Sunday, October 20, 2019

Abhijeet Bannerji & Karwa Chauth

 SUNDAY MUSINGS-
Being an Indian, I felt proud when recently Abhijeet Bannerji, an Indian born American  and his wife Esther Duflo shared the coveted Nobel Prize in Economics with Michael  Kremer. This takes me back to 1903 when the couple Pierre Curie and Marie Curie shared the Nobel Prize in Physics  with Antoine Henri Becquerel. However this did not go down well with some  self righteous right wing ideologues who lost no time in pointing out that the renowned Indian Economist so honoured was Left leaning. Sadly this is not the first time that such an irrelevant and out of place statement has come from our public representatives. Mercifully  this is no takeaway from the honour bestowed on the distinguished Economist .

This gone week also saw the observance of the annual Karva Chauth  fast by married women  who stay hungry and without water for the entire day praying  for the well being and long life of their life partner. This also evoked some opposite reactions from some quarters calling it a  symbol of  subjugation of women, much against the modern concept of  empowerment and feminism. However my take on the matter is simple. This is purely a personal matter, best left to the individual , since the fast is not observed under duress or compulsion. However , the Commercial aspect needs a relook and the celebration can be as simple and sober without ostentation.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

KBC- Karamvir

SUNDAY MUSINGS -
As I sit down and set about to write, the lady of the house barges into the room and asks me to do a small chore. I tell her I am writing Sunday Musings.Pat comes the quip ,"What is so special about your Sunday ? Aapke to Sunday , Monday sab barabar hain !" Meaning I am on a perpetual holiday. She is right, I dare not disagree.Nothing to look at by way of achievements, I am the quintessential example of a person so beautifully described by the poet Akbar Allahabadi-
हम क्या कहें अहबाब क्या कार- ए- नुमायाँ कर गए
बी. ए. हुए, नौकर हुए, पेंशन मिली और मर गए ....
No wonder I envy people who achieve so much in life !

I donot watch much of TV for the obvious reason of the kind of stuff they offer, be it news , serials or other boringly  monotonous programs.I do make some exception about the KBC, telecast on Sony TV Channel as the program has much of valuable content as far as General Knowledge is concerned.This gone Friday , the Karamvir segment of the KBC featured Deepa Malik and Manasi Joshi, the two Women athletes who despite being physically challenged have done India proud by emerging as Champions in International Sports Events.  Deepa Malik, paralysed below chest is on wheelchair .She is into  short put, Javelin throw and motor sports and is a medalist in all. Her extraordinary feats in Athletics belie her being 49 years of age . She is the first Indian woman to win a medal at Para athletic meet. Manasi Joshi , a qualified engineer met with an accident and lost a leg. Undeterred by  this physical challenge, she took up sports and is a World Woman  Para Badminton Champion. Looking at their achievements, I felt  myself dwarfed , quite naturally. They're the real Karamvirs- a far cry from our bragging , lying, arrogant ,presumptuous  bhashan vir politicians.

Sunday, October 6, 2019

Durga Ashtmi

SUNDAY MUSINGS :
Today is the  8th day of Navratri known as the Durga Ashtami .The Scriptures and Holy books ordain Kanjak Puja or the worship of nine Kanyas on the 8th & 9th day of Navratri.Unfortunately there is dearth of Kanyas to fulfill this religious requirement and people have to make do with whatever number is available, most of the time even one.
This time the lady of the house has chosen to observe fast on all the nine days . There has been tacit resolve to prepare food without the use of onion and garlic. An avowed vegetarian, I willingly gave in and am  taking food prepared without onion and garlic.This has not made much difference taste wise.
This gone week saw the demise of Viju Khote, the popular Actor of Hindi and Marathi films.The social Media was quick to report this by flashing pictures of the Actor even before the other media chose to chip in.It was a surprise of sorts for me to know that Viju Khote happened to be the Actor who played Kalia in the iconic film Sholay. I have seen only some parts of Sholay. The characters of Gabbar, Kalia, Thakur as also of Basanti came centre stage mainly because of the dialogues mentioning their names. 'Tera kya hoga, Kalia !' uttered by Amjad Khan playing Gabbar immortalized both Kalia & Gabbar.

Humble tributes to the departed Actor !!

Friday, October 4, 2019

धनी राम चात्रिक

दीन दुनी दे मालिक ! तूं करदे बेड़ा पार,
बरकतां वसा के, बाग़ ते ल्या बहार,
पा दे ठंढ ठार । दीन दुनी…

तारे दे अन्दर रुशनायी तेरी,
सूरज दे अन्दर गरमायी तेरी,
सागर दे अन्दर डूंघायी तेरी,
आकाशां ते तेरा खिलार ।दीन दुनी…

हाथी ते कीड़ी विच इक्को सामान,
हर कतरा लहू विच अणगिनत जान,
हर जान दे अन्दर तेरा मकान,
की करीए तेरा शुमार ? दीन दुनी…
- धनी राम 'चात्रिक'

आज  महान  पंजाबी कवि की जयंती है !
विनम्र श्रद्धांजलि !!