Ardh Satya - Be angry, be very angry!

Exactly 30 years back there was a landmark of a film that stormed the then status quo. It’s called ‘Ardh Satya’(Half Truth) directed by the awesome Govind Nihalani and written by noted playwright Vijay Tendulkar(I'd met him briefly in New York in 2003, without really knowing who he was, to interview him for a TV segment I was producing for a network). I had seen this film in bits and pieces before but today I watched it, as in really watched it, with a more analytical mind. I was and am dumbfounded. 2 reasons. One, the film has a raw gravity that tugs at you while unveiling the nature of human frailties. And two, the film can be seen today and yet seem every bit relevant to today’s society. The ‘system’ we live in right now in bloody 2013. Seriously, what the fuck is going on?! We are still grappling with the same issues(corruption, degradation of women, the disgusting political fabric, shady law enforcement, futile activism) that were being dealt with in the 1970s and 1980s. What does this really say about us? About our system? About our evolution as humans or a civilization? Something is seriously, freaking seriously wrong about the way we are moving forward. Because if we don’t have a paradigm shift soon, you can bet that in the next 30 years, we are still going to be the same situation or maybe even worse. The grey area of morality seems to become bigger and bigger every day with the concept of right or wrong seriously in jeopardy. Personally, we have met corrupt and rowdy MLAs, politically subservient police and many desperately misguided souls trying to wield power over the majority at any cost. It’s time we used our brains because we have the choice to take the baton and lead the next-in-line in whatever little way we can towards a more progressive future. And don't you fucking say that films shouldn't have a message. If you want to understand the context of what I mean, just go watch this. It really makes me angry!

Gettin' Leh'ed!

SECMOL - Short Documentary Film - Ladakh, India
In 2012, during our 33-day backpacking trip in the Himalayas, Ladakh(of course) was an eye-opening, mind-altering drug-stop. I say mind-altering because it really was one hell of a trip to yonder-land, or should I say, a different planet altogether. And vacation is a bad word to use here, because if you are taking a trip to the Himalayas, especially Ladakh, it is an adventure that will rattle your bones(literally and figuratively) and your core. It will change the way you look at things, people and what-the-hell - life itself.
And during the stop-over there, we called up our then-new friend, Sonam Wangchuk, the revolutionary extraordinaire and a simple man with a singular vision. We didn't know much about him then, as we were wondering where really we were heading when we took the taxi to Phey, about 18 kms from Leh city. We only knew that he was the founder of SECMOL(Student's Educational and Cultural Movement of Ladakh) which was founded in 1988 by him and a group of young Ladakhis with the aim to reform the educational system of Ladakh.
It is rumored that Sonam Wangchuk is the real-life Phunsuk Wangdu, the character played by Aamir Khan in the Hindi film, 3 Idiots. But anyways, during our stay there and our interactions with him, his team and the students, we realized that there's a lot than meets the eye. We observed that students identify themselves with their Ladakhi culture, as Ladakhis, and rarely do they associate themselves with the Pan-Indian identity. Like hell that's necessary. But well, let's get to this.

This short profile documentary film was shot in 2012 as a way of bringing to light the result of the efforts of Sonam, who has created waves in educational and cultural reform. We filmed this during our 1 week stay at SECMOL, volunteering for them, teaching Ladakhi students and culturally exchanging ideas and basically having a great time with them.
A couple of changes to the above film:
1. Rebecca should have been labelled Volunteer Advisor/Instructor instead of Co-founder as labelled above.
2. The volunteers for ice-skating are from various countries in the world as opposed to just US or Canada, as mentioned above.
Camera provided by Subheer from Always Outbound.
Created and presented by us, yours truly, the Accessible Horizon Films team.

Why, Mr. Kamal Hassan?

First of all, I never intended to write this. I know that in a few days our angst will subside and we will continue to live on with this issue comfortably tucked in the deep recesses of our memories, until one day, the same will come back and bite our collective asses in a much cruder form. So, with that in mind, and today’s impending Court decision on Vishwaroopam’s atrocious ban by the Tamil Nadu government, I decided to write it, in the form of questions for Mr. Kamal Hassan. Yes sir, you. In fact, 20 questions to be precise.

