Category Archives: Environment

How to help Chennai flood victims? Read on…

The terrible floods in Tamil Nadu, especially Chennai, have taken everyone by a rude surprise. The floods were expected in the region but nobody thought they would be so devastating. So far, close to 300 people are head and lakhs are homeless or stranded.

While there is no harm in praying for the victims and dedicating numerous social media posts to them, what they practically need it help… and lots of it!

Picture: Frontline.in

So this is how you can help them:

1) Spiritual leader Sadhguru’s Isha Foundation has organized a donation drive. To donate in kind or doctors who can support the disaster relief work can contact: +918300011111, +918300051000, +918300052000

Helpline for donation via bank transfers: +919442139000

Online donations: http://www.ishafoundation.org/Donate

2) Donate via APP:

Click HERE to download an app to donate clothes, food and other items.

3) Check available shelter:

To know about places where shelter is available, click HERE.

4) Donate via AISC Flood Relief by clicking HERE.

5) People form 60 NGOs have come together to help Chennai flood victims. Those willing to contribute contact Prasanna: 96777-00081 or Ganesh 99442-77721.

6) Willing to accomodate?

If you are in Chennai and willing to accommodate people who are stranded, click HERE.

7) To donate food items, see the image below (click to enlarge):-

8) Chennai flood relief HELPLINE numbers:

OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

People who are stuck near Valasaravakkam, Megamart area, pls contact Vignesh Mailappan at +918122829693.

People who are stuck near Camp Road areas can contact Bala- +918056096733.

People who are stuck near Keezhkattalai area can contact Santha- +919042122271.

People who are stuck near Tambaram area can contact
Prasanna – 9994816896

People who are stuck near Mogapair areas can contact aswin – 7299518047

People who are stuck near Pallikaranai, Narayanapuram areas can contact Gayathri – 8220738092

Message from a kind-hearted person:

Anyone stuck in Annanagar, Arumbakkam, Aminjikarai, MMDA Colony, Choolaimadu or any other area are welcome to my house, please be my guest. Can pick up people from nungambakkan station, arumbakkam metro station or anna arch. No restriction on no as i have lots of Mats to sleep, power for essential and enough food, brijesh – 9962400760

SRM University is accommodating people in their buildings. Whoever stranded in GST, please go there.

Where are these religious groups when Ganeshotsav is insulted?

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By: Keyur Seta

I became aware about the existence of various pro-Hindu groups around a decade ago. Interestingly, I got enlightened about them only because of their opposition to certain Hindi films, which, according to them, hurt their religious sentiments. In fact, if you look back closely, you will realize that almost all their protests have only been against films and, at times, books.

Picture: Pravin M Parab on Flickr

Now, let us focus on a harsh and disturbing reality regarding one of the most important Hindu festivals. People staying in Mumbai even since few years would know how the Hindu festival of Ganeshotsav is grossly insulted each year. A single experience at Mumbai’s Ganesh Visarjan is also enough to realize this.

The following scenes are witnessed each year during the festival:-

– Liquor consumption during Visarjan is not new in Mumbai. You will find a lot of these over-enthusiastic ‘devotees’ dancing during Visarjan high on daaru.

– Eve-teasing of girls/ women during Visarjan with vulgar terms or slogans is also on display while bringing the idol and also during immersion. I have heard harrowing experiences of my own friends.

– There has been uproar against playing of sleazy item numbers during the festival; sometimes right beside the Ganesh idol. But this has had no effect on the organizers. Songs like ‘Sheila Ki Jawani’, ‘Munni Badnaam’, ‘Fevicol Se’, ‘Baby Doll’, and some even worse continue making rounds each year.

– Firecrackers worth thousands are burst during Visarjan, which hugely increases the level of air pollution. Roads always appear hazy during some big Visarjan. This also has numerous health hazards.

Picture: Bloggr.in

– Noise pollution is the major turn off for residents of Mumbai. In fact, the term ‘noise pollution’ is too mild to describe the menace caused. Plus, the commotion with super loud DJ music moves at a snail’s pace, which adds to the agony. Torture caused towards infants, aged, ill, heart patients, students and animals is ignored by these so-called devotees of the Lord.

The above-mentioned activities take place right in the open. So, it is impossible for the members of these pro-Hindu groups to not know about it. This brings a lot of uncomfortable questions for them.

