Rishikesh

The Business of Media

2011-11-24T06:02:00.000-08:00

The power of media in a globalised world - Three day international seminar organized by the institute of objective studies, New Delhi

At Yavanika, Bangalore October 15- 2011

-The Business of media -

Commercialisation of media

As a film buff, I start my speech with some preconditions, clarifications and denials.

All examples in my speech are true. All persons, contexts, quotes and situations are not imaginary. They relate to living persons and actual happenings. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead is surely intended. Anyone who disagrees with me can meet me for a chat and coffee in the Gas college compound in front of Yavanika.

There is a joke among TV channel reporters. A TV reporter died and went to hell for telling lies. He was tortured in various ways for a year. Then, Lord Yama, the CEO and managing director of hell, told him to go back to Earth to do some good deeds so that he can get a chance to go to heaven later. On his way back the reporter saw, from a distance, another person being tortured severely. The reporter, out of his natural instinct, asked the guards who he was and why he was being treated that way. They told him he was the owner of a TV channel who had died ten years ago and had no chance of being released. ``Your sin was ambition, he is being tried for greed,’’ he was told.

Let us examine the theme, by slicing it up.
1. Cost and economy of media
2. Whether media houses should be sustainable entities or profitable ventures
3. Are greed and lust for clout reasons for setting up media houses
4. Is the media being used for totally non media purposes?

Now for some stories
The first one is about the cost.

1. Cost of setting up a newspaper. While I was researching for this paper, I spoke to some people who had started or set up newspapers, including my former employer.
2. I also spoke to some one who was closely involved in the setting up of a TV channel, some from government and private radio companies and internet entrepreneurs.
3. The average cost of setting up an Indian language newspaper at the state level is said to be between 40-50 crore. That is if you are looking at having your own printing and transport facilities and plan 5-6 printing centres.
4. The annual recurring cost is between 4-8 crore. This cost increases by about 20 times if you are looking at a paper in a language that is spoken in 3-4 states.
5. The costs of a TV channel are almost equal. However the recurring costs based on logistics and consumables are less than that of a newspaper. Interestingly, the cost difference between setting up an Indian language channel and a Hindi or English channel are not as high that of a newspaper. That is probably one reason why you see higher growth in news channels than papers.
6. The cost of owning and operating a radio company are very less compared to these two. An educational FM radio station in a district like Gulbarga costs just around Rs 2 lakh while a corporate FM station in Bangalore has cost a media company around Rs 1-2 crore. Easy to see, it is 100 times costlier.
7. News portals it seems, are the cheapest media outlets. A plain -text news website operated by one person, costs just Rs 5,000 a year if it uses free software tools. Transfer of data is cheaper than transfer of voice, pictures or video. (That is why sending a SMS is cheaper than making a call.)

However, a multi media website that has videos, pictures, and employs a group of persons to create content costs between Rs 60-90 lakh per year. This is among those who have their own connectivity infrastructure and servers.

The opinion in the industry is that this cost was less than half 10 years ago. It is expected to more than double in the next ten years.

Awareness about the cost
How many of our news consumers understand this? Most readers for example, don’t know that their daily paper is an insanely subsidized product. How many of you know that a copy of your daily paper costs between Rs 30-60? Readers in Bangalore, for example pay Rs 2.5 for a paper with an average of cost of Rs 50. That is a subsidy of 95 per cent. (Media has so much power that papers seem to escape inflation!)

I was heading the bureau of a newspaper in a north Karnataka town and my owners wanted to print the paper there. They invited bids. The bid went to the one who promised to reduce printing and supply costs by Rs 4 per copy.

Users have no issues paying Rs 300 for a DTH connection or cable TV. But we can’t imagine selling a paper for Rs 10 a day. Even a slight increase in the newspaper’s price affects circulation.

If people are willing to spend more for their daily paper, the anomaly in the newspaper economy will be rectified slightly. It will also reduce the pressure of the advertiser to some extent.

The next set of stories is about the ``commercialization of media’’.
According to the Webster dictionary, commercialization is ``to exploit for profit, especially at the expense of quality.’’ Therefore, at least with reference to today’s discussions, there is no positive connotation to the term `commercialization’.

There are two issues here. One is to make media a sustainable venture, if not a profitable one. The second one is journalism being used for protecting other interests.

The first however, is losing direction mainly because of the greed of a few individuals.

Dr K Mohanan, former director of the National Institute of Rural Development Hyderabad, once told me that in every field of gainful human activity, the producers get paid less than the guys who market the product.
Same is true of news. Journalists continue to get paid less than those who sell papers and space. This probably is why senior journalists tend to set up their own companies where they sell what they produce in a way they want.

Media businessmen tend to believe that every product, however good, can not sell unless it is advertised, packaged and marketed well. This has led to increasing influence of the seller on the writer. In many media houses, the managers not only decide what should be written, but also when and how it should be written. This is based on the assumption that the managers know what people like to read. I call this a sophisticated prejudice. There has been no scientific study, at least in recent years as to what kind of content attracts readers.
When this trend continues, content loses its importance and marketing technique becomes paramount. This will cut both ways – media will lose its credibility and democracy will weaken for lack of informed debate. This is a result of corporatization.

However, media outlets owned by industrial houses that did not focus on truth telling and quality content, have famously failed.

Corporatization of media has also had another negative effect.

I live in Bidar, a small and backward district on the Karnataka –Andhra-Maharashtra border. It is 750 kilometres away from Bangalore. Bidar is among the poorest districts in the country with a per capita income equal to some sub Saharan countries.

In the 70s, the state government started a scheme to promote newspapers in the border. They give grants in the form of advertisements to these papers. This policy led to a proliferation of newspapers. In a small city of 2 lakh people, there are 30 news papers of whom 21 are listed and get regular ads. Among them are 12 papers that get more ads under the border development scheme. Now, with the onslaught of state level papers selling at Re 1 or Rs 1. 50, most small papers are closing down. Most of the papers owners are forced to find other means of livelihood now. My friend Khaji Alioddin says that he is among the few who are living only by bringing out a paper. He uses a Shayari to explain his plight ``Ya Main Pagal Hoon Ya Duniya Deewana ‘’

Access to the power structure
The second issue is where journalism is just a mask for people who do wrong things to gain access to the power structure, acceptability and credibility in society.

A few days ago, the vice president of India Hamid Ansari said and I quote`` today, the demands of professional journalists are carefully balanced with the interests of owners and stakeholders of media companies and their `cross media interests’. The interplay of these conflicting demands is evident and is a subject of public debate”.

The word that captures eyeballs here is `cross media interests’.

Before independence, media was a tool for freedom. Later, at least for some, media was a mission aimed at a better democracy. Most media houses did not do anything other than run papers.

Now, there have been so many examples of industrial houses opening up media platforms that they outnumber pure media companies. On the other hand, some media houses have turned entrepreneurs and invested in both old economy and new economy sectors.

Three years ago, a senior BJP leader described Karnataka as a laboratory for testing its ideology and governance in south India. It seems to me that Karnataka has become the laboratory for some non desirable activities and shady power play too.

Now, Three MPs and six ministers and some MLAs in Karnataka have either significant investment or managerial control over various media houses. During the inauguration of his TV channel, a minister said that he has been a winner all through his life. ``I have not lost even while plating marbles in school,’’ he said. Now -a -days he does nothing but play marbles. Full time. However, this time it is inside a jail. That is a different story.

Ok. People in power owing media houses by itself, may not be dangerous. However, a small example proves it may not be desirable all the time.

A few months ago, an article about a minister’s involvement in a land scam appeared in a daily paper. He was not affected in any way, but the reporter’s wife who worked for a media company run the by minister was sacked. Reporters have been routinely sacked or transferred under pressure from advertisers.

Several stories on illegal mining have either been scuttled or their impact reduced due to the influence of people in power who controlled media houses in some way. A member of the Supreme Court CEC committee remarked that there was surprisingly very little media exposure on the illegal mining in the state.

Business
Another issue is of industrial houses running media platforms.

Senior journalist H K Dua once remarked ``Big business houses own newspapers and TV channels which they have set up not for making profits but for developing a clout so that their equation with the governments and political parties could help them in expanding their business establishment’’. Is Dua saab explaining what the Vice President hinted?

Is that why you see the trend of industrial houses opening or acquiring media houses? Are some individuals and companies interested in gathering clout and not in service?

In short, news is a commodity and it is traded for a price. The idea of journalism being a service mission to help people develop informed opinion and strengthen democracy, seems to be fading.

Sometimes, media tends to unreasonably influence the society and the state. It happens at two levels, the company and the individual. Some media houses use their clout to influence politics, policy or instruments like the stock market. A former RBI governor remarked that TV anchors tend to speak in favour of companies that they own stocks of.

Paid news, featured articles, ad supplements are examples. Journalists going out of the way to create news and not just report about it, is another example. A very dangerous trend is when media persons overgrow their roles as neutral watchers and try to influence politics, policy and governance by acting as middle men, advisors and messengers.

Solutions:

1. The anomaly in newspaper economy should end and people should spend more on papers. (After all if news is a commodity, why should be remain immune from inflation?)
2. I was in the USA for a Rotary exchange programme and I saw people pay between 3-6 dollars per day for a copy.
3. Newspapers in Karnataka are the cheapest in south India. in Kerala, people buy two types of papers- Low cost and high cost. These are perceived as those of low quality and high quality. The local term for these papers is the bus stand paper and the one you get at your home.
4. Increase in the number of non-profit newspapers and TV channels. Cost of setting up a unit to print and supply a two page newspaper is around Rs 10 lakh. Recurring costs are around 3.5 lakh.
5. Low investment city TV stations, neighbourhood papers and community radio are examples.
6. Growth of new technology tools to spread news. Web portals, pod casts and electronic newspapers.
7. Creation of endowments, media fellowships and research scholarships for journalists and writers. This is a time tested method of focusing on subjects neglected by the mainstream media.

I will end with the story of Nancy. That was the pet name of a reporter whose name is Narayana Swamy. Nancy is the rock star of Kannada TV news.

He anchors a story called `Heegoo Unte’ which means ``is that possible?’’. He is so popular that there was a move to make him a hero in a Kannada film. The idea was dropped later for unspecified reasons.

He began the show when the first 24 -hours new channel opened in Kannada. Now, there are 7 news channels that produce thousands of hours of colourful programming. After six years though, his show has the highest television rating points.
Everyone who is involved in making the show knows that it is dishing out bundles of lies every day. But everyone is happy because it is making money. It makes money because people skip dinner to watch it.

The founding fathers of the Constitution said the quality of the elected depends on the quality of the elector. Similarly, the readers or viewers determine the quality of what they read or see.

I think that is the only true solution to this issue. This probably is the only case where my good friend Nancy will not be able to say ``Is That Possible?’’.

Thank you

Bidar historica. A site dedicated to the cultural history of this mountain top town

2011-07-14T00:26:00.000-07:00

We live in Bidar. Proudly.
Fortunate to breathe the air that kept great souls like Saint- poet Basaveshwara, Bahmani King Ahmed Shah Al Wali and Mahmud Gawan alive.
Thomping the ground that Afnasi Nikitin, Jean Thevknot, Colonel Mackenzie, and other travelers trode.
Waiting to tell Jimmy Wales that Someshwara the Third, Chalukyan King of Basava Kalyan wrote Manasa Ullasa, a Sanskrit encyclopaedia a thousand years before he compiled Wikipedia.

We are obsessed with the stories that Bhaskara Acharya, the man invented and developed Algebra, was born here.
We beat our chests to say that the devotional Naats are sung in Madina were written by Hazrath Ishqui who grew up playing in the streets of Siddique Taleem in Mohammadabad Bidar.

We shamelessly proclaim that King Vikramaditya the Sixth, who ruled southern and middle India for half a century, was throned in Kalyana. He expanded his territory from the Narmada river to the Cauvery and from Orissa all the way to Kutch. We know this as his was among the most well documented periods in Indian history. It cant be otherwise, as Vikramaditya remains the only King in world history to have commissioned the highest number of stone edicts and inscpritons in the world.

We wonder whether the lawyers in Delhi know that the traditional Indian legal system is based on `Mitakshara', the code book by Vigyaneshwara who hailed from Masimada village. How could they not know?

We are considering inviting love laden souls to Kalyan for a tour of the place where romantic poetry was written 500 years before Romeo -Juliet. Did you know that Bilhana, considered the pioneer of romantic poetry was arrested by the king for falling in love with the Princess? And that he used the same poetic skills to get out of prison alive? This led to his marriage with the Princess and more love poems were born. Scores of scholars have tried translating his poems to English and other European languages. But then, not all were successful, because translation, you know, is `kissing your beloved through a veil'.

We are upset at Amir Khan for not completing what he started. If Mangal Pandey began the first war of Indian Independence by shooting a British officer in Delhi, King Jung Bahadur ended it by the guerilla wars in the jungles in Bhalki. Well, we may finally conspire along with Kiran Rao to tell him about the Bhalki Conspiracy!

It is natural that we are interested in history. We so know why so many scholars are attracted to this place, just like us. After all, the first ever history book in India Raja Tarangini was written by Kalhana, who was the court scholar of King Vikramaditya!

This site is to honour of scholars, historians, artists, writers, record keepers and journalists who have contributed to documenting Bidar history and recording its heritage in some way. This is a place where we salute these heralders, story tellers and spreaders of the good word.

We plan to introduce and profile all such resource persons. Here we provide samples of their work and add links for further reading. This way, we not only honour the experts of ancient times, but also network modern day researchers.

Hope this serves two purposes. It should be a pointer to where research on Bidar stands now. This could act as the beginning point for aspiring young researchers. More importantly, it could create interest about history among the general public. All of us remember, fondly, that our interest in the history, heritage and culture of this great land was kindled by someone else who was as interested.
May one lamp light another!

http://bidarhistorica.org/

Need for a Martha Berry for India!

2011-05-26T11:12:00.001-07:00

Concept paper for vocational education of the Berry college model

There is a scarcity of young men and women trained at user -level technologies and routine services. Today’s society that focuses a lot on higher education forgets that it needs drivers, plumbers, electricians, vehicle mechanics, repair boys for electronic items, DTP and simple computer operations, and other people who do odd jobs, in equal number. Every one knows it. But very little is being done about it.

Most people who do such jobs are trained by their parents or relatives who are in the profession. Or, they have learnt it as apprentices with little pay or no pay at all.
The formal education system that teaches them languages, maths, science and history, does not teach them skill to survive. Even the ITI, diploma colleges and `Job Oriented’ courses don’t teach them such basic skills. Those courses are tailored to suit needs of the industry. Graduates of these colleges become employees. They can’t become entrepreneurs or independent professionals providing basic services like plumbing or vehicle repair.

If education is to liberate the mind, it should first help us survive. It should teach us livelihood skills. That is where vocational education comes in.

There have been several models of vocational education. The successful ones would naturally, have more of practice than theory.

The Berry college (www.berry.edu) founded by Martha Berry in Georgia in USA follows a time tested system of vocational education. Here, students study theory for three days a week and practice their skill for another three days.

Boys and girls can enter this college when they are as young as 16. There is no upper limit to admissible age.

They are taught as basic skills as cooking to complex tasks like astronomy.
There are thousands of students in the over 400 courses offered on campus. They are learning building construction, machine erection, vehicle maintenance, window cleaning, carpentry, office maintenance, road work, teacher training, and what not. Every student has to put in practical work for every paper.

On a tour of the USA in 2006 under the Rotary GSE programme, I saw that students of various disciplines were busy constructing an extension wing of the college. Most of the money needed to run these schools is given by the past students. NRI and IIT alumnus Krishna Dhir is the head of Berry college now.

The philosophy of Berry college is similar to Gandhiji’s basic education concept. This needs to be replicated in India. It is not very difficult. There are two ways of going about it.

One is to have a campus on which teachers with practical experience teach students basic vocational skills. This can be big or small based on the budget and could grow over time.

Two, we could use offices, factories and workplaces of entrepreneurs and professional as training centres. Students could be sent as apprentices to these places after a little of theoretical training. The employer could be paid training fees and the student could get scholarships.

All this can be formalized. We could approach the national open school or universities like IGNOU or Abdul Kalam Azad University for recognition. We could also seek assistance under the union government’s skill development programmes.

Or else, we could forget about affiliation and aim at training people. Once the course becomes popular, it could attract the attention of students and policy makers.

Eom

Art As a Career

2011-05-25T21:18:00.000-07:00

Krishna Raichur owns a house and drives a luxury car. He flies to work in other cities and
He has secure investments for the future and spends annual vacation time in Scandinavian countries,

What is more, he works from home. He is not a CXO of an IT company or a member of the board of directors of a MNC. He is a painter.

Mohan Seetanur comes from a family of jewelers. However, you can’t find him sitting in his shop. He keeps traveling around the country visiting villages, historical monuments and jungles and streams and sea shores. Once or twice every year, he switches off his mobile phone and sits down to paint. This process goes on for days and what emerges at the end is not only creatively satisfying, but also hugely remunerative. ``My earnings as a professional painter are comfortable. I am not sure if I would make the same amount of money if I were a jeweler,’’ he says. Mr Seetanur should know. He has been a professional painter for three decades now and has never regretted his decision not to join the family business.

``Art is the most satisfying career. Sadly, most middle class parents don’t dream about their children being professional artists,’’ says Karnataka Chitrakala Academy president J S Khanderao. According to him, there is a huge potential for passionate artists who are well trained in different aspects of painting and design creation. ``There was a feeling that there would be no need for creative artists once computers entered the world of art and design. However, the need for good artists has only increased with the increased use of computers and automation,’’ he said.

Creative art, whether it is painting of sculpture is a career that is both satisfying and rewarding, say professionals. ``Artists have always been respected in the society. But now with increasing prosperity, they are being well paid,’’ Mr Khanderao said. Legendary artists like S M Pandit were respected around the world. ``Work of artists like him has increased the understanding of the people about art,’’ he said. Some of the most successful artists of recent years like Manjunath Kamath, G R Iranna, H G Arun Kumar, Yusuf Arakal, Shashidhar Adapa and others have passed out of art schools in the state,’’ Mr Khanderao said.

``A career in fine arts is the most flexible. You can work when you want and from wherever you want,’’ says artist Mallikarjun Bagodi. After a stint as a faculty member in a University, he has taken up research on the design patterns of medieval buildings in rural Karnataka.

``Art brings recognition. That itself is hugely satisfying, says artist Krishna Raichur who designed the site of the Kalburgi Kampu fest held in Gulbarga recently. ``Art has become an integral part of any cultural fest now -a –days. Earlier, Hampi Utsav or other district festivals featured only music and dance. Now, they are incomplete if they don’t have workshops for artists or exhibitions,’’ he said. According to him, apart from satisfying the creative urge of the common public, these efforts motivate young people to take up art as a career.

Mr Raichur is one of the most successful artists in the state. He runs a studio in Bangalore. He also leads a team that acts as consultants to event managers.

Similar is the case of Gulbarga based sculptor Manayya Badiger. He has created a team of 10 sculptors. They take up projects in various districts and in neighbouring states of Maharashtra and Andhra. ``Each of our boys has a decent lifestyle. They have been trained so well that they now employee apprentices,’’ Manayya said.

Awareness
There is a need to create awareness in the society that art is a rewarding career and that it is natural for young men and women to aspire to be artists, says Mr Khanderao. Artists’ workshops are routinely organized in Hampi Utsav, Kadamba Utsav and Bidar Utsav. The Kannada Sahitya Parishat also organizes art exhibitions during the annual Sammelanas. Private initiatives like Alva’s Nudisiri and Virasat also provide a platform for artists. The academy plans to conduct art appreciation camps in the districts. Mr Khanderao feels these camps will in turn work towards creating awareness about having art as a career.

Art schools
``Art schools that can train students for a career as an art and craft teacher exist in every district. Students who aspire for more should join other reputed schools,’’ says P G Katti, who retired as a craft teacher.

Apart from premier institutions like Chitrakala Parishat and Ken School of Art of Bangalore, Chamarajendra Audio Visual Academy in Mysore, Ideal Fine Arts College of Gulbarga, there are several other fine art schools in the state. Bangalore alone has 60 private fine art schools. At the national level, National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, M S University Baroda, Vishwa Bharati in Shanti Niketan, Delhi college of fine arts and J J School of arts of Mumbai are considered institutions to aspire for.

The Hampi Kannada University has an exclusive fine arts and sculpture college in Badami in Bagalkot district. Spread over the hillocks of the world heritage site of Badami, the college offers an unparalleled ambience.

Bachelor and post graduate degrees are offered by Karnataka University Dharwad, Bangalore, Mysore and Gulbarga Universities, Kuvempu and Mangalore Universities. Tumkur University offers a Bachelor degree in fine arts. A few affiliated colleges of the Karnataka State Women’s University also offer courses in Fine Arts.

Apart from creative art, there are several applied art related fields that require the service of trained artists. Architecture and landscaping, machine design, website creation and content management, animation, films, preservation of paintings and monuments, event management,
museum maintenance, and art archiving. There are several institutions that train students in art and sculpture.

-Rishikesh Bahadur Desai -

Media and Morality

2011-03-25T05:24:00.000-07:00

My speech at the recent symposium on "Deepening Moral Crisis and Solutions ’’ at Bangalore.

-Media and Morality -

Dignitaries, organizers and friends I see that in this group there are some who fit into all these three groups. So I address them. If there is anyone who feels I have not addressed him, I hereby I address him.

When I was invited to talk about media and morality, I wondered why I was asked to talk about these two unrelated things? Everyone else has been given a subject that has interrelated themes. Then why I was being victimized?

I expressed this doubt to one of my friends who is an engineer and he corrected me. ``You are wrong’’, he said. ``What is you need to discuss is that there is a direct but inverse relation between the two themes of media and morality!’’

Well then, let us examine the various dimensions of this apparently non existent relationship. But before I do so, I will tell you a famous joke about media persons. The presence of Swamijis, pious men and judges makes me slightly hesitant. But then I consider myself as a fearless journalist and here I go.

I heard this joke from legendary Kannada journalist Iqbal K Jahagirdar. A newly trained doctor opened his clinic one morning to find a patient waiting. The patient complained he was suffering from severe constipation for some weeks. The doctor gave him some tablets and sent him away. However, the patient returned two days later saying he was not cured. The doctor gave him a medicine that he said would cure any stomach related disease, let alone constipation.
However the doctor was shocked to find the patient return in two more days. This time, the confident young man thought he had to investigate the cause of this constipation more deeply.

The doctor began asking him.
What is your name? -``Ramanna’’.
Where do you stay? -``Ram Nagar’’.
What do you do for a living? ``I work in a newspaper. I am a journalist’’.

The doctor realized the meaning of the last answer so well that he began banging his head against the wall. While Ramanna was wondering whether he had transferred his illness to the doctor, the doctor began smiling.

The doctor took out a Rs 10 note from his pocket and gave it to the journalist. ``Please go out and eat something immediately. Only after that can we expect some development!’’ he said.

It had taken the doctor sometime to realize that journalists were paid next to nothing and that this journalist was so poor that he was not eating enough.

We will revisit the joke at the end to know why a joke about one person in the story could be a cruel joke for another.

Here, I want to look at morality in a wider context. Dishonesty is just one small part of the whole spectrum.
There are three main issues here. One is moving away from truth.
1. Reasons may be dishonesty- individual or institutional.
2. Prejudice- personal or at the level of journalists as a group. The media tends to have and spread prejudices. This can be pro or anti certain individuals, groups, classes, castes or institutions.
3. A sense of false prestige that makes the news writer think he is not writing for everyone. (That is what Aamir Khan said about Dhobi Ghat. But Khan saab is not a journalist. He is a businessman).
4. Or plain lack of skills and lack of professionalism

Secondly
1. News-making and not plain reporting. That is trying to influence events instead of just covering what happens. Veer Sanghvi and Burkha Dutt have been accused of trying to be so powerful that they could make any person a minister of anything. (Kannada daily Udayavani had a great headline that day. Idu enu? Neera? Radia?)
2. That happens here also. Recently Kannada protagonists blackened the face of a BJP leader. The accused revealed to the police that a reporter had told them to ``do something interesting if they wanted some good publicity’’.

Thirdly,
1. The danger of journalism changing from service to business.
2. This leads to many things. Breeds differing notions of what is news. It can promote untruths deliberately.
3. For example. It can be as hollow as a film star falling in love, (whoever first called it falling!) getting married, having children, or separating.
4. It can be as bizarre as a child falling in an unclosed bore well or burying children till the neck during an eclipse. (A TV channel had missed the story and asked its reporter to go back to the family, bury the child in mud again and get video feed)
5. It can be as misleading as a snake in the CM’s house that heralds fall of the government. A famous astrologer called to say we should write about Sarpa Dosha to the CM and to mention that he was contacted by the paper and not the other way round.
6. Former RBI Governor Reddy noted that TV anchors promoted companies whose shares they owned.
7. Business promotion happens at an unimaginable scale in newspapers. A crime reporter who wrote that a Maruti Car was involved in a road accident was fined as the company was giving regular Ads to the paper.
8. The government literally controls newspapers it is the single largest advertiser for them. Most Indian language newspapers depend on the government. There is little criticism therefore, of government schemes anywhere.

What are the solutions?

Let me ask you a few questions

1. Time for some more jokes. During a weekly planning meeting in a newspaper office, the Editor asks reporters. What are the stories that we can expect this week? The editor asked the political reporter, business reporter and the film reporter. When the editor asked the same question to the crime reporter, he was shocked. It was like asking what will be the weather next monsoon.

2. Mohammad Gawan was the architect of Medieval Bidar. A Kannada reporter wrote Mohammad Jawan. Then I called to correct him. Sorry Kanayya gottagalilla. Gawan anta yaradadaru hesaru idutta anta andukondu barede. Are Gawan anta iruttaro illo ninage gottilla. Aadare, Jawan anta iruttare anta yake andukonde?

3. You have all heard of the Cauvery dispute and the Krishna tribunal judgment. You have all heard of TMCFT of water. But how many of you know how many liters is one TMCFT of water?

4. You have all experienced power cuts and read about it in the next day’s papers. But do you know the difference between a watt and a volt? Or one Unit and one Mega Watt? Have the newspapers not told you? Did you ask them?

5. When the Krishna tribunal judgment was given, there was no expert in any newspaper office in the state to interpret it. A week later, all newspapers carried an analysis by a former minister who had written a political copy. The Unfortunate Kannadiga had to suffer this misinformation.

6. That is why Lord Northcliff said that journalism is a profession that tries to explain things that it does not personally understand.

First, media houses should understand that their duty is to explain events and phenomenon by making things simple.
US president Barak Obama has signed a bill that makes it mandatory for government orders and policy documents to be written in a simple language that everyone can understand.
There is a big plain language movement in Britain too. We need to adopt this in English and other Indian languages. Have you not felt that the reports of the annual budget are as complicated as the finance minister’s speech?
In Kannada, how many of us can really understand what they mean when they say `Pattabhadra Hitasakti’ (¥ÀlÖ¨sÀzÀæ »vÁ¸ÀQÛ)?

The solutions are
1. Deliberate use of plain language. This is difficult as it requires hard work.

2. Reducing the pressure of the Advertiser on media houses and attracting talent to the industry.
Did you know that among the products that you use daily, a newspaper is the only one that is sold for less than 10 % of its cost of production? A newspaper costs between Rs 20-40 per copy. But you pay anything between 50 paise to Rs 3.5. If you pay Rs 300 for your mobile currency or TATA sky subscription, why cant you pay Rs 10 for a newspaper? That would significantly reduce pressure from the advertiser. The advertiser can be a private company, the government or a politician. This would address dishonesty at the level of the reporter and the establishment. The situation is slightly better in TV channels, but the channels need to find low cost technology and an efficient revenue model.

3. Attracting talent to the field of journalism is a serious challenge. Needed is a reversal in the obsession with medicine and engineering in the middle class parents. I met a girl in the USA who was the manager of a grave yard. I told her she was so beautiful that people were literally dying to meet her. But I was fatally shocked to learn that she had studied Mortuary Sciences in college. Can we imagine such courses in India?
4. Intelligent, research minded young men and women will improve the quality of writing. We will have a truly informed democracy this way.

5. We should make media houses resource centres by encouraging research and reducing the pressure of the deadline and letting writers chase stories in the fields of their passion.

Non representative bodies
There are other problems too. Media houses are not representative. This leads to a situation where people get to read opinionated stories about issues. For example, the number of anti -reservation stories are always bigger than pro –reservation ones that is because the number of journalists from Dalit or other deprived communities is far less than it should be.

A Dargah that flew an Islamic flag was reported to have hoisted the Pakistani flag. Only a sports reporter could point out the mistake. Secondly, many people speak of forced conversion by Christian missionaries. Few can explain how untouchability and conversion are related. This does not happen if there more journalists from among the minorities.

In Karnataka there are several writers who volunteer to write about the Cauvery dispute, but not a single journalist who understands the Krishna that flows in backward north Karnataka. Similarly, people read more about the coffee

I can say with complete confidence that the first story about tribals by a tribal journalist is yet to be written in India. The solution lies in Media managements deliberately choosing journalists from a matrix that reflects the character of the society. We should have journalists from every class, caste, region, gender and language group. This could be encouraged two ways, creating awareness among youth and parents and by
providing social support in the form of information and counseling, scholarships and fellowships.

Corruption of the society
Corruption, as I said earlier, is not a one dimensional thing. It is a like a snake eating its tale. You don’t know where it begins and where it ends. We should ask ourselves this important question from where do journalists come from? This Society. So when the whole society is corrupt, you can not expect journalists to stay clean. Therefore, any thought or action of cleaning up journalism can not be isolated from cleaning up the entire system.

Holy cows or reckless bulls?
The society seems to treat journalists as if they can do no wrong. In these 60 odd
years of independence, there have been only 60 major cases of defamation or false publication against newspapers. Why so few? Don’t you find defamatory, false and
prejudiced reporting in papers everyday? Why are journalists allowed
to murder truth and get away?
A law is slowly refined over the years, once it begins to get implemented. So the acts relating to protecting the sacred status of the press should be implemented. We know the media calls itself a watchdog, but who should watch the watchdog? When there are complaints against judges and military men and they are being investigated against, why should media persons be left out ?

Those who make us proud
Have I only been talking about the bad- guys? I am extremely glad that there are journalists who have given nothing less than their lives for the cause.
I am reminded of an anecdote from the black days of Emergency. A senior
journalist who had an Asthama problem, was tortured by the police who asked him to sit on a block of for a few hours. The Next day when the police took him out of the police station, they asked him: ``Where do you want to go now?’’ He said Office chalo, kal ka paper nikalna hai na?

Palagummi Sainath, the man who brought star value to development
journalism, asked a politician on National TV. Tell us five things you
have done for the people? He could not answer. We are happy to have been around when they lived.

