Memories haunt!

 Certain memories! How they haunt forever! Usha. She was my junior. May be, we were almost the same age because I have completed my post-graduation at a very early age. I had helped her with her French, and with the contents of her essay in a contest which won her a French trip. 

Naturally she cared for me. The Eiffel Tower paperweight she bought me from Avignon is a keepsake. After she got married, our rôles changed slightly. Hers was a love marriage with a Tambram. 

She was a Telugu Brahmin, and a very close relative of a very very powerful leader. She had adjustment issues within the marriage, and I was the counsellor who tried to convince her how minor disagreements with in-laws could be silly misunderstandings. 

Here was a quite funny situation, a Maharashtrian high caste Brahmin girl trying to explain the Tamil symbolism to a Telugu girl. Yet the underlying civilisational cultural bond seemed to carry us through, thereby making us better friends.  

Unfortunately, she died within a fortnight of her baby's birth. I still cannot forget that small infant, an exact replica of his late mother, wailing away even when the poor grandma was trying her level best to comfort him. 

The haunting bit, however, is still more vivid. Her husband, we had not met much, but he knew me as Usha's best well-wisher, was obviously overcome with intense grief. 

Tearily he announced to the dead body. "Usha, see, Pratima is here!". I am ready to swear. Her body, tied to that pier/wooden stretcher, literally tried to get up! My other friend, who had come along, too, was shocked beyond words, mentioned it later, too.

I had never seen a 'body' before. The whole night I could not sleep. Yet this incident has forever convinced me that life might go on(!?!) even after the body dies!?! Why then, for the sake of your weird notions of fun, hurt, harm n harass human beings, when alive?

Much more, I understood what post-partum depression may do. Hence, however much feminism may be mocked, yes, there ARE certain, in fact, very many, womanly sensitivities that DO need deep considerations, and beyond all the shrill n empty sloganeering by n of career feminists.

Most important of all, the incident has made me forever grateful to Aai who was down with high fever when she was eight months pregnant with me, yet in the ninth month, she travelled in a meter gauge train some six/seven hundred kilometers, while the late April sun beat mercilessly. Within a week of reaching her parents' place, a small town, she walked to the hospital for a normal, non-Caesaurian delivery, while the nurses were brutal, and doctors indifferent! What a mother's love can bear!

Pratima@Well, tragedies cannot last forever, and often have a funny end. Well, Usha's husband had asked me to inform a Tamil professor, all of them, unlike me, were in to Linguistics, about Usha's unfortunate demise. It was the week-end. So I decided to inform his colleague who lived on campus so that the message would reach him.                                                                                I had no idea that the lady was sweet on him! First she obsessed about finding out if I had called him up. After convincing her somewhat hopefully that I knew neither his phone number nor his address, she calmed down on that account.                                                                Next followed a simply wow conversation, with monkeys chattering madly overhead, hidden in the canopy. She was insisting that it was a murder.                                                                          I tried to politely point out that it might not be so, at least because Usha was closely connected with very powerful people. Then she started haranguing about how the need for such a murder (why, a 'son' was born, no?) is like the desire for sex!                                                  Thereafter, I did what all students are excellent at, obediently stand in front of the teacher, head bowed down, eyes half open, ears and brain completely closed, tightly shut indeed! Feminism sounds fun, if n when shallow!

Quote of the day:                                                           "Memory is the diary that we all carry about with us.” Wise 'saw' as ever by Oscar Wilde!

Word of the day: postpartum depression               Postpartum depression (also called perinatal depression) is a medical mood disorder that can happen during (late) pregnancy or after giving birth.

Nuggets@ Know thy Humanities

 Translation takes various forms. One of the seminal modes is 'transmuting' a text in to a film. Of course, bibliophiles look down upon the process as a demeaning of a book, and we have pj's of the "donkey grazing at the corner dumpsite preferring a book over a film, as it is in better taste'', et al, variety.

Who is the linguist-scholar who theorised this process extremely interestingly and elaborately? Which term did he use to describe this process? How did he define this process? 

