Indianness

I came across this blog about 3 years ago and ever since I have always wondered 'what is Indianness to me?'. Now that I have made an effort to end my self imposed hiatus from blogging, I thought this would be a nice topic for me to begin my second innings with.

As I read a draft of this post from '06, I found it intriguing that my views about Indianness and patriotism had changed over the last 3 years. Back then, my views were of a confused individual; an misled patriot perhaps.

I practiced glorifying the good things and masking the not so good things. I believed that India was the best thing that could happen to this world even though, I was one of those umpteen number of people who had gone abroad with hopes of making a quick buck. The question 'what are you doing for your country and it's people?' was invariably answered with 'I send home money and it does more than just improve my social status'. I thought I was a patriot just because I aspired to be in the Armed Forces. I proudly told people that I went for the SSB interview even after I got my corporate calling. I was one of those people who scoffed at someone making a bad comment about my country. I took pride in every Indian victory on the cricket field. I was elated with the fact that an Indian might be at the helm of UN and also with the fact that LN Mittal was an Indian. I perhaps truly believed in 'India Shining' and I thought I played some part in it.

I had defined 'Indianness' as simply 'being proud of what our country is despite it's short comings'.

As I looked at what I wanted to tell the world back then I could not, but laugh at my naivety. The last couple of years have made me realize that I am just one of those innumerable, selfish individuals who have been thinking only about themselves and their close ones and never about the bigger picture. All I have done is to have believed in a falsely veiled picture of my country; a falsely veiled picture I had conjured up.

Things have changed now, albeit ever so subtly. I am still lured by better opportunities and better prospects. I still cheer for the cricket match victories and am elated about the medals we won at the Olympics. I am still happy that Indira Nooyi is heading Pepsi and that Dr. Pachauri won a Nobel prize. I am still proud about my aspirations on joining the armed forces. But I am still a mere middle class mortal who can only think about his priorities. I am too selfish to be selfless. But, the change in me however, is evident when I ask myself the big question; "what are you doing for your country and it's people?". Now my answer would be "nothing". I believed Mohan (from Swades) when he said, "I don't think my country is great however we have the capability to be one" and we all have our roles in making our country truly great. I now believe that 'India Rising' is a more apt slogan after all. I want more because I know we can be better and we can achieve more.

So what am I doing about it? I start again, by changing my definition of 'Indianness' to "accepting our responsibilities towards bettering our country, the country we all want it to be"

Mon voyage vers Paris

Continuing from my journey to Africa, my next destination was a place nearer, Paris. From the day I landed in Europe Paris was one among the top destinations I had on mind and I was not the only one. Ten of us had similar thoughts and we made good use of a long weekend and a day off from work. Unlike my earlier trips we were going on a package tour which was a first time for me. So here I was getting ready to go to Paris and that is where I start from...

Day 1...

Our cab left Bristol for London at about 01:00 and we were left with a good couple of hours to kill waiting for the on the streets of London at a time where even the earliest risers would be drifting into their deep slumber.

The interesting part about this trip was that we were travelling across countries by bus and ferry and that was something I was looking forward to, both with a sense of anticipation and apprehension. Anticipaiton towards the ferry trip and apprehension about the hours of bus journey lying ahead of us. After a good hour and half’s journey we reached the English Channel. The weather was so bad that we were forced to spend the hour long journey across the Channel indoors on the ferry which was carrying about 50 buses and at least twice as many cars. With our fingers crossed we hoped that the weather that would greet us on the other side would be far more pleasant and so it was.

We arrived at the Calais port in France and continued our journey into the city of Paris, arriving at our destination at just about evening time. We managed to catch a glimpse of the famous Eiffel Tower and the Orly airport. The airport has roads running underneath it and as we headed towards our destination on the road a colossal 747 just taxied above us and the sight was breathtaking to say the least.

Day 2

After a well deserved rest and an early breakfast we set out to see the city of Paris. There was no bounds to the excitement we all felt and off we ventured on our bus. While driving through the streets I instantly felt that this was one city which will leave an indelible impression in my memory and the next couple of days would prove me right. Our first stop was the Eiffel tower itself and the it was one collosal structure or metal. The mech engineers in us woke up and we noticed that this was one gigantic collection of metal sections kept together by a few million rivets. In layman terms this was just a huge metal pillar which served no practical purpose until a few years after which there were Radio masts installed on the pillar to justify the purpose of its continued existance. That it had many a detractor is a well known fact and even now I think many people feel that the tower as an eye sore on the face of a beautiful city. More about the tower a bit later.

