A review of movie Ramayan

 

Ramayan- An unbiased viewer’s review

 

I saw Ramayan in 3 D. It’s a must watch for all ages. The ancient story is told honestly and with humility.

For reasons unknown, the biggest factor is not told openly by the producers or social media. After 30-45 minutes into the movie, I realised that at the pace the story was being told, the movie would be 5 -6 hours long. This was explained only at the closing titles which said End of Part One. The story is told in two parts with the present movie being the first part.

First the positives.

Casting of Ram is near perfect. Ranbir Kapoor is perfect for the role so are Laxman, Bharat & Shatrughna. The various rishis also do well in their roles. Lara Dutta as Kaikeyi too was a good choice as a woman with her own mind who is unfortunately influenced by her servant Manthara. But she convinces us that she is doing the right thing for her son.

The CGI is awesome. The presentation of nature, creatures and monsters is convincing. Some of the milestone events like Ram & Sita’s swayamvar (Wedding), Jatayu’s fight with Ravan, Sita apaharan (kidnapping) are presented very well.

But the character I liked most was Laxman. His devotion to elder brother Ram and Bhabhi (Sister-in-law) Sita is presented very well. His cheesy behaviour brings smile to audiences’ faces time and again. I loved the way he asks Guru Vishvamitra for a weapon after Ram is given one. The masterstroke was his sharp questioning of Ram on his decisions. A typical Indian family scene.

Now the not-so-positives

Sita’s casting is a disaster. She must be the Producer’s daughter or the only one who turned up for auditions (Can’t imagine that). From no angle does she fit the role of Sita. All males in the story are handsome hunks and Sita is a total misfit amongst them. It will be unfair to compare her with other actors who have portrayed Sita but she would have fitted in as one of the Dasis (servants) in the movie. Apart from her ordinary looks, her acting also leaves much to be desired.

Though I have said the CGI is awesome, it is highly overused. I felt that the entire movie was filmed in a studio against a blue screen. The CGI is in your face in every scene. I wonder if Ram’s muscles are genuine or amped up by CGI. The actors looked as if their faces are AI treated. The nature chan
ging in seconds on a monster’s death maybe a literary licence, but I wish the change was shown subtly and gradually. As an engineer I could not stomach the science behind Ravan’s Viman (flying machine) but it looks nice if not convincing.

I felt the 3 D was unnecessary. There was no value addition by use of 3 D. To give a benefit of doubt, maybe I could not understand the subtlety of the 3 D.

To end this piece, I must highlight the part I liked most. The way the character of Ravan is presented. As a musician forced into leading his oppressed people he comes across not as a villain but as a man with a reason to fight against injustice. The real villain is his ego.

With all the pluses and minuses, as I have said in the beginning, it is a must watch for all whatever is your belief system, religion or country. At worst, it’s story told very well and at the best it is a devotional tribute to the Purushottam (perfect human being) from the heart. Do watch it in theatres.

Disclaimers:

I did not receive any gift in cash or kind from the movie makers.

I refer to Shri Ram Prabhu as just Ram because I Iove the character and he is very close to my heart. There is no intention to demean him. These epithets are not necessary for a devotee of Ram’s ideals.

The problem with generations other than Gen Z- Part 1

 

In 1955 there was a cult classic movie named “A rebel without a cause” which portrayed the angst of teenagers of that era. There is a group of teenagers who get into trouble with the law because they last out at everything in the society. The ‘60s are of course famous for the Hippie generation which rebelled against the prosperous American society and started drug abuse, disowned their parents’ wealth and went to exotic places like India in search of inner peace. The ‘70s were even worse with hardcore drugs like LSD in common use of the youth, Vietnam war which entailed every youth being drafted into military and the civil rights movement.

Though the above examples are from the USA, which has been the dominant economic, military and most importantly cultural power after second world war, the point I am trying to make is that every generation and every decade had its own rebellious teenagers who disrupted the normal fabric of our society. Whatever happened in the USA happened in our country after a time lag. The music, fashion, lingo all used to come down to India after a time lag of a few months or years. Now of course, in the knowledge age, information is travelling instantaneously and easily. Today’s elite are more or less in tune with each other in all parts of the world. So, whatever happens in one corner of the world is reflected in some other corner almost immediately.

