How is the morning?

 The title made you wonder if I am as yet properly awake (or probably not), right? It should be "Good Morning". That is what, may be, you thought? Not to worry. I am up n about, long time back, ready to 'arise n shine' as they say. 

No, the title is not a take on that "how is the josh?" With 'Dhurndhanr' blasting the cinema halls, that phrase anyways might be passe, right? To get back to our title, I was just casually trying to imagine to myself how each morning looks. 

In my opinion, every season, in fact, each day, has a unique visage as far as the morning goes. Is it any surprise that one of the most poetic "ruchas" in the "Rigveda" are about the dawn, the "Usha Sukta"? Why, one of the gravest tragedies in the whole of the world literature, "Hamlet", has a lovely description of the morning breaking on the horizon. 

Now here are the attempts by Your Truly. In my opinion, the monsoon morning is a typical crybaby. Yes, I begin with the monsoon because it is unique to us, and it bothered us as if there were no end to it this year!

 A crybaby is a person, need not necessarily be a kid (though mentally and psychologically is one!), who is forever glum, weepy and able to disturb, if not destroy, the best thought-through plans! Very good at throwing water, literally, at everyone and everything!

The summer morning? To me, it appears like a forever irritated person whose temprature can, and does, shoot up any second! There is no knowing when the heat would be such that it can instantly scorch. The 'two minutes' smoulder types! The human version of the latest eruption of some volcano, afar or near!

And the winter mornings that we are facing these days? Well, given the smog smothering the city horizons, tough to wax senti, right? As for me, a winter morning looks like a quietly smiling, mature, slightly withered,  a bit wrinkled face of a wise woman. 

Like Aai's, or even Papa's, in the winter of their innings! Greying hair, wispy, slightly thin, a little tousled. Yet face calm. Completely quiet and totally content! One of the most beautiful sights, right?

At times though, one could even say, the winter morning, through the smog blurring, appears like death itself. No, that is not because the reference to my parents reminds me of their demise, and hence of death.

About a winter morning, there is a silence, right? Given the cold (and, not to forget, our current buddy, the leopard), there is not that typical rush n wheeze of the typical city life. At times, I feel, one could hear the distant sound of stars stirring far far away in the firmament. 

In addition, there is that vague luminescence of the winter mornings, neither darkness, nor light. Something translucent. Rather misty, absolutely mysterious. Quite like death, eh?

Pratima@ No, I have not been reading about all those 'after death' experiences. Nor watching all those vivid with details videos the internet apparently overflows with. Yet that is the striking image recurring if you think about a typical city morning, right? In the meanwhile, Good Morning! Time to rise and ....

The quote of the day:                                                "The breeze in the morn has secrets to tell you. Do not go back to sleep." Apparently, Rumi! Would not know.

Word of the day: forenoon.                                       'forenoon' is before noon, that is, the middle of the day. So, 'morning'! That is the way, I ask my students to remember the German words "Vormittag" and "Nachmittag", "Tag" being day, "mit" is middle, while "vor" is before, and "nach" is after. Very easy it is to learn languages, right? 

Let us learn grammar:  In this blog, I have tried to introduce a day. As for myself, however, I introduce myself. When facing an interview, I would say, 'May I introduce myself'. If I meet strangers at a marriage reception, I would say, 'let me introduce myself'.  Hey, it is getting late. The morning rush as usual. I must 'help myself' to a quickie of a breakfast. Bye, folks! 

Work is waste(d)

  The title may startle you! We are used to homilies about work as worship. Very soon though, such vacant phrases may truly be empty of any meaning, of any relevance, of any significance, and in very near future.

Forget the tech giants such as Messers  Musk-n-Gates, even the progenitor, that is, the Dad of  the AI, Hinton himself, is predicting that the AI is already so galloping that very soon, there would be no work at all for human beings! Neither hard, nor smart!

The gig economy is sure and fast giving way to the no jobs economy. No, this is not the h(e)aven Marx envisioned at the purely poetic end of his great 'Manifesto'. Mind you, the Linked In types may assure you that alternative job markets would emerge. That is not true either. Chat bots, and AI agents, would soon be  better masters of 'prompt'ing, at communicating faultlessly, and, however, tough the terrain could be. 

No professions are immune from the invasion, whether creative or tough, in brief, neither teaching, nor writing, why, not even surgery! The likes of the Nvidia's, the techno-financial giants of the world are uniting to  pour zillions in to the ever guzzling gullets of the industry for making the AI efficient n better by the day, whatever be the effects enviornment-wise either! No Lehmann-Sachs kind of bubble this seems to be to burst either! 

Mind you, as an entity, as a concept, work is a complex politico-economic-socio-psychological phenomenon. If there is no work, no wages either, right? Sure, the government (it would then indeed be truly big brotherly!) might help out with welfare measures. 

But how much and to how many? And how long? How to grade the quality of either any profession or the work carried out, if there is no work at all for human beings? And, mind you, all along, the machines would be getting smarter and brighter! Some brave new world!

Forget the finance dominated/determined issues about the functioning of the market driven economy! Well, much worse socio-psychological issues are at stake! Work is never mere efficiency, money, schedule, et al. Work is purpose, too. 

If there is no such motive, what would empty minds do, but be devil's workshop?!? Can there be any family of such (hopefully, metaphorically) blood suckers? Remember, during the COVID, when everybody had to be cooped up within the four walls, the oh-so-lovin family got in to each other's hairs, plural intended! 

Imagine the society of such dracula's and zombies, as if we do not have enough of these already! All the vulnerables, be it babies, the elderly, the women, the disabled would be at the receiving end! And, oh, ya, all the castes, ethnicities, religions would face the same fate. Class, anyways, would not exist, except the three or four conglomerates owned by two or three capitalist buddies!

Yes, this dystopia is for real. So the solution? Bond deeply and truly with those who you genuinely care for! When you are with those you love, any hell can be THE heaven!

Pratima@ Wonder what would be the future of our demagaugic, eh, demographic dividend, gutka guzzling, et al, ready for every harassment of any innocent if somebody throws at them a few rupees in return!?!

Word of the day: It is a phrase, actually. Cassandra cries.                                               'Cassandra cries' refers to genuine prognosis to which none pays any attention. The "nach kaschit shrunoti maam" frustration of Sage Ved Vyasa! Cassandra was a prophetess who could foretell the future exactly, to the 't'. Why, she had even warned about the Trojan horse in the 'Iliad'. None believed her, though!

Quote of the day:                                                        "Quality is great," says Henry Ford, if one goes on "doing it right even when no one is looking." 

