The Internet Censorship saga in India

 
Anna Hazare/Image courtesy: Pradestoday.com

2011 was a tumultuous year as it saw citizens’ movements toppling dictatorships all around the Arab World. Former president Hosni Mubarak’s fall in Egypt was ably aided by social media that helped citizens rally together for a cause. 2011 also saw a huge anti-corruption movement in India that was headed by a 70-year-old crusader Anna Hazare. This movement saw a huge participation by the Indian middle class, the same section of society which also has a presence on the Internet.  The movement that called itself ‘India Against Corruption’ (IAC) had a very active presence on social media including sites like Youtube, Facebook, Twitter etc. Co-incidentally it was in 2011 that the Government increased its curbs on the internet, despite already having problematic provisions with the existing IT (Amendment) Act, 2008.

Big Brother Government

Let’s first get into the main problems with the amendment of the Act that happened in 2008. Till 2009, India’s Internet Freedom Status was relatively free and censorship was sporadic. Till then, the government did not particularly bother about censoring the Internet. The status changed after Mumbai, the financial capital of India suffered a massive terrorist attack in November 2008. This lead to the Government making sure that the state had the powers to decrypt communications done over the Internet, especially post-terrorist attacks. The terrorist attacks in Mumbai in 2009 changed the scenario and the Internet Freedom Status became set to ‘Partly Free’ and has remained unchanged since then.

The amendment made in 2008 to the IT Act (which governs the Internet) brought in criticism by cyber activists and netizens alike since the amendment was passed without any discussion in the Parliament and had clauses which enabled violation of civil liberties. Under section 69 of the new amended act, it is possible for the police to snoop through one’s emails, phone calls, texts and other personal communication over the Internet without any warrant for the same from the magistrate.

Draconian provisions

69B. (1) The Central Government may, to enhance cyber security and for identification, analysis and prevention of intrusion or spread of computer contaminant in the country, by notification in the Official Gazette, authorise any agency of the Government to monitor and collect traffic data or information generated, transmitted, received or stored in any computer resource.

(2) The intermediary or any person in-charge or the computer resource shall, when called upon by the agency which has been authorised under sub-section (1), provide technical assistance and extend all facilities to such agency to enable online access or to secure and provide online access to the computer resource generating, transmitting, receiving or storing such traffic data or information.

(3) The procedure and safeguards for monitoring and collecting traffic data or information, shall be such as may be prescribed.

(4) Any intermediary who intentionally or knowingly contravenes the provisions of sub-section (2) shall be punished with an imprisonment for a term which any extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine.

Courtesy: IT (Amendment) Act 2008

After the above mentioned amendment, the central government fired a new salvo in April 2011 that made some alert Indian netizens sit up and take notice. The Indian Government formulated two sets of rules to the Information Technology (Amendment) Act 2008. The first rule set out to make the intermediaries including companies like Google, Facebook etc. and Internet Service Providers responsible for the content their users upload. The second set of rules make cybercafé owners to maintain a record of all their users who use their services to access the Internet.

N Vijayshankar, a cyber law expert in India said, “It is difficult to question the Government’s motive behind having these curbs when they cite national security risk as the reason. However, the censorship bans can only be used for the said reason only. However, the very way the sections of the law is written is ambiguous and gives arbitrary power to the police. Otherwise, the way these laws are used can be in violation of our fundamental right to free speech. Also, the government is using these acts for censorship of content in accordance to whichever political party is in power.”

Mumbai Police bans cartoonist’s site


Image courtesy: https://www.facebook.com/cartoonsagainstcorruption

The repercussions of these rules were seen when Aseem Trivedi, a cartoonist from Kanpur could not access his website in the last week of December 2011. Aseem Trivedi, an ardent supporter of IAC had uploaded political cartoons on his website—www.cartoonsagainstcorruption.com. Subsequently he received a mail on December 27th from BigRock, the domain name and web host where his site was registered. The mail informed him that they were suspending his domain name and associated services since they received a complaint from Mumbai Crime Branch that he has been using the website for displaying objectionable content related to the flag and emblem of India. He has ever since migrated to a new website. (The cartoon above shows Indian Parliament as a commode among many others which were deemed as offensive).

Trivedi says, “As per the law, one is guilty until proven innocent. The onus is on the person to prove that s/he is not guilty. This is in direct violation of the constitution of India. The extreme frivolity of the entire process worries me. A blog can be banned with just a simple complaint by anyone if they feel offended about it. This has to be challenged. I was not even informed, leave alone served a notice, before they pulled out my site.” So aghast was Trivedi by the whole issue that he has now started a campaign against Internet censorship in India. “I am currently touring different cities of India talking to people about this issue. I plan to culminate this journey on the 13^th of May with a rally in India Gate, New Delhi.”

Vijayshankar says, “The law in its present form makes the intermediaries responsible for the content uploaded on their site. It also insist that they take action within 36 hours of receiving a complaint. For instance, I can file a complaint against any content I deem offensive and since the intermediaries have to take an action within 36 hours, they ned up taking the content off the net, which is a misinterpretation. These kind of actions also give unlimited powers to any individual and private companies.”

Anja Kovas, of Internet Democracy Project, points out to a graver effect of such regulations. "Censorship on the Internet is very different from the censorship in the real world. There will always be ways to circumvent it. However, it is mostly the tech-saavy geeks and people with the knowledge of technical know-how who will have access to such technologies. For majority of people, access to such knowledge will not be easy. The danger of such laws is that the society will be polarised between people who can enjoy freedom of expression and those who cannot."

Call for pre-censorship of content on Social Media


Image courtesy: rediff.com
December 2011 saw India’s Union Communications and Information Technology minister Kapil Sibal calling for social media biggies including Google, Facebook, Twitter amongst others to pre-censor content uploaded by their users. This invited widespread criticism from Indian netizens and media alike. He later clarified that he did not mean pre-censorship of content but meant that companies ought to have standards that prevent such content from being on their space. He also insisted that these companies need to follow the law of the land, which meant that the social media companies ought to follow the restrictions to freedom of speech as deemed by the constitution. Content that violate the following issues are considered as restrictions and violations on freedom of speech.

• Security of the State
•  Friendly relations with foreign States
•  Public order
• Decency and morality
• Contempt of court
•  Defamation
•  Incitement to an offence
•  Sovereignty and integrity of India.

The media in India does not enjoy a separate ‘freedom of press’ as enshrined by the USA constitution but the freedom of press is subsumed under the freedom of speech and expression, a fundamental right. However, there are many curbs on the Indian media. For instance, Radio news is completely banned in India with the State owned ‘All India Radio’ enjoying a complete monopoly over broadcasting news over the radio. Internet till 2008 was relatively free and censorship by Government sporadic.

Sibal's proposition received a widespread criticism amongst the netizens, especially on Twitter.



The Vinay Rai Case

Amidst the din of censorship of the Internet, intermediaries like Facebook, Google and other companies faced a fresh jolt when Vinay Rai, editor of a Delhi-based Urdu newspaper Akbari, filed a case against them in December 2011 for allowing objectionable content up on their sites. Rai has submitted examples of what he deems as offensive content against various religions and religious figures that he found on the sites of these companies. However, Rai chose not to interact with the websites regarding this issue. He stated that the government is the ultimate authority to deal with multinationals in matters like these. Indian Penal Code has strict provisions against promotion of religious enmity in the country including Sec 153 (B), Section 298 among others.

Even as Google and Facebook have argued that they are not legally responsible for the content uploaded by the users, things don’t look rosy, thanks to the cyber laws in India. The outcome of the case is still pending since the case is still with the Delhi High Court.

Vijayashankar added, “Vinay Rai seems to have filed a case against content that can hurt religious sentiments of the people. There are some strong provisions in the law against hurting religious sentiments. The only fear I have is that the court should make it clear that the judgement is for this particular case alone and that the outcome of the case should not be considered as a precedent. There is a big element of public interest in this issue. It has a danger of being misinterpreted as a precedent which will affect our freedom of expression.”

Indian Govt asks Google to remove ‘offensive’ content

When the debate over Internet censorship was at its peak, Google revealed data that showed the true intentions of the Government. According to Google, the company received 68 content removal requests (which included 358 items in all) from the Government of India in the first half of 2011 (January – June) of which 51% of the requests were adhered to. The reasons ranged from defamation, national security, government criticism amongst others. It is interesting to note that of all the requests, only one of them was attributed to National security, the main reasons cited for the amendment that happened in 2008.

In April 2011, Centre for Internet and Society, a research and advocacy organisation in India revealed that the Government of India banned around 11 websites using provisions like 69B, which aforementioned give sweeping powers to the Government.

