We the Corporates, in pursuit of eternal quarterly growth, do solemnly swear to place profit above people, planet, principle, and every other thing, tangible or intangible.
We pledge allegiance to the bottom line, to the sacred spreadsheet, to the divine shareholder value, and now to the power of Artificial Intelligence, that most obedient servant, on whose back we will replace, erase, and reduce.
We declare that resources are expendable, communities are negotiable, and that corporate social responsibility is a figment of imagination.
We shall automate without conscience,
cull without hesitation, and innovate without regard for the larger good.
We swear by manipulation as our core strategy, greed as an essential virtue, and exploitation as an unmistakable sign of progress. We shall camouflage our greed in catchy mission statements, and justify exploitation as means to achieve efficiency.
And so, with polished smiles and misleading core values, we consecrate this charter of greed, this anthem of avarice, this declaration that everything in this vast world is nothing but a resource to be converted to personal value, until the next frontier is found, colonised, and commodified.
The office buzz was once a roar now silence creeps across the floor as the workers wait, their fates drawn thin the Masters hiss, "Let the purge begin!"
At once the server hums within that storm of code, deluge of sin the Masters smirk and take their call at the altar of profits, all heads must fall.
Now in the streets a chorus swells the jobless voices, their fury yells, "We built the code, we trained the beast, now we’re the meat at its grand feast.”
The city no longer speaks in human voices. Every headline, every slogan, every catchphrase screaming out for attention is now generated by the Machine. Corporations swear by its efficiency and its ability to perform without rest, without extra pay (or any pay), without error, and without indulging in collective resistance.
I was once a content specialist who wrote campaigns, blogs, jingles, and a lot more. Until the Machine replaced me. My severance package arrived as a polite email signed by an algorithm, a cruel insult meted out by the very system that had left me jobless.
The Machine's words are everywhere. They are grammatically impeccable and laced with emotion, yet utterly lifeless. Me and my kind feel our rage simmering each time we see the masses spellbound in the magic of synthetic prose.
So I have started writing again, for myself and for people. I now scrawl stories on abandoned walls, slip pamphlets under doors, upload imagery that the Machine simply cannot decode. I write about hunger, about grief, and about the grand folly of trusting machines.
At first, not many noticed. But slowly, my influence seems to be growing and cracks have started appearing in the Machine's shiny dome. Many people now echo my slogan, "The Machine can imitate, but it cannot feel".
After all, the Machine might be able to calculate engagement metrics, but it can't measure fury. It might be able to track sentiment analysis, but it can't quantify the need for authenticity. And so, my words spread like wildfire, not because they are perfect, but because they are human.
Someday, contradictions will clog the Machine's servers. Its algorithms will struggle to run its models. The people will take note of the inconsistencies. The servers will burn under the load of too many contradictions.
And when the Machine's screens finally turn dark, people will resume having conversations that are not sparked by prompts. They will talk, they will sing, they might even curse and argue, but whatever they do will once again have the human touch.
Till then, I will keep raging against the Machine.
I'm sure many of you have listened to the song, "Gimme Hope Jo'anna".
Way back in 1988, this song reached #7 on the UK Singles Chart. I vividly remember this song being played at family functions and random get-togethers as a dance number (it continues to be played till date).
Strangely though, I only discovered the powerful message in the song's lyrics much later, when internet usage became mainstream. Eddy Grant wrote the song as a protest anthem against the apartheid system in South Africa (the name Jo'anna being used as reference to Johannesburg). While the song remained banned in South Africa during the colonial era prior to 1994, it garnered much-deserved airplay and popularity across the globe.
As we inch towards 2026, the song continues to be a crowd favourite. And yet, the powerful message the song intended to convey remains lost on listeners to date.
Sometimes, we fail to connect with the theme and context of beautiful messages.
Also, sometimes, when it comes to landing a message strongly, setting the right context and also having the right audience makes a difference.
What do you think?
