But I guess that is the case with time. Once you travel pass some event in your life, try as hard you may, but you just can not get back to it. Yes, at times, you think you have got closer to a previous object - but if you look at it very intricately, it is all surreal.
This year had loads to offer too - both to me (personally) and otherwise. Personally.. ahem..there is no point. You would not be interested. You see, knowing some stranger's personal life is not fun always. Unless you are a big "Bigg Boss" fanatic!!
Yes, television became bigger and more "real" this year!! Bigg Boss entered into our bedroom - revealing what happens in others' bedrooms and Roadies took to the roads with a rage for the fourth time. Some lil' kids became Champs, some couples danced to woo TRPs and some others danced with the "Stars". Yes, probably the biggest highlight of this year in television was the continuing success of Reality Shows - Fame X and Fear Factor notwithstanding. Mona Singh became a household name again; Tina and Hussein and Bakhtiyar and Tanaaz became popular beyond imagination; Diwakar, Sanchita and Sameer became established singers; Bani, Sahil and gang became overnight stars and Ravi Kissen suddenly became a national star (tearing beyond the regional hero tag). The usual stuff continued to happen - Kulvadhus kept appearing of nowhere and semi-nude women kept gyrating to tune-less songs. As they say, some things just don't change.
Films sequeled too. Dhoom appeared again; so did Hera Pheri, Darna Zaroori Hai and Munnabhai. Umrao Jaan and Don were remade and how!! Junta rejected them outrightly. A good lesson for the makers of re-mixes of other classics like Sholay and Amar Akbar Anthony. And then, there were some brilliant originals like Fanaa, Dor, Kabul Express, Omkara, Pyar Ke Side Effects, Khosla Ka Ghosla, RDB, Zinda and Gangster. Of these, methinks, RDB, Lage Raho Munnabhai, Khosla Ka Ghosla and Omkara take the cake. I am sure that movies like KANK, Dhoom2 and Don would sweep all awards - but the real awards have already been given to these above mentioned movies. People who have been aficionados of Hindi films for eons (Read: almost all Indians) know what tastes delectable and what would have a tangy and rotten flavor to it. And then there were some ridiculous ones like Darwaza Bandh Rakho, Chup Chup Ke, Aryan(has it seen the light of the day???), 36 China Town, Bhoot Unkle, Holiday, Naksha, Pyare Mohan, Tom Dick and Harry, Zindaggi Rocks and Vivah(this lists seems endless!!). As they say, some things just don't change.
The economy boomed this year. India's economy is on the hinge of an ever escalating growth curve. With positive indicators such as a stable 8 per cent annual growth, rising foreign exchange reserves of close to US$ 166 billion, a booming capital market with the popular "Sensex" index topping the majestic 13,000 and 14,000 mark and eventually dropping back, the Government estimating FDI flow of US$ 12 billion in this fiscal, and a more than 22 per cent surge in exports, it is easy to understand why India is a being tagged as the "economy to watch out for". 44% of Top 100 Fortune 500 companies are present in India. Hutch readies itself for a sell out; Tata buys out Corus and Mittal does the same on Arcelor - suddenly there is too much of India in the global scene. Whoever said that too much of something is an overdose!!
But then, there were numerous sic industries that needed to shut doors; too many illiterates still hanging around; too much of influx from the neighboring nations; too much of disguised employment and too little of local investments. Infrastructure and poverty still remain a major frown on the face of our nation. As they say, some things just don't change.
Politics saw some major swings this year. Sonia Gandhi gave up her MP ticket (due to the office of profit controversy) to prove her loyalty towards the nation - only to win it back. Rajnath Singh took over the reigns of the BJP. The Leftists won back WB and Kerala - their so-called "own domain" since time immemorial. Buddha started industrializing WB; Laloo innovated the "Indian Railways" model and the ghost of Bofors was back into action. One of the biggest positives this year was unarguably the implementation of the "Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act", providing protection to the wife or female live-in partner from violence at the hands of the husband or male live-in partner or his relatives.
But the nation also faced the fire on several occasions. Suddenly, singing the national anthem was politicized. Suddenly, Natwar Singh slipped on the slippery floors of oil. Suddenly, an obscure hamlet in West Bengal threw the whole nation in a tizzy - thanks to a certain absurd Ms. Mamta Banerjee and a sensible yet resolute combination of Budadhev Bhattacharya and Ratan Tata. Suddenly, drugs became a national issue courtesy Mr.Mahajan Jr. Suddenly, farmers committed suicide in Maharshtra, girls continued getting gang-raped in Delhi, innocent people got killed in Kashmir and women in Bombay kept getting stabbed while the politicians kept gaping helplessly. As they say, some things just don't change.
