aditya kumar's weblog

This is the first post on this blog. Just a trial “hello, world” post. Ah and yes, this blog is powered by WordPress.

This is what is written on a makeshift banner which is stuck on a railing near Churchgate Railway Station:

“What did the books do to you?”

So the “Shanghaisation” of Bombay, or what we call Mumbai, is underway. Suddenly, after decades, the state government has finally woken up to the fact that having the worlds biggest slum colony in a city is not a matter of pride but a dubious distinction. The reactions that follow, the steps taken just after hitting the panic button are predictable and chaotic as well. First it was the bulldozing of slums and now it is the clearing of the booksellers pavement from Fountain to Churchgate.

Cybernoon.com quotes a stall owner who wished anonymity, “We have been told to pull up the awnings because they say it makes the surroundings look ugly”. These bookstalls have been in place for 25 years now, in fact some of them for over 50 years. Are you telling me it took more than 2 decades for the BMC to realize that the bookstalls could be causing difficulties while walking, to the pedestrians? And this clearing of bookstalls is because they want the pedestrians to have a “better” walking experience? Sorry, but I am not buying that.

Are there only inhuman ways of dealing with situations like these? Did the police have to walk on these books? Tear them? I guess Bombay police can be expected to do things like these, after all, it was hardly a month back when one of their own raped a girl inside Marine Drive’s police station. On the pavements were, after all, books.

But why books? Even Fashion street is on a pavement, why not that? Or why not the uncountable pirated CD shops? Selling of books does not hurt the economics in any way. In fact, books play a part in maturing the society. They carry words that can change opinions, change people. And they removed 9000 kg of book for a better, less-congested pavement to walk on? Heck, the politicians could not even come up with a proper excuse, because it’s almost ridiculous and rubbish to be told that this is for a better walking experience. It makes me want to hate the civic authorities. I despise this fact that people who take decisions like these do not even have something known as basic rational thinking on these issues. I do not blame the policemen for being violent and abusive, old habits die hard. But come to think of it, is this a way to deal with a problem which has its nucleus in something as simple as book selling?

This is a city where, in the words of Lindsay Pereira, dance bars were okay till two months back, but people selling books on the pavement are not accepted anymore. I have spent a good amount of time in Bombay walking on this road, from Fountain to Churchgate, browsing books for hours. Sadly now, one big reason to visit Bombay has gone missing.

The coffee house, as I expected was half full. With old furniture, its wooden benches and tabletops which had developed cracks of all lengths and depths, just like the wrinkles which were as common in almost every attendant, spelled the longevity of time this coffee house had witnessed.

As I said, the coffee house was half full, but no where was a complete empty table in sight. Next to its glass window, I chose to sit, on a table whose lone occupant was an elderly gentleman completely immersed in his reading. By the time I satisfied my hunger I thought of striking a conversation with the gentleman, who at that time, could be my only company.

As it was revealed, Mr Vasudevan, was a retired Aviation Quality Inspector. I knew his white hair suggested wisdom, but possession of wisdom of the aviation kind was not only a surprise but a pleasing one too. I could smell the prospects of an exciting conversation right there.

The mention of India’s latest indigenous combat aircraft, LCA (Light Combat Aircraft) struck the right chord. Excitement is inevitable, once LCA is mentioned to any Indian Aviation Enthusiast.

“I retired in 1992. When the LCA entered advanced stage of development in 1995, they needed people with experience. As it so happened, I was re-called and was a part of the LCA team. I was one of the four quality Inspectors. I was a part of the team when LCA took its first flight in 2001. I worked till 2003. Eight more years”, he said with a hint of excitement in his voice.

And what did he have to say about the first flight?

“Everyone was nervous. Our creation was touching the sky for the first time. During those moments, I went to a corner of viewing area, alone. I was too nervous. There are so many things that can go wrong in the first flight. My responsibility was to ensure the safety of the pilot. I was the quality inspector for Seat Safety/Ejection. But the take off went fine and people rejoiced. Obviously, I could not afford that joy.”

