Leadership qualities of Dhoni

Dhoni has been at the receiving end due to India's recent loss against Bangadesh. My take on this, media and a section of public are making so much ado about nothing. At one stroke, they erase the credit to Dhoni due to the prior wins under his leadership and give undue focus on off season blues. A la any any human being and celebrity, he has his share of positives and negatives. Being the captain of cricket in India, where the game is religion, is a position of Damocles's sword perpetually hanging on top of the head. Let me focus on the positives about Dhoni.

It was early 2006. India was chasing a sizable Pakistani total in front of a hostile home crowd in Lahore. At a crucial moment India loses its star batsman Sachin Tendulkar, still requiring loads of run. Those days the end of Tendulkar was usually considered as beginning of India's impending end. Nonchalantly walks in this man with long hair, a tyro following a connoisseur. Nobody expected much from this young man from the nondescript, impoverished state of Jharkhand, M S DHONI. In middle of a hostile India baiting (rather hating) crowd, he led a successful India chase staying as cool as iceberg. It's not very common to be newcomer to crash into limelight in a nail biting, pressure cooker rivalry between the arch rivals. Dhoni's performance in Pakistan's own backyard earned praise from no other than then President General Musharaf, not a huge fan of India or Indians by any standard. (Musharaf incidentally told Dhoni not to cut his trademark long hair). Arguably Dhoni was the harbinger of a new era when Indians finally got out the cycles of defeats against Pakistan, not any more the nerve and guts to fight under adverse circumstances.  

I have seen Captains Srikkanth, Ganguly, Kapil Dev sweating and/or chewing nails (which is a sign of momentary tension). In contrast, Dhoni was cool as cucumber, leading from the front. That's awesome leadership quality. A team at the time of crisis looks at its leader. A cool and poised skipper keeps things calm, inspires and enthuses confidence. Dhoni has done it all. He has changed the image of Indian cricketers as a bunch of softies who capitulate under pressure. That's quite an achievement. So give him a break and move on.

The Legend of Chakulia Panda

Our childhood Summer and Puja vacations was hardly complete without spending some time in our ancestral village near Puri. It enabled me to have chance a encounter with a very typical part of coastal Odisha Vaisnavite (devotees of Lord Vishnu) culture, brought by CHAKULIA PANDA, or the devotional bard. They are freelancers who roam from houses to houses, singing songs heaving paeans of praise for the lord in colloquial Odia, happily accepting the offers of alms from commoners. Not sure what the word CHAKULIA means. My best guess, it stands for "the moon faced priest".

The tradition of Chakulia Panda very unique to coastal Odisha. They carry a palm umbrella to protect themselves from the scorching tropical heat and rain. Usually pot bellied, he is attired in saffron cloth and carries a saffron GAMUCHHA (loin cloth) shaped in the form of a converted bag to collect alms. It's not unusual for him to have a partner. As soon one finishes a stanza, the other one takes over. They often hunt like a pair of fast bowlers, complimenting each other, instead of balls they use devotional songs. One occasions, one of them plays KENDARA (a locally made wooden violin ) to the tune of his partner's song, to add more fervor.

Upon hearing a Chakulia Panda song we would come out and gape at him. My mother, being the daughter-in-law of the house will peep through the half open door. Our grandma, acting as the interlocutor, would venture outside with a bowl of rice and vegetables. The Panda would praise her benevolence, lavishly showering her with praises. Continuing to eulogize, he will proceed further, distinguishing her offering being fresh vis-a-vis our neighbor's who supposedly gave him POKA (bug eaten) SADHA (rotten) stuff. His glib sycophancy would flatter my grandmother by no means, enticing her to bring more alms. I am sure, he would be applying same tactics at other's doors.
In summer a few mangoes and a small portion of ripe jackfruit would be an added bonus to our devotional Bard. On top of he DAANA (gift), a few coins as DAKHINA ( tips ) is a must for a Brahmin. Occasionally, in exchange of some GUA GHIA (pure clarified butter from cow's milk) in a SISI(a cylindrical pouch made from dirty glass) the Panda will render an additional number. Then he would bless the home owner and his family, proceeding to the next house, excited by the prospect of dousing his Rice and DALMA (a mix of boiled lentils and vegetables) menu with liberal dosage of ghee at end of the day.