Let us (continue to) learn grammar:                     As times are gonna be tough, let us so 'dress ourselves' that we may 'help ourselves' to feel better!                                                                          If the object of the verb is different, the meaning changes. Notice the difference between "The mother bathed the baby" and "he washed himself", or even "bathed himself", hopefully, at least sometimes! 

Slang is bang...

 Yes, slang is bang n on, but only for the in-group; the Gen Z, the Gen Alpha (sheer luck for us, boomer n beyond, I suppose, that the Gen Beta cannot talk, born as they are in 2025), et al, for instance. 

Oh, yup, no longer is it the mobile specific "gr8" types. The "LOL" and "lmao" are passe, too! Don't ya believe me? K! Tell me the meaning of the following: "knuckered! Need rôle!" " Hwaiting!" Well, in simple, sensible, straightforward English, this exchange means, "I am very tired. I need a hangout." "Good luck! Keep going." !!! 

Well, like these youth n full types, their mobiles are fool, too! The "role" in the exchange above has the circonflex cap on the word final 'e'. Tough to type for the pre-Corona Gen of mobiles! 

Slang is always thus, understood by a specific group. This group is mostly the young one(s). There is a tremendous informality about this non-standard usage. This casual lingo is more on the go than even its users. That is to say, it constantly shifts and changes. 

Wanna a few staggering e.g's? "No cap"  has nothing to do with Aesop's monkeys or the climate wise headgear. It means,"not lying"! Nice it is to meet Nasmma coz she is always "spilling the tea". Does that mean Madam is a careless housewife? Nope! It just means that Ma'am gases and gases. No stomach upset, please! The awful odour is that of her constant gossiping! 

''I am not beat on", that is, not excited about either meeting her or using the social media types such as the insta or the fb! She is extra! That does not mean, Ma'am works in the bhojpuri fillums. It just means, she is an annoyance, a bother. 

Yup, "slang slays" ! Means "slang is very good". Who cares about butchering the standard usage! The slang-walla users care for the informal, the casual, the intimate in-group feel. Slang gives a feel of a unique, a special selfhood. In advt's, it may  be used for flooding the market with its unusual uniqueness, right? New modes of sales pitch in new eras, right?

 Pratima @Any slang is fine so long as it does not hinder communication. Anyways, the purists do accept slang as regular usage sooner, than later!

Quote of the day:                                                        Says Ambrose Bierce,"Slang is the speech of him who robs the literary garbage carts on the way to the dump." 

Word of the day:                                                     "Mah bad, mah bad! Chill. Why be a big mad?" These oft used words, rather expressions, mean "my mistake, my mistake, take it cool, why be so angry?"! This latest gen slang can ASAP be the headache of other generations!!!

Let us learn grammar:                                             Let us continue with the self-reflexive verbs this week. "Do not hence absent yourself/yourselves from the blog. Thus can you easily avail yourself/yourselves from decent usage of English."                                   The structure is I/myself, you/yourself, you/yourselves, she/herself, he/himself, we/ourselves, they/themselves.                 

The Sugar Coated Pill?

 Remember, when as a child, the Doctor Uncle, that is, the family doctor, an institution almost extinct now, would initially give the tantrum throwing kid peppermint as tablets? The test used to be very tangy, almost like medicine but tasty enough to make the kid temporarily at least forget the tooth ache or the fever!

Yes, medicines have to have such psychological benefits for the patient to recover fast so much so that kids often want the tonsillitis operation as it offers loads and loads of ice cream as the post operative care!

In such a context, let us discuss the alternative medicine mode. No, let us not get in to the allopathic versus ayurvedic debate. Yes, both have side effects. Yes, for a quickie of a relief, nothing like the allopathic medicine, while the ayurvedic may cure the disease at the root.

Both pathies, however, would/might dismiss homeopathy as sugar coated pills! How about reiki? These days, the internet is flooded with alternative medicines such as the 'ashtchakra' therapy, the 'kundalini' therapy, the 'akashik' therapy, the 'past birth', the 'sujyok', the 'bara kshar', the 'flower', and so on, and so on therapies. 

Well, I would not know their relevance. I do, however, feel that acupressure does work. Well, during the Corona Period, the Mangeshkar Hospital, where most all doctors are M.D's, had floated for their staff and patients a seven stage acupressure mode. Well, our feet and palms do have all possible nerve endings. Such acupressure points do minimise pain, and add to the redemptive effect. Unlike the acupuncture needles, there is no pain either.

Personally, I am of the opinion that any combo, acupressure and allopathy, for instance should make the patient feel hopeful that (s)he would get well soon. It is that hope that cures real fast, whichever be the pathy, right? 

Better still is the communication by the doctor. If the doctor manages to make the patient feel relaxed, comfortable and confident, the patient gets well soon. It does not mean trying to baby-talk with an adult. These days, however, machines do more of the noise than the actual consult! Has the Fourth Revolution already encroached this most intimate relationship? Talk of the AI days!

 Word of the day: Placebo.                                         A placebo is a medicine or procedure prescribed for the psychological benefit to the patient rather than for any physiological  or therapeutic effect. It may not be used as a test case during the trials of new drugs or their side effects. Often, it may humour or placate the patient.

Quote of the day:                                                    "Let us strive for the impossible. Remember the great achievements throughout history have been the conquest of what seemed the impossible." So said Charlie Chaplin. It applies so very well to getting well soon! 

Let us learn grammar:                                          This week, let us deal with self-reflexive verbs. Unlike any other European languages, be it French, German or Spanish, luckily English has very few of these. They matter though. A self-reflexive verb has an object which refers back to the subject. 

Look at the following examples for further clarity. "I enjoyed myself at the get-together". "The kids were enjoying themselves  hugely during the birthday party." "Hope you are enjoying yourself/yourselves this evening." The moment you say/write, "It is your birthday today. Today evening, enjoy", it is clear your English is not enjoying itself!!! 

The Goddess of Justice is not at all blind

 Yes, I am uploading this blog a little late. Well, am a little unwell. That is okay though. Better late than never, right? Recently, to be precise, on December 3, was celebrated the Indian National Lawyers', or rather the Advocates', Day. 

The day is celebrated to insist on the ethics of the profession. A huge demand it may look like as, apparently, in the imaginary of the common perception, lawyers are all that is wicked, manipulative and money-minded.

Actually, the justice system in India is skewed because of sheer statistics. The number of cases pending in the court is  almost in millions. Many amongst them are undertrials who thus spend a lifetime in the impossible conditions of the (indian) jails without even/ever being tried.