So the moral of the story is that Gen Z movement is nothing new. i had a colleague at the start of my career who was a Naxalite in Calcutta(So named then) college. He grew up into an Executive Director of a well known professionatley run Indian corporate. We had our streakers running across stadiums stark naked and we now have Gen Z clamouring for a change. Relax, let them grow up and then let them face their children who will come out with their own ideas of what is wrong with Gen Z!

Jabaan Sambhalke

They say English is a funny language. Maybe, but it is the language of business and common communication today. And the purpose of communication is to convey our thoughts to others. This can happen only if we use simple, correct and clear English language. In my dealings with persons in various organisations including our own, I found that sometimes some of us tend to use some words and phrases in the wrong context. Let me share some of those with you.

By now, all of us are aware that except means excluding, accept means to receive or to agree to and expect means to wait for or to anticipate. But let us look at some other words.

Many of us have a habit of using the verb ‘to improvise’ or the noun ‘improvisation’ to mean to improve or the process of improvement. The real meaning of the verb ‘to improvise’ is to creatively craft from available tools or to cobble together or to make it up as you go along. The correct usage will be to say, “The classical singer used many improvisations in singing Raag Malhar” or, “The villagers used an improvised dish antenna for their TV made from aluminium pots and pans”. Or, “Amitabh Bachchan forgot his dialogues so he improvised on the spot”. It is not correct to say, “Please improvise on your price”. Why not just say, “Please improve on your price”? In short, improvisation is a Jugaad and to improve is to make it better.

Another misused word is ‘to lose’. There are two words ‘lose’ and ‘loose’, which have totally different meanings. When something is lost or misplaced, you will say, “I was sad to lose my gold wrist watch” (Can’t be anyone from RCT!). Or as Mandar told Aditi “It is good you did not lose the customer even though our prices were higher than (those of) our competitors’”. As against this, when something is not tight, it is loose. If someone loses his mental balance, you say his screw is loose! If your trouser belt is loose, you may lose the trousers! Or as the production manager told the technician the other day, “Please tighten the loose bolts on the high-pressure flange otherwise we may have to shut down the plant and lose production”. 

I used to get confused how to spell words which have “ie” or “ei” in them till I heard the rule “i before e except after c”. This means, the spelling is always ‘ie’ except if the combination occurs after a ‘c’ in a word. To give an example, “After achieving the TRF targets in time, RCT received an award”.

One more common mistake is the usage of has & have. Though in Marathi and Hindi we use plural for showing our respect i.e. आप or त्यांचा सत्कार करुया, English does not work that way. It is never he “have” even if you are referring to Shri Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. It’s always, he conquered many forts to establish Swarajya. Have is used only for you, they and I. (Looks like the English speakers only have respect or pride in themselves and those present in person!). Never say the DG have done this. It’s always the DG has done this.

By the way did you know that it is wrong to say “sponsorer”? The correct word is a sponsor. TJSB sponsored the event or TJSB is our sponsor (not sponserer). There is no such word in English as sponserer/

By the way, did you know that there is a nifty tool available to us right under our nose, which can tell us the correct meaning of a word? On your PC, when you are using MS Word, in the search box on top, put ‘Thesaurus’ and type the word whose meaning you want to find out in the ‘Search for’ box. Click on the arrow and bingo you will get various meanings of the word. 

In the end, I have a question for you. Whoever is the first to give a complete and correct answer will get a gift from me. So have a try. What is plural of the word ‘genius’? Send your answers to me. No Google please! Remember the 4-way test.

-Rajeev Karnik

Letter to a Grandson

 

Dear Aniket,

Just heard from your Mom that your High School term starts on Monday. Aniket, you may not believe me now, but this will be one of the best times in your life.

