Religion and Belief

A New day! New thought.

In India we all bounded to religion and religious thoughts. No matter what religion they belong to.

There are lot of myths too, but let them remain. That is not our topic.

We hear lot of chantings, prayers, songs etc. Not just with in them, via load speakers. 
Lot of commercial products like Offerings for prayer, books, CDs, DVDs etc..

Fundamental driving source for these is the belief.

Since human civilization has evolved, there were lot of beliefs. I would say, religion and belief were foundation of the civilizations. India is very best example of this. Hinduism was coined by others pointing culture and civilization with in India. But to the surprise culture and religion transforms specific to region with India(A very complex thing, lets not get into that).

Lot of pilgrimages (many visit as tourist). Many sacred places and rituals. All of them are related with the belief and thoughts of wellness of their living.

Many modern saints give spiritual talks(they call it so) with their intellect knowledge. Confuse people more with yoga and mediation (many does not both are different). But still there are religions and customs. I am quoting which I came across my life. And the same phenomenon happens across the world.

Reason, we all humans have fear. Because of the fear from nature, he started worshiping it.
Man later assumed god will look like human but with extra powers. To pass that imagination, he created symbols and statues.

Now you can ask me, there are people who say there is no GOD. Yes I agree. But dont you see they all also share a common belief? E.V. Ramasamy a.k.a. Periyar who opposed statue worshiping. And his followers built his statue everywhere and celebrate his birth anniversary every year (conflict :)).


But there is no strict outlines or boundaries. Customs, Religious rites performed 15 years back is not here with us now. It keeps changing. That is the culture of the culture.  (Well now, i think i started talking like the modern saints, so time to finish)


Belief is the common thing everywhere. 

So BELIEVE your BELIEF.

Save papers - Not an advice

We hear lot of go green initiatives, which shouts save papers, save trees.

This idea is so viral starting from banks and cellphone operators stop sending printed bills to companies printing posters insisting to use less toilet papers. By sending e-bills, not sure they save papers. But sure they save lot or money.

Do you really think still papers are made from trees? What is the link between paper and tree?

Olden days, paper were manufactured from wood pulp. But It is not more a myth. Paper recycling started long back (remember selling your old news paper?). Chemical and mechanical process of preparing paper were introduced years ago. sugar cane pulp serve most of the raw material. But still why is this slogans everywhere? May be a satanic influence to keep people diverted from actual problem.(I just guessed it.)

Trees are cut more because of infra-structural development. Laying a high way, constructing a high-raised building etc. Trees are cut for not clearing the ground for the building being constructed, but for the furnishing woods.

More urbanization,  more vegetation we loose. But real estate is the hot business now. I cant blame that.

Then what are we doing in the name of go green? Some textile showroom donating saplings(they give plants not trees) wasting lot printed hand outs and banners. While some conduct national conference. All of them are just to attract attention.

Real go green initiative is nowhere.

Tips:

How many of you experienced this?

You just finished a very average lunch or dinner served by an impolite, lethargic and unpleasant server in a very normal hotel. With the same unpleasant face he follows you till the cash counter. He watches everything you do (such that you owe him thousand bucks) till you step out of the extreme perimeter of the hotel. Sometimes you could also hear few unpleasant words if you don’t TIP him.

This is very usual for me, because I very rarely pay tips. I pay only when person is really excellent in serving and caring. Most of the time I used to dine in hotels (since I am a bachelor) and last year I remember I paid tips two or three times. 

Now you may start thinking, ‘what a crooked, stone hearted dumb person you are?’ But the actual fact, it was US who changed the situation. We have made them think that every person served by them should TIP them. [It is the similar way we changed the habitat of monkeys. Now-a-days Monkeys never search their foods, they snatch it. ] Instead of Reward, they think it’s their Right.

Just think, you ask what you want. He brings it from kitchen. You pay the bill for what you ate.  For bringing it from the kitchen you pay him tip? Actual person to be rewarded should be the one who cooked the food. You should TIP the cook if you really like the food. 

