....तस्वीरों में रिश्तें नहीं खोते
ख्वाबो में किश्ते नहीं होते
बातों का कारवां न रुकता
कल के सामने आज न झुकता
यादों की ज़रुरत न होती
इतिहास की हैसियत न होती
तारीखों में हकीकत न खोती
खतों की शख्सियत न होती
कैलेंडर से उम्र नापना न पड़ता
घडी से ज़िन्दगी मापना न पड़ता
अख़बारों में 'आपके सितारें' न छपते
हर कोई, हर लम्हा माला न जापता
...वक्त अगर लहरों की तरह होता
तो पल भर के लिए ही सही
तुम तुम होती, मैं मैं होता
The new wave of cinema in the Hindi film industry is just a decade old. And within ten years it has matured, and has been able to ably judge the sentiments of the multiplex hopping audience, that is not afraid to test and taste new waters. In the epochal flux through which the entire Indian bourgeosie is going through, has ignited a curiosity for the unknown... both in the external and the internal world. Therefore, it should not come as a surprise to us, that psychological abberations, have caught the fancy of a class that is trying to forge an identity for itself.
It all started with dyslexia, followed by alzheimer's, paraplegia (though not strictly a psychological disorder, but as exotic nonetheless) and now Asperger's Syndrome. For a nation, whose interaction with the workings of a mind, has been limited (in the scientic sense, and not the spiritual), these 'disorders' not only provide a window to the unknown (thereby, giving a sense of adventure...thrill...FUN) but also are foreign in terms of speech, thus, making it exotic.
The exoticity is also conspicuous in the portrayal. Although the films claim to be on and about these disorders, but the truth is that, the aberrations are no better than adornments. Taare Zameen Par was supposed to highlight the trials and the tribulations of a dyslexic child. Though, dyslexia is present throughout the film, its role is not more than that of a side kick. THe film is not about the child, rather it is about the teacher, who understands the fallings of a decadent education system. it would have had hardly mattered had the child not been dyslexic. The film would have had been still able to capture the functioning of the pressure cooker society. Dyslexia,just adds to the glamour, and acts as an sttractant to the 'I am not too sure about my identity, but stil the Master of Myself' type of audience.
In the same manner, Paa, was not about Auro's paraplegia, rather it was a love story gone sour turned sweet by tragedy. Had Auro not been paraplegic, would that have had made any difference to the film? Would the film had been less effective?
And in Karan Johar's latest offering, My Name is Khan, Aspergers' Syndrome is just an adornment. MNIK did not require help from Asperger to underscore the wave of discrimination that has washed the shores of almost every land that has had a rendezvous with terrorism. Aspergers' Syndrone just adds to the glam quotient, and to the 'Dont be a Stupid, Be an Idiot' Janta, this makes for 'intelligent' viewing.
What I am trying to say is that these films would have worked even if they hadn't spent hours scouring a Psychiatrist's Handbook looking for fancy names. And films about the disorders will never work... because these disorders are afterall diseases, and diseases are not glamourous. Such filmmakers, will still have to slug it out for a Sunday afternoon slot on DD National to showcase their labour.
This post is the result of an argument with a colleague.
A Gmail Chat
K: After Dubai, Which is the next blowup???
Me: NSE, BSE. They are on the terror list ;). Who cares? Only a handful of 'Investors'
K: No Everyone has to take care. They are the true indicators of the economy.
The conversation carried on, and both of us presented numerous arguments in support of our own viewpoints. And, as is the fate of all arguments, even this one could not get to a conclusion. However, this never ending discussion did get me ticking.
So, are the Stock Markets real indicators of the economy?
Most analysts, corporates, and my friends from the business media fraternity, will say yes. And then,they will also go on to great lengths, and to great heights, to convince you. Market enthusiasts, often, justify, this statement, by quoting incidents from recent history, and how markets and more or less always preempt...
Join the Dots type of Scenario.
Impressive.
On the first glance, it looks and sounds credulous too. Yes, it does preempt. It did anticipate the Slowdown, and yes it is all set for the revival also. The enthusiasts, in the same breath, will add ten more incidents to the list, and will present before you a very convincing argument.
And now allow me to present my argument. But first, let me share, a little bit of background information, just to make you more comfortable with the questions that would follow. The Dubai Crisis/Crises, effected markets globally on 25/11. For a day and half, markets around the globe, mourned the demise of Dubai, and shed tears in form of points. However, half way through day two, they decided, enough is enough, and started soaring. The analysts, being true to their profession, backed the markets, by saying, that the scale of Dubai's economy is small, and impact of the crisis limited.
And now, a basic question.
If the scale of the crises was small, and the impact limited, then why did the markets crash to begin with?
And why was there a recovery in the markets? Only because the GDP numbers came out, although, it was widely known and accepted that, the stimulus fed industry, would show good numbers (The IIP numbers gave a fair idea about how the industry was behaving under heavy dosage of stimulants)
Thus, can we come to the conclusion that the crash happened, because the Bear Cartel of Brokers needed a fall to cover their shorts, and the crisis in Dubai just gave them an opportunity to pull the markets down. And once the shorts were covered, the market was pushed up again, on GDP numbers.
