Melting Pot

Lot of motley ideas in my head this week. Some coherent and clear. Others not quite. Some humorous, others more serious.

I never thought that I would hear so much about an octopus. But I guess I should not be surprised since in this media age, everything is news. So, a psychic eight legged sea beast is definitely newsworthy. Paul, the octopus, is all rage these days. The resident of Germany, he has managed to predict correctly, the outcome of all German games in the ongoing Fifa World Cup. Strike rate not so hot when it comes to games not involving his own country. The Germans loved him till he correctly predicted their downfall in the semis. Now, there’s talk about him being dead meat, literally, with Germans suddenly hungry for exotic octopus curry. Spain – the winners against Germany in the semi final – have offered the beleaguered octopus political asylum. Paul is still considering even as he picks Espana as the world cup winners.

Argentina and Brazil both failed to make it to the last four and the football loving Bengali populace was crushed. My brother wondered when would the Indian team play in the football world cup, as he watched Bengali news channels devoting hours analyzing what went wrong with the Latin American big shots. In my opinion, an Indian team in FIFA world cup would be great but I do not think that we in Bengal need it so much – after all, we have two teams to call our own (if you don’t believe me. check out the number of Brazilian and Argentine flags adorning Kolkata’s lanes and bylanes).

India’s most eligible bachelor, arguably, MS Dhoni got married – chat mangni, pat byaah in the truest sense. The media could not decide whether it should be miffed since it was denied the chance to create a drawn out spectacle (remember, the Abhi-Ash wedding and Sania-Sohaib-Ayaesha triangle?). Or, should it feel grateful for the “breaking news” on a rather quiet weekend.

Elsewhere, the human tragedies continued.

(Dis)honour killings took place (or maybe I should say, reported) daily in remote and not so remote parts of a 21^st century, modern, progressive India. And the kin of killers in the national capital feel tremendously proud.

The politicians called another nationwide bandh earlier this week, ostensibly to demonstrate public ire at the recent fuel hike. Consequently, the same public (especially those working in private firms, like yours truly) will now have to work on Saturday to make up for the loss of a workday. I have heard of cases, where people have been asked to work on Sundays to make up for the bandh. May be we should call another bandh to protest against the side-effects of bandhs.

On a more personal front, I found two books I had been hunting for. Did a silent jig for that. Watched I Hate Luv Storys and found it an “okay-time-pass” watch.

Discussed the merits of White Collar vs. Castle with a friend. A quick recap. Neal  Caffrey is great eye candy – a pair of blue eyes , a Fedora hat and a crooked smile make a killer combination. But the show is slow. Does not have the thrill of homicide investigations and the witty (laced with innuendos) banter between Castle and Beckett. I am waiting desperately for Season 3. Meanwhile, when I get too bored, I watch White Collar. Neal Caffrey is compensation enough.

Work has been both slow and fast. A lot has been happening but not enough progress. Talk about running in the same spot.

Family invitations have been plenty, this being a wedding season. Have neatly side stepped attending any of them so far. Hope the good luck continues (no, I am not a recluse. I just do not like crowds, especially when I am supposed to be respectful and polite to all the virtual strangers being introduced to me). There was an invitation from a friend which I wanted to attend but it was a Sunday and I just felt plain lazy (there is a difference between being lazy and being a recluse).

All in all, it’s been a week that has gone by too quickly and too slowly at the same time. I wonder if I would remember this week for itself. Maybe, I will. Most likely, I will not. But here’s hoping that coming week brings with it seven forget-me-nots. Amen.

Strike-Out

I live in Kolkata or Calcutta – the City of Joy. Or, as some cynics call it – the land of bandhs and strikes.

For the uninitiated, bandh is the weapon which masses use to protest against all sorts of atrocities. That definition is the brainchild of the political parties in Bengal – in power, opposition, their various wings, arms and other limbs.

The masses themselves, beg to differ. Bandh is just a political gimmick. So, is its sister – 

Strike.  Both are giant inconveniences meant to cripple the aam aadmi and the hapless junta.

We had a transport strike yesterday – ostensibly to protest against the latest fuel hike diktat by the central government. As of this morning, I have not heard Dr. Singh and Co. being moved by this ardent protest by an arm of the ruling party in West Bengal.

But this strike did ensure that all the weekend plans of the public were ruined. The ‘Saturdays-should-be-spent-in-malls’ class could not venture out unless they had a car of their own. The daily labourers, wage earners and clerks could not go to work. Those with family functions (including yours truly) and emergencies paid exorbitant amounts for the luxury of conveyance. Passengers stranded at railway stations boarded trucks and lorries to go home and paid through their noses for the privilege.

In this morning’s newspaper report, the state leader of the opposition (an important cabinet minister who has her eyes set on the CM’s chair next year and therefore has better things to do than attend crucial cabinet meetings about trivial issues like fuel price hikes, inflation etcetra, etcetra) is quoted as saying on the issue, “Everyone has a right to protest”. So, what is she trying to say? That the strike is justified? Her partymen, meanwhile, indignantly claim that their party is totally against calling bandhs, conveniently forgetting that their leader had called a 48 hour bandh only a couple of years back.  And what about the recent times when this party had called for a bandh, though apparently under duress and with an apologetic countenance?

There was a time when bandhs used to be called by various political parties as often as once every month. These were (and still are to a great extent) generally very strategically scheduled on Mondays or Fridays, so that people were tempted to treat these as long weekends.  All shops, schools and offices would be closed. The roads, devoid of any traffic, would turn into cricket pitches and football grounds. The bangali babu with his cronies would gather on the steps of the closed grocery stores and tea stalls to debate the pros and cons of the bandh culture along with the latest sports news. The Marwari seth would treat himself to a day of sumptuous breakfasts, lunches and dinners with friends and family. And the ladies of the household would be as busy as on Sundays.

Much has been written about the bandh culture of Bengal and how it is difficult for industrial progress to blossom here (Tata Nano was one of the most high profile casualties in recent times). But the leviathan called the general public is stirring itself, although it has not yet regained full wakefulness. People now make an attempt to reach offices and schools. Some mavericks risk the wrath of the local political goons and open their shops. Private sector firms arrange for transport to pick up and drop employees. And those who are unable to avail any conveyance work from home on laptops and personal computers.

These are difficult times yet not quite desperate. So, desperate measures like a total shutdown of a populous state and its capital are perhaps best saved for the day when they are truly required. What we need are intelligent and sincere means of protest, when needed and not these muscle flexing shenanigans of our politicians (I shudder to think that they are proclaimed as leaders). Perhaps a total blacklisting of corrupt ministers and their counterparts in other political parties. Do not invite them as chief guests for functions. Do not ask them to inaugurate schools and malls. Do not give them the publicity that they seek by providing exclusive coverage of their rallies and other publicity stunts. Do not provide them with VIP passes at movie premieres and plays. Deny them the importance that they seek.

These are just random ideas. Maybe you have better. There’s no harm in trying them out. We alone cannot change the world. But we can be the opening batsmen and we can make a start.