Book Review - Paper Tigers and their preys by Wise Owl

Picture Credit HERE

There has to be a method in this madness!

There is no other reason why a book of such length with two murders, one at the beginning and one at the end, may not be considered a book about crime by any standard. But it is in fact, not termed as one, although you can see the design and the reasons why there is the making of crime fiction in the pages, especially, because it is related to an industry that can make or break the political power of the country or the innocent lives of some.

Let’s start from the end, first.

A young girl, Sanjukta, fresh in the publishing industry has been sent to a workshop on sexual harassment, all expenses paid, by her employer at News Today, Rajinder Kohli. The workshop is run by a well-known person in the profession running an NGO focused on doing work in this area. However, it appears that the Leader of the NGO, in fact, has a problem, that being, alongside the classes on sexual harassment, he practices what he preaches! The young girl is caught in between, aggressive persuasion leading up to rape, where she has been enticed by this man in power, who happens also to be a good friend of her mother’s too! Sanjukta, has not been able be clear about her discomfort at these advances, and has now, with the help of her boyfriend and family, been able to lodge an FIR, First Information Report, with the police, who are sluggish to act. Rajinder Singh, her own employer, who had sent her to the workshop in the first place, has shut himself out from this and has commanded his Office, not to participate or support the girl in any way.

For his decision to do so, he must face the consequences in the most brutal manner by his own employee.

Woven in the pages of the book, Paper Tigers and their preys, is the life of our protagonist – Amit Gupta, from a middle-class family, with passion for sports journalism. It is very lucky that the Newspaper he grew up reading called Timeline, has absorbed him, straight out of college as an intern. After being shuffled around doing multiple jobs as a ‘sub’, by a fluke of chance, he is absorbed in the area of his interest – Sports. He dreams of foreign trips and meeting sports stars, he had only read about. However, soon his dreams will be dashed as he learns that all foreign trips are pre-planned and go to those who are well connected abroad with fellow journalists, so while reporting, the copy may just as well be a collection of paras gathered from different quarters and strung skillfully together, while the journo on foreign soil, has a fair holiday, with wine and love interest thrown in.  

Still, Amit Gupta, does get small joys, traveling out to cities within the country. Amit is also under considerable pressure that he hasn’t received his salary for a long time. Rumour abounds that the Newspaper will be sold out to a fat business baron and so, salaries may regularize then. Amit carries on although he is gradually disillusioned by the profession. He falls in love with his colleague, Lilly, but unable to voice his feelings to her in time, he loses his opportunity. Slowly, he is engaged to Shanta, but there too, just as his marriage date is fixed, his father dies and the marriage is broken. Amit leaves Timeline to join News Today. Love beckons again but his love goes for another toss as his lady, Ranjana is caught in intra-departmental politics which sideline Amit and makes the editor leave the newspaper. The paper folds up. Amit returns to the old News Today, where he finds balm to his yet again broken heart in Sanjukta. Amit is about to meet her ever-busy parents, when, Sanjukta is sent to the workshop on sexual harassment which takes an ugly turn causing a turn of events that will make Amit wait to marry Sanjukta, as her life now takes on a different trajectory as does his. So, the double whammy, apparently, unlucky in love and disillusioned with the life of a journalist, Amit, is about to open up the pandora’s box of vile and guile that go to make the most powerful industry in the country – Media. 

Wise Owl, the nom-de-plume of the author of the book, Paper Tigers and their preys, has drawn up an engrossing story around Amit Gupta, following his life from a boy with a fine intellect and love of books, entering the world of power, the barons that make up the world of media. They have in their hand the most powerful weapon, the pen, far mightier than the sword, which is used as a vehicle in the hands of political power, in the country, the very power, the pen/keyboard, has helped to bring to power. This is the irony of the situation.

The gloss and the grit of the life of a journalist is brought out with extraordinary skill and compassion, as Amit travels through these corridors of mammoth business houses engaged in the state-of-the-art of generating opinions and discussions over truth and (un)truth that they publish for consumption. The late nights, drinks and dinner on the house, including cozying up with a colleague in sly corners of the office, till wee hours of the morning next day, the ‘work-family’ often dislodging the real family, as night after night, journalists slog to put out the news that the masses consume the next day. It is the story of media mafia who grow fat and wealthy, by selling ‘packaged truths’ that determine whom they will wine and dine with and who will lick their shoes, during election times.  Amit reveals with candid reality, the inside story of Paper Tigers roaming around preying on innocent lives, or using them to further their interest in the accumulation of wealth. 

To me as a reader and a feminist, the stinking realities of this industry, threw open, yet another wolf in sheep’s clothing – the highly sophisticated media barons, who can’t take no for an answer, or who will show off their power by the size of their cars and the length to which they can go, wielding their ‘power’ in their pants. And I am happy that it is one among their own gender who finally kills a symbol of patriarchy showing its worst face in support of the system. I am therefore, not writing about the murder at the very start of the book, which the reader must find out, by reading the book.

The language is impeccable and the book is easy to read as in, the conversations between different characters tell the story. You can sit back and read especially if you are one of those who love a long story winding its way through your mind’s nooks and corners.  