Tipping culture is also a gift from western countries to India [thanks to their invasions]. During 18^th century in European countries, tipping was considered as a social custom and etiquette. Failing to tip was considered ‘Faux pas’(kind of violation).  Ok enough history. 

Now, let us look at the other side of it. Lets assume we have adopted to the western culture and consider paying TIP is an etiquette and social status. How many of us will return a food when it is not up to the quality or  not the taste you expected? [This is some residue of our culture remains in us] See, this is not a balanced expectation.

I am not saying 'no' to tipping. But I will not tip some one who just does his job. [my management/client will not pay me more if I just finish a task.] The attitude of service and personal touch is required to enhance your dinning experience. Those kind of persons deserves the TIP/gratuity.

 So next time you go out to dine, think about it.

Reforms around me

Have any of you realized that we are in a transformation period?

I remember studying about industrial revolution in my 10th standard Social Science book(Matric'ians and CBSE'ians please excuse). At that time, I imagined that it would be like some typhoon or earth quake which all together changed everything.

But later realized, it was a slow phenomenon. And you know what? We are also part of such transition.
And this transition is so fast that we don't have time to notice. 


Wow-o-wow I will not do the usual 'what was there before 10 year' comparison. Instead you do it. We all know how fast we migrated from monochrome cellphones to touch screen smart phones. Monochrome desktops to HD display laptops. Film projectors to Digital projectors. List is too long... This is way too fast...


My one year old niece knows how to unlock a touch screen mobile and play a sound clip. 
My friend's 2 year old boy is very fluent with iPad2. Schools market themselves that they have smart classes.
Every office [including few government] and house are getting air conditioned. More dependent on electricity, Inverters are popular. Again the list is too long....


Can we call these a growth? Average income of an Indian increased up to 4 times. Number of middle class families are increasing. Is this an healthy thing happening around me? 


Is the growth Upward or Downward? Time will answer [but we may not be there when it answers]


But we can be proud that we are sure part of some remarkable reform or revolution(We leave it to the future generation to name the reform).

Nanban - MyView

Nanban - MyView[not review]

Shankar, ACE director has tasted success in the attempt of remaking 3-idiots.

Surely, he should receive a round of applause, for just displaying his name under 'Direction'. Unlike other copy cats like 'Jayam' M.Raja who entitles themselves for 'Story, Screenplay, Direction’.

When I went inside theatre, I decided to wipe out all my expectations and not to compare with the original version...

But, I couldn’t. Since each every frame he has re-created from the original version. It looks like the 'Low Price Edition' engineering text book of a foreign author with Very Very minor difference.

I started enjoying. But it started boring when all the dialogues where mere Tamil translation of Hindi dialogues. Very few place, the dialogues were customized.

Vijay after long time has shed his mass hero image and given a good performance. He looks charm in many frames. He has absorbed Amir Khan so well that we could see him simply imitating (Remake specialist).

Jeeva fits in his character very well. But Srikanth, he just gets pass mark. I know he could not compete with Madhavan(from original version), but it really shows when he talks to his father[close to climax]. This is the only place, where the actual feel of the original version is missing. Satyaraj has given a good performance. Close to Boman Irani.

Actors chosen by Shankar resemble the characters in the original version in one frame or the other. Locations also remind the original version (scene by scene). Shankar’s assistants should be praised for such effort. Ileana looks the same when she wears the helmet. Especially when she comes to boys hostel drunken. Belly dance song (with her solitaire cut stomach) is a visual treat.

Songs of the movie is already a hit. But the background score is very very average..

With the usual Shankar’s formulae- collection of best resources; Best story, Best actors (especially Vijay, who is good in remakes), Best technicians. And you know what, the result is a Best product.

Wait a minute, did I miss anything? Yes, Sathyan. He is really extraordinary. He is the only character who has crossed the bars of the original versions actor. Splendid face reactions. He gives more laughter than Omi vaidya.

Overall, the movie has just touched the perimeters of original version. But for Tamil audience, it is a good movie to watch. Only question I had in mind was, why didn’t they dub it Tamil? Lakhs of money would be saved.

Nanban – ALL is WELL, For ALL.