The biggest draw this year was probably the legal and the administrative system in the country. Systems which have been drawing flaks since inception, finally delivered - delivered justice. The list of convicts every year is endless but this year was an exceptional year. The society stood up and applauded the system which, for so long, has been touted as the "Protector of the high and mighty". Manu Sharma was convicted; so were Sanjay Dutt, Salman Khan; Abu Salem; Monica Bedi; Santosh Singh, Navjyot Singh Sidhu; Shuibu Soren and so on. At no time in the history of the India legal system, there have been so many high-profile people (read: Celebs) who have been convicted in one go. Kudos to all members of this re-invented system - except, probably one near-senile lawyer, who continues to embarrass the whole system and the nation.
But then again, there were numerous instances of Allaister Perieras who went scot free in spite of crushing innocent street dwellers under his hot wheels and cases of ceilings in Delhi, which almost took away the livelihood of many in the city. IISC killers were never nabbed and convicted; Mumbai and Malegaon bomb-blasts accused faded away and now no one remembers them. And Afzal's death sentence still looks elusive - perhaps, another Kandahar waiting to happen. As they say, some things just don't change.
Indian sports also went through a lot of turmoil. Athletes sprinted towards medals and shooters got their aim right. Tennis stars won the sets and the matches and the female cricketers shone brilliantly.
A new cricket coach; a captain dropped from the squad; a couple of wins; a series of losses and the captain is reinstated his place in the team. That is more or less the story of an inglorious year of Indian cricket. Indian hockey dropped to deepest echelons of infamy and football became a national disgrace. Badminton, chess and table tennis - what are they, anyway? As they say, some things just don't change.
India did quite well in almost all fronts. Now, the world has not only started to take notice of Indians but has also started respecting them and their work. The biggest illustrations of "Indianisation" of the world outlook came with China re-opening its gates for India and the Indo-US nuclear deal. Man Booker winner Anita Desai, NASA space agent Sunita Williams, PepsiCo head Indira Nooyi, steel baron Lakshmi Mittal are mere examples. There is a plethora of Indians like them - who have etched a name for India in the world map quite prominently and arguably, indelibly.
Yes, lots of interesting events happened across the globe too.
Saddam Hussain gets an execution order; Zidane headbutts Italy and lets them lift the "Cup of Joy"; Md Yunus wins the Nobel Peace prize; Nepal loses its "kingdom"; Shane Warne, Ian Thorpe, Andre Aggasi and Micheal Schumacher bow out; James Brown dies; Hugo Chavez is re-elected as the President of Venezuela; Windows Vista and Internet Explorer 7 is released; the erstwhile plant Pluto is demoted to the status of a "dwarf planet" Alexander Litivinenko, a former KGB spy, is killed; Chilean dictator Pinochet is put under house arrest and much more. But debatably, the biggest phenomenon this year in the world scenario was the "Orkutisation" of the world. Would you not agree??
As I sign out of this blog and as the days sign off the year, I want to leave you with two disturbing instances that keep lingering in my thoughts. No, do not get me wrong. I am no sadistic bloke who gets masturbatory pleasure in seeing readers grimace in pain at the end of his article. But what I want to happen is to make people think about these... and then, probably, do nothing. As they say, some things just don't change. Or do they? Can we all solemnly take an oath to ensure that these incidents do not happen again ever? Or will we view such episodes happening again and again and again.....
Episode One - A professor in Ujjain is beaten to death by "students".
Episode Two - The whole nation is embroiled in the "quota" controversy.
I specifically do not want to write more about these (so much has already been written). I just want people to make a nice, little New Year resolution. You know what I am talking about - don't you?
Now, please go and make that resolution. And I will make mine too.
Happy New Year to one and all!!
About the AuthorAbhijit Bhattacharya The author is a Marketing professional in the field of broadcast media for more than 9 years now.
