Jhopadpatti Zindabad

Other day I was watching a Hindi song where the main actor dances to the tune of song

JHOPADPATTI ZINDABAD,
MEHNAT WALLE ZINDABAD,
DAULAT WALLE MURDABAD.

meaning...

"Hail to our slums,
Hail to the hardworkers.
Hell to the rich folks."

I have no qualms about praising the hardworkers. But there is hardly anything to be proud about living in slums. Also, nothing wrong in being rich, as long as the wealth is acquired by honest means.

This movie was from 1980s, when it was fashionable to glamorize poverty back home. Politicians, media and some in the movie industry survived on selling poverty. When China was chugging ahead with double digit growth, removing poverty in the process, we were still glorifying it, gloating in the reverie of communism, demonizing the rich.

Indira Gandhi promised GARIBI HATAO in 1971, but nothing tangible happened until 1991, when liberalization set in. Though we could have done better, we still have come a long way from days of "Jhopadpatti Zindabad". Consumerism has set in. As Deng Xiaoping, one of the architects of Chinese growth said, "it's fun to get rich". He wasn't far from truth.

In this context, let me mention about Rajeev Dash, a young entrepreneur operating from Bhubaneswar, a place not  known to be conducive towards business. The other day he mentioned about low amount of money being in circulation in Bhubaneswar. To a businessman, it sounds like music when he hears the sound of money circulating in town, a sign of consumer confidence and more money in their pocket. Stagnant money leads to less spending and more unsold inventory, which is a trader's worst nightmare. Our ancient Sanskrit scholars aptly named money as CHANCHALAA (The moving one), which should circulate around, never stay static.

In spite of such bottlenecks, he strives hard, contributing to the economy by generating employment, who would spend the money they earn, continuing the cycle of more money spending, resulting in more employment.

We should be eulogizing entrepreneurs  like Rajeev, rather than dancing to the tune of "Jhopadpatti Zindabad ". Otherwise we will forever be stuck with building world class Bullock carts, when China's sells state of the art Bullet Trains.

Indian food at Cafeteria

This week we had Indian food available at our Company Cafeteria. I grabbed my lunch and asked the Manager how the Indian food was selling. He told me, that more Americans and lesser number of Indians these days are buying Indian food, and asked me what could be the reason behind that. I replied, "as most Indians are already used to this taste from back home, they lined up in droves initially out of curiosity. There was also this added feeling to fill themselves with their familiar food cooked inside their Company. Like most things in life, after the initial craving is gone, the novelty factor slowly wears off. This is exactly the case here". Seemed satisfied with my response, he smiled and walked away. But what I didn't tell him, is the other reason behind the waning trend. Unlike Americans, we NRIs are not big Spenders (The usual disclaimers apply), rather big Savers. The Indian dishes cost at least a couple of dollars more, which hugely impedes the DESIs (as Indo-Americans are often referred here), known to keep track of every penny spent from their pocket. If the price goes down a bit or someone else foots the bill, our folks can be champion eaters, immediately making a a beeline (same goes with liquor too). At the same time, we NRIs are poor tippers at restaurants, compared to the Americans who liberally open their purse with hefty tips. Americans love spending money, nearly 2/3rd of their gargantuan 16 trillion dollar economy is based on consumer spending. But the contribution of NRIs towards it via spending is minimal, especially those from my generation. Most of us grew up in middle class, in an environment where saving, not spending is important. Old habits, die hard. The mindset retained from childhood refuses to fade away. Indira Gandhi is a classic example how childhood psychology stays late into life. Her mother died young. Her father was mostly away busy in freedom movement, spending long stints in jail. She had a lone, insecure childhood. As a student she went in and out of Santiniketan, a Swiss school, Oxford and so on, insecure as ever. As a lonely teenager hungry for company, she readily fell in love with Feroz Gandhi who gave her attention and later married him. But like many crush based marriages, her marriage crashed. Perennially looking for that elusive emotional security, she got separated from her husband and moved into her father's den. Later she became the Prime Minister, yet her sense of insecurity was apparent, from the way she handled herself. She ruthlessly consolidated her power inside the Congress Party eliminating her rivals. When Allahabad High Court declared her election null and void she imposed Emergency and put the entire opposition behind bars. She would never allow someone from her party to complete a 5 year tenure as CM of a state, lest that person becomes a threat to her. These actions represent a classic insecure mindset, her stigma of childhood days forever stuck to her. I'm sure the world would have seen many such examples. Childhood psychology never dies with adulthood, carries itself till death. So also the spending habits.

