THE WAR WITHIN THE PSYCHE

the war within one's psyche might go something like this-

I have a feeling that every emotion is very productive, especially if you are an artist. An artist can not only convey the feelings, but also make others feel it; can make others cry, smile, laugh, calm, enchant…can change a person, for the time being, and also forever. Art is emotion replicated, emotion produced and reproduced, has the capacity to generate new emotions that may be completely unrelated to the source emotion at the superficial level…

How then, can the emotion of rage, anger, frustration affect Art? Derogatory is the word; destructive. Feelings like rage and anger can never produce anything other than chaos – within and without the person.

When I started writing this piece, I was in blind rage, a feeling of destruction, a feeling to destruct something, and someone- a feeling so mad that it overshadowed the numbing sadness and grief all emanating from the same source- from me. Now that I have written a few words, I find the steam cooling off, but to what good? There is still the chilling grief waiting for me. I do not want to face it. I do not have the courage to face it alone but I have no sympathizer. I cannot expect anyone to pacify the drilling inside my psyche.

I have achieved what I wanted. I am no longer fuming. The agitation has now precipitated around my eyes. A sea rages below my scared eyelids that threaten to overflow its limit. But I cannot! I must be strong. Suppress it, kill it….there is no place for weakness in this world, if I have to be successful, I must sacrifice my tears, I must let go, I must learn from my experiences. But I don’t know, I really don’t know how long I can hold my wits together.

It is difficult to live life in two ways- to die within everyday and yet to live for this world, showing what you are not, what you can perhaps never be from the inside. Some say, a superficial damage can be repaired, but not the one that is corroded from within. I am scared. Earlier I had my comfort in prayers, now I have forsaken even that, and I am scared…

JUST THINK- "ALL COZ OF WHITE RUM"

(DON'T ASK ME WHY THIS..)

A leeway or a bad slip, I wonder

It was my choice to surrender

When I always prided my discipline

It slipped away, sad, broken by sin.

When fingers went numb to beautiful

Music, they danced in symphony

Ecstatic at the moment with gullible

Ease they entwined. New melody

Sneaked in the divine darkness,

Engulfing the clamor of thoughts

Sweet and burning, the harness

Held fast in mad, fitful knots.

“Don’t! No…Why?” All useless

And see now my sanity rots.

For want of foolish belongingness

Commitment was never in plot.

For fun, for this time now

And then to be parted, never

To see the other side. How

Easily said, how clever!

After all, it is just me today

And just for the time frame

I become the prize to say

Yes, I shall play your game.

And tomorrow shall never come.

And if it does (then you are a fool)

Just think, it was the white rum.

(And even then you are the fool).

Silent or Dumb?

                       
Some people just do not like to talk. not in the way of being anti-social or shy, but genuinely not liking a public show. Sadly, we have crashed on a blabbering world where whoever talks is a genius, whoever talks is knowledgeable, adorable and interesting and whoever prefers the quieter side is the polar opposite. Do note, that the quieter side referred to does not mean uninterested or mentally absent criteria. i strictly mean the section that is aware, knowing, attentive, and yet, with a preference of hearing out others' point of view and contributing only when asked. This need not necessarily even mean that the quiet are the shy ones, or lack confidence. I would like to tell about a very different reason for sealed lips. The need to allow the person in charge of the situation with some piece of mind, to become an attentive and peaceful audience.
When you push this into a classroom situation, it is hardly fair to call the silent part of class "dumb"; considering that this very "dumb" part of class is among the high scorers in academics, they do not disturb classes, have more than 90% attendance, care to stand up and wish the teacher, care to do assignments and projects in time, give sensible presentations and even help the somewhat "technically challenged" teachers set up a simple projector for their class. And on the contrary, the "non-dumb" part of class have a record of trouble making, high-teacher-BP, late assignments (or no assignments), walking out of exam halls, interrupting lectures with pranks and stupid questions that take the teacher 7 hours to explain, and so on...
Usually we have stories and movies saying "do not underestimate the fun-loving section of students, they are the real gems". But that really does not mean that you start undermining the "good-ones" as being lame, boring and dumb. it is just that the prefer partying, DJ, drinks and all after class hours. Sadly, here the situation is "ulta" and the joke is on the supposed Ideal students. sigh!

