It is not a matter of seconds!!

Recently I saw this advertisement in a regional channel where a mother asks the audience what makes a kid double smart and says that they need for wait for a few more days to know that secret.  I, like the million or so fans, was curious that secret. After weeks for prolonged trepidation, the answer was unveiled. It was an advertisement for some dhal variety.

Now, don’t think I am getting nowhere to the point. When we were all kids, the products that were targeted on us were candies, ice creams and other such mouth-watering delicacies. I still remember the song of the ad when for the Bubblegum named Boomer was first introduced (which would be like more than 10 years ago). Kids in those advertisements were happy and enjoying; they didn’t not bother marks or tournaments or anything. And the moment I saw such an ad, I had also enjoyed it and went along with the next 20-30 seconds it lasted.

My point is, the kids in today’s generation are pressurized to the maximum and that being showcased in the ads too. Why should a kid always be a smarty-pants to make his parents happy? Why should a kid always has to excel everyone in his class (that includes his friends too) to make his teachers all proud? At the end of the day, this makes the children a mere mark making machine. Is that what we want from the group of the society who has, at the maximum, a few more years to be care-free before they start running in this marathon of life?

I know that in this competitive world, I shouldn’t be lethargic and never bat an eye because even in a split second, thousands and thousand would race me and reach the destination before I did. But isn’t it up to the individual to choose that destination?

We aren’t sheep to follow the herd and the moment everyone realizes it, the so-called race for living will become a comical phrase; we all will start living for work than work for living! 

Ah!!! 2012...

2012! Everything I asked for and even more..

Just like any other New Year’s eve, 2012 started off the same way, never-ending expectations and hopes with fear tagged along. I asked for just one thing in 2012. That was, to have no regrets for whatsoever that happens this year. And now, I say proudly that I really don’t have any regrets at all. 2012 was one hell of a roller-coaster ride for me.

I am and have always been unstable as far as emotions are concerned and 2012 made me realize that there is nothing wrong in being so.  I was happy, strong, sad, naughty, vulnerable, week, flirty, rude, sweet, heartbroken, emotional, lovely, irritating, in love and possibly everything that a human can possibly be. And what’s more, every time I was one of those things, something or the other happened that made me realize it is never wrong in being who you want to be.

This year is possibly the year, when I have interacted with so many new people, visited so many new places, did so many new things that I have never dreamt of in 2011. From a small town girl college, I got introduced to media, received an honorary award (which is by and large, the biggest possible award I have ever been acknowledged with), traveled all the way to Pune and started my first baby step in returning the goodness to the world.

So here I say, with head held high, I have grownup and all thanks to you, 2012..

Madurai: How Long Will Its Grandeur Last?

One of South India’s great temple towns, Madurai, is synonymous with the celebrated Meenakshi Temple. Situated on the banks of River Vaigai, Madurai has a rich cultural heritage passed on from the great Tamil era more than 2500 years old. Madurai was an important cultural and commercial centre even as early as 550 AD – it was the capital city for the great Pandya kings. It is the cultural capital of Tamil Nadu.

The city attracts a large number of tourists from within the country and abroad. As high as 7,000,000 tourists visit Madurai every year, out of which foreigners number 4,500,000. I am certainly honoured to have spent the most part of my life there.

Whenever I go to the Meenakshi Amman temple or to the Gandhi Museum, or any other tourist spot for that matter, I see always see a bunch of excited tourists with guide maps in one hand, digicam in the other, with a smile on their faces and excitement in the eyes. No matter where the tourists are from, ladies invariably wear sarees and jasmine flowers, while the gents weardhotis to respect the tradition of this place. In this current situation where Indians prefer foreign tradition and pick spots to spend their vacation, seeing those people come to Madurai is certainly an honour and pride.

Though I get all elated to be a part of this amazing heritage, there is one part of me that is cursing the authorities very severely. Would you prefer differential treatment at your own house, that too for dumb reasons? That is exactly what’s going on here.

