle’ ad- the one that shows a husband going out of his way to woo his wife to marry him ‘again’ just because she applied the stupid cream and looks younger. Repulsive isn’t it? Since when did husbands start disliking their spouses just because they have grown older and have a few wrinkles on their face? [At least this is not case in India and hope it remains that way.] The ad also denigrates women who would, I believe, wish to be judged and liked by their content of character and not by their appearance.
The other one is the ‘K factor challenge’ ad which promotes the eating of cereals to lose weight. The problem is the way in which it does it. The mother consumes the ‘magic’ cereal hoping to tone down and fit into that ‘red dress’ upon her daughter’s request. [Just petty at its best, I would say.] Have more ads like this and the time won’t be far away when every kid in the block is going to place unreasonable demands on the physical appearance of his/her mother.
So what do you people think about these ads. What can we do to ensure that young impressionable minds are not influenced by these seemingly naïve ads?
Something has been ticking me off these days. The ubiquitous irritant is delivered through the idiot box right into my living room and the only way to avoid it, is probably to switch off the box altogether. Yes, I am talking about ads. The little messages which come in between your favourite shows, the ones that television channels broadcast when you are on the edge of your seat and biting your nails not knowing what will happen next. It makes economic sense for them as ads are the revenue lifeline for them.
Let me get something clear from the start. I don’t have any issues with ads across the board. Most are ok and some are even revolutionary, innovative and way ahead of their time. My sticking point is with the ones that are misleading, stereotypical or just downright disgusting.
Take for example the ‘Pond’s Age Miracle’ ad- the one that shows a husband going out of his way to woo his wife to marry him ‘again’ just because she applied the stupid cream and looks younger. Repulsive isn’t it? Since when did husbands start disliking their spouses just because they have grown older and have a few wrinkles on their face? [At least this is not case in India and hope it remains that way.] The ad also denigrates women who would, I believe, wish to be judged and liked by their content of character and not by their appearance.
The other one is the ‘K factor challenge’ ad which promotes the eating of cereals to lose weight. The problem is the way in which it does it. The mother consumes the ‘magic’ cereal hoping to tone down and fit into that ‘red dress’ upon her daughter’s request. [Just petty at its best, I would say.] Have more ads like this and the time won’t be far away when every kid in the block is going to place unreasonable demands on the physical appearance of his/her mother.
So what do you people think about these ads. What can we do to ensure that young impressionable minds are not influenced by these seemingly naïve ads?
Laal Selaam, Jyoti Babu
Jyoti Basu, veteran Communist Party of India (Marxist) Leader and the path finder of Communism in India has left for heavenly abode this morning. He was 95 years old. He was ailing for a long time and was fighting hard, until he lost his final fight to multiple organ failure and passed away today (Jan 17, 2010) at 11:47 AM in AMRI, Kolkata.
I never met him; I remember going to mass addresses of other leaders and Prime Ministers of India when they used to go to Agartala, but I don’t remember of going in any of his gatherings. Having said so, Jyoti Babu has always had a lasting impact on the people of Tripura. Everyone in the state always looked forward to Jyoti Basu and his contribution towards development of Tripura. The state being only the third communist state in India, was very close to Jyoti Basu’s heart.Jyoti Babu, was the longest serving chief minister of West Bengal (and the country) and he served for a period of 23 long years, since 1977 till 2000 when he left all public appearances. In 1996, when the NDA government was going to form, he was requested to become the Prime Minister, to which the CPI(M) party disagreed. Basu later called it as, “Historical Blunder” for the communist party and the communist ideology.
I remember a childhood incidence when a child in school was asked about the chief minister of Tripura and he
steadily pronounced the name of Jyoti Basu. Thus was the impact of the pragmatic leader. He had a long political career of 60 years, since he came back from London in 1940 and joined the communist party in West Bengal. He was a London returned barrister and could have earned a huge fortune for himself in those times, but he chose to serve the people and took to politics.I know how much my father is hurt today. I talked with him the moment I heard the saddening news. He would not shed tears, but deep inside, he would cry rivers today; for he has seen Jyoti Babu from close vicinity and have known him since long. Same goes for my father in law. I talked to him too. They pretended to be sound and tough over the phone, but I know – I know what is going through their hearts and millions of communists and Bengalis in and out of Bengal.
I wish I would have known the leader more closely and could have learnt something from his ideologies, but life never gave me that opportunity. Now that he is no more with us, I would not get the opportunity ever again. I am happy that I lived during his lifetime – I’m honored more!As a last gesture towards humanity and the cause he lived for, he left his whole body for medical and scientific research. This tells the story of a man, who lived for the people and when he died, he was only thinking of his own people.
I render a Red Salute to Comrade Jyoti Basu. May his soul rest in peace! Long live Communism! Long live Jyoti Basu’s legacy!
The Ruchika Case and How we never shall learn
It is an old one now. Several years ago, a girl is molested ( like that happens almost every hour of the day even today) then she commits suicide and you people now must be knowing all the details.
What makes this case interesting is that even as we all display shock that a powerful man got away with it, we have not gasped in disbelief. Cummon, we all know that powerful men like Rathore can get away with crimes such as these. It is no big deal that politicians of the day supported him, the school, a premier educational institution of its time, run by God fearing, missionaries and nuns lends it support to the culprit and are we shocked? Really?
The answer is no. We all know this happens. On this very blog I had written about a case in another convent school in another part of the region.
Holding marches and lighting candles shall serve not much purpose as we are still not looking inwards but outwards. Spitting anger on one man shall not erase the fact that we Indians have become used to molestation and the dirt of it. That Ruchika was molested, she would have been just another child, like several others who are being ill - treated even now perhaps as I am typing these words. She chose to fight it till the end, up till death and for this courage I will not be able to write or describe words for.
In her death, Ruchika taught us so much, that little teenager showed us a path we never saw.
The path to righteousness. The Idea not to compromise and move on but to fight and fight with full courage.
Ruchika Girhotra today is no more amongst us. The nation who no longer has the righteous respect for its nationalist leaders like Gandhi or Bhagat whose philosophies we have very conveniently dumped deep in dustbins, shall forget her soon. But even for a brief time, this girl shall stand as an Icon. An icon of hope. A hope that if a fourteen year old could stood up to lustrous demands of an Inspector General of Police then how come we are so helpless to improve our very own country, our planet.
But this case also gives us a reason to hang our heads in shame. For around two decades we never woke up to the gruesome reality of Ruchika. That girl had a right to live and had she been alive she would have grown up to be a beautiful young woman today. We Indians, citizens of this land are somewhat responsible for her death. Aren't we?
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