"MOM" - By and "dedicated to" my awsomest friend Nick, For his dear Mom.

I learned to walk with her, now

I walk alone, only somehow

This pain hollow walks with me

In vain I tried to kill it

And then lived in a mirage

Saying the pain is but, an envisage.

Only when it ate through my soul

I realized it won’t leave me whole

I am flipping, I need a way out

Even death would not help, I doubt.

and if death ws d only way out of it,
I want this haunting pain to end
Find solace unto my first friend
Mom would you not hold me again
"Mom" the word itself soothes the pain.
When i cry my tears lost in time,
Mom could have seen them arrive
I stand at a parting not knowing the way
"Mom" you alone can bring light today,
And forever i belong in your arms
Mom hug me again, save from all harm
I am yours forever, make me a child again
Mom come and ease my pain.

You Have a Few Years

It is bad, they keep saying,

To want for money.

To do something for yourself?

No, you are a woman, honey!

You have but a few years

Study, learn, earn, that’s it.

You have but a few years

You need to get married,

And then begins a new race.

He will want kids and They

Will want grandchildren in haste.

You will live their way.

Why you dream so tall?

You naïve! Just a few years left!

Care, so you don’t fall

Prey to ambition wretched.

Be a woman your body wants,

Move gracefully as expected.

Do not try to wear pants,

If you want to be protected.

Dear, alas! You are a woman. Do not try

To be what you want, now, don’t cry,

You have a few years left, then you cry.

FREEDOM OF PRESS (SHARING IDEAS OF CHETHAN KUMAR)

A PROFESSIONAL TAKE ON THE FREEDOM OF PRESS

(QUOTING CHETHAN KUMAR ON F.O.P)

(CHETHAN KUMAR IS A DEFENSE JOURNALIST WORKING WITH THE DECCAN HERALD, BANGALORE, AND HE HAS A GOOD EXPERIENCE AS A REPORTER.)
Freedom of press is a concept or philosophy that guarantees freedom of speech and expression through various media- both electronic and otherwise publishing. This implies to keeping the media free from the reach of an overbearing or an overreaching government. There is no exclusive clause for the “freedom of press” in the Indian constitution but the issue is covered under Article 19(i)(a) of the constitution that deals with the freedom of speech and expression. It says, “Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression, this includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.”

From the 1799 Press Regulations by Lord Wellesley to modern day cases like the case between Menka Gandhi and the Union of India, Freedom of Press has been maintained with a lot of fluidity and flexibility to suit both, the governments and the public at large. A colonial experience had made Indians understand the value of a free Press. From the time when the constitution of India provided freedom of speech and expression, till date, there have been several cases that have made the government cover the loopholes in the Law and provide increased access to the media. Thus, the guardians of the freedom of press in a democracy like India are both, the constitution and the Supreme Court.

Mr. Chethan Kumar, a staff reporter at Deccan Herald, Bangalore has been with Deccan Herald for over three years and his professional interest lies in Defense Journalism. He covers everything that happens in the Defense sector, from new policies to new planes and missiles. Having spent years as a reporter, Chethan has had a very good experience with Freedom of Press in India and has a very positive outlook towards the extent of liberty accredited to journalists in India.

He feels that Freedom of Press is an extension of the right of expression provided in the Indian constitution and an essential part of the democracy; essential because it helps in putting in place “public” checks and balances. Media acts as the fourth pillar, or the fourth estate of a democratic setup and certain provisions by the state helps it to act as a connection between the government and the public (in any form of government), to keep check on the government and also act as a vehicle of information and opinions for both, the government and the public.

