What Influences You?

Even before I start writing any further, let me tell you this one is inspired by one of Dan’s blog posts (one of my blog group friends), so in a way I am dedicating this one to him. Dan, you deserve this. Well, in his post, Dan talked about LinkedIn invitation for subscribing to some top influencers which he ignored and also some of the offers to “Go Pro” which he rejected. To be honest, I am not a people’s man. You don’t see me attending parties, social gatherings, functions, or any local events. I am living in my own world. As rightly pointed out by one of my friends, I am a “kuaa no dedko”. Now, that is a local Gujarati phrase which means “a frog who lives in a well”. I am not bothered about my neighbors, my society people or anything else.

However, that does not mean I am not influenced by people. In fact, I am a distant observer. I don’t talk to you, I don’t “hello” you, but I still see you, observe you and I collect information about you through what others speak about you. I cannot really say how and when this thing hit me, but I guess I can at least say that it was mainly after I joined Elphinstone College that I got hit by this wave of knowledge and certain people that changed me into what I am. Of course, my mother has influenced me a lot. I still do things that she taught me when I was too young to differentiate between right and wrong, but there are others and other things that has influenced me and made me what I am.

I agree with Dan’s idea that there cannot be certain set of people that can influence you because you can influenced by millions of things around you, not just human beings. For instance, after I took Sociology, my perception of life in India has changed completely. Similarly, I am influenced by many people that I don’t speak to. It can be just anybody, even a stranger sitting next to me in the train. I don’t have to be friend with him or her. Similarly, I know many of my friends who are influenced by me. I feel this quite strange that someone can get inspired from my acts and my decisions, but I have seen that happening. Honestly, I sometimes feel awkward that someone should follow what I am doing, but the truth is they do. I get influenced by movies, I get influenced by poems, by songs, by inspirational quotes that I see on some poster or on computer wallpapers. It’s a feeling of realization and it has an effect on your character from that very moment.

In fact, if anybody of LinkedIn is reading this, I would like to tell that even those top influencers whom they put into that slot are influenced by common people like us. To be brutally honest, these top influencers might be paid users that are using LinkedIn services and probably that’s why the company is putting their profile in such slots. How do you know that these set of guys are going to have some potential influence on my mind? Only because they are holding higher positions or they are in the same field as me? Influence, as rightly pointed out by Dan is not just an exclusive set of people because then you are just limiting yourself and how you think. If you really want to be influenced you have to focus on everything around you and not just people. Sometimes, even hard time and complex relationships can influence the way you think and understand life. It is all about how you perceive and take things in stride as you continue your journey of life. 

Knowledge is Power...Not Pressure: Just a Random Rant on Education System in India

When I was young, probably in the fifth grade or so I came across a phrase “Knowledge is Power”. Back then I was just a reader, a regular Indian student who was more worried about securing good marks and move on. I had no idea about how knowledge can be associated with power and I never really bothered about asking it to my parents. However, it was only after all the hardships and experience I started realizing the true meaning behind this short phrase. Few months ago, I met this bunch of people, extremely talented and friendly and who are located in different parts of the world. For them, I am an unofficial Indian ambassador who takes them on a ride across India through my blogs and pictures. This time I am talking about the education system in India

Although, I am an Indian, my friends often find me criticizing against the Indian system and probably they even label me as a foreigner. I hate that. Because being critical is not a symbol of being unpatriotic. Anyways, I don’t mind that now because I am used to it and post marriage I have cut down the debates and my so-called caustic questions that can boil the blood of true sons of the land.

Educational stages in India are very similar to that in the UK and there are virtually no changes at all. Parents enroll their kids to nursery and the kid gradually moves up the ladder to Higher Kindergarten and then to first grade. This stage is called the pre-primary stage. First grade to fourth or fifth grade is called the Primary section. While from fifth grade to tenth grade is called the Secondary stage. So, every kid has to go through ten years of schooling that combines primary and secondary stage. In the tenth year, students have to appear for Senior Secondary Certificate (SSC) examination which would certify that they are good to go. Locally, we call them “board exams”. Once cleared, students can move on to college. They will have to go through two years of junior college, so its 10+2. Students then have to appear for another board exam to clear their twelfth grade which is called Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) examination. If cleared, students can choose from three field; Commerce, Science and Arts and continue their education for graduation. After three years (10+2+3), there will be a graduation board exam and if students clear that they are Bachelors of whatever subject or field they have chosen. For Masters they can proceed from here on for another three years and then to higher studies and Ph.D.