He was born in Kolkata, where he finished his hig...Read Morefirst published:December 29, 2006, 12:14 ISTlast updated:December 29, 2006, 12:14 IST
window._taboola = window._taboola || [];_taboola.push({mode: 'thumbnails-mid-article',container: 'taboola-mid-article-thumbnails',placement: 'Mid Article Thumbnails',target_type: 'mix'});
let eventFire = false;
window.addEventListener('scroll', () => {
if (window.taboolaInt && !eventFire) {
setTimeout(() => {
ga('send', 'event', 'Mid Article Thumbnails', 'PV');
ga('set', 'dimension22', "Taboola Yes");
}, 4000);
eventFire = true;
}
});
window._taboola = window._taboola || [];_taboola.push({mode: 'thumbnails-a', container: 'taboola-below-article-thumbnails', placement: 'Below Article Thumbnails', target_type: 'mix' });Latest News
As another year closes in, I sit down with my morning cup of tea and contemplate. I could have done so much more this year - could have finished writing my maiden book or could have proposed marriage to my girlfriend or maybe, could have met Amitabh Bachchan.
But I guess that is the case with time. Once you travel pass some event in your life, try as hard you may, but you just can not get back to it. Yes, at times, you think you have got closer to a previous object - but if you look at it very intricately, it is all surreal.
This year had loads to offer too - both to me (personally) and otherwise. Personally.. ahem..there is no point. You would not be interested. You see, knowing some stranger's personal life is not fun always. Unless you are a big "Bigg Boss" fanatic!!
Yes, television became bigger and more "real" this year!! Bigg Boss entered into our bedroom - revealing what happens in others' bedrooms and Roadies took to the roads with a rage for the fourth time. Some lil' kids became Champs, some couples danced to woo TRPs and some others danced with the "Stars". Yes, probably the biggest highlight of this year in television was the continuing success of Reality Shows - Fame X and Fear Factor notwithstanding. Mona Singh became a household name again; Tina and Hussein and Bakhtiyar and Tanaaz became popular beyond imagination; Diwakar, Sanchita and Sameer became established singers; Bani, Sahil and gang became overnight stars and Ravi Kissen suddenly became a national star (tearing beyond the regional hero tag). The usual stuff continued to happen - Kulvadhus kept appearing of nowhere and semi-nude women kept gyrating to tune-less songs. As they say, some things just don't change.
Films sequeled too. Dhoom appeared again; so did Hera Pheri, Darna Zaroori Hai and Munnabhai. Umrao Jaan and Don were remade and how!! Junta rejected them outrightly. A good lesson for the makers of re-mixes of other classics like Sholay and Amar Akbar Anthony. And then, there were some brilliant originals like Fanaa, Dor, Kabul Express, Omkara, Pyar Ke Side Effects, Khosla Ka Ghosla, RDB, Zinda and Gangster. Of these, methinks, RDB, Lage Raho Munnabhai, Khosla Ka Ghosla and Omkara take the cake. I am sure that movies like KANK, Dhoom2 and Don would sweep all awards - but the real awards have already been given to these above mentioned movies. People who have been aficionados of Hindi films for eons (Read: almost all Indians) know what tastes delectable and what would have a tangy and rotten flavor to it. And then there were some ridiculous ones like Darwaza Bandh Rakho, Chup Chup Ke, Aryan(has it seen the light of the day???), 36 China Town, Bhoot Unkle, Holiday, Naksha, Pyare Mohan, Tom Dick and Harry, Zindaggi Rocks and Vivah(this lists seems endless!!). As they say, some things just don't change.
The economy boomed this year. India's economy is on the hinge of an ever escalating growth curve. With positive indicators such as a stable 8 per cent annual growth, rising foreign exchange reserves of close to US$ 166 billion, a booming capital market with the popular "Sensex" index topping the majestic 13,000 and 14,000 mark and eventually dropping back, the Government estimating FDI flow of US$ 12 billion in this fiscal, and a more than 22 per cent surge in exports, it is easy to understand why India is a being tagged as the "economy to watch out for". 44% of Top 100 Fortune 500 companies are present in India. Hutch readies itself for a sell out; Tata buys out Corus and Mittal does the same on Arcelor - suddenly there is too much of India in the global scene. Whoever said that too much of something is an overdose!!
But then, there were numerous sic industries that needed to shut doors; too many illiterates still hanging around; too much of influx from the neighboring nations; too much of disguised employment and too little of local investments. Infrastructure and poverty still remain a major frown on the face of our nation. As they say, some things just don't change.
Politics saw some major swings this year. Sonia Gandhi gave up her MP ticket (due to the office of profit controversy) to prove her loyalty towards the nation - only to win it back. Rajnath Singh took over the reigns of the BJP. The Leftists won back WB and Kerala - their so-called "own domain" since time immemorial. Buddha started industrializing WB; Laloo innovated the "Indian Railways" model and the ghost of Bofors was back into action. One of the biggest positives this year was unarguably the implementation of the "Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act", providing protection to the wife or female live-in partner from violence at the hands of the husband or male live-in partner or his relatives.