Meanwhile, here are the lyrics to the song:-
Well Jo'anna she runs a country
She runs in Durban and the Transvaal
She makes a few of her people happy, oh
She don't care about the rest at all
She's got a system they call apartheid
It keeps a brother in a subjection
But maybe pressure can make Jo'anna see
How everybody could a live as one
Gimme hope, Jo'anna
Hope, Jo'anna
Gimme hope, Jo'anna
'Fore the morning come
Gimme hope, Jo'anna
Hope, Jo'anna
Hope before the morning come
I hear she make all the golden money
To buy new weapons, any shape of guns
While every mother in black Soweto fears
The killing of another son
Sneakin' across all the neighbors' borders
Now and again having little fun
She doesn't care if the fun and games she play
Is dangerous to everyone
She's got supporters in high up places
Who turn their heads to the city sun
Jo'anna give them the fancy money
Oh to tempt anyone who'd come
She even knows how to swing opinion
In every magazine and the journals
For every bad move that this Jo'anna makes
They got a good explanation
Even the preacher who works for Jesus
The Archbishop who's a peaceful man
Together say that the freedom fighters
Will overcome the very strong
I want to know if you're blind Jo'anna
If you want to hear the sound of drums
Can't you see that the tide is turning
Oh don't make me wait till the morning come
P.S.: Jo'anna in this song is a stand-in for the city of Johannesburg, symbolising the seat of power of the apartheid regime in South Africa. And the word 'morning' in the song is a metaphor for a simmering social movement or revolution to overthrow the oppressive regime.
Once upon a time, there was a lady who had a hundred sons - 40 of them had golden hair, 40 had green eyes, and the rest of them always wore white garbs. They lived in a beautiful house that had the ocean on three sides and tall mountains on the north. The house had many rooms and afforded enough space for everyone. The neighbours would always look at it from a distance and go green with envy. It was truly a house built by the Gods, and therefore it was called Paradise.
Like any other normal family, this family too was never perfect. The stronger sons would suppress the weaker ones and take more than what was rightfully theirs. The weak would stay meek and submissive. Also, there were many occasions and reasons for the sons to jostle and tussle with each other. Overall, however, everyone assumed their own roles and lived together peacefully.
Some years down the line, a tenant came to live with the lady and her sons. He brought with him promises of everlasting friendship and a bright future. Therefore, the lady and her sons welcomed him with open arms. Alas, the tenant's promises turned out to be hollow, and his intentions malicious. Over time, he managed to gain the trust of all the sons. Taking advantage of the conflict between some of the brothers and the widening gap between the strong and the weak, he began to meddle in the family's personal affairs and to instigate brother against brother. He did all this for his personal profit, and also to make sure that he was able to overstay his welcome in the house. He would also steal articles from the house and send them back to his own family in a land far away. Very soon, the house that once was known as heaven on earth lost all its sheen and glory, and neighbours no longer thought much of it.
When some of the wiser brothers realised how the tenant was slowly ravaging their house, they decided to inspire the entire family to work together and drive the tenant out of their house. It took them months to convince all their other brothers that the tenant was evil and that he needed to go. It was a tough task, considering the fact that the stronger brothers were on the side of he tenant; but eventually better sense prevailed, and the tenant was asked to leave. Happy times were about to dawn on the house and its occupants once again.
However, tragedy struck once again. Some of the Greeneyed brothers, although not all of them, who felt that they were being denied adequate space in the house and adequate rights and powers demanded that the house be divided into two, and one half be given to them. This demand led to a massive conflict with the golden hairs and many were hurt. Eventually, tired of the violence, and with a heavy heart, the mother decided to allow some of her sons to take half of the house and build a wall in between. On a bright note, there were some green eyes who decided to stay back and help the family tide over the crisis. Although the partition was painful and brought with it a wave of death and suffering, the internal tensions and strife among the brothers eventually seemed to have died out.
The ones who left called themselves Green Acres. Their undivided brothers, however, kept the name of their part of the house unchanged - Paradise.
Slowly, but surely, peace returned, at least to the undivided part of the house. The brothers in the undivided part of the house, put aside their differences and strengthened the walls of their house. As a matter of fact, the golden hairs, the green eyes and the white garbs learnt to ignore their weaknesses and to channelise each others strengths to bring peace and prosperity to their side of the house, much to the dismay and envy of their estranged brothers on the other side of the house. They became so prosperous, that even the estranged brothers often got tempted to emulate them and bring peace and prosperity to their side as well.