1. Why did you remind us that we pretend to live in a democracy?
2. Why do you have to be an artistic rebel in a country where socio-political art has been long dead?
3. Why did you have to show us that our society's tails are curled up tightly between our ass-cracks?
4. Why did you point out the wimps within us, who sit by as our toothless government does NOTHING, fucking nothing, as ‘cultural terrorists’ wreck havoc upon us?
5. Why did you give yourself up over the last 50 years for cinema that doesn't let you do what you want to do?
6. Why did you have to become the bait of our failed political system?
7. Why did you unravel the vestigial nature of our Censor Board?
8. Why did you make us realize us that we deserve the governments we elect, and the cinema we are ‘approved’ to make?
9. Why did you make our artists realize that their country is no longer a haven for their angst or expression?
10. Why did you remind us that our governments still continue to be held hostage by vote bank politics?
11. Why are you thinking ahead of your time when, according to society, you should be towing the line, following conventions like sheep in a herd?
12. Why are you trying to show your peers – in vain – that being an artist means having the balls to stick with their artistic conviction?
13. Why have you made us realize that it now means nothing to be an artist in a country that once consecrated art in every form?
14. Why have you reminded us, that tomorrow if we want to take a shit, we need to wait for approval from the thought-police of our society?
15. Why did you have to prove to us again that this country can no longer be called secular?
16. Why are you representing all that is seemingly progressive when the truth is so far removed from it?
17. Why have you given us and our artists another ugly battle to fight?
18. Why did you have to open up the hypocrisy of ‘shining, incredible’ India?
19. Why did you reveal more than the tip of the iceberg floating right under the surface of our fucked-up excuse of a country?
20. Why did you wake us up to the reality that anytime is a time for a revolution to happen?

A thought on rape and Arundhati Roy's take on the issue

It seems that in the after-math of the rape incident and the furor over it, we are slowly starting to see misogynistic patterns emerge in India...as if this is opening up a pandora's box of misogynistic assholes. This is not a one-off incident as many seem to think of it. The rape only opened up a can of worms that is seemingly more and more harder to swallow. Though the incident has thrown light on the under-belly of the issue, it only reminds one of the ghastly truth, that we are surrounded by highly conservative and traditionally patriarchal values that provide the actual reasons for rape...that women who have been conditioned over centuries of servitude are skeptical about confronting their sons and men about how they should be treating women in general. Case in point, 'literate' mothers with sons would rather reprimand other liberal women than try to teach their sons a thing or two about respecting women. That's how deeply rooted this problem is.

The above interview of Arundhati Roy offers an alternative, incisive analysis of the social-class implications of our society. I'm amazed how almost always she comes up with a holistic and bird's-eye-view point of an issue. But my point is, now is the time when we have to fight harder. No actually, now is when the fight has actually begun. And I don't mean it for women...but for our society too, if we want a dare-i-say 'progressive' society.

Save Indian Independent Cinema!

Folks, as many of you may already know of this or have heard about this, we still wanted to share this across to you in the hope of supporting Alternative, Independent Cinema in India. Recently we have seen a spate of parallel and alternative and experimental cinematic content oozing into the mainstream Indian film consciousness and we only hope it gets bigger and better. This has to be brought into the mainstream school of thought and we have to encourage people to support content that is typically created with minimal resources and under extreme circumstances. The article and the petition in itself has valid points towards helping Independent artists, performers, filmmakers, technicians et al, and what you can do to propagate it. So if you can take the time off to sign this petition, you may become a part of the change that you've always wanted to be.
Here's the link: https://www.change.org/en-IN/petitions/save-indie-cinema
Pic courtesy: Change.org