Personally, I would have preferred a tighter manuscript - a book, which I could start to read at Rajiv Chawk Metro Station in New Delhi, and finish it by the time I have arrived at HUDA City Centre in Gurgaon, which is exactly one hour twenty minutes flat! 

Finally, let me not leave the book without the mention of the cover and the title of the book. Paper Tigers and their preys is an apt title with visual that in fact cleverly summarises the whole book. It is provocative and no one can miss the predator at all. Wise Owl, @hutomp on Twitter, who is the author of the book says, Brush Stroke/ @newbrushstroke on twitter, the gifted brilliant illustrator, loves her mouse, keyboard and colours. Isn’t that so cute? Besides, for both the author and the illustrator, this is their first attempt to showcase their work in book format.

 

 

Print Length: 445 pages

Kindle eBook File Size: 1795 KB

Available on Kindle eBook format  

Buy

First published in: Shillong Times, Sunday, 19.07.2020 http://theshillongtimes.com/2020/07/19/paper-tigers-on-the-prowl/#

Book review: Shadow Men by Bijoya Sawian # Short-listed in the Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize 2020

Photo credit HERE

Protagonist Raseel Singh needs a break from Delhi, where her parents have been murdered by the trusted man-servant in the house. She has planned with her giggly school friend Aila from Shillong to visit the hill station town for a few days. Aila is touring China with her businessman husband, Aibor, and would return just in time to be with Raseel. However, the latter has arrived a couple of days earlier than planned, and much to her dismay has become witness to another murder at Aibor’s house in Shillong where Raseel is a welcome guest. The gardeners, from Bihar, called Suresh and Ravi, living in the cottage outside the main bungalow, have been attacked by three miscreants. The two other occupants of Aibor’s bungalow, Robert Nongrum, a cousin and the lady caregiver and mother figure Kmie U Flin, apparently is not aware of the incident, until the next morning. Kmie U Flin is naturally shocked. The book then proceeds to nab the killer. As this procedure develops, Raseel is now caught, despite herself, in the whodunit herself and suspects that people around her know much more about the murder than they are willing to share with her. So what is the reason behind this gross act upon a man, who has left his home in Bihar to find work in Shillong? The answer is not as simple as whodunit it seems, because, in the next few chapters which are short and extremely crisp, the author, Bijoya Sawian, opens up an entire pandora’s box full of issues that are ailing the small town of Shillong, in northeast India.

In Bijoya Sawian’s short-listed in the Rabindranath Tagore Literary Prize 2020 book, Shadow Men, insurgence by the local Khasi tribe and occupants of Shillong, against the so-called ‘outsiders’, people from other states of the country, who are settled in Shillong, is at boiling point and as an election is forthcoming, it might once again become the agenda on which winning rests. Besides, the age-old system of matrilineal and matriarchal structure of the Khasi society itself is being hugely contested, and the question of inheritance exclusively of women and the angst of the men about their children taking lineage from the mother continues to ail society. 

In this background, where, corrupt politicians mix and match the greedy demands of businessmen, who would like to fill their pockets at any cost, a willing killer, for cash is not hard to find. The outsider problem is still boiling as Sawian points out, through the characters Strong and Ksan, due to unemployment and opportunities of the youth leading them to all sorts of crime. Will this be an issue in the forthcoming elections?

While the reader is trying to hurry through the pages to find that out, who killed Suresh, the author, skillfully, takes the reader away to a soul-stirring beautiful and rich tapestry of natural beauty and social customs, culinary extravaganza which the British called, Scotland of the east – Shillong. In 1972, Shillong became the capital of Meghalaya.

“The Sanskrit name Meghalaya, Abobe of the Clouds, was suggested by the linguist, Dr. Suniti Kumar Chatterjee.” It is a collection of three hills, Khasi, Jaintia, and Garo hills. God’s picture-perfect little town, sits at an elevation of 1, 525 m above sea level, its terrain painted green, with stretches of green grass, lakes, little rivulets, gigantic waterfalls, tall monsoon grasses and a sky, forever, changing colours, from thick grey skies, laden with clouds to crystal clear blue skies, its weather, warm in the day time and cool at nights, in summer, and biting cold in winter. The entire terrain is spotted with flowers, of the temperate kind, Maple Leaf, Rose, Pomegranate, Lotus, Iris, Knapweed, Sunflower, Tulip, Chrysanthemum, Cherry Blossom, Golden Wattle, Kowhai, asanias, roses, forget-me-nots, daisies, dahlias, pansies, and even datura. Hills and dales undulate to make for the constant ups and downs of the roads, never ever, really giving a respite from climbing up or down.

An assortment of flavours meet the nostril and the tongue – partly British, and mostly typical Khasi cuisine, like jadoh, boiled cabbage, and beef, mutton chops mixed with pork pickles made with Khasi herbal masala. A musical race, the Khasis play multiple instruments and often music becomes their livelihood too.

Hard to believe that the wrath of the angels hound their minds and killing can become their source of livelihood too.

If the plot of the story has been laid on a town so beautiful, any review will be incomplete without praise to the storyteller. Bijoya Sawian has dealt with a story of crime, without spilling a single drop of blood on the pages of the book. There are no gory descriptions and the words are chosen and strung together like a bouquet of flowers, the language perfect and simple. Not once, does the reader have to open a dictionary to look for the meaning of a word.