Pratima Agnihotri

Fear(-n-)some Future!

 Yes, I am absolutely of the opinion that one should forever be a learner. Indeed, at no point, can one say that one knows everything about one's chosen area. Surely not, given the information era! 

Yes, it is better to be a jack of many subjects and a master-cum-student in the area you love, which you have chosen as a passionate pursuit that lasts a lifetime. 

Well, currently, however, the AI seems to question these very (basic) premises. It seems to be progressing at a supersonic speed. You complete a course, quite a basic one for sure, you feel now I would practise it to perfection, and, voilà, in that zilch second, the AI industry springs a new surprise on us, the poor innocent unsuspecting world! 

At times, the changes are minor. Often, they are yet another quiver for the same bow! Yet these arrows are quite life threatening because, in no time, across the world, that area, Montessori to M.D. (incidentally, currently, a Ph.D. doctor is, well, less said, the better!) gets saturated to excess. And, so on, and so on, ad infinitum! 

Honestly, one pities the GenZ, Gen alpha beta kappa, et al, given such a future. Sure, in a lifetime, one should wear (n tear) a few professional hats simultaneously. One must multi-task. Yet, given the speed with which the AI shifts gears,  in the future, one's crown would sure be sans hats, sans hair, sans brains! Any wonder at all that the GenZ protests are hare-brained!!?!!

Pratima@ Very soon I would re-write the seven (st)ages Shakespeare immortalised! Yes, would sure share them on our blog, too.

Quote of the day:                                                           "When we think we're multi-tasking we're actually multi-switching. That is what the brain is very good at doing - quickly diverting its attention from one place to the next. We think we're being productive. We are, indeed, being busy. But in reality we're simply giving ourselves extra work," argues Michael Harris. Yes, indeed! 

Word of the day: hare-brained                                  Hare-brained means crazy and unlikely to be successful. 

Nuggets@ Know thy Humanities

 Journalists can at times coin concepts and related phrases that may define an entire discipline. An example of this phenomenon, which academics would typically love to hate and look down upon, is Yuri Alexandrovich Bezmenov's fourfold process.

Bezmenov was a Soviet journalist for the Novosti Press Agency. In 1970, he visited New Delhi as a member of the Soviet mission. During that tour, Bezmenov defected to the West, and the U.S. re-settled him in Canada as per an arrangement between the US and the Canadian security agencies.

May be, such turns and twists in his career helped him define how a political system, nay, the country itself, is brought in to the fold of the powers that be. 

Name the four stages Bezmenov talks about.  The discussion might help many understand the turmoil brewing in the countries neighbouring India. Critics may accuse the CJP of being a stooge of the Deep State, et al, trying to thus disrupt India itself. 

Pratima Agnihotri

Lies lead ....?!?

 I would not know about you. Personally though, I love fairy tales and folk tales. They have such a wealth of wisdom. One such story is Pinocchio's. Yes, he is the boy whose nose grows longer n longer when he lies! Good that it is just a story about a fictional wooden puppet, and it was created by the Italian writer Carlo Collodi in his 1883 novel "The Adventures of Pinocchio."

If the Pinocchio phenomenon were real and operational right now, havoc it would create! Look at our poor Dipke. Yesterday itself, our blog sympathised with his grievous loss, right? Well, there is a proper video wherein the police are gently and repeatedly informing him that every possible help would be extended to him, given the unfortunate circumstances. And, yet, huge propaganda goes on and on about the dictatorial government that ignored deaths of dear n near ones! Let us not even mention the Gurudwara lie by the CJP which is so very irresponsible, in addition.

How about Elon Musk who declared that the Indian Prime Minister is M/S Ambani! Unlike certain characters hereabouts, he  seems to have forgotten the rhyming Adani! Well, the hard truth about why he is grumbling about not getting the portion of the pie, eh, the huuuuuge number of Indian internet users whom he would so kindly like to serve, is hidden in the forests in North-Eastern India. If you were to read up the details, you, too, would agree that lies lead to, luckily for the twenty-first century not to Pinocchio noses, but to a loss of credibility.