Not a dog’s day

(Ok, this post is atleast 2 weeks old, just found the time.) Perhaps the highlight of today is sitting at a coffee shop in the second floor of a shopping mall, in ‘mid-town’ Chennai and sipping on a cappuccino and looking out the glass window at the rain-mud-and-filth soaked traffic below. I neither feel pity nor wear a smug smile as I witness the rat-race because it really hasn’t been long since I was in the sludge, wading through murky waters which are obviously a result of our freakin awesome drainage system. Don’t get me wrong when I say that I’m in the shopping mall and contemplating life in such elite quarters. Mind you, I’m not a fucking elite, though I can be and sometimes act like one(and that’s a whole different argument altogether) just to empathize with things on both sides of the spectrum. I just freaking hate mindless consumerism but I will hate it from inside a glitzy shopping mall. I’m a minimalist, a bloody local with thoughts verging on the extreme. On the rare instances I will pay Rs.90 for a coffee with which I can sit comfortably in a lounge-like ambience for more than a couple of hours trying to make sense of Dito Montiel’s interview in Filmmaker mag or Arundhati Roy’s incendiary  ‘Shape of the Beast’(ok I ain't going for pretense there). As I wait for the guys to get back, I thought, ok fine, with all the commotion outside and inside my head, lemme vent out stuff.

Why is today not a dog’s day? Well, then don’t ask me if every other day is a dog day. Not for me, it’s not. Today, as with any other day I travel/commute, I witnessed about a 150 dogs, bitches, bitches with babies inside them and pups scattered all around in the rain doing what they would normally do. Experience a ‘dog’s life’. Having the life of an ‘underdog’. Spending a Dog day afternoon. Groundhog day. See? More references. No wonder we termed it so. (ok so groundhog doesn’t have anything to do with a dog but still they sound the same)And today was more than normal for them, especially with the cold and almost omnipresent uncertainty that the rains bring with them. And earlier in the day, before we came to Chennai, we had to transport 5 wet, shivering pups (who’d been taken away from their mother) from the soggy paddy fields to our humble abode in the village. Back to the 150 canines, their faces were so full of implication, that I could write a page each about what they were thinking. I mean, if they actually do. Or do they just live in the moment? Taking each day as it came? Surprisingly, many of our human kind seemed to have the same expression, or were they worse? Can’t tell. Really. But these days, my guess is we humans are becoming pathetic in more ways than one. So, pretty soon, to say, ‘it’s a dog’s day’ will become NOT a bad thing after all. Because, as people, especially as Indians, we suffer more than we can endure. No I take that back. We suffer uhh…more than what we think we can endure(coz we can endure shit-just-about-anything), but as we get accustomed to that, we reach the next phase of suffering and we endure that too and the chain continues. So henceforth, thou shall pat each other in the backs, in congratulatory delight, because we love to revel in our hopelessly romantic status as sufferers. (pic from google)

Independent film in India - Status quo?

Yawn, we don’t need another filmmaker to rant and rave about the struggles of Independent filmmaking and how he/she braved the storm or carried the torch to create yet another ‘masterful, unique’ Indie film that not many people(except of course his/her close circle of friends) would pay to watch or even watch, do we? In other words, do Indie films in India even matter, in the larger sense of the society? We are the insanely loudest democracy in the world so much so that even the big, typically commercial studio ventures get silenced pretty soon if not for the star-frenzy or the weekend hype they manufacture. And multiply that with the differences in regional languages. I can’t help but make the comparison with the Indie film scene in the US. Of course in the US, there is quite a sense of that camaraderie through Indie magazines like Moviemaker, Filmmaker, Film comment or even DIY film sites like Indy Mogul, Video Co-pilot and programs like IFP and Tribeca AA. These agents help and guide the larger Indie community or at least seem to have a space for the outcasts. And sometimes, they lead to successful creative partnerships that could lead to getting their voices heard.

This is part of the reason why many Indian Indie filmmakers keep referring to the American independent film scene or deviants of the Hollywood system for some kind of insight. Is there a sense of an Indie community other than a few blogs that seemingly fight the good fight? Considering the already outcast status of Indie films, don’t these filmmakers need to stick together, in the sense of creating a din so loud with their films that they DEMAND to be heard and seen? Of course, even a couple of  reasonably informative web-zines(dearcinema) have only a minimal amount of posts by filmmakers that are creating something new or are off the beaten track. So to even say that we have an independent film scene would be an exaggeration, but we can think whatever we want to keep our restless souls assuaged. In that same vein when the filmmakers blame audiences for not coming out to support them, it seems like a bit overreached.

