Proaudience - I shall admire you my audience!

Pankhioye Kal Shor Karyo (Manna Dey)

admin — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 02:00:49 +0000

I have several more Gujarati Gazals and old movie songs by Rafi, Talat Mahmood, Hemant Kumar, Meena Kapoor and Manna Dey. But they can make one asleep if we played them here.

The only exception was this one by Manna Dey:

Pankhioye Kal Shor Karyo

Also check out the following by Rafi, and compare it with the tune of Pal Do Pal Ka Saath Hamara from The Burning Train (1980). Don’t they sound similar in the start despite varied natures?

Kahun Chhun Jawani Ne Paachhi Vali Ja

Songs I hesitated to upload are listed below. Anybody interested about them? Only if you could recognize should you say yes.

Talat Mahmood

Chadhyan Anmol Kishti Par
Javab Dene Kyan Chhe Tun
Shane Guman Karto
Sukani Ja Tun

Manna Dey

Lagi Re Lagan Piya Tori
Raheshe Mane Aa Maari
Sapna Rupey Aap Na Aavo

Meena Kapoor

Kaho Koi Chandne Dubi Mare
Mane Eklun Eklun Lage

Mohammed Rafi

Divso Judaina Jaay Chhe

Hemant Kumar

Tamara Ahin Aaj Pagala Thavana

Indian Sports - An Eternal Nightmare

admin — Mon, 11 Aug 2008 01:03:48 +0000

I write this in the backdrop of the latest slump by Indian cricket, and the controversies involving two Indian athletes - Monica Devi and Sania Mirza - at the Beijing Olympics 2008.

Indian sports - not only cricket - has been like this only since we gained independence. I recently had a chat with some sportsmen in my hometown Ahmedabad, cutting across various disciplines, and the things they spoke about their internal functioning were crazy. There is a gentleman (who is not so gentle in reality) called Narhari Amin, former Deputy CM of Gujarat, a typical Congress leader, and a well know bully and muscleman from his student days. He allegedly captured Gujarat Cricket Association at gun point (as ex deputy CM). He got clubs not supportive of his panel out, and only those who may vote for him were allowed voting rights. This became a permanent arrangement once he assumed office. His detractors say now only god could remove him, if at all.

I spoke with the secretary of the GCA, a seasoned official, and he had to say, “so what! we have been run like this since the days of RAJA and MAHARAJA!” Local tourneys under the GCA are held only when the first class season nears about its end, thus making club teams and players have no future whatsoever. The reason? A sheer lack of interest from those running the organization. One gentleman, who is also a relative of an international umpire from Gujarat and himself an ex Ranji player, showed me an antique like heavy roller at the Gujarat College Ground, a premier sports facility. It’s manufacturing firm ceased to exist several decades ago, and the date of assembly read 1905!

There was an ex-hockey player who told me why he became a tennis coach. He saw Indian hockey taking him nowhere. He got trained under the programme of a world tennis body instead, and began offering his own coaching sessions. His mentor and a very senior hockey coach himself, Kishan Karve, who recently passed away at the age of 84, would go angry on being asked about the present morass. He had startling stories to share from the days of Pt. Nehru and Indira Gandhi. He was trained by the legendary duo of Dhyan Chand and Manna Singh. His hands would start trembling in frustration, and he would mumble, “my brain may explode. I have seen the downfall of Indian hockey. I have seen India’s dishonesty at its worst. Please, do not ask me to relive all that memory yet again. Nothing will come out from what you are trying to research now. Go and make moolah by doing something else. Indian sports is a burial ground, which carries no positive hope!”

As Beijing thrives by organizing the Olympics 2008, it’s time for the Indian sports to go picnicking and show its true nature. Monica Devi’s dope charge, its withdrawal and the resulting cancellation of her participation, and Sania’s mum traveling as part of the official Indian contingent are only a few of its stark reminders.

