I Feel Good !!

I rarely write anything upbeat on my blog. Most of my posts are either satirical or plain contemptuous commentary on the sad situation of the world and ppl as I see it .Let me break that monotony not just for the sake of it but because recently I came across something that made me optimistic about our future. Insignificant though it may seem to many, it is a crucial and pleasant developement .

I was leafing through the pages of Outlook magazine and I came across an article titled as Sudama’s Children (You may have to register online with OUTLOOK india though ,don't worry it is for free ... :-) )

Since now you are back to my blog after reading the whole article (if you haven’t …finish it first ,it’s worth it ),we can talk about how I felt about it.

Being brought up in Tanakpur (a far fetched place at Nepal Border in Uttaranchal, India), and after studying in government schools till my senior secondary education, I can’t help having a feeling of kinship with these children. After my intermediate examination I went to Delhi to prepare for IIT-JEE and got admission in a prominent coaching institute. So Barely 2 months after passing 12th exams from a small town I was sharing class room with people from country’s most reputed schools, (most of them being from DPS RK Puram and Ranchi,Bokaro and all the St.XYZ in Delhi).It was difficult at first and at the same time confusing .As if preparing for JEE alone wasn’t daunting enough, I suddenly found myself amongst these people having an IQ >200 and talking in a language which I I initially thought as French. Thankfully, only thing that was needed to garner respect in the class was one’s proficiency in Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics which I had in sufficient supply. Still I had felt so many times like an absolute dork whenever I have to clarify a doubt in the class because of my unease with English as a medium of communication.

Somehow I survived through that period of my life and got admission to a decent engineering college (after bidding adieu to all my dreams of being an IITian). And again I found myself pitted against that convent educated junta that I always found so unbearable. This time around, I knew my Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics won’t help me and finally I took refuge in the protection of a language I hated for so long.( That hatred was nothing but my anger at my insufficiency at the language ).I did that only to survive, and now I am glad to tell you that I did.

The problem with Indian mindset is that we still associate English with the elites (after all it was once our rulers’ language). One’s social status (or ‘kool’ ness or ‘hip’ factor) is still largely decided by his proficiency in the language. In fact, without English your chances of success are very limited in conventional professions (engineering, medicine, banking and many more).Even top Hindi movie actors today prefer to speak English most of the time. I am not an anti-English activist and I know that much of Indian economic success owes itself to the large section of English speaking population we have in India. I am only saying that English is a MUST to be successful in India and more so if your father was not exactly a rich man. This is a bitter truth that most people in India are aware of, consciously or unconsciously.

All these elite schools are there to take advantage of this fact. English as a medium of instruction is used to increase one’s ease and proficiency of the language. Speaking in English in mandatory in many schools and use of regional language in most such school is a punishable offence. They have the support of the elite class of the society who believe that the school of their kids determines their social status and hence are willing to pay handsome amount of money to achieve that. Most of these schools charge monthly fee more than the monthly income of a common man. These schools no doubt provide quality education to all their students, only problem being they are out of reach of an ordinary Indian.

Government initiative to make quality education less elitist and more inclusive is welcome in all senses. It’s really difficult not to feel euphoric on seeing little kids splashing in swimming pool and realizing simultaneously that finally we are able to see a classroom without having classes of its own. Had it not been for the Government’s initiative, some of these kids would never have got the chance even to see a swimming pool, leave aside the possibility of being in one.

I know it’s too early to become hopeful, I know it’s too naïve to believe every word of this news item as it is , but I know for sure that this thing is for the good of society and its many less fortunate members. This is the ray of hope at the end of the tunnel and I am sure there is light there. Education is the power of new world order and quality education equips you to fight your own battle against injustice and misfortune.The more access the people will have, the better our future will be.

I also know it won’t be easy to overcome the biases of the elites about the poor, I know it will be difficult for some of these kids to cope and compete, but I also know that a chance of seeing them coming out from the purgatory of poverty is worth it all. They know it or will realize it soon.