Now let me come back to the joke about the doctor and the journalist with constipation. Please understand that I am not complaining. I am just stating facts. A qualified doctor in a remote town now -a- days makes nearly 100 times more money than a journalist. The Karnataka government announced proposal to provide health insurance to journalists on the lines of Yashaswini eight years ago. It has not happened.

Even today, a senior journalist in a newspaper or TV channel in this country gets less salary than a second division clerk in a government office. Other givens like job security, health and retirement benefits are unheard of in journalism. It does not mean that journalism itself is a loss making venture. You would have experienced it if have ever tried to publish an advertisement. A one square inch of ad space slot in the national edition of a newspaper costs more one than one square feet of land in a prime area in Bangalore.

Studies have shown that an average Indian language paper makes a profit of Rs 50 lakh per day, after deducting all costs. The profits of English papers and TV channels are even higher.

What most of you don’t know is that journalists have a wage board. However, most managements don’t implement the recommendations. Yesterday, the association of newspaper owners has said it would reject the recent wage board recommendations. Most media houses don’t have the system of giving weekly off or leave to their employees.

May I proudly add that the there are honourable exceptions like The Hindu group that has been a committed pro-employee group for nearly one and a half centuries.

Increasing remunerations and improving working conditions will lead to better results. After all, investing in journalism is investing in a better democracy.
Sometimes I feel expecting change is hope. But expecting change in my life time is greed. Precisely therefore, let us all be very greedy. Even though greed can have no place in a seminar on morality

Thank you

The symposium was at the Eidgah Quddus Saab, (Haj camp) Millers Road, Bangalore. Date: Jan 26, 2011

The speakers were
Dr.Taha Mateen Pres.JIH Blore-South
Dr.Belgami-Pres. Jamaat e Islami Blore Metro,
Sri Veerabhadra Channamalla Swamy,
Justice Santosh Hegde (Absent)
Katyayini Chamaraj
Justice M.F Saldhana,
Rishikesh Bahadur Desai,
Prof. G.S Siddalingaiah
Ejaz Aslam-Secy. JIH, Delhi
& Editor Radiance Views Weekly, Delhi

--

The evolution of religion- from animism to agnosticism

2011-03-02T06:23:00.000-08:00

Fri, 23 Mar 2007 10:09:10 -0800

http://rishiscribe.blogspot.com/2007/03/ambedkar-and-buddha.html

Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Ambedkar and Buddha

Dr Ambedkar And The Evolution Of Religion: From Animism To Agnosticism

By Rishikesh Bahadur Desai

A student once asked his teacher,
"Master, what is enlightenment?"
The master replied,
"When hungry, eat. When tired, sleep."

This shows how simple ideas are confused for complex issues.

We will keep coming back and forth to the title of this paper,
'Evolution of religion from Animism to Agnosticism'. Simply put,
Animism is believing that anything and everything is God. Agnosticism
is to stop worrying about God and carrying on with our work.

Stages of evolution: 'Change of the concept of God to an idol to an idea'

ANIMISM
Primitive man feared natural phenomena like lightning, rain, and
floods. He called them God as they seemed to control his life. Any
weird performance that was believed to control these was magic. Thus
Magic was equated to religion. Thus, rituals, beliefs, ceremonies,
prayers and sacrifices came to be equated with religion.

IDOL WORSHIP
Belief in the existence of a Supreme Being or God. This power could be
Good or Bad. Rituals done to propitiate an indifferent power or
appease an angry power became religion. Then came the third stage:
that it is this God who created this world and also man.
People who began spreading the idea became preachers. They found it
was easier to market the idea by using idol worship.
This was followed by the belief that man has a soul, and the soul is
eternal and is answerable to God for man's actions in the world. So,
belief in God, belief in soul, worship of God, curing of the erring
soul, propitiating God by prayers, ceremonies, sacrifices, etc became
religion.

AGNOSTICISM
It is the view that there is no proof of either the existence or
nonexistence of God. But since any God that may exist appears
unconcerned for the universe or the welfare of its inhabitants, the
question is largely academic.
It is also the view that the concept of God as a being is meaningless
because it has no verifiable consequences. Therefore it cannot be
usefully discussed as having existence or nonexistence.
Buddha's statement "Be Godly, rather than wasting time looking for
God", best explains the phenomenon.
Here is a story that tries to explain agnosticism.
A monk was meditating by a river when a young man interrupted him.
"Master, want to find God."
The master grabbed him by his neck, and plunged his head under water.
After holding him there for a minute, the master finally pulled him up
out of the river. The young man coughed up water and gasped to get his
breath. When he eventually quieted down, the master spoke. "Tell me,
what did you want most of all when you were under water."
"Air!" answered the young man.
Well, why do you want God when what you want Air?. Live in today, not
tomorrow, the master said.
These, in brief, are the stages of the evolution of the concept of religion.

What is Hinduism according to Dr Ambedkar?
For him it was a refined form of Animism. He said :"I renounce
Hinduism, which is harmful for humanity and impedes the advancement
and development of humanity because it is based on inequality.

What made Dr Ambedkar denounce Hinduism?
He considered that it provided a justification and sanctity to
inequality. He converted to Buddhism as he believed it promoted
equality, and rational thought.
Dr Ambedka considered Hindu Society to be a collection of castes, and
each caste being a closed corporation. He said the caste system is a
multi floored building with neither ladders nor windows. Unlike a
club, the membership of a caste is not open to all and sundry. The law
of Caste confines its membership to persons born in the caste. Castes
are autonomous, and there is no authority anywhere to compel a caste
to admit a new-comer to its social life.
He enumerated the evils of Hinduism in the following manner;
1. It has deprived man of morals and a life of freedom.
2. It has only emphasized conformity to commands.
3. The laws are unjust because they are not the same for one class as
of another. Besides, the code is treated as final.
According to Ambedkar, "what is called religion by Hindus is nothing
but a multitude of commands and prohibitions." No matter what the
Hindus say, Hinduism is a menace to liberty, equality and fraternity.
On that account, it is incompatible with democracy", he said.
Ambedkar was of the firm opinion that Hindutva was nothing but a ploy
by upper caste Hindus to maintain control over society and its
resources.

What then is the Dhamma?
Dhamma is righteousness, which means right relations between people in
all spheres of life. Dhamma is Prajna, Karuna and Samata. That is
understanding, love and equality.

Are religion and Dhamma one and the same?
The answers to this question are found in Buddha's dialogues with
Sunakkhatta, and between the Buddha and the Brahmin Potthapada.
Sunakkhatta or Shunya Kartha:
In this we see the breaking down the beliefs of Guru and disciple,
mystic powers and revealing the beginning of things.
Buddha met Potthapada at Shravasti in Anathapindika Vihara. (The
Rekulagi Mount in Bidar district is named after this Vihara)
Pottapada asks him "Is the world eternal?
He also questions him about 'Eternity', 'soul' and 'rebirth'.
"That, Potthapada, is a matter on which I have expressed no opinion.
That is because, these questions do not relate to elements of right
conduct, nor to detachment, nor to purification from lusts, nor to
quietude, nor to tranquilisation of heart, nor to real knowledge, nor
to the insight (of the higher stages of the Path), nor to Nirvana.
Therefore is it that I express no opinion upon it". In short, it is
meaningless to think, believe, discuss or hold a view about these.
This is further proof of the Agnosticism of Buddha's Dhamma.
Hence Buddhism is called a faith of less luggage.
Then Potthapada asks him. What have you expounded then?
I have expounded, what Dukkha is; what is its origin; what is its
cessation; what is the method by which one may reach the cessation of
Dukkha."

Difference between religion and Dhamma
Religion, is said to be personal, and one must keep it to oneself.
Contrary to this, Dhamma is social. It is fundamentally and
essentially so.
Religion is ritualistic. Dhamma is not. Religion insists on
unquestioning devotion. Dhamma is based on knowledge got by
questioning.

The fundamental difference between religion and Dhamma
Against the Upanishadic concepts of ``Sat-Chit-Ananda,'' Buddhism
focused on the fact that impermanence, the non-existence of the soul
and sorrow were the realities of life.
At a level, this seemed a pessimistic as opposed to an optimistic
perspective, but it emphasised the role of reason and individual
effort in the search for liberation.
Hence it is said: The purpose of Religion is to explain the origin of
the world. The purpose of Dhamma is to reconstruct the world.

Why did he choose Buddhism over Hinduism?
He changed to a new religion and a new World because he wanted to
believe in the equality of humans and to endeavor to establish
equality.
In May 1956, in a BBC talk titled 'Why I like Buddhism and how it is
useful to the world in its present circumstances', he said: "I prefer
Buddhism because it gives three principles in combination, which no
other religion does. Buddhism teaches Prajna (understanding as against
superstition and supernaturalism), Karuna (love between people against
a slave and master relationshoip), and Samata (equality). This is what
man wants for a good and happy life. Neither god nor soul can save
society. Only Dhamma can do it".
In his speech in Bombay in May 24 1956, he declared his resolve to
embrace Buddhism. There Ambedkar observed: "Hinduism believes in God.
Buddhism has no God. Hinduism believes in soul. According to Buddhism,
there is no soul. Hinduism believes in Chaturvarnya and the caste
system. Buddhism has no place for the caste system and Chaturvarnya".

Ambedkar's conversion.
At the Yeola conference in 1935, Dr. Ambedkar declared that he will
not die a Hindu as it perpetuates caste injustices.
A Buddhist monk Lokanath visited Ambedkar's residence at Dadar on June
10, 1936 and tried to persuade him to embrace Buddhism. Lokanath, born
as Salvatore, was an American of Italian descent who had settled in
Ceylon.
Ambedkar also took Pali classes from Acharya Ishvardatt Medharthi in Delhi.
After publishing a series of books and articles arguing that Buddhism
was the only way for the Untouchables to gain equality, Ambedkar
publicly converted on October 14, 1956 in Nagpur. He took the three
refuges and five precepts from a Buddhist monk, Bhadant U Chandramani,
in the traditional manner and then in his turn administered them to
the nearly five lakh followers that were present.
Ambedkar would die less than two months later, just after finishing
his definitive work on Buddhism.

How Buddhism changed his life and our life.
Among Dr Ambedkar's contributions, popularising Buddhism is one of the
most important. There are strong reasons to believe that some vital
portions of the Indian Constitution were influenced by Buddhist
principles. The freedom of thought and expression listed in the
Constitution, was influenced by Buddha's tenets. It is one of the most
important portions of that rule book. Buddha was one of the earliest
thinkers in the world who advocated the need for freedom of thought.
Article 19 of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights
guarantees that "Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and
expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without
interference...".
We can see that Buddha spoke against intellectual interference by
scholars, books or religious rituals. "Don't turn to any book in times
of crisis. Use your own mind", he said.
What is today known as Navayana, or Ambedkarite Buddhism or Dalit
Buddhism or even Indian Buddhism, is a culmination of the thought
processes of two of India's greatest thinkers, Buddha and Ambedkar.
Difference between Ambedkar's interpretation of Buddhism and other kinds.
Ambedkar's emphasis is on Shakyamuni Buddha as a political and social
reformer, rather than merely as a spiritual leader.
He points out that the Buddha required his monastic followers to
ignore caste distinctions, and that he was critical of the social
inequality that existed in his own time. Ambedkar's understanding of
Buddhism denounces, other-worldliness or supernaturalism, Karma,
rebirth, and the related doctrine of "bondage" and liberation
(nirvana).
Ambedkar did not believe that a person's unfortunate conditions at
birth are the result of previous karma. This was a strong argument
against Hinduism's support to the Caste system.

For him, becoming a Buddhist was to adopt rational humanism as a
philosophy of life.

We will end with a story of the Bodhisatva that probably explains the
conceptual evolution of religion from animism to agnosticism.

Bodhisatva's story of a cow in search of God. Boddhisatva was born a
cow. It was told God existed everywhere, in air, water, fire, soil,
grass and stones. It started searching for God. It touched grass to
check if God was there. "Neti Neti", (no, no), it said and went away.
It drank water to see if that was God. "Neti, Neti", it said and went
away. Similar was its experience with air, fire, soil, and stones.
Finally it was convinced that none of these contained God and went
away smiling.

Thank you,

References:
1. Buddha and his Dhamma: B R Ambedkar
2. Caste and Hinduism: Gail Ombvedt
3. Ambedkar's legacy: Ranjit Hoskote
4. Columbia University publications on Ambedkar
5. Shamsul Islam Ambedkar as Hindu
6. Dr. Ramendra Patna College, Patna University

Paper presented in the UGC sponsored national conference on Dr
Ambedkar and Social Justice in the Karnataka college, Bidar on March
23, 2007

Rishikesh Bahadur Desai
Reporter, The Hindu, Bidar
[EMAIL PROTECTED],
rishiscribe.blogspot.com
aladamara.blogspot.com

Black Buck resort in Bidar by Jungle Lodges and Resorts

2011-03-02T05:51:00.000-08:00

JLR to launch blackbuck resort in Bidar on March 1

It is in the Khanapur forest range

Quiet retreat: A cottage on offer at the blackbuck resort of Jungle Lodges and Resorts near Vilaspur lake in Khanapur forest range in Bidar.
Jungle Lodges and Resorts (JLR) will inaugurate a property in the Khanapur forest range in Bidar on March 1.

“Online bookings for the blackbuck resort will start from Wednesday,” Deputy Commissioner Sameer Shukla said here on Tuesday. It will be formally inaugurated later. JLR officials will take a decision on who will inaugurate the resort and when, Mr. Shukla said.

He was speaking to journalists after inspecting work on the lakeside property.

According to him, the property on the banks of the Vilaspur lake will have 18 cottages of three categories and one royal suite. The blackbuck resort is the first JLR property to have a royal suite.

The resort is situated on seven acres of revenue land gifted to JLR by the district administration. The tariff ranges from Rs. 2,750 to Rs. 3,250 per person per day for the cottages. Tariff for the suite is yet to be decided.

Each cottage has a waiting room, double bed, wash room, and a balcony that opens to the water front. “The specialty of this resort is that each cottage is on the water front. Cottages are designed in such a way that privacy is ensured for each cottage. One balcony is not visible from the other,” he said.

JLR is offering joy fishing, coracle rides, nature treks and star gazing in the Khanapur forest. Wildlife tour guides will accompany campers to blackbuck spotting and bird watching in the woods around the resort.

Water sports will be organised in the Karanja dam. JLR will take campers to guided tours around national monuments in Bidar, including the Bidar Fort, Mahamud Gawan Madrassa and the Ashtur tombs.

The cost of the project is around Rs. 3.5 crore. Of this, Rs. 2.75 crore has been spent. “We have sought assistance from the Union Government and are hopeful of getting around Rs. 1.2 crore,” Mr. Shukla said. As many as 10 youth from surrounding villages are employed here, he said.

Bookings can be done from Wednesday on www.junglelodges.com. Details can be had on Ph: 080 40554055, 9449599774.

The Blackbuck Resort, named after the Krishna mruga, the native wildlife species of Bidar, is situated on the banks of the Vilaspur tank. The tank, built by the Minor Irrigation Department, is surrounded by mountains and is around 20 km from Bidar.

“We have requested the Minor Irrigation Department to hand over the tank to the Tourism Department. They have agreed to consider the idea,” Mr. Jothiramalingam said. If not for the support of the then Deputy Commissioner Harsha Gupta, we would not have thought of opening an eco and wildlife resort in north Karnataka, he said. The district administration donated 7 acres and contributed Rs. 1 crore for the construction of cottages.

The property will have 18 cottages, of which 12 are complete. It has a lakeside restaurant, a fireplace, a bar corner, a manicured garden and a jungle walk trail. A conference room will be built to enable corporates to combine pleasure trips with business.

“We will offer two distinct packages for lodgers,” said JLR Managing Director N.D. Tiwari.

“The first day, lodgers will get a guide-assisted tour of the Bidar Fort. We have requested the Archaeological Survey of India to allow our lodgers into those parts of the fort that have been kept out of bounds for public,” he said. Tourists will be taken to the Chitta forest to watch Blackbucks and to the Karanja dam for water sports. They can trek at the Khanapur forest near the tank and spend the nights star gazing on the lake bund. Tours on the second day will be custom made. Tourists can go to Basava Kalyan or visit other archaeological monuments in Bidar. “Our guides will accompany them,” Mr. Tiwari said.

“We plan to open bookings immediately so that people coming for Bidar Utsav can stay at the cottages,” Mr. Jothiramalingam said. Bidar Utsav is scheduled to begin on February 18.

Vilaspur resort is JLR's newest property. It is JLR's second resort in North Karnataka after the sloth bear resort in Hampi in Bellary district.

JLR Managing Director N.D. Tiwari told The Hindu that the property would have 18 cottages that could accommodate two campers each.

Mr. Tiwari said the project was taken up with the assistance of the district administration that allotted seven acres of revenue land adjacent to the forest for construction of cottages. “The then Deputy Commissioner Harsh Gupta took the initiative. Otherwise, it would have taken us sometime to plan and build a resort in Bidar,” he said.

“We have retained ownership of the land. We also share 25 per cent of the total cost of the project estimated at Rs, 4 crore,” district administration sources said.

Vilaspur tank is situated deep inside the Khanapur reserve forest, and is surrounded by hilly forest on all four sides. The tank is spread on an area of 35 acres and has a catchment area of over 200 acres of land.

By building cottages in such wilderness, JLR is trying to tap the young tourist in the IT and related industries in Hyderabad. Vilaspur is 15 km from Bidar. Bidar is 110 km Hyderabad.

Apart from the jungle walks, the resort will offer attractive experiences like coracle rides and fishing in the tank. Campers will be taken to the Bidar fort, the heritage tombs at Ashtur and Choukhandi, Mohamud Gawan Madrassa, Amir Barid and Qasim Barid and the Baridshahi Deccan garden. Campers will get to take part in boat races in the Paapnash lake. “We are exploring possibilities of arranging water sports in the Karanja reservoir,” the officials said.

“The resort will boost tourism in this part of the State,” said Conservator of Forests, Gulbarga circle, A. Radha Devi. Most people don't know that there are large tracts of forest land in Bidar and Gulbarga.

The resort will correct the image of Bidar from a hot dry district into a green humid district,'' she said.

Online reservation for the Vilaspur resort will start soon on www.junglelodges.com. Details can be had from the JLR corporate office (ph: 080 40554055).

Literary Monuments of a Glorious Past

2011-02-27T18:24:00.000-08:00

Did you know that the first ever Urdu book in the world was published
in Bidar? Did you know that a poem sung in praise of Prophet Mohammad
in the Masjid –E- Nabavi in Madina was written by a poet who lived in
Bidar in the 18th century? Has any one told you that Chalukya King
Someshwara the Third of Kalyana produced a Sanskrit encyclopedia a
thousand years before anyone attempted writing encyclopedias in the
modern world?

The literary heritage of Bidar is as rich as its cultural history.
Sadly, the poetry emanating from the red soil here has not received as
much acclaim as the archeological monuments here.

Now for the answers. Fakhruddin Nizami's `Masnavi Kadam Rao Padam Rao'
was written and published between 1325–1338 A D. That is considered
the first Urdu book ever published. Hazrath Ishqui who died in
Hyderabad in 1805 wrote the Naat Ya Shafi Ul Wara that is sung by
believers in Madina and around the world. Someshwara’s `Manasollasa’
is considered the first ever encyclopedia.

What we all need to be proud of is that fact that literature produced
in this land a thousand years ago gained international fame at that
time and that reputation stayed on for centuries.

In ancient times, Bhaskara Acharya developed the science of Algebra.
Born and brought up in Bidar, he had settled in Ujjain. Vigyaneshwara
of Masimad village wrote Mitakshara that went on to become the base of
modern Hindu law. Bilhana and Kalhana, the court poets of King
Vikramaditya produced immortal works. While Kalhana’s Raja Tarangini
is considered the first history work in India, Bilhana’s love poetry
titled Kaurapankashika has been translated over 20 times into English
and European languages. Brajishnu who hails from Hallikhed, wrote
Vaddaradhane, the first prose work in Kannada.

While emperors tried to conquer the world by fighting wars, a humble
saint- poet won over humanity just by meditating in the caves of
Basava Kalyan and practicing what he preached. Basaveshwara led a
social revolution in the 12th century that changed the way people of
different castes and classes treated each other around the world. He
wrote metaphysical poetry and motivated lakhs of ordinary men and
women to write and sing Vachana poetry that continues to inspire us
even to this day.

In medieval times, Mohammad Gawan built Bidar brick by brick and made
it a city that competed with Rome in fame. His seminal work `Manazir
Ul Insha’ describes poetics of Farsi language. His other work Riyaz Ul
Insha, a collection of letters to scholars, artists, Kings and heads
of state is the ultimate referral book on medieval history.

Another view of Bahmani rule is provided by the Poornananda Charitre of
Hanumadatmaja who hailed from the fort city.

The Bahmani and Baridshahi Kings were art lovers and promoted poets,
artists and craftsman. They not only provided a platform to local
poets, but also introduced global poetry to Bidar.

Among those who received their patronage are Abdul Quareem Hamdani,
Mulla Nizami, Syed Taheer, Mulla Dawood Bidri, Mulla Quashfi, Mahamood
and Qutbuddin Quadri. Bahmannama, is a historical work in verse that
was written in the 15th century.

Poet Feroze Bidri who lived during the transition period between
Bahmani and Baridshahi kings is credited to have brought out the first
poetry collection in Urdu. After spending his youth in Bidar which was
then called Mohammadabad- Bidar, Feroze settled in Golconda where he
died.

Interestingly, a significant number of non-Muslims also wrote Urdu
poetry. Works of Hindus like Pandit Yashwantrao Korekal of Manik Nagar
and Pandit Damodar Pant ‘Zaki’ and Sikhs like Sardar Charan Singh
Charan of Bidar are popular even today.

Several writers prospered during the reign of the Hyderabad Nizams.
Works of writers like Hazrat Ghulam Mohinuddin Fitrat, Maqdoom
Mohinuddin, Hazrat Wafa, Sikandar Ali Wajd, Hazrat Kunj-E-Nasheen,
Syed Hussein Saifi and Hazrat Sajjad Basha Sajjad have brought fame to
Bidar. Similarly, the most famous poet in the recent times is Rashid
Ahmed Rashid. He is described as “Shayar-E-Hayat” or the Sun who
shines on the land of poetry. Abdul Jabbar Malkapuri is considered an
important historian of modern times.
Eom

A Polio case suspected in Bidar in Karnataka

2011-02-14T02:50:00.000-08:00

A 13 -month old child in Walsang village in Bhalki taluk has been diagnosed with Acute Flaccid Paralysis. Doctors suspect that one of the causes of the condition may be Polio.

On December 29, Gouse Khan, a farmer from Walsang took his 13 months old son Sharbaz Khan to the primary health centre at Beeri (B) village complaining that he was unable to move his legs `like other children of his age’. The paediatrician in the hospital suspected nerve injury and referred him to the taluk hospital. Medical tests were done in Bhalki and Bidar and doctors decided that it was a case of acute flaccid paralysis. Stool samples have been sent to hi-tech laboratories in Bangalore and Mumbai. The child has been sent to Hyderabad for motor neuron testing on Friday. A senior doctor has accompanied the child to Hyderabad.
``Records show the child had received all the immunization doses due for his age. However, there are several ways in which infections can spread. The child might have been exposed to infections from a patient in his surroundings, the inter-state travel of the family or any other person carrying dormant strains of the virus,’’ sources said.

However, doctors say there is no cause for panic. ``Every year, we refer 30-40 cases of Paralysis for detailed tests. I think this is one such case,’’ said Reproductive Child Health officer Sharanayya Swamy.
``Polio is just one of the several causes of Paralysis. Apart from Polio, paralysis can be caused by Transverse myelitis, Guillain-Barré syndrome, enteroviral encephalopathy, traumatic neuritis, Reye's syndrome and deep injury affecting motor nerves,’’ district health and family welfare officer Dr Satish Ekhellikar said. ``The rule is that every case of acute flaccid Paralysis should be thoroughly investigated and that is what we are doing now,’’ Dr Ekhellikar said.

``If the tests prove positive, we have to accept the fact and work harder,’’ Deputy Commissioner Sameer Shukla said. ``We have to reach more people and see that not a single child is left out. More importantly, we have to ensure that this does not set off a panic reaction and derail the immunization process,’’ Mr Shukla said.

According to government sources, the last case of Polio in Karnataka was detected in 2007. ``Bidar has remained Polio-free for 12 years. If we have a fresh case on our hands now, we need to introspect on our work, on the cold chain that stores and transports Polio vaccines and the process in which vaccination is done. Awareness levels among the people should be raised and civil society should work closely with the government in ensuring that no child is left out,’’ sources said. Eom

Women's reservation in Panchayats

2010-12-16T05:08:00.000-08:00

Of all the 13 women members in the Bidar Zilla Panchayat, Vice President Meenakshi Sangram is the only one who answers her phone. Voters’ experience with other women members has been different.
When people dialed the number of other women members, it was their husbands who picked up the phone and spoke, without letting the women handle the issue.

``Men think I am aggressive and dominant. But I just want to say I like to make my presence felt,’’ says Ms Sangram. The Congress leader who has ambitions of being the ZP president, is fighting the polls again from Kamal Nagar in Aurad taluk.

But she seems to be an exception. Usually, male relatives tend to sideline women members in rural and urban local bodies. When The Hindu spoke to women ticket aspirants from various parties, it was invariably the men who wanted to comment. ``You tell me what kind of a reaction you are looking for. I will call you back with the comment,’’ said a JD(S) ticket aspirant’s son, without passing on the phone to the lady.

This has led to a widespread opinion that increasing women’s seats in Panchayats does not help the cause of women as their male relatives are the ones who actually rule. Some people also say not enough women are politically inclined to seek tickets.

``Women are just pawns in the hands of politically ambitious men,’’ says BJP district president Subhash Kallur. ``For example, yesterday we were discussing about the claims by three leaders for a seat reserved for women, and we ended up discussing about their husbands. No one in the party office even knew the names of women candidates. It is the same in every party,’’ he said.

``Increasing women’s reservation is an ambitious move. But it will take time before the benefits are visible,’’ says Khaji Arshed Ali, Congress MLC and Editor of the Hindi Daily Bidar Ki Awaaz.

``Presently, the Panchayat elections are just another of the battles between men. They use the names of women for elections as women’s reservation is mandated by law,’’ he said. He feels it will be some time before women learn the ropes of politics and governance and don’t yield to pressures by men at home.

``We have been telling men to leave the women members alone and let them take decisions. But men don’t want to give up so soon,’’ says JD(S) leader and MLA Bandeppa Kashempur.

But women leaders and activists disagree.

``Who are saying there are no women candidates? The men are saying it. That is because they refuse to look around,’’ says NGO activist Kavita hushare. ``In Bidar district alone, women are successfully running many NGOs and all SHGs. Then why are men assuming women can not run Panchayats? Women can definitely do that if they are allowed to,’’ she says.

Congress leader Draupadi Dandin sees this as a conspiracy by men to retain power.
``Just as MLAs and IAS officers don’t want to empower Zilla Panchayats, men don’t want to empower women,’’ she said. ``Therefore, even if you increase women’s reservation to 100 per cent, it will not help women. What is needed is a change of heart among men,’’ she said.

``The arguments that women would be less corrupt than men or that they could be better administrators and managers are true. But then, these qualities can be exhibited only when women are allowed to function independently. Which man wants to do that?’’, says Shakuntala Beldale, BJP state women’s wing president.

JD(S) leader and former ZP president Rajashree Shrikanth Swamy says reservation should stay for some decades till the system settles down. ``Men should get accustomed to the fact that women can take decisions affecting their lives and that it is a natural process. Till then, reservation should stay,’’ she said. She says the 50 per cent quota for women is justified. ``If half the voters are women, why can’t half the elected representatives be women?,’’ she said.
Eom

The Craving

2010-11-29T02:39:00.000-08:00

This is a story I translated for my friend Chidananda Sali. Sali is an award winning Kannada writer, who has brought out books of short stories, poetry and Ghazals.

The story was read in a recent workshop organised by the Kendra Sahitya Akademi in Cochin, Kerala

The Craving

Even before he was completely awake that morning, an intense craving
for a smoke hit Masterji.

Oh Shucks… he almost said it audibly. But he could hear his heart
shout loudly that not yielding to the craving as not as easy as
wishing it away.

For a man of 30, Masterji looked three times older. There were scores
of fights between his heart and mind every day. These constant battles
had taken a toll on his health. His cheek had gone into hiding in his
mouth, and he was getting weaker and weaker every moment.

The craving hit him from within like a battering ram. It seemed to
have come well prepared. It had come equipped with a concoction of
logic, justification and the will to convince him to yield to it.

He thought of the joy of smoking a cigarette standing in his balcony
early morning. His hair would flutter in the cool morning breeze, the
hot smoke warming him up from inside.
But he was still asleep. ``What the hell is this? Why should I be
hounded by so many thoughts even before I am fully awake,’’ he
thought.

Smoking brought him vivid memories of childhood. Smoke spiraling out
of his cigarette danced in the air taking various forms, like a kite
that had broken off from its tether, like a bunch of clouds and live
the divine curls of Lord Bahubali in Shravanabelagola. This for
Masterji, sounded much like the designs his soap bubbles produced when
he was young. He would prepare froth from the soap powder and use a
neem twig to blow bubbles. The bubbles would suddenly paint themselves
in the colours of the rainbow and spin around as if some unseen force
pushed them around.

Masterji wondered how a simple taste for tobacco has the creative
power to bring memories of childhood. ``This is something out of the
ordinary. But then this justifies the need for a smoke now,’’ he said
to himself. His heart rejoiced at the little combat it had won against
the mind.

But then, Masterji is no non smoker. It is just that he has not smoked
for some time now. Well, it is not just three days or three weeks or
three months. He took a vow three years ago and has not broken it for
so long.

In these many years, he has been tempted many times. His friends have
smoked in front of him and had a good time. However, he has been
steadfast in maintaining that he would not join them. Though this
earned him appreciation from well wishers, some of his friends were
jealous that he was able to summon up such courage.

There were several stories about him and his addiction. Friends and
acquaintances spoke about how he would create forms in air puffing out
smoke. Like a musician playing a wind instrument, he had the
dedication and sincerity towards his work. He had perfect control on
the air he inhaled and the smoke he exhaled. The smoke spirals began
by looking like the mint in `the mint with the hole’ Ad and end up
like a bracelet on a plump woman’s arms. They would then lose form and
disappear.

He would hold back smoke in his mouth and release it little by little.
He would run trains of smoke circles one behind the other and sit down
enjoying their dance in space. When people saw this in awe, he would
feel proud of himself.

But then, smoking was never an ideological issue with him. He never
thought it was a bad thing that needed to be avoided.
When ever his friends asked him to quit smoking, he would recite
Kannada poetry that justified or even glorified smoking. He would
quote from B R Lakshman Rao who likened cigarette to his girlfriend
who he would not live without. He would recite a couplet by Dr
Booduguppa Prahlad Reddy that said he hated cigarettes so much that he
set them on fire when ever he found one.