Career politicians in our country who are lusting after Lady Power, too, seem to have never read the fairy tale during their school days. Otherwise, they would have, like the common indian, celebrated the ISRO mission EOS-05 which would help avert large scale destruction due to natural calamities, not to forget, the excessively friendly border activities by certain neighbours!

Why lie through the teeth? It entertains the audience who chuckle at your mendacity, and at your loss of credibility which, in the long run, is sure to take you away from your 'power'-ful ambitions!

Pratima@ Lies, lies, every where!/How any truth to find?

Quote of the day:                                                              "I'm not upset that you lied to me, I'm upset that from now on I can't believe you."  So summed up Friedrich Nietzsche the after effects of what lies lead to!

Word of the day: propaganda                                          Propaganda is information and ideas, that may be false or exaggerated, but which are used to gain support for a political leader, party, and so on.

Nuggets@ Know thy Humanities

 These two Brothers  were academics, linguists, cultural researchers, and authors. It is often argued that their work in folklore, linguistics, and literary scholarship shaped the development of modern folkloristics. It contributed in a big way to the expansion of their mother tongue as well. 

  During their  University days,  they developed a lasting interest in medieval literature and the cultural history of their country. Thus saw the world the first ever collection of folk tales and fairy tales.

A clue: We have, all of us, as children loved the tales they told in the collated version. As we grew up, the sub-texts of these stories made more sense. 

Pratima Agnihotri

Goddess greetings!

 Today begins the Sharadiya Navratra. Impossible it is to translate "Sharadiya" in to English, because like all the other European languages, English, too, has neither the monsoon nor the 'Sharad' season. In India, however, it occupies a central position in parlance. In a way, such a linguistic usage is inevitable because India continues to be an agrarian economy.

True, right now the talk of the town, eh, of the world, is the way America has "cut off the head of the snake" as the Sonderling saying goes. Yet we all know that the real grouse is the Indo-American treaty regarding the agricultural produce, and the related livestock and fisheries businesses. 

Some proof this tariff trough is of the fact that the agrarian sector matters the most to us. The Shardiya Navratra is a celebration of this primacy. The Kharif crop is almost ready for harvesting around this time. True, this year, the Niño effect has ripped off reaping. 

Yet the seasonal cycle is unmistakable. The bounty of nature is beatific. Hence its symbolic representation as the ever prolific goddess. Beautiful, just like this underlying signification are the 'strotras' extolling the goddess. 

She is the holiest of the holies, she is beneficence itself, she is the daughter of the mountains (the Himalayas from whence begin five rivers that have enriched civilisations and cultures for centuries), she is the parent principle, she is strength, she is the intellect, she is the spirit, she is the soul. Hence her adulation! Happy Navratri! 

Pratima@One of the items in my basket wish list is visiting Kolkata during the navratri. It has to be what Ganesh Utsav is to Pune. Well, with a Bengali friend, I did attend the "pujo" pandals in Hyderabad. But it was not mere nostalgia nor fomo when she insisted that it was no patch on "amar shonar" Debima for whom the only supplication would be "Bhalo bashi"! 

Quote of the day:                                                         "The goddess is the great nurturing mother who contains all things, gives birth to all things, and ultimately reclaims all things back into her cosmic womb." Yes, Carl Jung.

Word of the day: beneficence                                  Beneficence is the ethical principle of acting with kindness, charity, and an active obligation to promote the best interests and well-being of one n all.

Aspirational Anarchy

 What with the 'chasing Delhi yet again' pogrom by the CJP, certain centrally relevant questions arise, which we, the citizens of India, as the Constitution defines us, need to explore honestly. 

The moot one is why diminish the basal institutions? Just as deforestation leads to the collapse of the natural cycle, unjustifiably corroding the institutions that go in to the making of a nation state destroys the very base of a democracy which deliberates issues in the parliament!