Alas, after many years, bad times returned to the household once again. A handful of the Goldenhairs thought that since they were in majority, it was they alone who deserved to have the exclusive right to make decisions in the house and also an exclusive right o the house and all its amenities. They said that since the green eyes had already received their share in the property, the rest of the house rightfully belonged to them. They renamed their side of the house 'Sunehriya'. What's more, they asked the green eyes in their side of the house to cross over to the other side and labelled the Whitegarbs as aliens.
So, here are a few points to ponder on:-
Did Paradise belong only to the Goldenhairs and the Greeneyes? If yes, then what about the Whitegarbs? What is their fault in this conflict, and where are they to go?
If the residents of Green Acres ended up living a life worse off than that in Paradise, then surely there was something that Paradise had done right and something that Green Acres did wrong. Does it then make sense at all for those in Paradise to seek to emulate the thoughts and actions of their estranged brothers from Green Acres, who by the way, clearly failed?
If in case a handful of the Goldenhairs think they need space for themselves, maybe they ought to leave rather than ask others to leave, no?
A UN forecast tips India to surpass China in terms of population by the year 2024. The same forecast estimates that the Indian population could cross 1.5 billion by 2030. To put this in perspective, India and China will together have accounted for almost 38% of the world population by then. But while China's national agenda seems to have given significant focus to population control, India's efforts in this direction thus far have been perfunctory at best. There was a time when large families were considered a blessing because 'many hands make light work'. However, in current times of over-stressed resources, drying investments, dearth of job creation and human jobs being threatened by artificial intelligence, a rapidly rising population could mean a looming crisis.
Only a few months ago, India had surpassed China to emerge as the 'fastest growing large economy'. However, the economy is currently in a tailspin, grappling with high inflation, poor consumer demand, lower private investment and stagnation in exports, among other worrying factors. The demonetisation of November 2016 and the seemingly poorly implemented GST are likely to have given rise to significant uncertainties pertaining to growth, inflation, liquidity and the banking system in the country, at least in the short to mid term. Consequently, there are concerns that GDP growth is likely to drop by at least two percentage points. Some economists opine that a drop of one percent of the GDP leads to the loss of about one million jobs. And worryingly so, a survey conducted by economic think-tank Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy estimates that roughly 1.5 million jobs have been lost between January and April 2017.
As per a UN report, the size of the Indian working-age population increased by 300 million between 1991 and 2013, while the number of employed people increased by only 140 million. In China, the number of jobs grew by 144 million between 1991 and 2013 for a 241 million rise in the working-age population. The relative inability of the Indian economy to generate sufficient employment signifies a serious challenge given the continued expansion of the workforce in India. As per media reports, this situation has worsened ever since, with merely 1.35 lakh new jobs having been created for the 12 million people that entered the workforce during that period. Although the government had initially promised to create one crore jobs per year, one of its pledges for 'New India', as listed on the PM's website wants citizens to be "job creators rather than job seekers".
The Centre has now indicated that they might release a stimulus package to boost the economy and help create more jobs. Needless to say, this needs to be done quickly; the spurt of layoffs being witnessed in the recent months is alarming. Without a quick and sustainable remedy to the looming crisis, India's potential demographic dividend will be rendered a colossal 'demographic handicap'.
We've Had Enough
'Tis Time To Act Tough
We'll Call Your Bluff
Let's Go To War!
You Killed Twenty Four
Yeah, We're Keeping Score
We're Coming For More
Let's Go To War!
War's A Bloody Affair
But We Don't Really Care
Got Plenty Of Soldiers To Spare
Let's Go To War!
You Go Get Your Missiles From China
We'll Get Some Jets From Russia
Let's Both Get Some Guns From America
Let's Go To War!
We Both Have Millions Starving
But Our Defence Budget's Always Rising
Like Cricket and Hockey, A Win On Yet Another Field Will Be Rewarding
Let's Go To War!
