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Advani’s penchant A jailbreak a day |
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Garlands for Aya Rams
The missile threat
When Big B was A
Kapurthala man, Germany’s top poet What has
changed Nana Patekar
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Advani’s penchant RATH Yatras no longer capture the imagination of the people. The first time Mr L.K. Advani mounted a diesel-powered rath at Somnath for his journey to Ayodhya, there was excitement in the air. The second time he mounted it on the occasion of the Golden Jubilee of Independence, it was considered a bore. This time as he gets ready to start his journey from Kanyakumari, it is considered a farce. The purpose of his first journey was to help build a temple at Ayodhya. Over a decade after he was arrested at Samastipur in Bihar and holding the second most important job in the country, he says the temple will be built through negotiations between Hindus and Muslims. It is an indirect admission that his first journey was a failure, though some people believe that it helped the BJP reap an electoral windfall. Many thought it sharpened divisions in the plural polity we have in India. Today Mr Advani's abortive journey that sealed the fate of the V.P. Singh government is remembered for the trail of bitterness it left behind all along the route it traversed. Small wonder that there is widespread apprehension about his Bharat UdayYatra, which will start rolling from the southern tip of India on March 10. The symbolism of Mr Advani using the same vehicle which the disgraced minister, Mr Dilip Singh Judeo, had used for his Christian-bashing and Mr Narendra Modi for his hate campaign cannot be lost on not merely the minorities but all those who believe that without harmony, there can be no 'India Rising'. BJP spokesmen are legalistic when they claim that Mr Advani is within his rights to hit the road. It is difficult to believe that the Yatra is solely intended to espouse the cause of the BJP. It seems to have a subtext as well, which is clear to those who keep a close tab on the BJP. In this election, the trump card the National Democratic Alliance has is the image of Mr Atal Bihari Vajpayee. In fact, it is based on the performance of his government that it is making all its electoral calculations. Mr Advani's supporters in the Sangh Parivar who do not want all the credit to go to Mr Vajpayee think that the Yatra which would hog the limelight would help strengthen Mr Advani's claim in any future political arrangement. However, the government has a duty to ensure that the Yatra does not generate atavistic passions as in the past. |
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A jailbreak a day AS if the Burail jailbreak was not shameful enough, such incidents have started taking place with shocking regularity. The latest incident in the sensational series took place in Gujarat on Wednesday where 10 convicts escaped from a sub-jail at Borsad taluka in Anand district after attacking and injuring two security guards. The ease with which such daring escapes are being committed leads to only one conclusion: that the jail administration has all but broken down. It seems that the prisoners are better organised than the authorities. Otherwise, how is it that the Burail terrorists still remain untraced despite a nationwide hunt having been launched against them? The way the killer of Phoolan Devi walked out of Tihar jail with the help of his accomplices posing as policemen was equally shocking. In the Gujarat case too, the guards on duty displayed incompetence bordering on connivance. The prisoners complained of illness and the guards rushed to their cells where they were overpowered. Preliminary investigations reveal that the Head Constable on duty was not at the post when the incident took place. Prisons are not only meant to deter the wrongdoers but also to reform them. This ideal has been made to stand on its head in Indian prisons. They make hardcore criminals even out of ordinary offenders. Overcrowding, corruption and laxity rule the roost. A hierarchical system seems to be in operation where dreaded prisoners manage to get all comforts of life in their cells. Jail officials virtually pay obeisance to them. The effect that all this has on the mind of a juvenile delinquent can be imagined. Instead of dreading the jail term, he grows up wanting to become a similarly "respected" don. The results are for all to see. Runaway criminalisation stares society in the eye. Setting the whole society in order may be a task beyond the capacity of the government. But it can and must do a lot for the jails at least. |
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Garlands for Aya Rams FOR out of job politicians this is the season to grab a bit of media attention. They want to make political hay while the poll sun shines. What is being witnessed at the national level is also the equivalent of the happy hour in the town's popular bar. Usually the happy hour tab is picked up by the management. However, in the political "maikhana" there are at least two patrons offering free drinks to willing turncoats. Loyalty to the party or ideology is like familiarity that only breeds contempt. The crowd at the BJP's table may not necessarily translate into votes, but the Aya Rappas and the Gaya Laxmans appear punch drunk with ecstasy. They believe that they have made the winning choice. In terms of stature former Karnataka Chief Minister S. Bangarappa, a strong Congress loyalist in the heady days of "Indira is supposedly India" and before the emergence of Mr S. M. Krishna as the high command's favourite, is the biggest "catch" the the BJP's welcome committee has managed so far. The welcome itself makes it worth the while for sidelined politicians to switch sides. It begins with hand shakes from the BJP president and the Deputy Prime Minister. But the father of all hand shakes comes from Atalji. For Mr Bangarappa it must have been like reliving the old days when Indira Gandhi used to patronise him. But the argument that Mr Arif Mohammad Khan invented for deserting the Congress should find an entry in Ripley's chapter on political opportunism. He had parted company with Ms Mayawati for having sought the support of the "communal" BJP for becoming Chief Minister. Now his noble mission is to bridge the Hindu-Muslim divide by actually joining the same party. It is a pity he didn’t think of the great cause earlier. To the world you may be one person, but to one person you may be the world.