However, a glossary of names of the persons in the book, followed by their relationship with other characters in the book, would have been good for the reader, unfamiliar with the region. Second, if the reader is new to Shillong, then the details of food and culture and history can be overwhelming. Thirdly, the political and social issues faced by the people in Shillong, may not gel well with the reader, who is looking for a crime thriller. But, then, without that background, it is hard to cull out the killer either.

Finally, to quote the author, "This is not a typical whodunnit. I chose this genre so people would read the book and learn about the region and also the dire consequences of unemployment, the pitfalls of the blame game and the futility of violence."

Name of the book: Shadow Men

Publisher: Speaking Tiger Books

Author: Bijoya Sawian

No. of pages: 98

Price: Rs 179

Click HERE2BUY

Click HERE to know more about the author.

Alvida!

Chorda (March 01, 1952 - Feb 1, 2020)

Dhanmama passed away one cold winter morning in Shillong. He had been ill for a long time, and always wanting to die in Shillong. He returned from Bombay, where he ran his own business. Existence had heard his plea and granted it.

The eldest son and first child of the scholar, Late Shrish Chandra Gupta and Srimati Suhasini Gupta, Dhanmama was a product of prayers and manath to the Gods for a child, two before him having died at childbirth.

God, as man, Dhanmama was kind, gentle, soft-spoken and compassionate. His passing away at age fifty-one, caused immense instability in the lives of his wife, Mamima, his two sons, Borda and Chorda, who suddenly had to take up the duties of looking after their mother and themselves, financially.

I was holidaying in Shillong, from boarding school, when this happened. I remember clearly, both Mamima and Borda, left asunder, with the passing of Dhanmama and with the fact that Chorda, was still in Bombay at the final year of his graduation. Alas, he had to complete it six months later, because, he had to rush to Shillong to be with his mother and elder brother.

I don’t remember Chorda very well when he came to Shillong. But Borda and I had struck up a great friendship as brother and sister, what with the additional and sudden appearance of Cupid, striking the hearts of Borda and my close friend at school, Chhaya. In the midst of the grief, love blossomed, as if putting a healing balm of their hearts. Soon Chorda arrived and the love seems to have expanded, spreading its wings towards Chorda as well. While Borda was more of a doer, Chorda burst into passionate poems, recited from well known western poets and some poems flowing out of his own heart.

The spring of joyous love was broken for me when I returned to boarding school. Mamima and Chorda and Borda returned to Bombay.

For a long time, I heard nothing of them at all, until, for the winter holidays I started to visit my Mashi, in Bombay. We would then visit them at their beautiful Mayur Pankh house, in Diamond Garden, Chembur and spend a few days there. It is, however, only in 1973, when I moved to Bombay, to continue my schooling and higher education did a re-association with Borda and Chorda start all over again. I went to Mayur Pankh house and stayed there for one or two weeks during the short holidays. We were a great family and if I had found brothers to rely on, they had found a sister in me, whom they cherished as much.

However, again from 1985 onwards, this connection was again broken, as life speeded up and I left Bombay with a partner, first back to Shillong to stay and do business there for a year. Hence, our family, consisting of Mejo, my mashi, Mesho, her husband, and other people spread across the country, were not aware of Chorda’s marriage to Shoma baudi.

Sometime in 1986-87, Mejo moved from Bombay to Poona because I lived there. One day, as I was coming up to our flat, in Poona, I found a postcard from Chorda. The card was addressed to Mejo, my mashi, the content of which was so sad, that as soon as she read it, she threw herself on the bed, weeping miserably. The boy, whose birth she had seen with her eyes, had passed away. Borda, had died of liver cirrhosis, leaving us all, his younger brother and mother. It was shocking, to say the least!

Mejo, dashed to Bombay, after a brief call with Chorda. This began the long unbroken relationship with Chorda, Mamima, and the two additions to his family – his wife, Shoma and their lovely and cute daughter, Almitra.

In the absence of his brother, Chorda, primarily, held on to me, for a confidante. This bonding grew stronger as times passed and I too got close to the family. When, Mejo, left for Kolkata, from Poona, to settle down there, I thought that the best thing to do for me now was to move to Bombay, because Chorda and baudi were there. I bought a small tiny flat in Vasai, with much help from my baudi, emotionally, and took that step to relocate to Bombay, not a city I loved most, but a city, where my brother lived. I felt, safe and secure, although he and I lived quite a distance from each other, yet, we were in the same city and that was a great solace to me.

In Chorda, I found a listener, a friend, a strategist, and a confidante. I could tell him everything. My baudi took it upon her to help me settle down in Bombay. She was a rock of Gibraltar, for me. I found my backbone once again, in a city, which was so large; I had to re-discover it once again. In the process, it helped me rediscover myself as well. I made new friends and banked on the family for emotional support.

But then, I moved again. Like a wheel, in constant movement, my next destination was Delhi.

I flirted with the idea of returning to Bombay, many times, but every time, I came close to that decision, I also ran away from it. It was my need to stay in a new city to write a new story for myself. It is still fulfilling itself.  