While standing in queue for Darshan, if you look like a wealthy, born-with-a-silver-spoon kind of person with jewels in every possible part of your body, then you get to see the Lord from the front row. But if look like an ordinary, I-belong-to-this-place person, then you will certainly not get more than a minute to pray. Isn’t this atrocious? Give a few hundred bucks extra; you can even get those specially-blessed garlands and holy ash. That is not all. The entry fee for any tourist place depends of the location you are from, probably the lowest rate to people from Tamil Nadu, a bit higher for other state tourist and few more hundreds for foreigners. Had these extra bucks been utilized in development of these areas, then I would have certainly appreciated it. But, like any other form of revenue in India, they are only going to the pockets of the already-rich.

The cleanliness of the city is also getting degraded by huge leaps. The boundary wall of the very divine Gandhi Museum is studded with pan spits and cigarette bud marks. Who is to be blamed for this? When foreigners visit this place to get tranquillity, why aren’t the locals realizing the importance? The look on the faces of these tourists when they find a local urinating or defacating is indeed, humiliating. I am not insisting the people to go on to do community service of cleaning the city and picking up the wastes. It is more than enough if each person just puts the waste in appropriate places. That itself is a huge contribution.

However, if no action is taken to improve surroundings and this current situation continues, Madurai will not only lose tourists, but only lose the charm that has been preserved for all these centuries.

Read full article at: http://www.youthkiawaaz.com/2012/03/madurai-how-long-will-its-grandeur-last/

THE DEATHS OF RTI ACTIVISTS IN RECENT TIMES:

The Right To Information (RTI) is derived from our fundamental right of expression under Article 19. The elementary values of democracy are awareness, information and knowledge. Information is wealth and hence the right to seek it is extremely vital.  

Though this right has been in existence since the time India became a republic, it was difficult to enforce without going to court. After a decade and a half of struggle, the codification of this important right was done in the form of the RTI Act. A crucial component of the Act is the penalty clause that punishes, both financially and through disciplinary action, the government officials who fail to provide the requested information within the time limit of 30 days. The effect has aided numerous citizens to get their legitimate pending government work done with use of RTI instead of the usual under-the-table palm smearing. Thus RTI allows the common man to participate in the democratic process and provides vigilance over the governance process. This would in turn lead to good and flawless governance.

The media plays a very crucial role in making this information to reach the common man. Journalists play the dual role of both RTI activists and as monitors, to pore over the implementation of the law in rural and urban areas.  These activists work directly or indirectly to get those required information that will otherwise cost them a fortune. By being an RTI activist, a change can certainly be brought about in the society.

From a clerk working at a governmental office to a big-shot, who has the entire state or even the nation in his palms, should be aware of the punishment that one has to face if one violates the law. This is not a kid’s stuff. But it can be made possible by the involvement of RTI activists. Having a few people to represent the millions of us is not correct. Each and every one of us should get involved in this. Even if people are ready, the only thing that is preventing them from doing so is the fear of losing their lives. It is shocking to know that at least 12 RTI activists have been killed in the line of duty since last year. The cases involving the murders are either mysteriously closed or mysterious people have gotten involved in it, eventually closing these files. Certainly something has to be done. But the authority and influence are playing hide-and-not-seek game where the only people who get tagged are the RTI activists.

As the power and wealth of the people increase, the number of wrongs they do also increase. But then, not all people have the guts to fight them back. Some wail about the situation, some report to higher officials while only a few fight back. But what is the use when these fights only end up taking away the lives of those who wish to bring a change. To put an end to this brutal killing, the situation in India has to be changed. Governmental transactions have to be transparent. Only when there is a flaw, some tend to hide it while some others tend to reveal it.

The other practical way to stop this atrocious killing of RTI activists is to change the process of managing the RTI applications. It is every citizen’s rights to know the information. The applications, not pertaining to individual issues, need not contain any personal identification of the applicant.  Thus the individual confidentiality is protected. This will help realize the rights of the citizens and at the same time protect the lives of those who fight for it.

MARVELS BEYOND THE MIST!

A few weeks ago, I got a text from my friend saying that a guy, who had been my classmate during high school, had committed suicide. I seriously thought that this friend was playing a prank on me. Later I discovered the truth. He did commit suicide. I had always seen this guy to be one with great self-esteem and self-confidence. Then why out of nowhere should he take this decision. That was all people spoke for a couple of months. Everyone had only one question. The same question, to be exact. Why?