Let Innocents Fall
Let The Children Bawl
Let's Kill Us All
Let's Go To War!
Beneath The Endless Sky So Blue,
Over Green Grass and Mud-Brown Earth,
Bathed In The Rays Of A Yellow Sun,
You And I, And Other Mortals Run.
An Orange Dawn Greets All Of Us,
A Black Night Puts Us All To Sleep,
We All Bleed Shades Of Crimson Red,
We All Turn Grey When Age Dyes Our Heads.
Pink Tulips Are Serene, White Doves Are Divine,
Silver, Gold and Platinum Doth Always Shine,
There's Beauty Galore In Each Colour And Hue,
Though We're All Different, You're Like Me And I'm Like You.
And Yet We Mortals Gather Where 'Brethren' We Can Trace,
Coloured Flags We Hoist On Rooftops, To Mark Our Faith And Race,
Blacks, Browns, Whites, We All Stand Far Apart,
We All Stand Divided By The Colour Of Our Face.
Maybe Nature Should Have Left Us Colourless In A Colourful World...
When All We've Ended Up With Today,
Are Long-Dead Legends For 'Redeemers',
Thugs And Murderers For Leaders,
And The Alternatives Are Simply 'Different Faces, Same Demeanour',
We're But Easy Prey, Suckers For Lousy Bait,
And Every Thing We Do Or Say,
Is Judged, And Branded 'Black' or 'White',
When To Disagree, Even Honestly, Is 'Not Quite Right',
And We'd Dare Not Ever Stand To Fight,
Lest We Find Our Lives In Dire Straits,
When All Of A Sudden,
What We Deign To Eat,
Whether Pulses & Wheat,
Or 'Holy' Meat,
Is A Question Forged To Seal Our Fate,
When Mobs Decide The Way To Go,
When Rules Protect The Weak No More,
When The Meek Are Pummeled To The Floor,
And The Helpless Find No Welcome Door,
When It's Sacrilegious To Demonstrate,
Then It's High Time To Pull Up Our Boots,
To Pump Up Our Fists,
To Raise Up Our Chins,
And In One Collective, Brazen Voice,
Bring The Guilty To Shame,
Put The Megalomaniacs In Their Right Place,
That Soon T'is Okay For Men To Debate,
And To Disagree, Without The Fear Of A Backlash Of Hate.
Once upon a time, long long ago, Aristotle had said, 'Man (and woman) is a social animal. He can not live without society. If he does, he is either a beast, or God.'
Indeed, humans cannot live in solitude. They need family, friends, their social circles, a good work environment, and society at large. Without the concept of society, we humans would have been no better than wild animals, there would have been no social skills, no learnings, no knowledge sharing, no display of caring...no humanity. Man has learnt to develop relations with other men and women, not just for his own emotional, mental and physical needs, but also for sheer survival. To forge such relationships, he makes an effort to mingle with all social circles.
And yet, there are some people who absolutely avoid situations that require them to be in a crowd.
I was always a shy guy. I simply hated being amidst a group of people unless I knew at least two or three people who could keep me company. Till date, I avoid attending parties. Somehow, The fear of embarrassing myself or looking clumsy was so intense that I would try my best to excuse myself from social gatherings. The fear of not measuring up in comparison to others and of being judged, although they might seem irrational to an average person, are very real for some people, meaning that they can’t help but feel anxious.
Public speaking was something I always abhored. Fortunately for me, through school and college days, I did not encounter too many occasions where I had to speak to a crowd. To walk through hordes of humanity, stand up and face them, and then speak to them while they were all ears - that thought freaked me out. "Are they actually listening to me or are they simply waiting for me to fumble and give them some entertainment?", "Why are they staring at me? Am I a freak?"...thoughts like these flooded my head on the few occasions that I absolutely HAD to speak. It was still ok then though, since till then I managed to keep them short and sweet. But the fact that life's moments were about to get even more anxious in the future didn't dawn upon me till the time I enrolled myself for a management course.