Why there hasn’t been a single agitation against the shameful insult of the Hindu festival? Leave alone protest, why nobody from your ‘religious’ groups has not even spoken against this ever? Have you ever thought about the real intention of Lokmanya Tilak behind starting this festival? On the other hand, ardent members and followers of your groups literally go up in arms while demanding bans on harmless films, sometimes even resorting to violence.

Are your religious sentiments only limited to objecting Hindi films? The fact that you are not coming out against these shoddy practices in the name of a Hindu festival defeats the very purpose of your existence.

What happens the day after Aug 15?

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Picture: Jagohindu.wordpress.com

The Indian flag is seen fluttering in every nook and corner of the country on Independence Day (August 15) and Republic Day (January 26). But do you know what happens to these flags the following day? I guess we well know and have seen how our beloved tricolor lies like an unwanted item on the roads and, worst, in garbage. (The picture is posted only to create awareness and not insult the Indian flag.)

In order to spread awareness against this practice and to motivate people to pick up our flags from such condition, a group of youngsters from Mumbai have come up with a beautifully moving non-verbal short film. It is called ‘The Day After 15th August’ and it is created by Chaitanya Bahul and Sowmitra Desai under their banner Lukkha Production.

You would be surprised to know that the whole film is shot from a mobile phone camera.

This is it:-

E-Book Review: Capturing Wildlife Moments In India

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“This post is a part of the book review program of at Saevus Wildlife India in association with The Hemchand Mahindra Foundation for the book Capturing Wildlife Moments in India“

Photographer & Author: Ashok Mahindra

Presented By: Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and Oxford Publishers

Rating: * * * *

Review By: Keyur Seta

The main aim of Wildlife Photographers is to make the reader experience a wild safari inside a jungle while sitting miles away. Their task is difficult than video shooters due to the reliance only on still pictures. Ashok Mahindra’s e-book ‘Capturing Wildlife Moments In India’ achieves this aim hands down. This is not the only achievement of the book though.

‘Capturing Wildlife Moments In India’ is a collection of wildlife images, which includes animals, birds, reptiles and also nature, clicked by Mahindra over a period of time at different national parks of India.

The book is a treat not only for wildlife lovers but also for city dwellers trapped in concrete jungles. The well-shot and well thought pictures transport you to the raw interiors of forests. But, as mentioned by Mahindra, wildlife is not only about wild animals. Therefore, he has also given importance to other aspects of jungles. Other impressive feature is the trivia about some species and the back story behind the capturing of a number of pictures.

It is difficult to select few best among the 100 + pictures. But these are the ones that stand out:-

– Images of the Royal Bengal Tiger

– Asiatic Elephants spraying mud over their bodies to combat heat.

– Sal Trees at Kanha National Park, Madhya Pradesh.

– A spider trying hard to trap a butterfly

– A crocodile, deer and a bird appearing together.

– The picturesque Jogi Mahal below Ranthambhore Fort, Rajasthan.

– A mother elephant trying to convince her kid to get inside a lake.

– A Spotted Deer ready for mating.

But apart from presenting wildlife pictures, the deeper intent here is to encourage sustainability of wildlife habitats that are diminishing rapidly. It is like a wakeup call to the people of today’s times. The photographer-cum-author has also provided a list of solutions for the same.

Coming to the minor negative points, the written matter on some occasions needs to be short since it is a pictorial book. This becomes more problematic due to the very small font as one is required to zoom in and out regularly.

Overall: ‘Capturing Wildlife Moments In India’ is a pleasurable jungle safari.

More pictures from the book:-

(Click to enlarge)

Nepal Earthquake: How can you help (in the short & long run)?

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By: Keyur Seta

The deaths and casualties in the Nepal Earthquake are continuing to go high. According to latest reports, the death toll has now surpassed 4000 with many thousands injured. So, naturally, the help needed should be directly proportional to the magnanimity of the tragedy.

The Indian Army and a whole lot of social groups and independent volunteers are selflessly fighting day in and day out to repair the damage and help out those who are injured and stranded. The Government of India too is taking special care to make sure all the help is provided during Nepal’s hour of crisis.

But when the intensity of the crisis is so high, no help is enough. Hence, it becomes our moral responsibility to make whatever little effort to restore the situation in Nepal. If we can’t visit the affected areas personally, we can surely be there in spirit by donating as much amount as we can.

