"Progress" is a very relative term. 20 year old Lakshmi, from Koondapur in Karnataka lived in a thatched hut without a toilet, kitchen or any other basic amenities, a mere seven years ago. Living with her husband and two children, she had no clue whether she could even afford to feed the family the next day. Today, her house boasts of a concrete roof, a bathroom, a kitchen and is furnished with a small cot. The family often gathers around the radio in the evenings to listen to popular Kannada songs!
This climb in the social ladder is a reality in the lives of many other rural women living in Puttur, Sulya, Udupi and the South Kanara district of coastal Karnataka. For Lakshmi, and scores of other unskilled and uneducated women, life changed completely the day they started working in the cashew industry. Taking home an average of Rs.900 a week, life has ceased to be a constant struggle for them
Over 3000 women from these areas have found a lifeline in the flourishing cashew enterprises which offers scope for employment in avenues like manufacturing, processing and export. With the guarantee of a definite income all year round, these women have not only bettered their lives in recent years, but are also funding the education of their children now.
Previously engaged in either farming or beedi-rolling, the shift in the employment pattern took place a decade ago. The cancerous health hazards of beedi-rolling and the heavy manual labour in the fields took a toll on these women and they started looking for alternative sources of income. Struggling with unemployment for over four years, the setting up of cashew industry in the state , by the government in the late 90's came as a boon to them. Coastal Karnataka, being climatically and geographically suitable, became the cashew hub of the country after The National Horticultural Mission declared this nut as one of the 11 crops to be popularized.
Kerala, South Kanara and the Konkan coastal areas are the centres of cashew nut cultivation in the country; which is the world's largest exporter of these nuts. In the Udupi district alone, 25000 hectares of plantation was set up initially with an investment of Rs.850 lakhs. Today, around 160 cashew enterprises are seen here. A labour-oriented field, all factories have over 95% women employees as neither is heavy machinery operated, nor is stressful toiling required. Men are engaged only in the packaging and transport departments.
In India, cashew cultivation starts in November but the crop is ready for harvest only in May. Farmers have had a fairly good produce as no major disease or epidemic has been recorded in recent years. The quality of Indian nuts, especially the Goan variety is in great demand all over the world; it surpasses even the African ones. The local demand for cashews increases during Christmas and Diwali but good business is enjoyed all year round. Consumption is relatively higher in Mumbai, Delhi and other northern states.
In the 75 processing plants in the Udupi district, rural women are hired and given weekly wages according to their work output. With working hours from 8 in the morning to early evening, their domestic chores remain unaffected. There is also the option of taking the nuts home and peeling it; mainly to help support the elderly and disabled women.
Cashew processing involves boiling the nuts, initially. Large quantities are heated in incinerators and then roasted. The kernels are then cut using simple machinery, followed by heating again and peeling. Grading is done next where the cashews are separated by hand on the basis of size and colour. Over 30 kinds of nuts are manufactured in India, ranging from small, brownish ones to the large Ivory-white ones. The final packaging is done depending on whether the nuts are of export quality or for the local market. The cashews are vacuum packed, treated with a gaseous mixture of 70%Nitrogen and 30%Carbon-di-oxide to prevent spoilage and then sealed. Thus packed, these nuts can be stored for around a year without chances of rotting.
Nalina, 33 of Kukoondoor says, "I have worked for 13 years as a cashew peeler, and have three daughters who attend school. In the evenings, they also help me shell extra kernels at home. We lead comfortable lives today because we earn almost Rs.1200 every week." Mallika, another villager in Karkala, turned to working in these factories after her husband abandoned her family six years ago. Stranded, without an educational background, money or relatives to turn to, she had no option but to join the cutting department of a kernel processing factory. Introduced to this job by a neighbour, she is still employed as a cutter, six days a week. "I work here along with my mother and sister. Together, we support my children. The absence of a man in charge of running the household is not felt anymore. This job has given me a new lease of life. I am making plans for my sister's wedding next year," she proudly adds.
Benefits like sickness and maternity leave, provident fund, insurance and gratuity for the women, organized by the government has made their lives more secure. Manager of the Mahalasa exports in Hiriadka, Mr.Rohildas says, "The government earnestly supports the cause of employing these under-privileged women. Recently, taxes have been reduced to 4% and incentives have also been assigned for the labourers." Since there is no specific retirement age in this industry, women can continue to work as long as they are physically able to.