He was also fond of bragging about the variety of cigarettes he had
smoked. He would find a chance to stop discussion on any topic and
turn it towards a talk on cigarettes. He would speak at length about
where he found a particular variety of cigarettes and how he felt
smoking them.

His reminiscences would wander around the Australian Marlboro that
looks like a piece of white candy rather than cigarette, the King
Edwards cigar from USA that comes with a plastic coating and costs Rs
35 per piece, the Café Cream that came in small boxes and had a coffee
flavour, the Gudang Garam of Indonesia with sweet flavour, Kukuru of
Nepal, Royal of Bangladesh, Wonder from Pakistan, 555, Annpenn, Benson
and Hedges. He would also speak equally proudly about the half burnt
beedis that he had stolen from his father.

Such an avid addict had kicked the habit and maintained his vow for
three years, like a religious ritual.
But today’s craving was so strong that it was filling all corners of
his mind like smoke in an empty room. He began wondering if any dream
had led him to it. However, in a moment he realized he had never been
able to recall his dreams.

The whole morning, he had a feeling that something was missing.
Something that had made his life less meaningful, less satisfying. It
did not take much thought to realize what- a smoke.

His wife, who was watching him since he woke up, lost patience. ``What
is wrong with you? Is your tummy upset? You are farting like hell. Why
don’t you stop eating and take care of that? Why do you go around
smelling foul like a garbage truck?’’ she shouted. Masterji did not
know how to react. He just tapped his fingers on his tummy as if it
was a drum, and waited for a reply. Then he got up and went away. Once
he school he realized everyone had begun to avoid him for his foul
odour. A fellow teacher asked him for a pen to sign the muster. While
he turned around to hand it over, he saw she was covering her nose
with a handkerchief. Was he still smelling of tobacco after three
years of quitting smoking?

Another teacher told him it was World Anti Tobacco Day in school and
the local government doctor was arriving to speak. Of course, everyone
was invited. What a cruel coincidence! He was being stalked by an
intense craving for a smoke on World Anti Tobacco Day. He resolved to
defeat it and moved towards the Tenth Class.

When the doctor ended his speech on dangers of tobacco, no one was
sure if anyone understood. The speech was so loaded with jargon that
it was possible the doctor himself had not understood it. The head
master looked at teachers and gestured that they could speak. Masterji
felt as if an unseen force had pushed him to the dais. He began
passionately speaking about the pleasures of smoking and began
describing various types of cigarettes. A chit from the audience woke
him up. What was he saying? He realized his folly and turned his
speech into one against the dangers of tobacco. He said all the
pleasures of smoking were a farce. ``Nicotine is poison and smoking is
suicide,’’ he said and got down. He had just saved himself and the
school’s reputation.

At lunch, everyone was talking about the speech. Teachers spoke about
how engrossed he was in talking romantically about tobacco, how
smartly he changed track after the chit flew in and in what direction
the speech might have progressed if there was no chit. He joined the
gang and cracked jokes and laughed. For a few minutes, he forgot about
the craving that was chasing him like a beast. He laughed so much that
he felt tired. After all teachers had left the staff room, he began to
doze off in his chair.

When he woke up, it was closing time. He began to worry about how he
would cover the syllabus for higher classes. At the closing prayers,
he announced he would take special classes.

He reigned like a King in the special class. The response was
encouraging too. Santana Krishna, the duffer who spelled his name
Sattana Kashta, had done his sums correctly and got a pat on the back.

Masterji began recollecting real life scenes where Santana Krishna
used to sneak out of school and go swimming. Teaches would send other
boys to fetch him. A few boys would tie literally carry him to class,
as if they were carrying a corpse. He was so rough and unwilling to
learn that teachers took turns in beating him up. Masterji was
surprised to see such a duffer turn into a keen student. For a moment,
he felt he was Gautam Buddha, who had converted Anguli Mala from a
cruel dacoit to a saint.

He felt he had caused this tremendous change in him and the other
students. He felt very proud. He stopped lecturing on mathematics and
announced he would give them lessons of life. He began by defining who
is a good student and who is bad.

Then the talk turned towards teachers. In trying to describe the
virtues of a good teacher, he abused all the colleagues he despised.
However, he took enough care to see that his students understood who
he was talking about. He also took digs at teachers who smoked or
chewed gutka. Comparing himself to them, he said he was above board.
He announced he had no bad habits and that he was the best. He was the
best because he could motivate even a bad student like Santana Krishna
to become a studious boy. And this was no mean achievement. When he
ended his talk, he was convinced of all the lies he had told.

By then, it hit him that it had got pretty late and that his wife was
alone at home, waiting for him. She will start shouting now. I better
hurry, he said to himself running home. He reached his front door in
minutes. A lock on the front door brought him in touch with reality.
His wife had gone home and he was all alone. He began missing her
badly. Her voice, her manner of leaving him to himself, and her silent
working around the house, everything. Even her temper tantrums began
to appear lovely. He was so lost that it did not occur to him that he
could listen to some songs by putting on the tape recorder.
He spread a mat and threw himself on it. However, the slow sounds of a
lizard muttering on the ceiling made him feel lonely, sad and
probably, afraid.

Somehow the sense of being alone and the presence of the lizard seem
to go together and form an empty hole in his mind. That is exactly
when an intense desire for a cigarette arose from within him again.

He felt that he was getting weaker and weaker and his resolve against
smoking was diluting. He shivered at the thought that he would not be
able to keep the promise he made to himself. He would also join the
league of those teachers `with bad character’ that he told students
about. He began to imagine that the craving was not just a feeling. It
was a formless demon that had come well planned. It had come to him
when he was alone and all his defenses broke down one by one.

It seemed like a million strong army had pounced on an unarmed,
innocent guy. It felt as if every evil force in the world had
conspired to make him sin again. All his efforts to find a
justification for remaining true to his resolve began to side against
him. It seemed as he was unable to find any reason not to yield to the
addictive passion.

This fight between his mind and his heart went on for over an hour and
at the end of it, he found himself losing it. All the reasons that he
could conjure up to say I will not smoke, began to cross the line and
began stand beside the line of ``I will smoke. Come what may’’. He
later began rationalizing. The only way I can feel better now is by
smoking. After all, it is a question of just one cigarette. What will
I lose if I puff off just one cigarette? He began to ask himself.
Anyway my wife is out of town and no one will know. In fact this is an
opportunity to satisfy a small urge and let it go forever, he told
himself. He got up hurriedly, put on a shirt, checked whether he had
some coins in his pocket and went out. He was feeling extremely happy.
Tricky fellow, he said to himself and smiled.

It was dark outside and it helped avoid guilt. He came to the village
circle and paused to decide on which shop to go to buy cigarettes.
There was a paan shop nearby. But it was near a bar and he did not
want to be seen walking towards a bar. He feigned a serious look and
began walking towards the opposite direction. At the shop, he bought a
cigarette and a match box. The girl selling cigarettes was young and
must have been in primary school. ``I am a high school teacher and the
chances of her recognizing me are less,’’ he thought. But then he did
not want to take a risk. That is why he said no when she offered to
light his cigarette with a lighter kept at her shop. He walked away
briskly, to reduce chances of being seen at the shop. Guilt began
surfacing slowly and his forehead was wet with sweat. He was no longer
the happy man he was when he left home. He fought hard to bring back
those emotions and sat on the parapet wall over a stream.

His hear was pounding. An hour ago he was fighting a righteous battle
against the craving for a smoke. Then addiction had gained an upper
hand. Now, he was fighting to light a cigarette and guilt seemed to be
getting the better of him. But the cool breeze made him feel better
and reduced his tensions. He decided to settle everything with a
smoke. Just in front of him were two people lost in conversation. They
had not noticed him. Neither had he seen their faces as it was dark.
He fought hard to smile at himself and put a cigarette to his lips
that had stopped trembling. He lit a match and brought it near his
face. He lit the cigarette and puffed without a care in the world.

He had not even taken back his hand away from his mouth, that Santana
Krishna who was sitting next to him, got up suddenly, and said
``Namaskara Sir”.

Eom

BJP government reduces OBC seats in Panchayat bodies

2010-11-09T05:17:00.000-08:00

This is the story of the reduction in OBC seats in Panchayats I wrote about recently.
The BJP government in Karnataka has reduced OBC seats in rural local bodies
by 33%. This could mean that politically backward communities and minorities would have no place in the Panchayats.

A recent ordinance of the state government amends the Karnataka
Panchayat Raj Act and caps the reservation to various deprived
communities at 50 per cent. This means that half the seats are
available to general merit candidates. This, according to the
ordinance, will be achieved by keeping the reservation for SC/STs in
tact and reducing the number of seats reserved for OBCs. Many backward
classes leaders have opposed this move as they say it would affect the
balance of political power in the villages.

This will impact the political system at the grass root levels. The
order will reduce the total number of OBC seats in Zilla Panchayats to
223 from 334. This is an average reduction of 33 per cent. The new
seat matrix has been published on the state election commission’s
website www.karsec.gov.in.

The worst affected district is Raichur where the reduction will be 84
per cent. The ZP in this district has 35 seats. The reduction of OBC
seats there would be reduced to two from 12.

In Chitradurga, the reduction in seats would be to three from 11 (75
%). Similarly, in Bidar it would be three from 10 (73 %), Bellary
-three from 10(70 %), Kolar -seven from 18 (62%), Chamaraj Nagar
-three from seven (58%), Mysore-seven from 15(54%), Davanagere five
from 11(55%), Bangalore urban five from nine (55 %).

Districts that will not have any changes are Dakshina Kannada, Udupi,
Mandya, Dharwad and Uttara Kannada.

Taluk Panchayats will also witness significant changes. As many as
nine TPs will not have any seats reserved for OBC or minority members.
In effect, this might mean that these bodies will have no members from
these communities as OBCs and minorities find it difficult to win from
general seats. Interestingly, details of these nine taluk Panchayats
are not available on the state election commission website.

Backward class leaders have criticized the order. ``It is fatal to the
welfare of the backward classes. It destroys the concept of
proportional representation to backward classes. It is
unconstitutional and should be withdrawn,’’ feels Constitutional
expert and former chairman of the backward classes commission
Raviverma Kumar.

According to him, the 50 per cent cap on reservation fixed by the
Supreme Court is only for the purpose of education and employment and
not political reservation.

``In fact in the M Vijayan vs State of Tamilnadu case, the Supreme
Court has allowed Tamil Nadu and Karnataka to extend the amount of
reservation to beyond 50 per cent if population data justified such an
increase.
It has also observed that the eligibility criteria for seeking
political reservation are different from those needed for seeking
reservation in education and employment. Therefore, reservation quota
for OBCs should not be reduced,’’ he said.

``Reducing the quantum of reservation for backward classes amounts to
supporting the politically overrepresented castes. Over the years,
Lingayats and Vokkaligas who together form about 25 per cent of the
state’s population, have been winning over 50 per cent seats in the
state assembly. The situation was similar in the Panchayat bodies till
1993. They got due representation in these bodies only because of
reserved seats. If these seats are reserved, OBCs and minorities will
be kept out of the local self government system for ever, cautions
Congress MLC Khaji Arshed Ali. He and some other Congress leaders are
planning to challenge the government order in the High Court.

JD(S) leader and former law minister M C Nanaiah questioned the wisdom
of the government in enacting an ordinance to make such an important
change in the reservation policy. Why is the government shy of
discussing the issue? It is strange that the government brings in a
bill when it raises women’s reservation to 50 per cent but hides
behind an ordinance when cuts down OBC seats, he said.

Backward classes leader B Narayan says BJP leaders have taken this
step with malafide intentions. ``The Mandal judgment fixed the upper
limit of reservations at 50 per cent 15 years ago. If the BJP
government is saying that it is implementing it now, it is just an
excuse. Reducing political opportunities for the OBCs in favour of the
upper castes is nothing short of casteism. It should be opposed,’’ he
said.

When contacted, Panchayat raj and rural development minister Jagadish
Shettar ruled out withdrawing the ordinance or the order. He said that
the matrix was fixed according to the Supreme Court order in the
Mandal case and was legal and valid.
Eom

Bellary, New York Times and a hapless journalist

2010-08-31T06:50:00.001-07:00

-This is the story I wrote for the Kannada web portal www.kendasampige.com
All rights rest with them. Wrongs rest with me

ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ಗಣಿದಣಿಗಳ ಕುರಿತು ನ್ಯೂಯಾರ್ಕ್ ಟೈಮ್ಸ್ ನ ಜಿಮ್ ಯಾರ್ಡ್ಲಿ ಬರೆದದ್ದು ಲೋಕ ವಿಖ್ಯಾತವಾಗಿದೆ.ಆದರೆ ಅವರ ಜೊತೆಜೊತೆಗೇ ಇದ್ದ ನಮ್ಮ ಹೃಷಿಕೇಶ್ ದೇಸಾಯರು ಪಟ್ಟ ಪಡಿಪಾಟಲು ಇಲ್ಲಿದೆ.
ಅಂದು ರಾತ್ರಿಪಾಳಿ ಮುಗಿಸಿ ಮಲಗಿದ್ದೆ. ಯಾರೋ ನನ್ನನ್ನು ಹಕ್ಕೊಂಡು ಹೊಡೆದಿದ್ದಾರೋ ಎನ್ನುವಂತೆ ನಿದ್ದೆ ಬಂತು.
ನನ್ನ ಬಾಸ್ ಫೋನ್ ಬಂತು. ಧಡಕ್ಕನೇ ಎದ್ದೆ. ಆಗ ಚುಮುಚುಮು ೫ ಗಂಟೆ. ಇಷ್ಟೊತ್ತಿಗೆ ಫೋನ್ ಮಾಡ್ತಾರಲ್ಲೋ ‘......’, ಅಂದುಕೊಂಡೆ.
‘ನಾನೂ ಹತ್ತು ವರ್ಷದಿಂದ ನೋಡ್ತೇನಿ. ನಾನು ಕರೆದಾಗ ಒಂದು ದಿನ ಆದರೂ ಹಿಂಗ ಗಡಿಬಿಡಿ ಮಾಡೀರ‍್ಯಾ. ಆ ಸುಡುಗಾಡು ಕೆಲಸ, ಈ ಸುಡುಗಾಡು ಗಡಿಬಿಡಿ. ಹೊಗೊ ನಿಮ್ಮ ಮಂಜಾಳಾಗ', ಅಂತ ನನ್ನ ಹೆಂಡತಿ ಬೈದು ಮತ್ತೆ ಮಲಗಿದಳು. ರೂಢಿಯಂತೆ ಅದರಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ಪೆಲಿಂಗ್ ಮಿಸ್ಟೇಕ್ ಕಂಡು ಹಿಡಿದರೆ ಹೊಡೆತ ತಿನ್ನುತೇನೆ ಎಂದು ಗೊತ್ತಾಗಿ ಸುಮ್ಮನಿದ್ದೆ.
ಮನೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಬಿಎಸ್ಸೆನ್ನೆಲ್ ಸಿಗ್ನಲ್ ಬರೋದಿಲ್ಲವಾದ್ದರಿಂದ ರಸ್ತೆಗೆ ಬಂದೆ. ಹಲೋ ಎಂದೆ. ಅತ್ತಲಿನವರಿಗೆ ಕೇಳಲಿಲ್ಲ ಎಂದು ಖಾತ್ರಿಯಾದ ಮೇಲೆ ಜೋರಾಗಿ ಹಲೋ ಎಂದೆ.
‘ದೇಸಾರ, ಬೆಳ ಬೆಳಿಗ್ಗೆ ಬ್ರೇಕಿಂಗ್ ನ್ಯೂಸು ಏನರೆಪಾ? ಗೌರಮೆಂಟು ಬಿತ್ತೋ? ಕ್ರೈಮ್ ಸುದ್ದಿಯೋ, ಪ್ಲೇನ್ ಕ್ರ್ಯಾಷೋ, ಪಬ್ ಅಟ್ಯಾಕೋ, ಮಿನಿಸ್ಟರ್ ಸ್ಕ್ಯಾಂಡಲ್ಲೋ, ಏನಾತು', ಅಂತ ಬಂದರು ಪಕ್ಕದ ಮನೆಯ ಕಾಳೆ. ಅವರು ರಾಜ್ಯ ಹಿರಿಯ ನಾಗರಿಕರ ಸಂಘದ ಉಪಾಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರು. ಅವರು ನನ್ನ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಬಹಳ ತಪ್ಪು ತಿಳಿದುಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ.
ಪತ್ರಕರ್ತರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಜನ ಅನೇಕ ತಪ್ಪು ತಿಳುವಳಿಕೆ ಹೊಂದಿರುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಅದರಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಮುಖವಾದವು ಇವು:
೧.ಪೇಪರಿನವರಿಗೆ ಜಗತ್ತಿನ ಎಲ್ಲಾ ವಿಷಯಗಳ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಎಲ್ಲಾ ಮಾಹಿತಿ ಇರುತ್ತದೆ.
೨.ರಾಜ್ಯ ಹಾಗು ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರ ದ ಎಲ್ಲಾ ನಾಯಕರು ಇವರೊಂದಿಗೆ ಸದಾ ಸಂಪರ್ಕದಲ್ಲಿ ಇರುತ್ತಾರೆ.
೩.ಸರಕಾರದ ಎಲ್ಲಾ ಇಲಾಖೆಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಪೇಪರಿನವರ ಪರಿಚಯದವರು ಇರುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಹೀಗಾಗಿ ಯಾವುದೇ ಇಲಾಖೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾರದಾದರೂ ಏನಾದರೂ ಕೆಲಸ ಇರಲಿ, ಪೇಪರಿನವರು ಹೋದರೆ ಲಂಚ ಇಲ್ಲದೇ ಕೆಲಸ ಆಗುತ್ತದೆ.
೪.ರಾಜಕಾರಣಿಗಳು, ಅಧಿಕಾರಿಗಳು, ಗುಂಡಾಗಳು ಹಾಗು ಇತರ ಕೆಟ್ಟವರೆಲ್ಲ ಪೇಪರಿನವರಿಗೆ ಹೆದರುತ್ತಾರೆ.
ಈ ರೀತಿಯ ನಂಬಿಕೆಗಳು ಜಾಸ್ತಿ ಇರುವದು ಪೇಪರನ್ನು ಬಿಟ್ಟೂ ಬಿಡದೇ ಓದುವ ಹಿರಿಯ ನಾಗರಿಕರಲ್ಲಿ.
ಅದು ಅಷ್ಟು ದೊಡ್ಡ ಸಮಸ್ಯೆ ಏನಲ್ಲ. ಇಂತಹ ಮೂಢನಂಬಿಕೆಗಳು ಕೆಲವು ಪತ್ರಕರ್ತರಲ್ಲೂ ಇರುತ್ತವೆ. ಅದು ನಿಜವಾದ ಸಮಸ್ಯೆ.
ಇರಲಿ. ಕಾಳೆ ಅವರು, ಅವರ ಸ್ನೇಹಿತರಾದ ಗೋರೆ ಅವರು, ದಿನಾ ಸಂಜೆ ನಮ್ಮ ಮನೆಗೆ ಬರುತ್ತಾರೆ. ನಾನು ಸುದ್ದಿ ಬರೆಯುತ್ತ ಕೂತಾಗ ಬಂದು ‘ಏನು ನಡದದ, ಏನು ಸುದ್ದಿ' ಅಂತ ಮಾತಿಗೆಳೆಯುತ್ತಾರೆ. ‘ನೀವು ಸುದ್ದಿ ಬರದು, ಅದು ಪ್ರಿಂಟ್ ಆಗಿ, ಪೇಪರ್ ಬಂದು, ಅದನ್ನು ನಾವು ಓದೋತನಕಾ ನಮಗ ಪೇಷನ್ಸ್ ಇಲ್ಲರೀ', ಎನ್ನುತ್ತಾರೆ. ‘ಇವತ್ತ ಎಲ್ಲಾ ತಿಳಕೋಬೇಕಾಗೇದ. ನಾಳೆ ತನಕ ಇರ‍್ತೇವೋ, ಇಲ್ಲೋ ಯಾವ ಬಲ್ಲ', ಅಂತ ತಮ್ಮ ಜೋಕಿಗೆ ತಾವೇ ನಗುತ್ತಾರೆ.
ಅಂತೂ ಅವತ್ತು ನಾನು ರಸ್ತೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ನಿಂತು ಜೋರು ಜೋರಾಗಿ ಮಾತಾಡಿದ್ದನ್ನು ಅವರು ಕೇಳಿದರು. ಯೌವ್ವನದಲ್ಲಿ ಅವರು ವಾಕಿಂಗ್ ಗೆ ಅಂತ ಬೇಗ ಏಳುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ನಂತರ ಅವರ ಮಡದಿ ತೀರಿಕೊಂಡು ಆರ್ಥ್ರೈಟಿಸ್ಸೇ ಅವರ ಜೀವನ ಸಂಗಾತಿಯಾಯಿತು. ಆ ನಂತರ ಅವರ ವಾಕಿಂಗ್ ನಿಂತು ಹೋಯಿತು. ಆದರೆ ಬೆಳಿಗ್ಗೆ ಬೇಗ ಏಳುವುದು, ಅಕ್ಕ ಪಕ್ಕದವರ ವ್ಯವಹಾರದಲ್ಲಿ ಮೂಗು ತೂರಿಸುವುದು ನಿಂತಿಲ್ಲ.
ಅವರು ಏನು ಸುದ್ದಿ ಅಂತ ಕೇಳಿದರು. ಏನೇನೂ ವಿಶೇಷ ಇಲ್ಲ ಸರ್, ಅಂತ ಹೇಳಿದರೆ ಅವರು ನಂಬಲಿಲ್ಲ. ‘ವಿಶೇಷ ಇಲ್ಲಂದರ ನಿಮ್ಮನ್ನು ಇಷ್ಟೊತ್ತಿಗೆ ರಸ್ತೆಗೆ ಕರೆಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದರ? ಸುಳ್ಳು ಹೇಳಬೇಡ್ರಿ', ಅಂತ ಹುಸಿ ನಗೆ ಬೀರಿದರು. “ಎಲ್ಲರೂ ಏನಾದರೂ ಒಂದು ಕಾರಣ ಇಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡು ರೋಡಿಗೆ ಬರ‍್ತಾರ್ರೀ. ವಿನಾಕಾರಣ ರೋಡಿಗೆ ಬೀಳೋರು ಅಂದರೆ ನಾವೇ,' ಅಂತ ನಕ್ಕೆ. ಈ ಬಾರಿ ಅವರು ನಗಲಿಲ್ಲ.
ಅಂದ ಹಾಗೆ ನಮ್ಮ ಸರ್ ಫೋನ್ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದು ಬೇರೆ ವಿಷಯಕ್ಕೆ. “ಇವತ್ತು ಬೆಳಿಗ್ಗೆ ಬೆಳಿಗ್ಗೆ ಜಿಮ್ಮಿಂದ ಫೋನ್ ಬಂತು', ಅಂತ ಸರ್ ಹೇಳಿದರು.
ತಾನು ದಿನಾಲೂ ಜಿಮ್ ಹೋಗುತ್ತೇನೆಂದೂ, ಒಂದು ದಿನ ತಪ್ಪಿಸಿದ್ದಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ಅವರು ಫೋನ್ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದರೆಂದೂ ಅದರ ಅರ್ಥ ಅಲ್ಲ.
ದೆಹಲಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ನ್ಯೂಯಾಕ್ ಟೈಮ್ಸ್ ವರದಿಗಾರನಾಗಿರುವ ಅವರ ಸ್ನೇಹಿತ ಜಿಮ್ ಯಾರ್ಡಲಿ ಅವರು ಅವರಿಗೆ ಎರಡು ದಿನದ ಹಿಂದೆ ಫೋನ್ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದು ಅವರಿಗೆ ಇವತ್ತು ಬೆಳಿಗ್ಗೆ ನೆನಪಾಗಿ ಅವರು ಫೋನ್ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದರು.
‘ಜಿಮ್ ಅವರು ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಗೆ ಹೋಗಬೇಕಂತೆ. ಅವರ ಜತೆ ಹೋಗಲಿಕ್ಕೆ ಜನ ಬೇಕಿತ್ತು. ನೀನು ಹೋಗು. ಅವರಿಗೆ ಅನುಕೂಲ ಆಗುತ್ತದೆ' ನಿನಗೂ ವಿಶೇಷ ಅನುಭವ ಆಗುತ್ತದೆ ' ಎಂದರು. ಅಂಥವರ ‘ಅನುಕೂಲ' ಎಂದರೆ ಏನು ಅಂತ ನನಗೆ ಗೊತ್ತು.
೧.ಅವರಿಗಾಗಿ ಟ್ಯಾಕ್ಸಿ, ಹೊಟೆಲ್ ಎಲ್ಲ ಬುಕ್ ಮಾಡಬೇಕು.
೨.ವಿಮಾನ ನಿಲ್ದಾಣದಲ್ಲಿ ಜೈಲುವಾಸಿಗಳಂತೆ ಪಾಟಿ ಹಿಡಿದು ನಿಂತು ಆ ಬಿಳಿಯರನ್ನು ಗುರುತು ಹಿಡಿದು ಕರೆದುಕೊಂಡು ಬರಬೇಕು
೩.ಅವರನ್ನೂ, ಅವರ ಕ್ಯಾಮೆರಾಮೆನ್ ಗಳನ್ನು (ವುಮೆನ್ ಆಗಿದ್ದರೆ ಬೇರೆ ವಿಷಯ) ಹೋಟೆಲಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಇಳಿಸಿ, ನೀರು ಬೇಕೆ, ಬೀರು ಬೇಕೆ ಅಂತ ಕೇಳಿ ಕೊಡಿಸಬೇಕು.
೪.ಅವರ ಸ್ವೀಟಿನ ಸಂಡಾಸಿನ ಒಳಗೆ ಹೋಗಿ, ಅದು ವಾಸನೆ ಬರುವುದಿಲ್ಲ ವೆಂದು ಖಾತ್ರಿ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಂಡು, ಬಾಸ್ ಗೆ ಫೋನ್ ಮಾಡಬೇಕು.
ಇನ್ನು ನನ್ನ ಅನುಭವ ಎಂದರೆ ಏನು ಅಂತಲೂ ನನಗೆ ಗೊತ್ತು.
೧.ಅವರ ಜತೆ ಗಾಡಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಹೋಗಿ, ರಸ್ತೆಯಲ್ಲಿನ ಎತ್ತು, ಆಕಳು, ನಾಯಿಗಳ ಬಗ್ಗೆ, ಟ್ರಾಫಿಕ್ ಬಗ್ಗೆ, ಬ್ರಿಟೀಷರ ಕಾಲದಿಂದ ಇರುವ ಕಾಲರಾ ಮಲೇರಿಯಾದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಅವರು ಮಾಡುವ ಅಸಹ್ಯ ಕಮೆಂಟುಗಳನ್ನು ಕೇಳುವುದು, ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಉತ್ತರವಾಗಿ ನಮ್ಮ ಮುಂದೆ ನಡುರಸ್ತೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ನಿಂತ ಎಮ್ಮೆಯಂತೆ ಗೋಣು ಹಾಕುವುದು.
೨.`ಈ ದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ ಅರ್ಧ ಜನರಿಗೆ ಟೈಂ ಇಲ್ಲ. ಇನ್ನರ್ಧ ಜನರಿಗೆ ಅದೊಂದು ಬಿಟ್ಟು ಬೇರೆ ಏನೂ ಇಲ್ಲ. ಇಂಥಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಜಾಪ್ರಭುತ್ವ ಹೇಗೆ ನಡೀತಾ ಇದೆ? ಐ ವಂಡರ್ 'ಅಂತ ಅವರು ಹೇಳಿದಾಗ. ‘ಯೆಸ್, ಐ ಟೂ ವಂಡರ್ 'ಅಂತ ದನಿಗೂಡಿಸುವುದು.
೩.ನೀವೆಲ್ಲ ಅರೇಂಜ್ಡ್ ಮ್ಯಾರೇಜ್ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತೀರಂತೆ ನಿಜವೇ? ನೀವು ಹೇಗೆ ಮದುವೆಯಾದದ್ದು? ಅಂತ ನನ್ನನ್ನು ಕೇಳಿದ ಆರು ಸಾವಿರದ ಎಳು ನೂರಾ ಎಂಬತ್ತೊಂಬತ್ತನೇ ಬಿಳಿಯನಿಗೆ ನಾನು ಬೇರೆ ಎಲ್ಲರಿಗೆ ಕೊಟ್ಟಂತೆ ಸ್ಮೈಲ್ ಕೊಟ್ಟು ಉತ್ತರ ಕೊಡಬೇಕು. ಅದರಿಂದ ಅವರ ಸಮಾಧಾನವಾಗುವುದಿಲ್ಲ. ಆದರೂ ಹೇಳಬೇಕು.
೪.‘ನಿಮ್ಮ ದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ತ್ರೀ ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯ ಇಲ್ಲ ಎನ್ನುತ್ತಾರಲ್ಲಾ? ’ ಅಂತ ಅವರು ಕೇಳುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಹೆಣ್ಣು ಮಕ್ಕಳು ಇದ್ದರೆ ಈ ಪ್ರಶ್ನೆ ಕೇಳುವ ಸಾಧ್ಯತೆ ಜಾಸ್ತಿ. ಅಂಥವರಿಗೆ ನಾನು ಏನನ್ನೂ ಹೇಳುವುದಿಲ್ಲ. ನನ್ನ ಮನೆಗೆ ಊಟಕ್ಕೆ ಕರೆದುಕೊಂಡು ಹೋಗುತ್ತೇನೆ. ಒಂದೆರಡು ತಾಸು ನನ್ನ ಮನೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಇದ್ದವರಿಗೆ ಈ ದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾರಿಗೆ ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯ ಇದೆ, ಯಾರಿಗೆ ಇಲ್ಲ ಎನ್ನುವ ವಿಷಯ ಸ್ಪಷ್ಟವಾಗುತ್ತದೆ.
೫.ಸಂದರ್ಶನಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಅವರು ಕೇಳುವ ಯಾರಿಗೂ ತಿಳಿಯದ ವಿಚಿತ್ರ ಪ್ರಶ್ನೆಗಳನ್ನು ಎಲ್ಲರಿಗೆ ತಿಳಿಯುವಂತೆ ಭಾಷಾಂತರಿಸಿ, ಭಾವಾಂತರಿಸಿ, ಕೇಳಿ, ತಿಳಿದು, ಅವರ ಸುದ್ದಿಗೆ ಅದು ಹೊಂದಿಕೊಳ್ಳುವಂತೆ ಅವರಿಗೆ ತಿಳಿ ಹೇಳುವುದು,
ಇಷ್ಟೆಲ್ಲ ಮಾಡಿದ ಮೇಲೆ ಅವರಿಂದ ನಮಗೆ ಸಿಗುವುದೇನು? ಅವರು ವಾಪಸ್ ಹೋಗುವಾಗ ವಿಮಾನ ನಿಲ್ದಾಣದಲ್ಲಿ ಒಂದು ಗಡಿಬಿಡಿಯ ಅಪ್ಪುಗೆ. (ಅದನ್ನು ಕೊಡುವವರು ವುಮೆನ್ ಆದರೆ ಪರವಾಗಿಲ್ಲ. ಆದರೆ ಬಹಳ ಸಾರಿ ಹಾಗಾಗುವುದಿಲ್ಲ!)
ಎರಡು ದಿನ ರಜೆ ತೆಗೆದುಕೊಳ್ಳ ಬೇಕೆಂದು ಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದ ನನಗೆ ಬೇಜಾರಾಯಿತು.
ಈ ದೊಡ್ಡವರಿಗೆಲ್ಲಾ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಗೆ ಹೋಗುವುದು ಯಾಕೆ ಬೇಕಿತ್ತು. ಅಲ್ಲಾ, ಸುಶ್ಮಾ ಸ್ವರಾಜ್ ಗೆ ವರಮಹಾಲಕ್ಷ್ಮಿ ಪೂಜೆಗೆ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಗೆ ಹೋಗಬೇಕು. ಕಾಂಗ್ರೆಸ್ ನವರಿಗೆ ತಮ್ಮ ಸ್ಥೂಲಕಾಯ ಪಕ್ಷದ ಕೊಲೆಸ್ಟರಾಲ್ ಕಡಿಮೆ ಮಾಡಲು ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಗೆ ಹೋಗಬೇಕು. ಅವರಿಗಿಂತ ಜೋರಾಗಿ ಕೂಗಿ ಅವರ ದನಿಯೇ ಕೇಳದಂತೆ ಮಾಡುವಂಥ ರ‍್ಯಾಲಿ ಮಾಡಲು ಬಿಜೆಪಿ ಯವರಿಗೆ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಗೆ ಹೋಗಬೇಕು.
ಆದರೆ ಈ ಜಿಮ್ ಯಾರ್ಡಲಿಗೆ ಯಾಕೆ ಹೋಗಬೇಕು?
“ಚೀನಾದಲ್ಲಿ ಜನ ಹಾವು ತಿಂದು ಮುಗಿಸಿದ್ದರ ಪರಿಣಾಮವಾಗಿ ಬೆಕ್ಕುಗಳಷ್ಟು ದೊಡ್ಡದಾಗಿ ಬೆಳೆದು ನಿಂತ ಇಲಿಗಳು" “ಯಂತ್ರಗಳ ಬಿಡಿಭಾಗಗಳನ್ನು ತಯಾರು ಮಾಡಿ ಸಾಕಾದ ಕಾರ್ಮಿಕರಿಂದ ನಕಲಿ ಮನುಷ್ಯರನ್ನು ತಯಾರು ಮಾಡಲು ಪರವಾನಗಿ ಆಗ್ರಹಿಸಿ ಮುಷ್ಕರ " ಇತ್ಯಾದಿ ಗಂಭೀರ ವರದಿಗಾರಿಕೆ ಮಾಡುವವರಿಗೆ ಗಣಿ-ಮನಿ ವಿಷಯ ಯಾಕೆ?
ಅವನೀಗ ಸಿರ್ಸಿ-ಸಿದ್ದಾಪುರ ನಡುವಿನ ಕಾಡಿನಲ್ಲಿರುವ ಸಿದ್ಧಿಯೊಬ್ಬ ಬರಾಕ್ ಒಬಾಮಾ ನಂತೆ ಕಾಣುವುದಕ್ಕೂ, ಭಾರತ ಮತ್ತು ಅಮೇರಿಕದ ನಡುವಿನ ಅಣು ಒಪ್ಪಂದಕ್ಕೂ ಇರುವ ಸಂಬಂಧ ಎನ್ನುವಂತಹ ಗಂಭೀರ ವಿಷಯದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಸಂಶೋಧನೆ ನಡೆಸುತ್ತಾ ದೆಹಲಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಅರಾಮಾಗಿ ಇದ್ದಾನೆ ಎಂದು ಕೇಳಿದ್ದೆ.
ಅದನ್ನೆಲ್ಲ ಬಿಟ್ಟು ಈ ಹೈಲೆವಲ್ ಮನುಷ್ಯನಿಗೆ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ಯಾಕೆ ನೆನಪಾಯಿತು? ಪುಲಿಟ್ಜರ್ ಪ್ರಶಸ್ತಿ ಬೇಕಾ ಎಂದರೆ ನನಗೊಂದು ನಮ್ಮಪ್ಪನಿಗೊಂದು ಎಂದು ಎರಡೆರಡು ಇಸಗೊಂಡಿರುವ ಈ ಪತ್ರಕರ್ತನಿಗೇಕೆ ಈ ಮಣ್ಣು ಧೂಳಿನ ಸಹವಾಸ ಎಂದು ಬೈದುಕೊಂಡೆ.
ಆದರೆ ಹಿರಿಯ ಪತ್ರಕರ್ತರು ಹೇಳಿದ ಕೆಲಸವನ್ನು ನಮ್ಮಂತಹ ಹುಲು ಮಾನವರು ಇಲ್ಲ ಎನ್ನುವುದುಂಟೆ?
ಹೀಗಾಗಿ ‘ಹೂಂ’ ಎಂದೆ. ಅವರು ಹತ್ತು ನಿಮಿಷ ಮಾತಾಡುತ್ತಾ ಹೋದರು. ನಾನು ಹೂಂ ಎನ್ನುತ್ತಾ ಇದ್ದೆ. ಹಾಗಾದರೆ ಈಗ ವಿಮಾನ ನಿಲ್ದಾಣಕ್ಕೆ ಹೊರಡಿ ಇನ್ನೇನು ಹತ್ತು ನಿಮಿಷದಲ್ಲಿ ಅವರ ವಿಮಾನ ಬಂದು ಬಿಡುತ್ತೆ ಎಂದರು.
“ಯಾರ್ಡಲಿ ಬರ‍್ತಾನಂತ ಬರಲಿ. ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ಮೆಣಸಿನಕಾಯಿ ಸಾಂಬಾರು ಕುಡಿಸಿಬಿಡ್ತೇನೆ. ಅವರ ಅಪ್ಪ ಅಮ್ಮ ನೆನಪಾಗಿರಬೇಕು. ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ಸಲ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ಅಂದಿರಬಾರದು ‘......’ ಅಂತ ಒಂದು ಸಾರಿ ಅಂದುಕೊಂಡೆ.
ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ತಾಸಿಗೆ ನಾನು ವಿಮಾನ ನಿಲ್ದಾಣದಲ್ಲಿ ನಿಂತಿದ್ದೆ. ವಿಮಾನ ಎರಡು ಗಂಟೆ ತಡವಾಗಿ ಬಂತು. ಬಂದವರು ಬಂದ ತಕ್ಷಣ,ಇದೆಂಥ ವ್ಯವಸ್ಥೆ. ಇದನ್ನೆಲ್ಲ ನೀವು ಹೇಗೆ ಸಹಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತೀರಿ? ಅಂತ ಅಂದರು. ನಾವು ಯಾರ‍್ಯಾರನ್ನೋ ಏನೇನನ್ನೋ ಸಹಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತೇವೆ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ. ಆಫ್ಟರಾಲ್ ಒಂದು ವಿಮಾನ ತಡವಾಗುವುದು ಏನು ಮಹಾ ಅಂತ ಅಂದೆ. ಅವರು ಅರ್ಧ ಮುಗುಳುನಕ್ಕರು. ನಾನು ಜೋರಾಗಿ ನಕ್ಕೆ.
ಅವರು ವಿಮಾನದಿಂದ ತಮ್ಮ ಸಾಮಾನು ಇಳಿಸುವುದು, ಅದನ್ನು ಎಣಿಸುವುದು, ಮಿನೆರೆಲ್ ವಾಟರ್ ಬಾಟಲ್ ತೊಗೊಂಡು ತಮ್ಮ ಟ್ಯಾಕ್ಸಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ತುಂಬಿಸುವುದು, ಇಪ್ಪತ್ತು ಸಾರಿ ಗೂಗಲ್ ಮ್ಯಾಪ್ ತೆಗೆದು ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು -ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ದೂರ ನೋಡುವುದು, ಲೋನ್ಲಿ ಪ್ಲಾನೆಟ್ ಪುಸ್ತಕ ತೆಗದು ತಾಳೆ ನೋಡುವುದು ಮಾಡಿದರು.
ನನಗೆ ಮೂವತ್ತು ಪ್ರಶ್ನೆಗಳನ್ನು ಹತ್ತು ಸಾರಿ ಕೇಳಿದರು. ಅವುಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಕೆಲವು ಇವು:
ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಬಿಸಿಲು ಬಹಳವೇ? ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಒಳ್ಳೆ ಹೋಟೆಲ್ ಇದೆಯಾ? ಖಾರ ಇಲ್ಲದ ಊಟ ಸಿಗತ್ತಾ? ಅಲ್ಲಿಯ ವಿಮಾನ ನಿಲ್ದಾಣಕ್ಕೆ ದಿನಕ್ಕೆ ಒಂದೇ ಬಾರಿ ವಿಮಾನ ಇಳಿಯುತ್ತದಂತೆ ಹೌದಾ?.
ಅವರ ಜತೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಬಂದವರೊಬ್ಬರು ಹೇಳಿದರು.
ನಾನು ಹಿಂದಿ ಕಲಿತಿದ್ದೇನೆ. ನಮಸ್ತೆ ಎಂದರೆ ಗುಡ್ ಮಾರ್ನಿಂಗ್, ಮಿರ್ಚಿ ಕಮ್ ಎಂದರೆ ಖಾರ ಕಮ್ಮಿ ಅಂತ ಅರ್ಥ ಅಲ್ಲವೇ ಅಂದರು.
ಹೌದು ಎಂದು ಗೋಣಾಡಿಸಿದೆ.
ಮತ್ತೇನು ಚೀನಿ ಕಮ್ ಎಂದು ಹೇಳಿದ್ದರೆ ಅಮಿತಾಭ ಬಚ್ಚನ್ ಆಗುತ್ತೇನೆ ಎಂದು ಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದೆಯೇನು ಅಂತ ಮನಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲಿಯೇ ಅಂದುಕೊಂಡೆ.
ಬೆಂಗಳೂರಿನಿಂದ ನಮ್ಮ ಏಸಿ ಟ್ಯಾಕ್ಸಿ ಹೊರಟಿತು. ತುಮಕೂರು ದಾಟಿದ ತಕ್ಷಣ ಆ ಗುಂಪಿನಲ್ಲೊಬ್ಬರು ಕೇಳಿದರು. ಇನ್ನೂ ಎಷ್ಟು ದೂರ? ಆ ಪ್ರಶ್ನೆ ಕೇಳಲು ಇದು ಸರಿಯಾದ ಸಮಯವಲ್ಲ. ಈಗಷ್ಟೇ ಶುರು ಮಾಡಿದ್ದೇವೆ ಎಂದೆ. ಅವರು ಏನಾದರೂ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳಲಿ ಎಂದು ಸೀಟಿನ ಮೇಲಿನ ದಿಂಬಿಗೆ ತಲೆ ಒರಗಿಸಿ ಮಲಗಿ ಬಿಟ್ಟೆ.
ಹುಲ್ಲಿನ ಮೇಲೆ ಕೂತ ಹುಡುಗ ರಾಮುಲು
ಬೆಂಗಳೂರಿನಿಂದ ಬೆಳಿಗ್ಗೆ ಹತ್ತು ಗಂಟೆಗೆ ಟ್ಯಾಕ್ಸಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಹೊರಟ ನಾವು ಆಕಾಶ ಮಾರ್ಗವಾಗಿ ಅನೇಕ ಖಂಡಗಳನ್ನು ದಾಟಿ ಅನೇಕ ವರ್ಷಗಳ ನಂತರ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ತಲುಪಿದೆವು.
ಊರಿಗೆ ಬರುತ್ತಲೇ ಟ್ರಾಫಿಕ್ ಜಾಮ್ ಆಗಿತ್ತು. ಸ್ಥಳೀಯ ಶಾಸಕರಾದ ಸೋಮಶೇಖರ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರು ಒಂದು ಸರ್ಕಲ್ ನಲ್ಲಿ ಪೂಜೆ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ನಾಲ್ಕು ರಸ್ತೆ ಕೂಡುವಲ್ಲಿ ಮೂರು ಕಡೆ ಮಹಾಕಾಳನ ಮೂರ್ತಿ ಸ್ಥಾಪಿಸಿ ಒಂದು ಕಡೆ ತಾವು ಕೂತಿದ್ದರು.
ಸಚಿವರನ್ನು ತೀರಾ ರಸ್ತೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಏನು ಕೂಡಿಸುವುದು ಅಂತ ಅಧಿಕಾರಿಗಳು ರಾತ್ರೋರಾತ್ರಿ ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಒಂದು ಗುಡಿ ಕಟ್ಟಿಸಿದ್ದರು. ‘ನಿನ್ನೆ ರಾತ್ರಿವರೆಗೂ ಇದೇ ಜಾಗದಲ್ಲಿ ಒಂದು ಗಡಿಯಾರ ಗೋಪುರ ಇತ್ತಲ್ರೀ, ಅಂತ ದೂರ ನಿಂತ ಕೆಲವು ಕುಹಕಿಗಳು ಮಾತಾಡುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು.
ಗುಡಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಪೋಲಿಸರು ಕಮ್ಮಿ, ಪುರೋಹಿತರು ಜಾಸ್ತಿ ಇದ್ದರು. ಅವರೆಲ್ಲ ಜೋರು ದನಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ನಾನು ಯಾವತ್ತೂ ಕೇಳದ ಒಂದು ಸಹಸ್ರನಾಮ ಪಠಿಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ಗರ್ಭಗುಡಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ನೋಡಿದರೆ ಅಲ್ಲಿ ದೇವರ ಮೂರ್ತಿ ಇಲ್ಲ. ಬದಲಿಗೆ ಒಂದು ಅಚ್ಚ ಹಳದೀ ಬಣ್ಣದ ಜೆಸಿಬಿ ಇದೆ! ಜೆಸಿಬಿ ಸಹಸ್ರನಾಮವನ್ನು ನಾನು ಇಲ್ಲಿಯವರೆಗೂ ನಾನು ಕೇಳದೇ ಇರುವುದು ನನ್ನ ಅಜ್ಞಾನ ಅಂತ ಅನ್ನಿಸಿತು. ಅವರವರ ಭಾವಕ್ಕೆ, ಅವರವರ ಭಕುತಿಗೆ ಅನ್ನುವ ದಾಸರ ಹಾಡು ಗುನುಗುನಿಸುತ್ತಾ ನಾನು ಹೊರ ಬಂದೆ.
ಇದನ್ನು ಮುಗಿಸಿ ಒಂದು ಮುಖ್ಯವಾದ ಕಾರ್ಯಕ್ರಮಕ್ಕೆ ಹೋಗಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ಶಾಸಕರು ಅಂದರು. ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ನಲ್ಲಿಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ನೀರು ಬರುತ್ತಿಲ್ಲ. ಆ ನಲ್ಲಿ, ಪೈಪ್ ಲೈನುಗಳನ್ನು ಯಾಕೆ ವೇಸ್ಟ್ ಮಾಡಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ಅದರಲ್ಲಿ ಹಾಲು ಸಪ್ಲೈ ಮಾಡುವ ಕಾರ್ಯಕ್ರಮ ಇಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದೇವೆ. ಜನರಿಗೆ ಹಾಲೇ ಕೊಡುವಾಗ ನೀರು ಯಾರಿಗೆ ಬೇಕ್ರೀ ಅಂದರು. ಅಷ್ಟಾಗಿಯೂ ಅದರಲ್ಲೇ ನಗರಪಾಲಿಕೆಯವರು ನೀರು ಬಿಟ್ಟರೆ ಒಳ್ಳೆಯದೇ ಆಯಿತು. ಕೆಎಂಎಫ್ ನವರ ಹಾಲೂ, ನೀರೂ ಒಂದೇ ಅಲ್ಲವೇ. ಬಣ್ಣ ಮಾತ್ರ ಬೇರೆ. ಬಣ್ಣದಲ್ಲೇನಿದೆ ಅಂದರು. ಕೊನೆಗೂ ಕೆಎಮ್ಮೆಫ್ಫಿಗೆ ನಿಜ ಹೇಳುವ ಅಧ್ಯಕ್ಷರು ಸಿಕ್ಕರು ಅಂದುಕೊಂಡೆ.
ಅಲ್ಲೇ ಪಕ್ಕದ ಗಾರ್ಡನ್ ನಲ್ಲಿ ಕರುಣಾಕರ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರು ಕೆಂಪು ಬಣ್ಣದ ಮಡಿ, ಧೋತಿ ಉಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡು ಸಣ್ಣ ಮಕ್ಕಳಿಗೆ
ಮಹಾಭಾರತ-ರಾಮಾಯಣದ ಕತೆ ಹೇಳುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ಡಯಾಲಾಗು, ಸ್ವಗತ, ಆಂಗಿಕ ಅಭಿನಯ ಎಲ್ಲ ಸೇರಿ ಬಹಳ ಇಂಟರೆಸ್ಟಿಂಗ್ ಆಗಿತ್ತು. ‘ಕೃಷ್ಣ ಕಂಸನ ನೂರು ತಪ್ಪು ಕ್ಷಮಿಸುತ್ತಾನೆ. ನೂರು ಪಾಯಿಂಟ್ ಒಂದನೇ ತಪ್ಪು ಮಾಡುತ್ತಿದ್ದಂತೆ ಕಂಸನ ಹತ್ತೂ ತಲೆಗಳನ್ನೂ ಕಡಿದು ಬಿಡುತ್ತಾನೆ' ಅಂದರು. ಅರೆ, ಇದು ಶಿಶುಪಾಲ ಹಾಗೂ ರಾವಣನ ಕತೆ ಅಲ್ಲವೇ ಅನ್ನಿಸಿತು. ಸುಮ್ಮನಾದೆ.
ಕತೆ ಮುಂದುವರೆಸಿದ ಅವರು, ರಾಮ ಜೂಜಾಟದಲ್ಲಿ ಹೆಂಡತಿಯನ್ನು ಕಳೆದುಕೊಂಡ, ತನ್ನೆಲ್ಲ ಆಸ್ತಿಯನ್ನು ದುರ್ಯೋಧನನ ಹೆಸರಿಗೆ ಬರೆದು ಶ್ರೀಲಂಕಾಗೆ ಹೋಗಿ ಸೆಟಲ್ ಆದ ಅಂದರು.
ನನಗೆ ಎಲ್ಲೋ ಏನೋ ತಪ್ಪುತ್ತಿದೆ ಎನ್ನುವ ಸಂದೇಹ ಬಂದರೂ ಮುಂದೇನು ಹೇಳುತ್ತಾರೋ ಎನ್ನುವ ಕುತೂಹಲದಿಂದ ಸುಮ್ಮನೇ ಇದ್ದೆ.
ಲಕ್ಷ್ಮಣನ ತಮ್ಮನಾದ ದುಶ್ಶಾಸನ ಸೀತೆಯನ್ನು ಕಿಡ್ಯ್ನಾಪ್ ಮಾಡಿ ಗೋಕರ್ಣದ ಸಮುದ್ರ ತೀರದಲ್ಲಿ ಇಡುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಘಟೊತ್ಕಚ ಬಂದು ಅವಳಿಗೆ ‘ನೀನಿಲ್ಲೇ ಇರಬೇಕಂತೆ, ಸಾಹೇಬರು ಆರಾಮಾಗಿದ್ದಾರಂತೆ ಅಂತ ಮೆಸೇಜು ಕೊಡುತ್ತಾನೆ' ಅಂದರು.
ಕುಂಭಕರ್ಣ ಶಕುನಿಗೆ ಭಗವದ್ಗೀತೆಯ ಪಾಠ ಹೇಳುತ್ತಾನೆ, ನೀನು ಬೇಕಾದರೆ ಮನೆಗೆ ಹೋಗಿ ಕೃಷ್ಣನಿಗೂ, ಅರ್ಜುನನಿಗೂ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಹೇಳಿಕೊಡು ಅಂತ ಹೇಳಿದ ಅಂದರು.
ರಾಮ ತನ್ನ ನೂರಾ ಒಂದು ತಮ್ಮಂದಿರೊಂದಿಗೆ ಬಂದು ಕುರುಕ್ಷೇತ್ರ ಯುದ್ಧದಲ್ಲಿ ಲಕ್ಷ್ಮಣನ ಸೇನೆಯನ್ನು ನಿರ್ನಾಮ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾನೆ.
ಆ ನಂತರ ದುರ್ಯೋಧನನಿಗೆ ಪಟ್ಟ ಕಟ್ಟುತ್ತಾನೆ.
ಹನುಮಂತನ ಮಾತು ಕೇಳಿ ಕೃಷ್ಣ ತನ್ನ ಹೆಂಡತಿಯನ್ನು ಭೀಷ್ಮನ ಆಶ್ರಮಕ್ಕೆ ಅಟ್ಟುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಅವಳು ತನ್ನಂತೆಯೇ ನಿರ್ಗತಿಕಳಾದ ಮಂಡೊದರಿಯ ಜತೆ ಜಿಲ್ಲಾ ಪಂಚಾಯತಿಯವರು ನಡೆಸುವ ಹೊಲಿಗೆ ಕ್ಲಾಸಿಗೆ ಹೋಗುತ್ತಾಳೆ ಅಂದರು.
ಕೊನೆಗೆ ಯಾದವೀ ಕಲಹದಲ್ಲಿ ರಾಮನ ಸಂಬಂಧಿಕರೆಲ್ಲ ನಾಶವಾಗುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಕರುಣಾನಿಧಿ ಅವರ ಸಲಹೆಯಂತೆ ರಾಮ ಇಂಜಿನಿಯರಿಂಗ್ ಕಾಲೇಜು ಸೇರಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತಾನೆ, ಅಂತ ಮುಗಿಸಿದರು.
ಸರ್, ಇದು ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ತಪ್ಪಾಗಲಿಲ್ಲವೇ ಅಂತ ನಾನು ಅವರನ್ನು ಕೇಳಿದೆ. ಆದರೆ ಅವರು ‘ಛೆ! ಎಲ್ಲಾದರು ಉಂಟೆ. ನಾನು ಹೇಳಿದ್ದೇ ಸರಿ' ಅಂತ ವಾದಿಸಿದರು. ‘ಹೌದು, ಹೌದು. ಜೀ ಹುಜೂರ್' ಎಂದು ಅವರ ಅವರ ಸುತ್ತ ನೆರೆದಿದ್ದ ಆಸ್ಥಾನ ಪಂಡಿತರು ಹರ್ಷೋದ್ಘಾರ ಮಾಡಿದರು. ‘ನೀವು ಹೇಳಿದ್ದು ಸರಿ ಇದೆ ಸರ್, ಆದರೆ, ಪಾತ್ರಗಳು ಅದಲಿ ಬದಲಿಯಾಗಿ ಕತೆ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಮಿಕ್ಸ್ ಅಪ್ ಆಗಲಿಲ್ಲವೇ' ಅಂತ ಅಂದೆ.
‘ಓ ಅದಾ, ನೋಡಿ ನಾವು ಯಾವಾಗ ನಮಗೆ ಆಗಲಾರದವರೊಂದಿಗೆ ಅಲಾಯನ್ಸ್ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಂಡೆವೋ ಆಗಿನಿಂದ ಈ ಥರ ಮಿಕ್ಸ್ ಅಪ್ ಆಗ್ತಾ ಇದೆ. ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಅಡ್ ಜಸ್ಟ್ ಮಾಡಿಕೋಬೇಕು' ಅಂತ ಅಂದರು. ‘ನಾವು ಅಡ್ ಜಸ್ಟ್ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳಬಹುದು ಸಾರ್ ಆದರೆ ಈ ಕತೆಗಳನ್ನು ಮೊದಲ ಬಾರಿ ಕೇಳುತ್ತಿರುವ ಮಕ್ಕಳಿಗೆ ತಪ್ಪು ಕಲ್ಪನೆ ಮೂಡಬಹುದಲ್ಲವೇ' ಅಂದೆ. ‘ಹಾಗೇನಿಲ್ಲ. ಇದೇ ಸರಿ ಅಂತ ಅವರಿಗೆ ತಿಳಿಹೇಳಬೇಕು. ನಂಬಲಿಲ್ಲ ಅಂದರೆ ಮುಂದಿನ ವರ್ಷದ ಪಠ್ಯಪುಸ್ತಕದಲ್ಲಿ ಈ ಕತೆಗಳನ್ನು ಸೇರಿಸಬೇಕು' ಅಂದರು. ‘ಅದಕ್ಕೇ ನಾನು ಮುಂದಿನ ಸಂಪುಟ ವಿಸ್ತರಣೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಶಿಕ್ಷಣ ಸಚಿವನಾಗಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ಇದ್ದೇನೆ' ಅಂದರು. ಆ ವಿಸ್ತರಣೆ ಇನ್ನಷ್ಟು ಮುಂದಕ್ಕೆ ಹೋಗಲಿ ಅಂತ ನಾನು ಆ ದಯಾಮಯನಾದ ಭಗವಂತನಲ್ಲಿ ಬೇಡಿಕೊಂಡೆ.
ನಂತರ ರೇಲ್ವೇ ಸ್ಟೇಷನ್ ಪಕ್ಕದ ಹೊಟೆಲ್ ಒಂದರಲ್ಲಿ ಇಳಿದೆವು. ಇದರ ಮಾಲಿಕರು ಯಾರು ಅಂತ ಕುತೂಹಲಕ್ಕೆ ಕೇಳಿದೆ. ‘ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಆ ಪ್ರಶ್ನೆಯ ಮೇಲೆ ನಿರ್ಬಂಧ ಇದೆ ಸರ್ ಅಂತ ರಿಸೆಪ್ಷನಿಷ್ಟ್ ಹೇಳಿದಳು. ಯಾಕೆ? ಯಾಕೆಂದರೆ, ನೀವು ಎಲ್ಲಿಯೇ ನಿಂತು ಯಾವುದರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಈ ಪ್ರಶ್ನೆ ಕೇಳಿದರೂ ನಿಮಗೆ ಸಿಗುವ ಉತ್ತರ ಒಂದೇ. ಆಗ ನಿಮಗೆ ಬೋರಾಗುವುದಿಲ್ಲವೇ? ಅದಕ್ಕೇ, ಅಂದಳು. ಸುಣ್ಣದ ಕಲ್ಲಿನ ಮೇಲೆ ನೀರು ಹಾಕಿದಾಗ ಅದು ಸಾವಕಾಶವಾಗಿ ಬಿರಿದಂತೆ ಸಣ್ಣನೇ ನಕ್ಕಳು. ನನಗೆ ಅವಳ ಉತ್ತರ, ನಗು ಎರಡೂ ಅರ್ಥವಾಗಲಿಲ್ಲ. ಆದರೆ ನಾನೂ ನಕ್ಕೆ.
ಬರುವಾಗ ನನ್ನ ಸ್ನೇಹಿತರೊಬ್ಬರು ಜನಾರ್ಧನ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರ ಪಿಎ ಅವರ ಫೋನ್ ನಂಬರ್ ಕೊಟ್ಟಿದ್ದರು. ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಫೋನ್ ಮಾಡಿದರೆ ಪಿಎ ಸಾಹೇಬರು ವಾಕಿಂಗ್ ಹೋಗಿದ್ದಾರೆ ಅಂತ ಉತ್ತರ ಬಂತು. ನೀವು ಯಾರು ಅಂದರೆ ನಾನು ಅವರ ಪಿಎ ಅಂದರು. ಪಿಎಗೂ ಪಿಎ ಇದ್ದಾರಾ? ಅಂತ ಕೇಳಿದೆ. ಪಿಎ ಅಷ್ಟೇ ಏಕೆ ಸಾರ್, ಗನ್ ಮ್ಯಾನ್ ಕೂಡ ಇದ್ದಾರೆ, ಅಂದರು. ಆ ಗನ್ ಮ್ಯಾನ್ ಗೂ ಗನ್ ಮ್ಯಾನ್ ಇದ್ದಾರಾ ಅಂತ ಕೇಳೋಣ ಅನ್ನಿಸಿತು. ಅವರು ಹೂಂ ಅಂತ ಅಂದರೆ ನನಗೆ ತಕ್ಷಣ ಜ್ವರ ಬರುವ ಸಾಧ್ಯತೆ ಇತ್ತಾದ್ದರಿಂದ ಸುಮ್ಮನಿದ್ದೆ.
ತಿಂಡಿ ಮುಗಿಸಿ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರ ಮನೆ ‘ಕುಟೀರ ದ ಕಡೆ ಹೊರಟೆವು. ಹೆಸರಿನಲ್ಲೇನಿದೆ ಅಂತ ಕೇಳುವವರಿಗೆ ಈ ಮನೆ ತೋರಿಸಬೇಕು. ಹಿಮಾಚಲ ಪ್ರದೇಶದ ಹಿಲ್ ರಿಸಾಟ್ ಶೈಲಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಕಟ್ಟಿದ ಈ ಮನೆಯ ಎಕರೆಗಟ್ಟಲೆ ಪ್ರದೇಶದಲ್ಲಿ ಇದೆ. ಮನೆಯ ಹಿಂದೆ ಒಂದು ದೊಡ್ಡ ಗುಡ್ಡ ಇದೆ.
ಆ ಮನೆಗೆ ಎಷ್ಟು ಬಾಗಿಲುಗಳು ಇವೆ ಅಂತ ಅಲ್ಲಿರುವವರಿಗೇ ಗೊತ್ತಿಲ್ಲ ಅಂತ ಜನ ಆಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಅದಕ್ಕೇ ಇರಬೇಕು ಆ ಮನೆಗೆ ಹೊರಗಿನವರು ಹೋದರೆ ಅವರಿಗೆ ದಾರಿ ತೋರಿಸಲು ಒಬ್ಬ ಗೈಡ್ ಥರ ಜೊತೆಗೆ ಬರುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಈ ಮನೆ ಕಟ್ಟಿದವರು ಬಹಳ ದೊಡ್ಡ ಆರ್ಕಿಟೆಕ್ಟ್ ಅಂತ ನಮ್ಮ ಜೊತೆಗೆ ಬಂದವರು ಹೇಳಿದರು. ಮನೆ ಕಟ್ಟಿದವರೇ ಗುಡ್ಡವನ್ನೂ ಕಟ್ಟಿರಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ನಾನು ಅಂದುಕೊಂಡೆ.
ಆ ಕಟ್ಟಿಗೆ ಮತ್ತು ಹುಲ್ಲಿನ ಕುಟೀರದಲ್ಲಿ ಸುಮಾರು ಒಂದು ಡಜನ್ ಹೆವಿ ಡ್ಯೂಟಿ ಎಸಿ ಗಳು ಇವೆ. ಮನೆಯ ಸುತ್ತ ಮುತ್ತ ಮಷಿನ್ ಗನ್ ಹಿಡಿದುಕೊಂಡ ನೂರಾರು ಗಾಡ್ ಗಳು ಇದ್ದಾರೆ.