Volunteers helping

You can make a contribution to Nepal Earthquake Relief Fund in the following ways:-

The headquarters of Ramakrishna Mission at Belur Math in West Bengal are collecting funds for the Nepal Earthquake.
Phone: (91-33-) 2654-1144/1180/5391/8494/9581/9681
Email: [email protected]

Save The Children, an NGO, is providing help to the many children affected by the earthquake.
Phone: (Toll Free) 1.800.728.3843 (8:00am-5:00pm EST, M-F)
Online Donation: Click HERE

International Association for Human Values (IAHV) is also collecting funds for the tragedy.
Online Donation: http://www.iahv.org/in-en/nepal-earthquake-relief/

Friends Service Council Nepal is an organization situated in Kathmandu, Nepal which is working with respect to the tragedy.
Contact Online: http://www.fscnepal.org/contact-us/
Phone: +977-1-5201497
Email: [email protected]

Goonj, an Indian NGO, too is working for the rehabilitation of the victims.
Contact online: http://goonj.org/
Phone: 011 – 41611244 & 9810032527

Facebook is also doing its bit in collection fund for the tragedy.
Visit FB’s Nepal tragedy page here – https://www.facebook.com/nepalearthquakesupport

But what about the long run?

But an ideal way to help in the long run will be by making sure such devastating tragedies never take place ever. This might sound outrageous to some but I feel it is futile to blame Mother Nature for this because such tragedies are an outcome of our own greed. We have destroyed forest after forest and many other aspects of nature in the name of development and progress. Towers after towers are created without paying heed to nature.

Any development at the cost of nature or ecology is not development. It is downright destruction or violence. And since every action has a reaction, incidents like Nepal earthquake, Kashmir and Uttarakhand floods and other such incidents keep happening and, unfortunately, will continue so, if we don’t do anything in this regard.

But, you might ask, what can we do? Well, there is plenty we can do to, at least, make sure the condition of our planet isn’t worsened further.

Here are some ideas:

Picture: Prsindia.org

– Plant trees or saplings anywhere and everywhere you can.

– Avoid Firecrackers as they violently pollute the environment at an enormous level. Parents themselves should sensitize their kids about it.

– Minimize the use of cars. If you are young and fit, use as much of public transport as possible. Many of you might label me crazy but there is no other alternative to reduce traffic and pollution or to, at least, make sure it doesn’t increase further. The traffic and pollution has already crossed insane levels. Use carpooling to the maximum. Metro Rail is a major boon in this regard.

– But the above option is possible only if our government and authorities improve the condition and efficiency of our public transport systems. There should be more local trains with more bogies. Some years ago, a very lengthy B.E.S.T bus used to run on Mumbai roads. But they have stopped it for reasons best known to them. Such buses will prove to be a major boost.

– Ban deforestation or cutting trees completely. We have destroyed forests and trees enough. We should follow the policy of not a single tree being allowed to cut down.

– Make laws to minimize creation of new industries. Preserving nature is more important than making new products and inventions.

– Make sure the industrial waste is properly decomposed and not dumped carelessly into the sea or rivers.

– Ban polluting or littering into rivers even at a micro level.

Only resorting to the above and many other options will help in sustaining Mother Nature. If we ignore these measures, we should be ready for more massive earthquakes, floods, etc. The equation is simple – If we destroy nature, we can’t expect nature to bear it lying down. This is Nature’s Law and not the man-made judicial laws, so it can’t be tweaked as per our whims and fancies.

I recently read on Facebook – Nature doesn’t need us. We need nature.

The World Remade: Instead of remaking films, let’s remake the world!

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By: Keyur Seta

I am participating in the #TheWorldRemade activity at BlogAdda in association with India Today #Conclave15

Nainital (Picture: Wikipedia)

No matter how happy, peaceful or wealthy a person is, he or she will certainly have big problems with not few but a lot of aspects of the world and rightly so. I too fall in the same category, naturally. So, how about remaking this world our way? BlogAdda in association with India Today Conclave has provided this opportunity of jotting down your idea of a perfect world. Although this is just imaginary, the very thought of creating a world as per my wishes is enough to bring a wide grin on my face.

I firmly feel that God or Nature had made a perfect, harmonious world. It is we the people who have destroyed or are destroying it by going against nature. In my opinion, going against nature is one of the worst forms of violence. So a large part of my creation of the world will focus on going as per the rules of the nature. And when I say nature, it is not just restricted to our surroundings or ecology.

