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Gavaskar checks in
Acting by abstaining |
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Consensus on talks with Taliban
Enhancing rhythm with weak forms
Where has the fun gone... Directionless pursuit Not on fertile political ground Of saviour and salvation
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Gavaskar checks in Finally, after some very strong remarks by the Supreme Court, N Srinivasan, the controversial president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), is willing to relinquish his position. Sunil Gavaskar, one of India's greatest cricketers, will head the BCCI in respect of the administration of the IPL. Another former cricketer, Shivlal Yadav, who is a BCCI vice-president, will carry out the other duties of the BCCI president. It is heartening that the Supreme Court is taking such a deep interest in the affairs of the BCCI. It has emerged as a beacon of hope because the BCCI officials have allowed the sport to fall into a state of disrepute, especially the scandal-hit IPL. It's clear that a massive clean-up exercise is required. Will Gavaskar be able to do the job in his temporary role at the BCCI? It is difficult to be too hopeful because several powerful business and political interests are deeply entrenched in the BCCI structure. They will resist change and eviction. The BCCI is a super-rich organisation which has become a den of corruption; but, as a few former cricketers noted on Friday, the latest measures are akin to treating cancer with band aid. Even Gavaskar, who was a controversial if an undoubtedly great player, has been part of the self-serving BCCI system. Critics have called him the mouthpiece of the BCCI because of his constant defence of the cricket administrators. It would be interesting to know the reasoning behind the Supreme Court opting for Gavaskar as an agent of change and clean-up. Why not, say, Kapil Dev? The Supreme Court has noted that Srinivasan -- as the BCCI president and IPL team owner — is in a position of a serious conflict of interest. To allow Srinivasan to buy IPL team Chennai Super Kings (CSK), the BCCI's rules had been changed retrospectively, much after he had actually bought CSK. Sadly, this situation could have been averted by the Supreme Court. In a separate case, a split Supreme Court verdict allowed Srinivasan to become BCCI president. The subsequent IPL scandal, and the involvement of Srinivasan's son-in-law in it, underlined why conflict of interest is a perilous and undesirable situation.
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Acting by abstaining India has abstained from voting in the United Nations Human Rights Council on a resolution against Sri Lanka. The resolution, passed by the
UNHRC, was propelled by the US and other western nations and it asked for an international investigation into possible war crimes in 2009. Both the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil Tiger rebels have been widely accused of committing atrocities and widespread human rights violations. Earlier, India had supported other resolutions that censured Colombo. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had even abstained from attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting Summit held in Colombo last year. However, this time, India was uncomfortable with a resolution that asked for an international inquiry. India considers such an inquiry intrusive, and that it would set a wrong precedent. Predictably, South Block is facing considerable flak from Tamil political leaders like M. Karunanidhi, and even Finance Minister P Chidambaram. India faces a delicate task. Human rights got a short shrift during the 26-year civil war, more so in the final stages. Various revelations of extra-judicial killings and torture that have hit the headlines have continued to build pressure for a proper inquiry into the conduct of both sides, something that Colombo has stoutly resisted. Sri Lankan Tamils continue to be discriminated against and there has been little development in the Tamil-dominated northern Sri Lanka. However, an intrusive inquiry into the events may not help the situation. India now must put pressure on Colombo to speed up the process of reconciliation, accountability and political resolution. Tamil Sri Lankans need to be brought into the mainstream of the Sri Lankan story. Human rights violations need to be investigated and those guilty must be punished. India has a major role to play in Sri Lanka and its foreign policy must reflect its concerns and strengths, as it has in this case.
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If you do not tell the truth about yourself you cannot tell it about other people. —Virginia Woolf
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THERE was a slight decrease in the number of publications issued in 1912-13, the total having fallen by 33 to 1532. But this is ascribed to the exclusion of a number of leaflets which cannot properly be classed at literature. The number of original works was 1079, the rest being translations or republications. The linguistic classification shows that 38.5 per cent of the publications were in Urdu, 34 per cent in Punjabi, 7.3 per cent is English, 0.8 per cent in two languages. About one-quarter of the Punjabi books are also more Urdu than Punjabi “being written by Mahomedans in Persian script and containing a large proportion of Persian and Arabic words.” Whether Punjabi Mahomedans have begun to disregard their mother tongue or whether the works have been produced by the few enthusiasts of the Pan-Islamic School is not stated, but the tendency itself is significant. Mr. Pearson’s impressions
THE Rev. Mr. W. Pearson, who accompanied the Rev. Mr. Andrews to South Africa, has written a brief letter to the press embodying a few impressions of his visit. He says that in his evidence before the Commission he strongly criticised the system of indentured labour and now gives his reasons for that criticism. He writes: “After a careful study of the laws relating to this aspect of the Indian question and of their actual working, I feel bound to come to the conclusion that they do not afford adequate protection to the workers. For this, however, the blame must rest chiefly on the Government of India… I believe that, if the Europeans of this country realised the possible abuses of the indenture system as I have seen them during a close and persistent study of nearly two months, they would agree that a system of free labour in which the good master gets and keeps the willing service of his workers would be more in accordance with British ideals.”