Well, the present Chief Election Commissioner assumed office much later than the major state assembly elections in to which he/his office supposedly interfered! Simple decency demands that in the lust for power, legitimacy of base institutions need not be undermined.

Hence the title of our blog. Who all are involved? The CJP, apparently a frontispiece of the AAP? Congress which won three states with the exact same procedures? Does not the same cynicism colour all the other Opposition parties? Yes, power sure matters to career politicians. Why use openly malicious methods? 

Oh, yes, while hating a person, a party, a procedure/pattern of  thinking, is not it better to remember that 'hatred for the sake of hatred' tarnishes, nay, diminishes, the hater? Espcially necessary in this context it is to recollect, and not a la Wordsworthian tranquility, the transactional modes of the multi-polar wor(l)ds today. 

Why must our capital replicate either the Parisian streets right now or a fortress? Why aspire to anarchy (Please do remember that anarchism is a totally different political philosophy which, incidentally, our very own Revolutionary Bhagat Singh, if you were to read his committed writings, did not advocate in post-Independence times) so that your own power games lead to the throne!?!

Pratima@ When I saw the video of Dipke c(r)ackling about the police deployment, I remembered the childhood story of a mouse who thinks of his cap as the crown, and mocks the king with it! Sure, though, one feels sad about his Granma passing away. Hope he gets to see her one last time. RIP!

Quote of the day:                                                               Says Aldous Huxley, "The worst enemy of life, freedom and the common decencies is total anarchy..." 

Word of the day: anarchism (is not anarchy!) Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that seeks to abolish capitalism and all forms of hierarchical authority, replacing them with a stateless society based on voluntary cooperation, free association, and mutual aid!!!

The Day of Reckoning

 Absolutely convinced I am that you would have easily found the answers to the queries our 'Nuggets@ Know thy Humanities' series would as usual pose from Monday through Thursday. As per our convention, here are the answers 

1)The Monday query: The first ever bio-geographist, who hugely  influenced Darwin and in a way initiated ecology and environmental awareness, is Alexander von Humboldt. His linguist brother, Wilhelm von Humboldt, founded the Humboldt University in Berlin. 

2) The Tuesday query: The Buddhist saint is Angulimala. 

3) The Wednesday Query: Was not it as easy as it was juicy? Yes, it is Jeffrey Archer. 

4) The Thursday Query: This most controversial name when it came to Nobel for Literature is Bob Dylan. 

Hope you found the queries to be both, enjoyable and yet informative even though  on a small scale. Do look up the queries each week, Monday through Thursday. There is no knowing how they they could help! Knowledge never goes waste even in an era of information explosion!

Pratima Agnihotri

Celebrating Marathi

 Marathi is my mother tongue. As a child loves her parents, so do I adore my mother tongue. Oh, yes, my articles, stories, translations in Marathi have been published in highly respected magazines. No hard feelings whatsoever, in brief. 

And yet, may be, because l respect it a lot, may I put forth a few points that I think need deliberations? First and foremost, despite my adulation for my mother tongue, I am honest enough to admit that Marathi is not exactly a language of science and/or technology, nay, neither of knowledge! 

Honestly, a language is sure admired due to its historicity, due to the multiplicity of its dialects, due to its ethnic spread, et al. Yet a language is considered a lingua franca because of its dominion across different disciplines. 

Look at English, for instance. For one thing, it is highly democratic. From everywhere under the sun, it has adroitly accepted countless words. Unlike "echte Deutsch", for instance, it is untouched by excessive purification obsessions, and, yet, it does not lose its 'origin'-ality. Given such mould-ability, mention any field of specialisation, English assumes the wor(l)d of honour! 

Its standalone vocabulary count, beyond grammatical declensions, is truly huge. Major dictionaries like the Oxford English Dictionary contain over 170,000 to 600,000 plus active and historical words, continually growing by borrowing from global languages and technical fields.

