Kolkata - A Prologue

‘All that is not given is lost’ – so said Hasari Pal, the rickshaw puller in ‘City of Joy’. These effortless words from a person whose life is so much full of painful efforts perhaps sum up the character of Kolkata – truly a generous city. Perhaps the joy comes out indeed from that act of generosity. The city has given so much to the world and especially India. Be it history, culture, sports or intellectual capital, Kolkata has made worthy contributions. The city may not be without a dark side. Which place is. However, the city has a big bright side which more than makes up for its dark side.

Every city is shaped by the people who have lived there for decades. Kolkata is gifted by unique kind of people. The very fact that Kolkata has produced some great talents in variety of fields is a preview of the people of Kolkata. People here debate endlessly on any topic. Even the Bangla language is such that it promotes passionate debating. The language is sweet to listen and easy to learn. It has got an affectionate tone. People here replace an ‘A’ in the words with an ‘O’. Now when you pronounce it, it generates an affectionate and welcoming movement of the lips! The words in Bangla are such that they make prominent and in-depth use of tongue, making it easy for spirited speaking. There are hindi songs translated and played in Bangla language, and it comes as no surprise that most of them are Kishoreda’s romantic songs.

The city buses in Kolkata are a dream comes true for anyone interested in knowing how buses have developed over the years. We have buses right from those made of wood to those running with air-conditioning. However there is one great characteristic in common. Most of the buses have patriotic messages at the back – ‘My India is great’, ‘Chak de India’, ‘I love India’, ‘Mera Bharat Mahan’ etc. Eyes cannot miss these messages and it is not just a coincidence that India’s great fight for independence had started right here two centuries back!

Those who see Kolkata and say it is few years behind are not wrong. Unfortunately, they succeed only in taking their eyes behind, but not their hearts. Yes, Kolkata is years behind because part of it deliberately strives to preserve the old ways. Part of it comes out of helplessness. Otherwise who will want to earn a living by pulling rickshaws. Or travel in trams if it didn’t cost very less. May be this is a place for us youngsters to better understand our previous generation.

Perhaps there was no real Anand Nagar (City of Joy) which Dominique Lappiere based his novel on. But then this City of Joy has spread its existence all over Kolkata. Kolkata is called the City of Joy not because there is more joy here. In fact there are many issues and hindrances. People here can only hope of all the developments happening in other cities. This does not stop them from enjoying wonderful things. Kolkata is called the City of Joy perhaps because people here treasure the real value of joy. We may attribute the general helpful nature of people here to this joy; happiness and satisfaction are essential for being a helpful society. With so much of contradiction coexisting in harmony, may this be the place where ends meet. In English, we have the word ‘shabby’. For many, this word might describe Kolkata. The funny thing is, this is approximately how the pronunciation in Bangla will turn out for the word ‘savvy’! Someone has said ‘Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder’!

World Cup 2011: 'Emerging' Brand Ambassadors

With the World Cup in full swing, the marketers are grabbing the opportunity to sign cricketers. So here’s what is happening in the field of advertising.

After the India-South Africa cliffhanger, Pepsi has promptly signed a dream candidate in Ashish Nehra. True to their tag, Nehra successfully ‘changed the game’ with his uncanny and never-witnessed-before ‘slow left arm swing’ bowling. For the same match, Vodafone signed Dale Steyn to symbolize him the ‘faster, smarter, better’ human zoozoo. The match was a turning point for Yusuf Pathan too. For his ‘who-cares- I-will-swing-my-bat-gallantly‘ attitude, ESPNStar signed him up for their Tournament title song ‘Tej Ghuma Le’. Both ESPNStar and Pathan didn’t hesitate a bit on their parts. The various Municipal Corporations in India are tinkering with the idea of making South African team their brand ambassador to promote their lasting victory over choke-ups in various city plumbing projects.

International offers continue to shower on Indian cricketers, with Piyush Chawla being signed by Dubai Real Estate companies for consistently breaking his own records of constructing higher and higher towers for every over he bowls.

Since S. Sreesanth aptly supports PSPO fan’s tagline of ‘Kone Kone mein jyada’, Sreesanth will be seen being rewarded for playing his natural game of bowling consistent wides and no-balls, thus beautifully aligning with PSPO’s slogan. The strategy might do wonders as he will be bowling in the hot summer during IPL 4.

