East meets West!!!

When East meets West, there is no guarantee about rest. Its no strange fact that 'Sanskritization' and 'Westernization' is fast catching up with the Indian society and its people. While the former engulfs the caste differences, the latter bridges the cultural gulf. Yet it cannot be disputed that most of the social stigmas and taboos associated with our society is somehow revolved around these two social changes. The incidents of Dalit killings and honour killings and hate crimes against women expose the dark elements, still prevailing in Indian society  despite our claim that we have gone past the orthodox unjustified caste and social barriers.

Caste has always been a subject of debate in Indian society. What determines your caste? Your profession? your birth? your desire? or is it just a tag attached to a person to segregate people in different groups. Our ever evolving society reflects, at some point of time or other, caste has been defined by either profession or birth or one's desire. A complete sanskritized society is a bliss but its the semi sanskritized society that becomes peril. India is facing brunt of the latter. Though certain sections of society have welcomed the change, yet most people (even the educated class) do carry grunts against the fast improving so called "lower" caste people. And this naturally results in hate killings. So how do we tackle such a scenario? Personally I don't believe in casteism. Yet I must say most Brahmins or Kshatriyas wouldn't like the Dalits getting more preference than them. They had been used to getting super status in society and the sudden shift in paradigm has become too difficult for them to digest. They lash out their anger in some way or the other.

Tagging a person as being 'SC' or 'ST' or 'OBC' is itself demeaning. Do people need to be divided when on one hand we talk about uniting the people under same roof? Yes, I agree that certain sections of society need to be brought at par with others, but for that matter is there no Brahmin sleeping on road and not getting opportunity? This is where conflict arises. Caste based distinctions create more rift in societies than economy based distinctions. There are lot of Muslims who have been facing the ire of society. Why can't they come under these tags? It is this tag that creates rift in inter-caste marriages, it is this tag which creates a feeling of alienation in the minds of the tagged ones. In order to create rift-less society its high time we stop tagging people. Every person should feel he is being treated at par with his fellows. This would be more harmonious. So far as bridging the opportunity gap is concerned, there must be a plan devised to identify the exploited class and attempts should be made to bring them to the fore and if needed, provided with extra privileges too.

The next million dollar question is, are we ready to embrace westernized society? Most of us would say, certainly we are heading in right direction. Yet I bet at some corner of our heart we still possess the orthodox thinking which we wouldn't do away with. This is again a matter of conflict. And this is precisely one of the reasons for rise in violence against women. The changing trends in Indian society viz; live-in relationships, homosexuality, contractual marriages, easy divorcing and so on have certainly indicated our advancement towards getting westernized. But the rapes, hate crimes and fatwas highlight the dark aspects of our society as a result of westernized culture.

The positive change that our society has seen as a part of westernization, is the condition of women. They enjoy freedom and education which had wrongly been denied to them in the past. Today they have the freedom to move and they can present themselves without any inhibition. But the recent removal of attire ban which was enforced in Aligarh University states that in some way we are still not able to accept women of our society as we should. Women are getting more fashionable and have embraced the westernized style of living and clothing. But its the orthodox minds of men around them that poisons our society.We say ourselves modern, yet, even the educated men can't stop themselves from passing lewd comment on seeing a girl dressed in "western" clothes. This semi-westernized mind is doing more harm to Indian society than good. So there are two possible scenarios to get rid of this; either the women should maintain the pace with their opposite sex when it comes to the rate of getting westernized is concerned, or the men (or society at large) have to evolve their mindset to next level to prevent the heinous crimes against women.

We might get westernized but its the "Indian-ness" in us which sets us apart from the western countries. Westernization towards advancement of society is good but it should not be at the cost of family values and traditions. Here there needs to be a perfect mix or balance, and compromise from both sides. While the orthodox dogma needs to compromise and do away with its unjustified traditions and restrictions for the betterment of society, the ever changing tradition of Indian society needs to withhold its act of westernization keeping in mind the foundation of Indian culture and tradition. The society will be nearing utopia only when the twain shall meet.

Party Politics or Dirty Politics???

Politics is a word, India or 'Bharatvarsha' is akin to since time immemorial. An ardent religious believer would say it all started with Pandavas and Kauravas trying to establish their supremacy, each led by iconic and shrewd stalwarts; the inimitable Lord Krishna and the contriver Shakuni. Ultimately poetic justice prevailed and "righteousness" was achieved by means of victorious Pandavas. Yet were the Pandavas "right"? On a hindsight we might say Pandavas were the tragic heroes who were outdone in a wrong way by their more notorious brethren. But Pandavas themselves resorted to trickery, unethical war activities and raised sword against the revered elderly men. Its not the best who wins but the less bad that takes up the mantle.