Marathi must spread its wings in all such directions. German Duden dictionary enterprise, for instance, is such that for each and every major/minor human activity, available is a detailed dictionary which, moreover, is an absolutely authentic source. 

Look at Japan, for instance. Their excellence in scientific and technological fields is such that there is a tough competition when it comes to clearing the international examinations in Japanese, despite the complexity of the script!

Look at Israel, for example! Surrounded by enemies of all sorts, this tiny country has revived its linguistic roots, and inalienably! 

No dominion of any language may grow through mere jingoism. Its children must overcome intellectual/ideational laziness, if the mother tongue is to survice in the AI world! 

Pratima@ Can I point out an interesting fact? Israeli pop singers immediately chose to recite the 'Hanuman Chalisa' in honour of Captain Smit Machchar. Was there a rap monody lamenting the Chabad House tragedy? May be, there was one, and I do not know the existence thereof. Shalom, in brief! 

Quote of the day:                                                             "The limits of my language are the limits of my world," asserts Ludwig Wittgenstein, a great thinker-linguist. 

Word of the day: lingua franca                                     A lingua franca is a shared language used to make communication possible between people who do not speak the same 'native' language. It is also known as a bridge, trade, or auxiliary language. 

Nuggets@ Know thy Humanities

 The Nobel Prize is the most coveted, world wide recognised celebration of geniuses. Mostly, the nominations in sciences, even when often unfair to women, are rarely much contested. When it comes to Literature, however, the opinions may differ sharply. 

Let us look at an example. The year was 2016. The citation maintained that the oeuvre represented "new poetic expressions within the great American tradition." 

Not everybody was so convinced, thereby renewing the debates about pop culture because the crux of the matter was whether pop song lyrics can be great literature! Who was the awardee whose output thus embittered the cultural scenario? 

Of all the quizzes this week, this one is sure timely, yet the easiest, right?  No need to wait till Friday evening, I suppose!

Pratima Agnihotri 

Global Diversity

 Yes, October is the global diversity month, and global diversity is an important theme currently. Let us see if we can explore it a little. 

If we were to speak historically, and beyond the religious divides, diversity becomes dominant with the onset of the industrial revolution. In the prior barter system, there was more of a give-n-take which had a sense of equality. Why, even the feudal lord had to share the produce, if he desired fealty as a feeling and/or in the form of goods/services. 

With the onset of capitalism, initially as mercantile, to be soon followed by the industrial version, the chasm amongst individuals, between social groups started widening, and ad infinitum. 

Yet another, in fact, THE major cause behind diversity issues is colonialism. The racist prejudices thus began to fester. The colonisers, moreover, marauded histories, cultures, educational processes to suit their agendas, and thus were the colonies completely conquered.

These wounds refuse to heal. Certain intellectual mafioso, moreover, make it their business to mal-nourish fraternity! As a result, fractured is the notion of human amity. Each sub-group tries to out-re-present every other in being THE discriminated,  resulting in simmering societies!

What could be the solution? First and foremost, necessary it is to understand the difference between equality and equity. Next, it is always the best strategy to contextualise past and present debates. Most importantly, it is necessary to remember that the cyclicity of the erstwhile victim tending to be the current victimiser can complicate realities beyond repair!

Inclusivity would otherwise be, forever, hampered. In a non-linear, multi-foci reality today, abetted by the AI further, is not it necessary to remember that solutions matter much more than empty debates that hide their own agendas behind all the sound n fury signifying very little! 

Pratima@An aspect of the diversity debate is the gender 'i'dentity. So murky is this discussion currently that certain theorists propound some seventy-two different sexual initiations, a terror in its own way in the AI era. 

Quote of the day:                                                            Argues Audre Lorde, an author and Civil Rights activist, “It is not our differences that divide us. It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences.

Word of the day: equity versus equality.                  Equality means giving everyone the exact same amount of resources, rights, or opportunities. Equity means recognizing that people start from different places and distributing tailored resources and opportunities based on individual needs to reach a fair outcome.