So here are the points that determine the world remade by me:-

Fundamentalism: All human beings have the same flesh, bones, blood and organs and feel happy and sad at the same things. In other words, nature hasn’t created any difference between humans. So any idea, people, group or association encouraging division among human beings or advocating one religion will be discarded and the people responsible will be strictly punished. Naturally, people from terror groups will be awarded severe death sentence without any delay.

Picture: Elsieisy.wordpress.com

Casteism: A glaring social evil is ‘caste’, according to which people are classified higher or lower without any fault or effort. In my world, not only the word caste will be abolished but all groups that represent castes or sub-castes would also be banned. Matrimonial columns in newspapers and matrimonial websites will be barred from the mention of caste. Any discrimination or encouragement of caste will be strictly penalized. Needless to say, all caste or community based reservation will be abolished. In short, the word ‘caste’ will be reduced to ashes.

Ecology: We have destroyed forests, open lands, rivers and many other natural gifts. I would put a huge impetus on strictly not destroying nature by any means. Of course, we need industrial development but not at the cost of nature. Any development aimed at harming the natural surroundings and ecosystem can never be labeled as development; that’s outright destruction.

There would be measures to curb all types of pollution and a large amount would be spent on it. Only special eco-friendly firecrackers would be allowed. Pollution created in the name of religious festivals will also be abolished.

Women Issues: Rapists will be punished as per the middle-eastern style. I don’t see any other way of inducing fear in the minds of potential rapists. Even sexual harassment or so-called harmless eve-teasing will be categorized under serious crimes. Nature hasn’t created any difference between men and women in terms of strength. Any idea describing women as the weaker sex will be banned and anyone advocating this idea will be punished. Such passages found in any religious book will also be edited out.

Picture: Thesojo.net

Parents of to-be brides will be encouraged not to feel inferior in front of ladke wale. Any such attempt from the latter will be dealt severely. Indirect acts of dowry will also be considered a serious offense. A family found guilty of forcibly marrying off their daughter will also be penalized although in a minor way.

Poverty: I believe poverty is largely an outcome of unequal distribution of income. Super rich individuals or organizations (including places of worship) earning more than a particular amount will be made to donate a tiny percentage of their income to the needy. Even such a minute amount can go a long way in diminishing poverty. Continuous efforts in various other ways will be put to eradicate poverty.

Picture: Fastcompany.com

Medical Bills: From what I have observed in the last few years, I feel it is an unofficial crime for the poor or lower middle-class to fall sick. If a person is saved from a serious illness, he will still die while paying an abnormal amount to the hospitals and for medicines. I would prefer my world to give access to proper healthcare to all irrespective of his or her social class. This slow killing will be looked upon as one of the most urgent matters to deal with.

Law & Order: It seriously hurts to see our hard-working policemen earn less than peanuts. In my world, their wages will be raised to an enormous level. Along with the cop, his family members too sacrifice a lot so even they would be taken care of. Something more than Fast Track Courts will be placed to make judiciary processes way faster.

Corruption: This will be considered a very serious offence and the wrongdoers will face strictest of punishment; definitely not the easy way corrupts are treated in the current times. All political parties will be compelled by law to disclose every penny from their funding.

Smoking: There would be ways chalked out to ban smoking. If not, there at least would be serious restrictions on the selling of cigarettes.

Picture: nerhrt.wordpress.com

Right to Peace: I am sure this phrase is never heard before from any government in the world, which is truly unfortunate. This surprises me immensely as I firmly believe everyone has a right to stay peacefully in his or her home. All kinds of noises in public places would be banned in my world, including those made in the name of carrying out ‘religious’ festivals or practices.

Subsidy to art: Sorry, I can’t keep films and plays away. Independent films aiming to promote a social cause or present a social wrongdoing will be given subsidy along with entertainment tax abolition. There will be massive efforts made to revive the art of theatre all over India. The reason for this point is that these mediums have a large reach out, which can help spread noble messages.

There are many, many more things that need to be changed in this world. This is just an overview.

“High time we clean up our country” – Prasoon Joshi during Swachh Bharat Abhiyan

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By: Keyur Seta

We are well aware that well-known lyricist and script writer Prasoon Joshi has penned a heartwarming song/ slogan for the ongoing Swachha Bharat Abhiyan by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Sung by Kailash Kher, the song is called ‘Swachh Bharat Ka Irada’.