The October Surprise

October reminds me of " The October Surprise". It's a political term often used in American elections, which are held on the first Tuesday of November. October is the month of peak campaigning and debates. A surprise like a scam, scandal or a misstep by candidate can create havoc and cost a candidate the election. The most recent one I remember was the Senate campaign in Missouri in 2012. Todd Aiken, the Republican was all set to defeat his Democrat woman opponent, leading her by 5+ points. Early October he came up with his famous "legitimate Rape" comment. It was too silly a statement. Rape is after all rape, a heinous crime, period. It can't be quantified. Backlash, especially from women followed. His lady opponent easily won that seat. 11 years ago, around this time in the year 2004, George Bush and John Kerry were running a neck to neck in the USA Presidential election. Kerry, performed well in his debate and was catching up with Bush (Democrats are better communicators than Republicans, perhaps with the exception of Ronald Reagan). John Kerry was closing in fast, until came the October Surprise on 28th of that month, hardly a week prior to the elections. A video of Osama Bin laden was released. It reminded the Americans of 9/11. During the time of crisis the Americans cling to their leaders and give them a free hand, letting the status quo prevail. (On the aftermath of 9/11, Bush's approval rating went up to a record 91 and no one demanded his resignation). The video gave Bush a 2-3% lead in the polls, enough to romp home for his 2nd term. Please feel to call me a Conspiracy Theorist, but let me connect some dots here. John Kerry spoke virulently against Pakistan's double standard (it's another matter he now cuddles the Pakistani Army Chief, the man who matters). The then Pakistani President Musharaf must have figured out its best in his interest to bet on Bush's 2nd term. So he did his best to get this video made from Bin Laden, who we all know was living in his backyard, all along.

The Senator at Minneapolis Airport in the year 2007

I hope this incident from the year 2007 rings a bell. A young Police Officer was inside the stall of a Men's restroom (toilet) at Minneapolis International Airport, USA. His next stall neighbor extended his legs and started tapping the Officer's shoes. This is a classic style of gay solicitation in public restrooms in America. To the Police Officer's surprise his next Stall solicitor and would be paramour turned out to be Larry Craig, a US Senator from the state of Idaho. He (incidentally once sought impeachment proceeding against Clinton on moral grounds) was waiting to catch a connecting flight, but ended up in making the wrong connection. The Senator probably thought of getting little kinky, done and fly out, anticipating this rendezvous to end up like "What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas", all staying gay and happy. Unlucky for him, he couldn't escape this escapade. This Police officer who the Senator expected to be his "One Day Stand" partner, charged him for lewd conduct. The Senator took a guilty plea. I was imagining a similar situation in an Airport back home, where a Police Inspector catches an MP in such an unsavoury situation. We can visualize several outcomes of such a scenario. First and the most likely one - the Inspector falling on his knee, touching the venerable MP's feet, profusely begging for forgiveness, "Sir..Sir.. YE BESHARAM KO GALTI HO GAYA (this shameless guy has committed a mistake)..MAAF KAR DIJIYE(please forgive me). The MP and his reputation stays lily white as his starched DHOTI (white loin cloth worn around waist by many politicians). Second and Quite possible scenario - if the inspector is smart enough, he can cough up some good amount of money from the hapless MP. The third and least unlikely scenario - the Inspector the MP into Custody ( I do believe many efficient and honest officers are still there, though they are a rarespecies in the verge of extinction). In that case the MP soon gets a bail and the poor inspector gets severely reprimanded by his supervisors for having the audacity of suspecting the integrity of an Honorable MP. Long story short, Larry Craig never ran for any political office again. Like many American politicians caught in scandals, his political carrier ended soon. In India no politician even admits a mistake even after conviction. As far as their political carrier goes, some further it. The fact that a bunch of legislatures, mostly from UP and Bihar get elected over and over again speaks for it.

Retirement of Virendra Shehwag

Ravi Sastri, who is famous for batting at snail's speed, once stayed more than an hour on crease on 199, to complete his century. But one player would step out and risk a century when on nervous 90s. He was an exception to the rule, as the word nervous was not in his lexicon. Caring the least, he would hit a massive six or boundary to reach the milestone. He is Virendra Shehwag, the Indian opening batsman who just announced his retirement from cricket. From Najafgarh, a suburb of Delhi, better known for its rustic milieu, Shehwag came a long way. It's said that he had travelled numerous times standing on crowded DTC buses squeezing himself and his cricket kit, traveling long distance to play cricket. Not endowed with an athletic figure of a sportsman was ever a deterrent to his batting, for he made it up by his tremendously gifted unique hand - eye coordination. Cricket after all is more a game of skill, than physical prowess. It's said he could see the cricket ball like a football and for a few years snatched the limelight from the leading cricketer of his time, a legend called Sachin Tendulkar. For years many, including I, cherished his batting more than any Indian batsman. India owes many victories, especially against our all time rival Pakistan to this man. Wish you a happy retirement life Viru (as he was fondly called by his teammates). Watching aggressive batting will never be the same without you.

