Sunday 21 December 2008

In the Convent of Little Flowers - Book Review

A truly great novel not only has a gripping plot but is also crafted with such skill that it swallows the reader into its soul. Indeed a difficult mission, but a range of characters and 300 sheaves of pages make the task somewhat simpler. Thus creating enthralling short stories with a single or at most three characters and a time line of only twenty paper leaves is almost impossible. Indu Sunderasan’s latest masterpiece – In the Convent of Little Flowers - is like an oasis in this desert of short story novels.

The nine stories are each distinct in their narration, characterization and emotion. At the end of every story I was left with a unique twang which I had experienced neither in any of my recent reads (outside of In the Convent of Little Flowers) nor in the short tales of this book. It is needless to say that I did not want the collection to come to an end.

Payal and Kamala are two characters that I personally was drawn to the most. The tale of the two sisters’ affection and separation is written with remarkable tenderness, angst and rage. The prose had me feeling helpless and then angry. The words poured with such force that it was difficult to read with calm. The plight of rural India was brought alive by this meeting between a grandmother and a granddaughter. But then the story of Parvati and Nathan brought over immense stillness and at the end of this piece there was a warm smile on my face. The innocence of a child is capable of miracles and Indu Sundaresan’s magical words created that very sensation.

There are other characters worthy of note in this book and the next deserving mention is that of Meha and Chandar. These two characters depict all the values and love that Indian parents stand for. Meha to me is the ideal Indian woman, though a little weak. However, given the generation of her character, I would like to argue that her perceived weakness is what makes her an immortal mother. And then there is Nitu – a mother and a wife. Another portrayal of an Indian woman immersed in the love and well being of her family, but a contemporary Indian woman, she unlike Meha does not suffer her fate in silence. She makes her choice, unconventional though it may be. This strength has no hidden weakness but only courage that is worth applause.

The other five stories also take on Indian women from varied economic and cultural backgrounds of the country and bring out the complexity of relationships with immense dexterity. Together the nine stories are like different flowers in a vase that create a picturesque moment worthy of cherishing for a long time to come.

Not only is “in the Convent of Little Flowers” a thoroughly enjoyable read but it is also a thought provoking book. It does make us realise that while India has progressed, there are some pockets where the era of reforms and development has still not dawned. From an author who made her mark with historical fiction works, this set of contemporary stories is very refreshing and highlights her in-depth understanding of the Indian culture and society – past and present.

Monday 8 December 2008

NRI Voting Rights and Upcoming Elections

Dear Friends,
The Mumbai Attacks on 26th November highlighted the ineffective and inefficient State Legislature and Parliament, especially with regards to

- complete lack of co-ordination in organizing an immediate rescue mission,
- preparedness to solicit support of the international community and highlight the country's
position in
the wake of a national terror strike,
- a totally mismanaged defence budget with the armed and police forces being very poorly
equipped
and trained, and
- an extremely indifferent attitude to the way domestic security and national intelligence
infrastructure is monitored

These individuals, however, are in the position of power because of our choice - either an explicit choice expressed by our vote or an implicit choice in the absence of our vote. It is thus up to each one of us to ensure that we exercise our franchise and weed out the non performing social servants from our houses of power.

For those amongst us who believe that one vote does not count I would like to highlight the following: In the last Karnataka Assembly elections, in 119-Santhemarahalli Assembly, the winning margin was ONLY ONE VOTE. Hence EACH VOTE COUNTS.

AT PRESENT THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA DOES NOT ALLOW NRIs TO BE ABLE TO VOTE. HOWEVER, THERE IS A BILL IN THE PARLIAMENT FOR THE LAST TWO YEARS WHICH ADDRESSES THIS VERY POINT. THE REPRESENTATION OF THE PEOPLE (AMENDMENT), 2006 BILL PROPOSES THAT NRIs BE REGISTERED AND PERMITTED TO VOTE. THE TERM OF THE 14th LOK SABHA EXPIRES IN MAY 2009. IF THE AMENDMENTS TO THE REPRESENTATION OF THE PEOPLE ACT ARE NOT ENACTED BEFORE THE EXPIRY OF THE TERM OF THE CURRENT GOVERNMENT, THE INDIAN DIASPORA WILL YET AGAIN BE DEVOID OF ITS RIGHT TO VOTE IN THE GENERAL ELECTIONS OF THE COUNTRY, NOT TO MENTION THAT THE BILL WILL GO INTO SUSPENSION. THE NEW GOVERNMENT AND PARLIAMENT WILL HAVE TO TAKE UP THE ISSUE AFRESH ALL OVER AGAIN.

WE, THEREFORE NEED TO ENSURE THAT THE REVISED BILL IS INTRODUCED IN THE PARLIAMENT AND ENACTED AS A PRIORITY IN THE UPCOMING BUDGET SESSION OF THE PARLIAMENT (BUDGET SESSION OF 2009).