It is truly said that, unless you burn your bridges behind you, you can never move on.

There is nothing to look back upon now – the final connection having died at 4.23pm, on 1^st, February 2020. And although I knew the end was neigh, I never thought, it would be so fast.

Alvida, my dearest older brother, Chorda, like leaves drop from trees because they are weary, you too have gone, but will surely return, when, the journey you have embarked upon, from earth to an unknown destination, comes to the bivouac of afterlife, you will return like Khalil Gibran's continuation of life – Almitra.

Until a new beginning……

Do click on this LINK to read Khalil Gibran

Book Review - In Search of Heer by Manjul Bajaj

Photo Credit HERE

In a modern re-telling of an ancient story, first told by Damodar Gulati in the 16^th century, author Manjul Bajaj, joins the many versions of the same story told over the years, by many authors and poets. However, this time, the distinctive pen which is the author’s mark, is written in the 21^st century with an engaging, often, addictive method of narration. Having done this, Manjul Bajaj joins an illustrious group of writers and poets, filmmakers who have written on the same theme, Heer and Ranjha. 

In Search of Heer is a simple tale, starting with the love story of Heer, the beautiful daughter of Mihir Chuchak, a rich landlord of Jhang Syal , and Ranjha, the spoilt and handsome son of an affluent landlord in village Takht Hazara, who are destined to meet and fall in love and marry with the support of Heer’s father, in somewhat of a concealed manner, unlike a big, fat Punjabi wedding, with relatives, from far and near thrown in. The secret is found out by Heer’s paternal uncle, Kaidu Langra, and all hell breaks out as he connives with Heer’s mother, and weds her off to Saida, of the Khera clan, equally, wealthy. But the reader must find out what happens to Heer in this marriage. 

In the meantime, Ranjha has realized that he has lost Heer, and must now find the balm to his broken heart by embracing the spiritual path. A flutist, whose music has a soul, Ranjha is well nigh liberation but is again pulled back by the appearance of a crow, which reveals to him, that Heer is waiting for him and so he must waste no time but proceed immediately to where Heer is. Ranjha leaves with his flute totally naked of any other desire but to find his Heer.

In a strange twist of events, Heer finds a friend in her marital home, who is her sister in law, with no less a hidden love story in her heart and the reader is allowed a peep into what might happen next. Breathe easy. You are about to commence into another rough ride with many twists and turns.  

This said, In Search of Heer, is much more than just a story re-told. There are many lessons to learn from the many voices that narrate the story – crows, pigeons, goat and each is has a unique voice, I most loved to engage with. A humungous amount of research has gone into telling the reader more about each of these animals and birds so that the reader is enriched in many other ways, understanding the nature of these creatures. Research has also gone into the life of an ascetic and someone in search of a spiritual life, which gives solace.  

However, for me, the most endearing parts were the role of Heer as a feminist icon. She exudes courage, valour, willfulness, and is stubborn and outspoken, uncompromising. Yet, vulnerable and receptive to love and longing. Her questions are relevant to our times, and many of us can hear our own voice in her words.

No less enchanting was the spiritual side of the book, without being religious. It calls the reader to conclude that there are no short cuts from sex to super-consciousness, except by actually living it. And the way out is through. The symbolic crow is the id in Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalysis as it were. Love lived in totality may well be the eternal transcendence we seek as humans.

The book is a living testimony of a skillful hand at work and an astute intellect that can gather the story from many quarters and reproduce a new version which appeals to the modern, 21^st century reader and their understanding and engagement with love in its many facets.

The Politics of Laugh Jihad

Hardly had we recovered from the shock of HRD Minister, India, Sri Ramesh Pokhriyal, stating that premier institutes in India, like NIT and IIT, must focus their research much more on our ancient Indian science because, after all, it was not Sir Isaac Newton who discovered gravity, but our science already knew all about it much before the western world became aware of it even. But even before we had time to cogitate over it, his colleague, Minister of Railways Sri Piyush Goyal had proved Sri Ramesh Pokhriyal wrong by stating that it is indeed, Einstein who discovered gravity. Many trolls followed on Twitter

In the face of two very ‘scholarly’, RSS cadre members of the ruling party in India, naturally, recent news that in fact there was no Aryan invasion in India, because in Rakhigari, Hariyana, the lead researchers of this soon-to-be-published study — Vasant Shinde and Neeraj Rai, said that DNA tests on the Rakhigari human skeleton established the knowledge ecosystem in the Vedic era was guided by “fully indigenous” people with limited “external contact”. This has seriously dislodged the Aryan invasion theory which holds forth that a set of migrants came from Central Asia armed with superior knowledge and arms and invaded the existing settlements to establish a more sophisticated civilization in India and pushed the original inhabitants down south. (Read ET article here)

Having said that, we now are faced with a very big question, as to who then are our brothers and sisters of another religious background? 

Please to note, we have quoted so-called ‘scholars’ in the above article and hence, we must now visit the Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister’s Blog.

