An introduction to the story “The Lost Tribe” that talks about personal and cultural disintegration.

Celebrated and ‘you must read’ author Mahasweta Devi says through the newspaper ‘The Age Mumbai’ (The Asian Age):

“It’s time to bust the myth and sieve the fact from fancy. In my opinion, the adivasi women are more liberated in their lifestyles. Their (sic) might be a threat of promiscuity* but the fairer sex can willingly go for independent weddings, divorce, and even take recourse to remarriage after separation from their former spouse. There’s no question of dowry system at all. I think, we have more barriers in mind to frame the straight-jacketed canons of society.”
 

* The “threat of promiscuity” is actually the threat of sexually transmitted diseases

• Some years back in New Delhi, I ventured into the Jawaharlal National University (JNU) campus with an old acquaintance who superbly briefed me about the university culture. There were bills stuck on wall with excessive glue asking girl students from north-east India to be “careful”. I understood later that they were considered promiscuous and immoral by the North Indian students. Their food was not pleasant smelling; “bamboo shoots and other smelly food” disturbed the students. Their dresses were too short, too revealing or “transparent” as a local mentioned; “Revealing dress should be avoided. Avoid lonely road/by-lanes when dressed scantily.”

Girls in Delhi-among the worst sufferer of crimes-are expected to be modest in clothing, as in the other modern cities of India in Mumbai, Kolkata and Bangalore. But women from the predominantly tribal areas-poorer and lesser educated-are ‘more independent’.

• Last year, I met a retired Army Officer in a hospital who told me about his days in north-eastern hills. He said that the women there were ‘loose’. There were mothers who wouldn’t mind sending their daughters to the officers for some drugs or alcohol. But otherwise, the officer informed me, the culture there is not very prudish.A simple internet search would tell you that women in north-east are facing problems of drug addiction and alcoholism. Add to this their liberal social attitudes and you may feel assured that they would be bracketed as immoral in the conservative cities of India.

The liberal attitude, however, is not at fault. In fact, it is something to be conserved. Without going into details, let me say that Indian philosophy admires this liberalism.At home, they don’t have food or work; no development like in Delhi and Mumbai.   

Their homes are without clean water or bread
For work they have to oceans tread  

And when they come for work or education to other parts of India, they are discriminated. Called nasty names. Asked to shed their liberal attitude.

We talk of Women’s Day/Week/Month. It should be happy for all women in India.  
 
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Next: The Lost Tribe

“Snapshot of memories” or simply an awry screenplay? Nimesh Advani and Ipsita Bandyopadhyay think differently about the movie ‘Delhi-6‘.

“…there are so many characters and so many sub plots that I was confused where to look next…”

Nimesh Advani

Rating: ★☆☆☆ 

It’s very irritating when during a movie there is constant chattering from horny middle aged couples but its effect is reduced when the movie is Delhi-6. With an impressive and promising cast and direction by the popular Rakeysh OmPrakash Mehra, expectations are bound to be high. But after barely 20 minutes your desire to see some meaningful cinema starts fading away.

Abhishek Bacchan’s ‘Roshan’ comes to India with Daadi (grandmother) because she wants to die in her Mitti…sob sob. But Roshan gets extra baggage along with him in his fake American accent that should have been left behind (Watch out for him saying “Look Golden Deeerrrrr”). In Delhi he meets his typical family full of bhabhis, buas, and bachha party and two warring brothers (the reason for their quarrel is yet unknown…Still Researching). This movie is a journey of how Roshan finds his roots in Delhi and decides to settle here with the various caste issues and religious problems over a lot of snooker games with Rishi Kapoor. During his stay he meets Bittu (Sonam Kapoor) who is the female lead of the film but is hardly seen and, by the way, she also wants to become the next Indian Idol.

A lot of people want to do a lot of things in the movie; there are so many characters and so many sub plots that I was confused where to look next and in this Bhel-puri, as we may call it, the main issue of the KAALA BANDAR (Black monkey) is lost. There are many characters like the horny photographer, the roadside mithaiwala and the garbage woman but the director does not do justice to any of them. 

Not many people would be able to connect the ‘Ram Leela’ to the story of the film (whatever little there is). The screenplay of this film is disappointing and the sloppy editing does not help the cause either. For instance, Abhishek is seen spending more time with Rishi Kapoor than with his love Sonam  Kapoor and the whole romantic song ‘Rehna Tu’ is picturised on Abhishek and Rishi Kapoor during one of their snooker sessions. Amitabh Bacchan’s cameo in the end could have been avoided as it added little to the proceedings.

The only saving grace of the movie is the music by Oscar winner AR Rehman that is wasted on the film. The song ‘Masakali’ has become a chartbuster, not to forget ‘Genda Phool’ and many others but there are too many songs in the pre-interval period.

There are a few moments in the first half of the film that will keep the audience awake like the rumour regarding Kaala Bandar and people’s reaction on TV and the scene where the cow is giving birth in the middle of the road. Binod Pradhan’s cinematography is pleasant in the first half while we are discovering Delhi but soon the lack of a proper screenplay takes over the few positives.