Pessimistic as it may sound but to romanticize the notion of Indie filmmaking as a way of being different for different’s sake without understanding the birth pangs would be tantamount to shooting oneself in the foot. The Indie community has almost every odd against them. So if they want to keep creating the work that they want, one has to have an unromanticized passion(if you can still call it that) towards their work or getting themselves to a place where they can at least not worry about satisfying the system or at least accept the fact that unless their work demands to be seen, they have to learn to accept the rejection. There’s this article about being a ‘nobody filmmaker’ which many filmmakers go through in their journey towards creating something meaningful. I think it’s part of the rite of passage or building character, the rejection and non-acceptance(in conventional terms) of work that you have passionately been churning, until you get that elusive ‘break’. Though I don’t completely agree that one has to bide their time to even think or aspire big.

So what do, ‘the insignificants’, ‘the nobodys’, ‘the outcasts’ category of filmmakers do in order to stay afloat, at least keep their head above water? The prime thing could be to keep churning out work that they truly believe in, at the same time and maybe(if it’s not much to ask) share a little bit of what they learnt during the process which kind of fosters a sense of support around each other. Having had a few encounters with ‘professional crew’ here, I sense a strong defensiveness about sharing what they have learnt over the years. As if teaching that to others would deprive them of their superior knowledge status and their careers. So in a way, that makes it even more compelling to do things unconventionally and hopefully result in an outcome that’s outside the box. And if there developed a forum where all things unconventional came together then that would gradually become the convention, where the Indies find the space they can work in and express the unexpressed. But as many have said before, truly ground-breaking work comes from limitations and deviations from the norm and so it is here that we learn more, from the trenches, the gutters, the filth and the stench of reality.

The above is a production still from 'Adiyaaluku Podiyal' (The Goon's stooge) where you can see our man 'Dass' wielding the Canon 7D. The rig that the 7D is mounted on, is our own, DIY, self-designed table top dolly with the stylish colors and the tripod head. Proof that the Indie spirit is alive and kicking.

2G Scam? What 2G Scam?

Protect Julian Assange Campaign

If we, the people, need to protect Julian Assange and his ideals, we need no other reason than this. This is a quote from his personal blog's archives - http://web.archive.org/web/20071007093903/http://iq.org/

"Every time we witness an injustice and do not act, we train our character to be passive in its presence and thereby eventually lose all ability to defend ourselves and those we love. In a modern economy it is impossible to seal oneself off from injustice.

If we have brains or courage, then we are blessed and called on not to frit these qualities away, standing agape at the ideas of others, winning pissing contests, improving the efficiencies of the neocorporate state, or immersing ourselves in obscuranta, but rather to prove the vigor of our talents against the strongest opponents of love we can find.

If we can only live once, then let it be a daring adventure that draws on all our powers. Let it be with similar types whos hearts and heads we may be proud of. Let our grandchildren delight to find the start of our stories in their ears but the endings all around in their wandering eyes.

The whole universe or the structure that perceives it is a worthy opponent, but try as I may I can not escape the sound of suffering. Perhaps as an old man I will take great comfort in pottering around in a lab and gently talking to students in the summer evening and will accept suffering with insouciance. But not now; men in their prime, if they have convictions are tasked to act on them."

The harassment by the system (US and the world) is proof enough that we not only live in deteriorating times but also one that seeks to suppress the voice of the people. To them, to us all, Julian represents the ideal. Let's protect Julian Assange, not just in the literal sense, but also the ideals that he projects.

Vijay Simha's Tehelka Column - What Indians politically do wrong

While not sure about every aspect, still felt this is something we should rethink about. The thing is, we do know all this but what actually prevents us from doing what is right?