ಜನಾರ್ಧನ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರನ್ನು ಅವರ ಮನೆ, ಕಚೇರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಕೆಲಸ ಮಾಡುವರೆಲ್ಲ ಕರೆಯುವುದು ಚೇರ್ಮನ್ ಸಾಹೇಬರು ಅಂತಲೇ. ಮಂತ್ರಿಗಿರಿ ಯ ಕುರ್ಚಿಗೆ ಅಂಟಿಕೊಂಡು ಕೂತ ಅವರು ಅದನ್ನು ಬಿಟ್ಟು ಇಳಿಯಲಾರರು ಅಂತ ಅದರ ಅರ್ಥ ಅಲ್ಲ.
ಬಹಳ ಹಿಂದೆ ಅವರು ಎನ್ನೋಬಲ್ ಇಂಡಿಯಾ ಎನ್ನುವ ಫೈನಾನ್ಸ್ ನಡೆಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಅವರು ಚೇರ್ಮನ್ ಆಗಿದ್ದರು. ಇನ್ನೂ ಇದ್ದಾರೆ. ಅದು ಬೇರೆಯವರಿಗೆ ನೋಬಲ್ ಸೇವೆ ಮಾಡದೇ ಇದ್ದರೂ ಇವರು ಶಕ್ತಿಯುತ ನಾಯಕರಾಗಲು ಎನ್ನೇಬಲ್ ಮಾಡಿತು ಎಂದು ಅಲ್ಲಿನ ಜನ ಆಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತಾರೆ.
ಎನ್ನೋಬಲ್ ಇಂಡಿಯಾದ ಕಚೇರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ತುಂಬ ಶಿಸ್ತು ಇತ್ತಂತೆ. ಮಿಲಿಟರಿ ಕ್ಯಾಂಪ್ ಥರ. ದಿನಾ ಬೆಳಿಗ್ಗೆ ಚೇರ್ಮನ್ನರು ಬಂದಾಗ ಸೆಕ್ಯೂರಿಟಿ ಗಾರ್ಡ್ ಶಿಸ್ತಿನಿಂದ ಸೆಲ್ಯೂಟ್ ಹೊಡೆಯಬೇಕು, ಅಲ್ಲಿನ ನೌಕರದಾರರೆಲ್ಲ ಶಿಸ್ತಿನಿಂದ ಇನ್ ಶಟ್ ಹಾಕಿಕೊಂಡಿರಬೇಕು, ನೀಟಾಗಿ ಶೇವ್ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಂಡಿರಬೇಕು, ವಾರಕ್ಕೆ ಒಂದಾದರೂ ಚಿರಂಜೀವಿ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ನೋಡಬೇಕು, ನೋಡಿ ಬಂದ ಮೇಲೆ ಕಚೇರಿಯ ಇತರರ ಮುಂದೆ ಆ ಸಿನಿಮಾದ ಕೆಲವು ಡಯಲಾಗುಗಳನ್ನಾದರೂ ಹೇಳಲೇ ಬೇಕು. ಬರದಿದ್ದರೂ ಡ್ಯಾನ್ಸ್ ಮಾಡಲೇಬೇಕು. ಹೀಗೆ ಎಲ್ಲದರ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಶಿಸ್ತು ಇರಲೇಬೇಕು.
ಇಂದಿಗೂ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಎನ್ನೋಬಲ್ ಇದೆ. ಸಾಹೇಬರ ಚೇರ್ಮನ್ ಗಿರಿ ಮುಂದುವರೆದಿದೆ.
ಕೊನೆಗೆ ಚೇರ್ಮನ್ ಸಾಹೇಬರು ಬಂದರು. ನೀವು ಇಲ್ಲಿಯ ರಾಜರಂತೆ, ಅಂತ ಜಿಮ್ಮಿ ಕೇಳಿದ. ಅಲ್ಲ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ, ನಾವು ರಾಜರಲ್ಲ. ನೋ ನೋ ನೋ ನೋ ಅಂತ ಸದನದಲ್ಲಿ ಮಾತಾಡಿದ ಹಾಗೆ ಒತ್ತಿ ಒತ್ತಿ ಹೇಳಿದರು.
ನಾವು ರಾಜರಲ್ಲ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ, ದೇವರ ಸೇವಕರು. ಹಿಂದೆ ಓಡಾಡಲು ಗಾಡಿ ಇಲ್ಲದ ನಮಗೆ ಇಂದು ದೇವರು ಹೆಲಿಕ್ಯಾಪ್ಟರ್ ಕೊಟ್ಟಿದ್ದಾನೆ. ಈ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಯನ್ನು, ಈ ಸುಂದರವಾದ ಗಣಿಗಳನ್ನು, ಆ ದೇವರೇ ಕೊಟ್ಟಿದ್ದಾನೆ. ಇನ್ ಫ್ಯಾಕ್ಟ್ ತಿರುಪತಿ ತಿಮ್ಮಪ್ಪ ನಮ್ಮ ಬಿಸಿನೆಸ್ ಪಾರ್ಟನರ್ ಇದ್ದಂತೆ. ವರ್ಷಕ್ಕೊಮ್ಮೆ ನಾವು ಅವರ ಪಾಲು ಅವರಿಗೆ ಕೊಟ್ಟು ಬರುತ್ತೇವೆ. ಹೋದ ವರ್ಷ ತಿಮ್ಮಪ್ಪನಿಗೆ ೫೦ ಕೋಟಿ ರೂಪಾಯಿಯ ಕಿರೀಟ ಕೊಡಲಿಲ್ಲವೇ, ಕೇಳಿ ಬೇಕಾದರೆ ಅಂದರು.
ಆ ತಿಮ್ಮಪ್ಪನ ಫೋನ್ ನಂಬರ್ ಕೊಡಿ ನಾನು ಆಮೇಲೆ ಮಾತಾಡುತ್ತೇನೆ ಅಂತ ಜಿಮ್ ಎಲ್ಲಿ ಅಂದು ಬಿಡುತ್ತಾನೋ ಅಂತ ನಾನು "ಅವರು ಹೇಳಿದ್ದು ಜನರನ್ನು ಕೇಳಿ ಅಂತಅಂತ ನಾನು ನಡುವೆ ಮಾತಾಡಿದೆ.
ಅಲ್ಲ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ, ಕೃಷ್ಣ ದೇವರಾಯನ ಕಾಲದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ನಾವು ಪ್ರೈಮರಿ ಸ್ಕೂಲ್ ನಲ್ಲಿ ಕಲಿತಿದ್ದೇನು? ಆಗ ವ್ಯಾಪಾರಿಗಳು ರಸ್ತೆ ಬದಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಮುತ್ತು ರತ್ನಗಳನ್ನು ಮಾರಾಟ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು ಅಂತ ತಾನೆ?
ನಾವು ವಿಜಯನಗರದ ವೀರ ಪುತ್ರರಲ್ಲವೇ, ಅವರ ಸಂಪ್ರದಾಯ ಮುಂದುವರೆಸಬೇಕಲ್ಲವೇ? ನಮಗೆ ಮುತ್ತು ರತ್ನ ಸಿಗುತ್ತಿಲ್ಲ. ನಮಗೆ ಸಿಕ್ಕಿದ್ದು ಶುದ್ಧವಾದ, ಪರಿಮಳ ಯುಕ್ತವಾದ ಕೆಂಪು ಮಣ್ಣು. ಅದನ್ನಾದರೂ ಮಾರಬೇಡವೇ? ೧೬ನೇ ಶತಮಾನದ ವ್ಯಾಪಾರಿಗಳು ಕೇವಲ ಹಂಪಿಯ ಬೀದಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಅಂತದ್ದೆಲ್ಲ ಮಾರಾಟ ಮಾಡಿದರೆ ನಾವು ೨೧ನೇ ಶತಮಾನದವರಾದ ನಾವು ಬೀಜಿಂಗ್ ನ ಬೀದಿಗಳಿಗಾದರೂ ಹೋಗಬಾರದೇ? ಅಂತ ವಾದ ಮಾಡಿದರು.
ಅಷ್ಟರಲ್ಲಿ ನನ್ನ ಕಣ್ಣಿಗೆ ಬಿದ್ದಿದ್ದು ನನ್ನ ಆತ್ಮೀಯ ಸ್ನೇಹಿತ ರಾಮು ಅವರು. ಅವರನ್ನು ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಅಂತಲೂ, ಗದಗ್ ಜಿಲ್ಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಮಗಧೀರ ಅಂತಲೂ, ದೆಹಲಿ ಕಡೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ತಾಯಿಗೆ ತಕ್ಕ ಮಗ ಅಂತಲೂ ಕರೆಯುತ್ತಾರೆ.
ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಅವರು ಕಪ್ಪು ಬಟ್ಟೆ ಹಾಕಿಕೊಂಡು ತಲೆ ಬೋಳಿಸಿಕೊಂಡು ಚಪ್ಪಲಿ ಇಲ್ಲದೇ ಕೂತಿದ್ದರು. ಇವರು ಅಯ್ಯಪ್ಪ ಸ್ವಾಮಿಯ ವೃತ ಮಾಡಿ ತಿರುಪತಿಗೆ ಹೋಗಿಬಂದಿರಬಹುದು, ಬಹುಶಃ ಇವರಿಗೂ ಕರುಣಾಕರ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರು ಪುರಾಣದ ಕತೆ ಹೇಳಿರಬೇಕು. ಸ್ವಾಮಿ ಅಯ್ಯಪ್ಪ ಹಾಗು ಪದ್ಮಾವತಿ ಕಲ್ಯಾಣದ ಕತೆ ಹೇಳುವಾಗ ಅವರಿಗೆ ಕನಫ್ಯೂಸ್ ಆಗಿರಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ಅನ್ನಿಸಿತು. ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಅವರ ಕರಾಟೆ ಕೌಶಲ್ಯದ ಕತೆ ಕೇಳಿದ್ದ ನನಗೆ ಹೌದೇ ಅಂತ ಕೇಳುವ ಧೈರ್ಯ ಆಗಲಿಲ್ಲ.
ಅವರು ಚೇರ್ಮನ್ನರ ಮನೆ ಎದುರಿನ ಲಾನ್ ನ ಹುಲ್ಲಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಕೂತಿದ್ದರು. ಅವರ ಕಡೆ ನೋಡುತ್ತಿದ್ದ ಜಿಮ್ ಅವರಿಗೆ ಚೇರ್ಮನ್ನರು ‘ಅವರು ರಾಜ್ಯದ ಆರೋಗ್ಯ ಸಚಿವರು ಅಂತ ಪರಿಚಯ ಮಾಡಿಸಿದರು. ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಅವರು ಎದ್ದು, ಅರ್ಧ ಬಗ್ಗಿ ನಮಸ್ಕಾರ ಮಾಡಿ ತರಾತುರಿ ಯಿಂದ ಹೊರಟು ಹೋದರು.
ಈ ವಿಷಯ ಜಿಮ್‌ನ ಕುತೂಹಲ ಕೆರಳಿಸಿತು. ಮೋಹನದಾಸ್ ಕರಮಚಂದ್ ಗಾಂಧಿ ಅವರು ನೆಲದ ಮೇಲೆ ಕೂಡುವಾಗ ಎಟ್ ಲೀಸ್ಟ್ ಚಾಪೆ ಹಾಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ಇವರು ಡೈರೆಕ್ಟ್ ಆಗಿ ಹುಲ್ಲಿನ ಮೇಲೆ ಕೂತಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ಇವರ‍್ಯಾರೋ ದೊಡ್ಡ ಯೋಗಿಯೇ ಇರಬೇಕು. ಆಫ್ಟರಾಲ್ ಭಾರತದಲ್ಲಿ ಜನರಿಗಿಂತ ಬಾಬಾಗಳೇ ಜಾಸ್ತಿ ಇದ್ದಾರೆ ಅಂತ ಅಂದ.
ಈ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರಿಗಿಂತ ಇವರೇ ಹೆಚ್ಚು ಇಂಟೆರೆಸ್ಟಿಂಗ್ ಆಗಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ಇವರನ್ನೇ ಇಂಟರವ್ಯೂ ಮಾಡೋಣ ಅಂತ ಅಂದ.
ನಾನು ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಅವರನ್ನು ಹುಡುಕಿಕೊಂಡು ಅವರು ಹೋದ ದಿಕ್ಕಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಓಡಿಹೋದೆ. ಆದರೆ ಅಷ್ಟರಲ್ಲಿ ಅವರ ಕಾರುಗಳು ಗೇಟು ದಾಟಿ ಆಗಿತ್ತು.
ರಾಮ ಭಕ್ತ ಹನುಮನೋ, ಹನುಮ ಭಕ್ತ ರಾಮನೋ
ಅಂತೂ ಕುಟೀರದಿಂದ ಹೊರ ಬಂದೆ. ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಅವರ ಕಾರುಗಳು ಎಲ್ಲಿ ಹೋದವು ಅಂತ ಪೊಲೀಸರನ್ನು ಕೇಳಿದೆ. `ನಮಗೆ ಗೊತ್ತಿರಲ್ಲ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ, ಅವರು ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ ಪೊಲೀಸರ ಸಹವಾಸವೇ ಬೇಡ ಅಂತ ಸ್ಕಾಟ್ ಲ್ಯಾಂಡ್ ಯಾರ್ಡ್ ನ ನಿವೃತ್ತ ಪೊಲೀಸ್ ಅಧಿಕಾರಿಗಳನ್ನು ಸೆಕ್ಯೂರಿಟಿಗಾಗಿ ನೇಮಿಸಿಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ಫಿಲ್ಮ್ ಶೂಟಿಂಗ್ ನಿಂದ ಬಿಡುವು ಸಿಕ್ಕಾಗ ಜೇಮ್ಸ್ ಬಾಂಡ್ ಕೂಡ ಬಂದು ಅವರ ಮನೆ ಕಾವಲು ಕಾಯ್ದು ಹೋಗುತ್ತಾನೆ' ಅಂತ ಅಂದರು. ನಾನು ಹೆಣ ಹೊತ್ತ ತ್ರಿವಿಕ್ರಮನ ಹಾಗೆ ಛಲ ಬಿಡದೇ ರಸ್ತೆಯ ಉದ್ದಕ್ಕೂ ನಿಂತ ಮಹಾಜನರನ್ನು ಕೇಳುತ್ತಾ ಹೋದೆ. ಸಚಿವರ ಕಾರಿನ ಕ್ಯಾರವಾನ್ ಅತ್ಯಾಧುನಿಕ ಮಲ್ಟಿಪ್ಲೆಕ್ಸ್ ಒಂದರ ಮುಂದೆ ನಿಂತಿತ್ತು.
ಧೀರ ಮಗ
ಅಲ್ಲಿ ನಮ್ಮ ಯುವ ನಾಯಕರು ಹಾಗು ಅವರ ಸ್ನೇಹಿತರ ಸಲುವಾಗಿ ಮಗಧೀರ ಭಾಗ ಎರಡು ಚಿತ್ರದ ಪ್ರದರ್ಶನ ಇತ್ತು. ಈ ಚಿತ್ರ ಇನ್ನೂ ಬಿಡುಗಡೆಯಾಗಿಲ್ಲವಲ್ಲ, ಇಲ್ಲಿಗೆ ಹೇಗೆ ಬಂತು ಅಂತ ಯೋಚಿಸುವಾಗ ಅಲ್ಲಿಗೆ ಮೆಗಾ ಸ್ಟಾರ್ ಚಿರಂಜೀವಿ ಹಾಗು ಅವರ ಧೀರ ಮಗ ಬಂದರು. `ಹೊಸ ಫಿಲಂ ರಿಲೀಸ್ ಗೆ ಮುಂಚೆ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ಪ್ರಭುಗಳಿಗೆ ತೋರಿಸಿ ಹೋಗೋಣ ಅಂತ ಬಂದಿದ್ದೇವೆ. ಏನೇ ಅಂದರೂ ನಮ್ಮದು ಪ್ರಜಾರಾಜ್ಯಂ ಅಲ್ಲವೇ. ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಭುಗಳೇ ಪ್ರಜೆಗಳು' ಅಂತ ಅಂದರು. ಅವರ ಮಾತಿನ ಅರ್ಥ ಕೇಳಿದರೆ ಕೊಂಡವಿಟಿ ದೊಂಗ ಸ್ಟೈಲಿನಲ್ಲಿ `ಕಾವಾ ಪಂಗಾ,' ಅಂತ ಮುಷ್ಟಿ ಬಿಗಿ ಹಿಡಿದು ಕೇಳುತ್ತಾರೆ ಅಂತ ಗೊತ್ತಾಯ್ತು. ನಕ್ಕೆ.
ಇಡೀ ಸಿನಿಮಾ ಥಿಯೇಟರ್ ನಲ್ಲಿ ಸಚಿವರು ಹಾಗು ಅವರ ಮಿತ್ರರನ್ನು ಬಿಟ್ಟು ಬೇರೆ ಯಾರು ಇರಲಿಲ್ಲ. ಸಚಿವರ ಸ್ನೇಹಿತರು ಟೀ ಕುಡಿಯಬೇಕೆಂದಾಗ, ಚಿತ್ರದ ಕತೆಯ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಚರ್ಚೆ ನಡೆಸಬೇಕೆಂದಾಗ, ಮೂತ್ರ ವಿಸರ್ಜನೆಗೆ ಹೋದಾಗ ಚಿರಂಜೀವಿಯವರು ಚಿತ್ರವನ್ನು 5-10 ನಿಮಿಷ ನಿಲ್ಲಿಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ಇದೆಲ್ಲ ನೋಡಿ ನಿಜವಾದ ಮಗಧೀರರು ಯಾರು ಅಂತ ನನಗೆ ಸಂದೇಹ ಉಂಟಾಯ್ತು.
ಕೊನೆಗೂ ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಹೊರಗೆ ಬಂದರು. ಜಿಮ್ ನನ್ನೂ, ಅವರ ಜತೆ ಇದ್ದ ನಮ್ಮನ್ನೂ ನೋಡುತ್ತಲೇ ಈ ಕಡೆ ಬಂದರು. ಅತ್ಯಂತ ಪ್ರೀತಿಯಿಂದ ಎರಡು ತಾಸು ಮಾತಾಡಿದರು. ಅವರ ಸಂದರ್ಶನದ ಮುಖ್ಯ ಭಾಗ ಇದು.
`ಈನೋ ತೊಗೋಳ್ಳಿ'
ಕರ್ನಾಟಕದಲ್ಲಿ ವಿರೊಧ ಪಕ್ಷದವರಿಗೆ ಕೆಲಸ ಇಲ್ಲ. ನಮ್ಮ ಮೇಲಿನ ಹೊಟ್ಟೆ ಉರಿಗೆ ಏನೇನೋ ಆರೋಪ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಕೈ ಕಡಿತ ಆರಂಭವಾದರೆ ಧಿಕ್ಕಾರ ಹಾಕುತ್ತಾರೆ, ಕಾಲು ಕಡಿತ ಆರಂಭವಾದರೆ ಪಾದಯಾತ್ರೆ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾರೆ. ನನ್ನ ಸ್ನೇಹಿತರಾದ ಡಿಕೆಶಿ, ಕುಮಾರಣ್ಣ, ಉಗ್ರಪ್ಪ ಅವರಿಗೆ, ಹಿರಿಯರಾದ ಸಿದ್ಧರಾಮಯ್ಯ, ದೇಶಪಾಂಡೆ, ಅವರಿಗೆ ನಾನು ಹೇಳಿದ್ದೇನೆ. ಆರೋಗ್ಯದ ಕಾಳಜಿ ಮಾಡಿಕೊಳ್ಳಿ, ಏನಾದರೂ ತೊಗೊಳ್ಳಿ, ಕೊನೆಗೆ ಈನೋ ತೊಗೊಳ್ಳಿ, ಅಂತ ಅವರು ಕೇಳೋದಿಲ್ಲ. ನಮಗೆ ವಾಜಪೇಯಿ ಆರೋಗ್ಯ ಶ್ರೀ ಯೋಜನೆಯಲ್ಲೇ ಟ್ರೀಟ್ ಮೆಂಟ್ ಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ಹಟ ಮಾಡ್ತಾರೆ. ಅಲ್ಲ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ, ನಮ್ಮ ಸರಕಾರದ ಗೋಹತ್ಯೆ ಬಿಲ್ ವಿರೋಧಿಸುವವರಿಗೆ ನಮ್ಮ ಸರಕಾರದ ಕಲ್ಯಾಣ ಕಾರ್ಯಕ್ರಮ ಏಕೆ ಬೇಕು ಹೇಳಿ? ಅಂದರಕಿನಾ ನಾನು ಅವರನ್ನು ದ್ವೇಷ ಮಾಡಿಲ್ಲ. ಅವರ ಪಾದಯಾತ್ರೆಯ ಜತೆ ನಮ್ಮ 108 ಆಂಬುಲೆನ್ಸ್ ಗಳನ್ನು ಕಳಿಸಿದ್ದೇನೆ.
ವಾಜಪೇಯಿ ಪಾಡು
ಸ್ವಾಮಿ ಈ ಕೇಂದ್ರ ಸರಕಾರದವರು ಎಲ್ಲ ರೇಟ್ ಹೆಚ್ಚು ಮಾಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ಹಾಲು, ಸಕ್ಕರೆ, ಟೀ ಪುಡಿ, ಎಲ್ಪಿಜಿ, ಸೀಮೆ ಎಣ್ಣೆ ಹೀಗೆ. ಹೀಗಾದರೆ, ದೆಹಲಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ನಮ್ಮ ನಾಯಕರು ಬಾಳ್ವೆ ಮಾಡೋದು ಹೇಗೆ? ವಾಜಪೇಯಿ ಅವರು ಬಿಡಿ. ಅವರು ಒಬ್ಬರೇ ಇದ್ದಾರೆ, ಅಡ್ವಾಣಿ ಅವರ ಮನೆಗೆ ಊಟಕ್ಕೆ ಹೋಗ್ತಾರೆ. ಬೇರೆಯವರದು ಏನು ಕತೆ?
ನೂಯಿ ಏಕೆ ಇಂದಿರಾ?
ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಜನರಿಗೆ ಕುಡಿಯುವ ನೀರಿಲ್ಲ ಅಂತ ವಿರೋಧ ಪಕ್ಷದವರು ಆರೋಪ ಮಾಡ್ತಾರೆ. ಇದೆಲ್ಲ ನಮ್ಮ ಯಶಸ್ಸು ತಾಳಲಾರದವರು ಆಡೊ ಮಾತು ಸ್ವಾಮಿ. ಅಂದರಕಿನಾ, ನಾವು ಅವರ ಮಾತುಗಳನ್ನು ಹಗುರವಾಗಿ ತೆಗೊಳ್ಳೋದಿಲ್ಲ. ಜಿಲ್ಲೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ನಾವು ಎಲ್ಲರಿಗೂ ಬಿಸ್ಲೆರಿ ನೀರನ್ನೇ ಕೊಡಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ಇದ್ದೇವೆ. ಒಬ್ಬರಿಗೆ ಒಂದು ದಿನಕ್ಕೆ ಎರಡೂವರೆ ಲೀಟರ್ ನೀರು ಎಂದರೂ ಇಡೀ ಜಿಲ್ಲೆಗೆ ದಿನಕ್ಕೆ ಟಿಎಂಸಿಗಟ್ಟಲೇ ನೀರು ಬೇಕು. ಮೊದಲೆಲ್ಲ ರಾಜ್ಯದ ಯಾವುದಾದರೂ ನದಿಯನ್ನು ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ಕಡೆ ತಿರುಗಿಸೋಣ ಅಂದುಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದೆವು. ಆದರೆ ಅದು ಲೇಟಾಗಬಹುದು, ಆ ಆರುಂಧತಿ ರಾಯ್, ಮೇಧಾ ಪಾಟ್ಕರ್ ಅವರಿಗೆಲ್ಲ ನಮ್ಮ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಮಾತಾಡಲಿಕ್ಕೆ ಅವಕಾಶ ಕೊಟ್ಟಂತಾಗಬಹುದು ಅಂತ ಆ ಐಡಿಯಾ ಕೈಬಿಟ್ಟೆವು. ಈಗ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ಜಿಲ್ಲೆಗಾಗಿಯೇ ಒಂದು ಬಿಸ್ಲೆರಿ ಪ್ಲಾಂಟ್ ಮಾಡಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ಕೋಕಾ ಕೋಲಾ, ಪೆಪ್ಸಿ ಅವರಿಗೆಲ್ಲ ಹೇಳಿದ್ದೇವೆ. ಅವರು ತುಂಗಭದ್ರಾ ಡ್ಯಾಮಿನ ನೀರು ಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ಕೇಳಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ನಾವು ಕಮ್ಮಿ ನೀರು ಕೊಡೋದು, ಆಮೇಲೆ ಅವರು ಕಿರಿಕಿರಿ ಮಾಡೋದು ಎಲ್ಲಾ ಬೇಡ ಅಂತ ಆ ಡ್ಯಾಮಿನ ಉಸ್ತುವಾರಿಯನ್ನೇ ಅವರಿಗೆ ಕೊಟ್ಟು, ನಮ್ಮ ರೈತರಿಗೆ, ರಾಜ್ಯ ವಿದ್ಯುತ್ ನಿಗಮಕ್ಕೆ ಬೇಕಾದಾಗ, ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಬಿಡಿ ಅಂತ ಹೇಳಿದರಾಯ್ತು ಅಂದುಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದೇವೆ. ಅಂದಹಾಗೆ ಆ ಪೆಪ್ಸಿ ಕಂಪನಿಯ ಸಿಈಓ ಹೆಸರು ಇಂದಿರಾ ನೂಯಿ ಅಂತೆ. ಅದು ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಯ ಜನರ ಸ್ವಾಭಿಮಾನಕ್ಕೆ ಪೆಟ್ಟು ಕೊಟ್ಟಂತೆ. `ನಿಮಗೆ ನೀರು ಬೇಕೆಂದರೆ ನೀವು ಹೆಸರು ಬದಲಿಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳಬೇಕು. ಸುಷ್ಮಾ, ವಸುಂಧರಾ, ಉಮಾ, ವಿಜಯರಾಜೇ ಅಂತ ಯಾವುದಾದರೂ ಹೆಸರು ಇಟ್ಟುಕೊಳ್ಳಿ' ಅಂತ ಅವರಿಗೆ ಮೇಲ್ ಕಳಿಸಿದ್ದೇವೆ.
ಹೆಲಿಕಾಪ್ಟರ್ ಇಲ್ಲದ ಪೈಲಟ್
ಬಡತನ ನಿರ್ಮೂಲನೆ ಯೋಜನೆ ನಾವು ಮಾಡಿಲ್ಲ ಎನ್ನುವುದು ಇನ್ನೊಂದು ಸುಳ್ಳು ಆರೋಪ. ನೋಡಿ ನಮ್ಮ ಪ್ರಯತ್ನದಿಂದಾಗಿ ಗಾಲಿ ಜನಾರ್ಧನ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಹಾಗು ಬಿ ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಕುಟುಂಬ, ಎಂಟು ಶಾಸಕರು, ಮೂರು ಸಂಸತ್ ಸದಸ್ಯರು, ಎಲ್ಲಾ ಪಕ್ಷದ ಜಿಲ್ಲಾ ಪಂಚಾಯತಿ, ತಾಲೂಕು ಹಾಗು ಗ್ರಾಮ ಪಂಚಾಯಿತಿ ಸದಸ್ಯರು, ನಗರಪಾಲಿಕೆ, ನಗರಸಭೆ, ಪುರಸಭೆ ಸದಸ್ಯರು, ನಮ್ಮ ಪಕ್ಷದ ವಿವಿಧ ಪ್ರಕೋಷ್ಟಗಳ ಪದಾಧಿಕಾರಗಿಗಳು ಇವರೆಲ್ಲರ ಕುಟುಂಬಗಳ ಬಡತನ ನಿರ್ಮೂಲನೆ ಮಾಡಿಲ್ಲವೇ? ಇದು ಪೈಲಟ್ ಪ್ರೊಜೆಕ್ಟು. ಇದು ಯಶಸ್ವಿಯಾದರೆ, ಇದೇ ಯೋಜನೆಗಳನ್ನು ಜಿಲ್ಲೆಯ ಇತರ ಕುಟುಂಬಗಳಿಗೆ ಜಾರಿಮಾಡುತ್ತೇವೆ.
ಜನರಿಂದ ನಾನು ಮೇಲೆ ಬಂದೆ
ಎಲ್ಲ ನಾಯಕರು ಊರಿಗೊಂದು ಸ್ಮಾಲ್ ಸ್ಕೇಲ್ ಇಂಡಸ್ಟ್ರಿ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದರೆ ನಾವು ರೋಡಿಗೊಂದು ಮಾಡಿದ್ದೇವೆ. ಸರ್, ನೋಡಿ, ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಜನ ತಮ್ಮ ತಮ್ಮ ಮನೆಯ ಮುಂದಿನ ರೋಡುಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಸಣ್ಣ ಸಣ್ಣ ಗುಂಡಿಗಳನ್ನು ಮಾಡಿಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ಮೈನ್ ಲಾರಿಗಳು ಆ ಗುಂಡಿಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ಕೇಟಿಂಗ್ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಾ ಮುಂದೆ ಹೋಗುವಾಗ ಸ್ವಲ್ಪ ಅದಿರು ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಇಲ್ಲಿ ಬೀಳುತ್ತದೆ. ಅದನ್ನು ಅವರು ಮಾರಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತಾರೆ. ಒಳ್ಳೇ ಲಾಭ ಬರ್ತದೆ. ಇದಕ್ಕಿಂತ ಸ್ಮಾಲ್ ಆಗಿರೋ ಯಾವುದಾದರೂ ಇಂಡಸ್ಟ್ರೀ ಇದೆಯಾ? ಈ ಥರಾ ಜೀರೋ ಇನ್ವೆಸ್ಟ್ ಮೆಂಟ್ ನ ಸಣ್ಣ ಕೈಗಾರಿಕೆಯನ್ನು ಯಾವ ಪಕ್ಷದವರು ಮಾಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ ಹೇಳಿ? ಜನರಿಂದ, ಜನರಿಗಾಗಿ, ಜನರೇ ಮಾಡಿದ ಆ ಗುಂಡಿಗಳನ್ನು ಮುಚ್ಚಲು ನಾವು ಯಾವ ಪಿಡ್ಲ್ಯೂಡಿ ಇಂಜಿನಿಯರಗೂ ಬಿಟ್ಟಿಲ್ಲ.
ಬರೀ ಸಾಧನಾ ಯಾಕೆ?
ಕೇಂದ್ರ ಸರಕಾರದವರು ಉದ್ಯೋಗ ಖಾತ್ರಿ ಯೋಜನೆ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದಾರೆ. ನಾವೂ ನಮಗೆ ತಿಳಿದಂತೆ ಒಂದು ಯೋಜನೆ ಮಾಡಿದ್ದೇವೆ. ಅದರ ಹೆಸರು ಸಮಾವೇಶ ಯೋಜನೆ. ನಾವು ವಾರಕ್ಕೆ ಎರಡರಂತೆ ಸಮಾವೇಶ ಮಾಡುತ್ತೇವೆ. ಸಾಧನಾ ಸಮಾವೇಶ, ಬಬಿತಾ ಸಮಾವೇಶ, ಹೇಮಾಮಾಲಿನಿ ಸಮಾವೇಶ, ರಾಗಿಣಿ, ಪದ್ಮಿನಿ, ವೈಜಯಂತಿಮಾಲಾ ಸಮಾವೇಶ ಅಂತ ಏನಾದರೂ ಮಾಡುತ್ತಲೇ ಇರುತ್ತೇವೆ. ಇರಲಿ ಅಂತ ಒಂದೆರಡು ಮುಮ್ತಾಜ್, ವಹೀದಾ ರೆಹಮಾನ್, ಸಾಯಿರಾಬಾನೂ ಸಮಾವೇಶಗಳನ್ನೂ ಮಾಡುತ್ತೇವೆ. ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಬರುವ ಜನರಿಗೆ ನಾವು ಉಪವಾಸ ಕಳಿಸುವುದಿಲ್ಲ. ಅವರಿಗೆ ಒಂದು ದಿನದ ಕೂಲಿ ಕೊಟ್ಟು, ಎರಡು ತಿಂಡಿ, ಒಂದು ಊಟ, ಒಂದು ಐಸ್ ಕ್ರೀಮ್ ಕೊಟ್ಟು ಕಳಿಸುತ್ತೇವೆ. ಅವರಿಗೆ ಸಮಾವೇಶದ ಸ್ಥಳಕ್ಕೆ ಹೋಗಲು ಬರಲು ಎಸಿ ಬಸ್ಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಪ್ರಯಾಣದ ವ್ಯವಸ್ಥೆ ಮಾಡುತ್ತೇವೆ. ಆ ಬಸ್ಸುಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಭಾರಿ ಭರಕಮ್ ಸ್ಟಂಟುಗಳಿರುವ ತೆಲುಗು ಫಿಲಂ ತೋರಿಸುತ್ತೇವೆ. ಇದ್ದಕ್ಕಿಂತೂ ಖಾತ್ರಿ ಇರುವ ಉದ್ಯೋಗ ಬೇಕೆ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ, ಅಂದರು.
ಆ ರಾಜ ಈ ರಾಜ
ಜನಾರ್ಧನ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರು ಅಂದರೆ ಸಾಮಾನ್ಯರಲ್ಲ ಸ್ವಾಮಿ, ಅವರು ಕೃಷ್ಣದೇವರಾಯನ ಅವತಾರ. ಒಂದು ಸೈಡಿನಿಂದ ಹಂಗೇ ಕಾಣಲ್ವ, ನೀವೇ ಹೇಳಿ. ಅದಕ್ಕೇ ನಾವು ಕೃಷ್ಣದೇವರಾಯನ 500 ನೇ ಸಿಂಹಾಸನ ಗೃಹಣ ಉತ್ಸವ ಮಾಡಿದಾಗ ಹಾಕಿದ ಬ್ಯಾನರ್, ಪೋಸ್ಟರ್ ಗಳಲ್ಲಿ, ಅಂದೆಲ್ಲೋ ಹಿಂದೆ ಆಗಿ ಹೋದ ರಾಜನಿಗಿಂತ ಈಗ ಆಳುತ್ತಿರುವ ರಾಜರ ಫೋಟೋಗಳನ್ನೇ ದೊಡ್ಡದಾಗಿ ಹಾಕಿದ್ದೆವು.
ನಾವು ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಹೊಸ ಯುನಿವರ್ಸಿಟಿ ಮಾಡಿದ್ವಲ್ಲ, ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಜನಾರ್ಧನ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರ ಹೆಸರೇ ಇಡಬೇಕು ಅಂತ ನಾನು ಪ್ರೋಪೊಸಲ್ ಇಟ್ಟಿದ್ದೆ. ಅಂದರಕಿನಾ, ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಸಾಹೇಬರೇ ಬೇಡ ಅಂದರು. ಕೊನೆಗೆ ಬಳ್ಳಾರಿ ಜನ ಹಿಂದಿನವರನ್ನು ಮರೆತುಬಿಟ್ಟಾರು ಅಂತ ಕೃಷ್ಣದೇವರಾಯನ ಹೆಸರು ಇಟ್ಟೆವು.
ಹಂದಿ ಮತ್ತು ಯುದ್ಧ
ಕೊನೆಗೆ ಜಿಮ್ ಅವರು ನೀವು ಆರೋಗ್ಯ ಸಚಿವರಲ್ಲವೇ, ನಿಮ್ಮ ರಾಜ್ಯದಲ್ಲಿ ಎಚ್ಒನ್ ಎನ್ಒನ್ ಸ್ಥಿತಿ ಹೇಗಿದೆ ಅಂದರು. `ಅಯ್ಯೋ ಸರ್, ಅದು ಸಮಸ್ಯೆಯೇ ಅಲ್ಲ ಬಿಡಿ. ಮೊದಲ ವರ್ಷ ಅದು ಬಂದಾಗ ನಾವು ಹಂದಿ ಜ್ವರ ಅಂತ ತಿಳಕೊಂಡು ನಮ್ಮ ಪಶು ಸಂಗೋಪನಾ ಮಂತ್ರಿಗಳ ಖಾತೆಗೆ ಬರುತ್ತೆ ಅಂತ ಸುಮ್ಮನಾದೆವು. ಆದರೆ ಅದರ ಹೆಸರು ಯಾವಾಗ ಬದಲಾಯಿತೋ, ನಾವು ಅದರ ವಿರುದ್ಧ ಯುದ್ಧ ಸಾರಿ ಅದನ್ನ ಓಡಿಸಿಬಿಟ್ಟೆವು. ಈಗ ನಾವೆಷ್ಟು ತಯಾರಾಗಿದ್ದೇವೆಂದರೆ, ಈಗ ಎಚ್ಒನ್ ಎನ್ಒನ್ ಅಲ್ಲ, ಎಚ್ನೈನ್, ಎನ್ಟೆನ್ ಬಂದರೂ ಎದುರಿಸುತ್ತೇವೆ,' ಅಂದರು. ನಾನು ಅವರ ಕೊನೆಯ ವಾಕ್ಯವನ್ನು ಭಾಷಾಂತರಿಸಲೇ ಇಲ್ಲ.
ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಅವರು ಮಾತು ಮಾತಿಗೆ ಬಂಧುಗಳೇ, ಅಂದರಕಿನಾ, ಅನ್ನುತ್ತಿದ್ದರು. ಮೊದಲನೆ ಪದವನ್ನು ಭಾಷಾಂತರಿಸಿದೆ. ಎರಡನೇಯದು ಆಗಲಿಲ್ಲ. `ಅಂದರಕಿನಾ' ಅನ್ನುವುದಕ್ಕೆ ಇಂಗ್ಲಿಷ್ ಶಬ್ದ ಏನು? ಅಂತ ಜಿಮ್ ಕೇಳಿದರು. ಅದಕ್ಕೆ ಕನ್ನಡದಲ್ಲಿಯೂ ಶಬ್ದ ಇಲ್ಲ, ಸಚಿವರ ಮೇಲಿನ ಪ್ರೀತಿಯಿಂದ ಮಹಾಜನತೆ ಅದನ್ನು ಸಂದರ್ಭಕ್ಕೆ ತಕ್ಕ ಹಾಗೆ ಅರ್ಥೈಸಿಕೊಳ್ಳುತ್ತಾರೆ ಅಂತ ಅಂದೆ.
ಯಾರು ಹನುಮನೋ ಯಾರು ರಾಮನೋ
ಇನ್ನು ಜನಾರ್ಧನ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರು ಅವರ ಕಚೇರಿಯ ಸಿಬ್ಬಂದಿಗೆ ಚೇರ್ಮನ್ನರಾದರೆ, ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಅವರು ಇಡೀ ಜಿಲ್ಲೆಗೆ `ಅಣ್ಣ'. ಉಳಿದವರೆಲ್ಲ ಅವರ ತಮ್ಮಂದಿರೇ. ಈ ನಾಯಕರ ಹೆಸರು ಕೋದಂಢಧಾರಿ ರಾಮನಾದರೂ, ಅವರು `ನಾನು ಎಲ್ಲರ ಸೇವಕ' ಎಂದು ಹನುಮಂತನಂತೆ ವಿನಮ್ರರಾಗಿ ಕೈ ಮುಗಿಯುತ್ತಾರೆ.
ಅವರನ್ನು ಕಂಡಾಗಲೊಮ್ಮೆ ನನಗೆ ಬೀದರ ಜಿಲ್ಲೆಯ ಹಿರಿಯಜ್ಜನಾಗಿದ್ದ ರಾಮಚಂದ್ರ ವೀರಪ್ಪ ಅವರ ನೆನಪಾಗುತ್ತದೆ. ಸ್ವಾತಂತ್ರ್ಯ ಸೇನಾನಿಯಾಗಿದ್ದ ಅವರ ಅಣ್ಣನ ಹೆಸರು ಲಕ್ಷಣ. `ಇದೇನು ಹಿಂಗ? ನೀವು ರಾಮ, ನಿಮ್ಮ ಅಣ್ಣ ಲಕ್ಷಣ ಯಾಕ' ಅಂತ ನಾನು ಒಂದು ಸಾರಿ ಕೇಳಿದ್ದೆ. ತಮ್ಮ ಜೀವನದ 96 ವರ್ಷಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ನನ್ನಂಥ 9600 ಪತ್ರಕರ್ತರನ್ನು ಕಂಡಿದ್ದ ಅವರು ತಮ್ಮ ಟ್ರೇಡ್ ಮಾರ್ಕ್ ತುಂಟ ನಗೆ ಬೀರಿದ್ದರು.
`ಅದನ್ನೇನು ಕೇಳ್ತಿಯೋ ದೇಸಾಯಿ, ನಮ್ಮಪ್ಪ ಇಟ್ಟಿದ್ದು ಹೆಸರು ಅದು. ಅವ ನಿಮ್ಮಪ್ಪನ ಹಂಗ ಸಾಲಿಗೆ ಹೋದವಲ್ಲ. ಅಲ್ಲೇ ಇಲ್ಲೇ ಥೋಡೆ ಥೋಡೆ ನೋಡಿದವ, ಕೇಳಿದವ, ಕಲ್ತವ. ಈ ಜಗತ್ತಿನ್ಯಾಗ ಯಾವಾನ ತಮ್ಮೋ ಯಾವಾನ ಅಣ್ಣೋ' ಅಂತ ಅಂದಿದ್ದರು. ರಾಮಚಂದ್ರ ವೀರಪ್ಪ ಅವರು ಶಾಲೆಗೆ ಹೋದವರಲ್ಲ. ಆದ್ದರಿಂದಲೇ ಅವರ ಅಪ್ರತಿಮ ಸಾಮಾನ್ಯ ಜ್ಞಾನವನ್ನು ಶಿಕ್ಷಣ ಹಾಳು ಮಾಡಿರಲಿಲ್ಲ. ಅವರು ಆಡಿದ ಕೊನೆಯ ಮಾತನ್ನು ನಾನು ಮರೆತೇ ಇಲ್ಲ.
ಈ ಶ್ರೀರಾಮುಲು ಹಾಗೂ ರೆಡ್ಡಿ ಅವರನ್ನು ನೋಡಿದಾಗ ನನಗೆ ಇದೇ ಮಾತು ನೆನಪಿಗೆ ಬರುತ್ತದೆ. ಇವರಲ್ಲಿ ಯಾರು ರಾಮನೋ, ಯಾರು ಹನುಮನೋ, ಯಾರು ಯಾರಿಗೆ ಗುರುವೋ, ಯಾರು ಶಿಷ್ಯರೋ, ಯಾರು ಯಾರಿಗೆ ಅನಿವಾರ್ಯವೋ, ಯಾರಿಲ್ಲದಿದ್ದರೆ ಯಾರಿಗೆ ಅಸ್ತಿತ್ವವಿಲ್ಲವೋ. ಯಾರೂ ಹೇಳಲಾರರು. ಅಂತೂ `ಈ ಜಗತ್ತಿನಲ್ಲಿ, ಯಾವನು ಅಣ್ಣನೋ, ಯಾವನು ತಮ್ಮನೋ'.
ಸಂಹಾರ
ಅಂದಹಾಗೆ ನನಗೆ ಅವತ್ತು ಬೆಳಿಗ್ಗೆ ಎಚ್ಚರವಾಗಿದ್ದು ಫೋನ್ ಬಂದಿದ್ದರಿಂದ ಅಲ್ಲ. ನನ್ನ ಮೊಬೈಲ್ ಫೋನಿನ ಅಲಾರಾಂ ಹೊಡಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದರಿಂದ.
ಬೆಳಿಗ್ಗೆ ಬೇಗ ಎದ್ದು ವಾಕಿಂಗ್ ಹೋಗಬೇಕು ಎನ್ನುವ ಘನ ಉದ್ದೇಶದಿಂದ ನಾನು ಮೊಬೈಲಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಅಲಾರಾಂ ಇಟ್ಟುಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದೆ. ಅದರಿಂದ ನನಗೆ ಎಚ್ಚರವಾಗಿತ್ತು. ಆದರೆ ನಾನು ಅದನ್ನು ಆಫ್ ಮಾಡಿ ಮತ್ತೆ ಮಲಗಿದೆನೆಂದೂ, ಎಷ್ಟು ಬೈದರೂ ಏಳಲಿಲ್ಲವೆಂದೂ ನನ್ನ ಹೆಂಡತಿ ನನಗೆ ಮಧ್ಯಾಹ್ನದ ನಂತರ ಹೇಳಿದಳು. ನಿದ್ದೆಯಲ್ಲಿ ಹಲವು ಬಾರಿ `ಎಚ್ಒನ್ ಎನ್ಒನ್' ಅಂತ ಬಡಬಡಿಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದೆನೆಂದೂ ಹೇಳಿದಳು. `ನಿಮಗೆ ಸುದ್ದಿಯ ಹುಚ್ಚು. ಎದ್ದಾಗೂ ಸುದ್ದಿ, ಕನಸಿನ್ಯಾಗೂ ಸುದ್ದಿ. ಅದರಿಂದ ನಮಗೆಲ್ಲಾ ಯಾವಾಗ ಬಿಡುಗಡೆ ಅದನೋ ಯಾವಾನಿಗೆ ಗೊತ್ತು' ಎಂದು ಮರುದಿನ ಬೆಳಿಗ್ಗೆ ತರಾಟೆ ತೆಗೆದುಕೊಂಡಳು. ನಾನು ರಾತ್ರಿ ಕೆಂಪು ಮಣ್ಣಿನ ಕನಸು ಕಂಡೆ ಅಂತ ಅವಳಿಗೆ ಹೇಳಲು ಹೋಗಲಿಲ್ಲ.
ಅವಳಿಂದ ಆ ವಿಷಯ ಮುಚ್ಚಿಟ್ಟೆ. ಆದರೆ, ಇತ್ತೀಚಿನ ಹಿಂದಿ ಚಿತ್ರ `ಕಾರ್ತಿಕ್ ಕಾಲಿಂಗ್ ಕಾರ್ತಿಕ್' ಸ್ಟೈಲಿನಲ್ಲಿ ನನ್ನ ಫೋನ್ ನಿಂದ ನಾನೇ ಮೋಸ ಹೋಗಿದ್ದೆ. ನನ್ನನ್ನು ನಾನು ಫರಹಾನ್ ಅಖ್ತರ್ ಅಂದುಕೊಂಡಿದ್ದಿರಬಹುದು. ಆದರೂ ನನ್ನ ಕನಸಿನಲ್ಲಿ ದೀಪಿಕಾ ಪಡುಕೋಣೆ ಬಂದಿರಲಿಲ್ಲ. (ಅಂದ ಹಾಗೆ ಜಿಮ್ ಜೊತೆಗೆ ಒಬ್ಬರು ಲೇಡಿ ಫೊಟೊಗ್ರಾಫರ್ ಬಂದಿದ್ದರು. ಅದು ಬೇರೆ ವಿಷಯ.) ದೀಪಿಕಾ ಬಂದಿದ್ದರೂ ನನ್ನ ಹೆಂಡತಿಗೆ ನಾನು ಅದನ್ನು ಹೇಳುತ್ತಿರಲಿಲ್ಲ!
ಇಲ್ಲೀಗೀ ಕತೆ...
(ಮುಂದಿನ ವಾರ: ಬಿಳಿಯರೊಂದಿಗೆ ಇನ್ನಷ್ಟು ದಿನಗಳು ಮತ್ತು ನವ್ಯೋತ್ತರ ವಸಾಹತುಶಾಹಿ.)