While Google stood up to the Chinese Government refusing to adhere to the latter’s censorship norms, it has not exactly shown the same spirit in India. Recently, this month, the Delhi High Court responding to a civil suit filed by Aijaz Qasmi, an Indian citizen ordered Google to remove ‘offensive content’ from their sites.  A statement released by Google read: “This step is in accordance with Google's longstanding policy of responding to court orders.” Google has already resorted to self censorship and have claimed that they will respect the law of the land. Twitter has also declared that it will censor tweets geographically.

Trivedi says, “This was bound to happen. Companies like Google, Facebook and others are business entities. They will ultimately bow down to these unfair laws. It is ultimately up to citizens of India to fight these unfair laws.” Kovacs adds that, "By making intermediaries accountable for content uploaded by the users, the Government is making sure that a vast amount of internet users can be controlled and this is dangerous."

Laws for a space sans geographical boundaries

If Facebook were a country with the number of users on it, it would be the third largest country in terms of the population. Internet by its very nature has broken geographical boundaries and epitomises the Sanskrit adage of Vasudaiva Kumtumbakam—the world is but one single family. To impose laws that are applicable to a particular geographical area to a space that knows no geography is going to be tricky indeed. While Google has announced that it will censor content as needed by the laws of the land, the same aforesaid content could be accessible in other countries. This is an exercise in futility since proxy servers could be used to access the same content from the same country where it is banned.

The battle in India is in the backdrop of global threat to Internet freedom. More than 100 countries plan to meet in Geneva on February 27, to give United Nations, power to control the Internet. While it remains to be seen how Internet censorship takes root and is fought in India, the global fight just gets as interesting!

Slutwalking in India and the besharmi of it all...

Cambridge dictionary's defines ‘slut’ as a woman who has sexual relationships with a lot of men without any emotional involvement. Now think of the word ‘slut’ that regularly is used as an abuse. What is wrong if a woman wants to live life this way? Why should she be subjected to such a judgement? Who are the people calling her a slut? Where did the meaning develop? The answers to this question pretty much determine the genesis of the word.

I dislike the word not because of what it denotes but because of the way it is used. The word slut has stopped bothering me now. At the end of the day, it is a choice made by a woman to live life the way she wants to. I hate it that that her personal choice carries along with it so much hate, disgust and humiliation that it makes so many of us cringe. It also makes so many of us be on our toes all the time lest anyone regards us as one. Besides, why should there be pressure on a woman to prove the whole world that she is not a slut? This is just another way of curtailing a woman's sexuality. There lies a very close association with the so-called sluttishness and then the following justification if she undergoes violence. It is like saying.... Be a slut and violence will follow. So, better toe the line.

Given this context, ‘Slutwalk’ does sound revolutionary. It definitely is. But then I guess it is not for everyone. I also wonder if the idea of ‘Slutwalk’ in India works for me.

Ever since I read about Slutwalks, I have been confused about my stand regarding it. My first reaction was that of discomfort. Discomfort not just with the term but about the idea in general. But then I did find myself agreeing with everything they stood for. Why this discomfort? The answers weren’t easy.

Firstly I found the campaign to be reactionary. Also for better or worse consists of only women from an upper middle class English speaking background. Now there is nothing wrong with this target group starting something. But it definitely is problematic when the issue just becomes an issue of that class alone.

So what is slutwalk all about? Where did it start from? Slutwalk has its origin in Canada where a policeman in a speech asked women to not dress like sluts in order to avoid violence.

“Slutwalk might be one of the more provocatively named events of 2011, but that's the whole point. Founded shortly after a police officer participating in a safety forum at York University's Osgoode Hall remarked that "women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized," the protest seeks to re-appropriate a term that has been used historically not just to limit and stigmatize female sexuality, but as a rationalization for sexual assault.”
More here and here.

In Canada, the police officer told women to not dress like sluts if they wanted to avoid violence. In India, people tell us to dress ‘decently’ in order to avoid molestation and rape. Dressing indecently doesn’t always mean dressing like a slut. Dressing like a slut comes much later. It can also mean pushing the boundaries of being a good girl, just a bit. So, why is this important? This is important because of the major difference in the way the word ‘slut’ —in all its regional variations—is used in India and in other countries.

It is not when you are dressed as a slut that you are molested or raped. “Good girls” from “good families” with no trace of dressing like a slut are molested too. School girls wearing uniforms, Muslim girls wearing burkha, women wearing salwar kameez, baggy pants and loose shirts get molested too. Yes, a slut gets molested too, so does a prostitute. There is no discrimination here! So it is not just when you are dressed as a slut that you are molested, you are molested if you are a girl/woman. It is as simple as that! Given this context, the very word ‘slutwalk’ seems very limiting. If the victim were ‘sluts’ alone, then ‘besharmi morcha’ makes so much sense. But since the victims are not sluts alone, what do they plan to do then? How does being besharam help? What is the point of all this ‘besharmi’? The whole thing just seems like a very direct import from the West. As Tamura A. Lomax, a black feminist says in this very well writtenblog post  that, the need to want the freedom to dress the way we want is a demand made by women in privileged positions. Indeed, to proudly claim oneself a “slut” (meaning, to boldly and explicitly claim one’s sexual liberty), with little to no socio-political consequence, is (sort of) a privilege—Lomax.

My right to public space is denied to me NOT because I am a slut but because I am a woman. And I want to demand my right to a safe public space as a woman and that includes rights of sluts too. There are many things that are denied to me because I am a woman. So, basically the struggle is to reclaim all my rights as a woman and that encompasses rights of a good girl, rights of a bad girl, and rights of a “slut” among many others. For me the fight is to be treated as a human being. The situation in Canada is considerably different from that in India. If I dare say so, their fights and struggles are not as basic as it is here. Our daily fight is for the world to consider us a HUMAN BEING worthy of living a life. As Lomax says: “This reality, which significantly impacts African American women and girls’ day-to-day experiences, makes it difficult to fight for “slut-hood,” particularly when one is still demanding to be seen as a full-fledged person with innate dignity and worth.”

The thing is, if a girl is molested, she would be advised not to roam out at night alone. Case in point being the Delhi police commissioner who advises women in Delhi not to roam at night all alone. Not always are woman chided for being’ besharam’. Is the ‘besharmi morcha’ going to address these attitudes or is it just about the freedom to dress the way they like? I am not implying that freedom to dress is trivial. I really wish I could dress the way I want to without having to worry about people, setting and countless other things. But then when one talks about that without factoring in various other social realities, the whole exercise just seems like a blind import from the West without contextualization. The use of words like sluts, or besharmi would I am afraid alienate a lot of people because not everyone would want to be considered a ‘besharam’ to just walk on the road freely. This is a struggle that is common across womenfolk. But ‘besharmi morcha’ doesn’t seem like addressing that. It is self-defeating if it doesn’t unify women who more or less face the same problem across the society.

Oh yes, the girls will get media attention for sure. ‘Sluttishness’ is sexy! Dressing slutty will definitely make for sexy images on page 1 or page 3. It will make for a sexy copy too! But then, what beyond that? Will it address the issue in a deeper way? In my opinion, the issue should be to address issues of street sexual harassment, safety of women in streets, reclaiming public space for women in a holistic way. How do the organisers of the ‘besharmi morcha’ even plan on doing that?

Recent interviews by the organisers have them clarifying again and again that women can dress in whatever clothes they feel like and that there is no pressure to wear anything skimpy. Now what is the point of calling it besharmi morcha? *puzzled*

The campaign (with all its contradictions) is at best a shock raising event. I guess, at the end of the day, even they play a role in a city that is notorious towards women.

Also, NO WOMAN ever asks for it!

Is it possible to be proud of one's Brahmin roots?

This post made me revisit a dilemma I have had for quite some time now. I will revisit my dilemma later on. First of all, I want to respond to this post. In this post Rahul Pandita, a journalist, talks about his Brahmin-ness and wonders why he should not feel proud about his Brahmin roots and culture.
It is important to understand the caste hierarchy. Brahmins, as we all know, occupy the topmost position in the hierarchy. Their position that they enjoy and have enjoyed over a period of years is also based on severe oppression of lower castes. Simply put, one is not a Brahmin just like that. The position of that of a Brahmin cannot be without oppression. To put it very simply, Brahmins became possessors of knowledge purely on the basis of exclusion. Because of the position they enjoyed, they could conveniently exclude people who were non-Brahmins and their power also could be sustained by centuries of exclusion. It still continues. I haven’t seen many non-Brahmin priests. It is still the domain of Brahmins. So what are we saying, when one says, “I am proud of Brahmin culture.” Can we be proud of a culture that has evolved under conditions of having oppressed such a large majority? I definitely don’t think so. Culture cannot be devoid of politics. Culture that evolved then was also an outcome of political economy of that given period. Thus, it cannot be viewed in isolation of this historic background. It is important to know and understand under what conditions the cultural practices originated from.