My growing fascination with the writings of author, activist, Jaya Sharma, has raised my eyebrows which refuse to return to place, after she has quoted the sannyasi Chief Minister of UP, Sri Adityanath Yogi, to say in his blog, “We have decided that if they take one Hindu girl, we’ll take a hundred of theirs. If they kill one Hindu, then we’ll kill a hundred of them.”

Let us pause here, to think who the CM is referring to. If the Rakhigari human DNA has proved that there has not been any invasion from the Central Asian countries, then, who are the ‘they’ in Sri Adityanath Yagi’s blog? If they are indigenous, as the researchers seem to prove, then, the CM’s statement seems null and void – “We have decided that if they take one Hindu girl, we’ll take a hundred of theirs. If they kill one Hindu, then we’ll kill a hundred of them.” All they, theirs, them, are, unfortunately, indigenous only, and there does not seem to be anyone else. So, Sri Yogi, must research his article and make necessary changes, having connected with Vasant Shinde and Neeraj Rai, of the aforesaid discussion published in Economic Times. 

The honourable CM, is further quoted to state in his blog, and I quote – 

“A system where a girl surrounded with fragrance is enticed into a stinking world; where the girl leaves her civilised parents for parents who might have been siblings in the past; where purity is replaced with ugliness; where relationships have no meaning; where a woman is supposed to give birth every nine months; where the girl is not free to practice her religion; and if the girl realises her mistakes and wants to be freed, she is sold off”. 

The concept of ‘dirty’, ‘stinking’, ‘ugliness’, are all part of Manusmriti which as scholar and researcher, Sreyashi Ghosh, writes in her article here “MANUSMRITI HAS BEEN SINGLE-HANDEDLY RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DEROGATORY POSITION ACCORDED TO WOMEN IN THE POST-VEDIC PERIOD.”

Thus, we can assure that the CM of UP, who must be a hard-cast, post-Manusmriti, patriarchal sannyasi, who has preferred the natural sexual energy to be restrained and controlled in order to not 'pollute' himself, by ejaculation in intercourse, and divert the same energy ‘upwards’ towards God-realization, but, may fall short of final liberation, due to extreme hate for women. 

What you can’t get, you never forget and since longing may not be reciprocated, bitterness is the extreme one tends to feel, thus, writing, speaking, emoting bitterness. Just like Manu in fact, who is noted to be a woman-hater. 

Coming back to the article by Jaya Sharma, What the fantasy about Kashmiri “girls” reveals about men of Hindutva published in CounterCurrents(dot)Org, we must dispel all notions that Sri CM, UP, who is a sannyasi, has any experiential proof of what is sexual, leave alone, sexual fantasy. Hence, his expressions on his blog, maybe pure quotations from Manusmriti and we must as educated, sexually active women, no matter where in India we live, or the world for that matter, take it with a pinch of salt. As the author herself, points out, there is no dearth of virile Kashmiri men, that their women, need to look at ‘other men, of Hindu origin. Having said this, I must again reiterate the scientific report, about the Rakhigari human, that there are only indigenous men and women in India, hence, they, theirs, them that Sri CM, UP, India, refers to are perhaps all one single community.

Sri Piyush Goyal and  Sri Ramesh Pokhriyal, are an encyclopedia of knowledge, of ancient science, as they themselves have proved, to resounding hilarity on all social platforms, like facebook, twitter, etc, which Sri CM, UP, must learn from and change the content of his blog, so that he does not appear to be like his colleagues, very poorly intellectual. Before Ms. Mahua Moitra takes this matter up on the floor of the Parliament, causing more hilarity across the world, it is best to rectify, than to regret.

NOTE: And before I am arrested for writing this post, I wish to say that, the opinion expressed here are personal and the author has tried to maintain what the researcher Sheyashi Ghosh has quoted from Manusmriti by Patrick Olivelle, translation of a “good woman” and is bursting at the seams with loud laughter, rocking her already voluptuous, hungry and angry for sex body. 

War Room - Letter to Member of Parliament Mahua Moitra

Hi Mahua,

Your maiden speech in the Parliament made me sit up, as it did so many globally. It was profound, bold, and pinned the issue you were speaking on, the rise of fascism and the 7 signs that signal its growing presence.

Today, I am not talking about this. Much has been deliberated, tweeted, and shouted on all forums ground, air, and digital.

I want to congratulate you on your strategy – You planned it well as the link given states. It is a wonderful case study of what media, old and new, is all about and how to garner its power to our advantage. Today, it is all about Personal Branding, using digital media, where the War Room is digital and the last elections you won was actually fought on WhatsApp. 

Given the background of just after this resounding victory, BJP has had the 2^nd time around, the gossip, slandering and accusations going on from West Bengal and BJP, where media could have hourly discourses on who is right and who is wrong, your the speech brought a sudden shut-down of all such hitherto stone-hurling and shifted the world’s vision to a new platform, that being your powerful speech in the parliament. 

And you! As you yourself quoted in your interview that politics consists of the 3 'M's - Method, Myth - the hype around the person, so that everyone is talking about you, and Magic 

Internet channels went berserk and all platforms, including Social Media, Whatsapp were chockablock with that speech going viral.

So what was it that struck me most? That the old and forever relevant truth – you have only 30 seconds to make your impression, and then, either the audience is with you or they are switched out.  So, your speech managed to do just that. 