Nuggets@ Know thy Humanities

 The very thrill pumps more adrenaline in  to the illicit affair. Well, at the breakfast table, she is reading a naughty letter by her lover, full of the crazy capers they enjoyed during the their recent rendez-vous. Her husband notices her excitement, and peeps in. 

How does the wicked wife save her imaginary honour? The trademark twist in the tale adds such, and so much, to this very short story. 

Guess who is the author we are talking about. No, the answer is not O'Henry, though both had to go to jail for (financial) frauds. In fact, story writing was almost a means of monetary survival for both. Who is this author who wrote the hyper dramatic short story "The Letter"? 

A clue: He died recently.

 Hope, the re-search-er in you would not allow you to wait till Friday.

Pratima Agnihotri 

Right(-n)ful(l) Rituals

  Let us look at the etymology of the term "shradhdh". In Sanskrit "shr(a)t" means faith, belief, sincerity, devotion.  The "dh" part of the word originates from the verb "dharay" which is to hold. In other words, the term itself means a holding together through sincerity and devotion. 

That spirit of the letters is what I think is important when it comes to the "pitru pandharawada", the fortnight devoted to our ancestors, during the Mahalaya period. Instead of overfeeding the poor recipient, the shradhdh Brahmin, why not give him some 'dakshina', a little money, an amount which he can fruitfully use, and thus bless us happily throughout the following year? 

That is the way we offer our remembrances to our parents at the Mahamrtyunjay Temple. To begin with, we have instituted prizes in their memory. We offer annual donations every death anniversary, in addition. In other words, they are in the proper formal memorial space, too, beyond the forever intimate memories. 

Well, now that I think of it, I have offered them both the 'tarpan' via the proper shradhdha mode twice, with the purest 'Gangajal' at the very source at Gangotri, and at the divine Badrinath with the Alaknanda literally splashing my back. 

Actually, come to think of it, both of them were such clean, straightforward, good, genuine, kind people who lived contentedly. They must have hence attained 'nirvana', I am absolutely sure, happy n fulfilled wherever they are. The 'shradhdha' hence is more a mere memorial ritual right(-n-)fully performed! 

Pratima@ I think of the ritual more as a memorisation born out of grateful memories n immense love for forever prioritising us over their own comforts, their own likes/dislikes, why, their own selves. An eternal 'thank you' full of love marches round my heart hence, beyond any formal shradhdha rituals. 

Quote of the day:                                                         “Nothing (or no one) is ever really lost to us as long as we remember it (and them.)" True, L.M. Montgomery! Hope he would mind my additions (in brackets).

Word of the day: ritual                                               The word refers to an action, ceremony or process which is always done the same way.

Nuggets@ Know thy Humanities

 All of us know the story of Rishi Valmiki before he transformed himself thus. The tale of him trying to waylay Narad Muni whose basic query opened the inner eye, thereby turning a rugged robber in to a saint and a poet is much told. 

Can you name another ruthless brigand who underwent a similar complete conversion, thus proving the redemptive power of an enlighten-ed/-ing encounter? 

A few clues: In South and South-East Asia, he is the patron saint of child birth, and is associated with fertility. Yes, the Theravada tradition proudly owns up his lineage.

Why wait till Friday to find out, right?

Pratima Agnihotri

Peace, please!

 Peace is piecemal currently! What with newer versions of the Twin Towers type of total annihilation being thought out in terrorist minds, though most courageously fought out by our very own Smit Machchar, can peace have any piece of peace at all? 

Why, just last month, peace was a major and high volume 'debate', what with Vidyanand Bapat giving interviews after interviews about noise pollution to anyone ready to conduct one, while the drum beats kinda decible levels surpassed the richter scale at its worst! 

Such fun contradictions are rampant, and everywhere. Russia and Ukraine talk of peace, and in the same week latest, they start bombing each other! As for Iran, I am not sure, Americans themselves understand what they are up to! 