Oh it won’t be easy. But good times rarely are. There will be loads of work & study, nasty competition, nastier kids and under-par teachers but there will also be great teachers, new friendships, sports, team spirit, fun and learning. The learning will not come from classrooms or teachers alone but from the initiatives you take, the friends you make, the thinking that you do and the deep sense of curiosity that you have. So educate yourself by working hard and playing harder. Education will make you stand out among peers and help you achieve your true potential.

There will be lots of temptations on your way. Two most prominent being girls and drugs. Well let me tell you as a grandparent, girls are good and drugs are bad!

Make friends who don't take you up a wrong path. Sometimes it’s good to be alone and not have friends if it is because of your convictions and firm belief in right and wrong. 

Don't indulge in self-pity because you didn't get what you thought you deserved, you were discriminated against or picked on. Life is even more unfair after high school. Find a way out of the situation you are in by fighting wrongs, accepting inevitable or thinking a way out logically. Never run away from problems. 

Be passionate about the right things. If you love a cause or person, show it. Don't be shy or afraid to express you opinions. If you are right, people will eventually accept it. If you are wrong, maybe someone like you will convince you to change your opinion. 

You are at the threshold of adulthood. At times you will feel or be awkward because your body and mind are growing. Don't worry. All of us have gone through it. It goes away. 

Adulthood brings in new areas of freedom and as also responsibilities. Be the adult you want your parents to be ;). 

Confide in your parents. Your parents are the only ones who will give advise without any self-interest if you have a problem or don't know what decision to take. 

And last but not the least, you know that we are always there for you if you need to confide in, to ask or take advise from. 

With love,

 

-Napā & Namā

 

Two films - Pushpa the rise & Gharat Ganpati

 

Two films - Pushpa the rise & Gharat Ganpati

To be honest I am biased against action movies from south. To my prejudiced mind, the heroes are scruffy, the girls are too “in your face” and the action is too stylised and unreal. But with Rekha, my wife away with her friends for 5 days I had no option but to watch TV. In the news, all channels were talking about the successful release of Pushpa 2. So out of curiosity about this latest fad, I took the brave decision of watching Pushpa 1 - The Rise. The movie is about a new antihero very unlike Amitabh’s. He is not remotely good looking, which means any common man can identify with him; he is an underdog with lots of guts; he has style & chutzpah. Like every superhero, he also has a weak point. He is illegitimate son of a rich man who is dead and he is very sensitive about this fact. His walking style is like a physically challenged person. But he walks with a swagger. His dance style is unique but when you think about it, the steps look so simple that everyone feels they can do them. The action is of course highly stylised with CGI effects. In all this mayhem the director makes us forget that the protagonist is doing something against the law. The villains are the authorities not the violent law-breaking hero.

To sum up, it is hugely popular because it represents the angst in common (wo)men, anyone on the street can identify with the “hero”, and it has all the masala like songs & dances and a  heavy dose of violence. And best of all everyone feels he can do what the hero is doing in the movie.

Trailer of Pushpa 1

                                 The very next day I watched the Marathi Gharat Ganapti (घरत गणपती).

It is set in scenic Konkan. The director must be in love with Konkan because one can feel the love for the place through his cinematography, narrative and locations. In fact, I feel it is one of the best tourist promotion films for Konkan. It is a pure family drama set at the time Ganapati comes to the Gharat household when all the children and grandchildren gather from their places of residence to celebrate the festival. There is a generation gap conflict with the grandparents siding with the grandchildren and the middle generation unwilling to accept that the world has changed and their progeny is more capable that they would give credit for. For some tadka, there is a Hindi speaking good looking girl who can understand Marathi but can’t speak it. There is also an aunt, who is probably abandoned by her husband, who comes out with these never-heard-before aphorisms typical of Konkan. Sharp, relatable and very appropriate for the situation. I loved the movie for its simplicity, beauty of its location and the way the complex relationships of family members are handled very sensitively. It is a must watch feel good movie with a message.