Second, a powerful voice, eloquent and clear, forceful even, you commanded attention, trust, and resounding applause on digital platforms. If it did not come at the parliament, where Lok Sabha TV captured the entire speech and the world saw it there and then, then, social media would not have gone berserk either, post the speech.

Suddenly, the whole world became engaged with who is Mahua Moitra? 

Imagine, using what the PM himself uses so efficiently, being adopted by MPs too to win elections! 

Hats off to the strategy – the first time is the do or die, 30 seconds to make your best impression! 

The rest falls into place automatically, doesn't it?







Note: Views expressed here are the author's only.  

Excuse me, please - I am a new India

Let us not begin the day, 15^th August 2019, with feelings of patriotism without understanding, what has changed in our country from the time, Pandit Nehru made his ‘tryst with destiny’ speech, which the country heard on the radio if they were unable to come to Delhi. Years of subjugation lead people to breathe easy, because, as Indians, they were returned from the British Empire, what was theirs, to call and to nurture as their own. The change was desperately needed.

No matter, how you look at it, the change was slow – very slow indeed.

It has taken us a long time to disrupt the system, to reach the last man at the furthermost corner of India. It has taken India, to take a roundabout turn and harness its strengths to do what it needed to do.

Ullekh N.P in his book, War Room, describes how the Elections of 2014 was won on digital media, using technology, to its best. The rise of India, as a technology-rich country, did not start in 2014. 

Way back, Bill Gates visited India, and went to Tamil Nadu, to experience the state, because, most of the Indians working in Microsoft, were Indians from Tamil Nadu. He wanted to know where the ‘brains of India’ came from.

The real freedom we need to be proud of is our enormous strength is the technology which we are now garnering not only to win elections but also in all fields that affect our lives. This is creating a new generation of young change-makers who want to do more for their country, in order that hunger, can be eradicated, education can be for all, housing can also be for all. Plus, healthcare is given to all. All, these are basic human rights of an individual. And this was not possible to achieve even after 65 years of Independence!

So, the real patriotism is coming from where it should – young change-makers in every field.    They are leading the disruption in every field and we need to recognize that and move with times, happy to move with the clock, moving forward.

It is not enough to shout Jai Hind one day and relapse into ‘pan-chewing, bidi-smoking, spitting-publicly, defecating-publicly, and using walls to urinate publicly, people. We need leaders who inspire the youth and this is why the youth are happy with the way they can do things today, which they never could, earlier on. Ease of doing business is primary to our country, so we have more FDI in our country. And the backbone of our country remains strong – Economics.

This Independence Day is more precious because the day coincides with Raksha Bandhan (The festival which strengthens ties between brothers and sisters). If yoga is accepted and practiced worldwide, I think that Raksha Bandhan too should become an international festival. 

In the purity of the bonding between brothers and sisters, is an unconditional tie of love, that runs through life – it is by its very nature an emotion spelling out devotion to each other, and protection of each other. In that sense, it is free, because unconditional love and loyalty set us free.

Jai Hind!

Dear Shri Suresh Prabhu, Honourable Railway Minister

Shri Suresh Prabhu

Honarable Railway Minister

Rail Bhavan

256-A, Raisina Road,

Rajpath Area, Central Secretariat,

New Delhi, Delhi 110001

Subject: Complaint against Ticket Collector (TC) on duty in First Class Compartment of August Kranti from Mumbai Central to H. Nizamuddin, Delhi on 1st December, 2018

Dear Sri Suresh Prabhu,

I travelled from Mumbai Central, Mumbai to H.Nizamuddin on a 1st Class PNR no: 8433992200 on 1st December, 2018 arriving Delhi 2^nd December, 2018.

There were four berths in my 1^st Class coupe, of which I occupied berth number 21, Compartment H, Coupe H 1. After Surat, I found that the TC, named Mohan M. Sakelu, CIT/BET, Mobile number: 09422668524, 09004497554. had permitted 4 (four) drunken men into the compartment and into my coupe who had no tickets. 

I am a single woman travelling alone in that coupe. I was startled when the four inebriated men in their twenties began to address me.

-          We are like your children.

-          We are Agarwal boys

-          We are Brahman boys

-          We will do seva to you

-          May we press your feet?

My alarm bells rang at their intrusion and the vulgar speech to an unknown woman. I raised alarm and demanded to see the TC. When he came in, I, in no uncertain terms I told him that it is absolutely unacceptable that he should have allowed these drunken men inside the 1^st Class Compartment and also that at that time of their entry into my coupe, I was the only woman there. I ordered him to give me his details and also to throw these men out of the coupe.

He requested them to leave the coupe after they had had their dinner and go to the 2^nd Class AC Compartment, but in the morning I noticed that the men were still in the same class but in a different coupe.

My question to you, Shri Suresh Prabhu is: (a) How as the railway minister, are you monitoring the obvious corruption among Ticket Collectors. (b) And most importantly, what are you doing for the safety of women travelling on trains in India?

I would like to inform you that this letter to you will be widely circulated in Social Media for general awareness and warning.

Do please take this matter up seriously and respond.