Don't know how many such Chakulia Pandas are left today. Won't be surprised if these pall bearers of this ancient cultural heritage and tradition are as endangered as Royal Bengal Tigers, on verge of extinction. Seeing this morning the picture of a Chakulia Panda posted by my senior Dipti Bhai from REC days did ring a bell and bringing a blast from the past.

The needless call for resignation

Back home, clamors abound for resignation of Arun Jaitley and Vasundhara Raje, for their alleged link to Lalit Modi. I am no card holding member of BJP, but unless the lady and the gentleman have committed some heinous anti-national act, the call for their resignations is absolutely unwarranted.

On the aftermath of 9/11 not a single Democrat asked for the resignation of the then President George W Bush. Al Gore, who less than a year before that incident fought a mess electoral battle with his opponent, came out fully supporting him "Bush is my Commander-in-chief, I support him". The state of Missouri, a strong Republican state, had a Democrat Governor during an alleged racial killing last year. Didn't  hear from a single Republican demanding his immediate resignation. Most recently, after the racial shooting in South Carolina, I have not heard any demand for resignation of the state's Republican Governor of Indian origin.

Not that as if a NETA's (so called leader) heart gets a concience attack and resigns upon hearing the demand from the opposition. In a civilized, responsible  and non-chaotic democracy, there should not be any call for resignation for that matter, small or big. Rarely any resignation ever has served any purpose or solved any crisis. Rather its often comes with additional baggages of problems anew, more of a distraction from the real issue.

Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh were designed by same Architect

The famous architect Charles Correa passed away a few days back. May his soul Rest In Peace. His death reminds of another famous architect, Otto Königsberger who designed the state capitals Bhubaneswar for Odisha. Chandigarh, the joint capital of Punjab/Haryana was built around the same time. They were designed in almost identical manner. Only difference, what we call UNITs in Bhubaneswar are called SECTORs in Chandigarh. The similarity ends there.

 

The difference, ask those who are familiar to both the cities. Chandigarh is one of the most livable cities in India, lively, green and thriving. Bhubaneswar is becoming more and more unlivable as days pass (admitted by many who have been living there for decades). A planned city is growing completely unplanned way. When the city started to outgrow itself around Y2K (Year 2000), the authorities rather than being the architect of its growth, not only slept but became inept and corrupt. Cool breeze blowing across green foliage, these days has been replaced by hot lava winds meandering through concrete jungle. Certain things have reached beyond the point of redemption.

 

During our growing up in that city, no bypass was needed as the city's arteries were not clogged. Now clogging of sewage lines and its spilling over has spewed anger among the denizens. The  cesspools have become ideal breeding ground for mosquitoes. I remember poking fun at my friends from Cuttack about their famous KATAKI MASA (mosquitoes from Cuttack) who are rumored to lift men for miles. Now Bhubaneswari Masa can give them a run for money.

 

Hindustan Motors and Toyota started their operation in 1967 and the similarity ends there. Without going into further details, I can tell that if Chandigarh is Toyota today then Bhubaneswar is Hindustan Motors, aptly describing the Tell of the Two Cities - the name of the famous novel by another Charles, Dickens. Mr. Charles Correa, if you happen to meet your counterpart Otto Königsberger in your heavenly abode, please tell him that there is nothing wrong in his deign of the city. Lots of water has flown since in rivers Daya and Kuakhai which sandwiches the lovely city you steadfastly designed. You can read him the Odia proverb, duly transliterated 

 

"MANKADA HATA RE SALAGRAMA
NACHAI NACHAI NELA PRANA"..

 

" The deity's statue in monkey's gripe;
   Danced and danced until he took its life".
 