Goat meat and Ashtami

Durga Puja always puts me on a Time Machine, propelling me back to childhood days and certain related events. Once I brought some PRASAD (offering to deities) from Lord Jagannath temple, Puri, for the priest at my local temple here. The priest, a Brahmin from Gujarat, was very pleased with what I got for him from Jagannath DHAM (religious abode). We sat down chatting, as he asked me about my trip. I told him how much I cherish the fish and goat meat curry in Odisha. He was appalled and could not believe a Brahmin in me being a voracious eater of fish and a four legged animal like Goat. He asked me "AAP KAISE EK JEEV KO KHA SAKTE HAIN" ..how could you eat an animal ? I had no answer, but narrated him about my childhood days when we used to visit religiously our ancestral village near Puri, during the Durga Puja. The most awaited event would be ASHTAMI (8th day), for the annual ritual of goat sacrifice. On that fateful day villagers would walk in droves to catch a glimpse of BODA HANA (Goat slaughter). The sacrificial BODA (a non-castrated male goat with goatee and smelling horrible) would be brought and tied to a post. The priest would arrive chanting MANTRAS (hymns) amidst the cacophony of the beating of GHANTA ( large brass circular plates). A strongly built DHOBA (washer man) with twitched Walrus moustache would arrive on the scene, wiping off layers of sweat from his forehead. He would unleash a sharp sword, glittering under the morning sun and with one massive blow detach the head of the goat from its body. The goat's torso would meander a couple of feet before collapsing, with its still eyes still gaping at the crowd. The priest would collect its blood and offer it to the Goddess. Later it would be skinned and its meat divided equally among the villagers as PRASAD. This whose episode wasn't free from its aftershocks. For the next few days all that glittered wasn't gold, it was that unforgettable sword slashing through the goat's neck. I had nightmares of the goat torso chasing me, the detached head hovering over, with its eyes still open, staring at me. As it approaches, I try to outrun him, but still unable to move as the apparition closes on me. I would get up in a flash, sweating. My sister sacrificed meat eating after watching one such goat sacrifice on ASHTAMI. The same aftershock came back to the future, as the priest from Gujarat who was patiently hearing my narration almost fainted. He could not digest this scene happening in a Brahmin village where his counterparts had no issues digesting the scene and meat. I can vouch he was glad that I did not bring any PRASAD from my village.

Joe Biden Running for POTUS ?

Joe Biden is now sending serious vibes regarding throwing his hat into the Democratic field. (The official announcement could come in 48 hours). That means, Hillary Clinton now has got some serious competition. Competition and Choices are always good for Democracy as well as the Consumers in a society. It is the dream of every American politician to be the President of USA. They must be having the reverie of walking into Capitol Hill, with Senators and Congressmen standing up and clapping as the Speaker welcomes "Ladies and Gentlemen, Please welcome the POTUS". Not only it comes with White House, Air Force One, a Presidential resort at Camp David, a Presidential Helicopter, Limo etc, the world also looks for leadership in the sole Superpower of the world. Many multiple term Senators and Governors aspire life long for the cherished Post. For most it remains a dream. Vice president Biden, a 6 term Senator is just one step away from Presidency and at 72 it is last shot at arguably the most powerful position on the surface of earth, i.e. the President of United States. So why not give a last shot to a lifelong ambition John F Kennedy and Barack Obama were exceptions to the rule. In last 50 years, they are the only Senators whop became president (rest including Reagan and Clinton were Governors). Both became President before they completed their first term as Senators. JFK was already well known, he was from the famous Camelot Kennedy family. His dad Joseph Kennedy was a well known figure from New England who also served as Ambassador to England. (Many say the senior Kennedy was also a notorious playboy, his sons carried their father's traits). Similarities ends there. Unlike JFK, Obama was not so well known. He was and is still is a family man, untainted by any innuendos of debauchery. But like JFK, he had immense talent, charisma to connect to the audience, breezing his way towards presidency. Some say he was lucky, but I say he was at the right place and the right time (that's how I define luck as, to be at the right place at right time). In year 2002, he could not even one of the 435 Congress House of Representative seats, soundly defeated from Chicago suburb. In 2004, he got elected as a Senator. Only 4 years later, he bit multiple odds to become the first black man to live in White House. It makes perfect sense for Biden to jump into the ring, as for him (as well as Hillary), the is the chance of Lifetime.