Tragedy of Indian Monsoons

The Indian monsoon stories are soaked not just in rain, but also in tears and tragedy. The South West monsoon usually arrives at Kanyakumari on May 31st sweeping through the entire nation within 3 weeks and lasting for approx. 90 days, while treating Tamil Nadu like a Dalit (untouchable). And the North East monsoon aka retreating monsoon arrives in the last week October and lasts for approximately for 45 days often punishing Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh (now Andhra Pradesh has been bifurcated into Andhra and Telegana). 

Soaked in tears and tragedy

Sometimes monsoons arrive on time and in full-force causing loss and damage to property and life, bringing along with it water-borne diseases that leave people suffering for months, and finally, the trauma of survival leaves families shattered for years. However, when monsoons fail to arrive, people face the brunt of drought, starvation, and their bad loans eventually push them over the edge to commit suicide. Unfortunately, the met department can never predict tears and don't count while accounting for deficit or excess.

Terrorism of another kind

How can individuals, civic agencies, and Governments prevent such tragedies has been debated in our newspapers and TV channels and are forgotten soon after. I joined the bandwagon this year launching a scathing attack on Chennai Corporation for choosing a wrong timing to widen the footpaths that has left the storm water drains clogged inundating streets after streets. 

While my fellow participants on the show pointed out the lapse on the part of Government allowing people to encroach upon lakes causing flooding thereby, creating a man-made disaster during this year's North East monsoon. Isn't this terrorism of another kind?

Humans vs. Nature

Marking territories and seizing power are both qualities of humans and nature. Sadly, humans don't seem to learn their lessons from losing to nature. 

Here is a picture taken at Velachery lake where humans have mercilessly encroached  upon the water body thereby polluting and ruining the aquatic life. A local resident tells me that Velachery lake is constantly shrinking is size like the Ozone layer. He also shared that today, a 4-lane highway that divides the lake was non-existent 15 years ago and humans began their trespassing by building temples along the banks that eventually led to massive encroachment and degradation. In the recent rains, the lake swelled up reclaiming its lost area and hitting the restart button on the encroachers. 

Hitting the restart button

Mylai Balaji Nagar in Madipakkam/Velachery faced the fury of swelled up canal inundating homes at 2 am in the morning and leaving people run for their lives. When we visited three days later, the narrow lanes still had ankle-deep water and residents were sad over lost ration cards, certificates, and identification documents. Sadly, in India being reborn is much easier than getting a government document issues, specially after a such incidents. 

No escape route

I got curious and asked one of the residents if this was also an encroached area and her response surprised me. She said that they were resettled from Mylapore slum to Velachery during the construction of the Mass Rapid Transport System (MRTS). Shouldn't the Government do a proper layout rather than recreating another slum with dangerous living conditions and close proximity to water bodies?

A health disaster in waiting

While walking around the smelly neighborhood, we saw stagnated rain water everywhere reminding us of water-borne diseases such as typhoid and cholera and vector-borne diseases such as malaria and dengue. With their homes besieged by rain water and their clothes and belongings soaked in mixture of sewage and rain water, they pleaded for new clothes and blankets to themselves warm and stay protected against mosquitos. 

What I have captured and shared here only represents a fraction of the tragedy of urban dwellers, but then in rural India farmers lose their homes, crops and farm animals to the monsoon pushing them deeper into poverty.

Irrespective of the monsoon cycle, this is the story across India for many years in the past, present, and future. So, do you now understand why the Indian monsoon will always be full of tragedies?

Did we just go around taking stock of the situation and lambasting civic authorities and the Government or did we spring into any action? Come back tomorrow for more updates. 

Chennai Drowning

Unprecedented rainfall in the last few days breaking the 1976 record ( I was a year old) has exposed improper urban planning and plaguing civic issues that almost turned Chennai into Venice. Had it rained for another day we would have joined the list of lost cities like Atlantis.

On the national television, a show on the CNN IBN anchored by Zakka Jacob, Chennai Drowning, last night, I had an opportunity to voice concerns along with my fellow citizens. On the show C. Rajasekaran, an advocate by profession put out a petition "Implement Better Flood Preparations in Chennai, Mayor of Chennai @chennaicorp" on Change.org and Manu Sundaram from one of the opposition parties (DMK) shared their concers and also listed out next steps for the Corporation of Chennai.