In India, the scene has been very interesting. Media has made news and has been in news for all reasons. In several cases, the Press has been the pioneer of change in the society and government, for example the role of media in bringing about the resignation of Haryana minister Vinod Sharma. Especially after the privatization of the media sector, there has been a lot of improvement in media setup in the country. The government has had to have put up with a lot more scrutiny and criticism and the public is openly reaching out to the government for answers through media. Chethan Kumar says that unlike some of its immediate neighbors, India has seen increasing respect to the freedom of Press guaranteed by the constitution and in some sense, has protected the provisions made for the Press. There have been cases filed against various media organizations, but it has always brought a positive change in the scenario without much ado.

To quote Chethan Kumar, “The freedom we are talking about, as I have noted, is an extension of a right.  So more than it empowering the press, which it anyway probably does, it supplements it.” The provisions provided for the Press for its smooth functioning supplement or add on to the effective working of the press in a democracy. Today media or the Press has become a brand in itself that can be worn with pride, and media persons definitely enjoy numerous rights, benefits, access, influences and similar such causes outside the constitution that help them get hold of valuable and worthwhile information with better ease. The freedom of Press in fact helps the Press penetrate to the other side of the otherwise semi-permeable or non-permeable sections of information.

But unfortunately, Freedom of Press does not sustain the Press above political pressures. Chethan emphasizes on the effect of politics in the functioning of the Press and says that everything is politics. In democracy the politics of saving “freedom of press” to suit their (the political parties) interests and do otherwise in another context. And similarly, in other forms of governance, there are other political pressures.” Positive publicity is the need of the hour, with media becoming so vibrant, dynamic and uncontrollable, and this has to be obtained by hook or by crook. It is common knowledge about some media organizations having a slant towards a particular political party. The give-and-take relationship that media has to maintain for its survival (advertisements), and for the very reason of its physical survival (Tehelka office sabotage after it brought out bribery in Best Bakery Fire case), the organizations have to bow down to political pressures.

Excess of political pressure or excess of freedom, both could be hazardous for a democracy and hence, the reasonable restrictions in Article 19(ii) of the Indian constitution. Apart from these, there are a lot of limitations put on the people on top, the very people who frame and execute these laws. No one is above the law, as Mr. Chethan Kumar says; some of the major limitations come from within newspaper/television offices. Each organization also has its own work policies and they become laws for the media persons working as a part of that organization. This in itself is a restriction, a limitation on the freedom of speech and expression of an individual. Not only in India, nowhere in the world there exists a concept of absolute freedom of press. Indeed, absolute freedom of press is not a pragmatic ideology. There have been umpteen cases where the intervention of media has caused irreparable damage. For example, the 2008 Mumbai attacks. News channels were giving an enthusiastic chronological coverage to the terror events and were also broadcasting movements and activities of the police and the defense, conveniently forgetting that the terrorists could have easy access to all these information and that could help them. For reasons like these, there has to be a regulatory parameter that draws a line where the freedom of press ends or where the responsibility towards the country at large is more important than the responsibility as a media person.

But, we cannot completely ignore that in some cases unreasonable restrictions are imposed on the Press. So what is the solution? Indian Express filed a case, where the class legislation of Working Journalists Act was under attack, but the court ruled in favor of the government and upheld the validity of the Act. According to Chethan Kumar, “An exclusive clause of freedom of Press is not an answer to unreasonable limitations for what we have is already quite liberal, although less in comparison to certain western countries.” Countries like UK and US have a very libertarian Press. Chethan further says, “just like our bank laws that saved us during the recent recession, Press laws, restrictions or limitations will prevent the media from completely losing out to market pressures, which is a trend already being witnessed.” He also says that what we have in place as freedom of Press in India is apt and adequate. There is no need to look out for amendments as of now if only we exercise what we already have in place in an effective, efficient and honest way.

Another important thing to be considered is, do the allowances made for the Press in India help the journalists to pursue their profession without hindrances and do the media people enjoy the available freedom of press? There is a very vague distinction between what is ethical and what is necessary. Though both the categories are not mutually exclusive, the distinction remains. Then again, these criteria are not rigid. They keep on shape-shifting. What is ethical today might seem blasphemous tomorrow. Necessities too change over time and context. Chethan says that sometimes journalists do not enjoy the freedom of Press guaranteed to them, but it is a rare occurrence. And the reason why we do not have freedom in such cases is a result of varied and complex reasons that cannot be pin-pointed to a particular reason, time or context.

