Ridiculously Casual

I was watching TV one evening to kill my boredom. While surfing through the channels, I stopped to watch ZOOM to catch up with some Bollywood 'News', so they call it! But there wasn't any interesting grapevine here that could keep me from boredom, yet I stuck to this channel as I was further getting bored of surfing through the remaining!

Not listening to it quite intently though, I was also trying to score some points in the game on my phone. Suddenly one 'news' snapped my attention, not for wanting to know more but because I was startled to hear this utter nonsense! The 'news' was thus: "Hum sab Emraan Hashmi ko ek on-screen serial kisser ke roop me jaante hain...." followed by a 'detailed' history of his lip-locking scenes in his movies so far and his views too, about them. The news furthered then by adding, "Ab Emraan ko promotion mil gayi hai. Apni agli film me wo ab rape bhi karenge...."!!!!!!!


That was it! I was fuming with disgust that is this what the channel had to make news out of? That he will be promoted from only being a kisser to a rapist in his next film??? Whatever his role maybe in his next flick, whatever the story be.... But this channel 'reported' it so damn casually, it kept me wondering that has this disgusting act like 'rape' become so damn casual in today's conversations? To top it, it was a team of girls who reported this, gave a voice-over for and one who hosted this damn episode for the show!

The same day I happened to watch a News Channel where they were showing about a historic decision of the Supreme Court to accept and hear the petition of Aruna Shanbaug's lawyer for Euthanasia / Mercy Killing . This very lady was a rape victim in 1973 at the KEM Hospital in Mumbai, by its staffer. She was even strangled and till date she lies in the hospital bed in vegetative state, declared brain dead! She has to be forcefully fed by the nurses twice a day, she has lost her sight, cannot hear, can't take any decision, has not been visited by any of her relatives' or friends' for the past 36 years!

This is what the heinous act such as this can do to a victim!!!! And ironically, it was a damn casual 'Bollywood News' for this channel.

Democracy Ridiculed!

It was a shocking news to watch sometime back about Additional DC Yashwant Sonawane's brutal murder! The First Additional DC of the Malegaon District in Nashik was burnt alive by the oil mafai while he was on duty.

Something is terribly going wrong with the mindsets and attitude of people, and especially with the law and order situation of not only any state but the entire nation. Cities which were known as the faces of their cultural, economic, traditional heritage and progress; are gradually losing their identity and are now gaining a status for all the wrong reasons. Nashik is now a city popularly known as home for the oil and kerosene mafai of the state!

Yashwant Sonawane, who was on his way for a meeting to some other place, sensed some fishy goings-on at a place somewhere 10kms away from Manmad. He immediately went to check at the spot and saw the oil marketeers involved in adulterating. The magnitude of this racket seems to be so strengthened and their conscience so dead, that they burnt alive this officer!

An officer of such stature, when is on his way to perform his duties, was brutally murdered in broad daylight! And, it is a shame that such an incident should occur just a day before when we are all set to celebrate the biggest day of our democracy - our 61st Republic Day!

Yes Minister, It Is A Cosmetic Surgery!!!

I may not be very well-informed or may not possess the right knowledge of the know-hows of the political affairs, yet as a common citizen of this nation I try to put my common sense to its best possible analysis. And why am I digging my nose in this whole political scenario? Well, all of us should! These 'ministers' (babus) who enjoy their berths in the cabinet, take decisions that directly affect our living.

The great Indian Political Tamasha played yet another innings of fooling the aam aadmi. The much awaited and now, the much debated political reshuffle took place yesterday. Reshuffle, did you and me think is what happened? Well, if you draw parallels between this tamasha and that of scuffling the playing cards, then reshuffle is what took place in every sense of the word. You scuffle the playing cards to play a fair game before distributing them. The point is, the cards that you ultimately play with, remain the same. Similar is the case of this very political reshuffling, where very carefully ministers have been made to agree the change of berths.

Prafull Patel is now burdened with the heavy industries portfolio while his 'wings' are chopped. The best bet here could be that the new face in the aviation ministry can now assure no alleged relationships with airline companies. Sharad Pawar retains agriculture and foord processing industries, while losing consumer affairs and food & public distribution (Mr Pawar wanted lesser responsibilities now, as what he had been urging). During the times of food prices inflation, the Pawar power managed to conveniently nail the crisis that he would have to face, had he still retained the ministries that he no longer holds. He would have face the music of criticism from the janta directly, which now the new face for these ministries will have to face.

Murali Deora, shifted from the petroleum ministry! When oil prices are touching the skies, this minister is 'reshuffled' elsewhere to save him the public brunt. Many more examples can be similarly highlighted, which will repeat this saga. Those who are accused of corruptions, inefficiencies; will still rule the roost under some or the other ministry. Just when the government realised that their powerful ministers will be shacked by public anger, it conveniently replaced them with new faces, who will have been 'trained' to answer any question guilt free - "I am new to this ministry. I do not know or have nothing to do about any allegations you are talking about" (?!)

As my common sense prompts me, these changes (which made me compare them also with the musical chair), have been made either because the government lacks effective leadership, cannot afford to make their ministers unhappy, have to play their cards keeping in mind the forthcoming polls, or whatever their reasons be.

For me, this reshuffling had nothing to do with the aam aadmi's plights or concerns. If there is someone who gained anything, it is the government itself, who has been successful in retaining a mix of confidence and support of its ministers and allies. Government is indeed a master surgeon who could alone bring about such cosmetic changes!!! Thanks to the spineless government that seems to be afraid of making some stern decisions.

The janta is yet again left to mull over the same issues that it has been sentenced to, and it seems that we will continue to be haunted by them. As always, these ministers will have the last laugh. It seems to be like a chameleon that changes its colours as the circumstances demand, of course to its own benefit.