With the Third World War appearing imminent, is not the World Peace Day a mere convention, just like the UN itself!?! Actually, the world needs to piece out such conundrums, if peace is to have any chance at all. 

No need to go to the Himalayas, themselves under tourist attack, even when the Everest is involved! Instead of further destroying that thinning Third Pole, on terra firma itself, nations need to urgently think peace-fully! 

Pratima@Peace is under threat everywhere, in the professional arena, in the familial space, and/or name any (-n-every) place. Hence the need to let it rest at least awhile in every human heart! 

Quote of the day:                                                           "World peace must develop from inner peace. Peace is not just mere absence of violence. Peace is, I think, the manifestation of human compassion,” says Dalai Lama. 

Word of the day: prace                                                   Peace refers to a situation or a period of time in which there is no war or violence in a country or an area. It also means the state of being calm or quiet.

Nuggets@ Know thy Humanities

 In 1769, on August 15(!!!) was born Napoléon Bonaparte, a boon n bane for France, nay, for the whole of Europe.

 Exactly a month later, on September 14, 1769 was born this 'philosophe' so to say. A proponent of Romanticism, this polymath geographist, explorer, naturalist deeply influenced Darwin. Can you name him?

 A clue: His brother, a linguist, helped begin a famous university. 

Worth an exploration, right? Otherwise, wait till Friday for the right answer!

Pratima Agnihotri 

Memories@Melodies

Music maketh memorable mates. Some proof of this homily is the superb showcasing by the late Dr.S.V. Gokhale of his lifelong camaraderie with THE maestro, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi. In the late fifties began their bond which blossomed in to the unique homage entitled "Swaradhiraj", an audio-visual treat offered by Mitra Foundation in association with Kaveri Kalakshetra.

The wondrous evening began with a great 'Ganeshparan' by Anand Bamanikar who was felicitated for his lifetime accompaniment with n through tabla. The warm memories of Panditji he shared set the tone for the  distinctive documentary crafted by Dr. Gokhale, a unique combo of audio n video clips of 'mahfils', and  t.v.interviews, and most importantly,  'melodious' memories.

The presentation, structured like the classical 'baithak' Panditji preferred, a 'bada khayal' in 'vilambit gat' followed by a semi-classical 'thumri' which gave way to a 'drut gat' presentation to crescendo in a 'natya geet' and Panditji's signature 'bhajan', and finally the soulful 'bhairavi', was finely edited with unique transitions that zoomed in to Panditji's memories n 'mehfils'.

What all treasures Dr. Gokhale thus shared with the aficiandos of music! Why, there were gems like the varieties of 'todi', the unique 'hori' very rarely heard, the unusual 'raag' Panditji masterfully attempted, be it 'abhogi' or 'darbari kanada', his unique LP not easily accessed, and so on, literally ad infinitum. 

How can one ever forget the 'raag mala' of five classical structures Bhimsenji used as a music director, his trademark 'natya sangit' represented by 'ugich ka kanta' and his   playing with 'sur n lay' that made Calcutta fall in love with his much admired 'abhang', the beautiful 'bhajan' 'Tirth Vitthal'!

Yet it was the memories that Dr.Gokhale shared, often through audios of unusual private 'mahfils' at his home, which made the tribute truly humane and warm. The 'one rupee coin' bait, the Peddar Road 're-vision' with Ustaad Amir Khan, the assertive singing of Panditji in the Pune mahfil for which Dr. Gokhale scouted the perfect space, this quasi-biography of Panditji never had a hagiographic note. Instead, there were  joyful 'recollections in tranquility' full of admiration and respect.

The documentary was also a subtle graph of Dr Gokhale's own growth as a 'rasika' who is often best described as a 'sahodar', a brotherhood that blooms despite differences in age and profession. Indeed, the Gokhale family can never be thanked enough for making accessible to us all this family heirloom.

Pratima@ 'Once more, once more, and once more,' please, Gokhale Ma'am, please!!! An 'encore' is much deserved, right? How can just one listen of a lifetime of melodies@memories be enough, right? 