An Amazing iPad App for Online Web Magazines

2010-03-26T08:06:00.000-07:00

VIV Mag Motion Cover - iPad Demo from Alexx Henry on Vimeo.

My Twitter Account Hacked

2010-02-26T04:30:00.000-08:00

My Twitter account has been hacked. Pl ignore all messages. I will quarantine it for a week now. Your account may be under attack too. Change your password.

2010-02-08T23:55:00.001-08:00

What is with celebrity endorsement?

2010-02-08T23:36:00.000-08:00

What is with celebrity endorsement?

Ever wondered why celebrities endorse products?
Better still, ever wondered what happens to things and events that are endorsed by celebrities?
Sometimes at least, I think celebrity endorsement does more harm than good to genuinely good products.
Here is the latest example. Hollywood heartthrob and neo -Buddhist Richard Gere has said that the area around Bodh Gaya should be declared a vegetarian zone. This happened in Mahabodhi Mahavihara at Bodh Gaya in Bihar, India on January 7, 2010. Or at least that is what the media tell us.

It has been reported that he said this while he was attending a conference in Bodh Gaya. Buddhists consider Bodh Gaya a holy place as Lord Buddha is believed to have attained enlightenment here.

If it is true, Richard Gere is wrong. Buddhism, sometimes called the fastest growing religion in the world, does not advocate vegetarianism. I don’t know about its growth rate, but I know one thing for sure. It is one of the most uncomplicated religions in the world.

One popular tenet of Buddhism goes thus- ``Never sin, learn a skill for earning a livelihood and always think from the other person’s point of view. This is the sum total of Buddha’s teachings.’’

Buddha did not lay down strict principles regulating everyday living. Buddhism is among the few religions in the world that do not recommend separate lifestyles for monks and lay believers. Most of the Buddhist principles have been added by saints and monks in recent times. If you need to be a Buddhist, you don’t have to look like one. Buddhism is all about thought. What is essential is you understand the set of ideas and think beyond.

As far as vegetarianism is concerned, there is a story about the Buddha eating meat on the day he died. Scholars tell me possibilities of the story being true are high.

Now, what do you think is the effect of celebrity endorsement on genuinely good products?

Meanwhile, I found this on Richard Gere’s site (gerefoundation.org) and liked it
``All suffering in the world arises out of the wanting happiness for self. All the happiness in the world arises out of wanting happiness for others’’ – Shantideva

P.S. I don't own the image. Photo credit: my.opera.com

2010-02-05T22:54:00.000-08:00

B**y B*d, Bi Ma

2010-01-14T21:50:00.000-08:00

India's per capita

2009-12-25T02:09:00.001-08:00

The Government of India has announced that per capita income of Indians has reached an average of $2 per day.
However, the poverty line is not far behind. It stays at $1 per day.
This set me thinking about so many things.
Hmmm.
What would Steven Levitt say about this?

Facebook Badge

2009-12-05T06:25:00.000-08:00

Rishikesh Bahadur Desai

Create Your Badge

Digital Rights Management Bill

2009-10-27T03:01:00.000-07:00

I wrote this to initiate a discussion in the media appreciation group Column9, on the Digital Rights Management bill scheduled to come up in the winter session.

My friend and digital evangelist NAM Ismail of Prajavani was supposed to speak to the group about it. This piece was to break ice.

Whenever I think of my friend Ismail, I am reminded of an old joke. There was this nerdy university professor who was always looking for new things. He began work on a new dictionary of English, in which each word had the exact opposite meaning. Thus, in his dictionary, `go’ became `come’, and `fast’ became `slow’.

He got so involved in creating the dictionary that he began speaking the new found language.

This led to a situation where people laughed at him whenever he spoke, and he laughed at them whenever they spoke.

I don’t mean to say this is what explains Ismail’s enigmatic, omnipresent smile.

Now, Ismail wants to talk about DRM. As he has tried to explain it, it has become Dead Rights Management. I am sure he has used this term as he is knows we won’t understand any other term!

But then, the DRM bill promises to be draconian. The first fall out of the Act would be that patent laws would get stronger and there would zero tolerance of piracy. Simply, this means, you and I can no longer watch Children of Heaven, on DVD at home. Since few of us can afford to travel to film festivals in Europe, I don’t see any more heavenly treats for us!

The second point, which is more important, is that all your personal information could be gathered by some private `data management’ and sold to marketing agencies. We might have got used to Google scanning our mails and sending in targeted ads, but we will find difficult to digest the fact that a Isabgol seller ends up on your door step, after he has intercepted your phone call, where you told your cousin about your bad tummy.

If the DRM bill is passed, our fate would be worse than that of the commoners in `1984’ as we would have not just one Big Brother, but a chain of large corporations trying to wire us. There would be nothing private about us. We would be like toys in a show case, open for every one to see and comment and sell!

Conversion

2009-10-27T02:58:00.000-07:00

-The problem with religion is that most people end up discussing conversion. It is like a discussion on agriculture stopping at the monsoons. Conversion is a phenomenon that can be endlessly debated. But the truth is that conversion has been inevitable throughout history. Conversion of individuals or at the levels of the masses, have always brought change in this world.

Most reformers have either converted to a new faith or created waves of proselytism. Buddha was a Hindu Kshatriya, who influenced half the world, from Afghanistan to Japan. He was born a Hindu, but famously changed his mind. Similar are the stories of Mahaveera and Guru Nanak. Can we time travel and annul all such attempts? Will the world be any better then?

Anyone who has visited a church cant miss the letters INRI inscribed on The Cross. The Latin inscription expands as IESVS·NAZARENVS·REX·IVDÆORVM, and translates as ``Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews’’. So why are Christians talking about Jesus?

If the Fable of Abraham is to be believed, then Jesus Christ and Prophet Mohammad came from the same family. If the founders were right, what are the brothers fighting for now?

Hinduism, or what ever is meant by that term, has changed and evolved due to conversions. If Madhwacharya and Ramanujacharya had remained content with Shankaracharya who was born centuries earlier, we would never have had three fantastic ideologies today. Similarly, if Basavanna had tolerated a little inconvenience caused by a holy thread on his chest, there would be no avant -garde understanding of God and humanity. Why are people writing books on Basavanna being born in this community or that?

In Karnataka, a King who ruled parts of old Mysore moved in and out of religions. Finally, he built the beautiful temples of Belur and Halebidu to reaffirm his faith. Can you imagine Hassan without the ancient beauty?

Any one who has a doubt about conversion being an ugly phenomenon should visit Badami. Just behind the platform where Aishwarya and Abhishekh danced, is a four -storied temple. It has a Shaiva, Vaishnava and a Jain temple. The Buddhist shrine on the fourth floor has been destroyed. This is not because Badami was invaded by various kings at various times. It is because the rulers of Badami converted to different faiths over the centuries. Did that affect life in their kingdom? I don’t think so.

As the hungry wanderer said in an Urdu couplet: ``God resides everywhere; inside and outside, in places you know and you don’t know of, in times that you can imagine and you can’t. Looking for God is like looking in the mirror. You can neither believe yourself, nor the mirror’’.

Love Jihad!

2009-10-27T02:40:00.000-07:00

I tried to find out what is Love Jihad. First I thought it referred to the fights at home, with your college sweetheart whom you married after a long courtship. If such people were to be hanged, as someone in Mangalore has suggested, I would be among the first to leave this world.

Later, I read an article and found out that it was something to do with marrying girl from a different community. Even then I would be hanged, as I am a follower of Shankara and my wife’s ancestors were from Udupi, the land of Madhwacharya!

Ismail says he does not know who coined the term. I know. Well, almost. ``Love Jehad’’, is a catchy blurb. I strongly suspect this was born in a news room. Newsrooms are places where people argue on what is creative and what is destructive. And as you know, all arguments don’t lead to the truth.

There seems to be a sudden surge in the number of people who believe something like Love Jihad exists. I don’t know whether Manoj Night Shyamalan, who makes films about the `fear of the unknown’, inspired them. I also see that a large number of young men have come out in the streets to protect Hindu women from this `menace’. Yesterday, I heard of a young man who tried to sue a deodorant company that had failed to deliver its promise of helping men attract women. He claimed the support of a large group of college going boys. I don’t think there is much of a difference between the first and the second group.

What is serious though, is the hint that the idea generated in the factory of the right. What do the self declared saviours of Hinduism mean then? Do they have a problem with girls who fall for the well built, fair and sometimes bearded young men? Do they have a problem with the girls making their own choices? Would Love Jihad make such a big noise if it was a case of Hindu boys marrying Muslim girls? Does anyone have comparative figures?

Finally, do they have a problem with conversion?

I think it is a bit of both- the tendency to deny the right of choice to women and the sense of power and superiority that makes the majority feel that the minority should submit to its command, always.

Secondly, some skin heads have been spreading rumours of 3,000 women missing from Mangalore (this does not include dowry deaths!). But police say the number is just 55. The guy who has admitted to killing 18 women is in police custody. DIG Gopal Hosur has said the psychopath might have killed even more.

Those who have known them clearly understand what they wear under their trousers. (This is clearly different from the question: `What does a Scotsman wear under his kilt!’)

That ``the other camp is kidnapping our innocent girls’’ is a very common night time gossip from right wing cadre camps. What is dangerous is such gossip has gained credibility by appearing in the media, and by being the subject of litigation, at least in one state. The reaction of some media groups has been reactionary. A case of rape attempt in Bangalore has been termed an example of Love Jihad.

After all, what is wrong in an adult choosing the spouse of or a faith of his or her choice? Will the media or the government tell us whom to marry or which faith to follow? Is the media asking the government to play Big Brother? If the government is allowed to have its way, will it annul all inter –faith marriages in this country? Will it force me to change my son Gautam’s name because I named him after the Buddha?

I am reminded of the movie `Hibiscus Field’, in which a poet and a singer wait for decades before the government permits them to marry. Finally they marry without a permit and the government sticks a poster outside their house. ``Black listed couple. Keep off’’. The wife starts crying. The poet smiles:`` Be happy, at least now, they have called us a couple’’.

And to think that it was just fiction!

Last wicket

I was provoked by a friend to Google out `Love Jihad’. The result was this - About 3,560,000 for love jihad (0.16 seconds).

Just for kicks, I tried to search for ``communal harmony’’ and the results are here- About 238,000 for communal harmony. (0.34 seconds).

You can see that communal harmony has to work twice as hard to find just 6% of the Web space occupied by Love Jihad.

Obama's dinner with Gandhi

2009-09-10T08:04:00.000-07:00

Here is an interesting story about Bodhisatva and Charvaka.

Buddha was reborn a monk. One day, he was wandering in the jungles surrounding the Anantha Pindaka Buddha Vihara.
He saw that an ugly looking man was sitting under a tree, eating something.
The man looked at Bodhisatva and asked him who he was. Bodhisatva introduced himself.
Charvaka replied: ``Oh you are the famous monk who sits for hours in the Vihara doing nothing and begs for food!’’
I am Charvaka the famous agnostic. I am eating a chicken I stole from a farmer’s backyard. Here is the pot of ghee I stole from a shop’’.
Charvaka invites Bodhisatva for lunch.
And then, the two enjoy a lunch, chatting and joking.
This is Bodhisatva legend and not all of them are true.

But then, I was reminded of this story when US President Barak Obama wished he would dine with Mahatma Gandhi. I am sure Gandhiji would have accepted the invite if he were to be alive. He would have carried his favourite dishes; peanuts, goat milk and ground wheat gruel.

But then, how would an ambitious politician who recently spent tax payers money on renovating his chamber, would react to such simple, ascetic diet.
Eom

Delhi High Court on Moral Policing

2009-08-07T08:03:00.000-07:00

“In this land of Gandhi, it appears that nobody follows Gandhi… Follow the Gandhian principle of ’see no evil’. Why do you not simply switch off the TV?

“We have very good advice for you. You have got two judges sitting here who do not watch TV at all. It will certainly help. Individual ideas of morality are not the business of the court. We are not sitting here for moral policing… You approach the Parliament and get the remedy.

“The courts cannot be expected to deal with issues that involve different individual perceptions.”

“Our culture is no so fragile that it will be affected by one TV show. Moreover, nobody in his individual capacity can be allowed to take upon the social order and ask for directions.

“You are asking us to entertain an area which deals with perceptions and opinions. Further, morality yardsticks are to be decided by the government. We cannot decide the issue. We are not sure whether the show has brought out the truth of many people but it is certain that it has brought out the hypocrisy of various ministers and parliamentarians.”

Gangubai Hangal singing Raag Bageshree- YouTube

2009-07-21T07:12:00.000-07:00

Gangubai Hangal is dead

2009-07-21T07:10:00.000-07:00

Hindustani music maestro Gangubai Hangal is dead. There was only one Gangubai. No one can take her place.
This is what I can manage to say today.

Social Media Deliciously Described!

2009-07-19T02:17:00.001-07:00

Social Media in Plain English from leelefever on Vimeo.

Twitter in Plain English

2009-07-19T02:09:00.001-07:00

Twitter in Plain English from leelefever on Vimeo.

Times of Bachelors

2009-06-25T07:48:00.000-07:00

Times of Bachelors

2009-06-25T07:45:00.000-07:00

Missing Bachelor parties?
Those by -two coffees and endless discussions on unimaginable topics?

Read this newsletter for all such crazy stuff.
Available in downloadable PDF format, this makes good reading.

http://adur.org/category/times-of-bachelors/

2009-06-25T07:44:00.000-07:00

Supreme Court says No to Compulsory Voting

2009-04-18T07:11:00.000-07:00

Is this good news?