 In other words, "tarikh pe tarikh", 'date after date' is not merely a filmy dialogue. Often are blamed the judges' colonial set of holidays for such an unforgivable delay as 'justice delayed is justice denied'.

Yet I would like to insist that the Goddess of Justice, who now speaks in the local Indian languages as well, is not blind at all. She is impartial. It has been proven in so many seminal cases which have altered the very destiny of India, beginning with the famous Keshavananda Bharati case, the Shah Bano Case, the Ayodhya Ram Janma Bhoomi case, to give a few salient examples.

As for corruption or lack of ethics in the judicial system, the sad truth is, no other field of public and/or private life is free of such corrosion. Instead of, hence, accusing the supreme court chief justices of being lackeys of the central government, especially after retirement, why not think positively that their vast knowledge is being put to positive use that would be good for the entire polity?

  Such was the opinion of the ex-CJI Chandrachud, too, who was also viciously hounded because the P.M. attended the Ganesh Poojan at his official residence! Secularism seems to assume weird avataars according to convenience!

Pratima@ The judiciary is defined as the branch of government that interprets laws, settles disputes, and administers justice. This system of courts serves as the guardian of the constitution and fundamental rights, with a structure that is hierarchical, beginning from the Lower to the Supreme Court. 

The quote of the day:                                              In the much anthologised 'seven ages of man', Shakespeare mocks the corrupt 'justice' (actually, in Shakespeare-an parlance, it need not mean only the judge, though) as follows:                                                "And then the justice,/ In fair round belly with good capon lined,/ With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,/ Full of wise saws and modern instances;/And so he plays his part."

The word of the day: Lawyer versus advocate.                                                                   A lawyer, according to the technical definition, has a law degree, while an advocate is a lawyer, licensed to represent clients in court by passing a Bar exam, and by registering with the Bar Council. In other words, all advocates are lawyers. Yet all lawyers need not be advocates. Some lawyers may only provide legal advice, and work outside of court. 

Let us learn grammar:                                            These days, it is very fashionable to dismiss grammar in the name of so-called communication. Yes, communication does matter, but communication, as we hope to prove, stands on the firm footing of grammar as it is, otherwise, wobbly and shaky. 

To give an ancient (in both the senses, that is from the olden days, and, aged, as it has been repeated generations long) example, in English, the subject/the doer and the object/on whom the action takes place have their given, structured placement in an English sentence. Hence it has to be "Rama killed Ravana", though certain interpretations may question such (in)justice!

More about  grammar as we meet day after day. 

Truth lies in actually reading

 They say the proof of the pudding is in tasting it, in actually eating it,  right? Our title takes after that famous phrase, and argues that we understand/know the  truth of the matter only when we read the actual documents. 

Why all this jazz? Is that your query? Well, Dear Reader, do you remember two words that never cease to raise temperature to impossible heights in India? Yes, they are "secular" and "socialist." 

As you probably  know, these two words were not there in the original Preamble to the Constitution. They were introduced during the Emergency. As this year, 2025, happens to be the fiftieth year of those turbulent times, the discussion regarding dropping these two shot up. 

Well, if you were to look up the entire debate regarding these two words during the actual framing of the constitution, you would know that K. T. Shah, himself an alumnus of the London School of Economics, and other major institutions in England, was strongly in favour of using these two words. 

Dr. Ambedkar's opinion of the term socialist was that if it is included, it would restrict, in fact, take away, the right of the people to decide which type of societal construction they would like. 

There was no reference at all to 'secular'. Unfortunately, camps or their leaders do not know such facts. Busy with pushing their agenda, they may not bother to look up the original as the blame game is important to  many hate mongers.

Extremely sorry is such state of affairs. Instead of deifying, and thus negating their truth, it is necessary to live the idea(l)s of all thinkers. Only then can past be a guide to present, and, especially to future, right? High decibels lead only to cacophony, but not either to wisdom or to truth!

Pratima@ Partisan screeches do nothing but belittle the camp, much worse, an interesting  idea!

Quote of the idea:                                                "sapere aude", said Kant. It means 'dare to know', 'dare to be wise'.

Word of the day: preamble.                                  '  A Preamble means introduction or preface. Mostly, it succinctly summarises the entire document. 

Soil is ...

 'Soiled' is hardly a flattering adjective. It suggests dirty ugliness. Soil, the root noun, however,  is everything. Soil is soul as soil is the sole that begins and ends the very existence. 

No, it is not the 'from dust to dust' fact of the life cycle. Actually, the very life cycle of everything living, from the earthworm to the giant elephant or of the evolved mankind, depends on soil. The entire food chain begins in the soil, the uterus of the seed that blooms in to a sturdy sapling, necessary for life to continue, whether of the herbivore or the carnivore variety. Soil, in brief, is all.

Hence the relevance of the WSD! The WSD stands for the 'world soil day', celebrated every December 5 under the aegis of the UNO. The WSD encourages the sustainable preservation of soil and its quality.

Many factors threaten the basic soil and its fundamental qualities. Let us mention a few here. First and foremost, it is deforestation. When forests are felled flat, the strong roots that would have held the soil together are lost, and soil is washed away, literally down the drain.

Such soil erosion is highly dangerous every which way. It clogs the river beds. If not treated, it leads to flash floods which can lead to artificial lakes, a huge threat to the entire ecology. Remember the tragedy of, and nearby, Chamoli district of the 'devbhoomi', Uttarakhand this monsoon? The tragedy should prove the need to respect the soil.

Instead humans flood it with chemical fertilizers that finish off the soil which otherwise is alive, almost like a beehive, as various ingredients are silently, subtly, sincerely re-generating it constantly.

In other words, soil and its health are literally the root cause of our very existence. Hence this WSD, this tribute to the soil that sustains us! Let our development not wipe out the soil beneath our feet! Let us think of sustainable alternatives. Let us per year leave certain fields fallow, let us insist on organic agricultural ways and modes, let us not mine mindlessly. Let us serve soil so that it can sustain us!

Pratima@ Soil is so essential to our lives that even spiritual metaphors refer to soil, such as the soil of goodness enriches the soul, for instance.

Quote of the day:                                                       "The nation that destroys its soil destroys itself." This awareness raising, sensitising quote is assigned to many a thinkers and statesmen, including Franklin D.Roosevelt. Hope all our "devrai" forests survive such senseless destruction. Long live "chipko" movements of all sorts.

