Rohith Vemula: A Life Sacrificed In Vain

R.I.P. Rohith Vemula!

Saddened as I no doubt am by your untimely, unfortunate demise, I am perplexed at how a brave-heart like you could pusillanimously bid adieu to life. It is regrettable that those wielding influence over you and your thoughts could not impress upon you that life is all about "hope" and "courage"..."hope" of a better tomorrow gives us "courage" to face today's challenges. And, you were hoodwinked into loosing both!

Clearly, your young, fragile, impressionable mind was slowly, but surely poisoned by dangerous and degenerate folks, who flocked around and sowed in you the seeds of hatred, negativity and bitterness. It is tragic that you struggled and sacrificed your life to serve the hidden political agenda of a divisive, devious group that cared neither for you nor your goals, dreams and aspirations. You were only a pawn, a puppet in their manipulative hands...hands that have laid to waste a life that should have been full of youthful energy, ebullience and exuberance; not emptiness and exhaustion!

Equally saddened am I by your views on the tenets espoused by the great Swami Vivekananda.

By expressing your anger and disenchantment with the Swami, you have not only proved your gullibility, but also shown the width, depth and severity of your hatred. If indeed the great monk was a casteist, then so too was Mahatma Gandhi, the Father of our Nation and Apostle of Peace & Non-violence, who has been quoted as saying:

1. I believe that caste has saved Hinduism from disintegration.
2. I believe that if Hindu society has been able to stand, it is because it is founded on the caste system.
3. I believe in the varna system.
4. The beauty of the caste system is that it does not base itself upon distinctions of wealth-possessions.
5. I do not believe the caste system...to be an "odious and vicious" dogma.

Then again, by that same yardstick (of taking statements out of context, that you used to condemn unfairly the revered saint), some may conclude Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, our Founding Father and my hero, was anti-reservation. How? By misappropriating Babasaheb's remarks on the import of equality to argue that affirmative action ushers in inequality in society. Here are some of the great man's quotes on (in)equality:

1. Justice has always evoked ideas of equality.
2. Equity signifies equality. Rules and regulations, right and righteousness are concerned with equality in value.
3. If all men are equal, then all men are of the same essence, and the common essence entitles them of the same fundamental rights.
4. Lost rights are never regained by appeals to the conscience of the usurpers, but by relentless struggle...Goats are used for sacrificial offerings and not lions. 

If only wiser, saner counsel had prevailed over you, perhaps you would have realised that text is to  not interpreted outside of its context. Besides, you would have delved deeper into the saint's ideas, beliefs and thoughts and found that he "united", not "divided" people of our nation. And, that he deserves our respect and reverence, not disdain! You would surely have been in our midst had you been a little more discerning in your judgment of greatness.

Sleep eternally in everlasting peace in the Lord's Lap, Rohith!

Hope you find in your heavenly abode the peace, solace and tranquility that eluded you during the last few days of your tormented corporeal existence.

An Attempt to Retain Poetic Charm of "Aye Mere Watan Ke Logon" in Translation

"Aye Mere Watan Ke Logon" (ऐ मेरे वतन के लोगों; "O! the people of my country!") is a Hindi patriotic song written by Kavi Pradeep, by C. Ramchandra, and sung by Lata Mangeshkar to commemorate the Indian soldiers who were martyred during the Sino-Indian War of 1962.

It is a true-blue classic any which way you look at it or listen to it. Watch the original rendition of the song in the video below.

The song was famously performed live on January 27, 1963, by Lata Mangeshkar in the presence of Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, on the occasion of Republic Day celebrations held just two months after the end of the war. A copy of the soundtrack spool was also later gifted to Nehru on the occasion.

"Those who don't feel inspired by 'Aye Mere Watan Ke Logon' don't deserve to be called a Hindustani", said Nehru, who was apparently moved to tears by the song.

The song received rave reviews; it was accorded ample appreciation from across the country, and rightly so. For emotive feel and patriotic zeal nonpareil is packed into the lyrics. Apparently, Kavi Pradeep, deeply moved by accounts of casualties in that war, composed this song which is very touching and heartrending.

Unfortunately, when such classics are translated to a different language, not only do they loose poetic construct, but also the creative soul and emotive essence. "Translation Losses" shall we call it?

Aye Mere Watan Ke Long is no exception. Most translations available on the Web read like poorly penned prose. Indeed, I was so unhappy about these mediocre translations that I decided to take a crack at it. I have tried my amateurish best to retain some semblance of poetic appeal without deviating too much from the literal meanings of the lines.

I have tried my best to retain the feel, fervor; the tone, tenor and theme of the original poetry. Hope you like the output! If it can be improved, please do drop in a comment or two. Both bouquets or brickbats are welcome for the effort.

Ten Reasons Why PK Is Not Worth A Watch

I know. I know. The storm in a teacup has blown over. PK is passe. The controversy surrounding the release of the movie is now history. Still, David-Letterman-like, I am posting my ten reasons why PK sucks, for I promised someone that I would pen it. Well, as they say, it is better late than never. So, here goes!

• Reason 10: Rajkumar Hirani's creative juices have dried up so much that he can now direct movies only if the scripts are stolen (a la Three Idiots).
• Reason 9: It is no fun watching an almost three-hour movie featuring Anushka with lips that resemble Donald Duck's beaks. A blown nip-tuck, for sure...hope she has sued her cosmetic surgeon for a zillion bucks...Pray she wins the suit!
• Reason 8: Aamir Khan's goggle-eyed look, Mr.-Spock-like eyebrows and Mickey-Mouse-like ears could scare the hell out of young kids.
• Reason 7: Comical situations in the movie (barring a couple) are so contrived and slapstick that you might as well use feathers to tickle yourself at home for laughs.
• Reason 6: The film could make you believe aliens can outrun all humans except thieves who steal "remote controls"...worse, it could make Usain Bolt a 'remote-thief'!
• Reason 5: The alien portrayed is so human-like (courtesy: an unimaginative director) that you could begin to think all humans are aliens from PK's planet; Theory of Evolution be damned!
• Reason 4: If you are a non-Hindu, you might get offended that your religion is inferior to "Hinduism"...with regard to rituals and blind-beliefs...tsk-tsk!
• Reason 3: Worse, the movie takes potshots at non-Hindu priests, preachers and Godmen as incapable of raising funds in the name of religion. How dare!
• Reason 2: The movie is anti-religious minorities for it portrays Hindus as being more devout and devoted than non-Hindus...damn!
• Reason 1: The producers expect you to BLINDLY believe (without any proof) that humanoid aliens exist... of course, they want you to be rational about the non-existence of a supernatural Almighty!

The bottom-line: PK is a slapstick comedy that is sure to appeal to people with IQ levels in the high 90s. Now we know why movie critics have raved and ranted about how excellent the movie is!