Impressed by the moderately high percentage of voter turnout in the first phase of Lok Sabha elections, the Supreme Court on Friday refused to agree that voting should be made compulsory. “The percentage of votings over the years have gone high and in some states like Kerala, there have been 86 per cent of voting,” the Bench comprising CJI K G Balakrishnan and Justice P Sathasivam observed.

“The literacy rate is going up and people are conscious of their rights,” it observed, ruling out the suggestions that water and electricity supply be snapped to compel voters to exercise their right. “Can a voter be compelled physically to go to polling booths?” the Bench sought to know from counsel Prasanna Kutty appearing for petitioner Dr Atul Sarode from Maharashtra.

Thank God We Are In India

2009-04-17T07:05:00.000-07:00

A sign in China
Courtesy www.engrish.com

Indian Elections

2009-04-16T07:00:00.000-07:00

Culture and Vigilantes

2009-02-13T22:22:00.000-08:00

This is a publicity poster of the movie `Watchmen'. The character admitting that she goes out at 3 am to do stupid things, is Silk Spectre-2, a Superhero who saves the world from evil.
Is that a comment on the growing girl power in this country and the so called vigilante groups trying to stop them in the name of culture? Think.

2009-02-13T22:17:00.000-08:00

Follow the Kama Sutra or Die!

2009-02-10T04:02:00.000-08:00

Follow the Kama Sutra or Die!

Angalore (with an M or a B): Activists of a self –styled pro-Hindu vigilante group called the Jai Hanuman Sena barged into an apartment complex here late on Saturday night and beat up young men and women who were trying to produce babies, but ``not in the manner and style prescribed by Hindu scriptures’’.
At least three men and four women were injured and were admitted to a nearby hospital.
The activists said most of the men and women were not following the Kama Sutra(``Principles of Endearment''), the sacred Hindu book that teaches people how to ensure a lineage of pure Hindus. The book has been an all- time global best seller and is considered a work of pure and unpolluted sentiment. This is because it was written by a Karma Yogi (``a guy who had no time for marriage’’).
What was outrageous, one attacker told TV cameras waiting outside, that most young men and women were unaware that such a text existed. ``Why should they follow the West in everything?,'' he wondered.
Eye witness accounts said around 40 youth had forcefully entered the complex claiming unethical activities were on inside.
They began assaulting young men and women who ran for safety. Some escaped while some were forcibly detained by the attackers. Those detained had to dress up in black Kambals (shawls)and take an oath that they would abide by the holy book all their life.
The attackers shouted slogans like ``Follow the Kama Sutra or Die!’’. They also raised slogans against books written on the subject by Western authors, mostly white men. The cries awakened the neighbours who called the police. As usual, the police arrived after half of the victims were assaulted.
Police said some of the attackers had been arrested. A senior officer said investigations were on. The officer who will retire after five years, said the investigations would continue in all earnestness, even after he is gone.
Eom

-A day will come when you will be forced to read such reports. In writing this, I was inspired by news prophecy websites. The story's alternative title could be Moral policing: India- 2020.

Two Hindus, a Muslim and Amitabh Bachan

2009-02-10T03:10:00.000-08:00

The reasons I uploaded the Bhajan in the last post:

The poem is by Meera Bai, a Hindu Queen

The singer is Ustad Munawar Ali Khan, a Muslim

It is about Lord Krishna who was born to a Hindu OBC family. He is worshipped by Hindus, some of whom happen to be those who consider themselves the upper castes.

Who said the world is not multi-coloured?

The song was made popular as some Hindi film writer got inspired by its first line. An Indian actor known for his height also contributed to its popularity.

The beauty of the original poem was thus lost.

Pag Ghungroo Bandh Meera Nachire -Meera Bhajan

2009-01-02T06:07:00.000-08:00

``All Muslims are not Terrorists, But all Terrorists are Muslims''

2008-12-01T06:30:00.000-08:00

A media group owner has said something interesting. ``All Muslims are not terrorists. But all terrorists are Muslims. I don’t see why we should be afraid of accepting such facts’’.

The high profile entrepreneur and journalist made the statement at a music performance in Hubli. What is even more interesting is that there were some Muslims among the guests and performers!

I thought I would add here, some facts that such people may not be afraid to accept.

Intelligence agencies of India, USA, UK, and other countries have identified nearly 125 global terror outfits.
Half of these have Christian cadres. The motto of some such organizations is to convert the world into ``The Promised Land’’.
A third of these have Muslim cadres. Some say they are fighting a Holy War. Some media organizations call them Islamic terror outfits.
At least 10 % of those listed are fighting for rights of tribes.
There are at least 10 agencies on the list that have non –tribal Hindus as cadres.
The list also includes agencies populated by people of other religions like Buddhism and Judaism.

Now I want to put you through a small quiz.

Who killed M K Gandhi?
Who killed Solomon Bandaranaike former PM of Sri Lanka?
Who killed Premadasa, former president of the same country?
Who killed millions of innocents in Ireland for over seven centuries?
Who killed thousands in a blood war over four decades in the Kingdom of Nepal?
When Khmer Rouge ruled Cambodia, nearly two million people were killed. What was the religion followed by senior Khmer Roughe leaders?
Who killed Indira Gandhi?
Who killed Rajiv Gandhi?
Who gas bombed trains in Japan in 1995?
What is Lehi?

Here are the answers.

India’s most famous assassin was Nathuram Ghodse was a Hindu Brahmin.
Bandaranaike was assassinated by Talduwe Somarama, a Buddhist monk, in 1959. His wife Sirimavo Bandaranaike would take over as the world’s first woman PM.
LTTE, which mostly consists of Tamil speaking Hindus
Irish Republican Army is a Christian organisation
The Nepal Maoists are Hindus
Some prominent Khmer Rouge leaders were devout Buddhists.
Khalistan activists who were Sikhs
LTTE again.
Members of the Aum Shinrikyo, a new religion influenced by Buddhism and Christianity.
Lehi or ``Fighters for the Freedom of Israel", was a terrorist organization that was given general amnesty and merged into the Israel army. Yitzhak Rabin, a former Israel PM was a legendary Lehi member.

Eom

Selling Widows in IT City's Hinterlands

2008-11-22T03:07:00.000-08:00

Bangalore: India’s IT city may take pride in its image of India’s futuristic city. But its hinterlands seem to rest in the stone ages. In villages less than 100 km from Bangalore, widows are bought and sold.
The practice is still common among the pig -rearing Kunchalu Koracha or Handi Koracha community. The centuries old `Ruka’ practice persists among the community that dwells in taluks on the Karnataka-Andhra Pradesh border.
Women thus sold, are used as bonded labourers to rear pigs or make brooms. They are also made to run errands, wash dishes or clothes or take up baby -sitting. What is interesting is that similar rules do not apply to men who are widowed. The custom is treated as sacred and few victims protest.
What is Ruka?
It is a practice opposed to dowry. During marriage, a bunch of coins tied in a piece of cloth is given to the bride to keep for life. This is treated as a solemn promise from her that she would serve her husband and in -laws for life. This provides her parents -in -law absolute control over her life, in case of her husband’s death. They can sell her if they feel it is costly to keep her and her children in their household and feed them.
``This is a common practice. Even today, women are bought and sold,’’ Sunkappa, an elderly member of the community said. His sister Nagamma was sold by her in –laws four years ago.
When the news of this transaction broke out, it became a sensation. The state government promised to help this women and the backward community in all possible ways. A whole caravan of officers stormed on R Hosakote village in September last year. They promised them free houses, loans and pigs at subsidized prices. Over 300 applications were received. But not a single application seems to have been processed. No one got any assistance till now.

G K Karanth, director of the centre for multi disciplinary development research, feels all the stake -holders, the government, community and the civil society have a role to play.
The state government should assess why such barbaric practices persist. Questions should be raised as to what are the hindrances to ending them; whether it is ignorance, exclusion, economic opportunity, or die -hard preservationism. Solutions can be evolved based on such data, Karanth who is the joint editor of the book `Challenging Untouchability: Dalit Initiatives and Experiences from Karnataka’ said.
He also felt that evil practices should be condemned even if they are part of community or tribal customs. ``While I uphold the cultural rights of indigenous communities, I feel the need for a cultural ombudsman to look at these things and suggest what can be done, ‘’ he said.
The minister D Sudhakar said that he was shocked to hear about such practices. He said he would provide a free house, loan for self -employment and free education for her children. He said the matter would be investigated and the guilty would be brought to book. He also said educational programmes would be taken up to wean away the community from such practices. When reminded that similar assurances were made by the government four years ago, he said he would call for details on their status and take up follow up action. He may have to start from the fundamentals. The state government is yet to appoint chairpersons for the state women’s commission and the state SC/ST commission. Eom

A woman of courage

2008-11-22T03:03:00.001-08:00

Pavagad (Tumkur district): This is the story of a woman with courage who took on the establishment and fought for self -respect.
Nagamma, a woman from the Handi Koracha community, was born in Pavagada in Tumkur district. At the age of 14, she was married to Narayanappa from Ananthpur in Andhra Pradesh. They had four children. One day, he died of a mysterious stomach -ache. As her parents –in- law were not willing to take care of her, the widow thought she will come back to her parents in Pavagada. However, she came to know a few weeks later that her parents -in -law had sold her to Maddaleti, a rich pig -rearer. He had paid Rs 32,000 to buy Nagamma. When Maddaleti came to take her away, she protested. She was the first person in the community to protest against the evil custom.
Sogadu Venkatesh, a social worker from the Urikala Koracha community brought this to the notice of leaders during an election rally in 2004. Former minister B T Lalitha Naik who was addressing the rally, condemned the practice and vowed to fight against it.
The news then hit headlines and the government was forced to make some announcements. It promised her a house, loan to buy pigs and other benefits. However, no promise has come true till now.
The media exposure added to Nagamma’s problems. Police arrested Maddaleti and another of her relatives. But the community forced Nagamma to bail them out. She had to pay a bond of Rs 12,000 to get them released from jail. Once free, they demanded that she go with them as the old purchase agreement was still valid. Nagamma then released herself from their clutches by paying them Rs 42,000. For this, she took hand loans from friends and relatives. She still keeps paying back the loan.
Nagamma makes and sells palm leaf brooms for a living. Since her brooms sell at Rs 4, it seems she has to sell at least 10,000 brooms to completely repay her loan.
On Wednesday, Nagamma was making brooms in front of her hut. She laughed at questions about the infamous sale that took place four years ago. ``I am tired of repeating the story in front of visitors,’’ she said.
She has managed to marry off two of her four daughters. Lakshmi, the third daughter is in high school. ``The last one dropped off as she was not interested,’’ Nagamma said.
The only sign of government intervention in Nagamma’s life is the bicycle given to her daughter in school. The land on which her hut stands, belongs to a farmer who has stopped cultivating it as it is barren. There is no tapped water anywhere in the vicinity. The children spend their nights under starlight.
However, it seems charms of modern times are hard to resist. Nagamma’s first daughter, also called Nagamma, has named her daughter Shreesha.
The Tumkur district legal services authority organized a legal awareness camp for the community in R Hosakote village in Pavgad taluk in September last year. A team of officers including the assistant commissioner, district welfare officer, district animal husbandry officer, district officials of the SC/ST development corporation and backward classes development corporation came to the programme. They asked the community to stop such practices and promised welfare measures. They collected nearly 300 applications for help. Not one promise was met, Venkatesh said.
Venkatesh recalled an interesting incident during the programme. According to him, when principal district and sessions judge Krishna Bhat was speaking, a woman came to the stage and said that while they were talking about selling of women after they are widowed, she was sold while her husband was still alive.

Is your blood group -ve?

2008-07-09T07:51:00.000-07:00

Some young people who met me recently, asked me these questions. I had no time then and promised to answer them here.
I will try to answer one question per day.

1: Why does the mainstream media not cover constructive social phenomenon like inter religious dialogues and efforts at communal harmony?

A: Yes and no. One of the oldest allegations against the media is that it highlights negative issues and downplays positive developments. There may be two reasons behind this. Negative issues seem to have a larger nuisance value that can create sensational news. They also have larger marketability than positive issues. Sensational stories attract attention faster than articles that demand the reader to stop, think and perceive.
However, this is an easy explanation.
A larger, academic explanation may be this. Our colonial history ridden with stories of exploitation and centuries of suffering might have shaped our psyche. May be this is responsible for our `Chalta hai’ or `Kuch Nahi Badlega’ attitudes. We tend to accept hopelessness and see hope as a rarity.
This might make us disinterested towards positive stories and make us savour the stories that speak of the dark side of man. Anything good is suspected. I know of a junior who tried to write about Salumarada Thimmakka, the iconic woman who planted and cared for hundreds of trees along the road side in a village in Kolar. His seniors were not convinced that someone ‘could be so good’. His story was not published for weeks. Then, someone else wrote the story and the rest is history. She became a celebrity overnight and went on to receive a national award.
I don’t need to give examples of negative issues. Look around you and they outnumber every other kind of a story by many times.
I don’t know of a study that has counted the number of positive and negative stories in any media product over a long period of time. However, a Mangalore University study by Shafi Saduddin revealed that during a communal riot, the number of news reports that seemed to help prolong it were more than those that could arrest it.

Obama can teach a lesson or two to our leaders

2008-03-25T03:00:00.000-07:00

Transcript: Senator Barack Obama's speech
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
The following is the text of Barack Obama's speech in Philadelphia, as prepared for delivery and provided by his campaign.
"We the people, in order to form a more perfect union."
Two hundred and twenty one years ago, in a hall that still stands across the street, a group of men gathered and, with these simple words, launched America's improbable experiment in democracy. Farmers and scholars; statesmen and patriots who had traveled across an ocean to escape tyranny and persecution finally made real their declaration of independence at a Philadelphia convention that lasted through the spring of 1787.
The document they produced was eventually signed but ultimately unfinished. It was stained by this nation's original sin of slavery, a question that divided the colonies and brought the convention to a stalemate until the founders chose to allow the slave trade to continue for at least twenty more years, and to leave any final resolution to future generations.
Of course, the answer to the slavery question was already embedded within our Constitution a Constitution that had at is very core the ideal of equal citizenship under the law; a Constitution that promised its people liberty, and justice, and a union that could be and should be perfected over time.
And yet words on a parchment would not be enough to deliver slaves from bondage, or provide men and women of every color and creed their full rights and obligations as citizens of the United States. What would be needed were Americans in successive generations who were willing to do their part through protests and struggle, on the streets and in the courts, through a civil war and civil disobedience and always at great risk - to narrow that gap between the promise of our ideals and the reality of their time.
This was one of the tasks we set forth at the beginning of this campaign to continue the long march of those who came before us, a march for a more just, more equal, more free, more caring and more prosperous America. I chose to run for the presidency at this moment in history because I believe deeply that we cannot solve the challenges of our time unless we solve them together unless we perfect our union by understanding that we may have different stories, but we hold common hopes; that we may not look the same and we may not have come from the same place, but we all want to move in the same direction towards a better future for of children and our grandchildren.
This belief comes from my unyielding faith in the decency and generosity of the American people. But it also comes from my own American story.
I am the son of a black man from Kenya and a white woman from Kansas. I was raised with the help of a white grandfather who survived a Depression to serve in Patton's Army during World War II and a white grandmother who worked on a bomber assembly line at Fort Leavenworth while he was overseas. I've gone to some of the best schools in America and lived in one of the world's poorest nations. I am married to a black American who carries within her the blood of slaves and slaveowners an inheritance we pass on to our two precious daughters. I have brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, uncles and cousins, of every race and every hue, scattered across three continents, and for as long as I live, I will never forget that in no other country on Earth is my story even possible.
It's a story that hasn't made me the most conventional candidate. But it is a story that has seared into my genetic makeup the idea that this nation is more than the sum of its parts that out of many, we are truly one.
Throughout the first year of this campaign, against all predictions to the contrary, we saw how hungry the American people were for this message of unity. Despite the temptation to view my candidacy through a purely racial lens, we won commanding victories in states with some of the whitest populations in the country. In South Carolina, where the Confederate Flag still flies, we built a powerful coalition of African Americans and white Americans.
This is not to say that race has not been an issue in the campaign. At various stages in the campaign, some commentators have deemed me either "too black" or "not black enough." We saw racial tensions bubble to the surface during the week before the South Carolina primary. The press has scoured every exit poll for the latest evidence of racial polarization, not just in terms of white and black, but black and brown as well.
And yet, it has only been in the last couple of weeks that the discussion of race in this campaign has taken a particularly divisive turn.
On one end of the spectrum, we've heard the implication that my candidacy is somehow an exercise in affirmative action; that it's based solely on the desire of wide-eyed liberals to purchase racial reconciliation on the cheap. On the other end, we've heard my former pastor, Reverend Jeremiah Wright, use incendiary language to express views that have the potential not only to widen the racial divide, but views that denigrate both the greatness and the goodness of our nation; that rightly offend white and black alike. I have already condemned, in unequivocal terms, the statements of Reverend Wright that have caused such controversy. For some, nagging questions remain. Did I know him to be an occasionally fierce critic of American domestic and foreign policy? Of course. Did I ever hear him make remarks that could be considered controversial while I sat in church? Yes. Did I strongly disagree with many of his political views? Absolutely just as I'm sure many of you have heard remarks from your pastors, priests, or rabbis with which you strongly disagreed. But the remarks that have caused this recent firestorm weren't simply controversial. They weren't simply a religious leader's effort to speak out against perceived injustice. Instead, they expressed a profoundly distorted view of this country a view that sees white racism as endemic, and that elevates what is wrong with America above all that we know is right with America; a view that sees the conflicts in the Middle East as rooted primarily in the actions of stalwart allies like Israel, instead of emanating from the perverse and hateful ideologies of radical Islam.
As such, Reverend Wright's comments were not only wrong but divisive, divisive at a time when we need unity; racially charged at a time when we need to come together to solve a set of monumental problems two wars, a terrorist threat, a falling economy, a chronic health care crisis and potentially devastating climate change; problems that are neither black or white or Latino or Asian, but rather problems that confront us all.
Given my background, my politics, and my professed values and ideals, there will no doubt be those for whom my statements of condemnation are not enough. Why associate myself with Reverend Wright in the first place, they may ask? Why not join another church? And I confess that if all that I knew of Reverend Wright were the snippets of those sermons that have run in an endless loop on the television and You Tube, or if Trinity United Church of Christ conformed to the caricatures being peddled by some commentators, there is no doubt that I would react in much the same way
But the truth is, that isn't all that I know of the man. The man I met more than twenty years ago is a man who helped introduce me to my Christian faith, a man who spoke to me about our obligations to love one another; to care for the sick and lift up the poor. He is a man who served his country as a U.S. Marine; who has studied and lectured at some of the finest universities and seminaries in the country, and who for over thirty years led a church that serves the community by doing God's work here on Earth by housing the homeless, ministering to the needy, providing day care services and scholarships and prison ministries, and reaching out to those suffering from HIV/AIDS.
In my first book, Dreams From My Father, I described the experience of my first service at Trinity:
"People began to shout, to rise from their seats and clap and cry out, a forceful wind carrying the reverend's voice up into the rafters....And in that single note hope! I heard something else; at the foot of that cross, inside the thousands of churches across the city, I imagined the stories of ordinary black people merging with the stories of David and Goliath, Moses and Pharaoh, the Christians in the lion's den, Ezekiel's field of dry bones. Those stories of survival, and freedom, and hope became our story, my story; the blood that had spilled was our blood, the tears our tears; until this black church, on this bright day, seemed once more a vessel carrying the story of a people into future generations and into a larger world. Our trials and triumphs became at once unique and universal, black and more than black; in chronicling our journey, the stories and songs gave us a means to reclaim memories that we didn't need to feel shame about...memories that all people might study and cherish and with which we could start to rebuild."
That has been my experience at Trinity. Like other predominantly black churches across the country, Trinity embodies the black community in its entirety the doctor and the welfare mom, the model student and the former gang-banger. Like other black churches, Trinity's services are full of raucous laughter and sometimes bawdy humor. They are full of dancing, clapping, screaming and shouting that may seem jarring to the untrained ear. The church contains in full the kindness and cruelty, the fierce intelligence and the shocking ignorance, the struggles and successes, the love and yes, the bitterness and bias that make up the black experience in America.
And this helps explain, perhaps, my relationship with Reverend Wright. As imperfect as he may be, he has been like family to me. He strengthened my faith, officiated my wedding, and baptized my children. Not once in my conversations with him have I heard him talk about any ethnic group in derogatory terms, or treat whites with whom he interacted with anything but courtesy and respect. He contains within him the contradictions the good and the bad of the community that he has served diligently for so many years.
I can no more disown him than I can disown the black community. I can no more disown him than I can my white grandmother a woman who helped raise me, a woman who sacrificed again and again for me, a woman who loves me as much as she loves anything in this world, but a woman who once confessed her fear of black men who passed by her on the street, and who on more than one occasion has uttered racial or ethnic stereotypes that made me cringe.
These people are a part of me. And they are a part of America, this country that I love.
Some will see this as an attempt to justify or excuse comments that are simply inexcusable. I can assure you it is not. I suppose the politically safe thing would be to move on from this episode and just hope that it fades into the woodwork. We can dismiss Reverend Wright as a crank or a demagogue, just as some have dismissed Geraldine Ferraro, in the aftermath of her recent statements, as harboring some deep-seated racial bias.
But race is an issue that I believe this nation cannot afford to ignore right now. We would be making the same mistake that Reverend Wright made in his offending sermons about America to simplify and stereotype and amplify the negative to the point that it distorts reality.
The fact is that the comments that have been made and the issues that have surfaced over the last few weeks reflect the complexities of race in this country that we've never really worked through a part of our union that we have yet to perfect. And if we walk away now, if we simply retreat into our respective corners, we will never be able to come together and solve challenges like health care, or education, or the need to find good jobs for every American.
Understanding this reality requires a reminder of how we arrived at this point. As William Faulkner once wrote, "The past isn't dead and buried. In fact, it isn't even past." We do not need to recite here the history of racial injustice in this country. But we do need to remind ourselves that so many of the disparities that exist in the African-American community today can be directly traced to inequalities passed on from an earlier generation that suffered under the brutal legacy of slavery and Jim Crow.
Segregated schools were, and are, inferior schools; we still haven't fixed them, fifty years after Brown v. Board of Education, and the inferior education they provided, then and now, helps explain the pervasive achievement gap between today's black and white students.
Legalized discrimination - where blacks were prevented, often through violence, from owning property, or loans were not granted to African-American business owners, or black homeowners could not access FHA mortgages, or blacks were excluded from unions, or the police force, or fire departments meant that black families could not amass any meaningful wealth to bequeath to future generations. That history helps explain the wealth and income gap between black and white, and the concentrated pockets of poverty that persists in so many of today's urban and rural communities.
A lack of economic opportunity among black men, and the shame and frustration that came from not being able to provide for one's family, contributed to the erosion of black families a problem that welfare policies for many years may have worsened. And the lack of basic services in so many urban black neighborhoods parks for kids to play in, police walking the beat, regular garbage pick-up and building code enforcement all helped create a cycle of violence, blight and neglect that continue to haunt us.
This is the reality in which Reverend Wright and other African-Americans of his generation grew up. They came of age in the late fifties and early sixties, a time when segregation was still the law of the land and opportunity was systematically constricted. What's remarkable is not how many failed in the face of discrimination, but rather how many men and women overcame the odds; how many were able to make a way out of no way for those like me who would come after them.
But for all those who scratched and clawed their way to get a piece of the American Dream, there were many who didn't make it those who were ultimately defeated, in one way or another, by discrimination. That legacy of defeat was passed on to future generations those young men and increasingly young women who we see standing on street corners or languishing in our prisons, without hope or prospects for the future. Even for those blacks who did make it, questions of race, and racism, continue to define their worldview in fundamental ways. For the men and women of Reverend Wright's generation, the memories of humiliation and doubt and fear have not gone away; nor has the anger and the bitterness of those years. That anger may not get expressed in public, in front of white co-workers or white friends. But it does find voice in the barbershop or around the kitchen table. At times, that anger is exploited by politicians, to gin up votes along racial lines, or to make up for a politician's own failings.
And occasionally it finds voice in the church on Sunday morning, in the pulpit and in the pews. The fact that so many people are surprised to hear that anger in some of Reverend Wright's sermons simply reminds us of the old truism that the most segregated hour in American life occurs on Sunday morning. That anger is not always productive; indeed, all too often it distracts attention from solving real problems; it keeps us from squarely facing our own complicity in our condition, and prevents the African-American community from forging the alliances it needs to bring about real change. But the anger is real; it is powerful; and to simply wish it away, to condemn it without understanding its roots, only serves to widen the chasm of misunderstanding that exists between the races.
In fact, a similar anger exists within segments of the white community. Most working- and middle-class white Americans don't feel that they have been particularly privileged by their race. Their experience is the immigrant experience as far as they're concerned, no one's handed them anything, they've built it from scratch. They've worked hard all their lives, many times only to see their jobs shipped overseas or their pension dumped after a lifetime of labor. They are anxious about their futures, and feel their dreams slipping away; in an era of stagnant wages and global competition, opportunity comes to be seen as a zero sum game, in which your dreams come at my expense. So when they are told to bus their children to a school across town; when they hear that an African American is getting an advantage in landing a good job or a spot in a good college because of an injustice that they themselves never committed; when they're told that their fears about crime in urban neighborhoods are somehow prejudiced, resentment builds over time.
Like the anger within the black community, these resentments aren't always expressed in polite company. But they have helped shape the political landscape for at least a generation. Anger over welfare and affirmative action helped forge the Reagan Coalition. Politicians routinely exploited fears of crime for their own electoral ends. Talk show hosts and conservative commentators built entire careers unmasking bogus claims of racism while dismissing legitimate discussions of racial injustice and inequality as mere political correctness or reverse racism.
Just as black anger often proved counterproductive, so have these white resentments distracted attention from the real culprits of the middle class squeeze a corporate culture rife with inside dealing, questionable accounting practices, and short-term greed; a Washington dominated by lobbyists and special interests; economic policies that favor the few over the many. And yet, to wish away the resentments of white Americans, to label them as misguided or even racist, without recognizing they are grounded in legitimate concerns this too widens the racial divide, and blocks the path to understanding.
This is where we are right now. It's a racial stalemate we've been stuck in for years. Contrary to the claims of some of my critics, black and white, I have never been so naïve as to believe that we can get beyond our racial divisions in a single election cycle, or with a single candidacy particularly a candidacy as imperfect as my own.
But I have asserted a firm conviction a conviction rooted in my faith in God and my faith in the American people that working together we can move beyond some of our old racial wounds, and that in fact we have no choice is we are to continue on the path of a more perfect union.
For the African-American community, that path means embracing the burdens of our past without becoming victims of our past. It means continuing to insist on a full measure of justice in every aspect of American life. But it also means binding our particular grievances for better health care, and better schools, and better jobs - to the larger aspirations of all Americans -- the white woman struggling to break the glass ceiling, the white man whose been laid off, the immigrant trying to feed his family. And it means taking full responsibility for own lives by demanding more from our fathers, and spending more time with our children, and reading to them, and teaching them that while they may face challenges and discrimination in their own lives, they must never succumb to despair or cynicism; they must always believe that they can write their own destiny.
Ironically, this quintessentially American and yes, conservative notion of self-help found frequent expression in Reverend Wright's sermons. But what my former pastor too often failed to understand is that embarking on a program of self-help also requires a belief that society can change.
The profound mistake of Reverend Wright's sermons is not that he spoke about racism in our society. It's that he spoke as if our society was static; as if no progress has been made; as if this country a country that has made it possible for one of his own members to run for the highest office in the land and build a coalition of white and black; Latino and Asian, rich and poor, young and old -- is still irrevocably bound to a tragic past. But what we know -- what we have seen is that America can change. That is true genius of this nation. What we have already achieved gives us hope the audacity to hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.
In the white community, the path to a more perfect union means acknowledging that what ails the African-American community does not just exist in the minds of black people; that the legacy of discrimination - and current incidents of discrimination, while less overt than in the past - are real and must be addressed. Not just with words, but with deeds by investing in our schools and our communities; by enforcing our civil rights laws and ensuring fairness in our criminal justice system; by providing this generation with ladders of opportunity that were unavailable for previous generations. It requires all Americans to realize that your dreams do not have to come at the expense of my dreams; that investing in the health, welfare, and education of black and brown and white children will ultimately help all of America prosper.
In the end, then, what is called for is nothing more, and nothing less, than what all the world's great religions demand that we do unto others as we would have them do unto us. Let us be our brother's keeper, Scripture tells us. Let us be our sister's keeper. Let us find that common stake we all have in one another, and let our politics reflect that spirit as well.
For we have a choice in this country. We can accept a politics that breeds division, and conflict, and cynicism. We can tackle race only as spectacle as we did in the OJ trial or in the wake of tragedy, as we did in the aftermath of Katrina - or as fodder for the nightly news. We can play Reverend Wright's sermons on every channel, every day and talk about them from now until the election, and make the only question in this campaign whether or not the American people think that I somehow believe or sympathize with his most offensive words. We can pounce on some gaffe by a Hillary supporter as evidence that she's playing the race card, or we can speculate on whether white men will all flock to John McCain in the general election regardless of his policies.
We can do that.
But if we do, I can tell you that in the next election, we'll be talking about some other distraction. And then another one. And then another one. And nothing will change.
That is one option. Or, at this moment, in this election, we can come together and say, "Not this time." This time we want to talk about the crumbling schools that are stealing the future of black children and white children and Asian children and Hispanic children and Native American children. This time we want to reject the cynicism that tells us that these kids can't learn; that those kids who don't look like us are somebody else's problem. The children of America are not those kids, they are our kids, and we will not let them fall behind in a 21st century economy. Not this time.
This time we want to talk about how the lines in the Emergency Room are filled with whites and blacks and Hispanics who do not have health care; who don't have the power on their own to overcome the special interests in Washington, but who can take them on if we do it together.
This time we want to talk about the shuttered mills that once provided a decent life for men and women of every race, and the homes for sale that once belonged to Americans from every religion, every region, every walk of life. This time we want to talk about the fact that the real problem is not that someone who doesn't look like you might take your job; it's that the corporation you work for will ship it overseas for nothing more than a profit.
This time we want to talk about the men and women of every color and creed who serve together, and fight together, and bleed together under the same proud flag. We want to talk about how to bring them home from a war that never should've been authorized and never should've been waged, and we want to talk about how we'll show our patriotism by caring for them, and their families, and giving them the benefits they have earned.
I would not be running for President if I didn't believe with all my heart that this is what the vast majority of Americans want for this country. This union may never be perfect, but generation after generation has shown that it can always be perfected. And today, whenever I find myself feeling doubtful or cynical about this possibility, what gives me the most hope is the next generation the young people whose attitudes and beliefs and openness to change have already made history in this election.
There is one story in particularly that I'd like to leave you with today a story I told when I had the great honor of speaking on Dr. King's birthday at his home church, Ebenezer Baptist, in Atlanta.
There is a young, twenty-three year old white woman named Ashley Baia who organized for our campaign in Florence, South Carolina. She had been working to organize a mostly African-American community since the beginning of this campaign, and one day she was at a roundtable discussion where everyone went around telling their story and why they were there.
And Ashley said that when she was nine years old, her mother got cancer. And because she had to miss days of work, she was let go and lost her health care. They had to file for bankruptcy, and that's when Ashley decided that she had to do something to help her mom.
She knew that food was one of their most expensive costs, and so Ashley convinced her mother that what she really liked and really wanted to eat more than anything else was mustard and relish sandwiches. Because that was the cheapest way to eat.
She did this for a year until her mom got better, and she told everyone at the roundtable that the reason she joined our campaign was so that she could help the millions of other children in the country who want and need to help their parents too.
Now Ashley might have made a different choice. Perhaps somebody told her along the way that the source of her mother's problems were blacks who were on welfare and too lazy to work, or Hispanics who were coming into the country illegally. But she didn't. She sought out allies in her fight against injustice.
Anyway, Ashley finishes her story and then goes around the room and asks everyone else why they're supporting the campaign. They all have different stories and reasons. Many bring up a specific issue. And finally they come to this elderly black man who's been sitting there quietly the entire time. And Ashley asks him why he's there. And he does not bring up a specific issue. He does not say health care or the economy. He does not say education or the war. He does not say that he was there because of Barack Obama. He simply says to everyone in the room, "I am here because of Ashley."
"I'm here because of Ashley." By itself, that single moment of recognition between that young white girl and that old black man is not enough. It is not enough to give health care to the sick, or jobs to the jobless, or education to our children.
But it is where we start. It is where our union grows stronger. And as so many generations have come to realize over the course of the two-hundred and twenty one years since a band of patriots signed that document in Philadelphia, that is where the perfection begins.
Notes:

Copyright © 2008 The International Herald Tribune www.iht.com
var iht_dcsid = "dcs2doco300000g0nesiz1ro5_1g8s";

var tcdacmd="dt";

america");
DM_tag();
//-->

Delimitation and EVM

2008-02-28T02:55:00.000-08:00

This week has been happy and sad for me.
I have been happy because the President of India in her wisdom accepted the delimitation commission’s recommendations. It will change the way politicians think about voters and the other way round.
I have also been sad because S Rangarajan or Sujatha, who developed the Electronic Voting Machine, is dead. This guy changed the way we vote. The country owes him a lot.
An alumnus of IIT Madras, he was general manager, research and development, at the Bangalore based Bharat Electronics Limited. His team worked extra hard to ensure it was proved error free when some politicians alleged that it could be rigged.
Another interesting aspect of the man was that he was a prolific writer. He is credited to have developed a taste for science fiction, in the younger generation. He wrote stories for many successful films of Rajanikanth and Kamal Hassan.
Let us pray his death is offset by the birth of more such people.