In India a journalist has freedom to access information of public interest, can criticize, assert and comment but his or her freedom extends only as much as that of any ordinary citizen. There are no exclusive provisions for journalists. The Press acts as a watchdog in the democracy within the limitations set by freedom of Press and reasonable restrictions. Though by international standards, the degree of freedom enjoyed by the Press in India is poor, there are plus points to that too, for it restrains media from getting out of hand and creating public unrest. In spite of restrictions and political pressure, journalists in India find the considerations given by the constitution reasonable and adequate rather than unnecessary. If only the existing clauses are exercised well, there can be smooth symbiotic functioning of the government and media.

PONDER..does light have a concept?

In my Postcolonial Class, we somehow touched upon concepts and theories. my lecturer was saying about how some things cannot be conceptualized. he gave an example of light. he asked us, "what is the concept of light."
Some nerds replied "light is the absence of darkness", which, i suppose, is what Albert Einstein said in class and got thupped for.
Well, our lecturer is way better. He took a moment to form the best way to put his point n came back on us with a closed book and said," if light is the absence of darkness, then there should be light between the pages of this book because there is definitely no space for darkness to exist between these pages!". So what we said about light (and what friend Einstein mentioned so long ago) was rubbish, n so there was no concept about light.

well, what an answer! OK, i agree, maybe light does not have a concept. but the one that my lecturer gave back with no darkness between the pages of a closed book, was a neat trick.
OBJECTION MILORD!
Well, he said darkness cannot exist between those pages because there was no space for darkness to exist. so how can light exist without space? As far as i know, the only thing that can exist in the absence of space is "spacelessness". Even for our ideas and dreams, we create an abstract or imaginary space. So my counterargument or rather a rephrasing of the Einstien statement would be that "light is something (if it can be called a thing) that occupies space in the absence of darkness.

Hey, i do not pretend to have any idea about the concept of Light. I have always been a loser in Physics. As far as i am concerned, light (tube-light, to be precise) is a 24-hour necessity in my ever-dark-without-electricity room. All i want now is, some physics-literate person to tell me what would be the answer to the title of my post, and in that process, help me to....Ponder(or stop pondering) about light.

a message on her journey

A dusty road on a sunny afternoon

A tired wind blowing from the West

Rhythmic steps reach no soon

Nor can they stop to rest

And an impending feeling of worthlessness

I feel the unending road under me

Why this ordeal of unendurable stress

When I know my plans will turn on me

Then i saw a flying green leaf

Surprised I asked where you to

Still young, your life has been so brief

Have you not still plenty work to do

She mocked a sway but stood by me

My weary stance perhaps held strong

She agreed to take a message for free

To relieve my burden of a love song

I spoke my heart out to her-

Are you going to the Land of Spar

You will reach with the glorious sun

And see Him, mighty warrior at war

With times of agony, the awesome one.

When you see him give love from me

He will know at once whom you from

Take from him what he gives for me

And talk about how incapable I am.

Tell him how much i long to meet

This journey alone will lead to grave

If not for his embrace so sweet

Death come it'll be too late to save

Come my Love before my feet

Are resting in final bed endness gave.

Hurry little leaf, there comes a gale

Go merry dancing on success sail.

And off she went on her way, i still remember her rhythmic sway.

And off she went on her way, and off she went away.

WHAT/WHO IS A PERSON

I remember reading a poem during me primary school days- Solomon Grundy. It goes like-

Solomon Grundy, born on Monday,

Named on Tuesday, Married on Wednesday,

Took ill on Thursday, worse on Friday,

Died on Saturday, and was buried on Sunday.

So this was how poor Solomon Grundy lived his life. So does this tell us about Solomon as a person? Do we come to know who Solomon was from these four lines? Perhaps we come to know that he lived and died, did what a normal man does. What I am trying to say is that what or who a person is, can be very well understood by the kind of life a person lives, how he is in a society and how he participates in a society.