— Origin unknown |
The missile threat COMPETITIVE security environment in today’s world has led nations to believe increasingly that their percieved threats could only be addressed by means of nuclear missile capabilities. This has resulted in nations aspiring for the ultimate non-conventional military potential well beyond their legitimate needs. This trend is mostly seen amongst the third world countries, particularly in Asia. Far East, South East, West and South Asia are all involved in varying degrees in the race for comparative superiority vis-a-vis their respective adversaries. Complete spectrum of non-strategic ballistic missiles with vast capabilities are consequently proliferating at an alarming rate. India is precariously placed in the middle of this threat. Pakistan’s progressively increasing capabilities, indigenous or clandestine, are reflected by its Hatf, Ghauri and Shaheen series and M-9 and M-11 of Chinese origin. Their claimed or demonstrated ranges vary between 8 km of Hatf and 2500 km of Shaheen-2, with warheads ranging from 500 kg to 1,000 kg. Hatf-I and 3, Shaheen-I, Ghauri-I and M-11 are already in service. M-9 is what the Pakistanis call Hatf-3. US intelligence suggests that Pakistan continues to expand its nuclear capabilities. It has about 600 to 800 kg weapon grade highly enriched uranium and substantial amount of separated plutonium. These quantities are considered enough to produce 40-50 nuclear warheads or bombs. With this Pakistan can well arm substantial number of its missiles with nuclear warheads. On the northern side, China is an established nuclear power with formidable nuclear weapon capabilities. It is estimated that China’s stock of nuclear weapons comprises 600 missiles and 400 nuclear warheads. With its IRBMs, ICBMs and other non-strategic ballistic missiles, China poses potent threat to the entire Indian subcontinent. North Korea, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Israel, all possess varying levels of nuclear or missile capabilities. Surprisingly, none seems to possess any effective antimissile defence system. India is acutely aware of this and its inability to defend itself against missile attacks. Some antiballistic missile systems are easily available on commercial terms in the market. India is in the process of evaluating some systems like the Israeli Arrow-2, Russian S-300 PMU-I and PMU-2 and S-300 VM. The American Patriot PAC-3 is also on the list. But its poor performance against the Iraqi Scuds, despite several subsequent upgradations, excludes it from any serious consideration. Israeli Arrow-2 was originally designed to engage Iraqi Scuds and its Iranian equivalent. Its effective interception range is 70 km at a maximum altitude of 50 km, although maximum launch range of missile to be intercepted is 1200 km. There are some reports to say that it is not capable of engaging launch vehicles with nuclear heads. Pak’s missiles, unlike the Iranian ones, are nuclear capable. Besides, it needs another system to defend itself because of its minimum engagement distance being 8 km. Arrow-2 functions in conjunction with Green Pine tracking radar which can detect enemy missile launch far away to give sufficient warning for alerting own defences. It’s an excellent radar but whether it can meet vast subcontinental requirements is a moot point. What India needs is a radar that can cater to the entire air space over Pakistan. The point to remember is that this system was developed jointly by Israel and the USA and the latter is bound to control strings so far its sale and subsequent support for sustenance is concerned. Russian S-300 PMU-I and 2 has the capability, something akin to “shoot and scoot” for better survivability. S-300 VM inducted in Russian armed forces later on sometime in mid 90s is capable of picking up incoming nuclear missiles within 3 seconds at a launch range of 2500 km. It can effectively intercept two to three
ingressing missiles simultaneously at a range of 40 km. S-400 is further development of S-300 series and is capable of providing long-range area defence against air and missile attacks. It needs to be mentioned here that both Arrow-2 and S-300 VM are also capable of intercepting enemy aircraft besides the ballistic missiles. S-300 VM can simultaneously guide up to 12 antiaircraft missiles to a range of 200 km, whilst the Arrow-2 can guide up to two missiles to a maximum range of 100 km. Their optimal deployment in dual role could be highly economical. It seems India is inclined towards Israeli Arrow-2 with the Russian system as its second option. This preference is rather surprising considering the ready availability of better performing Russian system as against