Here is the YouTube link to the show http://youtu.be/2tjaaEHJWIE

Listen to the entire program if you hadn't watched it live. I share my views at 16:23 minutes.

If you are Chennaiite, please support by signing this petition: https://www.change.org/p/implement-better-flood-preparations-in-chennai-mayor-of-chennai-chennaicorp recruiter=427175430&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=share_email_responsive

Please show your solidarity by sharing the petition and YouTube link on your Facebook and Twitter.

Elections and Electoral Choices: Suicidal!

Free and fair elections are important in a democracy, as much as winning and losing elections are in the life of a politician. But what do elections mean for the common man apart from having the day-off? Simply put, does the public ever win in a democratic set-up?

John Lyly said that all is fair in love and war. Today, elections are fought like wars (from war of words, money to free-bees) all parties promising love, sometimes cash too in return. Does it mean that being unfair before and not delivering their promises after elections is fair?

In a democratic set-up like India, the public express their voice and choice on the ballot paper at both state and centre once in five years. Some of those choices are made out of anger against the ruling government and decisively made to fight corruption and bring in parties that promise development to power.

The psephologist, who predict election outcomes and the news anchors and opinion makers who analyze and categorize victories as anti-incumbency, caste-led, sympathy driven, development focused, etc. forget to study why despite a strong verdict the public never wins in an election?

The Election Commission of India spent 3 billions rupees (300 crores) of taxpayers money to conduct the recent elections. Today, election results have been declared for the Bihar state assembly and the people have overwhelmingly voted for Nitish-Lalu alliance that have separately ruled and drained the state  in the last two decades. Let's not forget that the former Chief Minister Lalu Prasad was convicted in a fodder scam and has been barred from contesting in elections. If Nitish's hat-trick victory is analyzed alongside the development in Bihar in the last 15 years, I find the choice and ambition of the people working against each other.

Bihar, was a centre of power, learning, and culture in ancient India. With a literacy rate of 63.82%, Bihar now ranks lowest among all the states of India. The failure to transit from a feudal based economy to a market oriented economy created unemployment and lawlessness. As a result, both educated and uneducated have migrated out of the state to make a living, and those living in it continue to wither in penury. In the recent elections, only 56.8% have exercised their franchise of which many of them support an known devil (Nitish) than an unknown angel. But isn't that suicidal?

Pondering over the electoral choice, I asked myself if people benefit more from electing a ruling party at the state which is different from the one at the center? While Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat for a decade, the ruling party at the center was the UPA, but despite very little support from the center, Modi managed to make Gujarat an attractive destination for investors thereby providing employment, making the state power surplus, and building infrastructure conducive for trade and development of the economy. 

On the other hand in Tamil Nadu between 2006-11, the DMK in alliance with the UPA drained the coffers, failed to bring about development, turned the state dark (power crisis) and also their ministers were caught in one of India's largest scams, the 2G, worth billions of rupees. 

The anti-incumbency wave brought back AIADMK to power in the subsequent elections in 2011, while the UPA was still in power at the Center. In the last 5 years, AIADMK constantly at loggerheads with the center, failed to bring about any development and improve water and power situation in the state. While welfare schemes like Amma brand water, pharmacies, movie halls, canteens, cement, etc. only emptied that coffers being filled through selling liquor. Today, 30% of women in Tamil Nadu have turned into alcoholics. The state has ruined many families, broken marriages, ruined peace at homes thereby changing the fate of an entire generation by promoting alcohol. 

Policy paralysis, parliament log-jam and opposition parties not engaging in fruitful discussion has ruined the future of this country. The 15th Lok Sabha, with UPA II government, was the crowning glory of the BJP in disruption of the Parliament - at 61 percent, its productive time was the worst in Indian legislative history. During the same period, the record for Rajya Sabha was equally dismal - 66 percent. Compared to 297 bills during the 13th Lok Sabha, when the BJP-led NDA was in power and Congress in opposition, the UPA II could pass only 179 out of its planned 328 bills. Several serious pieces of legislation such as Women’s Reservation Bill, Direct Taxes Code, Micro Finance Bill, Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill and the Bill enabling the introduction of Goods and Services Tax just lapsed. What was more tragic was that 60 per cent of the question time was wasted by the BJP-led acrimony. (Source First Post: http://www.firstpost.com/politics/parliament-logjam-can-congress-beat-bjps-record-of-disruption-2361104.html)

While UPA was in power parliament disruption was an every day affair sponsored by the opposition, and now with BJP back in power the UPA is returning its blows with a vengeance. Is this how the parliament and parties function and engage in a democratic set-up?