According to Oxford dictionary, a person is an individual with particular character or tastes, an individual human being. So what decides this individuality? It is the differences between that individual and others around him or her that makes the individual distinct and decides who or what that individual is. The character and tastes decide how that person reacts in various situations and that tells us what role and position that individual has in that society, which largely helps us understand the personality of the person. Well, personality and person are two very distinct and wide terms and though they overlap at some point, they cover a lot of other areas. For example, if a person is very verbose and makes sure that his/her points are put across very clearly and that others agree with him/her, then we can say that he/she is a very assertive person. Similarly, if a person is not very talkative and keeps to himself/herself, then the person is said to be “not very social”.

The interpersonal relations between people tell us how they are. A great thinker once said that if you want to know how a person is, see how he treats his juniors (or inferiors). Also we have heard of the saying that goes- a person is seen by the friends he keeps. So what or who a person is, is decided not only by his character or tastes, but also by the company he keeps and also how he treats others around him, preferably younger people or economically/professionally inferiors. In the movie Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets, the character Professor Dumbledore tells Harry Potter that it is our choices that determine who we are, and not our abilities. Taking from that, I would say that who/what a person is depends on what we want to be as a person, what we choose to see ourselves as, and not merely as what we are capable of doing on the basis of our abilities.

Besides, the society is also an important deciding factor about the development of an individual into a person. The society helps form a distinct identity about him or her. Taking a very simple example, actor Saif Ali Khan would be known as just Saif in Bollywood, and all over the film-crazy India. But at his ancestral house, he will be known as Nawab Pataudi, or, Nawab Saif Ali Khan Pataudi, the heir of Nawab of Pataudi. So, as he goes in different societies, his identity changes, and who he is as a person also changes in these contexts. So, who or what a person is, depends on his company, his behavior towards others, his self-perception, his interpersonal associations and the society.

WHO AM I - an answer w.r.t. Abnormal Psychology

WHO AM I?

The concept “who am I” is like a huge umbrella, it covers areas so diverse and wide that I cannot comprehend their reach. So if I ask myself who I am, or if I seek an answer to it as an answer to someone else’s query, my answer would vary with each context, mood, situation, genre of classification and my psychological and physical condition.

When I am in a mode of self-introspection, I would close my eyes and think about myself and form a theory about myself. But, this theory will also vary on the factors I mentioned above.  Like, for example, now I have had a long day at college and I am tired, I am missing my parents and I found they are busy and cannot speak to me now. So when I close my eyes now and think about who I am, I might get such thoughts – I am a lost person, I do not know what I am doing and what I want from my life, I am not wanted by anyone, I am far from home and lonely; and then, when I have had a happy day, I would close my eyes and might feel such things about myself- I am like free bird, I am sensible and smart, I love all living and I am loved each day, I am going to make a change in this world. But do any of these feelings actually answer the question as to who I am? Maybe no, or maybe yes, to an extent. So, how can I give a near perfect answer to this question?

There is a saying in the bible- “Seek and you shall find it.” And a great philosopher once said that the greatest knowledge is self-knowledge or your awareness about yourself. What is my self-awareness? Is it my sense of seeing myself as being distinct from Other? Is it my awareness of understanding me when I look at a mirror? Again, maybe to an extent, yes! I look at myself in the mirror and say- I am a nineteen year old female, perhaps a bit physically immature for my age, braced teeth, carved brows, full lips and a well-maintained athletic body. But is that all what I am? Why, at certain times I find myself as a learner, a teacher, a bold yet a conservative woman, an achiever, a sacrificial figure, a scientific, yet a religious person…well, is it not the ancient Roman theory of contraiis contraius working within me? So, finally, who am I to me? Or what am I? I can say that I am a cocoon of conflicting aspects of various essences of life co-existing in me; I am a vessel half full, continuously thirsty for more life and energy-both positive and negative.