Word of the day: desertification                         This term refers to fertile land growing futile due to (in)human excesses such as excessive deforestation, horrid intrusion of human habitat in to forest land, the mixing in of chemicals in to land mass due to fertilisers, industry waste, human slurry, and so on,  the destruction, in brief, of land, of soil itself. 

The Divine Dutta

 Why this title? Is that your question? Let me explain  the symbolism that I find in this festival that today is getting celebrated in every nook and corner of Pune. 

Let us begin with the myth of the birth of the divine Dutta. It is, in my opinion, a story which truly reflects the infinite and immense feminine strength. Sati Anusuya is well-known for her devotion to her husband. Narada, the busybody, sings her praises in the heaven, the abode of gods. 

In a very anthropomorphic way, three goddesses get jealous, and want that she be tested. They send Bramha, Vishnu, Shankar to find out if her reputation is worth it. In another version of the myth, the gods themselves want to test her integrity.

Thus begins the story of a mortal woman's grace and strength, even when pitted against the all-mighty! The gods apparently arrive at her ashram under the guise of sadhu's. Their condition for eating a plateful is that she should serve them completely unclothed!

Such is Anusuya's (her very name implies someone gracious, pure, gentle, beyond envy and jealousy, truly divine in this sense) spiritual energy that she converts the three gods (or in another version, the three become) in to babies whom she can nurse against her breast!

If such a victory of the feminine over every possible pretension is one reason why I appreciate the Dutta Jayanti, let me share with you two more reasons why I like this religious celebration. 

Around the Dutta idol, one can see every possible animal and bird. The dog would signify total devotion, pure love and absolute commitment, for example. One can thus assign a symbolic value to the entire iconography, right? Incidentally, a tree, the wild fig tree, is associated with the Dutta ensemble. In other words, if you want to assign a very contemporary meaning to the icon, one could always say that Dutta signifies the arch conservationist, the force that truly cared for the fauna and flora.

Yet another interesting fact about Dutta is that he can find guidance in n from everything, everyone and every event. I admire immensely this open acceptance. It reveals not merely an eternal desire to learn or mere humility. In my opinion, it is a sensible search for a sensitive togetherness. 

How rich indeed is our Indian iconography, traditional, ancient yet contemporary! Hence the title of our blog today.

Pratima@"Where mercy, pity and love dwell," felt William Blake, "there God is dwelling, too." 

Quote of the day:                                              Interpretation is an artistic exploration of value creation. So says yours truly! Some defining as refining!

Word of the day: Celestial                                         This word can prove my point. Literally, it denotes the sky, an astronomical phenomenon. It can, however, be interpreted as something or someone heavenly, excellent, truly good! 

Sanskrit is very much alive!

 On the internet, anything can go viral, and  anytime. On one such group, yesterday was posted a much touted video. It discussed the importance of speaking and spreading Sanskrit. Presenting it was Anil Kumble, extremely well-known for his genuineness,  integrity and sincerity. Remember his bowling record, and, that, too with a bandage literally from head to chin to cheeks? 

Obviously such a video catches eyeballs. Accompanying him was his wife. The thumbnail described the video as a token of the importance of the Sanskrit day and the Sanskrit week. The entire presentation was such that anybody would think of today as the Sanskrit day. 

Actually, the Sanskrit day falls on Shrawan Pournima. Beyond such confusion date wise, the video, otherwise, was a great promotion of speaking in Sanskrit. 

The theme reminds me of a wonderful video made by the 'Prachyam' group. It discusses in thorough detail how Sanskrit is very much alive, a very important point because it is fashionable to describe and dismiss Sanskrit as a dead, though classical, language. 

This 'Prachyan' video provides wonderful details. There are eighteen universities teaching Sanskrit, it seems, while at least twenty thousand citizens quote it as their first language! Apparently more than three million people use it as their second and/or third language. 

Prof. Tripathy, a well-known Sanskrit scholar, discusses further how hundreds of UGC accredited journals publish articles in Sanskrit, while he himself has prepared a bibliography of works in Sanskrit. It runs in to literally thousands of pages. 

In brief, Sanskrit is alive. It is used as a mode of daily lived life. May long continue to live Sanskrit! In this context, and especially given the raging debate about Macaulay's 'Minute', let me inform you that Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar wanted Sanskrit to be the "rajya bhasha." In one of his much quoted statements, he clearly and categorically states that English should be used for about fifteen to twenty years till the bureaucracy is trained in, and gets used to, Sanskrit. Thereafter , Sanskrit, he maintains, would be the language of official communication in India. 

That dream may not have been realised. Yet no need for a dirge for the "devbhasha". It is very much alive, and in use. The Kumble video, may be, would prick people's curiosity, and thus would they arrive at the welcome reality of Sanskrit today!  Every day, in brief, can be, and should be, a Sanskrit day!

Pratima@Truth is forever stranger, and stronger, too, than fiction or propaganda! 

Quote of the day:                                                         "Sa vidya ya wimuktye." A tribute to the transformative power of knowledge, it can be translated as "That is knowledge which liberates!" 

Word of the day: etymology.                                Etymology refers to a systematic study of the origin of words. It includes a historical overview of how words changed their shapes and meanings. An example can be the word "villein" which became 'villain'. Not only did the word change its spelling. Its meaning shifted in the diametrically opposite direction. Originally, it meant a farmhand! What an innocent and innocuous interpretation as opposed to its signification today! 

Dignity

“One person in one family should get reservation until a Brahmin gives away his daughter to my son, or (she) has a relationship with him, if it’s only about the economic condition.” Thus spake Mr. Verma, currently posted as a Deputy Secretary in the Agriculture Department in Madhya Pradesh. 

A huge furore was the obvious response. Why should such an insult be hurled at a girl/a woman while discussing caste (in)justice? Look at the words chosen, moreover. Hardly even a mention of a marriage! The quote reads "a Brahmin 'gives away' his daughter ... (she) has a relationship (with him"). What a ridiculous suggestion is this! 

Who gives anybody any right to thus sully a woman's dignity? As it is, there are sick stalkers, so-called chase-master (or is it monster?)  'lovers' (and their helpmeets!), if they at all can be so called, given their vulgar tarnishing of the beautiful concept called love! As if these types, rather creeps,  do not bother women hugely enough! The fast developing technology creates its own terrible traps! And, in addition, such rhetoric! 

Absolutely it is the mentality of the warlords of the Middle Ages who would vitiate the women of the enemy as a revenge, but elaborated it is in the third decade of the twenty-first century boasting of the AI, et al! A typical example of the multiple jeopardies women face! 