And there is demand for more labour. Partner of B.R.K cashew industries in Karkala, Jayawant Kamat says, "The company started with fifteen labourers 50 years ago. Today there are over 800 women employed by us. We can hire 200 more women right away, as the demand for cashew nuts is on the rise and the industry depends entirely on manual labour, not machinery. We have set up a unit in Padubidri, near Mangalore where beginners are taught tasks like peeling, cutting and grading of kernels. Started four months ago, several women have been absorbed by the factories already. On an average, each worker can earn around Rs.180 a day. Bus facilities have also been recently arranged for the workers."
Interestingly, there is no environment pollution caused as a result of processing and packaging cashews as can be seen in most other industries. All the by-products are bio-degradable. They are used for various purposes; the cashew fruit is used to make alcohol, its hard shell is used in the manufacture of paints, oil and varnish. The seed coat is an integral component of the gutkha and tobacco industries.
A research station at Ullal, in the South Kanara region, under the University of Agricultural Sciences, tests cashew oil and juice from the various plantations. The marketing channel in the state is the Cashew Merchants Association, which also promotes women welfare and employment
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
Bollywood Party Nite!!
A terribly hot afternoon, feeling more dejected than ever after missing an important courier, I was all ready to wind up, pack my bags and head home for the weekend; a couple of days with my awesome family, adorable doggy and amazing friends seemed like the perfect mood elevator. It was then I laid eyes on the ‘Bollywood Night’ posters, and thanked God for the millionth time for giving me the Manipal way of life J
A night full of Bollywood extravaganza, where YOU get to be the star and experience the exhilaration of being hounded by media, paparazzi and cameras, claimed the posters all around the town and priced at Rs.100 per ticket, it was a gamble most students were willing to take.
Organized on the 7th of March as a fund-raiser for Article-19, the annual college fest of the Manipal Institute of Communication, the theme party targeted bulk of engineering students who were to finish a gruelling round of sessionals on Thursday.
The venue was ‘Edge’, the most popular disc in town and slowly the crowd started poring in by around 10 pm. And, the spirit and enthusiasm with which Manipalites had turned up, and the efforts they had taken to look ‘Bollywood Ishtyle’ was truly phenomenal, a trait that gets imbibed in every student under this university banner.
From Amrish Puri to Saif Ali Khan, from Zeenat Aman to Kareena Kapoor, they seemed all geared up to move some serious butt!
The ambience was indeed glamorous, with bright yellow and red being the colours of prominence. Dazzling lights, gorgeous posters, glitter and gossip; all the elements of a great party and bi***y Bollywood were totally taken care of!
With the red Carpet and tongue-in-cheek interviews this was one party, I was glad I had not missed. The added attraction was undoubtedly the brilliant numbers rendered by MIT student cum deejay, Mayank. The crowd went berserk dancing to sajna ji vari vari, hum Hindustani, move your body, chamma chamma and the likes.
The curtains were drawn at midnight when the organizers ushered the quite unwilling guests back to their hostels, fearing the wrath of the chief warden. It was then it finally dawned, there was absolutely no need to take a break, no need to run away; that it simply does not get any better than this. No matter what Manipal, is the place to be in, the place to study, the place to party and the place to give a whole new dimension and meaning to the phrase, LIVE LIFE KING-SIZE!!’
A night full of Bollywood extravaganza, where YOU get to be the star and experience the exhilaration of being hounded by media, paparazzi and cameras, claimed the posters all around the town and priced at Rs.100 per ticket, it was a gamble most students were willing to take.
Organized on the 7th of March as a fund-raiser for Article-19, the annual college fest of the Manipal Institute of Communication, the theme party targeted bulk of engineering students who were to finish a gruelling round of sessionals on Thursday.
The venue was ‘Edge’, the most popular disc in town and slowly the crowd started poring in by around 10 pm. And, the spirit and enthusiasm with which Manipalites had turned up, and the efforts they had taken to look ‘Bollywood Ishtyle’ was truly phenomenal, a trait that gets imbibed in every student under this university banner.
From Amrish Puri to Saif Ali Khan, from Zeenat Aman to Kareena Kapoor, they seemed all geared up to move some serious butt!