So then, who am I to others? Perhaps this is a question constantly asked by me or even by others. Often people ask – “who are you?” or I ask “who am I to you”. For the latter question, the answer will keep changing depending on the person addressed, but for the former question, perhaps these lines would convey more-

Daughter of Eve, born of love and pain,

I, a woman, have numerous chains

To my loved ones I am adorable queen

To others I am a mystery unseen

Unseen because none that I ever met

Are bereft my love and graceful net

Powerful, a home of wondrous dreams

A secret sacred ground of fertile streams

A potential nurturer of new life within

I am a woman, a mother in being.

My arms ever-open to receive them

Children lost in ways surly, insolent.

Maybe, to say who I am would have to write a book and still I would miss something. So, I would like to conclude my assignment saying that I am to each person what I think I am and also what I want them to think of me. Also how I see them makes me what I am in their eyes. So the concept of who I am depends also on the mutual relationship I share with others because others act as mirrors to tell us who and what we are.

WOMEN’S DAY CENTENARY

8th march 2011. commemorating the 100th anniversary of the first Women's Day celebration and also celebrating women all over the world today. Another important day joined the pages of history. What did we make of it? Apart from sending a few text messages which gave the telecom industries and other communication business houses a boost in their income, what have we done to realize the original cause of the Women's Day celebration-the cause which tells us to press for various demands made by women, to bring about a change in the status of women, to work for women-rights.

I guess the answer is clear. We live in a world of polarities, the two poles being one of the privileged, educated, loved and care-for section of women, and the other section deprived of all these. One section who become the president of the world's largest democracy and the other section which is forced to trade their bodies for livelihood. Take India this year as an example. At one level, to mark Women's Day, Air India, for the second consecutive year, operated on Monday night an ultra long haul flight from Delhi to Toronto, with an all-woman crew. On the other hand, a survey by ICRW topped Indian men as most indulgent in sex-violence and in most of these cases, women are suppressed and the matter never sees light.

What an ideal Women's Day would be is when thee latter extremity (of the two poles mentioned) joins the former section and when the man-woman or society-woman relationship would cease to be that of a convict-victim, and when "woman" will cease to be seen as just a derivative of "man".

U ASK,I REPLY. part 1

What are the things that make my life great?

I live a life too simple and far too straight

If you ask me to freeze a moment I cherish

I do not think I can fulfill your naïve wish

Coz my days are numbered I always knew

So I made the most of it, most with you

And now you want me to put aside a part

Of tender moments held close to my heart

Time and again you want me to state

What are the things that make my life great..

What are the thoughts that make me feel innocent?

A statement or a claim of me being indecent

That makes you turn in your grave- cold bed

Slime up to your neck and you call me the dead

I never moved from where you left me then

And you say my ways are surly, insolent

You have violated and crossed all barriers of my love

But somehow I was called a prying pathetic perv

And the unceasing query bothering u so constant

What are the thoughts that make me feel innocent..

dowry "evergreen"

I was reading national news in yahoo news page and i came across this news put up barely an hour ago. On December 7, a woman in Korba district of Chhattisgarh tried to burn her husband alive. She was arrested and what she said in her defense was that she was "fed up of her husband"!
I really could not push what she said to the back of my brain. To be so fed up of a person to try and burn him/her alive? And that too your husband? Another important fact in this case was that the wife had filed a case of dowry harassment against her husband but the matter was dissolved between them...the story continues.


Curious about dowry cases, i typed dowry in Google and clicked on news and a long list of dowry cases appeared; my eyes were drawn to dates and the number of pages. Disgustingly, there was a dowry case put on Google almost every single day and the list goes on and on, starting from a dowry case on the very day i searched where a village sarpanch in punjab was arrested in dowry case. And just think that hundreds of dowry incidents go unheard.
A country that claims itself to be a fast developing nation, is India moving to the developed and urban side for the better, or are the ghosts of our "so-called" uneducated/rural social evils lingering about and mutating into an urban beast with us and sinking deeper into us?


