Yet Another Point of View

Shashi Tharoor got a rap for twittering. Literally and figuratively. Apparently, he was responding to a specific query on his Twitter page - 'would you travel cattle class on your next trip to Kerala?' And the suave, articulate (but obviously uninformed in the ways of politically-correct, neta speak) Junior Foreign Minister tweeted - "Absolutely. In cattle class out of solidarity with our holy cows." I laughed out loud on seeing that reply. But, Tharoor's political bosses dont share the mirth. They reprimanded him . And that's his second reprimand in a week. I am not offended by Tharoor's tweet and I realize it was his dig at the holier-than-thou politicians who asked him to get out of the luxury hotel and move into Kerala House. I am just surprised that man like Tharoor didn't use a better choice of words. He is a minister, very recently in the spotlight for his very un'austere' lifestyle. The last thing he should be doing is taking potshots i...

A FWD landed in my inbox this morning. The subject line said FWD: YSR Crash . I had a fair idea of what it would contain even before I opened it. The images attached were graphic and disturbingly clear. The hi-res pictures had obviously been taken by the news photographers who had access to the crash site of YSR Reddy's chopper on Rudrakonda hill. The broken, bloated and burnt bodies were clearly visible strewn amidst the wreckage. You could make out the pilot from the stripes on his uniform. I didnt venture to guess which one of the bodies was the Chief Minister's. Thankfully, the creator of this FWD (good Lord, how morbid!) had not identified YSR in his/her 'comments' (Yes, the pics were captioned!!). Having scrolled down once, I hit Delete. Soon afterwards, a colleague of mine, who was also marked on the FWD, sent a Reply All. Her point was that its quite reprehensible the way we are making a spectacle of someone's gruesome death. Please dont forward this mail a...

Reality TV embarrasses me. Like, turn-beetroot-red, feel-prickles-behind-my-neck, search-frantically-for-someplace-to-hide, wish-the-ground-would-swallow-me-up embarrassed. And, then I take a deep breath, get a hold and ask myself why the hell am I embarrased? I am not the one publicly washing my dirty laundry in a 'moment of truth' or eating grasshoppers to score points in a makeshift 'jungle'. I am just watching TV in the privacy of my bedroom. No matter, I stay just as embarrassed at the antics of some of my fellow homosapiens in the glare of a TV camera. Lunch hour conversation has, of late, been liberally peppered with one 'Rakhi ka Swayamvar'. To check out what everyone has been tittering about and also partly, to offset the accusations that I am being too high-brow or pseudo, I forced myself to watch last Monday's episode. And, ended up reeling with a little nausea. Whoever is the show’s scriptwriter, he/she is the Queen of Tacky! Half-way through I w...

Overheard in the ladies restroom this morning. From the far end of the mirror, I remained a mute eavesdropper to this conversation. Lady 1 - "Tch..Tch..I feel soooo sad for Michael Jackson, yaar." She heaved a huge sigh, plonked her handbag on the counter and turned to face her audience. Her face was a genuine mask of anguish. Lady 2 - "Oh yes, yaa..I too...he died, no." I guess, sometimes, grief is best expressed by stating the obvious. Lady 1 - (tone dipping) "When he died no, his body ...was only skeleton." Lady 2 - "Really?" Lady 1 - "Yeah..only bones..like, no food only in his stomach..." Lady 2 - "oh God!" Now, she is seriously shocked. From the corner of my eye, I can see her hairbrush paralyzed in midair. Lady 1 - "He was bald. And, his skin was whittte!" The 'white' had chilling emphasis. Lady 2 - "But he was Black, no?" She actually used the racially derogatory (and politically incorrect) ...

Michael Jackson was my introduction to western music. To say the truth, back then, I didnt understand a word of what he sang. But it was like a window to a whole different world than the one we lived in. So, while the parents raved and ranted about the polluting effects of western culture and the 'noise' that was called pop music, we sneaked in bits of Beat It and Black or White . A thin, hyper-energetic, amazing singer with that unbelievable crotch-hugging dance step - it was all too fascinating. The TV news channels have been running the news of Jackson's demise almost without a break since early morning today. Everyone is 'celebrating' the passing of an icon. Well, not everyone. There are some pretty scathing commentaries out there too. At lunch, watching the MJ news reports loop endlessly, a colleague commented that it wont be long before all the muck on Jackson would be raked up too. The star's unnerving obsession with plastic surgeries, the child abuse ch...

It's supposed to be the summer of double tamaashaa - the general elections and the IPL 2. But somehow, so far, I have found both unexciting and bland. Polls finally ended today (13th May). It was the last day of campaigning on Monday. Thank God for that. Because, of all the campaign coverage I managed to catch on TV or in print, I can't recall one inspiring speech by a leader (whatever party) or can’t remember one election issue that moved me to any kind of action. And, I am tired of trying to keep track of who is wooing whom in the pre-poll season of political marriages and divorces. Seems to me, everyone is having clandestine affairs. Hopefully, when the electoral verdicts start trickling out over the weekend (May 16), I'll find some clarity about the relationships. Otherwise, really, the campaign has been humdrum. And, as always, the media made a lot of news of tidbits that shouldn’t have made news. I cringed from the whole drama of Sanjay Dutt's bid to contest and h...

Its been a long while since I last ventured on to this page. Frankly, I didnt think anybody reads this with any regularity. However, recently, a couple of friends nudged me out of blog-atrophy, so I guess a couple of people do read this. Good. Because I have a couple of questions for those people. Whats the minimum bribe one can slip into a traffic cop's hand if one is not going to be paying the legal fine for an offense committed? I ask for the least possible amount which doesnt leave a dent in the driver's pocket and yet ensures a hassle-free drive through. Least possible amount that will satisfy the cop-on-a-personal-fund-raising-mission. Since it was the May Day holiday, I ventured out grocery shopping expecting the roads to be less congested. (For those over-inquisitive minds who wish to know, yes, I meticulously plan my driving to coincide only with ungodly hours and unfrequented side roads.) And so they were. Just that I hadn't factored in the traffic police. Thei...