The ambience was indeed glamorous, with bright yellow and red being the colours of prominence. Dazzling lights, gorgeous posters, glitter and gossip; all the elements of a great party and bi***y Bollywood were totally taken care of!
With the red Carpet and tongue-in-cheek interviews this was one party, I was glad I had not missed. The added attraction was undoubtedly the brilliant numbers rendered by MIT student cum deejay, Mayank. The crowd went berserk dancing to sajna ji vari vari, hum Hindustani, move your body, chamma chamma and the likes.
The curtains were drawn at midnight when the organizers ushered the quite unwilling guests back to their hostels, fearing the wrath of the chief warden. It was then it finally dawned, there was absolutely no need to take a break, no need to run away; that it simply does not get any better than this. No matter what Manipal, is the place to be in, the place to study, the place to party and the place to give a whole new dimension and meaning to the phrase, LIVE LIFE KING-SIZE!!’
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Hehe, Fictitious blind dating!
The tongue-tied moments, the insufferable smile that just does not seem to leave your face, the initial rush, the pause-filled conversations that are brief yet bewitching, the blood flowing right to your face bringing out the pale pink blush, the helplessness in just not being to take your eyes off; for those dimwits ( lol…just kidding ) who have not guessed it yet, these are the sure sign symptoms of a Mega-crush; something that can progress to a very entertaining, amusing, interesting, meaningful and amazing relationship if you are lucky and at the same time tactful.
It is said that the definitive years of a person’s life is his college years. I mostly agree, because I believe that it is a passage of time during which a person evolves, becomes opinionated, decides for himself what is right and wrong and redefines his values. In Manipal, every passing semester brings about new changes, friendships are strengthened if they withstand the trial of time, new acquaintances are made, rifts are created, opinions are changed, relationships are broken; it is all a part of the package deal.
One thing that majority of the students in this town seem to agree on is the concept that being in a relationship enhances the experience that is Manipal. Couples strongly recommend being in love in this student town as it makes the whole place more beautiful, easier to cope with, more enjoyable, more memorable and lots more fun than it is for their single counterparts. It is a magical feeling when everything around you seems so much better, happier and brighter. Staying away from family and childhood friends, the common belief seems to be that it is absolutely essential to find that special someone and foster the bond of mutual respect, love and admiration. It moulds an individual making him more satisfied and complete.
This discussion is what lead me to my next venture; why not bring two similar people, with the same interests, goals and more importantly identical wavelengths together and see if they click! It did not require a lot of effort as the inter-college network in this university town is quite efficient and a couple of calls is all it will take to find consenting students who are ready to try something new just for a break from the routine and predictable monotony of student life. And voila! Just then was born the Blind-date program.
My Kashmiri friend, Payal was introduced to a neighbour’s brother. A budding musician, he was on his way to becoming a dentist. They had the same taste in music, food and politics. She was an introvert but could carry out conversation if slowly drawn out of her shell with mild persuasion. He was a smart guy, with not enough time on his hands to go girl-scouting. Moreover, with his best friend also hooking up recently he needed some quality company of his own and I decided to merely make a teeny-tiny attempt at playing cupid. So, off I sent Payal and Rishabh to dinner at China valley. And the outcome? Not so soon darling, you just have to read on!
The next two victims were Shweta, a colleague and Vikas, a singer in one of the leading college bands in Manipal. She was loud almost to the point of being irritating, out-spoken, a thorough extrovert, found almost everything funny and could not speak a word of Hindi to save her life. He was a friend of her roomate’s boyfriend; funny, cute, witty and loads of fun to chill with. Shweta agreed to meet and hang out with him, on the condition that a bunch of them made plans together. This resulted in a lounge session in Twist followed by jamming in a friend’s apartment.
I was super excited and could not wait to analyse the outcome of these two scenarios. Was I meant to bring them together, was finding solace, comfort and dependable companionship surely that simple? I was absolutely dying to find out.
I ran to Payal as soon as she messaged saying she was back, turns out she and Rishabh totally hit it off and had loads of fun that evening. Dinner was promptly followed up with dessert at Picollos and a walk in the moonlight before he bade goodnight at her doorstep. Bollywood style? I think so too. J The best part is, they have plans for the following weekend.