How does a Brahmin girl 'having a relationship' minimise caste injustice? How does a Brahmin girl cleaning latrines lead to a just society? Actually, an ideal society should be one in which NOBODY has to face any demeaning activity. 

Factually, even an insistence on an inter-caste marriage (forget finer facts such as the victimised girl's will/desire!), too, continues the caste system as the offspring would get the  father's caste! Patriarchy thus plays the defining role. Why then such insults? Why the convenient silence of the feminist groups? 

A woman's dignity is inalienable, whichever caste, creed, class, religion, ethnicity, age group she may belong to! That is that, AND  beyond any convenient partialities! 

Pratima@ Every, and any, transformative solution  has to be just and humane to ALL. Otherwise, there would only be Madame Defarge of all cast(e)s! History should have taught that Holocausts born(e) out of various jealousies and fractured understandings of genealogies lead only to vicious bloodshed, which is hardly any cleansing! Fascism's of any hue and every variety overlook such sincere subtleties!

Quote of the day:                                              "Injustice anywhere," maintained Martin Luther King, "is a threat to justice everywhere." 

Word of the day: fairness.                                      No, it does not have anything to do with some sick n silly advertisement about a cream that comments on pigmentation. 'Fairness' means "an impartial and just treatment and behaviour without any favouritism or discrimination." 

The Birth of the Bhagwad Geeta

 Geeta Jayanti! The day carries an acutely personal significance for me. Aai studied in depth the Geeta Dharm Mandal course that analyses the treatise. She was among the toppers, too. It was on this particular day that she was ceremoniously awarded the certificate. I felt proud of her . As was usual with her, she never wasted time. Instead of sitting around 'chatting' cum gossiping, she studied in detail many religious treatises, and continued to enrich her life, age being no bar.

Yes, on the Mokshada Ekadashi of the month of Margashirsha in the waxing phase of the moon is celebrated the Geeta Jayanti. It is believed that the Bhagwad Geeta was 'narrated' by Lord Krishna at the Kurukshetra on this very day. Hence the moniker 'Geeta Jayanti'. 

Why the commas encircling 'narrated'? Well, it is my earnest submission that the treatise is a dialogue. Krishna never edifies, nor sermonises. Instead, he 'facilitates' the spiritual awareness for/of Arjuna. Hence dissolve typical doubts such as how could so much time be spared at the war front. Even otherwise, reading the Geeta in an aware way takes roughly two hours. Possible as well as probable it is that the Lord thus sensitised his disciple cum best friend  before the war actually began. 

Come to think of it, every second of our very existence is a kind of war, at times with contexts, at moments with people we care for, but forever with our own selves. Every instant is an attempt to create some sanity  out of the surrounding meaningless chaos. The Geeta philosophy is a mode that helps us shore up some sense out of this void of nothingness, of meaninglessness, of illusions.

You may choose any one of the principles the text (scholars have written zillions of words explicating it) abounds with, be it Dnyan Yog, Bhakti Yog or the much debated Karma Yog. By definition, the Bhagwad Geeta is democratic. It explicates various modes of (self-) knowledge, and leaves you to choose the one you like.

 Why, Lord Krishna, after this entire exploration of the universe itself, the Vibhuti Yoga in Chapter 11 included, concludes with "yathechchasi tatha kuru." Translated even literally, it means "act as you wish to", that is to say, 'follow the path your head, your heart, your conscience, your soul, your 'self' wants you to.' 

It is such upfront openness, an equality born out of equanimity, the right to choose one's path in an aware way that makes the Geeta truly democratic. Hence it never remains some religious mumbo-jumbo. It pulsates in our very being, a forever guide any time conflicts corrode the inner space!

Pratima@Ah, yes, since 1988, December 1 has been declared the Aids Awareness day, indicating a disease whose severity, once a huge scare, has absolutely diminished, what with the advances in the medical field, and given that terror called the all crippling corona!

Quote of the day:                                                        "Nobody ever outgrows the scriptures," says Charles Spurgeon. "The book widens and deepens with our years."

The word of the day: orthodox.                              Etymologically, the term is made of two units, orthos (signifying right, true, straight) and doxa (meaning opinion). The modern word comes from the Greek verb uniting these two roots to mean 'to have a right/correct opinion'. The negative implication of rigidity, of exclusion of other perspectives, of dismissal of alternative opinions is a much later acquisition!

 

Let us laugh!

 Well, the beginning of the end has begun. Confusing it sounds to you? Well, it just means that the year is about to end as the last month is about to begin. This truth is expressed in a pithy way. Let us today try a few jokes. They are interesting because they are highly Intellectual. Why must laughter always be shallow  and silly, right?

The first two are related to 'chemical lochya'. 1)You are not part of the solution!?! Ah, yes, you must then be part of the precipitate.  2)In a cafe: "What would you have, Sir"? "H2O, Please." " How about you, Madam?" " I want H2O, too." Well, the waiter, actually a Ph.D. scholar of Chemistry, was working part time in that hotel. The lady drank whatever was offered, and she died. Why?  He got her H2O2, that is, hydrogen peroxide! 

The next two jokes play with words. 1) He is a linguist. He likes ambiguity more than most people! 2) A German goes to a bar and asks for Martini. 'Dry,' asks the bartender. 'Nein,' says the German. 'Only one! ' Ah, yes, the first joke of this two is based on ambiguity, a word/a clause that can have two meanings. The pithy sentence here means two things, too. He prefers ambiguity to people or Most people like ambiguity less, unlike him. The second one depends on phonetics, the science of sounds. English 'dry' sounds like German 'drei' which means three. 

The last one now. An absolute example of word play worth a Shashi Tharoor! Three crows are trying to be together. They are planning a murder! Well, this joke depends on the word play on 'murder' which is a collective noun, a term for a group of crows! 

Pratima@Laughter must go beyond mere hoo-haw or below the belt variety. If-n-when it challenges the brain,  then it is true fun, right?

Let us resume, let us get back, to our practice of the 'quote of the day' and of the word of the day tomorrow onwards, ok? 

Bingo, our blog forges forward!

 Hey, Dear Readers, let me share with you all a simply great feel. YES, our blog has crossed the magical 1,00,000 footfall, and in all humility, I would like to assert that the credit goes to You All. 

As our blog crosses this wonderful threshold, I have a rather complex feel. Yes, I do miss Aai. The blog began as a tribute to her. She, and Papa, would have been happy with this small, little achievement of mine.

