My Blog

The Smart City Administrators and It`s Over-smart Citizens

Apr 13, 2022

Let there be no mistake about the age of Bhubaneswar. It’s not 74 years young. It existed for centuries and was known by many names like Toshali, Kalinga Nagari, Ekamra Kshetra, Krutibasha Katak. Let there be no mistake about the age of Bhubaneswar. It’s not 74 years young. It existed for centuries and was known by many names like Toshali, Kalinga Nagari, Ekamra Kshetra, Krutibasha Katak. The Temple City part and the new city whose establishment we are celebrating today are two different entities culturally speaking. While the former is fondly called Bhonsar and the latter by its more formal name Bhubaneswar. The residents of the temple city call the other part Capital and the denizens of Capital City Bhubaneswar identify the other part as Old Town.

Baby-Seat, Gas and Peta Garam And Our Resurgent Brethren

Apr 12, 2022

Flight 6E 785, from Hyderabad to Bhubaneswar took off 45 minutes late. At 9.45 PM as soon as the seat belt signs were turned off, I chose to steal some sleep. The day had not been particularly kind to me. My eyes closed, and in a few minutes, I could realize that I am sitting amidst a bunch of men who were returning after a wild vacation. Rows 9, 10, and 11 were almost taken over by them. The harder I tried to stay detached from their conversation, the more I was getting drawn into their world. How to miss the ringside view when I was at the center of the ring?

Similar Slaps and it`s Different Echoes

Apr 03, 2022

At a time when the deafening noise of the Russian bombing of Ukrainian cities has been relegated to ambient music status, two small incidents created some noise in the media. One was a slap by a celebrity actor at the Oscars and the same act by a faceless Swiggy Food delivery boy at a crowded footpath in Bhubaneswar. It`s interesting to analyze the two incidents for their similarities in the action and justifications of it and the dissimilarities at the level of echo it created. Both the perpetrators had their personal reasons but there was a vast difference in the way the organizations they are members of responded to it.

The younger brother I never had

Feb 27, 2022

The lump in my throat when I shared this news with my wife surprised me. When a classmate asked me how well I knew him, to which I told him that I knew him more in the last 5/6 months and knew him socially since the last 5/6 years; this was his turn to get surprised. My degree of grief defied the conventional logic of proportion. His passing away didn’t take me by surprise. Since morning I was dreading to face this news and by noon it was all over and by early evening, I was seeing his mortal remains a few minutes before it was about to be consigned to flames. With tears welling up and lumps in my throat I chose to leave the place. At this same place, I had bade farewell to many of my dear ones in close succession in the last few years.

Language Extinction and its consequences on us

Feb 26, 2022

According to UNESCO, a language is lost every two weeks. Cultural and linguistic diversity is of the utmost importance to build sustainable societies. Every country realizes how preserving and nurturing the mother language of their people is vital to their holistic psycho intellectual development. In fact, it`s the most important cultural asset around which the identity and salience of a community are built. Since 2000, UNESCO has been celebrating International Mother Language Day every year on February 21. It serves to remind us of the importance of language as a cultural asset. This date was not chosen at random though. It was a tribute to the Bangladeshis` (former East Pakistan) battle and the sacrifices made for their mother tongue in 1952 when Pakistan imposed their language of Urdu on them as the official language of the country.

The Real Viswaguru

Jan 30, 2022

In 2021, almost a year back when Modi told the world that India has arrived and is ready to take its role as the Viswaguru, some in his constituency, freshly recovering from the first wave of Covid and in a delusionary state of victory over it agreed. A few peppy words coming from the peripatetic PM soothed some lungs.

The Tale of Two Commissionarates

Dec 09, 2021

NEAR THE VICTORIA EMBANKMENT ON THAMES RIVER, ONE WOULD find this humble building with basic signage identifying it as the New Scotland Yard. This is the new headquarter of the London Metropolitan Police.

From Vijay to Deepak Sehgal; the changing role of Indian Male

Nov 25, 2021

The airport was unexpectedly crowded for a weekend early morning; the chill and constant drizzle since the last 4/5 days had done little to reduce the rush.