The bunch of us Shweta’s girlfriends decided to tag along and hook her up for good with Vikas. We spent an enjoyable evening at Twist, where he joined us with his friends and unfortunately things did not go according to schedule. Shweta was constantly made to converse with him, all of us hung out together the entire night and her verdict was she just found him cute and funny but not her ‘kinda guy’. We decided not to give up without a fight, so the next day we all met up at Enigma, the newly opened disc at Sanman Residency. We were all set to ignite flames of passion between the two; however, boy where we in for a surprise! Shweta could not take her eyes of Vikas’s friend Rahul, the DJ at the club. She did not leave the dance floor for even a second and boogied away till the wee hours of the morning. She seemed smitten by the Love bug, unfortunately with the wrong guy. Well, I lost that round but was happy with myself for at least whiling away time this holiday.
However, as far as blind-dating goes, I have come to realise that the odds in Manipal are almost the same as anywhere else in the world. It depends on whether that initial spark is ignited, otherwise the momentum simply cannot be retained, or something like that. J As for me, call me gutless, but I’d rather stick to the conventional way of courtship!
It is said that the definitive years of a person’s life is his college years. I mostly agree, because I believe that it is a passage of time during which a person evolves, becomes opinionated, decides for himself what is right and wrong and redefines his values. In Manipal, every passing semester brings about new changes, friendships are strengthened if they withstand the trial of time, new acquaintances are made, rifts are created, opinions are changed, relationships are broken; it is all a part of the package deal.
One thing that majority of the students in this town seem to agree on is the concept that being in a relationship enhances the experience that is Manipal. Couples strongly recommend being in love in this student town as it makes the whole place more beautiful, easier to cope with, more enjoyable, more memorable and lots more fun than it is for their single counterparts. It is a magical feeling when everything around you seems so much better, happier and brighter. Staying away from family and childhood friends, the common belief seems to be that it is absolutely essential to find that special someone and foster the bond of mutual respect, love and admiration. It moulds an individual making him more satisfied and complete.
This discussion is what lead me to my next venture; why not bring two similar people, with the same interests, goals and more importantly identical wavelengths together and see if they click! It did not require a lot of effort as the inter-college network in this university town is quite efficient and a couple of calls is all it will take to find consenting students who are ready to try something new just for a break from the routine and predictable monotony of student life. And voila! Just then was born the Blind-date program.
My Kashmiri friend, Payal was introduced to a neighbour’s brother. A budding musician, he was on his way to becoming a dentist. They had the same taste in music, food and politics. She was an introvert but could carry out conversation if slowly drawn out of her shell with mild persuasion. He was a smart guy, with not enough time on his hands to go girl-scouting. Moreover, with his best friend also hooking up recently he needed some quality company of his own and I decided to merely make a teeny-tiny attempt at playing cupid. So, off I sent Payal and Rishabh to dinner at China valley. And the outcome? Not so soon darling, you just have to read on!
The next two victims were Shweta, a colleague and Vikas, a singer in one of the leading college bands in Manipal. She was loud almost to the point of being irritating, out-spoken, a thorough extrovert, found almost everything funny and could not speak a word of Hindi to save her life. He was a friend of her roomate’s boyfriend; funny, cute, witty and loads of fun to chill with. Shweta agreed to meet and hang out with him, on the condition that a bunch of them made plans together. This resulted in a lounge session in Twist followed by jamming in a friend’s apartment.
I was super excited and could not wait to analyse the outcome of these two scenarios. Was I meant to bring them together, was finding solace, comfort and dependable companionship surely that simple? I was absolutely dying to find out.
I ran to Payal as soon as she messaged saying she was back, turns out she and Rishabh totally hit it off and had loads of fun that evening. Dinner was promptly followed up with dessert at Picollos and a walk in the moonlight before he bade goodnight at her doorstep. Bollywood style? I think so too. J The best part is, they have plans for the following weekend.
The bunch of us Shweta’s girlfriends decided to tag along and hook her up for good with Vikas. We spent an enjoyable evening at Twist, where he joined us with his friends and unfortunately things did not go according to schedule. Shweta was constantly made to converse with him, all of us hung out together the entire night and her verdict was she just found him cute and funny but not her ‘kinda guy’. We decided not to give up without a fight, so the next day we all met up at Enigma, the newly opened disc at Sanman Residency. We were all set to ignite flames of passion between the two; however, boy where we in for a surprise! Shweta could not take her eyes of Vikas’s friend Rahul, the DJ at the club. She did not leave the dance floor for even a second and boogied away till the wee hours of the morning. She seemed smitten by the Love bug, unfortunately with the wrong guy. Well, I lost that round but was happy with myself for at least whiling away time this holiday.