Quote of the day:                                                           "If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music.” So said Albert Einstein.

Word of the day: 'Swaradhiraj'                                   The term means the emperor of the kingdom of music that Pandit Bhimsen Joshi indubitably was!

Let's laugh a little!

 We have not had a laugh for a loooong time, right? Let the week end with a few guffaws, okay? 

1) "What could be the gender and profession of the AI?" "A very easy question! Has to be a female, and a lecturer at that!" " Why do you say so?" "Well, ask for an easy answer, 'prompt' comes back a huge list of ready made commands which must lead to further action!" 

2) Why not 'cast' the IIT's in a lighter mould? There is this job interview, and on campus, too. It is about to end. Hence the typical question by the HR guy. "What are your terms n conditions about the pay package?" The genius, as most iit-ians believe themselves to be, has a smart suggestion up his sleeve. "How about fifty lakhs per month? Yes, I am very good at the latest AI." The HR guy asks,  "How about a crore per quarter, with a month-long Swiss holiday at the end of the year?" "Hey, man, are you kidding?" "Well, you began it!"

3) Lady Duck buys a lipstick. At the counter, she quacks, " Put it on my bill"!

Quote of the day:                                                            "Always laugh when you can. It is cheap medicine." Ho, ho, ho, Lord Byron!

Word of the day:                                                           The prefix 'a' means 'without'. For example, atheist. So now you know why they call the latest (r)evolution "ai"! 

The Best Destination

 Recently was celebrated the world tourism day. What is so very special about it? Is not it celebrated every year? Are these your questions? Well, look at the theme statement this year. Invasion of the AI, it proves yet again. 

The official theme of the 'Tourism Day 2026' is “Digital Agenda and Artificial Intelligence to Redesign Tourism.” Its key focus area is integrating the AI in to the travel experience! It explores how artificial intelligence and digital tools shape travel, planning, and visitor experiences. No wonder "smart destination management", that is, using data to manage crowds, ease communication, and support sustainable practices is the sub-theme! 

Well, the sub-theme could be the need of the industry.  But why should the AI shape the individual experience? To an extent, yes, because sitting at home, through the AI, you can travel beyond the space, too! Yet why should the technology decide destinations, decisions, as it is, vitiated by the show-off madness, eh? 

Which is the best destination? I would say that it is absolutely subjective and truly individual oriented. At times, it could be a quiet weekend back in the fields that once belonged to your grandpa, but which you sold off to buy that swanky flat in the city.

At times, it could be spent in the diminishing- by-the-decade light with which the fireflies illuminate the forest. A weekend at a fort soaked in the rains and sailing off the monsoon winds can energise. Listening to the deep rumble of the ocean prefarably on a full moon night can calm all the tension tempests, right? 

Why should the AI determine the destination(s)? If such an invasion by the ever increasing AI influence is allowed, the already swollen- beyond-tolerance touristy destinations would plain crumble, collapse, nay, literally cave in.

Let me give you an example. Kedarnath can be the ultimate dream destination, even if you are an atheist, believe me. The very aura of that space is unique. If the AI starts promoting it, the chaotic crowds, already beyond control, would be such that the mythical Nal and Neel mountains would hasten to meet fast and block the entry entirely.

The AI should not, in brief, invade that small little private space which it is anyways shrinking by the second. The Best Destination hence has to be not what the technology  dictates, but to what the individual heart and soul aspire. Only then can tourism go beyond monetary mindsets, and become a travel the soul celebrates!

Pratima@ At times, the best weekend destination can be the old photo albums that bring back memories dimmed due to the daily rush of the routine. No exotic destination can match such nostalgia, celebrated with some great music, superb coffee and the company you care for and will continue to covet!

Quote of the day:                                                             "One's destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things." says Henry Miller.

Word of the day: tourism                                           Tourism is defined as the commercial activity of providing travel, accommodation, and services for people traveling outside their usual environment for leisure, business, or other purposes.