Isn't it suicidal to make a choice between the devil and the deep blue sea or vote out of sheer compulsion? Six more months to caste my vote in the Tamil Nadu state elections, I again ask the same question in the first paragraph, does the public ever win in a democratic set-up? 

To all my lone wolf friends

I often write to my lone wolf friends to share more than a birthday wish. Here is a recent email that I shared with them. Though you (my married friends) have coaxed me many times to get hitched by selling stability and companionship that marriage brings along, I was convinced to teach them how to simply their lives. Interestingly what is true about life is the end, the days in between are scripted and enacted. Read on....

Guys, 

Unlike in Korea where funerals are a three day affair and friends and family donate money to help (http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/02/world/asia/a-lonely-end-for-south-koreans-who-cannot-afford-to-live-or-die.html), the farewell is an elaborate affair in India and is also getting to be expensive. Increasingly are people choosing to stay single and with families moving apart and away there is a need for a well-managed funeral service that gives people a respectful farewell rather than being found by neighbors after a few days and disposed off like smelly garbage.

 

Looking at the demographics of India's population (data from July 2014),

0-14 years: 28.5% (male 187,016,401/female 165,048,695)  

15-24 years: 18.1% (male 118,696,540/female 105,342,764)  

25-54 years: 40.6% (male 258,202,535/female 243,293,143) 

 

Today, India's population is young, but one day we will be a aging nation with need for such services. Further, increased migration and lifestyle choices will only increase degrees of separation and need for funeral agencies. It is not a bad idea to start an outfit that services people who are single and/or have no family left or who don't want to burden their families. 

An EMI model used to buy cars, homes, jewels and even vacations may be introduced with several packages so that people pay for their last rights when they are young, healthy and alive. By drawing up the list of friends and family who must be informed and invited gives an opportunity for everyone we love and those who love us to grieve and seek closure. For those who kept pestering us on when we plan to invite them to our wedding meal, here is a definitive opportunity. What is real about life is the end and not the days we live. 

A non-profit arm can be started in parallel to help those who cannot afford to pay for this service. Some day we all have to say goodbye to this world, let's plan it today and also help those who have no means to do it.

My grandparents have always inspired me by how they lived, loved, and their meticulous planning for their farewell. One of my relatives even changed cash in various denominations to be used during his funeral rights. During a conversation with my maternal grandmother a month ago, she said she was preparing to leave behind a cupboard with things that needed to be given away as a apart of her and my grandpa's funeral rituals. They have already given away most of their possessions to their family and friends and today their house has less material than the 206 bones in each of their bodies.

Always inspired by her practical thinking, I have put fixed deposits to take care of my funeral expenses and also for some of my dear ones (they don't know about it). As a principle, I have also stopped spending on material things.

Let our end be as planned as our single hood. Maturity and clarity to simplify ones life is a service that we must do for your loves ones who are often left to deal with the remaining, not to forget the legal rigmarole. 

The Walk: a metaphor for the journey of life

The Walk narrates story of a rope-walker Philippe Petit who achieves his ambition to walk between the twin towers in NYC with the help of his friends and mentor. This is an organic movie, it is based on a true story. While watching the movie I realized The Walk is a metaphor for the journey of life, while the experience and emotions vary depending on the type of walk: ramp walk, cake walk to fire walk. 

A tight screenplay 

As a result of doing a course on screenplay writing, I noticed things that I may not have noticed otherwise. Every character in the movie was introduced to establish the premise (conflict), etched out to further develop the premise and finally resolve the conflict. Each character also had an internal struggle that was resolved before the end of the movie. 

The journey of a hero

We all need a mentor in life. Some go in search of him/her, while some wait for her/him to arrive. Ramana Maharishi says, 'the guru appears when you are ready', while Paul Coelho in Alchemist says, 'the Universe conspires to fulfill your desires'. 

According Joseph Campbell's explanation of the Hero's Journey, the hero/protagonist needs a mentor and Papi Rudy in the movie plays  that role for Philippe thereby helping him achieve his ambition. 