Oh, yes, my first Marathi article in a newspaper, that is in 'Maharashtra Times', and later, after a few years,  the first English one in 'The New Indian Express ', both were published on March 18, Papa's birthday.  The coincidence had then mattered hugely to me because it made him truly happy.

Yes, to honour their memories, we have instituted prizes in educational institutions in Aai-Papa's names, just as we give annual  donations on each death anniversary and during the 'Mahalaya'. To commemorate Aai's memory, we conduct an annual literary competition, on an established platform like the 'Menaka' magazine, and it has given a space and a name to good authors. The joy I feel each time all these results are declared, I share it today, though not on the same scale as it is tinged with a forever lingering sadness.

On this digital platform, I have shared with all of you memories, poems, acrostics, reviews, 'special day' trajectories, and oh, yes, jokes, too. Different genres, varied themes! I do feel a little proud that the 1695 articles on this blog that began on the Mothers' Day in 2021 have never ever been repetitive. Each contri is unique, though thence I have not missed a single day.

The response has been great, too. Imagine, Sanjeev Kohliji, Madan Mohan's son, twice shared my reviews of 'Dil Dhoondhata Hai' on a site dedicated to Madan Mohan, my favourite music director. The first time round, it was read by 1500 readers, though I have not recently checked back. Absolutely humbling! 

It used to be a precious feel when Gokhale Madam, my colleague n friend, would gently state that she might expect a review of a music programme by Shantanu, her talented son, or of festivals organised by the Mitra Foundation such as 'Dil Dhoondta Hai' and 'Mitra Mahotsav' or of the BMCC 'Astitva'. Wow I used to feel when the next morning, I would get her trademark 'Beautiful'! 

Oh, yes, my extremely reticent bro, Sanju, checked my review of his flute rendition. Quite some compliment coming from him! Yes, there are regular readers (such as my 'quietly there' bro, Raju) of my blog who do not miss a single entry, and those others whose absent presence is my solace. Oh, yes, I do get 'heart-y' responses, too, which are highly precious to me as they assure me of the relevance of good communion in today's era of short attention span.

I am rather happy that our blog does not use the new hieroglyphics of the twenty first century; namely, the emojis. Languages and literatures must gracefully survive, especially in the written form, given the technological onslaught by the AI n types, right?

Sure, mine is just a small little bit of an attempt. It, however, is absolutely original, impartial, un-opinionated and genuine, and without any proxy team or a fulsomely admiring coterie or an echoing eco system.

Yes, I am trying to explore the other avenues that technology and the social media, used creatively, open up for all of us. Will sure keep you all in the know, in the info loop. Yeh blog-wali dosti hum nahi chodenge!  In the meanwhile, thanks a ton!

Pratima@ 'Love'ly are for me 'these fragments i have shored/against my memories'. T.S. Eliot would sure overlook my share of his famous quote, though with a tweak!

As today is a rather special day, here let me declare a holiday for knowledge, rather info, sharing of the 'Quote of the day' and 'Word of the day' variety! Thanks again during the Thanksgiving Weekend!

Bountifully blossoms faith

 The whole of India is abuzz with religious celebrations currently. Come the month of Margashirsha, the holy of the holiest according to the Bhagwad Geeta, Chapter XI, and our motherland seems to be literally overflowing with ceremonies celebrating faith.

This week began with the "dhwajarohan" at Ayodhya.  It signified n dignified the culmination of the centuries old Ram Janma Bhoomi movement. It, moreover, marked the completion of the Ram Mandir project at Ayodhya.

This morning, the P.M. participated in the  mass recitation of the Bhagwad Geeta and the Vedas, while towards the evening, he unveiled the seventy-seven feet tall bronze idol of Shri Ram.

Most interesting are the places of these ceremonies, from the North (Ayodhya) to the South (Udupi) to the West (the Gokarna Math in Goa). Literally, the whole of India seems to be full of religious fervour. 

Goa is the most significant of the three. In a way, Ayodhya has for centuries been the center of such religious animation (and animosity, too). The South is well-known for its religious observance. Goa, however, has a clear Christian influence due to the Portuguese colonisation.  Why, it has the remains of Saint Francis Xavier. The mostly Catholic churches and basilicas there are as famous as the Mangeshi temple. 

The tallest statue of Lord Ram in such a place is extremely  significant. It shows that the fount of faith flows literally across the length and breadth  of India. 

Does this exuberance clash with the secular framework of our multi-religious country? I do not think so. Well, look at the swearing in of the "nine mantras" by the P.M at both the ceremonies this Friday. Clearly they have a very democratic progressive inclusive profile.

There is nothing constitutionally wrong in the majority faith being thus celebrated because none of these religious events belittled the minorities' faith in any way. In fact, this week itself, the P.M. attended the three hundred and fiftieth Shaheed Diwas, honouring the martyrdom of the Sikh Guru Teg Bahadur, as well.

As it is, the term "secular" was introduced in the Preamble during the Emergency which, too, has reached its fiftieth anniversary  this year. In other words, instead of delimiting religious fervour in to communal framework and casteist terms (the legacy of British colonialism actually), it could be used to awaken the liberal ideals as the "nine mantras" oath proved.

As for the  heated debate over the P.M. attending the functions, indeed why not? Why, he attended in the past any number of ceremonies of the minority communities. He even faced backlash for praising a Sufi saint or two 

As for the carping about the political advantage thus gained directly and/or indirectly, well, each and every political (and politicking) party tried, and is trying, and will try it, right? Well, the unmatched charisma of an individual is his personal hard-earned achievement. 

In brief, continuous criticism simply for the sake/heck of it makes such motives suspicious and hypocritical, right? The battle of opinions/concepts/ideas is never won through propagandist narratives. Rhetoric which chooses to echo itself, in brief, is self-defeating!

Pratima@ Difficult to stop an idea, a concept, a movement whose time has come, to summarise Victor Hugo whom our erstwhile P.M., Dr. Manmohan Singh loved to quote.

Quote of the day:                                                        "Faith," they say, "is not belief without proof, but trust without any reservations or doubts." 

Word of the day: theology.                           'Theology'  is  made of 'theos' and 'logy'. The first means God and the second refers to a systematic study. Theology, hence, is the systematic study of the nature of God and religious belief(s).

Thud on, no Thanksgiving!

 What is a 'thud'? It is a loud noise. As a verb, it means, moreover, to make a huge noise as if a huge object has fallen. Well, this Thanksgiving Thursday, 'thud, thud' went the bullets, right next to the White House. For all we know, or do not know, two guards were mortally wounded. With such thuds on, no Thanksgiving, right? 