Rahul Pandita is a Kashmiri Pandit. Their history of displacement has been very painful to say the least. It just appears to me that he has taken recourse to his culture as a response to being a victim of displacement. Taking recourse to one's culture is a very common way of connecting to one's roots especially in the face of physical displacement. The history of caste oppression of Dalits has been happening across centuries and cannot even be compared to the displacement of Kashmiri Pandits. Their history of oppression existed long before the displacement of Kashmiri Pandits. That is why I think Kashmiri Brahmin culture cannot be contextualised without taking into account the centuries' old oppression of the Dalits.  Feeling sorry for the Dalits is futile if one doesn't take into account that their condition is very deeply connected to the Brahmin culture.

Recently, there has been a website that has been famously frequented by many Tamil Brahmins. It is called the TamBrahm RageTambrahm rage. It is a site where Tamil Brahmins collectively make fun of all things Tam Brahm. When I checked out TamBrahm Rage, I experienced mixed reactions. When I go through Tam Brahm rage, I feel an acute discomfort when I see people laughing at all the jokes and the rituals. That is because I often wonder if they are just mocking or actually being critical of the entire thing? But even as I say this, I also laugh at the same jokes that that I am being critical of right now. That is because I think there are some things I have no control over. For instance, my upbringing. And it does have a major influence on things I do relate to. All my life, I have seen all these practices happening all around me. It has been an inevitable part of my growing up and my reality. I have never bothered to join the innumerable Tam Brahm groups on various social networking sites as I find it absolutely ridiculous to talk at a platform where the main reason of association is that of being a Brahmin. But then, I do frequent Tam Brahm rage sometimes because it does consist of some (of the many) questions I asked in my childhood which were left unanswered. Many of which are also ultimately responsible for my disregard to Brahminism as a whole.

The issue of personal identity is a very complex one. While I don’t consider myself as a Brahmin per se, I am one by default, in terms of my upbringing; in terms of certain privileges I have enjoyed being one. While I consciously do not associate myself with the identity of being a Brahmin and its associated rituals, I wonder if I can be away from it at all? Ideally I would want the destruction of the entire caste system and the annihilation of caste identity.  But then, I also wearily sometimes wonder, is it possible?

Can one really separate culture from the oppressive conditions it thrived in? Carnatic classical music has been a preserve of only Brahmins till now. This clearly means that Brahmins would have isolated everyone outside of their community in the spread of the art. No wonder we only have Brahmin performers ruling the roost. But then, I love Carnatic music very much. I often wonder where I stand. I often wonder if I can ever enjoy it without these confusions in my head.

An open letter to Rajan Welukar

Dr Rajan Welukar, they claim you are the vice chancellor. But I think that is paying you too much of a compliment. You are just a first rate coward! So you decide to ban Rohinton Mistry’s Such a long journey because some thugs decided that Mistry offended Bal Thackeray! Brilliant stuff! Kudos for caving in to the demands of the thugs!

Co incidentally, I am reading a beautiful book right now- Reading Lolita in Tehran a book by Azar Nafisi. It is a sheer co-incidence that it was only two days ago that I read a chapter where she talks about how she dealt with a situation where books were being banned left, right and centre in Iran in the 80s as they were accused of propagating ‘Western’ values, values which were decadent enough to corrupt the youth. She later talks about how she puts the novel, the Great Gatsby on trial in her class because of few opinionated students in her class who want the book banned.

“Was it necessary to put this book on trial? I was somewhat taken aback. Did he want me to throw the book aside without so much as a word in its defense?” (An excerpt)

I am not asking you to conduct a trial. But have you even read the book? I am sure you haven’t. So why do you really want to ban a book? How does it help to ban a book? Why didn’t the students get any chance to give their opinion? Do you think they are not capable of having an opinion or do they really not matter at all in the given scheme of things? Am I asking for too much? Did you even ask the teachers what they thought of the book? I am asking this because you seem to have effected this ban by bypassing the academic council. You only chose to hear one puny section of the student (?!) group and decided to act. It is appalling that a vice chancellor of a university which is 150 years old chooses to act in such a cowardly fashion. It is not just cowardly, it is also chauvinistic. By not taking into account the opinion of any other the groups associated with education per se, you have exhibited totalitarian attitude.

And that was Iran where it happened. India I think despite all its problems is still a democracy. I am not shocked by Shiv Sena’s acts. They have acted according to what is expected of them. But what message does a university send when it caves down to empty threats like these?

It saddens me to see not a whiff of protest either from the student community or the teachers’ community. It reflects the sad talibanisation of our society, a society that is marred by fear and apathy.

So, what next? Which other group’s pathetic ego do you plan to appease next? What are you planning to do? Do you have a list of dos and donts that a novel should follow in order to be considered to be taught in your esteemed university.

I used to be a student of this university once. I feel very sad when I look at it now, in its current state. Mumbai University is dead and I mourn its demise.

I end my piece by again quoting these lines from Reading Lolita in Tehran. Such a long journey was this and a lot more!

A good novel is one that shows the complexity of individuals, and creates enough space for all these characters to have a voice; in this way a novel is called democratic-not that it advocates democracy but that by nature it is so.

Sincerely,
Shobha S V

P.S. Oh I just came across this. Some hope!

Should writing be a task to finish?

Quite occasionally, I read the weekly column by Soumya Bhattacharya on his experiences being a parent to his daughter Oishi. I read his column on 14th March, Pre-Emptive action in Hindustan Times and wrote to him. Following are my observations :-)

Hello Mr Bhattacharya,

I read your column with lot of interest every week. Your column on 14th March, 2010 was very interesting. I have many things to share with you.

Firstly I am very critical of the mainstream education system. It saddens me to see writing given as a task. By making creative writing a task somehow obliterates the love for it. It is a sure shot way of kicking joy away. Don’t you think?

The pedagogic system and parent-child relationship have one common feature- the desire for approval. Let me explain. When the child is given a task, the task is given by someone who is in a superior power relation as compared to a child. It can be a parent or a teacher. The child is acutely aware of this lop-sided power relation. Therefore there comes a need for the child to please the person in power by fulfilling the task that has been given. You see, in this process the whole idea of the creative activity is lost. Creativity is just for one’s own self. I do understand that artists too need their audience. But should this need to please others be inscribed at such a young age? Should one inculcate the desire to find gratification in one’s own work through seeking approval from others at such a young age?

The hierarchy and the resultant unequal power equations in the education system (between the teacher and the child) and in the family (between the parent and the child) bother me. I think the power over the other manifests itself in this need for approval that we all seek and have sought at one stage or the other. I think children need to be left alone to do things that they want to do, that they wish to do. Besides, it is definitely not easy to state an opinion in a way that doesn’t come across as evaluation of the same. Only when this need for approval and evaluation goes away can the boundaries between the teacher and a child disappear (in terms of hierarchy) and can they both learn and discover things together. This applies to parent-child relationship too. Only then will a child realise that human beings are all fallible in nature. Only then as you mentioned in your last column, will the children not feel astonished when they find that their parent often doesn’t know everything. I think the disappointment of parents not being super human beings can vanish if parents and child learn an activity (that is new to both of them) together.

Besides I feel your daughter needs all the praise from your side. Small slips are always pardonable. The mistakes should never over shadow the creative work that the child has come up with. I do understand the anxiety of a parent regarding dispraise that the child can face. But then sadly that is the system we live in. I really don’t have an answer for that dilemma.

Keep writing.

Regards,

Shobha S V

What's in a name? Lots says Bombay High Court

Ok, this is going to be a rant.

I came across this article and yea I am irritated! Apparently divorced women cannot use their ex-husbands' name. If there is no legal compulsion on a woman to change her name after marriage, why should there be any compulsion on her to change her name if her marriage ends? Why can't she have the freedom to choose? Why should there even be an option available only for a woman to change her last name post marriage is something that totally puzzles me. But then I'm reminded of being in a patriarchal society...blah blah and blah!

The whole idea that a woman's identity is totally related to presence of absence of men in her life is so problematic. Currently there is a move to disqualify the citizenship of a Kashmiri woman in case she marries a non-Kashmiri person. To know more...read this and this . I hope that this bill is opposed tooth and nail. It is a big problem if a democratic state treats its women as someone devoid of any independent identity of her own.

WTF!

This is ridiculous. I just don't have any other words for it.

An appeal for your support

A very strange time is upon us…
Very recently, TATA Sons filed a case against us (oktatabyebye.com) in infringement of their TATA name (as our domain name contains the 'TATA' word!). Tata Sons has contended that it is confusingly similar to its 'Tata' brand and the travel portal runner has no rights or legitimate interests to use it. The company had argued that the site infringed the right of its registered trademark/service mark 'Tata'.

What is even more ridiculous is the fact that TATAs actually won this case.

And in a decision by a sole panelist, ownership of the domain OkTataByeBye.com has been awarded to TATA by WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) Arbitration and Mediation Centre.

This is taking the whole idea of copyright infringement to another (stupid) level altogether. What next? Are they planning to sue every one of us for uttering TATA without their permission?