Best regards,

Julia Dutta
Delhi

Ticket Transaction ID: 100001512601967

PNR no: 8433992200

Train no/Name: 12953/August Kranti Rajdhani Express

Date of Journey: 01-Dec-2018 From Mumbai Central to H Nizamuddin, Delhi  

Why India Needs To SCREAM!

PHOTO CREDIT HERE 

Dear Advocate Devika Singh,

Way back in 1997, the honourable Indian Supreme Court set up Vishaka Guidelines which you have commented upon in your blog 

However, it is important to remind ourselves on this subject of What is sexual harassment?

The honourable Indian Supreme Court has clearly defined it as under:

Sexual harassment includes such unwelcome sexually determined behavior (whether directly or by implication) as:

a) physical contact and advances;

b) a demand or request for sexual favors;

c) sexually colored remarks;

d) showing pornography;

e) any other unwelcome physical verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.

Courtesy: Wikipedia: 

In the present case, with regard to acquitting Mohammad Farooqui in the case filed against him for rape by a complainant residing in the United States, your powerful poem moved me to write this email to you. You have touched upon the many times and the multiple ways patriarchy which propagate power of male gender homo-sapiens  commonly known as man, in our society and empowered them to use power, physical, mental, psychological, over women. Thus, over ages, society wired in by this insidious crime against women, has got away with the worst because, the system is too deeply entrenched in the minds of men, and women alike, prompting them to bring up their daughters to be victims and sons to be forever ‘right’ even as a perpetrator.

I have read and gone through the entire proceedings and the content of the email. I came across this on FaceBook via my good friend Aditi Ray.

Frankly, the email is misleading sometimes, and has thus been used by the Bench of Justices S.A. Bobde and L. Nageswara Rao (please to note, there was no woman Judge on this panel, which is unacceptable when the case is about rape), to acquit the accused director of Piplee Live, Mohammad Farooqui for the 2^nd time in January 2018, after he was acquitted in the High Court in 2015. The grounds cited are evident from her email – “She said I love you and kissed him- 

Explanation 2,. Sec 375 defined Rape in the following Link 

It clearly states:

“375. A man is said to commit "rape" who except in the case hereinafter excepted, has sexual intercourse with a woman under circumstances falling under any of the five following descriptions:  

Firstly. Against her will.      

Secondly. Without her consent.   

Thirdly. With her consent, when her consent has been obtained by putting her in fear of death, or of hurt.   

Fourthly. With her consent, when the man knows that he is not her husband, and that her consent is given because she believes that he is another man to whom she is or believes herself to be lawfully married.         

Fifthly. With or without her consent, when she is under fourteen years of age.

Explanation. Penetration is sufficient to constitute the sexual intercourse necessary to the offence of rape.  

Exception. Sexual intercourse by a man with his own wife, the wife not being under thirteen years of age, is not rape.”

Mohammad Farooqui is guilty on all grounds stated above. She did not give consent. In fact, she continued to say no, even as he pushed himself harder on her.

It is yet to establish, whether a thorough in depth inquiry had been made on the content of the email, for the complainant does appear to be under duress and even confused in her own head to have made statements that did not tally throughout. Yet, picking up statements like ‘I love you’ or ‘making drinks for him’, ‘they were friends’ ‘faked orgasm’ when she says earlier that this was the first time, and coming to conclusion that the complainant had given consent is drawing a conclusion too soon. Was the complainant questioned to find out her background, whether she was a victim of child sexual abuse in the past, or why she shot off an email that was confusing in content? And most importantly, why Mohammad Farooqui, guilty on two accounts – first, for cheating on his wife, in their house, right under her nose, and then secondly, committing rape when his wife was out of the house, is still acquitted, leaves much to be desired. The case seems to be hurried to conclusion, favouring the man, in an all male Bench, with no desire to open and scrutinize the case, once again, since it was brought forward after the High Court had passed its judgment in favour of Mohammad Farooqui. If the complainant appealed to the honourable Supreme Court, then was it not the duty of the SC to relook at the case from a fresh angle, without quickly dismissing it as ‘High Court’ has taken the most measured and well-thought out decision, and so the case is closed and The Supreme Court does not wish to open the case again?

If justice be done, then, the case must be reopened and scrutinized.

(a)  More inputs on the content of the email is required and deciphering its true meaning, which to me is unclear, since there is a lot written between the lines which has not been taken account of.

(b)  Mohammad Farooqui must be bought to task on clear evidence of a double deceit, one against his wife and the other against the complainant by forcing himself against her will even though she constantly said no to it; for un-natural oral sex with the victim and then penetration which makes the entire procedure tantamount to rape.

(c)  Consultation with Psychologists and persons working with Child Sexual Abuse victims for a more in-depth meaning of the email. There is a need for far more public discourse and involvement to garner strength over the case which is shoved under the carpet by the honourable Supreme Court saying they do not wish to re-look at the decision made by the Mumbai High Court, as they are quite sure that the conclusion arrived at is after profound deliberations on the said case at hand.

(d)  Bench must consist of woman as judge along with gender male judge to make the judgment acceptable.