But the nation also faced the fire on several occasions. Suddenly, singing the national anthem was politicized. Suddenly, Natwar Singh slipped on the slippery floors of oil. Suddenly, an obscure hamlet in West Bengal threw the whole nation in a tizzy - thanks to a certain absurd Ms. Mamta Banerjee and a sensible yet resolute combination of Budadhev Bhattacharya and Ratan Tata. Suddenly, drugs became a national issue courtesy Mr.Mahajan Jr. Suddenly, farmers committed suicide in Maharshtra, girls continued getting gang-raped in Delhi, innocent people got killed in Kashmir and women in Bombay kept getting stabbed while the politicians kept gaping helplessly. As they say, some things just don't change.
The biggest draw this year was probably the legal and the administrative system in the country. Systems which have been drawing flaks since inception, finally delivered - delivered justice. The list of convicts every year is endless but this year was an exceptional year. The society stood up and applauded the system which, for so long, has been touted as the "Protector of the high and mighty". Manu Sharma was convicted; so were Sanjay Dutt, Salman Khan; Abu Salem; Monica Bedi; Santosh Singh, Navjyot Singh Sidhu; Shuibu Soren and so on. At no time in the history of the India legal system, there have been so many high-profile people (read: Celebs) who have been convicted in one go. Kudos to all members of this re-invented system - except, probably one near-senile lawyer, who continues to embarrass the whole system and the nation.
But then again, there were numerous instances of Allaister Perieras who went scot free in spite of crushing innocent street dwellers under his hot wheels and cases of ceilings in Delhi, which almost took away the livelihood of many in the city. IISC killers were never nabbed and convicted; Mumbai and Malegaon bomb-blasts accused faded away and now no one remembers them. And Afzal's death sentence still looks elusive - perhaps, another Kandahar waiting to happen. As they say, some things just don't change.
Indian sports also went through a lot of turmoil. Athletes sprinted towards medals and shooters got their aim right. Tennis stars won the sets and the matches and the female cricketers shone brilliantly.
A new cricket coach; a captain dropped from the squad; a couple of wins; a series of losses and the captain is reinstated his place in the team. That is more or less the story of an inglorious year of Indian cricket. Indian hockey dropped to deepest echelons of infamy and football became a national disgrace. Badminton, chess and table tennis - what are they, anyway? As they say, some things just don't change.
India did quite well in almost all fronts. Now, the world has not only started to take notice of Indians but has also started respecting them and their work. The biggest illustrations of "Indianisation" of the world outlook came with China re-opening its gates for India and the Indo-US nuclear deal. Man Booker winner Anita Desai, NASA space agent Sunita Williams, PepsiCo head Indira Nooyi, steel baron Lakshmi Mittal are mere examples. There is a plethora of Indians like them - who have etched a name for India in the world map quite prominently and arguably, indelibly.
Yes, lots of interesting events happened across the globe too.
Saddam Hussain gets an execution order; Zidane headbutts Italy and lets them lift the "Cup of Joy"; Md Yunus wins the Nobel Peace prize; Nepal loses its "kingdom"; Shane Warne, Ian Thorpe, Andre Aggasi and Micheal Schumacher bow out; James Brown dies; Hugo Chavez is re-elected as the President of Venezuela; Windows Vista and Internet Explorer 7 is released; the erstwhile plant Pluto is demoted to the status of a "dwarf planet" Alexander Litivinenko, a former KGB spy, is killed; Chilean dictator Pinochet is put under house arrest and much more. But debatably, the biggest phenomenon this year in the world scenario was the "Orkutisation" of the world. Would you not agree??
As I sign out of this blog and as the days sign off the year, I want to leave you with two disturbing instances that keep lingering in my thoughts. No, do not get me wrong. I am no sadistic bloke who gets masturbatory pleasure in seeing readers grimace in pain at the end of his article. But what I want to happen is to make people think about these... and then, probably, do nothing. As they say, some things just don't change. Or do they? Can we all solemnly take an oath to ensure that these incidents do not happen again ever? Or will we view such episodes happening again and again and again.....
Episode One - A professor in Ujjain is beaten to death by "students".
Episode Two - The whole nation is embroiled in the "quota" controversy.
I specifically do not want to write more about these (so much has already been written). I just want people to make a nice, little New Year resolution. You know what I am talking about - don't you?
Now, please go and make that resolution. And I will make mine too.
Happy New Year to one and all!!
Comments
0 comment