Meena Mami-2

Hello world :-)
It seems so good to be back here. I was away all this while because I just did not feel like blogging anymore. It was one long break. However, the urge to communicate in this space has come back and I'm glad to be here once again. So many things have happened ever since I blogged last. But then let's not delve into that. Ever since I decided I want to blog again I kept wondering what should be my comeback post. Something happened few days ago that made my decision very easy. I was convinced that I have to write about it because there is a small connection with my blog. I don't know how many of my old blogger friends, acquaintances who would read my latest post. But does anybody remember this ? For all the new readers here, please do read this, otherwise the following post wouldn't make any sense.

Circa 2004...
It is amazing but I got to meet Meena Mami just few months after having made this entry.
(I still remember that I wanted to write about the incident but laziness took the better of me). Out of the blue, one day my father told me about how his common friend mentioned about Meena Mami coming to Bombay to meet a relative. I was so excited hearing about the news and I couldn't believe that I was getting a chance to meet her just months after having written the post. That was quick! I got the details of the relative and went to meet her. Before meeting I did call her and she stood outside the door waiting for me. It was wonderful meeting her after
such a long time. Mami thought I had changed quite a lot and we began catching up with our lives. Meanwhile I also called up Lalitha who spoke to Meena Mami after more than 15 years. It was amazing. Pieces of the jigsaw puzzle were finally falling in place. However we still had to find Bablu.

Circa 2005...
Later I got busy with my graduation, work and other things in life that searching for Bablu was put on a backburner. Then in 2005, Lalitha came back to be my neighbour once again...after 17 long years and it was just as it was before :-) During that time we realised that even though we were in touch with Meena Mami, we still did not know anything about Bablu. It is only after this that we both began a search for him. Till then funnily enough both of us (me and Lalitha) did not know his official name. We never needed to know, he was always Bablu for us. We later learnt that Bablu's official name was Vijay Raghavan. Wow! This news was enough for us to find him online in this age of Internet (or so I thought). We began our search for him immediately. I searched for him on Orkut and of course, Google. We still couldn't find him. Most of the Vijay Raghavans we found were younger than me. Finally we found one person whom I thought could be him. He was from Bombay. I discussed about this exciting possibility with Lalitha. When we figured out his age from the online records, it hit us that he was 35 which couldn't have been possible even in 2005. Our online search also hit a dead end. Sigh! :-( After then, we always wondered where Bablu would be. We wondered if he ever searched for us. However there were no answers. We left it at that. However somewhere deep down I just knew that we would all meet again. The only question was 'when' for which I had no answer.

2009...
Even though me and Lalitha knew about the whereabouts of Meena Mami, I was not in frequent touch with her though we did speak over the phone couple of times. Lalitha was more regular, thankfully. She used to talk to her quite often and I used to get updates from her. After 2004, I couldn't meet Meena Mami even once. But the very fact that I knew that she was fine kept me satisfied. After 2004, Meena Mami lived in Noida, in Chennai and host of other places before settling down in an old age home in Sringeri in Tamil Nadu. Last month I came to know that Mami would be in Delhi in the month of July. I did not have Mami's contact number and Lalitha told me that she would be contacting me once I reach Delhi by July end. I got a call two days ago and I set out to meet her. This time I met her after 5 whole years. I noticed that Meena Mami had aged even further. Rather than salt and pepper hair, Mami now possesses silver grey hair. We began talking and the subject of Bablu came up again. We again spoke about how sad it was not to know a single detail about Bablu. Then I asked her, "Mami, is Bablu's full name Vijay Raghavan?" She replied in affirmative. "So his father's name was Raghavan?", I asked. "No, his dad's name is Parthsarathy." "Oh so his name is Vijayraghavan Parthasarathy. Ohhhh!" It suddenly hit me that we never knew his correct full name. We had assumed it wrongly. All this while we had searched for Bablu using a wrong name! This information brought a smile on my face since I realised that it would be easier for us to search for him again.

I went online and I began searching for Vijayaraghavan Parthasarathy. I thought not many people would have a name like this. But no, I was sorely mistaken. I found close to 10 people by the same name. I wondered who would Bablu be among this. I surfed through people's profiles and found that they did not quite match Bablu's probable description. Finally I landed on a page which was out of bounds for me. But I could still see the guy's communities and I decided to send him a message. I also found a guy on Facebook and I pinged him as well. During this process I did wonder if I would be successful in my attempt. Subsequently I got back to my work. After about 15 minutes I refreshed my Orkut page and I saw that this Orkut fellow had added me. I wondered why. Within a moment I saw his scrap on my page and I couldn't believe what I had seen on the page...."This is Bablu, the same. I have been looking out for ways to contact Meena Mami so long. After we moved to a different place we lost contact. When we did go back all we were told was she moved to Delhi. PLease give me your phone no. Where do you live? How are ur parents. I live in USA. I will be waiting for your reply."

I kept staring at the screen and still couldn't believe it. The other contents of the scrap convinced me that he can't be an imposter. The jigsaw puzzle pieces had finally fallen in place. It was amazing :-) I had found Bablu...finally!!!! It took me few moments to register this. I immediately called Lalitha. She was on another call. I kept calling her. Finally when she did answer, I screamed....."We have found Bablu!!!!" Lalitha was dumb stuck and her reaction was quite thanda! All she could say was, "Yea? How?" I explained to her. She did not appear to be very convinced. Meanwhile I added Bablu on my messenger and hoped and waited he would come online. After an hour he did come and then called me. At 1 am, me, Bablu and Lalitha had a telephonic conference. Oh...it was just unbelievable. Bablu couldn't believe it and neither could we. Meena Mami could finally talk to Bablu. Bablu had tried hard to trace Mami, but sadly was
unsuccessful. He had not tried searching for us...hehe! He admits that he did not think about that :-) But we did the needful and here we are...all back in touch again :D This is such a filmy story....This is my Yaadon ki Baarat!!! Ismein drama hain, emotions hain, bacche bichadte hain....phir 20 saal baad milte hain... too much :D When we finally did meet Bablu, we found him married with a kid. Bablu promptly called Meena Mami the next day. For Mami, this was a shock and such a pleasant shock at that :-) When I spoke to her later, she couldn't believe how quickly everything happened. Bablu gave her contact details to his parents and even they got in touch with her. My parents and Lalitha's parents still can't believe that we found Bablu. It is tough for them to realise that world is indeed such a small place for people of our generation :-)

Come to think of it, if only I had asked the correct question of Bablu's father's name few years before, the reunion would have happened long time ago. But it's all good now. Better late than never :-) Many people ask me in wonderment how I can remember incidents when I was so young? Well, even though I don't remember everything, I do have vivid memories of certain things. Besides I was showered with lots of love that I have a good feeling whenever I think of those days (despite memories being hazy)

Currently, the reunion has still not happened in its entiriety. We are all waiting for Bablu's visit to India so that we all could go and meet Meena Mami together :-) Now that'll be one filmy pic :-) YAYY!!!

Open letter to Mumbai top-cop Jadhav

Dear Mr Jadhav,
I just saw you on TV. It was quite an enlightening experience. I did not know molestation was a small thing. Hmmm...that's news to me. I did not have an inkling about that.

You see, I am quite dumb. I did not have a clue of how your yardstick works.I did not realise how small the crime is before you clarified it. You know, I am molested quite often on roads. In fact many of us are. But well, now I know, it is such a small thing. We will definitely ignore these occurances from now on because we know how small and insignificant it is.

So Mr Jadhav, tell me one thing. How do you classify various crimes? Is attempt to murder a small thing? Well, i assume since it is just an attempt, it will be small. the deed's not done as yet, right? Tell me, what do you think it needs to classify molestation as a big crime? Will you wait for the rape to happen to classify it as a big one? Do you wait for the deed to be done?

I am eagerly waiting for your reply. I don't know if you will ever read this. But I will try my level best to get the message across.

Regards,
Shobha



I just kept staring at the TV screen. My first reaction was of absolute shock and disbelief. Later anger took over followed by helplessness. Mr Jadhav, you shock me completely and I am ashamed of you.

How can you classify molestation of 2 girls by a mob of 70-80 scum (I refuse to call them men) as small? I really want to know your yardstick because I really don't get it. I can't believe that this man is the commissioner of police of Mumbai. He is responsible for the safety of the citizens out of which half of them are women. WOW!

I quite agree with Mr Jadhav, molestations happen everywhere. But what doesn't happen everywhere is your reaction to it. Unfortunately not everyone can be as clinical as you are. You have no right to dismiss it as just another small case. Your primary responsiblity is the safety of every citizen in the city. Now that everyone knows how miserably you failed in the duty, at least have the grace to accept the mistake. I know how capable you are especially since this is a repeat of what happened last year in Gateway of India.

