Thank God, I am Indian

a guest blog on Khuda Ke Liye:
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i dont know why, but in spite of not feeling upto stepping out, i decided to watch Khuda ke Liye on its last show at Chennai..

for the uninformed, KKL is a Pakistani film that has won rave reviews all over the world, and was finally permitted to release in India..sadly because we Indians live in such fear of communal hatred rousing our cities into violence, the ads for the film dint even feature in the papers.. as a half muslim myself, i urge EVERY muslim to watch this film and understand how fragile our relationship with the world community is and how easy it is for our people to fall prey to what we can only dismiss as 'fundamentalism'..and as a half-hindu, and more importantly, as an Indian (and Muslims make a large part of our demography) i urge EVERY Indian to watch this film and decide whether we want to make the fallacy of reducing every Muslim to a beard touting, skull cap wearing terrorist..

for those who arent interested in the politics of the film, or the issues it raises, there's something for you guys as well.. the music is FABULOUS..a fine blend of hindustani classical to western jazz and very indo-pakistani Atif Aslam kind of music..the girls in the film are lovely.. the Pakistani girl is a replica of Sonali Bendre, and the American girl is attractive in a very innocent kinda way.. both the leading men are great and fit their roles perfectly..and they look good too *wink*

but again, about the film..i left the theatre thanking God silently for making me an Indian..freedom alone means nothing-being able to study or work-it alone is NOT freedom..what i enjoy today is my freedom of spirit, the freedom of choosing whether i want to be hindu, muslim or an odd combination of both (or neither)..

and for those Indians who believe that all muslims are communal, rigid in thought and judgemental, i have news for you..SO ARE YOU!!! by default you become all of that when you defame them and stereotype them so..

i am half -muslim and i can honestly and bravely confess that my muslim side of the family do want me to settle with a muslim boy, want me to raise my kids muslim and would like to see me a little more religious than i am right now..but again, i'm quite sure every other family, Muslim or not-wants their children to be raised the same way as them, would like their kids to marry spouses of the same caste (leave alone religion) as them..the phenomenon is universal..nothing singularly muslim about it..

i am able to say this with the confidence that i can get away with it..because very rarely am i seen as 'Muslim'..I'm seen as some kind of free spirit who has strong opinions sometimes and expresses it..but for a second if you could read this entire mail and believe that any total Muslim, say a Sameera or a Suraiya had written it, your perception about them and this mail would be very very different..and i admit, so would mine..and thats the sadness of it all..

In a nutshell, enjoy the movie..maybe you might be inspired to write a piece as well..

- Reshma

Author info:
Reshma is a specialist in fiction, films and motor RJing. In her free time, she is a writer and a management executive. Reshma can be contacted at Sathyam Cineplex if she is not driving down to it.

Tata NoNo....

Update:

Seven blogs a day are talking about the environmental impact of the Dhamra project. And more than 70,000 Tata customers have written to Ratan Tata, asking him to relocate the project....we need to save the ridleys and a sensitive ecosystem.

The project's banking agent is also reconsidering the project because of the environmental impacts. Wow! We can do something here. If you want to leave a message, write to Greenpeace and Light a candle .

I am gonna ask for more....

Turning twenty-four?
You got to ask more!

Life is devilish, often crazy;
Whirl around 'til you're dizzy.

A'int running any race,
Don't forget any cheerful face.

Around the world you hop,
Your folks wave from the top.

Ancient footsteps on the pristine sand,
Many a friend follows the wedding band.

Let's hit the old highway by morning;
Drinking the red wine as we're rolling.

- mekhala writes this for a bday wish, aint it the best?! By the way, I didnt like red wine when I tried it long back at a pal's wedding. Maybe I should try it again, this time, rolling!

An open letter to Ratan Tata

Greenpeace alerted me to this and is collecting mails to make Tata listen, and we are sure that Tata will, if we make ourselves heard.

~~

Dear Ratan Tata,
Many tell me that the Tatas are generally supportive towards social causes.

Conservationists such as Shyam Chainani respect JRD Tata for his understanding and for not holding any personal grudges, when similar projects were vetoed. I am referring to the way in which the Colaba Uran bridge proposal was reconsidered 30 years ago.

The proposed Dhamra project in Orissa will destroy one of the last nesting sites of the Olive Ridleys, and with them an entire ecosystem will be lost forever.