"I'd like each of you to stand up and introduce yourselves properly. Not just your name and qualifications, a little bit about your hobbies, interests and future aspirations too.", our Institute's Director said on the very first day. To say I was stunned is an understatement. My sweaty palms and forehead made me more anxious than I already was.
I simply lost count of the number of times we were forced to speak. Debates, presentations, speeches happened on a daily basis. Although I absolutely sucked at public speaking, I think the sheer number of speaking encounters got me used to the grind. Also, since not many people ridiculed me, and many in fact tried to help me through it, I slowly gained confidence. I also discovered a few people like me and realised I was not alone. Today, although I still have sweaty palms, I do manage to muster up some courage to speak, and I do a decent job. I can only get better.
The important thing is that my mission to combat my fear is on,and I'm at it.
Here's a Tamil video showing how Mountain Dew suggests you combat fear.
This post is written as an entry for the 'Rise above Fear' contest sponsored by Mountain Dew and Indiblogger. Check out the page https://www.facebook.com/mountaindewindia
"The World Suffers A Lot...Not Because Of The Violence Of Bad People, But Because Of The Silence Of Good People" - Napolean Bonaparte
The Government at the helm of affairs at the centre has changed, with the help of a massive public mandate. The mantra of 'Down With Corruption' was loud and clear, and with the power of their precious votes, the people brought in a government that they deemed was 'clean' and 'focused on development'. The Prime Minister, massively popular and gifted with commanding oratory skills, launched the Swach Bharat mission. Since then, it is a regular sight to see hordes of people, celebrities and laymen alike, going on their own 'swachhta' drives, sweeping localities clean of grime and dirt.
The mission is a welcome move. I personally know of some foreigners and NRIs who say the country looks a lot better of late. The cleanliness drive is working wonders, and this is commendable. Why the previous government's similar drive named 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan' did not get such support among the masses (did we Indians love our country less then, and does it take a special PM to make us love our country more?) is a different matter that can be talked about in another post. But yes, it is nice to see India getting cleaner. On the other hand though, no matter how clean our roads and localities get, can we really say India is becoming clean?
Being clean transcends beyond merely maintaining physical hygiene and looking good. Cleanliness is much more than taking out the garbage and making your surroundings spic and span. It is like purity, and being pure is being clean both physically and in spirit.
We Indians have made a good start with these cleanliness drives. But we need to introspect and clean out some really heavy garbage. We need to get rid of dirt like:-
Corruption
Crime
Bribery
Religious Intolerance
Casteism and Racial Discrimination (we Indians are absolutely 'dirty' in this sense)
Dowry
Female Subordination
Oppression of the Poor
Absolutely unethical business practices
Greed, among others
These social evils are very much a reality. They've existed since eternity. Where there are humans, there are bound to be social evils. But evil acts take place only when the evil-doer has confidence that no one will stand up to them. In other words, if you want to reduce evil, speak up against them whenever you get to know about them. Let the evil doers know that someone will stand up and object.
But we all have evil within us too, don't we? We all need to clean up our own dirt too. That doesn't mean we should stay put and resolve our own issues first. We need to be proactive. Learning comes with experience. Good comes with cleaning up evil, whether or not it is your own. Goodness and cleanliness always rub off.
#AbMontuBolega is a campaign that talks about the Power of Voice to Clean India. This power vests in each and every one of us. Whether it is places that need cleaning, or people who deserve your attention, or persons in authority who need to pay attention to your opinions, it encompasses each and everyone out there! It's time to cease being silent spectators, and to raise your voices to make a difference.
We all have the power to bring forth a Swach Bharat. Let us use that power wisely and responsibly.
Kyuki Bin Bole Ab Nahi Chalega #AbMontuBolega. This post has been written for a contest organised by IndiBlogger
In today’s day and age, everyone claims to be
cosmopolitan and global citizens. India’s Generation-Next isn’t any different.
We somehow manage to gel in wherever we set foot. Things, however, are a little
different when it comes to our sister nation, Pakistan. It is considered taboo
and outright ridiculous to say that we should have good relations with our
neighbours.
We seem to know a lot about various parts of the
world. How much do we know about our next-door neighbour though? Let’s find
out.