To help us get the Bill enacted please sign this petition. Please forward this email to all NRIs you know. (The petition is on http://www.petitiononline.com/VOTENRI/petition.html)

Looking forward to full hearted support from you,

Yours sincerely,

Tanushree
contactus@indiagoes2vote.com (http://www.indiagoes2vote.com/)


PS: The bill can be found on
and a copy of the Standing Committee's report can be found on

Friday 5 December 2008

India Attacked: By Terrorists and Media

Since the Mumbai attacks, a number of articles have been published in the western press about the tragedy, why it happened and the aftermath. One thing that stands out in a number of them is the poor PR process that our leaders have managed to stage – explicitly in their conduct and implicitly by sheer lack of using the diplomatic forum to project India’s views on this tragedy.

While we are all outraged and desire a number of changes, should the global India diaspora be thinking of how can we help in correcting this lapse on the part of our leaders? Should Indian journalists, in India and outside, contribute towards articles that leave out the complexities that encompass the nation and encourage the world to portray an even sorrier picture of our country?

Take a look at some of these articles (not all of them are unbalanced) and share your views. It will be interesting to see how others feel about this.

Monday 1 December 2008

We the Politicians, Celebrities and Citizens of India

The tragedy is not even over and the leadership of the country is out to gain political mileage. The ruling government has presented the resignations of ministers who could have and should have been more responsible not just in their administration but even in their conduct post the tragedy. Does that help? Not really. Does the government really hold them responsible? Who knows? However, the display definitely seems to calm the public. One good thing that this government is doing – building pressure on foreign soils which need to answer questions they have avoided for far too long.

The opposition is on its own trip. "It is a collective culpable negligence of the government. The responsibility should also be collective and no government has the right to survive after this," party spokesperson Rajeev Prataap Rudy said. Did the reigning BJP government in Rajasthan resign after the Jaipur blasts or did Narendra Modi do anything similar after Ahmendabad was attacked? Then who are the opposition to preach! Can they not use their time and effort more productively by maybe setting up blood donation camps or trying to increase border security in the two Border States just mentioned?

And may I ask where the Mayor of Mumbai is? She has not even come forward once to make a statement in the last three days! Why? What is her contribution to help the city heal?

Appalling! And in the midst of this, the Mumbaikars’ are all screaming and shouting, especially the celebrities. Can I ask how many of them have gone to donate blood, or have deemed it their duty to buy medicines or be there to really care for the injured? Physically attend to the critical night and day? They all want to talk sitting in the cosy confines of their homes, sleep with a pistol under their pillow knowing that they have personal security outside or sit in New York and Delhi and use this tragedy as an interesting talk time quip with friends. Let them rush back and come out of their homes and serve the city that has given them their stature and then talk! Raising money and giving donations is not enough. Do not instigate the people. Shram daan is the answer. Sweat for these people and then instigate them!

Personally, I am on my way back to Mumbai. I made a point to my boss this morning – “I want to go home at the earliest, maybe by the weekend if possible, even if you deem it unsafe. It is my home and I want to be there.” I might just donate blood or I might just be the shoulder for a bereaved friend. But I want to be there. His response – “will you promise to do some work as well”, my response – “I promise I will”. Anything to be back at this hour. He was only joking and I know that.

I get aggravated and I get angry. That is not the answer I understand. I apologise for my rants. But I cannot understand why we are all not putting in efforts but just talking. If Gandhi only spoke, India would not have been free! Each one of us can make a difference. Please rise up to this challenge!

We the Citizens of India

Why is it that we Indians find it so easy to criticize everything but find it absolutely so tiresome to make the tiniest of efforts to do our bit? It could be something as simple as cribbing about a dirty Mumbai but not wanting to walk over to a dustbin to throw the garbage. Or it could be about the pollution in the city but our insistence of taking the car to a meeting few blocks down the road!

My favorite is the following – most educated Indians crib about politicians, but never step out to vote. They always have a ready excuse and the most frequently used is – one vote will not make a difference! I would urge us to start keeping a tab of how many of us say this and see if the numbers actually make a difference. Add the number of willing non resident Indian (NRI) voters to it who are discouraged because of our system and the numbers will look even more different. And then add the number of non-willing NRI voters and I bet that the difference will be glaring.

Only 45% people voted in the recent elections in Delhi, a dismal turnout. Anyone to do the stats of how many eligible student voters did their bit? Can someone provide the answer to how many doctors and engineers or businessmen actually walked to the polling booths to have their voice heard? If even one amongst you reading this failed to go to the polling booth, in my view you have do not have a right to question the government. It is not your voice that is being represented as you did not deem it necessary. So when you chose not to put forward someone who would fight for you, how can you question someone who is probably representing the rights of someone else; someone with needs and priorities different from yours?

We live in the world’s most populated democracy and love to scream about our rights as a citizen from the roof tops. Have we, however, ever given even the minutest of thoughts to our duties as a citizen? It is like John F Kennedy said – “Ask not what the country can do for you, ask what you can do for the country.” In fact taking his words further in this hour of a national calamity – let us not ask what the nation will do for us, but what together we can do for the freedom of man!
[JFK’s speech, a must read for every self righteous citizen – can be found on this site]