the string-tied lesser Israeli system. Indo-US strategic cooperation has brought the two countries closer to each other. BJP-led NDA government’s proclivity to support Americans as far as possible is apparently having its effect. The Bush Administration has been rather liberal with India lately in giving concessions over a range of strategic issues, otherwise unthinkable. It has agreed to assist India in critical areas of nuclear facilities for civilian use, joint production of civilian satellites and transfer of high technology and dual use technology items. It is, however, doubtful whether the US would be so magnanimous as to give these concessions without any quid pro quo. No wonder, it is literally pressurising India to go in for US missile umbrella. India’s inclination to go along with the US in accepting the National Missile Defence and Theatre Missile Defence may in the long run prove detrimental. India must carefully examine its options in the light of US intentions of supporting its nuclear and space programmes and providing, missile umbrella which may in the ultimate analysis result in throttling India’s indigenous missile capabilities. DRDO is presently in the final stages of developing ‘Akash’ antiaircraft missile system guided by 3D Rajendra phased array surveillance radar which is linked to central acquisition radar. The missile has range of 27 km with a ceiling of 18 km and carries a 60 kg warhead. Its further development into an antiballistic missile system is reportedly under progress. It would be a forerunner to India’s antiballistic missile system. India has long-term plans to develop such a system, technological challenges notwithstanding. In the interim, India has no option but to procure some system in sufficient numbers from
outside. |
When Big B was A THE recent fracas at a cine awards function in Dubai over the inappropriateness of seating Amitabh Bachchan in the 11th row brings to mind a story that the film-maker Mrinal Sen told me a couple of years ago. It happened long ago, when Amitabh was no Big B but a “bachcha”, as Mrinalda says, eager for a break in films. It was 1969. Sen had finished shooting Bhuvan Shome in Bhavnagar, Gujarat. During the days he was editing the film in Bombay, he had gone over to the house of friend and script-writer, K A Abbas, who had just begun work on Saath Hindustani. Abbas was sitting with a group from which he proposed to pick his cast and crew. Sen told him that he wanted a good voice as the narrator of his film and would prefer a new voice. A lambu stepped out from among those seated and told Sen “Ami Bangla jaaney” (I know Bengali). Sen told “the boy” his Bengali was bad but his voice good, which was good enough for the narration in Hindi. Abbas allowed Amitabh to take on the assignment. When the work was done, Sen said he would not be able to pay him much. The boy did not want payment and said he didn’t do it for money. Sen insisted and paid the amount. The boy then asked whether his name would appear in the titles. Sen replied in the affirmative. The boy’s name was Amitabh Bachchan. “But in the title, put only Amitabh. Don’t mention Bachchan”, he pleaded and Sen agreed. In the credit titles of Mrinal Sen’s Bhuvan Shome, the voice-over artiste’s name “Amitabh” appears last. Indeed, this must be the only film in which the Bachchan name figures at the end and not even in full. When I saw the film in 1970, I didn’t notice this detail. Nor did I register the narrator’s baritone voice — heard for less than five minutes at the film’s beginning and end — that was to become famous. But on the last occasion I met Sen, when a retrospective of his films was being screened at the India International Centre in Delhi, he told me this story and I made it a point to pay attention to the unforgettable voice. Bhuvan Shome bagged many awards, including the National Award in 1970, when the director and his voice-over artiste met in Calcutta. When the two went to a function at a film journalists’ association, a reporter, on seeing Amitabh, asked Sen, “Is he your next hero?” Sen admitted he liked the idea, “But I have to find a role that fits him”. Amitabh himself was keen on acting in one of Sen’s films. Sen would have liked to cast him in Interview and the actor too would have liked the role. The hitch was that Sen wanted an ordinary looking person. “And Amitabh, even then, was a striking personality”. Sen assured me that “the boy” remembers all this. Some years ago he corrected a critic that the first voice-over he did was not in 1983 for Satyajit Ray’s Shatranj ke Khiladi but for Bhuvan Shome. But, recalls Sen fondly, Amitabh said that I paid him Rs 500. “He does not remember. It was only Rs 300”.