Trailer of Gharat Ganpati

 

My School Years

My first 4 years in primary school were in Akola municipal school No 5. We had no desks and benches but long jute strips from one end of the class to the other. We used to keep our slate by our side. I was the first kid in school to have an unbreakable slate made of black painted metal sheet instead of slate stone. I was one of the rare students who had footware. Most others came barefoot to school. Only some wore our school uniform as the others couldn't afford the cost of a white shirt and khaki half pants. Then I went to another school for 5th where my grandfather was the managing trustee. But this has made a deep impact on me. Not only do I realise that I am one of the God's favourites but even today I am able to connect to and relate to economically weaker persons when I meet them. At that time my father was a lawyer. When he took up a position as a judge, he was getting transferred very frequently. So every year I was going to a new Marathi medium school in different parts of Maharashtra. I have studied in Nashik, Dhule, Ahmednagar, again Akola (with my grandparents) and finished off with SSC in Aryan Education Society's high school in Girgaon, Mumbai. Each of these schools had different school board with different curriculum. English as a subject was from 5th standard in Akola but 8th standard in Nashik. Sanskrit was not a subject in the school where I was studying but it was from from 5th in Nashik and I joined the school in 8th. The problem was that I could never have school friends, as by the time I could form a friendship, I was out of the school. The advantage is that, today when someone says he is from a particular town in Maharashtra, I can instantly connect with him/ her by mentioning my school near his place. After I finished my SSC, I had a choice of joining Xavier's, Jai Hind and Elphinston. I called up my Dad in his office to ask him where I should go and he said Elphinston, as it was walking distance from our flat in Colaba. BTW did I mention we changed houses 3-4 times during my SSC year as there was a long queue to get Govt quarters in Mumbai where my Dad was posted that year. We were in Malabar hills in his colleague's huge quarters, then with a distant relative in Merryweather road in Colaba and the in our own quarters in Majestic (erstwhile) Hotel in Colaba. 

After I was admitted to Elphinston, the first thing the principal did was to hold an English proficiency test for us "vernies". I was soo good in it that I was promptly placed in division H or J or some such alphabet far from A or B which were for Sr Cambridge and English medium schools. The lecturers were instructed to handle us with kid gloves while talking to us in English. We were made to attend special tuitions arranged by the college for learning English (FOC of course). 

Our side of corridor was for vernies and the opposite side was for the SOBO crowd with their Girlfriends. And here we were, scared to be in a coed class for the first time in our lives. Our mortal fear was talking to girl. 

Anyway, I enjoyed both Bio & Maths and I don't remember getting stuck because of language of instruction. I did well in first year science. I don't remember how I got inspired to appear for IIT JEE but I did. My parents came to know of it when we received a letter of admission from IIT. 

In IIT I was a loner keeping to myself. How did I pass time? Not studying, as I hated studies but by
reading English novels whenever I could lay my hands on any book. I finished complete Ian Fleming, Sherlock Holmes, Neville Shute (I think that was the spelling) and best of all The entire set of HAROLD ROBBINS!  I found that all my adolescent fantasies were in those books and some more. The advantage was that through all my trash reading I picked up spoken English. So when I went to Yankeeland for studies I had little problem in communicating. 

So all in all I don't think I had any disadvantages by schooling in Marathi except no girlfriends in school and college! 

            

Why did an IIT student commit suicide?

 

I have been reading with interest about the case of an unfortunate suicide committed by an IIT student. Though as usual the politicians are using the sad incident to their own advantage, as an ex-student of IIT, I felt I should express my opinion about the incident.

I was a student of IIT Bombay way back in the late 1960’s. Even though some believe that studies were less competitive compared to today in those days (I don’t agree but more about it later) every year we used to have one suicide. It was a given that someone will end his life every year. So, suicides are nothing new to IIT.

IITs pick the best of best students from across the country through a highly competitive exam. Only the cream of the student crop is able to get in. It is well known that it is tougher to get into IIT than any of the top USA universities. So, all those entering the institute are used to getting top ranks in their schools and colleges. It is taken for granted by them, their family and friends that they will be at the top in any academic test they give. Now in IIT everyone is a topper so in the first few exams someone is at the top of the class and someone has to be at the bottom. The students at the bottom are just not able to accept this fact. If one of them is highly disturbed by this turn of events and can’t accept this situation, s/he may take the ultimate escape route of a suicide. It is extremely sad but true. This may not be the only reason for taking the extreme step but I think it is one of the major reasons.