Being born and brought up in a small town in Jharkhand, i never understood the "why" behind the female foeticide n female infanticide cases my mother and her colleagues used to talk about; probably because my family setup was very different, or atleast i believed it to be so. But after getting a bigger picture of life, i understood that dowry system is one of the root causes of the biased gender ratio. And i also understood that dowry thrives in the urban, educated India too.
http://in.news.yahoo.com/20/20101207/1416/tnl-woman-held-for-trying-to-set-ablaze_1.html

SRINAGAR : in buzz..

http://beta.in.news.yahoo.com/video/national-22564751/school-bus-torched-in-srinagar-to-enforce-shutdown-23330991.html

A video showing a school bus torched by a mob in Old City area of Srinagar on Saturday, 4 December, 2010, to enforce a shutdown called by hard-line Hurriyat leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani across the Kashmir valley.

Srinagar has been in news lately for all wrong reasons and the violence in the area has aggravated the condition of the civilians. As is evident from the incident of a school bus being torched down, educational sector is one of the worst-affected areas.

A close friend, Mohammad Saquib, a resident of Kashmir had a lot to say about the "desperate times" in the Kashmir valley. He says,

"To think what really cajoled the youth in Kashmir to pelt stones, knowing the nitty-gritty of its outcome, you could be booked under the draconian law PSA( public safety act) or put behind the bars on an imbecile traitor's nod. Then what brings them on streets and makes them go to such an extreme of stone-pelting? Their attires do not show signs of poverty. everything has a cause , and everything does not have an ostracized inception.

In the nascent vale of Kashmir, upheaval is old and grave. It is the aga-saga of any nation that aspires to be freed and given natural liberation, as bestowed by Almighty Allah. Whatever happened in the nineties showed the willingness  and need of Kashmir to oust its territory from the clutches of an illegitimate rule. However, by mere dint of force there was an achievement, the short lull made it possible for the movement to be passed on to the next generation.


Many analysts on Kashmir thought the silent period to be an acceptance to integrate with the state of India, but the Amarnath land issue provided the needed vent for the youth who had been waiting to erupt,like a dormant volcano. The new generation was harassed and even traumatized by the presence of security forces in almost all corners of the vale, alienated and deprived of the right to free expression. It was evident that uprise was inevitable, and when it erupted, a new history was written. From the alleys of downtown Srinagar. North Kashmir and old town Anantnag proved catalytic for the movement to grrow.  2010 uprising was spontaneous and of a paradigm shift to how seriously the new generation took to streets demanding their aspirations. Every new killing saw the number of protests increasing and protest took a new mode. Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and many other social networking sites became the medium for Kashmiri youth to express their anger and put forth their views to disseminate throughout the world. State took a new radical approach by arresting Facebook users  to curb the protests on net. Curfews and crackdown on the youth were devised to bolt and frustrate people so that willingness could be melted down. As hitherto, one should appreciate the resilience shown by the people in Kashmir. Atleast there is no tosy-turvy change in the people for the mundane gains, as the aftermath of 2008 movement had proved."


When Saquib messaged his article to me in answer to my questions on what he had to say about unrest in Kashmir vale, i told him that i will have to cut-short the article as it was exhaustive. But after re-reading his article, i could not find anything that could be left out of Saquib's voice. It is the voice of one among the youth who rise to revolt against the atrocities faced by their people. Is it not time that the nation joins these voices as a whole?

painful blossoms contd.

In reply to the comments i received on my post "painful blossoms", i would like to put forward a few ideas that can be implemented.


First thing is that the number of events should be increased and the criteria should be broadened. as i said in my previous post, sports events should be included in the grading system. i m not saying that sports should be added as a part of blossoms, but that the year-round activity should be taken into account as it is a matter of grades.
Also activities like Darpan participation, Silhouette prizes, etc. should be taken into account. the street theater we did last year deserved more than just 1 day of teachers saying "brilliant performance." forget grades, we did not even get certificates as we were promised(we were the winners).


Blossoms should be more of a 1-day talent show where the winners of various events show off. the literary event winners can have a chance to put on their works on university blog or something likewise. and the photography and poster events can have an exhibition.


if the argument is that Blossoms is an opportunity to develop multiple talents, then the Grade-factor should be eliminated from it, and it should be made an adventurous event, encouraging students to explore their talents in unfamiliar domains.

blossoms- in action : in buzz....