	PAMPER DYNASTIES  Blinded by powerful families, we vote for them continually though our conscience must say no.
	DON’T REWARD FIGHTERS  The CPI(ML) has been seeking a clean Bihar for years. They don’t get more than a handful of seats.
	IGNORE WORTHY NOMINEES  Manmohan Singh lost by 29,999 votes in the 1999 South Delhi Lok Sabha election. Hasn’t contested since.
	DON’T CHANGE VOTING HABITS  Grandfathers voted for Indira. We vote for Sonia and Rahul. The world has changed in between.
	GIVE UNDUE CREDIT  The Congress didn’t do CNG in Delhi. The Supreme Court did.
	DON’T STAND AS ONE  Thirty-seven parties in the Lok Sabha and 29 in the Rajya Sabha. Can get crazy, like in Jharkhand.
	ARE LETHARGIC  Can’t step out, for causes or for voting. So, we minimise who we are.
	DON’T THINK  The BJP in Gujarat after 2002. The Left for 33 years in West Bengal. Chamling since 1994 in Sikkim.
	CHOOSE PERSONALITIES, NOT POLICIES  Amitabh. Dharmendra. Azharuddin. Jayaprada. Not liberalisation, Article 370, RTI, women’s reservation.
	ACCEPT BRIBES Liquor. Money. Land. Jobs. And sundry other favours. We are fine with it. They are fine with it.

Bereft Beauties 2 - Aravanis/Thirunangais

More...These pictures can be used freely only if portrayed in a positive manner. Pls do not misuse them.

Bereft Beauties 1 - Aravanis/Thirunangais

During the Aadi Festival in August, our team went to Salem(Tamil Nadu) to shoot some footage of various Tamil folk artists and performers who were part of the festivities. It is an ongoing documentary film project which we hope to produce through a possible collaboration. While we did get a lot of amazing street performances, most of it was commercial(I use this word because instead of performing for actual folk music and songs, many were performing for popular movie songs, even 'item' numbers).
Amidst it all, we met some Aravanis/Thirunangais (Transgendered women) who were really in their elements, singing, dancing and having a whale of a time, at the same time, enthralling their mostly male audiences. It was surprising to learn that the Aravani/Thirunangai community in Salem is actually respected and not shunned, abused, raped and ridiculed as is usually the case in almost every other part of India. Even their Chennai sisters do not get the treatment they get. We befriended the beautiful Nakshatra(extreme left among the group of 3) and her gang and there was a whole slew of fanboy-males who were swarming around them.

Our Friends at AIF

Hi all
Our friends at America India Foundation are organizing a fundraiser event in NYC on the 25th of September, 2008. Please show your support for the cause. Details below.

*American India Foundation*
*New York Young Professionals Chapter* cordially invites you to the *Your Voice for the Cause* Event

Benefiting
NYYPC's 2009 Initiative*
*Please join us for an evening dedicated to** determining our 2009
fundraising initiative-  *
*learn about the 3 potential fundraising initiativesfor 2009 and share your
thoughts.*
 *Thursday, September** 25th *
September 25th
Arium Cafe<http://e2ma.net/go/1322047849/1201856/44001660/goto:http://www.telanyc.com/main.html>
31 Little West 12th Street
New York, New York 10014
*7PM-10PM*
Open Bar & Hors d'oeuvres

Online tickets<http://www.acteva.com/booking.cfm?bevaid=166671>-
$40, At the door - $45

<http://e2ma.net/go/1322047849/1201856/44001656/goto:http://www.helenmills.com>
** ** A portion of the evening's proceeds will be donated towards
the NYYPC's 2009 fundraising initiative.

 *The NYYPC was established in early 2007 and has been sustained by a group
of young professionals focused on educating their fellow peers *
*about AIF's mission to accelerate social and economic change in India, and
maintaining the awareness for future generations. *

Benares AKA Varanasi

Varanasi वाराणसी Vārāṇasī, also commonly known as Benares or Banaras (Hindi: बनारस, Urdu: بنارس, Banāras and Kashi (Hindi: काशी Kāśī, is a city situated on the banks of the river Ganga (Ganges) in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, regarded holy by Hindus, Buddhists and Jains, and one of the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world.