But he didn’t want his contribution to be limited to this. He was keen to contribute physically too by literally cleaning up a locality. So he took up the task of cleaning the garbage laden compound of Sofi Mahal Building in Mumbai’s Lalbaug. He was joined by bloggers – myself and Heena Shah Dedhi and few volunteers. This particular event was called Clean Sweep and it was in association with IndiBlogger.

Children in Lalbaug’s Sofi Mahal building were unable to play cricket in their compound since long due to the presence of huge amount of garbage being dumped there. But after Joshi’s initiative, the kids were finally able to resume play much to their joy. The occasion was celebrated with a professional cricket match between the two teams of the locality.

Picture: Radioandmusic.com

“This initiative has induced consciousness in the country regarding cleanliness. It’s not that people didn’t know what cleanliness is. But in spite of that, there was this inertia regarding this issue. Even in this locality, it wasn’t that people were unaware about keeping their surroundings clean, which would also enable these kids to play. But I am glad that our PM’s initiative has spread awareness about this,” says Joshi.

An interesting thing about the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan is that the celebrity, who cleans up a locality, should nominate 9 people for the same task. “I was nominated by Anil Ambani. I have nominated Kiran Rao (producer and Aamir Khan’s wife), Venu Srinivasan (CMD of TVS Motors), Mr Birla, Shankar Mahadevan (composer and singer), Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev (spiritual guru), Irrfan Khan (actor), Jeev Milkha Singh (golfer), Nitish Kapoor (CEO Reckitt Benckiser [Dettol]) and Aman and Ayan Ali (music composers).”

There is always a section of the public that is cynical for every social movement. The Swachh Bharat Abhiyan is no different. Joshi has a message for people with such a mindset. “To those who keep saying that we will gain nothing from this, I would like to assert that if I am asked to choose between doing something and not doing anything, I will always choose the former. Of course, there won’t be change overnight. But there will definitely be some difference. In our culture, we are asked to keep our hearts clean. But now it is high time we clean up our country too.”

Obviously, the success of this initiative largely depends on whether the masses would stop littering the roads. Like many others, Joshi too feels they should be penalized. “There is a need for a law. If there is fear of getting caught and fined, people will stop doing it. Plus, they also need to be taught the difference between dry and wet waste and how to separate it.”

Even the most humongous task starts with a single step. Here’s hoping that this single step is followed by million more.

Bhopal: A Prayer For Rain Review – Can’t get more realistic!

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By: Keyur Seta

Rating: * * * * ½

The biggest challenge while portraying a tragedy is to make it look as realistic as possible. And when the disaster is as magnanimous as the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, it becomes all the more testing, not just for the filmmaker but for everyone involved. The same challenge awaited director Ravi Kumar and his team for Bhopal: A Prayer For Rain, which is based on the said tragedy in 1984.

To say that they have overcome the challenge will be an understatement. What they have achieved is nothing short of a benchmark for realistic cinema because it just can’t get more realistic than this. But the reason why the film on the whole can be labeled as excellent is the fact that it scores high in every department.

The movie is English with partly Hindi. The story takes place in Bhopal in 1984. Dilip (Rajpal Yadav) is a rickshaw driver staying in a slum in the central area of the city with his wife (Tannishtha Chatterjee) and younger sister (Fagun Ivy Thakrar). His family struggles to live from hand-to-mouth from his earnings. Dilip gets a new lease of life when he lands a job at the newly-arrived Union Carbide’s pesticide plant.

Although Dilip is happy to have found a source of earning despite uneasy conditions, he is worried to know that the safety standards at the plant are being ignored. Soon, this leads to a fatal leakage of the poisonous Methyl Isocyanide that kills thousands in a single night making it the worst man-made industrial disaster ever. Even 30 years after the incident, thousands continue to suffer from its consequences.

The base of all great films is writing and that is exactly the case here with a watertight screenplay and real yet dramatic dialogues. To top it up, Kumar has handled the subject with utmost precision. The manner in which he has added realism to such utterly difficult scenes, especially the tragic ones, is to be seen to be believed. As stated earlier, it can’t get more realistic! To carry out such a task in just your second film is no mean achievement.