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Consensus on talks with Taliban Ever since the current round of negotiations with the Taliban in Pakistan began, there have been numerous committees, limited military strikes and continuing violence by militants. A cursory look at the problematique reveals two major fault lines. The first is between the multiple actors who are directly and indirectly party to the negotiations and its outcome — political parties, the military, the Taliban and civil society. Second, there is also a fault line within each of the above actors on the endgame.
There have been numerous “all-party conferences” and debates within and outside Parliament. Though there seems to be a consensus in negotiating with the Taliban in Pakistan, there are subtle differences within the political parties in terms of the endgame. The ruling PML-N and the Punjabi leadership seems to be primarily interested in ensuring that violence does not spread into Punjab. It appears they prefer to live with an element of Taliban presence and influence in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), provided they do not attempt to infiltrate into Islamabad and the rest of Punjab. The regional political parties, especially in KP, including the Awami National Party and Imran Khan's PTI, also seem to be pursuing a same goal, but to a limited extent. It appears that the political parties in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are also willing to live with a Taliban presence and influence in FATA, and selected settled regions in KP such as Swat, as long as the TTP and its ideology gets quarantined within these tribal belts. The MQM and the PPP also seem to be more interested in protecting Sindh, especially the port city and economic capital of Pakistan, Karachi. Today, there are more Pashtuns living in Karachi than in Peshawar, Kabul and Kandhahar. The Taliban has an influence over the Pashtuns in Karachi, which undermines the MQM, the ANP and the PPP. Since the PML-N has a smaller political constituency in Sindh, the Punjabi leadership may not be averse to an element of Taliban presence in Karachi as long as it does not affect economic growth and the economic corridor to Lahore and Islamabad. Given the nature and size, the Baloch parties have less or no say in what they want vis-à-vis the Taliban, though the latter's presence in Balochistan has increased sectarian violence and undermined Baloch nationalism. For the rest of Pakistan, perhaps the undermining of Baloch nationalism under the heat of a violent sectarian discourse suits their larger, but narrow interests. If these factors drive the negotiating positions of the political parties at the national and regional levels, it appears each one of them is trying to protect its own territory and allow the Taliban to function to a limited extent outside its sphere of influence. If the political parties have an agenda to protect their own turf, religious leaders of different parties such as JI, JUI-F and JUI-S along with self-styled maulanas and mullahs are trying to increase their political clout. Supporting the Taliban, its ideology and the need to negotiate with the militants gives them an edge, as could be seen in the composition of committees. After becoming politically less relevant if not totally irrelevant, the maulanas and mullahs see the Taliban as an opportunity to rekindle the entire Islamic and Islamisation debate within Pakistan. For them the Taliban and the negotiation agenda open a debate which would bring them into the mainstream debate on the future of Pakistan. The Taliban offensive opens a political door for the clergy and religious parties. What is the endgame of the military in talking to the Taliban? Though most of the TTP's demands such as the release of prisoners and stopping military actions are directly related to the military, the GHQ and the ISI seem to have succeeded in allowing the political leadership take the primary heat and blame. A section within the GHQ and the ISI still seems to believe in a role for the Pakistani Taliban in any future negotiations with Afghanistan. While a section of the TTP may be fighting the Pakistani military, a section in FATA and across the Durand Line still works for the military such as the Haqqani network and its supporters in FATA along with a few “pro-State” militants. The military's thinking perhaps is: once the Americans leave Afghanistan, a substantial section of the Afghan Taliban and its supporters within Pakistan would move west of the Durand Line. So if the GHQ and the ISI could sit tight during this year, calibrate its military responses to the TTP's intrusions and ensure that the political leadership takes the blame for any inaction, there would be a different security environment post 2014. What is the endgame of Pakistani Taliban and its franchisees? Even if the political and military leadership in Pakistan is willing to give FATA and select settled districts of KP in a platter to the Taliban, Mullah Fazlullah is unlikely to be contended with this. What the State is willing to give the TTP is what it already controls. It is unlikely that the Pakistani Taliban would be contended to have its influence only in FATA. Going by what Fazlullah wanted in the Swat valley and knowing the State's weakness, the Taliban leadership should be well aware of the importance of 2014. Instead or along with accepting its own sphere of influence in the tribal belt, the TTP leadership would use the negotiations as a strategy, build its own empire, create confusion within the political leadership