Virender Sehwag, in such superb form, has got offer from BMW. BMW will promote their 0-to-120 KMPH acceleration capability by showcasing Sehwag’s herioics of hitting the first balls of every single innings to the boundary.

R. Ashwin must be the dream bench-strength for any captain. The Luminous Inverters have capitalized on this by bagging Ashwin as he symbolizes their slogan of ‘40% extra backup’. Thus, even if he is made to sit on bench for every match so far, he is said to have very high mental strength – must be 40% extra compared to others!

Following Kevin O’Brien’s heroics against England, Airtel, to promote their message of ‘Dil jo chahe paas laye’ have signed O’Brien. He will be replacing Shah Rukh Khan in their promo, with talking with his girlfriend on mobile in one hand and simultaneously hitting huge six with another hand. Airtel is looking forward to phasing out aging Shah Rukh Khan and introducing gen-next romantic cult.

Munaf Patel, now a regular third ‘pace’ bowler, will be seen in advertisement of a leading tooth brush. Just as Munaf Patel’s bowl goes in every far corners of the ground, the tooth brush will be shown going to every far corners of the mouth.

Sports have so much in common. During this tight-scheduled tournament, football too has made inroads. Arsenal Football Club, with their low budget and draining Cups tally, has signed Kamran Akmal as specialist goalkeeper. Arsene Wenger, the innovating coach of Arsenal, has an idea that Akmal is capable of consistently missing catches – be it cricket ball or soccer ball – and will be keeping goal during Arsenal’s practice sessions in order to give much needed confidence boost to their strikers. Kamran Akmal has not yet proved Wenger wrong in this tournament.

One major International carrier has signed up players of all Associate countries. These players will be seen sitting on its airplane to promote the slogan ‘You don’t need any reason to travel’. Since ICC has faced lot of criticism for including these countries in the tournament, they are demanding royalty from the carrier.

The last so far and the best offer has landed to MS Dhoni. The Central Banks world over are competing to sign Dhoni for his ability to make timely public comments such as ‘We should not play for the crowd’, ‘He will come good during crunch moment’, ‘We should think realistically on what we can get’,’ We can only marginally improve (!)’, etc. Central Banks relish the cool demeanor Dhoni brings to the table especially in the moments of heat.

This is just a beginning. There are still more rounds to be played in this tournament, and prospects for all players, especially Indians look very bright.

Successful Failure

Once again standing he was, with a choice to make

Never an easy one, knew he, from the past

To failure, both the roads will take

For without much time to think, the die was cast

The choice was, therefore, between now and later

An immediate failure and new start right now;

Or fantasy of success now which later will falter

Never an easy one, knew he, just standing there

Tough it will be on his beloveds to accept immediate failure

For with him they had been from the start

Realized he, of the consequences to be severe

But remembered he, the strength of standing true to the heart

Words, the heart can hold, he thought, but not action

‘Cause conveying concerns deserves right time

For time it takes to nurture compassion

And time it takes to realize the purpose sublime.

Always an easy way forward the fantasy of success was

But only as long as it could stand good

See, the concerneds will, sooner or later the big moral faux pas

Realize then they would, the result of inevitability postponed

Many choose to succeed now and stay in fantasy

Regret they perhaps, in the future, for making such choices

Difficult to face later on, the impending self-mutiny

What good will they be, such failed successes

Thus it was taking the blow and waiting for success to happen

No doubt an immediate failure, but it will be a fresh start once over

Proud one day, everyone will feel, for the trust was not broken

So it was for him, yet again, a successful failure.

Life is a game

Life is a game of tennis

Ace, one can hit in first serve

Though very few succeed in this

Champions are the ones who do great in second serve

Life is a game of test cricket

Every five-day week being a test

To conquer,crucial sessions Winners must pocket

In bad times persevere they must, to give their best

Life is a marathon race

With huge ambitions many runners begin

Lot of hardships every winner has to face

Before crossing the dream finish line

Life is like the game of football

Good defence ensures at least a draw

Winning the Beautiful Game though, say all

Needs perfect hit from aggressive paw

Life is a game of chess

Even a pawn is huge opportunity

Champions first create a strong base

Then make moves only after thinking to infinity

Its not for nothing then that life is a game

Build it dime by dime

Departing, strive to write the name

On the sands of time