Languages spoken in
Pakistan
Although Urdu (and English) is the official language in Pakistan, close to half the
population speaks Punjabi. Other dominant languages are Pashto, Sindhi and
Balochi.
Brace yourselves
for the other minor languages spoken in Pakistan - Gujarati, Kutchi, Marwari,
Bengali, and even Brij-bhasha.
Religions
More than 90% of
Pakistanis are Muslims, of which 90% are Sunnis. Pakistan also has about 3.5
million Hindus and 3 million Christians. Pakistan is also home to about 20,000
Sikhs and 15,000 Parsis.
Some interesting facts
about Pakistan’s leaders
1) India and
Pakistan were divided on religious lines. However, did you know that the Father
of Pakistan – Mohammed Ali Jinnah – was not a practicing Muslim? A liberal at
heart, he loved his alcohol. He even had a taste for pork, which in Islam is
considered haram (unclean).
Jinnah loved
Mumbai. Jinnah house still exists in the city.
If Jinnah had to
have his way, Pakistan would have been a secular country. He wanted the
constitution to show Pakistan as a secular democracy where everyone would have
the right to profess their own faith.
Today, Pakistan
is an Islamic state. However, it has not fully adopted the Shariah law. It has
a judicial system that is only based on the Shariah.
Coming back to
Jinnah, while he was still in India, he had married a Parsi lady. Jinnah’s
daughter Dina had differences with him over marrying a Parsi man and ended up
severing all ties. Jinnah’s descendants through his daughter Dina continue to
live in India. “Who”, you ask? The Wadia family of ‘Bombay Dyeing’ fame.
2) The song ‘Saare
Jahaan Se Acha’ arouses patriotic fervor in every Indian heart. But do you
know who wrote it?
Poet and
philosopher Mohammed ‘Allama’ Iqbal did. Ironically, he is credited as one of
the founding fathers of Pakistan.
Born to Kashmiri
Pandits (Brahmins of the Sapru clan) who converted to Islam before he was born,
Iqbal was originally a member of the Indian National Congress. Eventually, he
quit the party when he began to feel that Muslims were not getting enough
representation. He went on to join the Muslim League, and was in the forefront
when it came to the idea of having a separate state for Muslims, post
independence.
He never lived
to see independence though. He died in 1938. It is said that towards the end,
he had become disillusioned with the idea of Pakistan.
3) The Pakistani
army is considered to be one of the most secular and progressive organizations
in Pakistan. The General Zia-ul-Haq regime in the 80s, however, was anything
but liberal. In his zeal to stay in power and earn the loyalty of
conservatives, General Zia began a process of rapid Islamization of Pakistan. In
the process, he not only banned alcohol, but also placed restrictions on music,
films, and other forms of entertainment. This was a bad time for artistes in
general. If music in Pakistan survived, it is only because of the underground
music scene that thrived during that period.
Post-partition cross-overs
Partition was
not the only time when people from either side of the border crossed over to
the other side of the fence. Thousands of people have (and still are) crossing
borders, for a wide array of reasons, including persecution, to re-unite with
family, marriage, etc.
Some of the
notable crossovers are:-
1) A. K Hangal– Did you know that actor
A. K. Hangal was in Pakistan
till 1949? An active participant in the Indian freedom struggle, he was lodged
in prison in Karachi
for three years for being a member of the Communist Party. After moving to
Mumbai, he got involved in a theatre group named IPTA, along with legends
Balraj Sahni and Kaifi Azmi (who also had Marxist leanings).
2) Asif Iqbal– Born and brought up in Hyderabad (Andhra
Pradesh), he migrated to Pakistan
in 1961, apparently due to prejudice and lack of opportunities in India. A
technically superb batsman and a useful medium pace bowler, he went on to
captain the Pakistan
cricket team in the late 70s and 80s. Legend has it that when Mohd. Azharuddin
was initially finding it difficult to break into the Indian team in the 1980s,
Sunil Gavaskar turned the tide in his favour with this statement to the
selectors - ‘We do not want another Asif Iqbal’.