However, as far as blind-dating goes, I have come to realise that the odds in Manipal are almost the same as anywhere else in the world. It depends on whether that initial spark is ignited, otherwise the momentum simply cannot be retained, or something like that. J As for me, call me gutless, but I’d rather stick to the conventional way of courtship!
Fictional Udyavar :)
Sitting in an extremely non-stimulating Economics class, my mind simply cannot help wandering to the fact that there is a nice, long weekend ahead in Manipal; and for once with almost nothing to. Highly excited at the thought of running away some place nice for the 3 days, I start to consider the probable destinations. But, before that the task of convincing people to actually take off. My mind works on overdrive, I’m prepared for a small speech and everything; ‘We can finish college on Thursday, take off, spend the weekend elsewhere, wrap up and head back just in time to make it to the Monday morning lecture at 9. This is one of the best things about studying here, lets do this guys;’ just wait a minute; what am I thinking; please it is Manipal, almost everyone is looking for an excuse to have a good time.
The timing of the weekend could not have been any better; people all around me were extremely tired of doing the same boring things day in and day out and wanted to take a solid break from the hectic schedule of lectures, conferences, lab sessions and workshops; and what other way of ringing in the party mode other than the perfect weekend getaway as we MU students are undoubtedly keen on living life king-size.
Now the big question, where did we want to go? Goa- the beach, the booze, the bikes, the clubs and the absolutely delectable sea-food; prawns, kalamari, lobster, shrimp sautéed and the others around me are already salivating at the thought of glorious Goa, until the smart one pipes up reminding us of the current scenario post the teenage murder. Close patrolling, no loud music and closing of shacks before midnight, honestly does not sound all that great. A unanimous decision was made in a matter of minutes; we needed to move on to option number two.
Gokarna- a secluded stretch of sand, a nice bottle of Beer, a lazy dip in the beach and some good and easy to score grass for the boys! Sounded like the perfect option to our ears. We decided that was it and almost booked our train tickets when at the station we saw a bunch of our acquaintances; loud, annoying, opinionated, brash and so not funny (well u can pretty much guess by now that they were not our favourite people in the planet) boarding the train the very same place saying, ‘Arey yaar! Aap log bhi Gokarna aao, bahut mast lagega bey!’ (U guys do come to gokarna, it will be so much fun) What happened next is pretty predictable; a quick about turn and back to base one, looking for another destination.
Shimoga- the land of the reputed Jog falls, the biggest in the country. It was rather surprising that we had spent almost three years here without having been to the place. Since it would not be that time consuming, we decided to throw in Murudeshwar as well, spend a nice and quiet night by the sea-front and unwind at the resort there. Some of us were also keen to visit the temple there the next day and then we could head back Sunday morning and catch up on some sleep for the coming week. We call up NJ travels to sort out our entire itenary only to find out that the falls is not a very good idea with the weather being cold, rainy and unpredictable.
And we are back once again to the risingly familiar room where we sit down and brainstorm for what seems to be the fiftieth time in one day; you see we Manipalites don’t give up that easily, once we make up our minds it is almost as good as etched in stone! J
Then comes the bright suggestion of Udyavar- the native place of a friend of ours, we had access to a cosy house, warm beds, yummy food, a delightful boat ride across the river to reach the shore and of course Mattu Beach, the one place that can be aptly described as isolated paradise. We quickly make a couple of calls, rope everyone in and decide to take off on Friday morning. Five bikes, five pillion riders, a bag of sandwiches, a couple of drinks and lots of sunscreen for the girls and we are finally off- on what turned out to be one of the most memorable trips this semester.
So we did end up getting the perfect holiday; the sun, the sand, the drive and the best of all, good old Manipal company! For people here, the sky is indeed the limit!!
The timing of the weekend could not have been any better; people all around me were extremely tired of doing the same boring things day in and day out and wanted to take a solid break from the hectic schedule of lectures, conferences, lab sessions and workshops; and what other way of ringing in the party mode other than the perfect weekend getaway as we MU students are undoubtedly keen on living life king-size.