Surprisingly, the student suicide rates in the UK and India are on the rise and that is what bothers me the most. As per the report by the Health Ministry of India, there were 16,000 suicide cases reported in the past three years which means every 90 minutes one student decides to end his or her life. This brings to around 16 students per day, 112 per week and 480 students per month. To be brutally honest, I must say that the education sector has been bitten by the money bug and now everybody here is cashing on the future of the students. From principals to teachers and even universities they are more concerned about the donations and money they make to keep their institutions going. There might be bunch of good people that are genuinely helpful, but that is not helping the cause. 

The syllabus is packed with information that is just good to know and sometimes not even of that caliber. In fact the knowledge that is imparted in the schools is more on the theory side rather than preparing the students of how to handle challenges of life and overcome it. Another brutal truth is that syllabus is designed in a way that leads to more books that students have to purchase. It’s a hand in glove deal between the educational administration and publishers to churn out more money. However, educational administration is not the only reason for the increasing student suicide rates. I would also like to point out the amount of pressure from parents and peer groups. There is immense competition not only to clear the exams, but to top it as well. Many students that cut short their lives are usually those who are unable to cope up with the ever-growing expectations and demands from all sides. 

Many parents work hard to pay higher fees for reputed schools and colleges and in return they expect that their kids perform exceptionally well. Kids do realize and understand the efforts and sacrifices of their family, but unfortunately not everybody can score big. Depression and low self-confidence creeps in gradually to make situations worse along with peer pressure which acts like a final nail in the coffin.

While there are consultants and suicide prevention centers here in India, they are not really effective which is clear from the numbers of suicide rates in India by students. The only way this can be curb is when families support their kids in every possible way. It is understood that there are many sacrifices that parents make for their kids to have the best of education, but that does not give them the right to load their expectations and dreams on their kids’ shoulder. Coming back to my original phrase, I would say, “Knowledge is power……not pressure”.

India Shining, India Whining - Cleanliness

Pura system corrupt hain (The entire system is corrupt). This is exactly the first thing that we usually say to each other when we are talking about some political news or small talks that involve government or anything related to the overall society at large. I am an Indian and extremely passionate about taking India to the world and I do that through my writing. This time I am focusing on something else and that is the People of India. Recently, the newly elected government has created lot of positive buzz and I certainly believe that the People of India have stood up to vote for a government that can make things better and take India to the next level which we all dream of. We, as Indians love to see India Shining and being a superpower in the Asia region and also across the globe, but is voting for the right government our only responsibility?

I am no moral police. I am not here to judge people, but I would certainly like to make people aware that every person is a part of this system, this corrupt system that we keep blaming all the time, helplessly. What if I keep nagging about how inefficient my maid is and that she does not bother to clean the apartment the way I expect her to? Well, the options that I have here is either to tell her to be efficient and to work as per my expectations, second is to replace her with someone more efficient, and lastly I can do all the cleaning work myself because at the end of the day it is MY apartment. For many years, India has tried the first option telling the government to do better, this time India chose the second one giving an opportunity to someone who can do better and I think that is a good move, but we haven’t really made attempts to clean our home so far, have we?

For instance, let’s take Mumbai which I think is so overpopulated that most people almost live and travel in sub-human conditions and we know that and I am sure international visitors also know about it. I am not focusing on the space here; I am talking about the quality of the space. Every monsoon we read in newspapers about floods and water clogging and we hold BMC, the municipal corporation for poor job and their inefficiency. Has anyone ever thought where all that wrappers, plastic bottles, soft drink cans, plastic bags and other filthy stuff come from? Well, it is us who throw it there and that is what comes back to us. 