The culture of Varanasi is closely associated with the river Ganges and the river's religious importance. The city has been a cultural and religious centre in northern India for several thousand years. A particular style of classical Hindustani music developed in Varanasi centuries ago, and many prominent Indian philosophers, poets, writers, and musicians resided or reside in Varanasi, including Kabir, Ravi Das, Munshi Premchand, Jaishankar Prasad, Acharya Ram Chandra Shukla, Pandit Ravi Shankar, Hariprasad Chaurasia, and Ustad Bismillah Khan. Tulsidas wrote his Ramcharitmanas there, and Gautam Buddha gave his first sermon at Sarnath near Kashi. Ayurveda is said to have originated at Varanasi.

Varanasi is the home of Banaras Hindu University. Residents mainly speak Kashika Bhojpuri, which is closely related to the Hindi language. People often refer to Varanasi as "the city of temples", "the holy city of India", "the religious capital of India", "the city of lights", "the city of learning" and the "culture capital of India".
Video Courtesy vladamikulec on Youtube.

Beyond the Margin blogspot...

Beyond Margin is a blogspot of a journalist I recently came across...while trying to read about rural India...and the farmer situation of recent times...
Jaideep writes...
I learnt two important things from Palagummi Sainath: what the heart does not feel, eyes cannot see. And there is no Invisible India. If at all there is one, it’s Blind India. He says, “Invisible India is an elephant in your bedroom that you don’t want to see”.

Palagummi Sainath, the 2007 Ramon Magsaysay Award winner in the category of Journalism, literature and creative communication arts, has inspired many a young journalist like me, not only in the country, but also beyond the borders.

I learnt two important things from him: what the heart does not feel, eyes cannot see. And there is no Invisible India. If at all there is one, it’s Blind India. He says, “Invisible India is an elephant in your bedroom that you don’t want to see”.

Palagummi Sainath, the 2007 Ramon Magsaysay Award winner in the category of Journalism, literature and creative communication arts, has inspired many a young journalist like me, not only in the country, but also beyond the borders.

When the news broke on Tuesday, July 31, afternoon, we were about to start for Nagpur from Pandharkawda in Yavatmal, after three days of non-stop traveling in rural Vidarbha, visiting half a dozen suicide households and meeting people. It was typical of Sainath that he was doing what he loves to do the most: visiting the rural households to understand the newer processes that affect their lives.
for more click on link below...
http://beyondmargins.blogspot.com/

Bharathanatyam Indian Classical dance!

How many of us actually know about folk dances that exist in different countries?? well, to start with i thought i'd introduce myself and you all to some of the Indian and the other folk dances in the world. Let's start with Bharatnatyam, which originates from TamilNadu..thanks to the internet..i don't have to keep researching a lot..i can give you and idea and you could check it out for yourself if you are interested in any one of these art forms!!
Courtesy: Wikipedia.org
Picture Courtesy:http://www.uc.edu/groups/sabha/DANCE_LINKS/bharatanatyam.htm

Bharatanatyam is a classical dance form originating from Tamil Nadu, a state in Southern India. This popular South Indian dance form called Bharatanatyam is a 20th century reconstruction of Cathir, the art of temple dancers. Cathir in turn, is derived from ancient dance forms. The word Bharata, some believe, signifies the author of the famous Sanskrit treatise on stagecraft, called NatyaShastra, and the word Bharatanatyam is sometimes given a folk etymology as follows:Bha for Bhava or abhinaya and expression, Ra for raga or melody, and Ta for tala or rhythm.
for more click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bharatnatyam

A Part of the Whole - 2- Monkey Love

Love is the answer..Happiness is real when you share it with someone you love...a loving sight at the temple AzhagarKovil, located at Madurai, TamilNadu, South India.

The healing touch of ALMOND!