(e)  The Supreme Court must answer why it is flaunting its own judgment and guidelines set up by Vishaka Guidelines and also Explanation 2, Sec 375

A time has come that India needs to SCREAM loudly about atrocities against women and the law-less-ness that prevails in our country over Rape which is rampant across the country and goes unreported at most times and dismissed if brought before Law of the country.

Precisely why, the complainant returned abroad to file an FIR, because, within India, the custodians of law and order, the Public Police Service are reluctant to do so.

Mohammad Farooqui may be free man, but is a perpetrator on the prowl. He is symbolic of the decadence of a society that thrives on lies and male power to dominate and subjugate woman they wish to objectify to meet the carnal desires of their oft deranged minds - their mother, sister, daughter, wife, and girlfriend.   

Book Review: Nights of The Dark Moon by Tutu Dutta

Of Dark Nights and Folktales

Thirteen Gothic stories from eleven countries in Asia and Africa – quite a feat achieved over continents showing a single thread of interconnection, that being all the stories which fall in the folktales and legends category are dark stories some with humour built into them – a unique collection of YA fiction stories.

Tutu Datta’s book, Nights of the Dark Moon, looks at a common thread in all the stories, which have been collected over a decade by the author, that being in each story one encounters with something from the paranormal, world-of-spirit, which appears to be invincible, because of the very nature of these ‘beings’ when confronted by the homo sapiens. The stories draw from this ‘sameness’ that runs in folktales across all these nations, where, the ‘Nights of the dark moon’, meaning the Nights when the earth covers the moon and in so doing, darkens the earth even more. It is out of this scary darkness, that many a folktale has taken birth. Tutu Datta’s book holds some of the best of them.

You may ask, what is the greatness in dark humour and dark tales? As simple as this: dark takes to excite the mind with their chilling and haunted stories, laced with ancient curses, supernatural creatures and damsel-in-distress encounters which the human mind can explore, but not solve. Yet, each story in the collection talks of valour, courage, and revenge taken to silence the disturbed soul, which in most cases were done injustice to. Thus, the young adult, of any age, is able to duly impersonate in his or her mind the central hero/heroine in the story and play out the brave, strong, unafraid worrier that brings justice to the harmed or killed.

The stories at the beginning of the book are far more chilling and have a lot to do with killing the evil spirits, taking revenge, deceit, and damage, followed by others which slowly temper down, but are not totally free of their dark humour and content. The author has arranged all the thirteen - Oh My God! Isn’t 13 an evil number too – starting from the far east, where the sun rises first, Japan, to where the sun is the hottest, Africa.  Further, the stories get romantic and talk of longing, affection, and sorrow.

Although, I loved all the stories, my favourites were in the end, the ones from West Africa and Nigeria, because, they spoke of threes and how, cutting trees can cause untold harm to the woodcutter because, the good spirits who dwell in the trees are angered and the evil spirit also dwelling alongside, creates havoc, which a valiant hero with his sword cannot silence, and must then use his wit and intelligence to appease the spirit. Now isn’t that so much like stories we heard about the great warrior, in India, called Vikramaditya? Yes, now read that story in Tutu Datta’s book, King Vikram and Betaal the Vampire. What a smart, brave and wise king he was! The fine illustrations at the beginning of each story are also drawn by Tutu Dutta. They really are exquisite!

My fingers may be trembling as I write the names of the stories and the countries they have originated from, for who can forget the unexplained horror stories told so easily – The Haunted Bridge of Agi (Japan), The curse of Miryang (Korea), The Tiger of Flower Hill (China), The Shapeshifter of Co Lao (Vietnam), The Temple of Rara Jonggrang (Indonesia), Hang Nadam (Singapore), The Seven Princesses of Ulek Mayang ( Malaysia), The Strange Tale of Chief Naam (Malaysia), Princess of the Bamboo ( Malaysia & Sumatra), King Vikram and Betaal the Vampire (India), The Weeping Lady ( India). The Witchman (Nigeria), The Curse of the Iroko Tree (West Africa). What fascinated me, is the commonality in cultures and rituals across all the folktales from all the countries. And hence, while Tutu Datta’s book, Nights of the Dark Moon, may be a collection of dark folktales of valour, courage and perseverance, at a deeper level, young scholars can take up the study of these tales and draw up a table of similarity between these cultures in all these lands, which run a near identical thread of mores.

In the preface to the book, the author states, “dark tales get young readers interested – exhilarated – about reading. These stories allow young people to experience danger in a safe place, i.e, in the pages of a book.” She goes on to quote Neil Gaiman, “Fairy tales are more than true; not because they tell you that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.”

What a wonderful lesson for youth growing up in a world torn by strife, disparities, inequalities, and terror.

About the author: Tutu Datta is a writer of children’s and young adult books. She is the author of eight books. Her non-fiction work includes a paper on Asian Folklore presented at the Asian Festival of Children’s Content, Singapore in 2013. She was also one of the judges for the Scholastic Asia Young Writers Award 2014. To know more on Tutu Datta and her work, visit her website by Clicking HERE. 

Nights of the Dark Moon is available as printed and ebook format, across nations including India on Amazon.com. Click to BUY 

NOTE: Also published in The Shillong Times. CLICK HERE to read.