What is the solution? I think the institute has taken steps in the right direction by providing psychological counselling to all the students. The people close to the student such as family and friends should also accept that bottom of the class in IIT is at the top of any other STEM institute in India and probably the world. It should also be clear that at the end of the course, the student at the bottom will also get job opportunities though they may not be as lucrative as the ones showcased in media. It is also important to understand that an IIT degree is only a stepping stone to one’s career and life. The topper from IIT may not be as successful in life as a mediocre student there, as he may have talents not apparent in studies.

Now coming to the question of parents and students complaining about how academics are getting more and more competitive day by day. Well in my time the population of India was half of what it is today but the number of seats in all IITs together were approximately 2000. Today the number of seats available are 16,600+ i. e. over 8 times what they were in 1960’s and 70’s. So, guys stop complaining and start studying! You don’t need to be a genius but a good logical thinker to clear the entrance exams.

Job satisfaction

 

10-year-old Gondya was a worried young man, I call him a man rather than boy because he was handling the responsibility of a man. He was an Adivasi (Indigenous people) cowherd with a flock of 10-12 cows. He had brought out his herd for feeding and drinking but there was no water to be found anywhere in sight. The small rivulet which was the regular place for drinking water had dried up in the month of April and his flock was thirsty. In fact, the oldest cow Radha was tottering on her weak legs and looked as if she would faint and fall down any moment. Finally, Gondya got down on his knees and started digging with his bare hands in the dried-up water stream. After digging for a couple of feet, some water started collecting in the dug out  pit.  The cattle started drinking one by one from the pit.

This was the scene that summer in the village of Ujjaini in Wada taluka where we had gone from Rotary Club of Thane to survey a site for constructing a check dam. Ujjaini is located in the hills and receives huge rainfall in monsoon, but all the rainwater flows down to the plains and then to the sea through rivulet located near the village. The challenge was to somehow retain at least a part of the rainfall to create a reservoir of water which would last through the summer. The solution was to build a check dam of about 3 meter (10’) height to block the flow of water. This would help in two ways. Firstly, it would hold some water upstream of the check dam and secondly it would raise the water table in the surrounding areas and recharge drinking water wells in the village.

Once we realised the need for the check dam was of primary importance to the life of the villagers and their livestock, the work started in earnest. The small dam costing just ₹ 10 Lakhs ($13,500) was completed in 3-4 weeks before the monsoon set-in in June. The rains are so heavy and nonstop that construction is not possible from June to September.

We inaugurated the dam in first half of June of that year and the rains came in time. We visited Ujjaini again after a year in the summer and that is when I experienced my Rotary moment. The same place where the cattle were nearly dying of thirst, I saw Gondya and his friends jumping in the check dam water for a swim! The dam was full in the month of April and there was enough water for cattle, farming, other uses and of course for Gondya and his friends to swim in till June.

These are the moments we Rotarians live for. These are the moments which stay with us for life. These are the moments when we feel we have touched the lives of our less privileged brethren. These are the moments when we feel we are giving back to the society which has given us so much more than others.

We again visited the village after 2 years and what a transformation we saw! In what were dry farms, we could see Mogra flower (Jasmine) plantation. I was told by the village head that they have started growing corn and vegetables around the village regularly. At least 800 people in villages around Ujjaini had benefited by the check dam.

Now that is what I call job satisfaction!

 

Memories of a traveller

The following was written for a young age India audience so please excuse the explanation for basics in US.

Memories of a traveller

It was August 1970. There were no mobiles, no ISD, no internet and most importantly no Google. So when I landed at New York’s John F Kennedy International Airport, I knew nothing about USA except what I had seen in Hollywood movies.