After posing for a few pictures in front of arguably Paris's most well known landmark we set out on a cruise along the river Seine. The fact that Paris is a very small city is something which is not well known. To put it into perspective Paris is 1/3rd the size of Bangalore and the river Siene is the blood line of the city. One description says that the city itself occupies a bowl hollowed out by La Seine in its prehistoric vigour. Whatever may be the history, to travel on the river which has about 30 handsome bridges over it, added to it the enchanting old buildings the experience is worth more than my words can express.

The next stop was the Versailles palace or the Château de Versailles, this historic place in all its grandeaur had been the centre of power until the late 18th century. The size of this gardens at this Château were something which was beyond my imagination. The main reason we went into the garden was because our guide couldn't take our entire group at the same time and we would have missed something not for her. I still can't imagine how they maintain such a place. After basking in the glory of this garden off we went into the palace. The palace in itself was nothing short of my expectations but the crowning glory most definitely being the Hall of Mirrors. Over the years this Hall has been a part of history many times, perhaps the most famous one being the Treaty of Versailles signed in 1919 which signified the end of World War I.

Though half the hall was under renovation, which took some sheen away from it's splendour we could still experience an awe which many a people like me would have felt standing in the same place as I was. An added sense of pride to me was when I learnt that the great Napolean Bonaparte walked the very aisle I was walking. One another thing that drew my attention was the riches of a certain Mr Mittal whose daughter got engagement in this palace. Though not a king he for sure knows how to spend like a one.

That night we were going around the streets of the Paris and as our tour guide kept mentioning the true beauty of Paris was indeed at the night. To see the streets, the buildings and the tower all lit, was captivating to such an extent we just didn't realize the time that we had spent there

Day 3

After seeing the city of Paris it was time for us to go to Disneyland. A time to rekindle the child in us, or so we thought. The sight and sounds of this place were something which catered to not just the kids but the grown ups as well. Though the primary attractions were for the kids there were a few which were not for the weak hearted. A couple of rides did bring our heart into our mouths. It was like spending a day in wonderland and if that was me I can't imagine how a kid would feel.

As the day neared to an end it was time for the Lido dance show. This probably was one place about which we were unsure about. The Lido dance show is a world famous cabaret performance and in which at most times the girls are topless. Coming from a society where such things are considered more a taboo than a performance we had our apprehensions. But on reaching there we saw that the crowd waiting to get in, had a mix of people from many different cultures including a good mix of middle aged and elderly Indians. At the end of the show we were mesmerized at the artistry and the elegance of the performers. The other support shows which were a part of the package was equally good if not better. The best part for me was a figure skating duet on an ice rink half the size of a badminton court. The grace, control and the talent of the skaters was something which would have made even the Winter Olympic medallists stand up and take notice. We went back to our rooms feeling elated that we had witnessed a true spectacle.

Day 4

Back to the Eiffel Tower...the last day of our trip and we were rounding it off from the place where we started it all. We were up early and then headed towards the tower. The cold and damp weather was bit of a downside but nothing could dampen the spirits of the umpteen people waiting to get on the metal staricase of this metallic piece architecture. I did a little research on the reason the tower was errected and found that it was to serve as a visual attraction and an entrance to a fair held in the late 19 century. Hardly a reason to spend loads of money and it took a certain Gustave Eiffel all his convncing skills to justify the tower. At that time the tower was called 'truly tragic street lamp', 'mast of iron gymnasium apparatus (I love that one)', 'half buitl factory pipe' and a host of other names. But all this was only until the tower was finished. Since then millions of people have been flocking to see this architectural wonder. Just to conceptualize and complete a project of this magnitude needed some revolutionary thinking and skills which Eiffel possesed. Few people know that the framework for The Statue of Liberty was also done by Gustave Eiffel. The controversy apart, as we began our ascent on the elevators the beauty of Paris struck on us yet again. Looking outward from the tower on can see the rooftops of all the wonderful buildings, the churches and museums and the river Siene. It is literally like being on top of the world. On the top level the directions and the distances of various important places in the world are marked.