And this has been the case always. So when, analysts say, join the dots and you'll get the real story, they are, actually stating the truth. Join the DOTS and if you are intelligent enough, you'll see the picture in the picture.
This is inherent to the dynamics of the market.
And what it underscores, is the fact that shares, are always bought to be sold, a far cry, from the concept of becoming shareholders in companies, to 'share' the profit. The mechanism, has completely turned itself upside down> You buy to sell. And stock prices have nothing to do with the state of the company or the profits it is making. That prices are manufactured is a fact universally known, but not acknowledged.
And unlike what 'experts' try and make you believe, Stock Markets are not run by logic and statistics. If that would have been the case, then the most successful players would not have been school drop-outs, who cannot even put two and two together. They are talented, no doubt, but not at what you think, but at what most brokers call, 'timing'. That enigmatic word which is often used to justify the irrationality of the means and the mechanism.
Markets have gained such an important stature across the world because it is the easiest, and the fastest (legal) way to make money. And that is why, the numbers keep on getting bigger and bigger and bigger.And that is also why, the dirt and the murk, keep on getting darker and darker and darker. And that is also why, the arguments in favour of stock markets, keep on getting stronger, and stronger and stronger.
Na Baap Bada Na Bhaiyya, Sabse Bada Rupaiyya.
I first saw him at my cousin’s place. I must have been around eight or ten, and there was this weird being with long hair, black hat and his walk was even more weird than his attire. Whether he was black or white… it was difficult to tell.
At that party there, it seemed everybody was in a fit…. Talking and singing some gibberish... It was Loud and in a nasal tone. Their moves were such that it looked like they had a seizure...hands going in one direction, the waist in another, and feet in a third… All of a sudden, it seemed, the boys had been kicked in their box... All of them grabbed their crotch, and let out a shrill cry… That really scared the sh*t out of me! I rushed out of room… with a cushion…. for protection… My God! That weird man must have been really dangerous.
‘Curiosity killed the Cat’, is a saying well known to most. But my reading was not particularly great at that age, and my shrivelled brain did not posess the capacity to understand it. The craziness and madness lured me… and with small sheepish steps I went inside. That weird man was still doing his weird moves… and my cousins were trying to copy. Each doing a more shoddy job than the other! One of them beckoned me to walk like him, and in the effort… I landed flat on my nose. In anticipation that he would say something kind… I looked at him, but he merely let out another shrill cry. And at that, with my nose purple (red and black maked purple), and tears rolling down, I realised that he was bad…. Really reallly BAD.
But my crying really did the trick. It was louder and shriller than his, and it caught my uncle’s attenttion… he rushed in… And smart slap landed on one of my cousin’s cheek. Suddenly everything went silent…. And still. The hands remained where they were, and so did the crotch. Everything…everybody…still… it seemed as if somebody had pressed the pause button… Yes, even that weird man stood absolutely still….in the box he was dancing… with one hand on his crotch and the other one in the air. The lights in the room came on, and the lights in his box went out… Everything was so sudden… it was like the climax of an action film. Thank God! The thrill(er) had ended.
Retrospection is a wonderful thing they say, and indeed it is. For if it had not been for retrospection, I would have never had realised the attachment that I had with this place.
Retrospection gives you the time and opportunity to relive those moments which went by in a flash when you were too busy flashing the latest news on Satyam.
Retrospection gives the opportunity to take stock of those things which u missed when you were too engrossed in the stock prices. Retrospection gives a chance to enjoy those friendships once again...
Yes, retrospection is a wonderful thing.
Idle time and an ideal brain is a potent combination, and perhaps that is why I realised that the moments that have gone by were, perhaps, one of the most enjoyable of my life... and yes, I am not exaggerating. For the sceptics I have enjoyed even those really really long sessions... Perhaps, if those things had not happened, my life would not have changed its course. And this is the beauty of retrospection. You can look back at the most positive aspect of even the worst moments of your life, and that is the key.
Thanks to retrospection, I still have those friendships and friends which were lost in the hullabaloo of the present. I still have those good - for - nothing discussions which happened over a round of tea, and several rounds of cigarettes... and yes, alongside Milds, 555 has found a permanent place in my lungs.
And as I pad up to face the music on a completely new pitch, the question that haunts me ... Should I miss something/somebody?
Perhaps Yes, Perhaps No.
Yes, because I missed several opportunities in my last innings... opportunities that would perhaps never come knocking again.
Yes, because I failed myself, and others to an extent... Perhaps, it was not anybody's fault, rather a consequence of circumstances. What I wanted, was not what they wanted, and What they wanted, was not what I wanted.
Yes, because there were several things/matters to which I could not put a full stop to. Or lets say, I could not complete them... (amongst several other thing(s), SBS).
Perhaps No... I dont think I'll miss anything/anybody, because all(everything/everybody) I wanted to miss, is always with me, either framed in my memory, or my phone's.
Adios!!!