and ingress into the rest of Pakistan. Also in the process, it would allow its franchisees in Quetta, South Punjab and Karachi to expand their presence. Perhaps, the TTP is also waiting for the 2014 deadline following which the Afghan Taliban have an opportunity in Kabul, and the Pakistani Taliban their own “strategic depth” across the Durand Line. Finally, the endgame of civil society. Though the liberal civil society is opposed to negotiations with the Taliban, its voice is small and weak, perhaps limited to English newspapers and TV channels. The larger debate is being shaped by the mullahs, maulanas and their supporters along with a few political leaders such as Imran Khan (referred as Taliban Khan now). If the moderate civil society has to impose its own endgame in terms of completely negating the Taliban and its influence, it would need the support of the political leadership and the military. It is unfortunate that the only section that does not want to provide any space for the Taliban in Pakistan is also the weakest. And there lies the strength of the Taliban and its franchisees. The writer is the Director, Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies (IPCS), New Delhi
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Enhancing rhythm with weak forms "... every accent, every emphasis, every modulation of voice, was so perfectly well turned and well placed, that, without being interested in the subject, one could not help being pleased with the discourse..." —Benjamin Franklin
1. The 'man has 'had his 'meal at 'home. Marked with a stroke, "man, had, meal" and "home" indicate sentence stress placed on them, realized as emphasis; heard loud and clear. On the other hand, "the, has, his" and "at" are unstressed, spoken quickly; almost glided over. Helping verbs, articles, prepositions, conjunctions and most personal pronouns have two or more pronunciations, a strong form and one or more weak forms. Weak forms are the shortened spoken versions of those words. In its weak forms, "has" is heard as /hez/, /ez/ or /z/. The schwa symbol /e/ stands for a weak vowel sound, heard like the second vowel sound of "focus". The unstressed "his" is heard as /iz/ and "at" as /et/.
2. 'Arms and the 'man is the 'name of a
'play.
3. 'Write and 'send it as 'soon as you
'can. 4. 'Bebo? 'No. I 'said, 'Bebo 'and 'Saif; 'the 'Saif. The rhythmic pattern is somewhat unusual here because almost all the words are stressed. The words "and" and "the" receive special stress here to indicate that it is not Bebo alone, and that Bebo is accompanied by the well known Saif. Following their strong forms, "a" in "and" is articulated as "a" as in "lap" and the vowel in "the" is pronounced as "ee" as in "reed", the sound represented with the symbol /i:/. Since many Indian languages like Hindi have a syllable-timed rhythm where not much time distinction is made between stressed and unstressed words and syllables, learners find it difficult to acquire the rhythm or beat of English. Reference to rules of rhythmic patterns and their practice help enhance international intelligibility.
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Where has the fun gone... yeh na dekh sakta hai na sun sakta hai… sarkar hai
kya. Funny? We guess. Alas! The film, in which rib-tickling one-liners either miss the point or fail to pack a punch, isn’t. The so-called punch lines actually are by and large singularly not funny and positively un-amusing. But for a stray dialogue here and there, the humour is the film’s biggest casualty.
No wonder the much hyped situational comedy dealing with tainted politicians, corrupt media and a whole lot of bad men and women turns out to be a mirthless affair. Sure, the movie has its heart in its right place but the rest of the organs are completely out of sync if not out of order. So what you get is a mishmash where neither comedy works nor its noble message. Never mind that it comes straight to the point with the murder of a CBI officer probing into a Commonwealth Game type of scam. By the way, you needn’t rack your brains as to whodunnit. The mystery is revealed quite soon. For, who else can be the killer but the wily politician the officer was investigating? Only the officer it seems has been murdered twice over, shot dead by the arch enemy of the politician to frame his rival. But before the dead man can be laid to rest, the now found now lost dead body begins to play a crucial role. Watch it only if your funny bone is tickled without provocation. Our advice—grab a DVD of the good old Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro. As for Sallu Bhai fans, here’s the real dampener. He makes his presence felt only in the end in a song when credits roll. Needless to add by then his charismatic presence can do little to lift the film or cinegoers’ spirits. The only uplifting element of the film of course is the sartorial choice of two lovely women. Mandira Bedi playing media management consultant attired in deep back cut blouses and exquisite sarees looks fetching. The wardrobe of Sarah Jane Dias as Monsoon, a TV channel head, is noteworthy too. Their performances, however, are hardly worth a note. Amidst the din of dead body and scandalous CDs changing hands we are struck by an afterthought. Why didn’t Salman’s dear sister Alvira, who along with hubby Atul Agnihotri, has produced the film cast the superstar bro in the film? It would have saved them a whole lot of money and audiences (critics too) would have known in advance what to expect. To be honest typical Salman Khan potboilers would any day be a better option.