Romantic Mohammed Rafi Songs

admin — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 04:15:32 +0000

I wanted to start speaking about Rafi having had posted so much on Kishore in the last few months. Let us begin the following song list and take a stock of Rafi’s caliber. This is the first in a series of similar many yet to come on Rafi and others. Rafi was the original playback maestro. All others only followed him. While Sehgal fans may not agree with my notion, I can choose to ignore them since they are hardly any force to make a hue and cry like the Rafi or Kishore fans may do…lol. A list of mostly romantic solos by Rafi are being given below. Remember, I’m no pukka Rafi listener, so bear with whatever I was able to gather for now.

My childhood passed listening to an exploding Kishore Kumar. This happened from mid-70s onwards. He was alive till I became 18 in 1987. Rafi passed on when I must have been around 11. Mukesh a couple of years earlier. I clearly remember having seen my elder generation swaying under their magical legacy by that time. I just caught and carried it on. Rafi’s voice is an integral part of my life in that context. Vividh Bharati and All India Radio Urdu Service would air Hindi movie songs in those days. Megaphones at wedding ceremonies and Navaratri Pandals would also play them loudly.

in my 20s and later, there were times when I couldn’t follow KK’s music for months on. Even though I loved his style the most, I found him difficult to copy to. Unless you were in your top elements, Kishore Kumar was not the easiest of the lot to be re-enacted, such was his passion. But, Rafi could be followed anytime you wished humming his numbers. He bore a simplicity, which I found useful when not fully in love with KK’s genre. Hence, I’d shift my Tashrif Ka Tokara to the Rafi camp in those difficult times.

Rafi Saab In Aashiqana Mood!

Celebrating 4th Of August - Deewana Kishoreda Songs

admin — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 18:00:26 +0000

Deewana Kishore Kumar And Deewana Me!

In a nation of so much internal strife and negatives, very few names can instill the kind of joy and passion Kishore Midas Kumar does. He belongs to that rare breed, which could hop over man-made religious, linguistic and ideological boundaries and leave their audiences fufilled and joyous. I do not get euphoric about birth dates, not even my own, and anniversaries. I do not get influenced by others easily either. I won’t be dancing around popular notions, if you wished me to do it!

A few things may evoke emotions in me though. Like, Osho Rajneesh does when discoursing. Sachin Tendulkar does when in full flow. RD Burman and Asha Bhonsle do when being in their elements. The electrifying aura and hope, a young Indian team under Dhoni carries. My nation’s name, its culture and foods. Its days and nights as well. Scantly clad tribals walking and playing flute in a posh area like the one I live in, knowing fully well they could not buy what they built. Yet they would sing, drum and dance, as if they had the whole world under their own influence. Girls outsmarting boys in education, in life, in a totally male dominated society. Parents showing enough courage to have only girl offspring. Men lining up to donate blood and getting annihilated, as it recently occurred in Ahmedabad.

An evening with shades of beauty and loneliness in the sky. Trees swaying on sideways, as if they knew all about you, me and this universe. Cuckoos getting shriller and restless with each passing moment, as dawn neared. The poor man and the girl, who would insist they were no beggars, and were only trying to sell you items, if you wished to purchase them, leaving you dumbfounded about the disparities you lived in.

A woman deceiving you from the corner of her eyes, knowing fully well how she could do this, thanks due to the prowess bestowed upon her by the creator. A kid getting ecstatic on being released, walking bare feet in dust. His mum would always rescue him at the eleventh hour - so heroic like those Indian Masala movies. A face with a rare glimpse of spirituality. Chants of Bhole Shankar on Mahashivaratri Day. The image of an ancient Patliputra - the cradle of Indian civilization. The rigorous journey this nation had to see from thereon. Thoughts of Buddha in Samadhi. Thoughts of eternal peace he experienced. Chants of Nirvana, bells humming inside temples, spirituality about to unfold….

These are images that could move me, could make me emotional. Many more could be added in there, including that of Kishoreda, his music and his genius. They all wove me together the way I am. I could not think of giving any better tribute to Kishoreda on his 79th birth anniversary today. Yes, I do feel euphoric about this particular date in calender - the 4th of August. Very few other occasions can make me emotional the way this one does!

Deewana Kishoreda Songs This Month

More Kishore Kumar songs:

Ameer Garib (1974)

Des Pardes (1978)

Tu Pee Aur Jee

Heavy Rains Lash Ahmedabad, Cool Down Tempers!