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Kapurthala man, Germany’s top poet
German is a difficult language even for Europeans. For a Punjabi who had never read it in school, it was all Greek. And yet he mastered it in very little time. To make one's mark as a poet and an author in it was all the more challenging. He was the first ever non-German Poet Laureate, and remains so. In fact, there are very few writers who achieve international acclaim writing in a language other than their mother tongue, that they learnt at a ripe age. The only names that come to mind are Joseph Conrad, Vladimir Nabokov and Joseph Brodskey. Rajvinder started writing in German in 1985 when he was studying semiotics (science of signs and communication) at the Technical University, Berlin. A year later, he was already being published throughout the country as a poet with a difference. But his reputation as a mainstream poet was established in 1996 with the publication of his much acclaimed book, “Spuren der Wurzeln” (Traces of Roots). Next year, he was made Poet Laureate. While Rajvinder was still enjoying the fruits of Laureateship, staying at the beautiful castle of King Frederic II in Rheinsberg, he was selected to be the 1998 “Writer-in-Residence” at the prestigious International Artists Colony in Worpswede, where every year nine artists and one writer chosen from all the world are given residency and a scholarship for six to 12 months. Both before and after these honours, he has been awarded a series of literary honours and writing scholarships by the government as well as non-government organisations in recognition of his contribution to the German literature. The newest addition to this long list is a double honour conferred on him recently. At the end of 2003, the President of the Federal Republic of Germany chose four mainstream German writers for a three-year writing scholarship. Rajvinder, who has authored seven books of German poetry — many of them in second and third editions — and has co-authored another seven volumes of poetry and prose, is one of those four, again the only non-German to achieve this distinction. Secondly, he has been chosen by the Art Council of North Rhine-Westphalia State to occupy the newly created chair of writer-in-residence at Remsheid. Rajvinder’s aesthetic perception is enriched with multiple intellectual traditions speaking of his continuous dialogue and encounters with numerous cultures around the globe, shaping his hybrid personality. Rajvinder is one of those self-made persons who rise to fame flourishing under unfavourable circumstances. After passing his matriculation with distinction, as differences grew with his imposing father, he left home and stayed in the local college hostel. He would work in a fodder factory at night to support his studies. At the same time, he wrote poetry and became a student activist. Later, he joined hands with D.S. Jaspal in bringing out the first-ever newspaper from Kapurthala, a bilingual fortnightly, The Rags. Consequently, he published his first-ever collection of poetry, Raat Lammi Zindagi, in 1975. Principal H.S. Chaudhary recognised the flame in him and extended his full support. But after the emergency, he had to leave Kapurthala. He went to Jammu and did MA Punjabi with the highest marks in the subject anywhere in India. In 1980 when he was a research fellow at Jammu University, he left India and went to Europe for further studies. Travelling through various universities like Paris, Ghent (Belgium), Nijmegan (Holland) and Amsterdam he came to Germany. In Berlin, he first learnt German and joined Berlin’s Technical University to study semiotics, then only a part of the literary and linguistic curriculum, under Prof Dr Roland Posner. He went through a hazardous period of health deterioration in 83-84 that changed his attitude towards life. It was during this period that he started composing poetry in German language and received widespread acclaim. He has represented Germany in many international conferences, beside being second President of the Berlin Writers Association (NGL) and a member of the International PEN, Co-Chairperson of the Writers-in-Prison Committee of the German chapter of PEN. Nine films have been made on his life story and more than 150 articles have appeared on him. Don’t such extraordinary achievements create a feeling of jealousy in his country of adoption? Rajvinder, who is here on honeymoon after his marriage to a prominent Indian painter, Jyotika Sehgal, says there may be some who may nurture such illwill but most Germans have been won over by his typical Punjabi warmth. Perhaps that is why seven prominent German writers and critics honoured him in October last with a volume of 50 of his selected poems which they loved the most and published it under the title “Being of a Word Strange”. He continues to write in Punjabi as well. Last month, one of his Punjabi books, “Ghar te Parvaz Sargam” (Home, and a gamut of flights) was chosen to be prescribed for MA (Punjabi) curriculum by Kurukshetra University. Cassettes of his Punjabi poems have also been released. He has sung of home town Kapurthala all over the world, at least in the 48 countries where he travelled to take part in literary conferences. Naturally, he means Kapurthala, when he sings: “Main jis shahar ’ch bhariya pahila saah, main us shahar da kade na bhullan raah” (I am never ever able to forget the town where I breathed the first breath of life). |