I remember eating almonds that were soaked overnight in water,right after waking up...my mother used to feed us once a while in the mornings.She used to say they were for brain power and maintenance of a good glowing skin...
Just recently while trying to read for some articles on the healing touch of Indian Spices...I came across details about Almonds which I want to share with all of you...
though the world of Indian spices are like a universe filled with vital information, I cannot introduce you to all of them...with the advent of the internet, I am sure you can take the time if you need to know about all of them.
I just wanted to give you a few tips on the ALMOND.

It is not entirely without reason that almonds are priced higher than their country cousins, the peanuts. Their nutritive value as well as functional importance in keeping the human body supple, beautiful and healthy, is unsurpassed in the nut kingdom, if one may use the term.
Nearly cholesterol free and abundant in high quality, highly absorb-able protein, almonds provide almost no useless material to the body. Their high mono-saturated fats (that fight bad cholesterol) and dietary fiber content make them easy to digest, provides heat in the body and also ensure no excess oils, like the peanut.

for more on Almonds click here.
and here is some more information from Wikipedia

Benazir Bhutto - A Visionary against the odds

I never realized I had inadvertently admired this phenomenal woman, a woman of substance, Benazir Bhutto, subtly wanting her to win the looming elections again in Pakistan. Having achieved what is seemingly impossible - a leadership in the extremely male-chauvinistic and now-fanatical Pakistan, she was not only a visionary but also a revolutionary...braving the odds and having the soul to face any eventuality.
Her assassination has exposed the level of political unrest prevailing in Pakistan now. It's only at times like this, we feel the whip-lash of extremism, a pungent reminder that our world is still so full of hatred. Her paternal grand-father's roots are in Haryana, India, before the partition. So, do the brave have to sacrifice themselves for being the front-runners of revolutionary change? Or do they have to lie low for fear of the back-lash that's ever-present in non-progressive societies?
Maybe this is an ode to a woman of strength and true courage which millions of men lack in today's world to stand up for our rights. An unsung obituary...to an unsung leader.
(pic courtesy: indiaabroad)

India, Pakistan - No Borders?

Can this ever happen? Although it seems like it's wishful thinking now, I think there is a possibility of that happening maybe two or three generations down. Well, I'm not saying this outta the blue, but look at the Yahoo article as on Dec.21st, 2007.

Nine mainly ex-East bloc countries on Friday tore down their borders to join a European zone allowing 400 million people to travel from Estonia in the east to Portugal in the west without showing a passport.
"The free movement of people is one of the main rights of human beings," European Commission president Jose Manuel Barrosso said as he hailed the addition of the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia to 15 other states already in the Schengen Treaty zone. Many European leaders have welcomed the pulling down of internal frontiers as a new sign of the continent overcoming its Cold War division.

When one part of the world can tear down their boundaries like this, why can't other parts of the world be like it too. And I'm not just talking about India and Pakistan here, that was just to illustrate a point. Ofcourse it comes with its own fears and insecurities, but a belief and hope is all what we need to make it happen.

Germany's GdP police union warned Thursday that the extension of the Schengen zone eastwards could unleash a crime wave. The lifting of border controls with Poland and the Czech Republic in particular was "an invitation to criminals," union chief Josef Scheuring said.
Many Austrians also fear higher crime, according to a poll released by ORF public television poll which said 75 percent of Austrians opposed the lifting of barriers.
In Warsaw, the head of the EU's border watchdog, Frontex, Ilkka Laitinen, warned that illegal immigration would be the price Europe paid for Schengen expansion.
Once people enter the zone, whether legally or otherwise, they would be free to move across all member states, he said.

Check out the response, where it's clear that people truly want to give peace, trust and understanding a chance.

Nevertheless, political leaders were eager to play down such fears.
Schengen "is not about criminality, it is not about insecurity or fear. It is a bigger zone of peace, security and stability," the Austrian chancellor said.
The expansion has taken years of preparation, with newcomers obliged to join the Schengen Information System (SIS), which provides police and customs officers with information about people, vehicles or goods.
The 15 older signatories to the treaty were: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.

Here's the full article from Yahoo: "Europe celebrates tearing down of borders"