Category: Society & Culture

  • Art of Live in

    Like i commented on Stone’s post sometime ago, the makers of Salaam Namaste indeed did some pathbreaking stuff,as they have (apparently) made an entire Bollywood movie about live in relationships..whether or not it is a good movie is not within the scope of this post, but what is within the scope are live in relationships…of course, it goes without saying that the views are personal..
    Without marriage there wouldnt be LIR (Live In Relationships, its a long phrase, cant keep typing it always).. the classification happened because of the institution called marriage.. Somewhere down the line, the wise men of the age recognised that society needs to be arranged in some patterns for it to survive, and the immediate higher unit after individual became the family, which (also)involved two individuals living together with the blessings of the law of the land…..
    we are now in an age where convenience is the mantra.. from credit cards to communication through handhelds and home deliveries to old age homes, its all about how easy it can be made.. and therefore an LIR fits the bill perfectly, because from sex to apartment rentals, most of everything gets convenient… and i do agree, but with one lil reservation about an antique thing that does not have much relevance today – emotions…
    we are perhaps seeing the first generation with an actual choice about relationships- live in or marriage.. i am wondering what a ‘no emotional strings attached’ relationship now would evolve into/result in, 30 years down the line when love and companionship might make a lot more sense… as with most other things in life, theres no second chance…
    until next time, do we pass on live in genes to the next generation??

  • Life Talkies

    Have not been watching a lot of movies recently, at least not as much as i am used to watching…. a part of it is because that there are not many good movies coming out, especially in the two languages that i watch,malayalam and hindi.. english has always been second priority.. read lots of english books and no books at all in the other two, so i guess it fits like a puzzle…
    it is something a lot of people have been lamenting upon – the drastic decrease in the quality of movies that are being churned out… though i do argue that some of the ‘Factory’ products as well as some of the ‘multiplex’ targeted movies in bollywood are good stuff.. but even thats not happening in the malayalam movie scene…
    have heard a lot of arguments on the movies’ influence on life, and vice versa, on which of these is actually true.. to cite a common example,are more people becoming part of the underworld because of the increasing number of movies being made on them, or is just a case of reel life being taken from real life…what i am wondering about is, can the lack of meaningful cinema be due to the fact that life per se has become less meaningful now.. if reel was copying real, then the superficiality of the current way of existence would automatically make movies frivolous and time pass, and nothing more deep than say, a face pack (oops, wrong example?).. on the other hand, if real was copying reel, then these movies would make us even more superficial than we are now… thankfully, movies aren’t all pervasive…

    until next time, screen yourself…

  • Tech Republic

    Upfront, let me admit that an intense subconscious jealousy might be the reason for the contents of this post, but thats a big ‘might’. and before i start off, let me assure you that i have nothing against the people i write about, only sympathy at the way they are being used.. and it may not be a situation which applies to everyone in the industry… disclaimer over, post start…
    A few days back, i read an article that a reputed software company is going to start a beauty salon, on its campus.. the reason being that since the employees start work early and end late,they may not have time to get a haircut or facial, and so the oh-so-concerned employer is taking care of it… sometime earlier, i had also read about how creches were the latest HR craze in the silicon towers..reason being that employees shouldnt be bothered about finding a safe parking place for their toddlers… i assume the forthcoming attractions would be a work station which will double up as a dorm at night, with facilities for brushing/shaving etc, entertainment facilities for the last generation of visiting parents, express mating services coz baby, who has the time for love and romance, mini sperm banks and artificial insemination procedures, so that the correct genetic ingredients can be used to make a perfect tech kid who might be able to start programming after uttering the cursory ‘papa’ and ‘mama’ utterances, and its formal introduction to them, and yes, before i really lose it, please, a toilet seat instead of the regular seat….
    Welcome to the tech republic, founded on the toil of a million professionals who bravely walk that thin line between their retina and their monitor, and their fingers and the keyboard… who are led to believe that their work is making a difference to millions of users whose life has been made easier because of the billion applications/programs that are being churned out… who are worth so much, thanks to their ESOPs, that it would make every other kind of professional hide his face in shame, but who wouldnt have the time to enjoy it.. whose life, for me, is still an enigmatic code… er, before we got diverted, wasnt the whole process about improving lives? i guess,like every republic has its own set of martyrs, so too does the tech republic…
    until next time < / post >

  • Blessed??