Be it the strategist Krishna or the manipulative Chanakaya, every party needed a "margdarshi" or as the modern jargon would aptly say "high command" who would lead the pack towards path of glory. This is where our modern political parties come to the fore. Just as the whole nation is gearing up for yet another election at the Centre, the political parties are more concerned in electing their "margdarshi". Be it the Namo or Rahul Baba, it seems India is preparing for a showdown between two men at extreme poles. While the former is a veteran giant, the latter is a symbol of India's very own political dynasty. Probably after Mughals if there is any other dynasty that Indians relate more to then it has to be Gandhi dynasty.

So how do you pit in a relatively inexperienced leader in Rahul as opposed to a phenomenon called Narendra Modi. He has been ruling virtually unopposed in the land of Mahatma since more than a decade. He is now not just a regional politician, he is a Rambo for the needy, he is an economic saviour for the entrepreneurs. On the other side you have a man acclaimed by many as next generation politician, a man who tries to invoke youth energy in politics, a man backed by many top leaders of the country.

In the whole game of politics and one-on-one duel, the only losing entity has been the country. While the politicians are expected to be more rational and wise in decision making, the democracy has turned the party politicians into no more than a blame--game player. When economy of the country dwindles, its the ruling party who is to be blamed, when there is anarchy in the parliament, the opposition is blamed. Even to the extent that some politicians have not even deterred to state that even natural disasters are caused by the other party, some even say an inhumane crime like rape is a result of party strategy. Democracy has been made a mockery. Not too long ago the satirical comedian, I.S Johar rightly said, "Democracy is a government 'bye' the people, 'off' the people and 'far' the people". The countrymen are to be wished good luck, because at this crossroad, the barometer to assess who should rule the country is baseless and serves no purpose.

When the time is to co-operate and collaborate in the best interests of the country, we find the country's leaders more focused on playing mind games, and making non-sensical statements. While the leaders are setting their own goals for the upcoming "battle", the best minds of the country are at the dispense of these leaders. The nation already suffering with billion dollars of debt and rising, along with the suffering caused by Nature's fury and no to forget the anti-social elements, now has to bear the brunt of dirty politics.

Justifiable Death?

"I did not die, I just ran short of life"...These would probably be the words of a person who had an unwanted death. What if the person's death is a forced one and unjustified? What if a person was made to "get rid of life" instead of "embracing death". Accidents, homicides are untimely and unwanted deaths. But in what category does a person fall if he is "constitutionally and legally" handed over death, regardless if he is ready to embrace it. This brings into light the death punishments awarded by the judiciary of many countries. Recently in last three months we witnessed two of the convicts being hanged after their clemency pleas were rejected by the President.

Ajmal Kasab, a man on a deadly mission, was the first one to be hanged. The picture of Kasab standing with AK-47 in his hands in Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus is probably the signature of terror of this century. A man who knew no fear, no humanity, no emotion, he killed innocent civilians and the uniformed dutymen with equal disdain. He was on a killing spree, he made a mockery of India's sovereignty, he had struck the heart of India. He had made India bleed. He couldn't have escaped. Yes he did escape from being encountered by the policemen. His death had to wait. But what turned out later is something which amazes everyone. Kasab on a suicidal mission, always knew he was taking death by his stride. But for a man so committed to death, later on showed signs of fear being executed. Death didn't embrace him when he anticipated but life left his side when he feared death. The process of delaying the inevitable execution of Kasab was questioned by many. For a person involved in such a cruelsome act, he was given more than his side of fair chance to prove himself. And in the interim he kept on changing his statements as a cuckoo leaves its nest. He lived on India's dying economy until sanity was realized to hang him. His death brought peace to many souls. Not even his kins were much interested in his well being. Thats an immaterial and a hated death. 

Mohammad Afzal Guru, the second casualty amongst India's recent active judiciary had a different case. Here's a man who was educated- "expected to differentiate good from bad". Afzal had the motive of serving people, atleast his qualifications suggest so(an MBBS) and he aspired to be an administrator( was preparing for UPSC). For a man, as level-minded as he should be(atleast his academic background suggests so), its almost inexplicable to understand that why would he involve himself in terrorizing the people, getting involved in brutal homicides. He used his knowledge in a destructive manner. He stands juxtaposed to Kasab- an illiterate brainwashed youth. But both were involved in similar acts and charged with same offence and met the same fate. While Kasab's execution was celebrated, Afzal's execution brought mixed reactions. Kasab's AK-47 image can make anyone's hair stand, while Afzal's first public interview on being captured can make an intellectual paranoid.Some would say Afzal deserved death, while others would say he was undone by the judiciary. On hindsight its fair to say the poetic justice was made, yet some glaring questions would raise eyebrows of the cynics. Make Afzal stand before Daood Gilani(read David Headley). Both were culprits of similar offence yet Headley escaped with lesser punishment despite his offences being more global and deadlier. Perhaps the Federal Court played the saviour to him, we don't know and we would never know. Was Afzal given a fair trial as compared to millions of murderers and rapists, some still in police custody waiting for their hearing and some having been awarded the execution punishment, are still awaiting for their D-Day. Didn't Afzal cooperate with the investigators? Yes he did( it seems so). Its an unanticipated death. But is this an unwanted death?