With the Trump-Mamdani truce, all seemed well. Now, however, Trump has seen red. War is already declared! In no uncertain terms! Terror attack, is how the incident is described. The 9/11 wounds must yet again be pried open. The blame game has begun, too! The immigrant issue has yet again emerged on the American agenda!

Sad that the Thanksgiving Thursday should be thus vitiated. The turkey, too, may not get the traditional pardon this year, given the President's mood. Sad that such an incident should happen on a day which the greatest President of America, Abraham  Lincoln, marked as a day to celebrate togetherness so that the divisions caused by the Civil War could be wiped out n clean. 

As it is, the DEI debates would have dimmed the sheen of the day, what with the Native Americans doubting the tradition. Actually, like most festivals across the world, this day, too, originally was a harvest celebration. The Pilgrims in the Plymouth Colony (Yes, America, too, was once a British colony!)  were helped by the local natives in garnering a huge harvest. Hence the Founding Fathers constitutionally adopted this national holiday. 

As inclusivity is thus being not merely theoretically debated, but is now down with a thud, this year, 'Black Friday' would literally be dark!

 Pratima@ Why terrorism? No, it cannot be poverty, lack of education type of traditional causes because the Delhi blast has clinically (in all senses of this term!) proved that white collar terrorism is hugely rampant! Which 'Operation' can cure it? That is the question!

 Quote of the day:                                                      "The fanatic," feels Elie Wiesel, who survived the Holocaust, "has no questions, only answers!" 

Word(s) of the day:                                                     Let us understand three apparently  similar words. 'emigrate' means 'to leave one's motherland to permanently settle in a foreign country'. 'immigrate' is 'to reach a foreign country to try and live there forever'. 'migrate' is 'to move to a new area in search of work or better living conditions.' 

Indians emigrate from India and try to immigrate to the West, especially the U.S.A. In India itself, there is a huge internal migration, from the erstwhile 'Bimaru' states to Maharashtra which has its own colossal intake of internal migrants, from Khandesh, Vidarbha and  Marathwada to Mumbai and Pune, for instance. 

26/11

 Yes, 26/11 is absolutely unique. Yes, as a citizen of India, it matters hugely to me. Yet, despite the commendable letter by the Prime Minister himself, i would not dare to write about the constitutional relevance of the day, though I may most humbly state that once I had tried to include the 'Preamble' in the Additional English syllabus. 

Sure it was a rough draft. Ah, the expression 'rough draft'! That itself is the reason why I choose not to touch the theme. To justify my reluctance, let me first quote: "As Babasaheb Ambedkar rises ever higher as a symbol of the self-respect of India’s oppressed and as the hope of an egalitarian India, the Brahminical forces (and the Sangh Parivar) have intensified their claim that Ambedkar was not the one who wrote the Indian Constitution. According to them, the real credit must go to the legal and constitutional expert BN Rau."

Such is the beginning of an article published this afternoon. The article debunks BN Rau's contribution as a 'rough draft'. If a 'rough draft' is going to incur viscerally casteist raw wrath in the India of 2025, it is better to keep quiet, right?!?

Instead let me talk of the 26/11 attack, a wound that seems to have healed as there is hardly any reference to it now. Oh, yes, let me talk of the bravery of Tukaram Omble. No, I do not know his caste. Lucky me! That is because i want to hugely praise  this wonderful police officer who literally martyred himself in his brave attempt to capture Kasab who then was a walking AK-47!

At Girgaum Chowpatty, this dutiful police officer faced some forty bullets from the closest range of Kasab's machine gun. Yet he did not quit. Instead, he held tight, both the terrorist and his AK-47. Because of his commitment and bravery, Kasab could be caught alive, and the entire terrorist plot could thus be unearthed. Please accept my eternal gratitude, Omble Sir's family!

Well, given such sacrifices and honest attempts which fill my eyes with tears, i hope that we would survive, and despite the conscious propagandist twists and turns to all sorts of narratives!

Pratima@"Extreme liberty," argued Plato, "leads to the most aggravated form of tyranny and slavery." Hope the "Gen Z" in Delhi (in its worries over the vitiated 'atmosphere') and in VIT, Bhopal (destroying public property, given the 'dis-ease') remembers such ancient wisdom!

Quote of the idea:                                                     There is a "cult of ignorance", noted Issac Asimov, stemming from the idea that "democracy means that my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge".

Word of the day: diatribe                                          A diatribe is a viciously bitter and brutal verbal attack by a zealot against someone or a way of thinking, most often without any proof or a logical argument.

Flag foremost fluttering freely

  It is the fifth day of the first fortnight ( till it reaches the full moon day) of the lunar month of 'margashirsha'. Aai used to honour it hugely as Lord Krishna has himself stated in Chapter 11 of the Bhagvad Geeta,  "masanam margshirshosmi", that is to say, "Of the months, I am Margashirsha", the best amongst the months. 

Today is 'margashirsha panchami', the fifth day of the month. It is also known as "Vivah Panchami" as the marriage of Lord Ram and Devi Seeta was consecrated on this day. Is it any surprise that in Ayodhya this morning was the flag, rather the pennant, hoisted as the culmination of the Ram Mandir project? 

A remarkable moment it indeed is! To understand its relevance, one must, however, free the Ram Mandir project from the immediate party politics of what happened in Samastipur on October 23, 1990, and its political/communal aftermath.

The Ram Mandir, it must never be forgotten, is a five centuries old search for roots. Generations of sadhus, priests as well as common citizens sacrificed hugely for its construction. Much has already been written about it, beginning with the 'mythology versus history' debate to all sorts of legalities. Let us not get in to that warfare.

Instead, I would like to state that with this flag flattering freely, the temple has become a unique symbol of the unity of India. Well, such a "garud dhwajstambh" is unique to the South Indian temple architecture, celebrating the well-known 'garud-Vishnu' legend. In other words, the very construction of the temple is symbiotic, symbolic of the unity of India, beginning from material from the Rajasthan quarries to this final flag foremost fluttering freely beneath the bluest sky.

To commemorate the eventful occasion, let me try n translate three shlokas from the "Ramraksha" which significantly is a hymn by Budhkaushik Rishi alias Sage Vishwamitra, whose life is a journey from a mighty king's ambitious attempt at acquisition of Kamdhenu to becoming a great sage himself. In other words, his life is an itinerary across 'jati n varna', caste and creed, to (self)knowledge.