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=476501682247&set=a.476501372247.266820.617277247
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=476501957247&set=a.476501372247.266820.617277247
GROUP DANCE - BLOSSOMS'10 IMAGES (images from anu philip's album, facebook)
Still from the on-stage event ( group dance) by BA students who were the winners of the event, held on Wednesday, the 1st of December, 2010 at the mini auditorium, Christ University, Bangalore.

"select a theme for your blog."......."ok ma'am."

I created this blog to be my voice, so that i could type out whatever i feel and thus ease that frustration in me which is a result of lack of kind and empathetic ears.....

Guess even this wish will remain undone. since i already had a blog, i did not create another one for my new media assignment. sadly, now i have to find a theme for my thoughts. guess i can no longer call my blog my voice....rather, it is to become a report of what happens around that makes news.

maybe, what i can do is, write what happens in campus, in my immediate vicinity. i shall write what the air is buzzing with in my surrounding....be it in Christ, or in SG Palya, or in my hostel......and i shall call it.....IN BUZZ.....

dill waalon ki dilli indeed!!

Had an awsome tour. went to ajmer for a tournament and had a nice time. we couldn't get a direct train, so had to go via chennai n delhi....

while in delhi, we went shopping and sight seeing. saw india gate and purana quila.

  

This is the front view of purana quila... it's amazing...beautiful...

but trust me....we'll remember this place for something else.... the lush green lawns of the excavated fort full of couples making out...lolz.

the 5 minute walk we took along the lawns was very embarassing (n entertaining). some places u couldn't even make out that there were 2 and not 1 person sitting under a tree...

somehow i felt this was a disgrace to the monument. i will leave other things to another time...but for dilli's dill waale.......GET A ROOM GUYS!!!

I bet the emperor would hav had them hung for this behaviour at those times.

WHAT GOOD...???

The shore was close never, to see

A place to put my soul at peace.

My canoe full of fruits of love,

But not a soul to share it with me.

What good those fruits without a mate?

What good this world which put me to hate?

Yet again, I see the lady luck

Pausing and teasing me, but,

Gospel taught me “forgive and be”

There I let her go, mocking free.

What good the wounded soul she made?

What good a heart which is but, dead.

It is too late to turn my back now

And seek the shelter of ignorance

Rattled within by wicked worldly howls

That silences my humble penitence.

What good my efforts to return to love?

What good who left me for realm above?

my life....as rainbow rays..

Now at sunset I am bound to think of days

Cluttered at my memory’s evergreen bays,

Where I spent moments of mirth n gloom

Their hues shine patterned as rainbow rays

The ripe gift of love I remember as Red

From birth to youth for me it jeweled.

The Creator, caretakers and caregiver and all,

In them, my love blossomed and dwelled.

Yet came the days of Orange sufferings.

I braved the times of merciless tidings.

When all left me to fight my life alone,

I well chose the path and kept following.

Look back and I see the sunny Yellow smiles,

Careless and brave, playful childhood flies

Naughty, wasn’t I? The Mischief-Queen,

When oceans the bottom, and limit the skies.

How well I heed those fruitful Green times,

Where life blossomed, brought new rhymes.

Of birth, of joy that my children sang,

And fertile my womb brought great smiles.

Then how could days of Blue hide forever?

Filled each day like a Christmas dinner.

Roast and baked my all with me,

Left all sorrow and felt cheer like never.

Came here there Indigo days of tears,

Loss as great not told by Shakespeare.

I felt how low man could be, I was too,

But they gave me ever valuable peers.

When I have lived a Violet royal life,

Tread both on flowers and edge of knife.

Learnt lessons worth more than priceless,

Proud I lived with honor and not strife.

My life though not as great as the Globe’s plays

Still characters did do their part in best ways.

And there I spent moments of mirth n gloom

Whose hues shine patterned as rainbow rays.