Now the big question, where did we want to go? Goa- the beach, the booze, the bikes, the clubs and the absolutely delectable sea-food; prawns, kalamari, lobster, shrimp sautéed and the others around me are already salivating at the thought of glorious Goa, until the smart one pipes up reminding us of the current scenario post the teenage murder. Close patrolling, no loud music and closing of shacks before midnight, honestly does not sound all that great. A unanimous decision was made in a matter of minutes; we needed to move on to option number two.
Gokarna- a secluded stretch of sand, a nice bottle of Beer, a lazy dip in the beach and some good and easy to score grass for the boys! Sounded like the perfect option to our ears. We decided that was it and almost booked our train tickets when at the station we saw a bunch of our acquaintances; loud, annoying, opinionated, brash and so not funny (well u can pretty much guess by now that they were not our favourite people in the planet) boarding the train the very same place saying, ‘Arey yaar! Aap log bhi Gokarna aao, bahut mast lagega bey!’ (U guys do come to gokarna, it will be so much fun) What happened next is pretty predictable; a quick about turn and back to base one, looking for another destination.
Shimoga- the land of the reputed Jog falls, the biggest in the country. It was rather surprising that we had spent almost three years here without having been to the place. Since it would not be that time consuming, we decided to throw in Murudeshwar as well, spend a nice and quiet night by the sea-front and unwind at the resort there. Some of us were also keen to visit the temple there the next day and then we could head back Sunday morning and catch up on some sleep for the coming week. We call up NJ travels to sort out our entire itenary only to find out that the falls is not a very good idea with the weather being cold, rainy and unpredictable.
And we are back once again to the risingly familiar room where we sit down and brainstorm for what seems to be the fiftieth time in one day; you see we Manipalites don’t give up that easily, once we make up our minds it is almost as good as etched in stone! J
Then comes the bright suggestion of Udyavar- the native place of a friend of ours, we had access to a cosy house, warm beds, yummy food, a delightful boat ride across the river to reach the shore and of course Mattu Beach, the one place that can be aptly described as isolated paradise. We quickly make a couple of calls, rope everyone in and decide to take off on Friday morning. Five bikes, five pillion riders, a bag of sandwiches, a couple of drinks and lots of sunscreen for the girls and we are finally off- on what turned out to be one of the most memorable trips this semester.
So we did end up getting the perfect holiday; the sun, the sand, the drive and the best of all, good old Manipal company! For people here, the sky is indeed the limit!!
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Day 1 Patwardan
An extremely interesting, inspiring and interactive session with a thought-provoking film maker and I simply cant wait to pen down all the details. What I’m talking about is a day-long workshop with Anand Patwardhan, an award winning documentary film maker, unafraid of controversies, contemporaries or consequences; a person who depicts reality as it is and one whose over-powering presence fills the audience with awe and admiration.
The Manipal Institute of Communication, under the supervision of faculty members Samvartha and Prof. Sunil Bhadri organized an interaction with this great celebrity in what turned out to be one of the most memorable events in the history of the college. The day started with the screening of War and Peace, [“Aman aur Jung”], a movie on the demerits and hazards caused by the tactless decision of developing nations going nuclear under the pretext of defence and security reasons. Honestly, before watching the movie I was amongst those who believed in the concept of fighting fire with fire; an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth as the age old adage goes. The only way for India to prove her might and superiority was nuclear empowerment, making it clear to the other countries that we were not to be messed with. Watching this documentary made me realise how easy it was for an individual to take a stand by hearing just one side of the story. The footage of the thousands of lives lost, endangered and deformed in test centres like Pokhran, Khetolai and Jadugoda; suffering in terms of the loss of homes, farms, property and self-esteem is something that has scarred the foundation of the nation forever and no amount of technological or scientific development can even come close to compensation. The disturbingly real visuals helped at least most of the students there realise that they were the ones monumental in bringing about change, in terms of equality, peace and brotherhood. The only way out for all nations is nuclear disarmament! This was followed by a post mortem of the movie with Anand cleverly justifying his stand in the film and how he was faced with opposition from all concerned authorities in the country as the film was perceived to be anti-establishment, anti-nuclear and pro-Pakistan.