All in all one starts finding the conversations of the horny middle aged couples more interesting than the movie!

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 ”Do we remember dreams/childhood memories clearly? But some events, images, sights, sounds, smells stand out.”

Ipsita Bandyopadhyay

Rating: ★★★☆ 

As in all forms of art, I repeat an oft-repeated argument: that there has to be freedom of form. I feel the audiences and the media in this country like only plot-based films and not thought based films. A repeated grouse against Delhi-6 (D6) is that it has no cohesive plot.

Is that even required? It’s a cliché perhaps derived from the fact that we love stories…and we are used to a clear message being derived out of a story. Just like my Math teacher in Class II, instead of clarifying the concept of addition taught me to recognize an addition problem in the exam by the presence of the word ‘altogether’. The result: a few years later, I actually forgot the difference between addition and subtraction till I was re-taught some basics.

The film is clearly in the form of vignettes- somewhat like a snapshot of memories from the writer’s past/ his experiences. Do we remember dreams/childhood memories clearly? But some events, images, sights, sounds, smells stand out. In this respect, providing context does nothing to add to the case of the film. D6 is a chapter in the life of Roshan Mehra. To my mind it didn’t matter whether he was a computer engineer or a college student before he came to India. He carried with him a sense of calm, composure and an unhurried manner. So why can’t we just assume that he was on a vacation? The soul of the film is something different- its message lies elsewhere.

I admire the director Raykesh OmPrakash Mehra’s (ROM) ability to translate feelings to visuals. If you watch his films carefully, you’ll feel connected to what he’s trying to depict. As though his thoughts have been translated by a secret code onto the screen and at that point, there’s a strong connect between the viewer and the writer. Pardon me a poor metaphor but somewhat like tuning fork and vibrating string in resonance during Henle’s experiment. I wish I had an example I could quote from the film to demonstrate this point. But I am sorry, it’s a feeling, very strong and resonating at the moment it hits you, but vanishes soon. This adds texture to a film, a certain je ne sais quoi (I know not what) very few works of art achieve- something you can read between the lines.

Many people I spoke to including the film reviewer of India’s leading news channel felt the Hindu-Muslim jhagda in the film was too ‘over-the-top’. This puts me off. Here’s a guy who’s trying to show us a complex problem in its infancy, where it begins, in a simple manner that one should understand. But the audience seems to demand complexity. Throughout the communal tension, the audience is prompted to smile at the absurdity of it all. That’s precisely the point Mehra tries to make. How politics can drive neighbours to madness within a community where religious syncretism actually is such a integral part of life that intolerance seems forced; it obviously is by the media, politicians etc.

In any case, if the film tried to show this in any more serious a manner it would have been banned/ embroiled in controversy.

I must submit that the expectations from ROM post the director’s Rang De Basanti (RDB) are more than sky-high. D6 is nowhere close. The music is brilliant but terribly placed. Very valid points. You came out of RDB feeling something very deep within. In my opinion, a large portion of that credit went to the superb acting by the cast and strong characterization which is lacked sorely here. Abhishek and lead actress Sonam hugely disappoint in D6. That does take away from the soul of the film. But not from the thought Rakeysh has presented. 

Also much criticized is the ‘filmy’ ending. There is a strong argument for showing reality in cinema. Which is that, in real life, Abhishek would have died perhaps. But is there any argument for not showing hope? That violence between communities living together may end when neighbours realize their follies and look into the mirror so to speak. It’s a simplistic but valid solution to show.

An interview somewhere said that the director would have like another month to complete the film. He should have been given that.

Ananth Venkatesh

Cities under attack in recent times. Circled in black are cities attacked in 2008. Click to enlarge.

[Synchronised serial Blasts in New Delhi on September 13.
20 synchronised bombs in Ahmedabad on July 26.
9 bomb blasts in Bangalore on July 25.
9 synchronised blasts in Jaipur on May 13.
All of these in the year 2008. ]

Terrorism has scourged India uncontrollably ever since the inception of anti-national militancy in Jammu and Kashmir in the late 1980s. The ineffectual rejoinder of the Indian polity to terrorism has intensified the misery of the victims here. The ineffectual response stems from:

• The inability to arrive at a feasible consensus on the issue of anti-terror laws
• The incapacity to steadfastly enact appropriately harsh laws against terrorism.

Terrorism, abetted by the brazenly divisive communalism of some political outfits such as the Congress, the Left front, etc, has become such a common phenomenon in India that people have accepted it to be an immanent constituent of their lives.

Whether it is some confederates of the UPA Government such as RJD’s Lalu Prasad, Samajwadi Party’s Mulayam Yadav professing their respect and empathy for the outlawed SIMI or the Left Front succumbing to the Islamic fanatics’ demands on the issue of Taslima Nasreen’s expulsion or fear of adopting concrete anti-terror actions due to minority mollification, the Indian State has surrendered feebly to terrorist-extremist groups.