I, as a loyal customer of Tata, request you to relook into the project and consider the environmental costs. I am sure, the project can be relocated at a place where these costs are much lesser. Please look into it.

Yours truly,

Romila Sudhakar.

~~

Here is what conservationists like Chainani have to say about the Tatas.

I will be beary beary happy!

An amazing forward that I had to post.
~~
In this life, I am a woman.
In my next life, I'd like to come back as a bear.
When you're a bear, you get to hibernate.
You do nothing but sleep for six months.
I could deal with that.
Before you hibernate, you're supposed to eat yourself stupid.
I could deal with that too.
When you're a female bear, you give birth to children (who are the size of walnuts) when you are sleeping and wake up to partially grown, cute, cuddly cubs.
I could definately deal with that.
If you are mama bear, everyone knows you mean business.
You swat anyone who bothers your cubs.
If your cubs get out of line, you swat them too.
I could deal with that.
If you are a bear, your mate EXPECTS you to wake up growling.
He EXPECTS that you will have hairy legs and excess body fat.
Yup, gonna be a bear!

Burp!

Oh yes, I am going to go out for dinner. Actually, someone is organising a treat and I am to join on the condition that I suggest the perrrrrrfect place for an eclectic mix of veggies, chickentarians and a german with a sensitive tongue.

Being an eating-out primitive, I outsourced knowledge from an office pal. And this one is a real treasure, she can hold fort over an entire lunch session going on about the nuances of hilsa cooking! Now, of what use is it to precis-write excellent gourmet insights into an LMS (thats what my messages are popularly known as)?? Ergo, I offer my accquired expertise:

Bella Ciao - authentic Italian, cheesy and terrace seating. A winner from what I hear despite the price (400 a meal) and its location (choked Nungambakkam high road). Benjorang on TTK road sounds to be similar.

For Japanese and Vietnamese food, I am told there are places like Akasaka, Lotus and Dahlia. And there is the wide spectrum of chinese places: dragon motiffed, dark ones where we can hardly read the menu and are forced to order gobi manchurian from memory - to authentic chinese places where the meat is hardly cooked. These guys forget that our taste buds were conquered long ago by our north-east brothers who finely balance namma patti's garam masala with dollops of ajinomoto.

Places like Wangs Kitchen, Golden Dragon and Chinatown are somewhere in between. There is also Sigri above Mainland China, which I am told is good.

Once upon a time, I worked on some ads for Copper Chimney, and I cant forget that as a client, they were made in bad taste. Eden on the other hand gives some nostalgic memories as an intern and yes, their menu card is a writer's delight.

If you feel like ghooey sabjis and gheey rotis, there is Peshwari (Cathedral road), Tandoor, Kabul and Basera (nearTiruvanmiyur). In Basera, you can eat on tree tops! Now, that is something I must lobby for, even if it means having to arrange for transport.

For mallu food, there is Tharavad and Kumarakom, but then what will veggies like me eat at these places?? Nibble on the banana leaf?? Sorry people, no Karimeen curry for you'll. The same goes for Bong food, not so popular in the city. Must be the mustard. My sis once had to painfully control her puke after a fishy dish until her host finally left the table. Sorry bong pals, no offence here, I love your sandesh and rosogollas. My bong friends btw generally swear by Bayleaf in Gopalapuram, when they feel like a quick, homey, mustard fix.

I am really tempted to try Aiwo adjoining Barista (Nungambakkam High Road), for its buffet on a conveyor and tempting names of dishes. Krish Ashok has a nice blog about it. The best part is that your buffet comes in a conveyor belt and at just 200 for a person. Clear winner!
New Yorker again on the advice of blog guru Krish Ashok sounds quite tempting, maybe I will get the chickentarians to treasure hunt for a leg piece in the salad bowl.

Personally, I love masala dosa at Saravana Bhavan and authentic Udipi sambar. But I guess, one must occasionally go to places where we are forced to curse under our acidic breath for an hour as the chefs decide where to shop. I must remember my pattani sundal and tehelka for company.

Someday, I want to hit seventy, look forty and yet feel twenty.

Now the years are rolling by me.
They are rocking evenly,
I am older than I once was
Younger than I'll be, that's not unusual.
No, it isn't strange
After changes upon changes
We are more or less the same

- Simon and Garfunkel