The session post lunch involved the screening of the films “Ram ke Naam” and Father, Son and the Holy war; both of which predominantly revolved around social issues of casteism, male dominance, religious and communal differences and political involvement and manipulation resulting in scapegoats being made out of the illiterate as well as the educated sections of the society. The former dealt with the demolition of the Babri masjid and the Ayodhya issue in a sensitive manner. The latter saw the masses support Sati, accept male superiority and condemn women progress or involvement in matters not concerning the running of the household. Both the films stressed on how most parties in the country like the Shiv Sena, BJP, Hinutva activists and Muslim league influenced the minds of the public by calling out to them under the pretext of religious dominance, patriotism, honour and the like; and how these leaders were willing to stoop to any levels whatsoever to ensure votes in the next elections.
The entire event proved to be thought-provoking right from the start to the finish. I could clearly see the protected surrounding sphere inside which I lived a superficial, secure and ignorant life, oblivious to our country’s troubled past and the distressing present day conditions; and I can say quite confidently that every other person on that room was going through the same unsure flow of emotions. Time is running out rather rapidly indeed and if we care enough to make a difference it has to be done at once. The entire responsibility at a whole new approach to issues like caste, creed, religion, secularism, superiority and peace lies in the hands of the youth; the current bulk of population that has chosen time and again to turn a blind eye to controversies and remain dormant in the most important of matters. We can make a difference, but ONLY if we really want to. Thankfully we still have individuals like Anand Patwardhan who remind us time and again that we have moral duties, and life is so much more than our regular, rather predictable routines!
The Manipal Institute of Communication, under the supervision of faculty members Samvartha and Prof. Sunil Bhadri organized an interaction with this great celebrity in what turned out to be one of the most memorable events in the history of the college. The day started with the screening of War and Peace, [“Aman aur Jung”], a movie on the demerits and hazards caused by the tactless decision of developing nations going nuclear under the pretext of defence and security reasons. Honestly, before watching the movie I was amongst those who believed in the concept of fighting fire with fire; an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth as the age old adage goes. The only way for India to prove her might and superiority was nuclear empowerment, making it clear to the other countries that we were not to be messed with. Watching this documentary made me realise how easy it was for an individual to take a stand by hearing just one side of the story. The footage of the thousands of lives lost, endangered and deformed in test centres like Pokhran, Khetolai and Jadugoda; suffering in terms of the loss of homes, farms, property and self-esteem is something that has scarred the foundation of the nation forever and no amount of technological or scientific development can even come close to compensation. The disturbingly real visuals helped at least most of the students there realise that they were the ones monumental in bringing about change, in terms of equality, peace and brotherhood. The only way out for all nations is nuclear disarmament! This was followed by a post mortem of the movie with Anand cleverly justifying his stand in the film and how he was faced with opposition from all concerned authorities in the country as the film was perceived to be anti-establishment, anti-nuclear and pro-Pakistan.
The session post lunch involved the screening of the films “Ram ke Naam” and Father, Son and the Holy war; both of which predominantly revolved around social issues of casteism, male dominance, religious and communal differences and political involvement and manipulation resulting in scapegoats being made out of the illiterate as well as the educated sections of the society. The former dealt with the demolition of the Babri masjid and the Ayodhya issue in a sensitive manner. The latter saw the masses support Sati, accept male superiority and condemn women progress or involvement in matters not concerning the running of the household. Both the films stressed on how most parties in the country like the Shiv Sena, BJP, Hinutva activists and Muslim league influenced the minds of the public by calling out to them under the pretext of religious dominance, patriotism, honour and the like; and how these leaders were willing to stoop to any levels whatsoever to ensure votes in the next elections.
The entire event proved to be thought-provoking right from the start to the finish. I could clearly see the protected surrounding sphere inside which I lived a superficial, secure and ignorant life, oblivious to our country’s troubled past and the distressing present day conditions; and I can say quite confidently that every other person on that room was going through the same unsure flow of emotions. Time is running out rather rapidly indeed and if we care enough to make a difference it has to be done at once. The entire responsibility at a whole new approach to issues like caste, creed, religion, secularism, superiority and peace lies in the hands of the youth; the current bulk of population that has chosen time and again to turn a blind eye to controversies and remain dormant in the most important of matters. We can make a difference, but ONLY if we really want to. Thankfully we still have individuals like Anand Patwardhan who remind us time and again that we have moral duties, and life is so much more than our regular, rather predictable routines!
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