The cold weather and our tour guide influenced us to spend relatively little time on the tower but most of us came away satisfied. A few of us chose to walk down from the 2 level and every landing of the stairs has paintings of the vairous feats, and milestones the Tower has been a part of.

And it was time for our way back to UK and normal life. Owing to the fact we were on a short package trip, we were not able to see a lot of other places including the Louvere Museum, the various churches and museums and neither did we have the time to explore the bylanes of this wonderful city on foot. What we had seen was just a small but significant part of what this wonderful city is know for. But we went away with a mixed feelings and also with a thought that we didn't have enough of this place and I'm sure most if not all of us will definitely come back another time and who knows maybe another one after that and another one....

The Journey Begins....

There are very few things that have captured my imagiations as much as the Pyramids.Those innumerable episodes I've watched on Discovery & NGC, the umpteen stories I'd been hearing about Tutankhamen, Cleopatra, Ramesses and the other pharoahs of the land of the Nile. All these stories had fuelled my expectations and my impending journey to the country of the mummies was something I was really looking forward to.

It all seemed a fairy tale for me...a guy who until a couple of years back was still in college, content with travelling to and fro in the packed buses of a bustling metro and here I was2 years down the lane sitting on a plane watching the clouds beneath me and reading about the incredible history of the land on which I was about to set foot on.

First Impression...

It was 3.00 am by the time the two of us were done with the fomalities at the Cairo airport. The moment we exited the airport we were swarmed by a dozen taxi drivers asking for our destination. If not for the taxi sent by our hotel, we would have had a little more interaction with them. By now this place was giving me an impression of a country very similar to India, which would be justified a in the days to come but it sure was a lot more chaotic. We were a bit tired but nothing could take away the anticipation and excitement we had for the week that lay ahead.

In the morning it was a welcome change to wake up to the warm and pleasat sun of Cairo after spending the last few months in the cold weather of the Queen's country where the sun was hardly a manly force to reckon with. After an English breakfast we hired a driver from our hotel and we were on our way to visit The Pyramids.

The Pyramids...

The moment we caught a glimpse of the magnificent pyramids far in the horizon seated somewhat uncomfortably on our horses we knew that this would be one trip we would never forget in our lives. These magnificent pieces of architecture, which has been standing for eons and the thought of they were erected made me take a bow at those countless number of individuals who were a part of creating arguably the most fabulous buildings every to grace the face of mother earth. After a half hour's bumpy horse ride over the Sahara listening to our guide we are at the foot of the smallest pyramids where we stopped to take a few pics and then decided to walk around the other two pyramids.

There was only one corridor open for public and we got to know that there was nothing much to see inside the pyramids cos almost all the artefacts belonging to the pharoahs were put on disply in the Cairo museum. But nothing could deter us from entering it and since we were not allowed to take our cameras inside, not trusting the locals there we took turns to go inside.

The effort we had to make to enter the corridor and the hot temperatures inside made many of the foreigners around sweat like they were walking the treadmill for a good hour. Added to that, doing the same being crouched half the time forced some of them to stay outside in the cool breeze. We were told that the entrance was so because that everybody entering had to bow down to the resting pharoah, which I thought was a cunning but ingenious way of gaining the respect. Though there was nothing of worth inside it sure was worth the effort, just to be able to say that "I was inside the Great Pyramids" makes me .

Back in the open, in the middle of the Giza site I just gave a moment for the whole aura of the place to sink in and the feeling was even better than I expected. We just the let the feeling soak in, took a lot of pictures and then headed towards our next destination The Sphinx.

As our guide reeled out the history behind this statue one can't fail but notice the defeatured nose. There have been two theories on the reason behind the same. One being that Napolean 's soldiers fired a cannon ball and the more widely belived one where a Sufi fanatic disfigured it because of egyptian peasants were considering it as God. I overlooked the disfigured face and stood transfixed when I was told that the entire staute was carved out of one single stone.

Despite the fact about the various mysteries surrounding the actual purpose of the statue, the time at which it was built, by whom it was built, whose face does the statue depict........over a period of few centuries thanks to the efforts thousands of people this magnificent piece of art stands proudly guarding The Great Pyramids, as many believe it has been doing since the day it was erected.

By the end of the day we were basking in the glory of these timeless pieces of history which have stood the test of time and which I hope will stand for ever so that all our future generations will get to have a glimpse of one of the seven wonders of a world which would be more alien than ancient to them.

Another dream of mine had materialised!!!