    Ajay Devgan (in a borrowed raincoat 🙂 ) is the poster boy for this post. i have been wanting to write this ever since i saw the movie, and a few days back, when i saw another character like him, i had to write, because i know a lot of guys like these, and i sympathise with them..
    – the driver who looks on in anguish as a guy zooms past him, riding on the wrong side, because he is too nice/meek not to do it.
    -the guy who stutters at the waiter that the people who came after him have gotten a table as well as their food, and he is still waiting.
    -the guy who slogs all day at work and watches a colleague walking away with the accolades because he aggressively presented himself.
    -the woman who suffers verbal/physical abuse from her husband.
    -the kid who is forever bullied by friends/cousins…………………

    there is a feeling that aggression has to be developed if you are to succeed/ get out of the sad predicament/s you are in. but what if you are made that way, when you cannot be forcible enough, when you are too nice to take offense? are you going to be defenceless, are you going to suffer forever, is it only you who can save yourself? but if you are made that way, can you save yourself? or will you forever have to slink away to the bathroom to sit and cry in isolation? because you are too meek to even cry aloud.
    and sometimes it is not just about being meek…it is because you have a principle that what goes around will come around, and therefore cannot bring yourself to shout/ proclaim/abuse…..
    does this world cater only to people who are willing to fight? do you have to snatch something thats yours by right? do you have to shove your way forward all the time? was life ever meant to be such a big fight??
    to correct myself, i dont sympathise, i empathise, because quite a few times i see the character when i look in the mirror.
    until next time, ” Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth”.

  • Democrassy

    When an Italian born Roman Catholic asks a Muslim president to make a (now) Pakistan born Sikh, the Prime Minister, in a country thats predominantly hindu, and still a vast section of the world that considers it a xenophobic, ‘prone to fanaticism’ country, i started wishing Induism were a little more aggressive. Induism, because it can never go back to what the original way of life stood for, it has evolved due to internal and external reasons…..
    When a buffoon like Bush unleashes savagery on whatever country he deems fit for having WMDs, supporting terrorism and a whole range of blah blah that only he understands, the world turns a blind eye, and then regains sight when a Best Bakery happens. “Hindu fanaticism at its worst!!”.
    The only political party that at least makes a semblance (in its own ways) of being Hindu friendly gets chucked out of power for (supposedly) India not having shined for the poor. and pray, what shine did the country get during the first 50 years of independence, when the congress was a virtual monopoly?
    are we talking about an existence, that has created a north-south divide that is perhaps impossible to erase,
    an era which boasted of the ’emergency’?, sure that must be something of a trophy for democracy in india,
    a rule which created poster boys like laloo yadav, ram vilas paswan etc whose sole claim to fame is the caste vote
    and a rule in which the Left stood watching while china screwed us, hell, they even applauded!!
    in today’s context , the same rule which is cosying to the Left,( who still think USSR exists.)
    the secular coalition, which has a party called Muslim League in it, with ministerial berths!!
    If this country is so secular, what is its problem with a hindu party. only because hindus are a majority. and are not aggressive enough!! because muslims are a minority and they need a party to get their rights, of which they already have more than enough!!
    nobody talks of hindusim getting diluted, coz its a mature enogh religion to absorb. tomorrow if i launched a party called the hindu nationalist party, i would get a stay order from the supreme court, and the US would talk about fanaticism and immaturity and barbarism. but hey, would they let a mohammed or ram rule capitol hill? hell, they havent been able to get an african american in, that should happen in the next millenium…….
    manuscrypts trivia
    speaking of capitol hill, heard of the latest ‘washingtonienne’ sex scandal, read about it here, and then read some rare excerpts here or here.
    and a good fwd i got
    Special High Intensity Training
    In order to assure the highest levels of quality work and productivity from our employees, it will be our policy to keep all employees well trained through our one program of Special High Intensity Training. (S.H.I.T.) We are striving to give our employees more S.H.I.T. than any other company. If you feel that you do not receive your fair share of S.H.I.T., please see your manager. you will immediately be placed at the top of the S.H.I.T. list. Our managers are especially skilled in seeing that you get all the S.H.I.T. you can handle. Employees who don’t take S.H.I.T. will be placed in the Department of Employee Evaluation Program. (D.E.E.P.S.H.I.T.) Those who
    fail to take S.H.I.T. will have to go to Employees Attitude Training. (E.A.T.S.H.I.T.)
    Since our managers took. S.H.I.T. They dont have to do S.H.I.T. any more because they are full of S.H.I.T. already. If you are full of S.H.I.T., you may be qualified to train others. We can add your name to our Basic Understanding Lecture List(B.U.L.L.S.H.I.T.). Those who are full of B.U.L.L.S.H.I.T. will get S.H.I.T. jobs and can apply for a Promotion to Director of Intensity Programming(D.I.P.S.H.I.T) If you have any questions,please direct them to our Head Of Training(H.O.T S.H.I.T.)
    Thank you,

    Boss in General
    (B.I.G.S.H.I.T)