Just six days and the fate of Afzal was sealed. His mercy petition was rejected by the Hon'ble President on 3rd of February and he was secretly robbed off his life on 9th of February. Though there is no doubt that he deserved death, but did he get a justifiable death? Is there any political gimmick involved in such   speedy actions taken by the Indian Executive? Was the timing of his execution ill-timed ? Can this decision bring about a backlash? Only time will tell. Judiciary can't be questioned, since its the same for everyone. But the role of executive does keep the door ajar for unanswered questions.

Militants claim to be unsung heroes. but neither was Kasab nor Afzal. While Kasab was a villian, there is a fear that the decision of hanging Afzal might have made him a remorse-stricken tragic hero among certain sections of society, a tag which he deserves?

Career Opt-'Son'

"Figure out what you like doing best and find someone who will pay you for it. That defines career". Man is defined by the social conditions that rules his actions. A child, unfazed by the complexities of life and unaware of the ambiguous life, says,"I want to be a doctor", "I want to be a police officer". These statements, though charmed by innocence, make the parents proud. It seems a different age, when we talk about people's career choices being dictated by the clan they belonged to. The career was never an option for them. It was just an obligation that needed to be fulfilled. Arjuna was meant to be a warrior king, Maharishi Ved Vyas was destined to be a hermit even before he was born. But mythology rarely speaks of the difficulties Karna, the unsung hero had to face. He was destined to be a warrior(He was Kshatriya by birth), reared by a fisherman and  thence expected by the society to be a fisherman, yet he aspired to be one the 'Regals'.  This brings to light two facts: firstly, the social stratification always dictated the profession of a person; secondly, he who broke the societal norms,  was outcast by the society.

An era has passed, man,still a social being, is governed by the social conditions. Man has not changed, its the society that he lives in, has changed its perspective. Profession is no longer a right by birth. One has the freedom to choose what he wants to take up as career option; caste, sex, religion not withstanding. Today a girl can enter into male bastion, it may raise some eyebrows, yet welcome by our society. A Dalit can become an administrator, rightfully and justify his position without being answerable to any system. Despite the constraint-free society,  a new issue has been staring at the youths of our society today. The constant pressure of performing and living up to the expectation of the society, has been haunting the individuals constantly.

Again its the society which has once again come to the fore in determining career of a person. Individuals, especially youth, are more guided by the career choices of their friends or acquaintances rather than their intuitive desire. It is this dilemma which creates conflict between heart and mind.The pressure to perform, the pressure to fulfill the ambitions of parents, the ever-lasting desire to reach the apex, and above all to emulate or move a step ahead of what one's friend or acquaintance has achieved. But in all these, the very basic thing loses its identity-the actual desire of an individual.

On a personal front I have been very lucky, since my parents never dictated my ambitions nor did they set 'spoken' goals for me. Yet I must admit, I have been playing safe bet so far. Be it choosing science as a career stream after my 10th or opting to be a Computer Science Engineer, I have always given top priority to safeguard my career. Playing cricket was my passion, but gradually, during my school days, I realized its something I would love to take up as a career option. Yet the conservative mindset, and the fear of 'landing nowhere', overpowered my aspiration and I gave up my desire-turned-fantasy, for higher studies. Even after my high school, I had the option for going after history, my favourite subject. Yet again, it was science that I took up as career stream. And the suit followed when I had to choose my major in graduation. Now a point has come  when I am at crossroads again. After one and half year of smooth-sail as a Research Engineer and nurturing several more aspirations in me, the time has come yet again to choose. Every year I see results of CAT percentiles being flashed in social networking sites and has become a talk of town in every household. At the same time I come across magazines publicizing the life and take of successful UPSC candidates. Being an investment banker gives you bucks that make your life royal and indicates you have tamed the mother of all qualifications; becoming an administrator gives a you a special place in society- an elite individual.

This is not the start of being at cross-roads nor will it be the last one. Life is a never ending journey, and the road is never straight. One of my friends, a graduate from a reputed college went 'astray' and decided to be an entrepreneur, a decision not going well with his kiths and kins. Yet he stuck to his decision and today he might not be a software engineer or working for a NASDAQ listed company, but atleast he has made a mark in a field he wanted to get into. Parents play a vital role in shaping the career of youths. Parents may say 'go for it because our neighbor's son does it', your mum might say,'I had always seen you as a doctor'. Yet its you, who has to justify the task you take up. 

'If you cannot be a highway then just be a trail,

If you cannot be a sun, then be a star,

Its not by the size you win or you fail,

Be the best of whatever you are.'