 Hence attempting to translate his shlokas could be a true tribute to Lord Rama as the  "i-deal". Let me first try Shloka Number 30,    "Mata Ramo..." This verse, Aai's favourite, she recited it at one of the most defining moments of her life, reveals how central is the deity to our individual existence/experience. 

"Mother is Rama, my father is Ramchandra/Master is Rama, my soul mate is Ramchandra//My whole n soul is the gentle Ramchandra /None else I know nor need to thus know//"

Now let me try Verse Number 35, " apdam aphartaram" as it shows the beneficence  of the Lord-devotee relationship.

 "The annihilator of hardships/the bestower of all abundance//To Shrirama, by all beloved/i bow repeated!"

Finally, Shloka No. 15, because like Sage Valmiki's "ma Nishad", this verse opens up how great (spiritual) poetry is born, as a 'revelation'. It, moreover, unites the Vaishnavite (as Lord Rama is Vishnu manifest, an incarnation of  the great God Vishnu) and the Shaivaite  (as Lord Shankar thus instructed him) traditions.

"Ordained thus in a vision/This Ramraksha by Shiva divine//Thus scripted in the dawn/ the Budhkaushik awakened.//

Yet another of my dreams, partially fulfilled, on an auspicious occasion!

Pratima@Incidentally, it must be remembered that the notorious Macaulay 'Minute(s)', written in India, in Ooty apparently, in 1835, actually were an aftermath of a debate between the classical (Greco-Latin) versus the modern (science oriented) education debate raging in England itself. 

In India, it was labelled as the orientalist versus the occidental duality. Involved actually was the allocation of educational funding, both in Britain, and here, in the "jewel" of the colonies.

Well, a blog is not the space to discuss either the Lord Bentick manipulations nor Macaulay's manuscript as a test case for education as a mode of subjugation, not merely of the 'natives',  but actually  of the emerging working class in Britain itself, given the escalating Industrial Revolution boom.

Oh, yes, better not to create a binary either because multiple issues are involved, the entire Indology debate, et al  to Frantz Fanon's argument in "The Wretched of the Earth" of the three stages of intellectual decolonisation, while analysing the psychological impact of colonisation. 

Fanon himself was a West Indian from Martinique, a French Colony, let it be remembered. We are already marching in to the third stage Fanon presents! Hence the quote of the day which, I think, is relevant to the destiny of an individual as well as of a  polity, a nation.

The quote of the day:                                                 "Your talent is," states Leo Buscaglia, "God's gift to you. What you do with it is your gift back to God."  

The word of the day:                                                A flag can be 'unfurled', as on January 26, when the tricolour, rolled in to a compact furled shape atop the flag pole, is merely spread out.     

A flag, or a pennant as this morning, is rather 'hoisted'. That is to say, it is raised from the bottom to the top of a pole, as on August 15.

 

Bahut Yarana Tha!

, "Sholay"! The Bollywood version of cowboy films, fast paced, action filled, adrenaline pushing thrill! Ramesh Sippy's direction and Salim-Javed's dialogues indianised this "westerns" genre vitally. 

Time was when the entire cinema hall would know literally by heart each and every dialogue, scene by frame, close-up by montage! The title of our blog itself can prove that obsession. An absolute icon of a film that had "drama, tragedy, comedy, action...", yet again to quote from the "tanki" scene! 

'Gaon walon', it is such a tragedy that in the fiftieth year of that gem of a film, Viru of the duo whose legendary "dosti" was one of the reasons which made the film immortal, is no more. And, now, officially!

Dharmendra's demise is indeed an end of an era. "Why so? Is that your question? Ask, ask, ask no", as Basanti of the 'Sholay' fame would say. In a way, "Sholay" marks a mile stone in the history of Bollywood. It is a multi-starrer wherein the real hero is the story line. Very soon would usher in the era of Amitabh's larger than life characterisation, the only magnet of the filmography. Dharmendra, why, Rajesh Khanna, the first ever superstar, would soon be washed away in that tsunami.

Yet "bahut yarana tha, aur raha" between Dharmendra and his spectators/audience. May be, that was because he embodied that typical earthy large-hearted village bumpkin essential indianness. He appeared to be decent despite his "kutton, kamino, main tumhara khun pi jaunga" dialogue-baazi! Ah, yes, every which way, he was typical masculinity itself, 'garam Dharam',  handsome, body-builder, the first ever hero to reveal the 'packs' on screen.

Personally, I liked him for his comic sense and perfect timing, the best example being "Chupke Chupke", one of my favourites, yes, directed by Hrishikesh Mukherjee. I think, a director's actor, Dharmendra was great in the Bengal branch of Bollywood. Look at any of his better films, they are by Bengali directors, most often based on Bengali stories.

 Look at "Satyakam" (1969),  one of my topmost  favourite films. It is a Bengali story that brilliantly revives the Satyakam Jabali myth. It depicts the travails of an honest engineer with high ideals. Thus it captures the disillusionment that was slowly but surely corroding the euphoria of the post Independence era. It is directed, yes, by Hrishikesh Mukherjee.

He was superbly sensitive and subdued, unlike his later screaming avataars, in "Bandini", yet again by a Bengali director, the great Bimal Roy. Who can forget "Guddi", yet again by Mukherjee!

 Oh, yes, we cannot overlook his heroines, great actresses, be it Nutan, Meena Kumari, Nanda, Sharmila Tagore, Jaya Bhaduri, and, oh, yes, the 'dream girl' Hema Malini. I suppose, Kishore Kumar's voice made melodious this he-man, one of the best examples being "pal pal dil ke paas'. Remember the " aap ki nazaron me samza", one of the bestest by Madan Mohan?

So we need not ask this evening, "itna sannata kyun hai, bhai?" The dice has, unlike the final scene in "Sholay", claimed Viru! RIP, Ashok, most often Dharmendra's screen name!

Pratima@ "Aaj mausum," to quote from one of Dharmendra songs, 'sach me', that is, truly, "bada beiman hai", Aai would have felt. She liked him, and Shashi Kapoor, not to forget, Shammi Kapoor.

Quote of the day:                                                      "For me, our job as artists is to serve the story, serve the director, and serve the fellow actors. And if you do that, by osmosis you’re serving yourself because you’ll get the best out of yourself," said David Oyelowo, a talented actor. Dharmendra would have agreed with him, I suppose.

Word of the day: impersonate.                               'impersonate' means to be somebody other than one's own self. An actor impersonates for entertainment, at times, for edification. In real life, often reflected in reel life, too, impersonation can be devious, to cheat, to hurt, to harm!