Continuous exposure to various kinds of crime on a daily basis can make anyone a tad indifferent. One tends to become immune to even the most serious of crimes. I say this because, being a journalist, one experiences the same. Many friends of mine who cover crime, talk of
rapes, murders as if they are discussing prices of vegetables. Well, we can't do anything about it. However, as a commissioner of police, one needs to be extra cautious. You should never let the cynicism affect you. You have no business being cynical and insensitive. This post comes with some responsibility and Its your responsiblity to ensure safety of every citizen. The numbers don't matter. You should be careful enough to note that the crimes aren't just bland statistics for
you.

I am in talks with many friends who are completely outraged by this man's comment. For starters, please write an open letter to Jadhav in your blog. Some of them want to file a PIL against this man too. Many of us are also looking at filing an official complaint with the
Maharashtra State Women's Commission against this man. Only if action is taken at the top, will the bottom rung understand that molestation is NOT A SMALL THING. I will definitely post about the developments here. Keep watching this space. Besides, if you have any ideas, please keep them coming :)

Looking forward for it.

Bhutto killed!!!!

I really don't know what to type here. I'm just shocked completely after seeing the news bulletin of Benazir Bhutto's death. It's just so sad to see how unstable Pakistan is politically....

Harry Potter

Like zillion others, I love the Harry Potter series. I think J K Rowling has created such a beautiful world that it tempts me to be a part of it every time I read any of the books.
I recently finished re-reading all the seven books back to back and I fell in love with the series all over again. I've always been a sucker for fantasy. However, it's an irony that I hadn't read a single book pertaining to the genre of fantasy before Harry Potter. Of course I was a great fan of magic series that used to be broadcasted everyday in Sony Entertainment Television almost a decade ago. I dream of Genie, Bewitched were my favourites. I was also a big fan of Alice in Wonderland too. Such was my craze that whenever I was at a receiving end of a punishment from a teacher, I would pray hard that I possess powers enough to turn the teacher into a donkey. Alas, that never happened. Sigh!

Ok, I digress. One of the main reasons for writing this post was this article. I wanted to blog about it couple of months back, but couldn't, thanks to my laziness. Suffice to say Dumbledore is one of my favourite characters of the book. When I read that he was gay, the first thought that stuck me was why did JKR announce it after the launch of the 7th book and not include it in the story. It kind of angered me because as a ardent reader of the series, I kind of felt cheated. Why add details after the launch of the book when you haven't bothered to include it in the story. I know, many of you will think that Dumbledore being gay has got nothing to do with the story and that it doesn't make any difference. However, I disagree. The whole last half of Book-7 talks about Dumbledore's intense friendship with Grindelwald. The intense friendship going horribly wrong lead to many things including Dumbledore's refusal to inform Harry about the Deathly Hallows and many other plot twists. Rather than mentioning intense friendship, she might as well could have said passionate love affair. I wonder what's the big deal about it. Personally I think, it would have made the series so honest and human. What is the point in shying away from such stuff?

However, this incident did irritate me because I think its hypocritical when authors push issues like homosexuality under carpet or camoflage it by using euphemisms. There are umpteen number of fan sites related to Harry Potter. It just shows the kind of fan following the Harry Potter,series has. People share intimate relationships with several characters, Dumbledore being one of the main ones. It is funny that when she has gone ahead and mentioned love stories of Harry-Ginny, Snape, Ron-Hermione, Tonks-Lupin, and various other characters, why did she not talk about Dumbledore's relationship openly? Did she think that by mentioning Dumbledore's sexuality, the fan following would have been affected?

But, all said and done, I love the series and can't thank JK Rowling enough for the delightful read. Sometimes I think, how can we ever repay some musicians, authors, cartoonists and other artistes who give so much happiness through their work. I sometimes envy them for their ability to make people happy. It truly is an enviable gift :)

Goodbye

I have never been very comfortable with poems. I hardly read any. Though off late, I enjoy reading Neha's poems. Couple of days back, I came across this blog by Shreyasi and I read Homecoming. The poem took me back to the memory lane and then I came up with Goodbye.

I think Shreyasi's written a beautiful poem and it deserves a mention again :)

Homecoming

I will leave when you sleep
Quietly, on tip-toes

I will slowly fold the morning light
Wrap the pale sun around me
Push the chill with a coat brush

I will stop for a while to catch a last glimpse
Of sights I have always seen
Or one made uniquely for me

And when am gone
I will wish that you wake up
To see the crease on the armchair seat

I will look down from the porthole
Poring over the matchbox city
To find you in the lap of the beautiful sea

I will leave when you sleep
Quietly, on tip-toes

I'm actually a bit scared for I have never posted a poem before. Please do read the following and leave behind your comments. I need a frank opinion :) Let me know what you think... :)


Goodbye

Blissfully asleep
Deep in my dreams
Completely unaware...that you are leaving.

I think you look at me
Affectionately
and wish you could talk to me
But you go away.

And then when I wake up
My eyes search for you
And I chuckle,
For I know
Playing a game, we are
You remain cleverly hidden.

I ask Amma,
Tells me you've left.
Angry I am
You did not tell me
I rush towards the door
In a hope to see you walking by
but the door knob I can't open...
I sit down and cry
Unable to grapple with my helplessness
I've always hated goodbyes.

Bangalore, Home and other musings

WOW....it's been one year in Bangalore. I find it difficult to believe it myself. Having never been away from home in my life before, this is a bit special for me. I never really thought I will live and work in another city. For someone who's never left home ever, this is definitely a small but a significant milestone of my life.

Bangalore was always my second home for me with some of my favourite people residing here. It used to be a regular summer vacation adda. However, nothing could prepare me for my work experience here. I realised that my work life is going to completely alter my perspective about the city. Till I came here for work Bangalore for me was my paati's house, bunch of cousins and the time spent with them.

Reporting is such an awesome way to discover a city. I now know more about Bangalore than my paati who's been staying here for the past six decades. It's fascinating when I look back at the process of discovering the city and how it slowly starting changing the way I look at Bangalore too. I was conscious about it all the time.

Well, I went home recently after 11 long months. Phew! I can't believe it myself. This has been the longest I have been from away from home. When I went home, I noticed one thing. I think majority of people living in metropolitian areas don't really leave their homes/cities. Even if people leave, they usually go abroad (A small but a significant student population).

It was such a pleasant experience for me to go back home and see not much has changed. Yea, some friends of mine have left the city, but not everyone. It would have been quite unnerving had most of my friends left the place.

This visit back home had me thinking about lot of things. What exactly is home? Is it still home only if one's parents and friends live there? Or is it home wherever they go? Will Palakkad/Patna/Bangalore (Any random city/village) be home to me if my parents shift there? Will B'bay still be home to me if all my friends leave the place? What is it about the place that makes me call it a home? It's such a complex thing. I'm trying hard to put a finger on it. If internal migration can make me think like this, I shudder to think what it might do to people who have migrated abroad.

Is it people who make me feel at home or the language or the culture or the nostalgia? Can it be called a home even when there are no known people around? Some of my friends who left for USA or other countries for further studies come back and can't relate to half of the things back home. No, I'm not referring to their snobbery here. They come back to to see that everything has changed. The cities they lived in have changed. Gallis, Nukkads, Houses have undergone major changes. Their people have left the city. They cannot relate to anything. I wonder how traumatic it will be. Will the new place or the adopted country be home suddenly? I reckon it would be a very difficult for them to consider a new place as their new home (which is only few years old) as opposed to what was home for the past 20 odd years (that doesn't exist in the same form as they remember it)... Sigh....I think when you are not a part of the changes that happen back home, it can completely alienate you.

Some of my friends who live in smaller towns feel sad about this fact. Not just smaller towns, big cities too. When they go home, they get bored too quickly since none of their friends are present. I can't imagine being bored when I go home. When I went home last month, I realised I know far too many people there. It was just impossible to meet everyone. I wanted to see everyone though.

However, I felt nice that I still had a long list of people to meet. When I was leaving for Bangalore by an early morning train, I met so many friends and acquaintances in the railway station. I was glad that I still had people whom I could say a hello to. I still found familiar faces around. I wasn't a completely nobody. People still knew me despite of my absence for almost a year. Felt very nice.

We cling to things. Most of us resist changes, including me to a large extent. I hope some things don't change. But I know my wishes are foolhardy since the only thing that will never cease to change is change itself. I think the idea of home is constantly undergoing some change or the other. I think many of us will have different homes at various stages of life. It is tough to even imagine the inevitable thing. Sigh!

Second hand books

Circa 1990s....
Me: Again second hand books? Why can't I have new ones?

Amma: Ganeshan Mama has been so kind to give us the textbooks every year. We did not even ask him. He and his wife volunteered and we couldn't refuse. It would have ben rude.

Me: But can't you just tell them that I don't like it? Arrey, I want new books ma. Why don't you understand?

Amma: Shobha, how does it matter? The books are in a very good condition. When you have such good books, what is the need to buy a new one? You can always buy other books with the same money. Tell me, don't you think the books are good?