This gives me hope of better and more equal society, again I know I am being naive in saying so.Nevertheless I feel this ephemeral naivity with hope is far better than the hopeless cynicism that I normally dwell into.

Hope, they say is a strange thing, it doesn’t cost you anything but worth a fortune. It is not the society with most money that will survive; rather it will be the one with HOPE, however little it may be. Period.

Being Amitabh

My name evokes seemingly unforeseen but actually very similar responses.Infact i have come to the conclusion that similarity of responses to my name prove the utopian belief that we all are basically the same.The word Amitabh has been imprinted on Indian mind along with the indelible 6 feet image of Mr.Bachchan.So anybody with the same nemesis and barely 5 feet 6 inches tall invariably transalates into disappointment.They all try, very hard to cover it, but end up being more obvious than usual.Unsettled as they are,most of them end up mumbling somthing about Mr Bachchan, as if i m not aware of the STRANGE coincidence !!

Sample this one (a very normal response..47.94 PERCENT !! of the ppl i meet for the first time have said that...yes i make sure to keep a count every time i meet a new person.Didn't I tell u that ? ) :

NEW GUY/GAL :"AMITABH".......bacchan ?? huh !!
Me(saying): "I'd love it to be ..but unfortunately it's YADAV...AMITABH YADAV."
Me (thinking):Darn right !!.Ah..finally somebody recognized the REAL me.You know, it's just that these days i m shooting for Latest RGV production which is psycho-quasi-comic-romantic-horrer thriller where i m playing a character one-third my age and what you are seeing in front is nothing but special effects to make me look like this.Don't you want an Autograph or something ?? huh ?

Sample Another(constitute 23.86 perccent of the total respondants):

NEW GUY(only guys no gals): "Jaya bhabhi kitthe hain ??"(Where is Jaya ?)
Me(Saying):"Kash Hoti"(i only wish)....(with a deep sigh to give it the desired effect).
Me(Thinking):Where else she will go ? Cooking Aloo Paranthas for me at home.Won't u join us for dinner ? Abhishek is dying to meet you.

There are many other reactions but i will spare you and me both from the agony of going through them all.

Until we meet next.

PS:Contrary to the popular perception, I like my name very much.

Why Reservation is Right ?

• Because constitution is a pact which we all agreed upon .It is not a document of convenience as we all may like to believe.Sometimes a section of the society may have to suffer for the greater good of the country.Reservation is a tool of achieving social equality clearly mentioned in the constitution.

Because the idea of utopian society without caste,creed and religion based biases is only wishful thinking.For a complex society like India, caste is a fundamental reality and reservation has been the most effective of the tools to counter inequality in eduaction and employment.Crying out loud about " perpetauating casteism ' may sound appealing but fact is that caste system is an integral part of Indian society like it or not.Just try to tell your mother that you are seeing a SC boy/girl to underastand the basic reality.
Nevertheless, integrating economic status with caste system will make this system more effective.

Because the belief that merit is a monopoly of certain elites is false. It somehow smells the same as Hitler's Aryan's race concept.The fear of diluting the merit or exellence will be alleviated by the example of Tamilnadu state where reservation for OBCs is their in place for some 10-15 yrs.The only dilution seems to be in the upper caste contribution to the toppers in public exams, merit and the average marks obtained by an student has remained very stable so far despite of reservation.

Because the most ridiculous gesture to your own ideology is comparing the anti-reservation movemnt to RDB (Rang De Basanti ) effect.The moment you say it , the seriousness of the issue is tossed to a dustbin.A sensitive issue like this deserves a serious debate which seems to be the only absentee so far.

Because holistic development of any society depends upon its education sytem.An education system becoming more inclusive of all the segments of the society ( because of reservation) will only help and not derail the progress of Indian society as we like to believe.

Because a child obtaining 40-50 % marks without any facilities(like tutions, convent school environment, access to quality education practices ) is atleast as intelligent as a child scoring 80-90 % with all these facilities at his service.Merit in exams alone can never be a true measure of intelligence.A doctor without compassion and will to serve will never be a good doctor even if he is a topper from AIIMS.