And why so? If the take-off was fine, why was he more nervous when the bird was in the air? I knew what he was coming to but I wanted him to say it himself. And so he did.

“Landing!!” he exclaimed with a new burst of excitement. “How can you miss that my friend! Touchdown is the most important aspect of the whole flight! That is when most things can mess up. Things can go haywire.”

“I remember”, he continued, “It was an 18 minute flight. The longest 18 minutes of my life. The machine we built was up there, and so was my heart.”

And how was touchdown?

“I cried. People came and shook hands and I had to hide my emotions. There were sweets distributed, accolades given. And after that, I tested 137 flights of LCA. In my career, I gave the quality thumbs-up for 138 of LCA flights. Nothing can match that.”

On the current trends of aviation which are embedded in the LCA?

“1.6 Mach, I think should be the top speed of LCA. You have to understand, in our Air-Force, LCA has to play the role of a major force in Air-to-Air combat. Air-to-Air combat doesn’t go beyond 1.6 Mach. We have to suite those requirements. Plus the microprocessor handling of LCA is such that it lets the pilot concentrate on what he should- Combat”.

And on the wing-design? I remarked, that I had noticed LCA’s wings are the Delta-designed ones, similar to Mirage-2000.

“Ah, yes. They are critical to achieve a high lift for supersonic flights. Talking about wings, do you know how many flaps per second does a housefly make? 200. Imagine. And a dragon-fly? 600. These are god created miracles that most of us oversee in everyday life. The cobra manoeuvre that we talk so highly about in Sukhoi aircrafts, is performed by the housefly all the time. These facts inspire me.”

Here was someone, in his late 60’s or early seventies, who had dedicated his life to Aviation. And where did his inspiration came from? Houseflies and mosquitoes.

“I have the knowledge to tell you the most technical aspects of flight without quoting scientific principles. I was only a quality inspector, but I played a part in this achievement.”

“I like cricket, I like car-racing and I like books. But at my time I could not afford it simply because I did not have the time. Sometimes I regret this fact. But soon I am overwhelmed to realise that I have been one of the privileged few who have been able to realise the kind of dreams like I had.”

So true, Mr. Vasudevan. Ask those who couldn’t.

On Monday, the 18th of April 2005, Indian Actor Om Puri was honoured an OBE(Order of the British Empire). He is the first Indian actor to have been honoured with such a distinction.

Coming from the British, it’s a rare tribute to this so fine Indian actor, and the Indian Cinema as a whole. I talk of it highly because after Independence the Britishers have found it hard to bestow any official acknowledgements to Indians (read Asians) who have made a mark on the world map, one way or the other. Reflections are in the words of Amitabh Bachchan, who thinks Indians (again, read Asians), for the west, are merely worthy of taxi drivers and shop attendants in their films. Or at the best, Doctors. And to the fact when mentioned to him that a star of his stature is virtually unknown in the US Mainstream Cinema market, “Thats true for any Hollywood actor in India as well”, he hits back.

Dig a little deeper I decided, and I came across to an incident involving one of my favorite Authors, Amitav Ghosh, who calmly yet aggressively withdrew his Prize winning Book, The Glass Palace and declined to accept the Commonwealth Writers Prize because he did not want to “betray the spirit by allowing it to be incorporated within that particular memorialization of Empire that passes under the rubric of the Commonwealth”. This sent shocks in the literature world. It is hard to find people who stand by what they “write” for. In this case, I must mention, Mr Ghosh’s book (The Glass Palace), which went to the final round, has traced the impact of the British empire’s rule in South Asia.

But the biggest example of this rare form of rebellion comes with The Great Rabindranath Tagore, who gave away his Knighthood, 4 years after he had received it, protesting against the Jalianwala Bagh massacre in the holy city of Amritsar. It was probably, the best and the most telling gesture one could signify protest, after having a “Sir” preceding the name.