Outspoken Gujarati — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 02:40:09 +0000

Ahmedabad’s sky was heavily overcast since the early morning today. It rained uninterruptedly until late in the afternoon. While Modi government’s prime concern was a looming drought until the late Saturday afternoon, the focus sharply shifted towards the serial blasts by midnight. The terror strike left behind a trail of injuries and destruction. It rained heavily on Monday in several parts of the state though, thus lessening the burden of the state administration at least in one area. And this was a lack of water for irrigation and a diverted power supply to farming to compensate it. Power cuts were taken back on Monday, sensing an improvement in the scenario for irrigation around state.

While Modi’s team regroups to strike back at blast perpetrators, it is more than evident that his plank of peace and security, that won him a landslide victory in the recently held Gujarat assembly polls, is tarnished for the time being. Whatever be the outcome of his skirmishes with the Jehadi elements, which began after 59 Hindus were torched in Godhra in 2002, the air of Ahmedabad carried a refreshing sign at least on Monday. Some key moments of the same outpouring rain here.

Let The Outspoken Gujarati Speak Now!

Outspoken Gujarati — Sat, 26 Jul 2008 23:00:43 +0000

Ahmedabad Blasts Shatter Gujarat’s Peace

Let me clarify this in advance. Outspoken Gujarati is not a Hindu or VHP zealot. Outspoken Gujju is not a Muslim hater. He is not an anti-peace or violence loving soul either. In fact, you might find him totally different, if you stayed with him in conversation for longer. He is someone who would always be in a dialogue, if it happened from both sides. There should be no misconception though, he hates pseudo elements of this country. He doesn’t like pseudo nationalists and pseudo secularists, both.

Living in the “post Babri-demolition and post 2002 Godhra carnage and Gujarat riots” era makes him more vary about the pseudo-secular polity though. Why so? Let him explain this through his ideas on this weblog. It may take time, but should make sense at the perceived end in future. What he was about to quote today is full of anger though, and carries the risk of being projected as a Hindu zealot. The explanation given beforehand is aimed at countering this.

The following is a post made out by him in response to the TOI article: Blasts revenge for Gujarat riot atrocities? They won’t be publishing it, he knows. Though, they can’t stop him (that’s myself) from writing it down in his own weblog. So here we go, my pro-Hindutva and secularists friends both. The secularists are asked to keep quiet today…this ain’t your lucky day my pals.

My Comment At The TOI

The question is not how India should tackle the Islamic militancy. What is emerging clearer with each occurring terror strike is the necessity of disciplining the pseudo secularists first. They are the one’s who provide moral support to hardline Muslims by justifying their acts as a counter to VHP and RSS. A heinous act of Godhra train burning, which reminded one of the partition days, was overlooked. Separate personal law is taken for granted, Muslims encroaching upon Hindu rights and making violent attacks is thought out to be politically correct. Anything contrary to it would be passed on as pure communal. Caste politics would be assumed ethical. Muslim politics even more justified. One family rule in a country of one billion, a splendid act. Buying out votes in parliament ok. Keeping it hush-hush, not showing it to the masses and making out the BJP culprit instead, perfectly fine. “Tum logon mein kucch bhi sharam bakee naheen bachee hai ab!” You are proving out an embarrassment of immense nature with each passing moment.

Forget about Gujarat riots. You have outlived it way ago. The anger among the common non-psecs is bulging out fast. I used to be an ardent TOI reader until a couple of years ago. Then I moved on to another newspaper knowing you won’t be changing just like a dog’s tail. Reading out you after so many months, only makes my belief stronger, that its the organizations and forums like you which require being disciplined before anything else.

This coming from somebody who was equally aghast when Babri mosque was demolished and when Gujarat riots took place in answer to Godhra train carnage. This from somebody who abides by the Indian law more than what you may try to fake about (with challenge). This from somebody who won’t snip off even a leaf fearing it might pain the tree. This from somebody who dislikes the way how the VHP or Bajrang Dal may prefer to behave without the neccessity of boasting about one’s secular credentials, as in your case. But, let there be no misconception about this, the first enemy is not the Islamic terror from within and outside of this nation. It’s you and your ilk that require being fought on and disciplined first before initiating with any other measure.