We spit on roads, piss on roadside walls and pavements, eat at roadside food stalls sitting comfortably in our luxury cars and throw paper plates, plastic glasses on the road and drive away casually. Who said cricket is the most favorite and most played game in India? It’s not cricket, it’s the Blame Game, because we all are pointing fingers at each other rather than working collectively towards a single goal. Government blaming the Opposition, people blaming the municipal corporation and in return they blaming the overburdening population and the chain never ends. It runs like an endless loop until you forget where it all started.

India is now depending on the new government to make a huge leap in every possible way, but no government can succeed on its own merit. It requires equal amount of dedication, effort, discipline and responsibility from its citizens as well. We often take pride in going abroad to some exotic locations like Switzerland, Dubai and so on and we boast about how clean those countries are. Well, that is not just because the government is taking measures to clean up the city, but also because people are mature enough to keep it clean. It is again a collective effort and the laws that ensure that everybody gets a better lifestyle and living experiences for the hard-earned money they pay in taxes.

Let me put it this way, even if you have the best maid in the world, it still depends on you to keep your apartment clean. Expectation is a good thing, but when you expect something from someone, you also have to be ready to deliver something in return. Even if the existing government does well and come up with better infrastructure and facilities are we ready to improve? Are we ready to stop pissing on road? Are we ready to walk out of the car and dump those plastic plates and glasses in the dustbin? Are we ready to act like grown-ups and do something about cleaning our city and make it a better place? Or are we just interested in the chhodna-yaar (just let it be) attitude that is so common among us, so common that this habit has become a part of our DNA in some sense.

What Indians Think of You When You Walk Out of that Airport?

We often say that the world today is a smaller place and that we are globally connected through internet technologies that allow us to connect anytime and anywhere. However, the funny part is that there exist many misconceptions that we still see around in the real world. While the West is technologically ahead and culturally different, East is just catching up and trying to balance between its old traditions and customs and the effects of modernization and westernization. On the other hand, the culture contrast is wide and that also impacts life in many different ways. I have many friends in the West who are passionate about touring India, exploring the sights and sounds and the heritage and culture of my country, but what they don’t know is how they will be perceived the moment they walk out of the airport. So, based on what I know (excluding assumptions), I came up with this funny concept of how I can tell my international friends in the West, what Indians really think about them.

Women in Dual-Face India

Writing has always fascinated me for I believe that words have a lot of power to educate or degrade the socieity. Being an optimistic, I believe Koi bhi desh perfect nahi hota, usey perfect banana padta hain (no country is perfect, we have to make it perfect). I decided to start off my blog with the most happening case that is all over the newspapers and even on the television and social networking sites, the Delhi gang rape case that happened on 16th December. While most articles have focused on how the incident happened and what really happened, I am highlighting some other aspects of women issues (especially rape) that often go unnoticed.

Almost all would agree with me when I say Delhi and NCR is the rape capital of India, but I still disagree with it. Rape happens all over India, but it still remains one of the most under-reported violent crimes in the country against women.

Aman Ki Asha Is a Good Concept

When I was in school, I had once read in one of the books that the God of War has victory in one hand and defeat in another, but the God of Peace has victory in both hands. I support Aman Ki Asha not because I am partial towards India, but because I am in favor of India and my heart tells me that the only way both the countries can progress is through peace. Of course, many would not agree with my point of view because of the terrorism that happens in India and that many innocent Indians have been slaughtered by terrorists from the other side, but we should realize that terrorists have no nationality and they have no religion.

Save Mumbai From Dirty Politics

In last few months, I have been hearing a lot of news over who really owns Mumbai. I am a Mumbaikar and have been born and brought up in the city. I love this city like my home and I think it is one of the greatest cities in the world because it is never bias to any one group of people. The city provides food, clothing and shelter to anyone who embraces this city with love. However, in last few decades we have seen that dirty politics have led to many minor and major problems in the city. I guess the reason for this kind of dirty politics going on in the city is not because politicians want to takeover the city which is the financial hub of the country, but because we Mumbaikars are silently watching our city being burned down by these filthy politicians.