Published May 30th, 2008
in India.
Forget the Telgi stamp paper scandal.
The Tiwari stamp “locha” is “herewa”.
A few months ago, the state of Bihar rejoiced in the achievement of Manoj Tiwari, the great Bhojpuri singer and the host of “Chak De Bacche” (Michael Jackson’s favorite program), for being the first living Indian to be honored with an international stamp from the government of Netherlands.
Yes the same Manoj Tiwari who was covered here at RTDM for his Bihar pride song: “Hum Bihari dil baante bhola bhala, Humre ke neta sabke nachawe walah.”
And now it is Tiwari jo sabko nacha raahe hain.
Continue reading ‘Stamp of Class’
Published May 16th, 2008
in India and Politics.
The standard sequence of events—-
1. Bomb blasts happen in a crowded area of an Indian city X bringing death and destruction in its wake.
2. Startling revelations are made by the administration within a few hours, bringing to light facts no-one could have guessed.
“Obviously, it’s a terrorist plot,” A.S. Gill, the police chief of Rajasthan, said hours after the attack. “The way it has been done, the attempt was to cause the maximum damage to human life.”
God damn those terrorists. Just when we think that they would do things in a way so as to cause the minimum damage to human life, they go ahead and do something totally unexpected.
Continue reading ‘The Usual’
Published March 11th, 2008
in Economics, India and Politics.
One of the things that I usually do not comment on is the Union Budget. The reason is simple. I know very little about economics and I have mentioned that before. For me the budget is all about special-interests driven fiscal dribbling: tariffs lifted on consumer electronics, an extra cess on cell-phones and exactly the opposite the next year.
In other words, nothing worth commenting on or getting too worked up about.
But then once in a few years, usually right before election time, the government decides to make a grand populist gesture. It gets excellent press, is politically extremely correct, can be spun of as a “crowning achievement” in the coming elections, allows poster painters to put down “savior of the common man” below gigantic cut-outs of leaders, and most importantly serves a vested interest or two. What’s positively evil genius about such gestures is that once you take even a slightly close look at it— you see that it’s blatantly unfair, isn’t that much of a big deal anyways, helps people who don’t need it that much, does not help all those whom it is supposed to and does absolutely nothing to solve the larger problem.
Yes I am talking about Sonia mam’s historic 100% government loan write-off to farmers who own less than 2 hectares and 25% loan write-off for overdue loans for all other farmers (provided they pay back 75% of their loan as negotiated) irrespective of financial condition or location , an amount that will directly cost the exchequer, as originally reported, 60,000 crores.
Continue reading ‘Loanacy’
Published February 15th, 2008
in India and Silly.
I just love the Bajrang Dal and their women’s wing Durga Bahini. Not only do they tirelessly uphold our Hindu traditions day in and day out, they also provide us moments of unalloyed mirth.
Bajrang Dal activists out to spoil celebration of love on Valentine’s Day made a couple sitting in a Bhopal park tie the knot and blackened the face of a foreigner. It, however, emerged later that the saffron brigade had wrongly caught a married couple.
In other words, quoting from that source of all knowledge “Gunda”, someone should tell the Bajrang Dal “Abbe nanhe-munhe, mare hue ko kyon maar rahe ho?”
Continue reading ‘Mooh Kala Muqabla Oh Lailaa’
Published January 16th, 2008
in India, Media and Silly.
Forgive me for being irregular in posting this week.
I have just been very offended.
Firstly as an Indian, I am offended at the fact that Eklavya the Royal Guard did not make it to the Oscar nominee list for best phoren fillum. Face it, that movie about Saif Ali Khan’s paternity and Jimmy Shergill in the dark was plain and simple awesome. Of course, many people in India hated it but there is a reason for that. As Vidhu the Vinod Chopra points out:
Maybe the critics here didn’t quite get it. I got a great response at UCLA and NYU, where they’re asking me to lecture about the film. They must have seen something
Indeed they had. Make no mistake. This would have been an Indian “Crouching Tiger Vidya Balan” had the Oscar committee comprised of friends of Vidhu the Vinod Chopra like Sudhir Mishra and Jagdhish Sharma and people like Ranjit Bahadur (he shot the “Making of Eklavya”). Had that been the case, they would have shown the same neutrality and good taste they displayed,as members of the Indian entry selection committee, while sending “Eklavya–the Royal Guard” to the Oscars.
Continue reading ‘Offense Is the Best Form of Defense’
Published November 1st, 2007
in India and Politics.
When a news agency like Tehelka uses “Free.Fair” in its description of itself, I cannot but help myself to a wry smile since Fox TV, a barely disguised propaganda machine for the Republican Party in the US, also calls itself “Fair and Balanced”. And we all know what a joke that it is.
Recently, Tehelka, whose political leanings are no secret, did yet another sting operation with the aim being to expose the “hopelessly one-sided perpetration of violence on hapless Muslims” in India in general and Gujarat in particular— noble aims that we know are the holy grail of people who want to portray “genocide of Muslims” as India’s favorite national sport.
Continue reading ‘Stin(k)ging Modi’
Published August 29th, 2007
in India.
Above is the sketch of the man suspected to be behind the bombings in Hyderabad.
Just what we needed: a terrorist with Elton John goggles. One word of advice, son. When you meet those virgins in heaven , do take them glasses off . With those shades, even your Jihadi achievements wont help you in getting laid.
Published August 28th, 2007
in India and Politics.
Hyderabad burns, confirming once again why India loses the most number of people to terrorism after Iraq. Weeping families, burnt and charred bodies, blood on the streets. And drowning out the wailing of the sirens and the cries of agony and loss reverberate the words of a state legislator declaring that he is a Muslim first and an Indian second and of another Hyderabadi politician publicly announcing that it would have been legitimate to kill a dissident author.
Shocking –yes.
New–no.
Continue reading ‘Nothing New’
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