All of us are heroes in our respective journeys and it is important that we develop an ambition and cultivate discipline, focus and dedication, which are pre-requisites for appearance of the guru and progress towards our ambition.

In between 

Apart from the mentor, you can see how characters make their entries to help Philippe in his journey, while resolving their inner conflicts in the process. A mathematics teacher helps Philippe with the calculations and in the process improves his spoken English and gets over agoraphobia, fear of heights and a Jean, a photographer, takes pictures of Philippe crossing the towers thereby establishing his career as a photographer.

Ambition and calling

In the process of achieving our ambition, some of us get attached to certain characters, while some others develop a grudge against those who leave. The last scene in the movie is a lesson on why people exit our lives. Anna, Philippe's girl friend who came over to the US to support him in his dream to finally leaves for Paris. When Philippe asks her to stay back she says, 'you had a calling from the Twin Towers, while I am waiting for mine'. What a profound statement to make and not succumb to the transient emotion/ambition called love. I admired the confidence in the woman work towards defining her ambition and wait for her call, and not being afraid or hesitant to help Philippe without expecting anything in return.

Though many of us seem to have understood the larger purpose of life, sometimes we make efforts to fully take control of it. We are cautious who we let into our lives; we question their purpose and want know our role in their ambition or in resolving their conflicts and vice verse. But in reality, we have no control over who walks in and out of our lives.

In all, The Walk is about a call and an ambition. It explains why people enter and exit our lives and how one needs to look at the purpose of life without getting too attached to our friends, family, and mentors. Most importantly, it helps us resolve our conflicts. 

So, go take a walk!

Deciphering the art of screenplay writing - Part 1

'Only a healthy caterpillar can turn into a beautiful butterfly', said a French Director. The Caterpillar he refers to is the script and the butterfly is the final movie. 

At a script writing workshop I realised that it is not an easy profession and recognitions are very hard to come by. In India the situation is even worse because there are hardly any scriptwriters and sadly directors double up as scriptwriters. Does that reflect on the quality of our scripts? Is it due to skill shortage or are the directors trying keep a larger portion of filmmaking and associated credit to themselves? You can investigate further for the answers.

Scriptwriting or screenplay writing is intellectually demanding job that not only requires writing a script, but also transfer words (fluid) into powerful images (fixing and engaging with audience) that inspire the director to capture them on the camera. Yes, it is hieroglyphics. For example: when the writer describes the morning as a misty and filled with thick fog and dew, and director gets a visual clue where to locate the subject and arrange for necessary props to add authenticity to the storyline. 

Screenplay writing involves presenting or establishing a conflict, developing it further and before resolving it. Like the 1/3 rule in photography, the writer follows 1/3 rule for each of the three sections. Rhythm, proper usage of camera angles, symbolism, lyrics,  trops (objects), and music further accentuates film making process and enhances the output. 

Inja, a movie made by an Australian filmmaker, portrays apartheid and South Africa during transition. Loyalty, the theme (conflict) in the movie is established and coved through a national flag, superior-subordinate relationship and a puppy/dog.  The brilliance of the script writer reflects in the trops, metaphors, smilies, and symbolisms used in the movie.

The three elements of establishing a conflict, developing and resolving are described below. Watch the movie here before you read my notes from the class - https://youtu.be/k_p0_twBWWU (please don't cheat)

Establishing loyalty - unfurling of national flag, showing a playful puppy responding to the whistle of the boy, and showing the relationship between black (subordinates) and white (boss), 

Transferring loyalty - cutting the rope and making a collar for the puppy, unfurling of the new flag

Establishing order -  threatening the black boy to bag the puppy, physically abusing the puppy to obey, physically marking boundaries, dog chasing away a black man on a cycle, asking black man for medicines

Killing loyalty - asking black man to shoot the dog and gun shot at the end.

A story can be narrated using one of the four styles or in combination: naturalism (analytical dramatic mode), lyrical (using songs), didactic (social messaging or morals), and melodramatic (songs, humor, action,) as appropriate. So, which category does Inja fall under?

Create Smart Villages and Smart Workers

NMy first week at the farm has made me ask several fundamental and policy related questions. One, on the intention of Government towards farmers: is it keep them poor and dependent on subsidies and welfare schemes for another century? Two, on the discipline, pride, and outlook of farm labor and farmers. 