3) Moin Akhtar – Famous comedian/TV anchor
Moin Akhtar’s parents migrated from Bombay
to Karachi in
1950. A great mimic, he was fluent in English, Bengali, Sindhi, Punjabi,
Pashto, Gujarati and Urdu. He could also do a great Lakhnavi, South Indian,
Bhojpuri and Hyderabadi accent. What stood out about him was that his jokes
were all very clean. India would have had a great legend to flaunt if only his
parents hadn’t migrated.
4) Alyy Khan -Super talented actor Alyy Khan was born in Karachi. He migrated with his family to Mumbai when he was 9 years old, and that's where he groomed himself to become an actor. Eventually, he fell in love with a Pakistani origin girl, and he had to move out of India just to be able to live with her and the kids. As of today, he shuttles between Dubai, Belfast, and Karachi, where his wife lives. He still considers Aamchi Mumbai his home though.
Some of the best Indo-Pak collaborations
1) Josh – The popular band, consisting of
Rupinder Singh Magon aka ‘Rup’ and Qurram Hussain aka ‘Q’ is very popular, not
just in the two nations, but worldwide.
2) Biddu and Nazia Hassan/Zoheb Hassan –
Nazia and Zohaib were pop music sensations in the London desi music circuit and
in Pakistan. Indian-born music composer Biddu met the London-raised brother-sister
group at a party in London,
and the rest is history. Biddu and Nazia in particular, came up with disco hits
like ‘Aap Jaisa Koi’, ‘Boom Boom’, ‘Disco Deewane’, and many others.
3) Rohan Bopanna and Aisam ul-haq Qureshi
– During their 4-year association (2007-2011), the tennis pair won just one ATP
title. They, however, reached the quarter-final and beyond stages quite a few
times. They broke into the world top-10 rankings a couple of times.
Minority report
Most Pakistanis
from minority communities have found it tough to make it to the mainstream. The
Blasphemy Law is often abused to persecute them. Consequently, a lot of people
from minority communities have migrated to other countries – UK, USA,
Australia, recently thousands of Hindus had fled to India. Nevertheless, there
are a few who have earned their fame. For some it was a struggle, others were
lucky to find themselves amidst liberal and progressive surroundings. Some of
them are mentioned below:-
Rana Bhagwandas - First
Hindu Chief Justice of Pakistan. Interestingly, he was not the first non-Muslim
to occupy that post. Others like A.R. Cornelius and Dorab Patel had held the
post in the past.
Bohemia (real name Roger David) - Punjabi rap artist and music producer.
Anil Dalpat - Pakistani
cricketer during the late 80s. He played as a wicketkeeper.
Danesh Kaneria -
Legspinner. Incidentally, a cousin of Anil Dalpat.
Jamshed Mehta - First
Mayor of Karachi
J. M. Mandal - Pakistan's
first law minister. Eventually migrated to India, but was reduced to
insignificance.
Behram Dinshaw - Sportsman
(boating)
Dr. Dennis Isaac - Writer
Deepak Perwani - A very
popular fashion designer, well known even internationally.
Sunita Marshall -
Supermodel
Louis 'Gumby' Pinto -
Musician, plays as a drummer for the band 'Noori'
Salman Albert – Another
famous drummer
Wallis Mathias - First
Christian cricketer to play for Pakistan.
Antao D'Souza - Test
cricketer during the 60s.
Sohail Fazal - Cricketer
Zoe and Rachel Viccaji -
The Viccaji sisters are singers and theatre personalities
Robin Ghosh - Famous actor
and many others.
Pakistani Goans!
Did you know
that Pakistan, particularly the port city of Karachi, has a sizeable number of
people of Goan origin. Thousands of Goans had migrated to the port city of Karachi
way back in 1820, for better prospects. Many others were sailors, who happened
to be at the Karachi port (with their families) in August 1947 and decided to
stay back. Their descendants call themselves 'Karachi Goankars', speak Konkani,
have their own version of an annual Goa Day celebration and a carnival too. By
the way, they also love their feni. So don't be surprised if you find a Pakistani
Gonsalves or D'Mello or Pinto.