Now thinking about this issue of suicide, I did a little research and the results I got were too shocking. Statistics show that every five minutes, someone, somewhere in India, attempts suicide. This makes suicide the third major cause of death. Also, annually more than 1,00,000 people commit suicide in India, of which one-thirds are youth.  Diverse backgrounds, diverse goals and diverse opinions! But same decision!

Today, the youth in India form one of the most vulnerable groups, who on the one hand are expected to be the leaders, the backbone of tomorrow’s India, while on the other hand, are a browbeaten and baffled cluster. There is an imbalance between the youth population and the limited opportunities for admission in schools and colleges, and specifically in professional courses. This puts the youth under great pressure. First class and second class are hardly adequate results anymore.  Parents are helpless too, as both public and private institutions have caused economic burden to them. If you think getting admission is the toughest thing that youth can ever experience, rethink! Placements are another hell. You need to get everything right. And even after getting placed, the comparison in relation to the pay received, causes all the more pain. A person with the pleasure of working but with limited salary is certainly not welcome in this society. People have come to a point where they are ready to trade their work pleasure for money. Tough deadlines and hectic work atmosphere have taken the lives of many youth.

Friendships and relationships have also played equal parts in this gamble for life. Youth are too sensitive to sort any sort of relationship problem. The problem may be anything; Fight with best friends, bitter misunderstanding with girlfriend/ boyfriend followed by an even bitter break-up, family issues with parents fighting over their lives or over financial issues. But the youth are greatly affected. They bundle up all these grievances in their hearts and eventually give their hearts a complete rest so they will never have to face the same, again.

 I am blaming all. There are plenty of youth who have followed their heart to be what they wanted to be. But the fact that this suicide virus is taking away the lives of millions of youth is alarming. Something has to be done to cripple it. In battle between the thirst to have their dream life and the urge to fulfill the expectation of the society, many are shattered. While a very few regain their stand, the rest take the ultimate decision of ending their lives.

When they have the guts to face the pain of ending their lives for one moment, why aren’t they having the same guts for a moment longer to face the battle?  If a person is disturbed, all that has to be done is just talk. Words can do wonders, even help see beyond the mist. And you will never know what marvels are awaiting you! 

Bookaholic: Are You One?

By Harinie Thiagarajan:

Have you ever been teased by your friend because you are just too obsessed with the book you are reading; too involved in it that you missed the private joke that you friends cracked in cafeteria? Are you the kind of person who cannot leave a library without borrowing a book or cannot take your hands off the new edition novel for which you have been waiting for ages? Well then, join the club. People call us, “nerds”, “geeks” or “book-worms”. But we call ourselves, “the bookaholics”. It is more fun to be a bookaholic than it seems. Here is how it works.

You start a book, feeling damn bored. Then you get into the heart and soul of it, too absorbed that you have no idea what is going on around you. Hunger and sleep will not even be the matter of concern. The only thing that matters will be to know if the last page of the book rips your heart or heals your scars. Most impossible task will be the one where you had to close your book without getting to run a study-marathon. That’s not all! Days and nights run too fast. You start reading a book and once you decide to stop reading, you notice 3 hours have gone. There are times when you start reading a novel to make your travel less-boring but eventually realize you have missed your stop (Again!!), yet feel clandestinely pleased cause you can have a couple of more time to read during your journey in reverse direction.

The most exciting thing is to follow the author very carefully, listening to every interview to know when his/her book is due. When the date comes, you rush to the nearest book store to grab the first copy. In case you are obsessed with online book reading, you haunt every e-book portal to know if that book had been posted. Every request board contains your thread. There are times when, even after reading 3 to 4 novels in a week, you feel your appetite not satisfied. Books have the amazing ability to transform you to another world. By the time you finish reading a book, you may have laughed, cried, blushed or even cursed the villain in that book.

Most of the novels are converted to movies these days with elaborate screenplay and added characters. But the pleasure of knowing the story from reading a novel is incomparable as you get to get to imagine the casts and the scenes; you let your imagination go wild; sometimes even placing you and your crush in the lead roles of the book.

In case you smiled at any point while reading this article, then you are certainly a bookaholic. And I am proud to say, Welcome aboard!!

Read full article at: http://www.youthkiawaaz.com/2011/11/bookaholic-are-you-one/

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