What caught my attention in today's newspaper was a picture showing a fertile agricultural land in Amaravati being destroyed to match up to the imaginary fantasy of Chandrababu Naidu, Chief Minister of Andhra, which seemed appalling and atrocious. Why can't a capital city have banana farms and why should it be modeled after Paris, Dublin, or Rome? 

Languishing farmers

Farmers and farm laborers have been reduced to mere vote banks by our politicians having very little representation in the state assemblies and parliaments. Since farmers and farm labor don't pay taxes and don't fall in the tax bracket, there is no incentive for the Government to keep them alive and happy. 

Playing political pawns

Around election time parties dangle carrots to secure their votes, and forget them soon after elections. Every time a party comes to power they announce schemes by playing to gallery and many at times schemes remain on paper and end with a press release. 

Issues like famine, drought, floods, etc. are politicized and protests are staged by opposition parties to draw political mileage and fuel ire against the ruling Government. Aligning with opposition parties haven't earned them much return. This has been the story for the last 70 years and farming ecosystem continues to languish in the hands of political parties.

Restore pride and be self-reliant

Though unemployment is still high in the nation, rural India is short on farm labor. Some Central Government schemes like NREGA that guarantees 100 days of rural employment/year isn't very effective way to keep the remaining workforce motivated. 

Though socialistic schemes such as free rice and subsidized pulses through PDS, free power for farm pumps, guaranteed procurement prices for produce protects them at one level eventually fuels laziness and creates dependency. 

Government and policy makers must think of policies that use tax payers money to restore pride of farming community and make them more responsible, self-reliant rather than keeping them on doles and life-support.

Today, in villages I see children going to schools by vans and girls bicycling to nearby schools, thanks to the Government for enabling children with the means children get basic education. But isn't it time that we improve the quality of education? Primary health care remains a distant dream for people in rural. 

Over the last week I spoke to some of the farm laborers asking if they are aware of their rights and duties and Government policies that they can leverage upon. Sadly, many of them were not even aware of life insurance scheme launched by Govt. of India that gives their families 2.5 Laks in case of death or accident by merely enrolling in Mudra Bank. Governments at both state and central must continue a sustained awareness and communication campaign to ensure that rural India benefits from the schemes that are launched.

How to create smart villages

1.Focus on setting up agricultural universities in villages that provide education coupons to farmers children.

2. Provide easier access and interest-holiday loans and encourage farmers in setting-up farming allied small-scale industries thereby providing employment and adding value to their produce. This in turn will prevent migration from rural to urban.

3. Provide technology support to mechanize farms and science and technical know-how to improve farming techniques and yields.

4. Eliminate middlemen and connect farmers with buyers directly.

4. Build storage, warehousing, and processing facilities to stock grains thereby preventing wastage and pilferage.

5. Improve working conditions, enforce safety and protective gear, fix pay scales and bring mandatory contribution towards PF, ESI, and gratuity to labourers who work more than 100 days with any farm or employer.

6. Create awareness campaigns and call centers to propagate and educate farmers on the schemes launched to support their well being.

7. Lastly, provide access to quality education, healthcare, counseling services, etc. thereby creating a smart village that is self-contained.

By providing farmers and farm labor with incentives to work harder, improving their standard of living only gets to them to give-up subsidies and graduate them into tax paying bracket. Doesn't this become a win-win for both farmers and Government?

Be smart workers and not just hard workers

Since farming is an unorganized sector and farm labor needs no big skill and qualification, they don't command respect that white and blue collared workers command. Since there are no barriers to entry and exit, they have no bargaining power. As a result, getting labor to work in the fields is the biggest problem today and that is partially the reason for poor employee morale and farmers selling off their holdings.

It has been over a week since it stopped raining, and we are racing against time and struggling to spray herbicides. We hardly been able to get 4 workers to dispense the medicine across 200 acres of land. I know this sounds like a time and manpower problem that we solved in high school algebra, but there is more to solve here if we need to stay here long-term and ensure a mutual win-win.

It is time farmers and farm labourers living under the thumb of politicians and false protection of leftist wake up and emancipate themselves. Farming can be run in a corporate way with adequate protection yielding them benefits to farm labor like employees in other industries. A smart worker reaps more than a hard worker.

A new business and HR model is the need of the hour to make farming an attractive profession, train and retain workforce, give them incentives to work harder, get them up the income ladder and tax bracket and eventually give up subsidies.