Me: But I don't want other books, I need NEW textbooks.

Amma: Tell me, don't you think the books are in good condition?

Me: Well, yea...they are.....but.....

Amma: I think buying new books would be a waste of money. We will not spend money on something that we already have.

Me: But all my friends have new books. Only I don't have them.

Amma: Shobha, don't compare yourself with your friends. Everyone is different. Besides, is there any difference in the old and the new book? It is not as if your textbooks contain old matter in comparison to the new ones.

Me: You are being totally unfair. (I leave the room crying)

2007: SMS conversation

Me: Ok, what book you want for your b'day?

D: Give anything you want of your choice.

Me: Hmmm...ok...Will it be ok if I give u second hand books? Tell me if its alright with you. If you don't like the idea, its perfectly ok. But let me know.

D: I love second hand books.

Me: :)

From being close to tears because my parents forced me to use second hand text books in school to actively buying and gifting second hand books, I have come a full circle today. Unnecessary consumption can be stopped whenever possible. Sometimes, I realise my parents were so cool. My parents came up the hard way. The economic backgrounds of their families weren't particularly flattering during their childhood. However their lifestyles did not radically change once they started earning well. It is remarkable that they have continued with their simple lifestyle. Amma still follows the adage of 'Simple living and high thinking'. She proudly flaunts it. Hehe...

'Hand me downs' are never fun, especially when you are a kid. C'mon, whoever likes using old stuff? Not surprisingly, I always used to be at loggerheads with my parents when I was in school. Most of my school textbooks were second hand. Our family friend Ganeshan mama's son was a year older to me. This effectively meant that all his school textbooks were handed down to me after a year.

At one point of time, I used to think that we are very poor as compared to my friends because of this annual ritual. Only poor families did things like this, no? Indulging in self pity was an annual ceremony (It makes me laugh now). The ill-feeling with my parents would last for a month or so, before all my friends' books started resembling like mine and I would be normal again. Worse, after a point of time, my books looked better than their new ones.

This used to bother me quite a bit. I once asked Amma if we indeed are very poor. I remember Amma having laughed at my question. She assured me that we were not poor but was very firm on having a simple lifestyle. Now-a-days it often strikes me as to how amazing my parents have been in certain ways without even them realising it. I was never a fan of their simple lifestyle and always dreamed of spending extravagantly once I started earning. While I did indulge in some consumerist fantasies earlier, nowadays I see myself constantly questioning it. Earlier I would tom-tom about how retail therapy was an instant cure for depression. Now, I laugh at my own claims.

For the first time I will do something that I have never done before. I will be gifting a second hand book to one of my dearest friends. Amma-Appa have always maintained that it is the emotion behind the gift that matters and not the gift per se. I have never consciously gifted anyone second hand. I always thought, it was not a right thing to do. I don't exactly think likewise now. The 'always' bit can be tampered around a bit. Earlier, my refusal to use second hand books was more to do with my stupid pride. I think I was too bothered about what my friends would think of me.

I now believe that I should use every product till it completely looses its utility value. What Amma intended then makes complete sense to me now. Both the new and the old textbook served the same purpose. So, there was no point in actually buying a new book when I had a slightly older one to serve the same purpose. Besides, it also reduced unnecessary consumption.

The above SMS conversation just reminded me of my childhood. It's amazing how certain incidents can make you look at your parents in a completely different light. I love my parents' simplicity :) I think as one grows older, one starts appreciating certain facets of our parents' personalities which we would never have thought or appreciated before. Come to think of it, I consider my parents' so-called kanjoosi then as simplicity now. Hehe :)

Why the world hates America?

I read about Postglobal during one of my aimless surfing sojourns and came across this and I was hooked on to it. The first thing that stuck me while reading the blog was, "How I wish, I could also do the series!" (I remember having felt something similar before) It's an amazing assignment which gives a chance to go to different countries and meet different kinds of people from all over the world. I personally feel it's a huge kick for any journalist. Sigh....I wish I'm able to do something similar in future. However, I thought I will do an email interview with Amar C Bakshi, the chief contributor of the project and well, here it is....

How did you become involved with the project? What has been your personal interest in it?
I proposed it to Fareed Zakaria, David Ignatius and Hal Straus. They were all very supportive. I've been fascinated by views of America ever since seeing strong political anti-American rhetoric in Zimbabwe. It is also a crucial issue facing Americans, one worth exploring and putting a human face on.

How many countries have you visited till now for this project?
So far I've been to England and India. I'm in Jammu&Kashmir now, going to Pakistan next week. Then I'm taking a break for a few weeks before pushing off to East Asia or the Middle East.

Starting afresh in a new country with an assignment can be quite a task. Can you tell me a little more about how did you go about your work in various countries? Who all helped you?
I've received great help from MJ Akbar, who put me in touch with Asian Age correspondents around the country. Similarly India Express reporters in Srinagar and Calicut were very helpful. It varies greatly -- between contacts from the Post, friends, other journalists and luck I manage to get by.

You have met a lot of people and written about hem on your blog too. Can you talk about any interesting experience which you haven't mentioned in the blog? (Something that would be irrelevant for the site, but interesting nevertheless)
Well, I've made a lot of friends along the way. The girls from the TV in the American Language piece opened up Manchester nightlife for me, which was a blast, and I got a real deep look into Blackburn's tabacco hookah scene before the smoking ban went into effect.

What are the apsirations of the youth you met in various cities and countries?
Big question, but basically to earn money, have fun, and improve the lot of their family or community in some way. Aspirations of youth are vital. I always ask about it, especially because often the U.S. is a part of those aspirations for more education or money, or to resist. Anyway, not sure what else to say here. Maybe you can be more specific?

Your parents are from India. As opposed to the initial views you had about India, what are the different things that you experienced about India especially in this specific assignment?
Well, America was always the sole land of opportunity for my parents. I'm seeing now more and more how India itself has become the land of opportunity for many of the brightest students. Seeing this energetic, hopeful part of India is wonderful.

Did you come to Bangalore? (Bangalore has a huge section of population working in call centres serving clients from USA) I believe you went to Mumbai and interacted with the call centre junta there. What were your observations? How was it visiting South India?
I loved South India. I loved the way people laugh there. I visited call centers primarily in Chennai, and didn't end up going to Bangalore for a variety of logistical reasons, and because a lot of American journalists seem to go there, I figured I'd look at Hyderabad or Chennai. I spent time in Kerala too driving up and down.
I found call centers very interesting because of the aspirations of the young who work there -- for money, success, material things, and a chance. Often America represents a meritocratic ideal, which is interesting. Also, it's fascinating for Americans to see who it is calling them. I think it might be alienating for call center employees to call hostile, distant Americans, and it might be aggravating for Americans to get distant phone calls, but by putting the two communities in touch online and showing a face to both sides, it creates understand, the goal of this project. I was proud of the call center piece and hope it gets more Americans aware of just who calls them.

You talk about Muslims in madrassas being close minded. But are you aware of instances of modernisation of Madarssas wherein Maths, English are being introduced? (There are some madrassas like that in Bangalore)
I never talked about Muslims in madrassas being closed minded. In fact, my post was about how modern Muslim madrasas in Malegaon can be. I've taken readers/viewers into madrasas in Malegaon to show them how progressive they can be, how education-oriented they can be
My other post talked about how Muslim teachers avoided teaching politics, but curious students wanted to know more. And in that case the teachers used history and theology to say that there is no need to enter politics because all great powers fall. It's a peaceful but tricky balance. *** Please fix your line above where you say I say Muslims in madrassas are closeminded. This is a misunderstanding on your part. Thank you!***

For a patriot (you mention in a post about how you hung American flag prominently at the entrance of your house after 9/11) was it unnerving to hear people's opinions regarding their hatred for America? Was this the first time you were personally coming across such views?
It was unnerving. See this. But it wasn't the first time. Doing research in Zimbabwe I can across really vehement criticisms of the U.S. as a neo-colonial force by a lot of government ministers who got political mileage, like Mugabe, off of such rhetoric.

Books like Inheritance of Loss, The Kite Runner have portrayed that despite the faults, USA is still the place to realise one's dreams. Do you think it is a dominant perception while interacting with the youth in India? How was it interacting with a upper middle class urban Muslim youth of India?
Yes, I think it is true. America still represents great hope. In Srinagar, for example, I am finding the same. Now there are certainly chinks in America's gleaming armor, but it still as an ideal holds weight. Upper middle clas urban Muslim youth that I met were incredibly bright and worldly. Like most Indians, they criticized recent American foreign policy and hoped that it would genuinely support human rights and democracy, and like most Indians they felt great love for the idea of America, though wariness of its international actions over time, and especially lately.