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What has changed
Nana Patekar
“There’s no verbal outpouring in this role. I had become abusive in real life. Don’t blame me, I inherited it from my mother. That was my Konkani mother's influence on me.” Nana now shuttles between Mumbai and Pune. “I have so many things to do. Cinema isn’t my only preoccupation. For some time now I was doing totally trashy work. Initially, I liked the sound of ‘Vadh’ and ‘Aanch’. But the ingredients have to be right because I wasn’t the one making the ‘khichdi’ (hotchpotch).” But “Ab Tak Chhappan and his association with Ram Gopal Varma has changed Patekar’s life. “I started thinking of myself as a larger than life figure. ‘Ab Tak Chhappan’ has brought me back to earth. It has taken me to my roots. I feel I’m back to Muzaffar Ali’s ‘Gaman’ where I had an absolutely negligible role. I’m so happy with ‘Chappan’.” Patekar feels a special bonding with Varma with whom he has earlier worked in “Bhoot” and “Darna Manaa Hai”. “Ramu (Varma) and I sit together sometimes talking till the wee hours. When I had my house-warming ceremony in Pune, he said he didn’t believe in such things and that he came only for me. “Today Ramu tells me I can make any kind of film, no matter how strange, for his company. Sometimes films are like mother’s cooking. No chef can make the same kind of food as your mother. Ramu’s films are like that. Even I directed a film, ‘Prahaar’, which I’m proud of. It did well, though not as well as it should’ve.” Patekar rates “Ab Tak Chhappan” as his best performance to date. “I really liked myself in ‘Khamoshi: The Musical’. I rate it as my best performance before ‘Ab Tak Chhappan’. But it didn’t do well. Audiences wanted to hear Nana speak. But he was mute. I regret the failure of ‘Khamoshi’. It gave me the chance to do something different. “Otherwise, filmmakers insisted on making me do the same things over and over again. And it was ridiculous of me to agree. I’ve no one to blame but myself. I became greedy. I had a lot of faith in a film like N. Chandra’s ‘Wajood’. But it wasn’t possible for one man to carry the whole film.” The once-volatile actor lightens up when he remembers his first encounter with Varma. “When Ramu made his first Hindi film, ‘Shiva’, he approached me to play a villain. When he called me, I said, ‘Hello? Tell me...Come’ and hung up. Ramu was flustered. He met me. I asked him to see me in ‘Parinda’ and decide whether I should repeat myself in ‘Shiva’.
— Indo-Asian News Service |
We must cleanse the mind of all distraction and purge the heart from all corruption, to acquire spiritual wisdom. — The Bhagavad Gita Never kneel, at all, to a person who proclaims himself guru or pir but goes around begging. — Guru Nanak True Ahimsa should mean a complete freedom from ill-will and anger and hate and an overflowing love for all. — Mahatma Gandhi What has been taught to us becomes part of our life. We are to adopt ourselves according to the teachings and traditions of our saints and sages. — Nirankari Baba Hardev Singh He insulted me, he cheated me, he beat me, he robbed me — those who are free of resentful thoughts surely find peace. — The Buddha |
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ONCE you lose your home, the whole world becomes your domain. This philosophical musing has become life’s credo for a Kapurthala youth who left for Germany to study literature 24 years ago. The only wealth he had with him was a brilliant academic career in Punjabi and a poetry book published when he was only 19. Rajvinder Singh is today one of the most celebrated poets of Germany, writing extensively in the language which he calls his “step-mother tongue”. Awards he has won aplenty, including the distinction of being made the Poet Laureate of Rheinsberg in 1997.
Mumbai: Once hot-headed and unpredictable, Nana Patekar has today mellowed beyond recognition. “I used to be too dominating. I used to be ready to fight. But I’ve mellowed. And you see it in my performance in ‘Ab Tak Chhappan’,” Patekar told IANS.