Writer Taslima Nasreen attacked by a crowd that included three elected political leaders. The Communist Part of India-Marxists (CPI-M) expelled Taslima from Bengal to appease such hardline detractors. They also refuse to support the ban on Student's Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), a militant body, for fear of losing Muslim votes in the state.

The tolerance of the Indian nation has been examined mercilessly by not only the fundamentalists but also by the unresponsive political system, which has been divided on being confronted with the problem of terrorism.

The fecklessness of the federal Home Minister, Shivraj Patil, is evidenced by the disastrous track record of his tenure, when terror has proliferated effortlessly to copious corners of India. Victimised by terrorism in ‘peacetime’, as India has been more than any other nation, Indians are forced to listen to the predictably tiresome utterances of Shivraj Patil in the aftermath of every terroristic monstrosity. His inability to persuade the provincial Governments to embrace the idea of a central investigative agency to tackle terrorism has hurt India immensely.

The revocation by the UPA of POTA, a severe anti-terror legislation, on capturing power democratically in 2004, was an ill-advised move originating from adherence to a debauched version of secularism, a part of which argues that poverty-stricken and direly disadvantaged individuals choose the terroristic path. However, this argument is not credible since many of these terrorists are literate.

“Judging by Abdul Subhan Qureshi’s early CV he should be a poster boy of the new India: educated at a church school, he studied electronics and software before joining a high-tech firm in Bombay in 1996.

Instead, this is the man now being described as India’s Osama bin Laden.” (Source)

Funding for the intelligence agencies and other espionage bodies must be significantly increased. India has to wage a conflict against people who are determined to impose their intolerant perspective on secular India. Internationally, some harsh anti-terror measures have been enacted by legislatures of countries, which have not been devastated by terrorism as comprehensively as India.

Israel is a wonderful example that India can observe and emulate. The steadfast dedication with which Shin Bet and Mossad, the two premier Israeli spy agencies, have been nurtured and used by Israel to eradicate anti-Israel militants should serve as a lesson for Indian intelligence agencies, whose ineffectiveness has been exposed repeatedly due to a wretched lack of coordination.

Mossad is an anti-terror body in Israel. Israel and Palestine are often in the limelight for their attack on civilians. However, India could do well with their own version of anti-terror squads like Mossad.

India must not treat the American offer of assistance of investigating the origins of the Delhi blasts warily. A joint probe might be fruitful since many of the previous terrorist atrocities in India have not been solved by Indian agencies responsible for the maintenance of law and order. India is becoming an unsafe site to live in, which might have problematic economic repercussions. Investment by the private sector might decline due to fear over the safeness of India. Tourist inflow will definitely decrease and India, like neighbouring Pakistan, might have to encounter the refusals of overseas cricket teams to tour India.

Only single-mindedness in the mission of eliminating terrorism will ensure success for India. Sorrowfully, this commitment seems to be lacking, which is making India bleed.

Click to read the complete list of militant attacks on India

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If you have read the articles on Jammu and Kashmir (here and here), then you’d know that the Kashmir land issue was political fabrication. While political parties were wasting time in preparing for elections in the state, and provoking people to kill, a bunch of people were preparing to plant some bombs in Delhi.

The politicians and the bomb planters achieved their aim.

The politicians succeeded in dividing people in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) along religious lines but the bomb planters united many religions on September 13 when the survivors and family of victims cursed terrorism despite any prior religious bias.

Perhaps it can be inferred that had the bombs been planted in empty places, with the blasts not hurting or killing people, the event would have been more meaningful than the wasteful exercise of the government and its rivals in J&K.

The elected representatives of ‘We the People’ spent months over an infertile stretch of land when they could have planned to start thinking about public safety. And therefore, should we not tell the aggrieved families–if they ask us– that the source of their anguish lies in the minds of decorative kurtas and seamless cotton saris?

It can be expected that the thrust of politicians would be towards managing people and soothing their fears instead of generating ideas to prevent future killings.

A solution that has taken centre stage is the formulation of a ‘Federal Agency’ to deal with terrorism or religious killings. If this idea, floated some years back, had force and purpose behind it, then it would have been implemented immediately. It was rejected by the political opposition that is now keen to accept it since it is in power.

This is an apt example of the usage, ‘playing with lives’.

A solution that I propose has assumed a sense of cliché among the non thinking section of the people who are bored or discouraged by promises of social change. Education.

I have mentioned about education in my earlier story on ‘Orrisa Riots‘.

“While you are building nuclear missiles, the country may be bustling with riots.
Make some libraries and schools. Include sex education in every curriculum.”

Open public libraries and stop censorship. Let people indulge themselves in subjects of their choice and do away with the importance given to religious identity. Let children and adults unite under the pretext of thought. If a thought has any potency, then it will not advocate murder or injury. A human thought that is allowed unhindered exploration of the self generates ideas for its betterment.

Understand this.

The number of religious killings may reduce if we allow education to anybody who seeks it. The unlettered masses must be set free from adopting the thoughts of the politicians and they must think for their self.

Illustration: Kartikey Sehgal