Naturally, this gives rise to a number of scenes that stay etched in your memory. From these, Dr Chandra (Manoj Joshi) trying to select one person from many whom he can administer an antidote deserves special mention.

Another reason why the film scores high marks is that it doesn’t get depressing despite it being based on one of the greatest tragedies ever. This indicates that its motto is not to bring back terrible memories but to highlight the importance of human safety over profits.

It is difficult to choose a negative point here. Probably the number of characters could have been reduced and the life of the people of Bhopal, especially the slums, could have been portrayed more. This could have been possible as the film’s length isn’t much.

Coming to the technicalities, the VFX team should be lauded as they had their task cut out. Cinematographers Charlie Wuppermann and Anil Chandel have succeeded in displaying their skills. The background score is apt for the proceedings. The fast-paced classical tunes used at the start help a lot in generating interest instantly.

The performances are a top-draw too! Rajpal Yadav gives his best performance till date as far as his serious roles are concerned. Veteran Martin Sheen is excellent as the CEO of Union Carbide. Kal Penn is brilliant too in the role of the cunning journalist. Mischa Barton plays the journalist from US with perfection.

Tannishtha Chatterjee once again proves she is one of the most talented actors in the country. In the role of the doctor, Manoj Joshi is flawless! Akhil Mishra and Joy Sengupta also deserve praise. Satish Kaushik creates an impact in a cameo while Fagun Ivy Thakrar too provides good support.

Overall: Bhopal: A Prayer For Rain is an excellent piece of realistic cinema that shouldn’t be missed. The film requires good word-of-mouth to succeed at the box office when it releases in India on December 5.

Director: Ravi Kumar

Producers: Sahara Movie Studios and Rising Star Entertainment

Writers: David Brooks and Ravi Kumar

Cast: Rajpal Yadav, Martin Sheen, Mischa Barton, Tannishtha Chatterjee, Manoj Joshi, Akhil Mishra, Fagun Ivy Thakrar

Music: Benjamin Wallfisch

Genre: Period Drama

Duration: 96 minutes

Release Date: December 5, 2014 (India)

Zests of a Common Man

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This post is a part of the #ZestUpYourLife activity in association with TATA Zest and BlogAdda.com

By: Keyur Seta

There is a huge difference between living life and merely surviving through it. So in the midst of a hectic professional life, it is necessary to have people, things and situations that add Zest to your life by making it worth living. I am fortunate to have many sources of Zest in my life.

Here’s listing five of them:-

Mussoorie (Picture Source: http://beqesh.wordpress.com/2010/12/22/a-walk-in-the-clouds/)

Nature: Whenever you are stressed out, disturbed, tensed or angry over something, just surrender yourself to nature – be it mountains, shade of a huge tree, landscape, river, lake or sea – and see the difference within minutes. I can say this from many personal experiences. I can stay in the company of nature for hours alone as if I am having a conversation with the surroundings. Needless to say, something that provides you with immense peace has to be labeled as a Zest! It can also be described as ‘Nature Therapy’.

Roadside food: If I am given a choice between a luxurious five star restaurant and a roadside rekdi, I will choose the latter 10 out of 10 times. I personally feel that the taste of roadside food (be it any cuisine) is unmatchable to any of those big sophisticated restaurants. Just think about it – Can you ever compare the experience of eating a spicy Vada Pav during heavy rains to that of eating mannerly in those luxurious air-conditioned restaurants?

Cinema: This is the biggest passion in my life. Although I watch many films, each of my movie experience is special as it takes me to a different world altogether thereby making it more like a spiritual activity, irrespective of its quality or genre. Hence, I address it as ‘cinema’ instead of just ‘movies’. Over the years, I have realized there is a big difference between both. The term ‘movies’ refers to those who watch films just for fun while munching tubs of popcorn. On the other hand, ‘cinema’ refers to people like me who just don’t need anything as we are completely focused on our spiritual exercise.

Company of a cinema buff: When I am in the company of someone who considers watching films a spiritual exercise, I can literally speak with him or her for hours without a moment’s pause. Hence, such a cinema buff is also a Zest for me. And speaking about films doesn’t necessarily mean a serious discussion on great films. It also includes making fun of a lot of bad films and the various ham scenes in it. If you are lucky, you might even witness me acting out some ham scenes.