Racial profiling of people from South Asia is a common phenomenon in USA that was started after the 9/11 attacks. Do you think that plays a important role in how South Asians view USA post 9/11?
Yes, I think racial profiling in America has a real bad impact on perceptions abroad, especially because these cases make big news here, while they might not make quite as a big a headline in the U.S. I hear, though I do not know, that this is especially true in Pakistan.

Why have you put on a beard before going to Pakistan? This is interesting because 'beard' + 'South Asian' looks are a stereotype for a Muslim terrorist. Do you think people In Pakistan will warm up to you because of your appearance? Does looking similar to the majority help in any way?
I might shave the beard. It was a bit of a joke, but maybe not an appropriate one. I really haven't had much time the past few months, I've been traveling, been busy, and have only carried the bare necessities around (which doesnt include a razor and cream) so I just haven't gotten around to it. I might well shave it off this weekend when I catch my breath. But as far as looking local, my appearance has helped. I don't stick out quite so much when I travel, which helps me get my camera in different places without raising quite as many eyebrows.

You have interviewed non resident Indians as a part of your project too. How do they view India?
A good place to invest, a place of rich history/culture, a place that could benefit from some of the looser social mores that America has -- particularly vis a vis gender and class.

What do you think is this project going to achieve? How has the reaction been of American readers to your articles?
It's added depth to news items and given people a glimpse at human lives around the world touched by America. I think it might help people have a sense of the impact of their electoral decisions, and the degree to which America is involved globally. There are many ways Americans can help shape the world for the better from smart buying to aid to votes. So far the reaction has been great. People are saying they didn't have a human face on a lot of big issues: like a student at a madrasa or a call center employee. This project puts it out there, encourages readers to interact with interviewees, and tries to make people see people around the world so headlines become more than just a sound-byte, but a bit of understanding - empathy and hope - for others around the world.

A day when I was almost attacked...

It was just any other day (or so I thought) till I got a call informing me about a raid by the labour department. The raid was on a brick kiln unit wherein the owner was practising bonded labour. It's an amazing story. It took a man from Orissa to point out the instance of bonded labour in Bangalore while the Bangalore city cops had no clue about the going ons in their own backyard. Bijaya kumar Babu, a social worker from Orissa tipped off the labour commission in the city about the practice of bonded labour at SRB Chamber Bricks, a brick kiln unit in a village in Anekal, 30 kilometres from Bangalore. One of the members took a chance escaped leaving behind his wife in the brick kiln unit. Once back home, he contacted Das who works with the tribal and Dalit community in Orissa.

He then got in touch with South India Cell for Human Rights Education and Monitoring (SICHREM) and informed them about the situation here. The people trapped in the brick kiln unit were mainly Dalits and tribals who had come all the way to Bangalore in search of employment. He also told me that National Rural Employment Guarantee Act is in shambles in the state which is prompting lot of people from Orissa to come all the way to Bangalore. One of the main reasons that Bangalore lures people is the construction boom here. There are apartments being constructed left, right and centre here. Now that the city's become greater Bangalore, the constructions will only increase. (Trivia: Greater Mumbai is 434 sq. km whereas Greater Bangalore is 721 km. Greater Bangalore is almost double than that of Mumbai.) Another reason why they are in demand is because migrant workers don't demand as much money as the local employees.

I took my camera and went to the spot along with officials from labour department, revenue department and a bunch of human rights activists from SICHREM and Association for Promoting Social Action (APSA). I had never been to an actual raid before. So it was quite exciting :D

Most of the people were from various villages of Bolangir district in Orissa. Their condition out there was very bad. We heard some horror stories. No one was allowed to go home with their family. Mamta, a worker said, "I was beaten up black and blue when my husband tried to ask for higher wages. I was not allowed to breast feed my kids for three weeks. They beat up my husband too. I desperately want to go home. I asked them for a leave. But they did not grant me one." There were cases of child labour too. N B Ramchandra, labour officer-Bangalore said, "The children ought to be subjected to medical examination by a doctor to determine their exact age. After that, can we give the exact statistics of the number of children involved in child labour." The workers alleged that they were paid Rs 400-500 per week per family.

When the team went to the spot, they were very happy. They were expecting us since Bijaya had gone to the place in disguise couple of days before informing them about the raid. Overjoyed, they immediately started packing their bags. However, some associates of Nanjundaiah began physically abusing the labourers and the activists despite the presence of labour officials and the police personnel. They also prevented the government officials to take the labourers along with them. Bijaya was slapped real hard by the goons. We couldn't do anything because there were just two police officials with us who did nothing. When I spoke to the Anekal police, they told me that the labour department officials had only asked for two people and that they provided the people likewise. They also said it is difficult to handle such last minute requests. The human rights activists told me that during such kind of raids, the police is always informed in the last minute because word usually spreads fast and the owners of such kind of places always manage to escape.

The labour department had hired a truck to ferry the people. However, as soon as the labourers boarded the truck the goons forcibly tried to pull them out of the truck. Mind you, the goons who were being violent were only 3-4 of them. In comparison the workers were about 50 of them. But they were so scared. Mentally they had surrendered. To see them so meek somehow disturbed me. They could have easily over powered the men since they were so few in number. The owner had still not reached the spot and his men were simply creating ruckus. It was such a helpless feeling. Despite crying for help, we couldn't do anything. I couldn't spot the police officials at all.

The goons also thrashed the ETV cameraman. His camera was broken as they demanded the cassette from him. However, he was smart and in the nick of time managed to replace the original cassette with an empty one. Looking at the situation, the media persons decided to quickly leave the place. I had to leave early since I had a deadline to meet. One of my friends from Hindu who had come in a car offered me a lift. As soon as we sat in the car we saw that the owner had come. We again rushed out in order to get his version. I spoke to him and clicked his picture. Within few minutes went back to the car and were all set to leave. Suddenly, 5-6 goons rounded up the car and the driver had to stop it. They began banging the car furiously. Me and my friend looked at each other. We were really scared now. We had not exactly locked the doors. They opened it and demanded the camera. "Who has the camera? Delete our boss's photo. Tell us where the camera is?" they shouted. I was really scared now. I was the one with the camera. In the whole melee, they were confused about who exactly took the camera. I was confused. I did not want to part away with my camera and pictures. Well, why should I? But at the same time, I wondered, they only want me to delete the picture na. I should simply delete it and go away from the wretched place. In the midst of all the nonsense, I was wondering what exactly to do.

My friend did not have the camera with her. She screamed at them saying that she doesn't have it. We were seated inside. But they started searching the car. They even tried to open my friend's bag. Meanwhile, I started crying for help. I also told them that I don't have the camera. The Hindu photographer was waiting for us in another place. Anticipating trouble, he had smartly left the place. However, his tripod was still inside the bag. They took away the tripod. I couldn't believe my helplessness. I yelled at them and screamed for help. I was really angry and scared. Suddenly the owner came and snatched the tripod from his goons and gave it to us. He asked his goons to shut up and apologised to us and requested us to leave. We were both very angry with him and shouted at him and finally left the place. Mind you, the police out there did not come to help us at all.

As we were going back to the office, I realised the enormity of the situation. I have never been rounded up by violent goons like this. It was only later that the gravity of the situation hit me. It can be extremely intimidating. I have been in similar situations before/ (Looking back at the post, I realise some of my opinions have changed. It's weird. But well, that's a different story altogether. Will blog about it.) However, I think I am lightly lucky in such cases because I'm a woman. Had there been a male reporter in my place, he would have been bashed left right and centre in no time. They wouldn't have asked. They would have simply beaten the guy black and blue.

I went to the office and filed the story. According to my boss, I shouldn't have taken the risk and should have simply deleted the pic. She's asked me not to get into trouble like this. Hmmm.... But I'm secretly glad that I did not give the camera to them. I think I can ramble all about it now especially since I am safe now. But still, why should I? Argh!!!!!! Oh, I did not file a police complaint. I think I should have. But well, at that time, all that was in my mind was to go and file the story. Later I kind of lost interest. I think I should have filed a complaint. But well.... that did not happen.

The activists who were there for a longer time told me that they had a tough time leaving the place along with the workers. More police officials were sent in later. The workers are now back home :)

Men Bahadur

Image courtesy: Nishant Ratnakar-BM

Kids do the darndest things. Indeed! One of them is Men (pronounced Meen) Bahadur, (an approximately) 10-year old Nepali kid languishing in the Government Boys home in Bangalore. Well, he hasn't committed any crime. He's just there because the government simply doesn't know where to send him. Besides the fact that he stayed near a mountain and a lake in Nepal, he doesn't remember anything. Men's living in Bangalore for the past six years which roughly means that he ran away from Nepal when he was around 4 years. Well, the government officials are currently trying hard to find his kith and kin. There is a fear amongst the officials that as days pass by, it would be difficult for them to help him since he would forget whatever little he remembers now.