As a 20-year-old first time outside India, my heart wasn’t going dhak dhak but ka-boom ka-boom! I was sweating, nervous and jittery. I looked up at every face in the visitors’ gallery to see if our distant relatives had come to receive me. I got more nervous when I couldn’t spot them. Fortunately, the signage was clear and I landed up at the customs desk. My baggage had all kinds of Indian food items and my specially stitched clothes. More about the clothes later. The customs officer asked me in his strange accent for my x-ray. Yes, we had to carry a chest x-ray with us, and it was inspected in customs. He held it towards light and nodded. And I thought to myself, does every customs officer have to be a Pulmonologist in USA? The officer saw me sweating in the air-conditioned hall and immediately suspected I had something to hide. He made me open all my bags, and started rifling through them. His face lit up when he came upon a brown paper bag (Remember we had no plastic bags then) with some grainy powder inside. He carefully opened the bag and was shocked to see black powder in it. He was sure he had caught a drug smuggler (Or at least his mule or carrier). Those were the days of peak use of marijuana, LSD etc. and India was known for its laissez-faire attitude to drugs. All this while I was only thinking where do I go once I get out of the airport, if no one has come to receive me. It was only when the officer asked me in a loud voice what the powder was that I realised something was wrong. I took one look and told him “Its tea powder”. The officer had probably never seen tea powder outside a tea bag and maybe not even seen a tea bag (Tea was a ladies’ drink in USA. “Real men drink black coffee”) doubted me and went off looking for someone to consult. He probably went looking for the office secretary, who would be the only woman in Customs Dept in those days. In the meanwhile, I was still looking for Mr Karkhanis in the gallery and finally spotted one Indian frantically waving at me. He had not met me earlier and later he told me that he recognised me because I looked like my cousin whom he knew!

Anyway, the officer came back after some time and told me I was cleared to go. I heaved a sigh of relief, packed my bags in a hurry and went out to meet Karkhanis. But let me rewind to a day earlier. I left Bombay by Czechoslovak State Airlines (CSA Airlines) in a Russian Illyusin Il-62. Why CSA you

ask? Because they had the cheapest Bombay- New York ticket. During the flight, a lot of us asked for water to drink. This totally shocked the stewardesses. They didn’t know that water could be used for drinking. In Europe they only drank beer or wine. They had to get some water from the sink for us to drink.

Now this aircraft had limited flying range. So we took off from Bombay and landed in some middle eastern airport for refuelling. Maybe it was Istambul. There we were asked to disembark and go to the terminal building because they could not refuel while passengers were inside. It was considered too dangerous.

After taking another halt and change of planes in Prague, we were on our way to USA!

In US, the Karkhanis family was very hospitable and the father asked his sons to show me New York. I did some rubbernecking in Manhattan and saw an impressive show in Radio City Music Hall. What is rubbernecking you ask? Well that’s what locals call tourists because the tourists stand on the footpath (Sidewalk to Americans) and keep looking up at the tall skyscrapers blocking the commuters who are in a hurry. Until today, I don’t know if the Karkhanis family was extra hospitable to me because they had a marriageable age daughter or because it was their way of treating any relative visiting New York.

My next leg of journey was New York to Columbia, Missouri where my grad school was (my Post Graduate college in Indian English). The New York – St Louis flight was uneventful but the St Louis – Columbia flight was on a 12-seater propeller aircraft. Navigation was simple. The pilot just followed the highway.

Now came another tension filled time. After landing at Columbia airport, which was smaller than any of our village S.T. stands, I didn’t know where to go. So I looked around, saw a car with a Taxi sign on top, hopped in and told the driver to take me to some hotel in Columbia. He dropped me at a decent place and zoomed off. That was another moment of reckoning for me. Apart from the bank draft for my first semester’s expenses, I had exactly a total of $80 in cash on me. After paying the cab driver, I had $70 left with me. I had no idea how much a hotel would cost and how many days I will have to stay there.