I have mentioned almost nothing of the great Mr Puri who made up for most of the inspiration for this post. Like his english movies, to a lot of extent, Om Puri, the real actor has been unknown to the audience in his own country. I have seen many of his movies, but glimpses of the brilliance of this actor who I thought, could go on to deserve something of the stature as the OBE, flashed in “Jaane bhi do yaaron” when he played the role of the always high on alcohol contractor, Ahuja. Pankaj Kapoor and Nasseruddin Shah, are the only actors in this guild, who I believe can come close to the class of Puri.

Of course, Om Puri has made us proud. And I am sure he can keep the OBE with him for a long time since the Britishers are a changed lot now. And so it should please the Indian Cinema lovers, and the likes of Mr Bachchan should have a sigh of relief that at least one actor from Indian Cinema wont have to play the taxi driver, shop attendant or a doctor in the west movies.

The sound of my Nokia pierces conveniently through the silence that envelopes my room at 7 AM. The only sound besides the noise this Nokia makes is the distant humming of my computer. But as the cell phone hums “Streetwise”, one of its long 4KB polyphonic ring tones, the sound is making inroads into my little world of sleep. A world built so slowly, in the course of the night. One by one the walls that protect the fortress of this world of mine come crashing down. The siren grows shriller every passing second. A hero in this world of mine, now I am scared. There is always a sense of urgency in this world, but I manage to pull off my feats before the inevitable happens. Sometimes I save a dogs life, sometimes, one more time my heart breaks as I go back in the past, sometimes I just about manage to withdraw the much needed cash from the ATM. And as I end up with one of these visual experiences, the inevitable happens.

“Streetwise” sings.

The meracious sound of this damn gadget, so much without guilt, facing almost no resistance, and with the added element (read punch) of surprise, manages successfully, yet another time, the job of bringing me to the reality of this world, in its own harsh way. As I open my eyes, with little success, I see the dim chrome-yellow LED of my monitor. The blinking red infra of the mouse. The three yellow circles on the keyboard. And some more light from, I do not know, where. On my left is a white glow. focussing on its source, the screen of my Nokia, I see some characters which, after passing through a state of temporary bewilderment, my mind deciphers and one by one joins them to the word “Alarm!” and these characters, ask the question “Stop” or “Snooze”. I am obliged to answer, for if I dont, the siren threatens to go on. I hit something at random hoping that should be the end of it but the ordeal continues. More answers are needed. “Switch the phone on? Yes or No”. Another question requiring my attention. This time the sound is no more. But the blinding light persists. Oh stop it, I say. I hit another button. I hope the gadget’s questions, all of them, are convincingly answered. A few seconds pass. Right. No more lights. no more alerts. But the damage has been done. No more feats. My fortress is no more. The world I owned gone, into thin air. Just like that.

Come to think of it, I had set this plot myself. Before going to sleep, the night before. Myself?.

It’s 7 AM. Bingo.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India has been in news for quite a while and for all the wrong reasons. First came out the fact that BCCI is not controlled by the Government of India. So it is like team India plays for a club. No, it is not a national team. It is just a fact but alarming it is. The team which represents Indian cricket at the international level has nothing to do, at least officially, with the Government of India.

Second and most alarming- Till 2 days back, there was no official television coverage for the much awaited India Australia Test series. ESPN- Star bid with Zee and BCCI decided something else while Zee cried foul in the end. And Sony took away the rights. It is so strange that in a country where Cricket is followed next to religion, the telecast rights are controversial and the interests of the common man watching this game are given the least priority. Why have all this controversy? I know why. Because BCCI wants to earn loads and loads of money. Because at one time, this BCCI was a cash starved entity and now that it has tasted money, thanks to these so called television rights, the focus point is money.

I have a better idea. BCCI has enough money to start its own channel, exclusively for India matches. Why not do it? This way, you keep the rights, you earn from the channel sponsors and you pay the cricketers and do what you do anyway with your money. At least we wont have to face blackouts while Dravid has hit the ball in the air or when Agarkar has dropped that crucial catch.

Friday, September 26, 2003

Over the years I have tolerated you and you have done the same.

But overall, seru, u r a great pal.