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Directionless pursuit this is Shilpa Shetty and Raj Kundra’s first home production and as such, much was expected from it. However, this one could have well been left alone. Viki (Harman Baweja), a motherless boy clamouring for love, doesn’t get it from his busy father who supposedly is a Gandhian. All the luxuries of his life can do little to stem the discontent in his soul. So, he starts selling drugs and uses Mota Tony (Prashant Narayanan) to wreak revenge on those who bullied him in school. He enters the world of crime and that’s where he meets Lakwa (Sunny Deol spewing haryanvi). Viki shores up his gangsta credibility by spreading rumours about his heroics but never manages to live up to it. We really don’t know what the writer or director wanted to convey. Incoherence plagues you at every turn thereafter! There’s no clear exploration of Viki’s discontent or why he is attracted to the dark side. The screenplay doesn’t have much depth. The pace is lethargic and extremely debilitating. Sunny Deol’s presence does liven up things for a bit, but that’s certainly not enough to set things right here.
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Not on fertile political ground
taking advantage of the election season to fashion a story about young love juxtaposed against tragic circumstances, national responsibility and conservative old-school mindset, Syed Ahmed Afzal makes an attempt to garner box-office eyeballs and is at least a trifle refreshing. Abhimanyu (Jackky Bhagnani) and his live-in girlfriend Anvita (Neha Sharma) are enjoying life in Tokyo when he is forced to get back to the country of his birth following his father (Boman Irani), the Prime Minister's, death. Once back in the home country, the path to love becomes further complicated by the rigours of political life and conservative expectations.
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Of saviour and salvation so, it’s back to Biblical times. And who doesn’t remember the deluge and the birds and animals aboard the Ark to increase and multiply after the destruction of earth and the receding flood waters. The man anointed for the task is Noah. Based on the Book of the Genesis, director Darren Aronofsky takes some liberties with the text but brings out the spirit and substance of that era which began with the beginning, when there was nothing. Slowly, colour appeared, then nature and then life—birds and creatures and lastly humans. Adam and Eve and the serpent, the apple, sin and being driven out of Paradise is all old hat. Much, much later came Noah (Russell Crowe) and his family, his wife Naameh (Jennifer Connelly) and sons Ham (Logan Lerman), Shem (Douglas Booth) and Japheth (Leo McHugh Carrell). They come across an orphan child Ila (Emma Watson) who later marries Shem but life is anything but smooth. The visuals are fetchingly shot by Matthew Libalique and an apt screenplay, not unduly verbose, imbues Noah with an old-world charm. Then excellent performances by Russell Crowe and Jennifer Connelly further embellish the narrative. Anthony Hopkins is his usual self and though the 132-minute work could easily have been clipped of 20 minutes, still it is wholesome entertainment. It may not be in the same league like Quo Vadis and Ben-Hur but it is still worth watching. |
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ZEE CINEMA
ZEE CINEMA
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The rhythm of the language, in harmony
with its distinct melody, adds to the listener's delight and augments
communicative worth of connected speech. In English, stressed and
unstressed words are interspersed at regular intervals, and their
recurrence gives the language its characteristic stress-timed rhythm.
The intelligibility of many non-native speakers gets affected since
they don't pay due attention to the aspects taken up below:
And here we digress. Remember a gem called Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro that has gone down in the annals of cinematic history as a cult classic and entertained you all the way. O Teri is somewhat fashioned on similar lines in which two simpletons (Pulkit Samrat and Bilal Amrohi) bump into a laash and consequently uncover the sinister plot. But that’s where the similarity ends. If in the Kundan Shah film even the dead body acted and emoted with its poker face expression here even gifted actors like Anupam Kher are given a short shrift. Comparatively, Vijay Raaz (as Kher’s bête noire) with a sexual predilection, is better lampooned and the song picturised on him is groovy too. But little else about the film is. Actually ten minutes into the film you are served the Bollywood song and dance routine with songs like Your butt is going round on the platter. All this naach gaana does is—it brings the lead Pulkit Samrat’s dancing skills to the fore. No more, no less. Sure, Pulkit is earnest moreso in the final act. Actually the anticlimax packs a few stirring moments but by then it’s a classic case of too little too late. The biggest redeeming feature of the film its short length of less than two hours too doesn’t save it from falling into the drab and dreary abyss. 
This is basically a film about a guy who wants to join the underworld and become a gangster. Set in the backdrop of Mumbai’s ghettos, this film tells the story about an upper middle class man’s descent into crime. It’s an all seen-before scenarios that just don’t engage, enthrall or entertain. 
The premise was intriguing but the exposition, set-up and eventual progression to the climax too shifty to be riveting. The dialogues lack wit and polish while the screenplay is also lacking. The political drama and love story is not crafted with much finesse either.
Noah is very demanding and in his interpretation of God’s wishes rubs folks wrongly. First, it is Ham who breaks away from the family due to differences with Noah. Meanwhile, Methuselah (Anthony Hopkins) plays the guiding senior who lives in the mountains and keeps searching for berries. 
Saturday March 29
Sunday March 30