First it was Valentines Day, with the moral police up north in India taking it up as a slur on their souls, then we had the Mumbai police clamping down on couples holding hands in public! Now we have channels (AXN first and now FTV) going off the air because they are showing content that displeases the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting! I mean – how the hell is it possible to do a show on lingerie or bikini show without showing either beats me!
Why are we Indians not given the right to choose in these matters? Why do the powers that-be think that we Indians cannot decide what is good for us or not?
If they are worried about corrupting young minds – it is time they take a look at Bollywood, which is really a mode for titillating and vicarious entertainment!
Are we yet living in a democracy? Do we have a right to make choices?
Showing posts with label Indians. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Indians. Show all posts
Monday, April 2, 2007
Monday, March 26, 2007
Mediocrity and Indians
So we Indians did not qualify for the Super Eight stage of the ICC Cricket World Cup!
At the risk of committing sacrilege, we are a bunch of people who thrive on mediocrity. How else can we explain the fact that for a billion people, we do not excel in any thing? We do not have a single product for the size of our country – Look at South Korea – you have the LGs, Samsungs, Hyundais and even Finland has a Nokia! What product do we have – Nothing, nada, zilch!
The country has some great institutes, IITs, IIMs etc – Everyone who studies at these elite institutes are looking at options outside the country! Yes, in recent times, we have seen some people return, this is not happening because of the policies, but in spite of them!
We have sports facilities that are completely out of sync with the rest of the world! When I talk to friends about this dismal state of affairs – all everyone has to say is that we are not physically built for sports such as Football! This is but a bunch of horse manure! Look at Hockey – once upon a time we were the world champions but we have faltered in the last 20 years! The main problem is the fact that there is so much money in sports, despite what people say, is that politicians look at getting into the sports as administrators and eat the money! When politicians get into sports – what else do you expect?
Let me give you a simple example – In Bangalore, India’s Silicon Valley, there is a bridge being built in front of out offices – The bridge is built, however not tarred – The contractor says that the total cost of building it is 2.5 crores and he has got a payment of only 1.5 crores with the politicians eating the rest! The result – the bridge is half done with no hope of ever completing it!
We are a country where mediocrity is so acceptable that it has become a way of life! The only area where we have actually excelled is in the IT industry.
At the risk of committing sacrilege, we are a bunch of people who thrive on mediocrity. How else can we explain the fact that for a billion people, we do not excel in any thing? We do not have a single product for the size of our country – Look at South Korea – you have the LGs, Samsungs, Hyundais and even Finland has a Nokia! What product do we have – Nothing, nada, zilch!
The country has some great institutes, IITs, IIMs etc – Everyone who studies at these elite institutes are looking at options outside the country! Yes, in recent times, we have seen some people return, this is not happening because of the policies, but in spite of them!
We have sports facilities that are completely out of sync with the rest of the world! When I talk to friends about this dismal state of affairs – all everyone has to say is that we are not physically built for sports such as Football! This is but a bunch of horse manure! Look at Hockey – once upon a time we were the world champions but we have faltered in the last 20 years! The main problem is the fact that there is so much money in sports, despite what people say, is that politicians look at getting into the sports as administrators and eat the money! When politicians get into sports – what else do you expect?
Let me give you a simple example – In Bangalore, India’s Silicon Valley, there is a bridge being built in front of out offices – The bridge is built, however not tarred – The contractor says that the total cost of building it is 2.5 crores and he has got a payment of only 1.5 crores with the politicians eating the rest! The result – the bridge is half done with no hope of ever completing it!
We are a country where mediocrity is so acceptable that it has become a way of life! The only area where we have actually excelled is in the IT industry.
Sanjaya Malakar and the increasing influence of Indians in America
Sanjaya typifies the influence of Indians or people of Indian descent in America! What can I say – there have been people who can sing better than him who are already out of the show and the Sanjaya juggernaut continues unabated!
Whether this is because of Howard Stein or because of the influence of the Indian American community can be debated! We Indians tend to live within a community – whether that is dominated by language, caste or religion, when in India and when abroad as Indians – pure and simple. It goes on to show that Indians are really well connected never mind Howard Steins mission of sabotaging the American Idol show. The premise of the show is that people vote for who they perceive as the best – if that is the case, whether Simon Howell likes it or not, Sanjaya will be in, until voters are sick of him and/or his singing!
This has been so much fun – unlike a similar reality show in the UK, Celebrity Big Brother, which got derailed because of racial undertones! As far as I can see there are no racial undertones, but because voters are unwilling to vote Sanjaya off the show, he continues to thrive!
Live on and rock on Sanjaya!
Whether this is because of Howard Stein or because of the influence of the Indian American community can be debated! We Indians tend to live within a community – whether that is dominated by language, caste or religion, when in India and when abroad as Indians – pure and simple. It goes on to show that Indians are really well connected never mind Howard Steins mission of sabotaging the American Idol show. The premise of the show is that people vote for who they perceive as the best – if that is the case, whether Simon Howell likes it or not, Sanjaya will be in, until voters are sick of him and/or his singing!
This has been so much fun – unlike a similar reality show in the UK, Celebrity Big Brother, which got derailed because of racial undertones! As far as I can see there are no racial undertones, but because voters are unwilling to vote Sanjaya off the show, he continues to thrive!
Live on and rock on Sanjaya!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)