The delimitation commission

2008-01-11T06:11:00.000-08:00

Are you tired of seeing the same old faces in assembly and parties? Would you go out to vote this time if you had a better choice?
Then please seek early implementation of the report of the delimitation commission (www.delimitation-india.com). It aims to create a new political map of India by redrawing the boundaries of parliament and assembly constituencies.
According to me, delimitation is the biggest thing to happen to this country after freedom and democracy. I have reasons to say so.
Senile politicians who are rusting in their seats will have to look for new constituencies and the voters will have a real choice from among new faces. The commission’s report offers new opportunities to refresh democracy.
Everyone thought it would be implemented from 2009. But that is not so. It may happen anytime. The cabinet committee on political affairs approved it on January 3.
Some leaders with vested interests have been nurturing their constituencies for decades. For example, the Karnataka assembly has two MLAs who have been elected eight times and four who have won six times. They will have developed vested interests in those seats. They will have clearly divided the voters into friends and enemies. The voters may have been reduced to vegetables who vote mechanically every five years as they have no real alternative.
But once the DCI kicks out such leaders from their seats, electoral democracy will be forced to move in new directions. Delimitation will change the very way we think about democracy.
It will also create opportunities for nice guys to enter politics. One of the best political ideologues in the country used to be elected from the Rajya Sabha because his home constituency was that of V P Singh.
This will change. Those who never had a chance to contest for elections till now can represent us from now on.
It will also create more urban MLAs and ensure faster urban development
Bangalore city now has 16 MLAs. It will become 28.
Similar will be case of Gulbarga, Hubli, Mangalore, Belgaum, Mysore and other cities. They will have an MLA for the city and one for its peripheral areas.
Since the interests of voters in these two areas are different, the MLAs will be forced to raise different issues.
This will be very different from each MLA endlessly talking about Garibi Hatao in rural areas. We will have at least some voices in the towns and cities.
The greatest incredibility about incredible India is its democracy. We all should try to better it everyday. If we don’t participate, we lose the right to complain.

Anal Haq and Aham Brahmasmi

2007-11-18T08:43:00.000-08:00

How many reams of paper have been spent writing about Aham Brahmasmi? Countless. How many times has Anal Haq been explained by writers and scholars?
But how many times has it been written that both have a strikingly similar meaning?
Why do we do this? Is it because we are afraid of exploring meanings of new terms? Or to open up to different cultures? Or to share what we know? Are we afraid to think aloud? Do we think we will be offending others’ sentiments if we speak the truth?

After all, is being politically correct the only aim of a civilized society?

Gowda and Gore

2007-10-13T07:52:00.000-07:00

I chose this title because I wanted to sound strange and confusing. Yesterday over lunch, I got to know former US vice president Al Gore won the Peace Noble for his environmental campaigns.
I was busy and could not think much about it.
I had heard about Al Gore’s film on snow animals. The only other thing I could recall about him was the way he introduced himself to students in a US university. ``I am Al Gore. I used to be the next President of the US’’. For me, that smelt of Narcissism.
But when I went home yesterday night, I began watching TV to get details. I hopped between channels that were speaking to Al Gore and the one that was speaking about former Indian Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda.
Then it struck me. How a former vice president of a resourceful country can smoothly go out of politics in that country and how some one like Gowda could remain an undying irritant in Indian politics.
About how a not so young man can comfortably forget the luxuries of the White House and go filming Penguins. And how a 80 year old guy who has enjoyed all the power under the sun can hanker for what his not his.
That is why people like Al Gore bring laurels to their country even when out of power and why people like Gowda bring disrepute to the world’s largest democracy.

ಜೆಹಾದ್ ಎಂದರೆ ಏನು?

2007-09-14T23:17:00.000-07:00

ಇಸ್ಲಾಮಿನ ಮೂರನೇ ಕಲೀಫಾ ಅಲಿ ಅವರು ಧಮ೯ ಯುದ್ಧವೊಂದರಲ್ಲಿ ಪಾಲ್ಗೊಂಡಿದ್ದರು. ಇವರ ಮೇಲೆ ದಾಳಿ ಮಾಡಲು ಬಂದ ಎದುರಾಳಿ ಸೈನಿಕನೊಬ್ಬನನ್ನು ಸೋಲಿಸಿದರು. ಇನ್ನೇನು ಅವನನ್ನು ಕೊಲ್ಲಬೇಕು ಎಂದು ಖಡ್ಗ ಎತ್ತಿದಾಗ ಅವನು ಇವರ ಮುಖದಮೇಲೆ ಉಗುಳಿದ.
ಇವರು ಖಡ್ಗವನ್ನು ಇಳಿಸಿದರು. ಅವನ ಜೀವ ಉಳಿಸಿದರು. ಅವನು ಯುದ್ಧ ಕೈದಿಯಾದ.
ಅವನನ್ನು ಜೈಲಿಗೆ ಕಳಿಸುವಾಗ ಅವನು ಅಲಿಯವರನ್ನು ಕೇಳಿದ. "ಸ್ವಾಮಿ, ನಿಮ್ಮ ನಡತೆ ನನಗೆ ಅಥ೯ವಾಗಲಿಲ್ಲ. ನಾನು ನಿಮ್ಮ ಮುಖದ ಮೇಲೆ ಉಗುಳಿದಾಗ ನೀವು ಸಿಟ್ಟಿಗೆದ್ದು ನನ್ನನ್ನು ಕೊಲ್ಲುತ್ತೀರೆಂದು ತಿಳಿದಿದ್ದೆ. ಆದರೆ ನೀವು ನನ್ನನ್ನು ಜೀವ ಸಹಿತ ಉಳಿಸಿದಿರಿ. ಯಾಕೆ?"
ಅಲಿ ಹೇಳಿದರು: ನೋಡು, ನೀನು ನನ್ನ ಮುಖದ ಮೇಲೆ ಉಗುಳಿದಾಗ ನನಗೆ ಕೋಪ ಬಂದಿದ್ದು ನಿಜ. ಆದರೆ ನಾನು ಇಲ್ಲಿಗೆ ಬಂದಿದ್ದು ಜೆಹಾದ್ ನಡೆಸಲು. ನನ್ನ ನಿನ್ನ ನಡುವಿನ ವೈಯಕ್ತಿಕ ದ್ವೇಷ ಸಾಧಿಸಲು ಅಲ್ಲ. ನಿನ್ನ ಮೇಲಿನ ಕೋಪದಿಂದ ನಿನ್ನನ್ನು ಕೊಂದರೆ ಅದು ಪವಿತ್ರ ಜೆಹಾದ್ ಹೇಗಾದೀತು?. ನನ್ನ ನಿನ್ನ ನಡುವಿನ ಬೀದಿ ಜಗಳವಾದೀತು ಅಷ್ಟೇ"

Of Pratibha Patil, Sania Mirza and Koneru Hampi

2007-08-15T06:34:00.001-07:00

We all know who Pratibha Patil is. We also know how she got to be the President of India.

For the first time in India's 60 year history, we have a women as President. She is also head of the Parliament of the World's largest democracy and Supreme Commander of the largest voluntary armed force in the World.

Some people say she is there on merit. Some say loyalty to one political party and a family is the only merit she has. The debate continues.

More people know who Sania Mirza is. The Tennis star is remembered by the number of matches she won and the equal number she lost. However, more people seem to recall the designer's magic wand that transformed a simple urban middle class girl into someone who looks like a celebrity.

What is unfortunate is that fewer people know who Koneru Hampi is. The World Grand Master in Chess has won more matches than she lost. This girl from a modest family in a small town was a national champion when her classmates were mugging up maths tables.

What is important is that she is the only Indian lady to have defeated men in the same sport.

Is her popularity less because Chess is not as well known as Tennis? Or is it because Mme Koneru does not have designer looks? Or is it because she does not have the professional PR managers that Sania has?

So what makes a person successful and popular?

Merit, looks, or PR skills?

The debate continues.

2007-08-15T06:34:00.000-07:00

music

2007-07-16T09:05:00.001-07:00

The Taj

2007-06-25T21:53:00.000-07:00

We all know many are trying to put the Taj on the list of the new seven wonders.

Did you know what the great poet Sahir Ludhiyanvi had said about the Taj?

"Ek Shahensha ne lekar daulat ka sahara, udaya hai mazak hum gareebon ke mohabbat ka. Sahir on The Taj".

It means, "a great king has used his wealth to ridicule the love of poor people like us".

War of 1857

2007-06-23T04:29:00.000-07:00

We all know the War of 1857 started with Mangal Pandey near Delhi.
But did you know the War of 1857 ended with Jung Bahadur in Bhalki in Bidar district?
Here is story.

Bidar has its own place in the country’s first war of independence. Unfortunately, the common man knows very little about it.

The war of 1857, also knows as the Sepoy Mutiny, was kicked off by a soldier, Mangal Pandey, disobeying orders of his British senior officer and shooting him dead. Historians believe the war came to end, with the arrest of a follower of Tatya Tope in Bhalki in Bidar district in 1867.

Madho Rao alias Rama Rao was the nephew of Shirmant Shahu Chatrapati, the Maharaja of Satara. He was also known as Jung Bahadur, because of his prowess in battle.

British military officer and historian Sir Richard Temple has referred to Jung Bahadur in his dairy. Details about Jung Bahadur’s life and achievements are also found in the book “The Freedom Struggle in Hyderabad”, published by the expert committee appointed by the Andhra government for compilation of a history of the freedom movement in the erstwhile Nizam state of Hyderabad, in 1956.

According to the book, Jung Bahadur had caused enough damage to the British government before being arrested. He had raised an army of over 1500 people in and around the forests of Bhalki. His forces had captured a cantonment area called Ashti in Bidar district. The Nizam of Hyderabad, who was an agent of the British, arrested him and tried him for “trying to bring about insurrection against the empire”.

Jung Bahadur went about recruiting soldiers in the villages and issuing them “Kaulnamas” or appointment letters. In the letter, he asked young men to join him in the task of “murdering the British and regaining the lost glory of the Royal family of Satara”.

Jung Bahadur and his followers moved on foot from village to village, disguised as mendicants. They were arrested by two officers of the British resident. Their trial however, was conducted by the Nizam’s courts. Magistrate of the criminal court Moulvi Nasrullah Khan completed the trial in less than a month.

Jung Bahadur, Bheem Rao, Balakishtayya and Vithoba were sentenced to transportation to life. Jung Bahadur is said to have spent his last days in the Hyderabad prison, where he died.

His followers Yeshwanta and Jehangir Ali were sentenced to 14 years of imprisonment. Others like Eshwanna Naikwadi and Vir Peddappa were given minor punishments.

Historians feel the country has forgotten its proud son, Jung Bahadur.

“Bidar has a pride of place in India’s freedom struggle. Eminent historians have commented that “It would thus be not incorrect to say that the Bhalki conspiracy case was the last echo of the outbreak of 1857”. The book “The freedom struggle in Hyderabad,” says that the conspiracy, is a milestone in the country’s war to liberation, says retired professor B R Konda.

“Actually, Jung Bahadur should have been as famous as Mangal Pandey. But his name does not figure in history textbooks. This is because writers of history books are and textbook selection committees tend to concentrate on events within the geographical boundaries of Karnataka. They do not seem to think about areas that were part of it before state reorganization”, says M Ahmed, who retired as a history professor.

Some interesting facts:

Jung Bahadur spent just Rs 20,000 for raising an army and carrying out the rebellion.

A Jamadar got a monthly salary of Rs 40, a Sepoy Rs 30 and a Sawar Rs 10.

Jung Bahadur gave Rs 200 to his follower Deva Rao, to recruit 500 “soldiers”.

One of the most serious charges the Nizam’s government made against him was that he was claiming to be the Prince of Satara.

When searched the officials discovered that Jung Bahadur carried, 1) several papers in English and Marathi, translation of a deed of agreement and a seal saying he was the “Chatrapati of Satara”. This, according to the Nizam’s officials, amounted to a serious offence.

Jung Bahadur’s Kaulnama, or appointment letter, said “Persons coming from Royal families will also be enrolled in his army.” They would, however, get the same salary as the others.

Avarana – An Introduction

2007-06-18T03:59:00.000-07:00

The author
Santeshivara Lingannaiah Bhairappa is a Kannada writer. He is the author of the popular and much discussed book Avarana.

He retired after teaching at the Mysore based Regional Institute of Education, Sardar Patel University and NCERT, New Delhi.
He was born in a poor Brahmin family in Santeshivara village in Hassan district on July 26, 1934. Now he lives in Mysore. He is married and has two sons.
In college, he majored in Philosophy. He was awarded a Doctor of Philosphy (PhD) from the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda for his thesis Satya Mattu Soundarya (Truth and Beauty).

The novel Avarana
The Mysore University's dictionary gives the meaning of Avarana as cover, environment, ambience and surroundings.

In his novel, the term Avarana has also been used to imply falsehood and deliberate attempt to hide the truth. He describes it as a novel based on medieval Indian history. His earlier novel Sartha spoke about ancient history. (More details at the end)

It uses the 'novel within a novel' technique to tell a bunch of stories.
The book revolves round the lives of Lakshmi, a Vokkaliga who has converted to Islam and is now called Raziya, her husband Amir and Prof Narayan Shastri, teacher, speaker and their family friend.
Lakshmi and Amir are students of the Film and Television Institute of India. They fall in love and marry. Lakshmi's father Narasimha Gowda opposes the marriage and conversion. Prof Shastri who happens to hail from Lakshmi's village supports them. Amir becomes a documentary film maker and Raziya becomes a script writer.
However, the husband and wife do not have an easy relationship. Their ideological differences dry up the love between them. They
do not easily agree with each other and have a very argumentative relationship. When young, both of them had leftist leanings. They believed Marxism is the force that liberates the people from their economic and ideological poverty. During college days, progressive thought is the basis of their life and not religion.
However, as years go by, Raziya starts developing an interest in anti –Communist, rightist thought. Amir slowly becomes religious and anti –liberal.
Raziya's work makers her travel. She cant wear a Burkha or follow the Ghosha system. She wears a bindi now and then. She has trouble learning Urdu well. Amir's parents oppose her behaviour. She argues and does not obey them. They use the services of the Tablikh volunteers to counsel her. She fights with them too.
Finally, Raziya and Amir move out and set up a separate home. They hire a maid to cook. Amir's parents bring up the couple's son Nazir.
Raziya's father Mr Gowda dies in his village, unknown to her. Prof Shastri informs her of his silent demise. She suddenly feels the urge to visit the village. The village attracts her. Prof Shastri's father tells her that her father Mr Gowda had taken up serious studies of Islam, Hinduism and medieval history in the last few years. She searches her ancestral house and comes across many books her father had collected and several notes that he had made.
The shock of her father's death, and her new found religious leanings make her study the books and notes. She stays in the village for four years. The village is so remote that it does not have a telephone.
Meanwhile, her son Nazir is growing up. He studies Petro Chemical engineering and takes up a high paying job in Saudi Arabia. He becomes a devout, ritualistic Muslim. Later, Prof Shastri and Raziya arrange his marriage to Aruna, Prof Shastri's daughter.

Novel inside the novel
At this time, Raziya starts writing a historical novel. The main novel and Raziya's novel are weaved together. They are narrated simultaneously.
Raziya's speaks about the reign of Aurangazeb. The main character in the story is the Prince of Devgadh, a princely state in the Aravali mountains. He is captured by Aurangazeb's commander Mansabdar Ejaz Ahmed Khan. He is converted at knife point and taken as a slave. He is first used as a male prostitute by Khan. After some time, he sells him to a richer Masabdar Moinuddin Tarazi. He castrates the Hero of the novel and keeps him as a slave in his Zenana.
There he meets a benevolent lady, Udaypuri Mahal, a Hindu wife of the Mansabdar. She treats him with care and motivates him to learn Farsi language and religious texts. His teacher Haji Hamdullah, is a learned man. He not only teaches him the basics of Islam, but also the finer aspects of politics and Palace intrigue. Meanwhile the Hero learns that his wife has also been made a slave by one of the Mansabdars. She is a slave to one of the Aurangazeb's wives.

The scene shifts to the main novel. Prof Shastri's mother dies and he is not allowed to perform her last rites as he has eaten beef sometime in his life and defended his action. Prof Shastri however decides to complete her last rites in Prayag near Kashi and travels to that place. His visit is also combined with a lecture he has to give in the Benaras Hindu University. Prof Shastri's sister and brother in law also travel to Kashi to immerse the ashes in the holy river. Raziya travels with them. She is planning to take up field work, in support for her novel.

In Raziya's novel, the Hero witnesses Aurangazeb's style of functioning. The King orders the Kashi Vishwanath temple be plundered. Haji, who is the record keeper of the Kingdom, is asked to go to Kashi to witness and document the event. The Hero also gets to travel with him.
The events in Kashi are described in detail. Haji and the Hero are given royal treatment and they travel back to Delhi. Here the Hero's mind undergoes a change and he decides to run away with and wage a war against Aurangazeb. His wife has two children from the Mansabdar, apart from an earlier one from the Hero. The Hero plans to take his wife and her children along. He plans to seek the help of Shivaji, Chatrasal and Bundelkhand rebels.
Raziya's novels ends here.

Meanwhile, Amir has married again, without divorcing Raziya. His new wife is half his age and not well educated. She is a Muslim and teaches Urdu in a school.
Later, she participate in an all India conference on harmony along with Prof Shastri.
There, she accuses Marxist historians of deliberately covering up the truth of the medieval ages (Hence the novel's name 'Avarana'). She makes strong allegations that Muslims Kings of medieval periods like Tippu Sultan and Aurangazeb were inhuman and anti Hindu. They levied taxes, forcefully converted people to Islam and massacred those who refused to convert. They also destroyed Hindu temples and built Masjids and prayer grounds on the place where there were temples. She also says that for all such actions, they had the sanction of their religion.
She suggests that communal harmony is not possible without exposing the truth of the atrocities of Muslim Kings and the "fundamentalism enshrined in Islam".
Amir is also attending the conference. He gets drunk and tries to have sex with her in her hotel room. She refuses and sends him back to his room.

Towards the end, she tries to publish her novel but there are no takers. Finally, the book is published and there are many protests. The government decides to ban the book and arrest her.
In a twist in the tale, Amir comes to know of it and saves her. He makes her evade arrest and is fighting to get her bail and seek back the books taken away by the police.
Avarana ends with a list of reference books that Raziya prepares. She says she has used these books to find facts to support her in writing her novel.

Issues raised in the novel

The novel reinforces many prejudices held among the people about Islam and the rule of Muslim Kings. Dr Bhairappa also tries to bring out the ritualistic differences between Hinduism and Islam.
The first taste of it is obtained in the first page. Amir is staying in a government guest house in Hampi and is sick of vegetarian food. He demands chicken biriyani from the cook. When the cook refuses, Amir threatens to complain to higher authorities. He says he will "feel weak" without non vegetarian food.
Beliefs and prejudices about Jehad, Iconoclasm (idol worship) marriage, polygamy, and Talaq, Sunnat, Zenana, and women's status in Islam, conversion and the fusion between the religious head and political head of the state are also reinforced.
The author makes fun of rationalists and communist thinkers. Some people say Prof Shastri's character is based on writer U R Ananthmurthy. Prof Shastri is pictured as someone who does not have strong ideological commitments and can adjust himself to any environment. He has married a Catholic from England, but wants his son and daughter to be brought up according to Hindu rituals.
He can be rational and defend his beef eating. But he can also be religious and travel to Prayag to perform the last rites of his mother. He lacks courage and does this secretly. His head is shaved during the last rites. He later travels to America to hide his bald head and comes back to India after carefully growing and dying his hair.
Secular and Marxist writers are shown as if they support Muslim fundamentals but not Hindu religious leaders.
The author also ridicules some things like the Zenana and polygamy system. He also makes fun of castrating the slaves. One full page is used to describe the process of castration. The word "castrated slave" to describe the Hero, appears at least 20 times in the novel. This probably refers to the Hindu masses who silently suffered the alleged atrocities by Muslim kings.
In the preface to Avarana, Dr Bhairappa has said he has proof for all his claims in the novel. He has also reiterated it in many other interviews and public functions.
"None of the historic facts mentioned here are the products of my imagination. I have historical basis and proof for each of these facts", Dr Bhairappa says in the novel.

Criticism
The book has received a great amount of criticism, from writers and critics.
Critics have said the book is based on guess work and not on facts. Secondly, the book does not look at events in their proper context. Thirdly, the book tries to push forth the retrograde Brahminical agenda.
Fourthly, the author adamantly tries to force the reader that all that is said in the book is truth and nothing else is.
Prajavani Kannada daily published a series of debates about the book.
Film maker N S Shankar has brought out a book "Avarana Anavarana" (Unraveling The Cover ).
Dr Ananthmurthy has described the book as an expression of fascist agenda. He has also said that Dr Bhairappa has acted as a debater in writing this book, he has said.

Kannada Sahitya Parishat president Chandrashekar Patil has said that Dr Bhairappa has not tried to say that whatever said in the book is his opinion. Dr Bhairappa argues that what ever he says is the truth. It is difficult to accept such claims as being historic facts discovered by a researcher. It is, at the most a record of a writer's personal beliefs, Prof Patil has said.
However, Dr Bhairappa continues to maintain that he is happy the book has started a debate as to the role of Muslim kings in the medieval period.

The Tiger And The Sparrow

2007-05-14T08:11:00.000-07:00

The number of tigers in India is fast decreasing. People kill them and sell their skin and bones. If the same situation continues, then a day will come when we will get to see the tiger only in paintings and old photographs.
We have heard this many times from the many NGOs working on the tiger. It is nice to know so many NGOs and so many award winning campaigners are working on the country's national animal.
But has anyone noticed that suddenly, there are no sparrows in the towns and cities?
Has any NGO taken up any study to find out why?
I think this short story explains our attitude towards the lofty and the lowly.

A Story A Day

2007-05-12T21:58:00.000-07:00

I think my book will be written on the Arabian Nights style:- One story a day.

The steward on the plane asked us: What do you want, chicken or pasta? The old man sitting next to me on the plane asked him: what kind of chicken?
The steward smiled and said: "The one that had feathers on it."
An instantaneous sense of humour seems to keep Americans healthy.

Writerishi

2007-05-06T04:47:00.001-07:00

My friends have been asking me to write about my sojourn to the USA last year.
I liked the idea, but was not sure how to write it.
Then I came across Zen stories and Aesop's fables. I liked their short, crisp and clear format of story telling. Their influence on me has been very long lasting.
It seems they will guide all my future writing.

Organic Farming Vs Natural Farming

2006-12-15T10:40:00.001-08:00

We see that promoters of natural farming are into a fight with those who believe in organic farming.
I feel this is unfortunate. I must confess I am not an authority on either methods. I am the son of a farmer and I have remained that. Most of my obsession is limited to enjoying reading and writing about agriculture, mother of all cultures.

The fight, however intellectual, between the two systems is unnecessary and avoidable. The fundamental principle behind each is the same. (Their results are the same too.)
That is the Buddhist principle of living close to nature. Musanobu Fukuoka, the father of natural farming, says that one who starts organic farming ends up being a natural farmer.

I feel the ego of promoters of the two systems has led to the fight. It is their unwillingness to learn and lack of humility to accept that some truth could lie on the other side.

Similar fights have been between believers of different ideologies, processes, methods and faiths and even technologies. Unlimited obsession with what one believes in and unlearnt contempt for the other opinions creates such issues.

I think we should all do what is the easiest. Listen.

Hoping one day we may all do that.

Cause for some learning

2006-11-23T05:51:00.000-08:00

Many months after Leptospirosis (rat fever) and Chikun Gunya began spreading, many reporters continued to write about "a strange disease gripping their town".
We proved again that reporters, as a tribe, are too proud to accept lack of learning and lazy to upgrade.

Members of every professional association get together every year, share experiences, speak, listen and learn. Doctors call it Continuing Medical Education. Engineers by some other name and even teachers and lawyers do something similar. Such kind of teamwork and relearning is sadly absent among the apparently all knowing community of Journalists.

I saw that the journalists in the US do this regularly. I attended one such discussion group on ground water preservation in May. They tend to forget things like competition and individual career advancement while doing such things. The community spirit prevails there.

I feel strongly about this. We need to meet, discuss, shed prejudices and learn. Family picnics can also be fused into such professional meets.

Or else, we will let people believe we know everything about everything and that we will help them to come to informed decisions. But what happens is that personal prejudices of journos pass off as expert opinions.
We are seeing that this is leading to people laughing at our prejudices, little knowledge and the arrogance to learn.
We hopelessly continue to lose credibility. We are seeing that too.

In the days of information explosion, (the phrase does not really explain the phenomenon. We could probably use information volcano eruption)and blogging and I-witness reporting and what not, people have an unprecedented involvement with the media. We can no longer remain frogs in the well, but continue to describe ourselves with fancy phrases like 'armchair writers in ivory castles'. We all should reflect upon this.

We should seriously get together to learn from experts and be responsible enough to provide quality content to readers. In doing so, we may not get into the swamp of association /union politics. Anything can be done informally if the doers are sincere.

This may cost some money. This should not be a problem in these days of zillion rupee salaries.

This is one of my several loud thoughts.
Kindly reply to me if you feel the same.

Me, Myself and My Brag Book

2006-10-24T00:09:00.000-07:00

Blogs are brag books. Every one needs one. That is what I believe. I have one too.
I see that blogs are quite democratic. One can have an opinion and see it being read, appreciated or challenged.
Let me see what my long pending blog turns out to be. Please tell me how it looks!

I am a reporter with The Hindu, the most trusted newspaper in India and outside.

I have varied interests, like music, literature, theatre, travelling and learning new languages.
I have written on government policy, rural development, local government, agriculture, rain water harvesting, issues of women, tribals, SC/STs, forests and wildlife, and micro cultures.
Lately, I have developed a deep interest in Buddhism and natural farming promoted by Fukoka.

This is my address
Rishikesh Bahadur Desai,
Reporter, The Hindu,
Near District Jail,
Bidar, 585401
Karnataka, India
918482-222177
9194484-79672

rishiscribe@gmail.com

Rishikesh

The Business of Media

Bidar historica. A site dedicated to the cultural history of this mountain top town

Need for a Martha Berry for India!

Art As a Career

Media and Morality

The evolution of religion- from animism to agnosticism

Black Buck resort in Bidar by Jungle Lodges and Resorts

Literary Monuments of a Glorious Past

A Polio case suspected in Bidar in Karnataka

Women's reservation in Panchayats

The Craving

BJP government reduces OBC seats in Panchayat bodies

Bellary, New York Times and a hapless journalist

An Amazing iPad App for Online Web Magazines

My Twitter Account Hacked

What is with celebrity endorsement?

B****y B*****d, B****i M**a

India's per capita

Facebook Badge

Digital Rights Management Bill

Conversion

Love Jihad!

Obama's dinner with Gandhi

Delhi High Court on Moral Policing

Gangubai Hangal singing Raag Bageshree- YouTube

Gangubai Hangal is dead

Social Media Deliciously Described!

Twitter in Plain English

Times of Bachelors

Times of Bachelors

Supreme Court says No to Compulsory Voting

Thank God We Are In India

Indian Elections

Culture and Vigilantes

Follow the Kama Sutra or Die!

Two Hindus, a Muslim and Amitabh Bachan

Pag Ghungroo Bandh Meera Nachire -Meera Bhajan

``All Muslims are not Terrorists, But all Terrorists are Muslims''

Selling Widows in IT City's Hinterlands

A woman of courage

Is your blood group -ve?

Obama can teach a lesson or two to our leaders

Delimitation and EVM

The delimitation commission

Anal Haq and Aham Brahmasmi

Gowda and Gore

ಜೆಹಾದ್ ಎಂದರೆ ಏನು?

Of Pratibha Patil, Sania Mirza and Koneru Hampi

music

The Taj

War of 1857

Avarana – An Introduction

The Tiger And The Sparrow

A Story A Day

Writerishi

Organic Farming Vs Natural Farming

Cause for some learning

Me, Myself and My Brag Book

B**y B*d, Bi Ma