After taking the help of a reluctant desk clerk in getting my room door open, as I didn’t know how to open the door, I looked for a phone directory. In it, I looked for a Kulkarni, Deshmukh or Deshpande and to my surprise, I found a Deshpande! Even bigger surprise was his reaction when I told him I had just arrived and was staying in xyz hotel. He said o man are you crazy? That hotel is expensive! Pack your bags we are coming to pick you up. In half an hour my doorbell rang, and in walked a stout Deshpande and his wife. He arranged temporary accommodation for me with some bachelor friends and on that welcome note I ended my journey to USA and started my journey in USA!

By the way about the clothes. My Dad had spent a lot of hard earned money in stitching me 3-4 suits, Nehru jacket etc. which I never got to use as I saw everyone on the streets wearing shorts in August!

Indian and Western Civilisations

Whenever I am alone and idle with nothing to do, I like to reason out the “why” of events around me. It's interesting to try to understand what caused a trend or an isolated event. One of the historical facts is the divergence of Indian and Western civilisations. Both are great in their own unique way but are poles apart. here's my take on the subject.

Indians were great thinkers. As a STEM student I cannot accept that Indians were flying planes in ancient times but the mythology does show that the Indians had the creative power to think of flying (Pushpak Viman), nuclear fission (Bramhastra), indestructible nature of matter/ energy (Punarjanma, Anaadi Anant). The concepts of Bramhand, Zero, study of astronomy show that the Indian mind was far ahead of contemporary societies at that time.

Problem was the method of teaching and sharing of knowledge & skills. Knowledge was (and

is) power. Skills are valued. Indians understood that and they shared their knowledge only with their offspring and trusted Shishyas. Knowledge & skills were not documented properly. This was probably due to the fear that it may fall into “wrong” hands (anyone who was not son/daughter or trusted Shishya) and would dilute their “Power”. The teaching was only by word of mouth. Though this did preserve the power in the hands of the elite, it had three detrimental consequences. One, the knowledge was lost if some wise man did not share it with anyone. Second, the knowledge degraded over generations, as oral knowledge lost something in communication (e.g. Chinese whispers). Third, if one offspring was not as intelligent as the knowledge demanded, he/she was asked to learn by rote. This became a rule rather than an exception and the knowledge became a meaningless ritual. It also meant that original thinking was discouraged. One was not supposed to tinker with what was taught. It was a “Given” without any logic. One was not allowed to question the wisdom of a Guru.

This is where the Western civilization differed from Indian. They documented every discovery, invention and knowledge. They invented the printing press through which knowledge was spread in its entirety within the society without loss in communication. It was tested and questioned by peers thereby bringing in many perspectives and sharpness to the knowledge.

Another area where Western civilisation differed was the way work & occupation was looked at. Every society wants to reduce manual work so that its people can have an easier life. Indians with their feudal setup used the less privileged to do their menial tasks. Westerners invented machines. As a result anyone working with their hands and legs was considered “Low caste” in Indian society but anyone who was a craftsman was respected in Western civilisation. The highest authority or Bramhan was one who only did thinking or teaching and got all the manual work done by others. The lowest rung was the craftsman or labour who did work useful to the society. An ironsmith was creating hulls and swords but he was low caste. He had no incentive to innovate or to improve his product, as he received no appreciation or reward. A farmer created food for all but he was treated poorly and had to share fruits of his labour with all. As against this, the westerners valued watchmakers, shoemakers and soldiers for their skills. And from these thoughts came the early scientists who would work with their hands in

Chemistry labs or for inventing labour reducing machines and of course for creating better guns. The results are apparent to us. Indians with their inward thinking remained rooted here as against the Westerners who used their guns, ships and action oriented war strategies, to conquer the world.

I believe today’s civilization needs machines to ensure that humans do not have to toil endlessly to earn a living but it also needs to look inward to reach a higher level of knowledge and self-realisation. Fortunately with global communication and free movement of people, today we are at a point in history where the Indian and Western minds and capabilities can come together to form an egalitarian society with respect for all and degradation of none.