Company of a Common Man: Just like the company of a cinema buff, having a down-to-earth chat with a simple Common Man (ideally with a cutting chai) provides me with immense peace, irrespective on what topic the discussion is, ranging from movies, politics, cricket to even laughing at a silly PJ. Through my personal experience, I have wholeheartedly started believing that simple joys of life are the most pleasurable and long lasting.

Picture Source: coolage.in

Travel Post: Goa is not exactly what we see in Bollywood!

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By: Keyur Seta

Three weeks back, I finally got a chance to visit Goa for the first time in my life. Since I had never seen the place before in real, all my knowledge about the place came from Hindi films. As almost all Bollywood films have portrayed the place in the same manner (except few films like Dum Maaro Dum), not since years but decades, I kind of developed an image of the place from what I have been seeing on celluloid.

This is how Hindi films have portrayed Goa:-

Goa is all about beaches. In fact, beaches are the only things worth seeing in the place.
The place is thronged by hardcore party lovers who consume as much beer or some liquor as we consume water. Of course, some of the males have to be topless and the females, skimpily clothed.
Every now and then you will come across a person humming a song in English or their local language while playing a guitar. It is mandatory for the person to wear a typical Goa shirt (with pictures of coconut trees), shorts and of course a big hat made out of cane.
Locals add the word ‘man’ after every sentence while speaking Hindi. Examples – 1) Hi man! 2) Kaisa hai man? 3) Kya baat kar raha hai man? 4) God tumhara prayer zaroor sunega man.

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A calm and picturesque lake in Goa (Click to enlarge)

Due to such portrayal of Goa, I wasn’t too keen on visiting the place, more so because I am not fond of beaches and I simply can’t stand these so-called parties with liquor. But since I badly needed a change, I went ahead with the trip. And today as I look back, I think it was one of the best decisions of my life. The reason I am saying this is because Goa is much, much more than what Hindi films have shown us. Of course, the above mentioned scenarios are experienced over there but, from what I saw, not often.

As surprising as it may sound, I found Goa very serene and peaceful. I experienced this not only in the locality where we stayed (Calangute) but also in the places we visited – the peaceful Thivim Railway station, Avenida Dom Jao Castro Road in Panaji, Sinquerim Beach, Fort Aguada, Vagator Beach, Dona Paula, Basilica of Bom Jesus, Shantadurga Temple and lastly Margao (Maybe you can feel the same in the pictures posted here). A lot of calmness is also felt while travelling from one destination to the other as one could see the beautiful small houses or huts, local shops, a group of locals chit chatting under a tree in villages, lakes, forests, picturesque mountains, small roads of small towns, etc.

I firmly believe that the beauty of a particular place multiplies if the locals are warm hearted and sweet. After my experiences and interactions with the locals in Goa, I can surely say the same for Goa. This definitely adds on to the peace. The big example of this was our guide Ramakant. Although he was hamming his way while explaining the places, it was his sweet and friendly nature that stood out.

Beautifully maintained city of Panaji (Click to enlarge)

But another thing that hugely impressed me is the cleanliness practiced by the people (even on the beaches) and the civic maintenance in every part of Goa. I hardly saw any litter or waste lying on the roads. I don’t even recollect anyone spitting on the streets. Although this increased my respect for the place, it also made me feel bad thinking about the state of my hometown Mumbai where people consider the whole city as a dustbin, toilet and what not.

And talking about the civic body of Goa, I feel the BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) is a big joke in comparison to it. The former not only makes sure the place is clean and tidy but also puts in lots of effort and money to add beauty to the place. So henceforth, I would laugh at anyone who would label Mumbai as the most developed city. Insanely building more and more skyscrapers, letting miscreants destroy the city and unnecessarily buying cars thereby adding on to the traffic is certainly not development.

So regardless of what Hindi films show, the real Goa is seen only after visiting it. From the points mentioned above, it is needless for me to say that I will visit the place again.

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Some more pictures: –

Vagator Beach in Goa (Click to enlarge)

Avenida Dom Jao Road at Panaji, Goa (Click to enlarge)

Basilica of Bom Jesus at Panaji, Goa (Click to enlarge)

View from Mandovi Bridge at Panaji (Click to enlarge)

Vagator Beach. The place where Ek Duke Ke Liye was shot. The lovers in the movie had inscribed their name on the sand. Shockingly, around 30 years later, the name is still visible. (Click to enlarge)

Shantadurga Temple in Goa (Click to enlarge)