I was chatting up with him. He told me lot of things. He opened up a lot to me. He kept telling me that he doesn't want to go back to his parents. When I asked him why, he told me that they are 'bagde' parents. Bagde in Kannada means Rented. Rented parents? I kept wondering what it meant. Then I figured out that he was referring to his foster parents. Apparently, his parents died when he was very young. He was taken care of by the foster parents. However, his father used to beat him quite a lot. "That's why I used to run away", he says. When I asked him how he managed to reach Bangalore, he innocently told me that he just hopped inside a bus to Bangalore from Nepal. I wonder if there is a direct bus service like that, hehe. I don't think he remembers how he came here.

He told me things that he hadn't told the government officials yet. He told me that his brother used to work in the defence service and that he was in Bangalore for some training. The officials have taken a note of it. hopefully it should be of some use :) During the conversation, I wondered what might have prompted him to run away in search of his brother.He still hopes that he would be able to find his brother. Kids don't take drastic decisions like these. I think, the foster father would have really beaten him badly to have prompted him to take such a step. or probably he would have plainly got lost. I don't know. But the fact that he is so keen to go back to his brother and not his foster parents does indicate the former.

Actually, nobody knows his exact age since he's a runaway kid. I wondered when he celebrates his birthday. I did not ask him that. When I was a kid (even now, to a great extent) birthdays were a big thing, It was a very big deal for me. I used to look forward to my birthdays every year. The fact that it used to come in the same month of Diwali was a double treat since Diwali's a favourite festival. Oh well, I am digressing now. But the point is, I felt bad wondering about this child who doesn't even know his birthday. Also, the government boys home has parents of kids coming and meeting other kids. I wonder how lonely he would feel. Despite knowing that he has a brother, he doesn't know where he is. So much helplessness....

When he first came to Bangalore, the police officials had admitted him at Makkala Ashraya Kendra. However, he used to often run away from Makkala Ashraya Kendra (MAK) where he initially lived. However, he maintains that MAK is his favourite place. I was puzzled. I asked him why did he run away from the place often if he liked the place so much. He remained silent for a while. I again asked him. He paused and then replied, "I used to go out in search of my brother." I can't forget the look on his face then. To say that I felt bad would be an understatement. I just wanted to hug him tight and tell him that things would be alright.

While I was taking down some numbers of officials of MAK, Men came and silently stood next to me. I asked him what happened. "I wanted the number of the MAK official." I asked him, "What do you plan to do with the number?" He said, "I want to call them to ask them to take me back." I did not what tot ell him. I just gave him the number. He was so happy. It was as if he had got a big bar of chocolate that has been denied to a kid for a long time. According to the Child Welfare Committee officials, MAK is not very keen to take him back because of his vagabond ways. CWC has issued summons to MAK. Lets see what happens.

Currently, the boy shouldn't technically be in the government boys home because they house kids only from Bangalore (urban district) per se. They are trying hard to put him back in Makkala Ashraya Kendra. But, even then, that's not his real home. Worse, he ain't even a bonafide citizen of this country. Worse, the government does not have any policy to deal with such kids. ARGH!!!!

I really hope they are able to track his brother soon. I think his brother is extremely lucky. His younger brother surely loves him very much.

PS: I will surely rotate the pic properly very soon.

It's all about money, honey!

Some say, Money can't buy the best things in life. While others say, there are no free lunches. Depending on how much importance we give to money in life, we will believe either of the two fundas strongly.

I tend to believe the former strongly. However, I realise that I'm in a hopeless minority. Given the backdrop, having an argument with people with a contrary worldview can be quite an unpleasant experience, painful to be precise.

There is a subject in schools called Work Experience or Socially Useful or Productive Work (SUPW) for the students in Karnataka.


Assessment of the SUPW should not be in terms of marks assigned to different processes but on the basis of skills learnt and the needs satisfied by individual students or in small groups. A diary of the day to day work done, the knowledge gained, production achieved with sketches and tables of statistics will more than answer the needs of assessment (Coutesy: http://www.education.nic.in/cd50years/g/t/EL/0TEL0501.htm )

As usual, the reality is quite different. Many school principals, teachers are of the belief that SUPW involves making children cleaning the toilets, filling up buckets of water for school purposes and various other stuff like this. I am not kidding at all. One school in Bangalore (school A) which suffers from severe water shortage makes it children fetch water from nearby areas as a part of SUPW projects before the start of every class. Another school (school B) which was smart enough to utilise the government funds, procured funds from Suvarna Jala Yojana and invested in a rainwater harvesting system. However, the work of filling up water in several buckets for various reasons is done by students of the school as a daily project under work experience.

Now one would obviously be proud of school B. However, the only difference is, students from school A struggle more than school B since they have to go out and fetch water. But the point is, even in school B, the students are made to do the work. The principal proudly proclaimed that the children do so under the able guidance of the teachers :|

It is sad to see many of my friends and acquaintances who do not think that something is wrong. One reaction that I got from one acquaintance (who is apparently doing a human rights course!?!?!?) was....."those are poor children, they get free food, free books, free everything. They don't have staff, so I guess, they have and need to do it. They do only within the school premises na...not outside."

Why don't people understand that making children work like this is a wrong thing to do. Even filling up buckets involves hard work. It isn't an easy task for a child aged 9 to fill up large buckets of water and lift them with/without help. Just because the students get free stuff, doesn't mean that they are "OBLIGED" to do work like this.

Filling water on a regular basis is a chore and not productive work. Making children do it is ridiculous. There is no harm in teaching a kid how to clean a toilet. But making the child do it on a daily basis as a part of school curriculum is a crime. But it happens in such an alarming regularity in all the schools, that it is just not funny. Unfortunately, it is not even a story for me....*sigh* Its interesting to note how people stop having expectations from municipal schools just because they are 'free'.

I am just appalled. Does money determine everything? Just because the children come from unfortunate backgrounds, does it mean that they should do work like this.

Hello from Bangalore!

Hello everyone. Yup, I am still alive. I have been very busy for the past couple of months. There have been so many changes in my life that blogging was the last thing in my mind. Well, I have relocated to Bangalore now. It's been quite a change for me. But it's also lot of fun since I am getting a chance to explore a new city and being a vagabond is just so much fun :D :D

Some of my posts henceforth would be about my impressions about the city. Bangalore is a growing city. There is lots happening here and it is interesting to chronicle its growth. However, while I scour the city, I always end up comparing the city with Mumbai. I know it's a stupid exercise, but I can't help but do it since Mumbai is the only reference point for me. Reporting in two different cities also helps me gain a perspective of how cities function. Bangalore is growing at a rapid unhealthy pace. Mumbai is a 'been-there-done-that' kind of a city. Even though they are different, there are some interesting parallels as well. I might blog about that later.

What I intend to write in this post are my impressions regarding the events that followed the verdict given by the tribunal on the Cauvery issue. Anyways,on February 6th Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal gave its verdict after 16 long years. One can read more about it here

I went out with my photographer colleague to scour the city to check out how various areas were reacting to the verdict. Most of the city remained indoors yesterday. The roads were completely empty. I could have played roller skating on the roads. Shops in many areas remained closed. I wondered why. The city had a presence of 18,000 troops to prevent any possible backlash against the Tamilians in the city. {I was advised to forget talking in Tamil for a week, he he. I think I can manage quite well with my broken Kannada, Hindi and English :D :D} And all this happened when there was no formal declaration of a bandh.

I found the reaction of the Bangaloreans to be quite precautionary. In fear of a possible violence, people themselves opted to not to leave their houses. I guess such kind of response was because of the failure of the administration in earlier occassions especially during the 1991 Cauvery riots, Rajkumar's Death etc. {Can anyone tell me how bad the situation was during 1991?}

Finally a formal bandh was declared on February 12th. The roads were EMPTY. There were no buses, no autorickshaws, no cars. There was absolutely nothing at all. For someone who is completely dependent on public transport, it was a difficult day. But thankfully, a colleague came to my rescue and I went about to various parts of the city in his motorbike. I thought the public reaction to the Bandh was quite submissive. Back home in Mumbai, we have witnessed many such instances. However, I don't remember of any particular bandh which was uniformly effective all over the city. I guess one of the main reasons why Bandhs are only effective in only certain pockets in Mumbai are the local trains which never stop completely. Though Local trains remain one of the main targets during a bandh, people don't really stop commuting. So in essence normal life does not really halt completely. Here in Bangalore, the BMTC buses (the main mode of public transport) did not ply on the roads at all. I shudder to think what would happen if local trains don't function at all. I guess in Mumbai one has many options including BEST buses, autorickshaws which complement the local train services perfectly.

Also, Mumbai hasn't had a proper Bandh for sometime due to this reason. In the past four years, I don't really remember one single Bandh paralysing the whole city. Needless to say Bangalore was completely crippled without buses, rickshaws, private cabs etc. One could have organised a skating tournament. Bangalore was completely pollution-free that day. I wonder how would the city have reacted, had something like this happened in Bangalore as well! Hmmm....