The Warkaris

Ganoba was clearly in distress. Even a layman like me could see that his breathing was laboured, his eyes showed pain, his feet were swollen and he was so tired, that he could barely walk. The junior Doctor who had just got his degree in general medicine, pulled him out of the long line and made him sit before checking his BP & pulse. He then called the senior, who did the same. With the limited equipment available at our open air medical camp on the highway, there was there was not much else the Doctors could do to diagnose what was wrong with Ganoba. They gave him some medicine and with a worried look (Its rare to see a worried looking Doctor around his patient!) told Ganoba to stop walking and take a lift from the next available vehicle. And I saw that there were many who would be more than willing to give a lift.  I asked the Doctors what worried them. They both said he was showing all signs of an imminent heart attack. While he was taking the medicines I asked Ganoba a few questions. It turned out he had walked 150 kilometers, yes you got that right, 150 kms and had still about 100 kms to go to reach his destination. He was a farmhand and this was his annual time off from work. I didn't have to ask him what his destination was. Like the million plus other men, women and children, he was on his annual pilgrimage called “Wāri”, to the over 800 year old[1] deity in Western India known as “Vithoba” or “Viththal” or “Vithumai” in a small vilage called Pandharpur. There were many such Ganobas in the Wāri. One told us he walks every year from his village which is 600 kms from Pandharpur. (Yes I did check on Google Maps and found the figure to be correct).

The main Wāri takes 19 days to reach a distance of 250 kms from Alandi near Pune to Pandharpur with 3 days of stopovers. This means a trek of about 15kms per day for 16 days! Olympians will train for this kind of arduous trek and all I could see were malnourished but hardy villagers doing it with a smile on their faces. They not only walked but danced, sang and rejoiced their love for their own Vithoba. They are the followers of Wārkāri sect of Hinduism, who are vegetarian by choice, non violent and don't believe in caste system! All castes were walking shoulder to shoulder, eating from same pot and drinking the same water. For a 400 year old sect, this is quite a social revolution.

Warkaris walking to Pandharpur

But this gathering which can beat any staged Hollywood spectacle, got me thinking in another direction. I saw, no, experienced the energy, the enthusiasm, devotion and the sole purpose of over a million people who had nothing else in common. What brought them together? What makes them do this painful exercise year after year? Just Faith. Faith in Someone they believe in, faith that He can bring them salvation, faith that all their worldly worries and pain could be taken care of by Him. I personally do not believe in many aspects of religion such as violence for the sake of religion, blind worship, meaningless rituals, bad traditions etc but I do believe in the power of faith. I have seen faith cure mental depression, addictions and even terminal deceases. And to be honest, in many cases the faith was placed in the wrong kind of person!

All the major problems in India are due to our loss of faith in anything and everything. We don’t or rather can’t believe in people, systems or rule of law. Why don’t we have a single leader we can trust to do the right thing? Why do we victimize every honest man? How do we create a group of leaders in whom we can repose our faith? The present system of governance only encourages nepotism, casteism, dishonesty and populism. It only creates false demi-gods. 

Devotion to Viththal is not painless. It takes consistent effort of years of trekking to get to his image. But millions do it. Removing the problems and creating a country with happy citizens will also take a lot of pain. Where do we make a start?

I have no simple solution but I do believe that each one of us has a part to play. Each one of us has to sacrifice, each one of us has to strive to be the person in whom others can have trust. Each one of us must strive to reach our own Viththal if not be one ourself.

To complete my story of Ganoba, he took the pain relief medicines, Dispirin and the advise we gave him, got up from the chair and with his walking stick, walked. He walked one step at a time not knowing if he will reach Vithoba in this life or in his afterlife. But he walked with a firm resolve not looking back even once.

What was I doing there? Well every year for the last 15 years, our Innerwheel Club of Thane, which is a club of spouses of Rotarians, conducts a 2 day medical camp along the route taken by the pilgrims. From the last two years, we Rotarians of Rotary Club of Thane have also joined them in this noble venture.

And today after this experience I am not only humbled by their simplicity, commitment and drive but I am also emotionally a much richer person.

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[1] Wikipaedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vithoba_Temple,_Pandharpur & https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vithoba#cite_ref-karve_23-1