Lalit-Gate

Watergate Scandal of early 1970s which led to the resignation of Richard Nixon, has opened another floodgate of fashionable tendency to add a surname "Gate" to any sundry scandal. Latest to join the bandwagon is Lalit-gate.

No one ever thought in his or her wildest dreams, the discovery of burglary and wire tapping at Democratic Party Headquarters in the (in) famous Watergate Hotel in Washington, would lead to President Nixon's resignation. As most media outlets ignored it, the newspaper Washington Post stuck to its reporting and continued digging further. Eventually it pointed to "All the President's Men", costing him his job (a book bearing the same name from Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein is a must read). A sitting President resigning from scandal was unprecedented in American history.

The scandal earned Nixon the sobriquet  "Dirty Dick", his approval rating plummeting  to 21 points (later George W Bush tried to beat him by getting closer with a rating of 24  during the Wall Street crash). It coincided with a torrid time in America when Arab embargo on oil saw long lines at gas station and the ignominy of Vietnam.  Lot of water has flown in Potomac river, yet "gates" keep on flooding.

Craze for government jobs have reduced in China

Government jobs have long been cherished. Every year more people seat for Civil Services examination. Many bright students, in spite of being disillusioned with the system, still attempt it as it offers both security and perks. Even the prospect of not getting so great a salary, hardly deters the aspirants, where the salary raise usually happens in a decade

But the Civil servants are now a worried lot and there are signs of diminished interest. Seems the familiar story from India, but interestingly it is about CHINA where the Civil services are strikingly similar to their southern neighbor's. After the President Xi Jinping's campaign against corruption, it's harder to solicit bribes which supplements the government servant's meager salary. Many live in constant fear of knock on their door by the Communist party's elite anti-Corruption wing. In 2014, it punished 212,000 officials, 30% more than previous year, though that's only 3% of the vast Chinese babudom. Yet the message sent by the anti corruption bureau is loud and clear, as many officials are taken with their spouse to visit their former colleagues in prison. This sets the perfect example and acts as a deterrent as the Chinese gulags are not fun place to live.

 

Meantime 10,000 Chinese government workers have already quit their cushioned jobs, seeking other alternatives. The receiving of gifts and donations of cash, has become riskier. Sumptuous meals procured by the Chinese SARKARI officials have taken a hit, hampering the business of many restaurants. The smart and pragmatic Chinese authorities are ensuring that these prosecutions are well publicized. It earns them rare goodwill given the cynicism of the general public against the officialdom, making it a win win situation for them.

Grilled In an Indian Summer of 2014

Switched on to the TV this morning to watch the Odia news. A promotional song LEMBU, ATI CHUPUDILE PITA ( excessively squeezed lemons taste bitter) from an Odia movie scheduled for the Raja release was being played. A new Odia actress Meghna Mishra dancing to the tune of this song in that movie was being interviewed by another lady anchor. It didn't go unnoticed to me that a discussion about an Odia movie between an Odia anchor and an Odia leading actress getting released on a leading Odia festival, was taking place with a typical accented Odia with almost an equitable spread of 50% Odia, 30% English and 20% Hindi.

 

Late this morning I went to a local gas station ( petrol pump ) to fill up the gas tank of the Scooty I ride. Job done, the attendant was about to hand me over the changes when his mobile phone rang. He took the call and went on " TIKE PIAJA AU RASUNA DEI BHAJIBU (fry using onion and garlic)". A customer can afford to wait getting fried waiting for change in 100 degree plus 80% humidity heat but onion garlic stir fry can't wait.

 

Rushed back home at noon for a shower to cool down. Before I could switch on the motor to fill up our overhead water the electricity went poof. So 4 hour no power; no toilet no shower. Felt like a fish out of water, lying supine on hot bed getting barbecued. It's 5 PM, still no sign of electricity. Sprinkle some salt and pepper over me I am a great grill. Another couple of hours I could have become a SUKHUA or dried fish, an Odia delicacy. Hopefully no more power cuts for the rest of the day.