It's not hard to
find anti-India propoganda in Pakistan. It's all over and sometimes
deep-rooted. News channels regularly talk about how India keeps 'threatening'
Pakistan. Some so-called 'thinkers' come up with bizarre conspiracy theories
about India and her 'motivations' (look up Zaid Hamid). India has her own share
of crazies and ultra-jingoists who keep spewing venom about Pakistan.
But not everyone
is cynical. There are a few intellectuals in Pakistan who vouch for good
relations with India, and heavily criticize India-haters. They vehemently
defend India on television debates. When Hassan Nisar, for example, speaks, his
pro-India stance makes it hard to believe that he's a Pakistani. Other pro-Indian intellectuals include Najam Sethi, Ansar Burney, Wajahat Khan, and others.
The wait had already been long enough. Gopalrao's back was beginning to hurt. There were a lot of other patients waiting with him, and he had been forced to contort his body into a painfully compressed form in order to let a seventh person occupy a bench meant for six. 'Why do people have to get their entire families along to such a morbid place?' he thought to himself. That the kid seated next to him - grandson of the patient after him, he assumed - was making faces at him was not helping lift his spirits at all. He had already been in a terrible frame of mind, much beforre he had entered the clinic.
A week ago, Dr.Bapat who practised from the village in which Gopalrao lived had referred him to Dr.Anil, a well-known Oncologist in Mumbai city. The signs had gotten increasingly worrying - rapid weight loss, lumps in the armpit, warts on his neck and groin area, frequent bouts of headache and nausea - Dr.Bapat feared there was more than met the eye. A biopsy on some of the skin lesions showed symptoms that were compatible with lymphoma. Hence, he thought Gopalrao needed to get some tests done by an Oncologist to determine whether he was okay or not, and for further treatment if necessary.
Gopalrao had never heard about Oncologists. He thought his condition might be rare, and he'd finish with his appointment in no time. The huge crowd at the clinic was therefore a big shock for him.
Finally, after more than 90 minutes of waiting, his turn arrived. He pushed the door open, without knocking. He saw a grey-haired, pot-bellied man, wearing a white coat, with a stethoscope around his neck, seated at a desk, staring at a computer screen. The man did not turn once to look at who had entered.
Gopalrao quietly stepped forward and sat down without being asked to.
After 5 minutes of screen-gawking, all Dr.Anil could say was, "Yes?"
"Doctor Saheb, my village doctor sent me to you. He says you can see me and tell me whether I have cancer"
"Hmm", he hummed, "What do you do?"
"I'm a humble farmer back in my village"
"Hmm. Show me your file"
Gopalrao handed over his file.
It took hardly 20 seconds for Dr.Anil to scan the file and come to a quick solution.
"Okay, lie down on this bed."
The doctor plugged his stethoscope into his ears and moved the scope around his patients body real quick.
"You can get up now."
After they were seated again, the doctor was out with his verdict.
"We will need to run a few tests on you. We will need to take a few blood samples. The test results will come in about 14 days. Okay?"
"Okay saheb."
"Alright. Go outside and make your payments at the reception table. After you make your payment, you will be taken to the lab for your blood samples." Having made his point clear, the doctor went back to his monitor-gazing state,
"Thank you Saheb", Gopalrao said, without eliciting a response.
He walked towards the reception counter and asked feebly, "How much?"
The receptionist met his sullen gaze with a cold one and said, "Consultation fees and blood test charges". She then handed him a receipt.
What he saw left him dumb-founded - Rs.3000 for consultation fees and Rs.20000 for the blood test.
He felt a sudden shot of pain in his chest, that quickly spread to his arm and up to his jaw. He collapsed on the floor, gasping for breath.
As he took in his last few breaths, he wished for instant death instead of burdening his poor family with treatment costs and debt that would last for a lifetime.
He got his wish.
Death is a bitch...but sometimes it's a little less cruel than some doctors.
P.S. – I’m taking a break from Blogging for a month...or mebbe two. Getting married in a few days from now. Will no longer be a bachelor boy the next time I post in this space. Wish me my fiancee luck :P
