The uncertain future of Congress party…!

Today the Congress party is on a threshold. It has its vast history behind and an unpredictable future ahead. It has ruled the country for majority of the period since independence. The country has grown in Congress rule all through the years. However, while the Congress can boast of bringing the present prosperity to the country, it also has to take the blame for the unfinished tasks still at hand, even after 65 years of independence.

The Congress of earlier times immediately after independence was fondly identified with the Charisma of an aristocratic Nehru and firmness of Indira Gandhi. Nehru had his own style of functioning, which was characterized by broad thinking, thinking the larger picture and love-all type qualities. He did not take any harsh decisions on any international matters, which could have been his strategy or weakness also. At the same time, Indira Gandhi is known more for her arrogance of power, absolute control of the party & people with some blackmailing tactics as well.

Sanjay Gandhi would have been a true successor for the Congress party, but destiny had something different in mind. Had he survived the crash, today Varun would have been in place of Rahul and vice versa. Sanjay was a politician who died in a plane crash while Rajiv was a pilot who died in politics. Rajiv became successor when he was not yet ready to take over the reins. Yet, it is remarkable that he showed all the qualities of a good learner and led the party well.

Sonia was a reclusive person after Rajiv’s sad and untimely demise but subsequently got drawn into politics. However, once she took the plunge, she ruled with full power. She realized that the congressmen were looking for someone to lead them and she made the full use of that opportunity. There is not a voice of dissent within her party. Even those who had left the Congress on the issue of her origins became allies of Congress at state as well as centre level. However, her rising health concerns, which require her to visit US occasionally,  mean that she may not occupy the top spot for a long time.

However, the so-far-smooth continuation of Nehru – Gandhi dynasty hit a temporary road block with the next generation. Rahul has been a reclusive leader who never meets media nor makes any intelligent points in the parliament. He never gives interviews and does not participate in debates. He is always well protected with senor leaders around him. He gets advice from a coterie called ‘young brigade’. While his campaigning has not been very successful so far, Congress is continuing to bank on him with a hope that someday he starts delivering on ground.

Priyanka Gandhi has been making some stray appearances during election season, but has not been actively in the news consistently. Her joining politics is as unpredictable as the monsoon of India. Added to that, the recent revelation about Robert Vadra has made her entry more difficult in politics. At one time during the campaigning of UP assembly elections, Vadra was seen campaigning with his team of followers. However, his possible entry into politics also is now indefinitely deferred.

For the first time, the Nehru Gandhi dynasty’s future looks bleak in Indian politics. Unless of course, some miracle happens. And miracles do happen in Indian politics. That too, quite frequently.

Outside the dynasty, the Congress has a very fractured and fragile structure. There are some senior leaders like Chidambaram, Antony and Kapil Sibbal who are Sonia Gandhi loyalists. All these leaders are past their sixties and they would be very uncomfortable in working under immature Rahul Gandhi. So, in future, if Rahul Gandhi is thrust on the party and Government, there is likelihood that they may either revolt or retire.

That is why, a young brigade is currently being formed, comprising of young MPs like Deora, Pilot, Scindia and Tiwari etc. so that whenever Rahul takes over in future, he is supported by this group. These are all in their thirties and forties and have a long innings ahead of them. They do not mind following a same-age Rahul Gandhi. However, as and when this happens, there would undoubtedly a cold war between the old veterans and the young Turks within Congress.

Simultaneously, with the strengthening of regional parties in India, the two major national party’s position has considerably weakened. They need to have the support of allies’ both pre and post elections to form the governments. And the support comes with a price. Today the Congress government is on ventilator with the outside support of Mulayam, Mayawati and Karunanidhi. If any two of them decide to vote against it, the government falls. These people are supporting the Congress just to suit their personal needs and not for any charitable purposes. 

The grass root worked of Congress party is most disillusioned person today. He is seeing a corruption-a-day. There is hardly any Congress leader not involved in any case. There are state level fights erupting as witnessed recently in Chhattisgarh and Gujarat. The state leadership in these and many other states comprises of the semi literate goons and mafia. The chances of good people joining politics are becoming remote with passage of time.

Under these conditions, it appears that the party which ruled India for so many years is finally facing extinction soon…!

The commonality between Rajesh Khanna, Kolaveri Di and Arvind Kejriwal…!

Success has a strange principle. When success is achieved in large measure and that too in a relatively short time, it actually becomes detrimental. The lasting success has to come in right quantities and in right time only.

Let us take three best examples to demonstrate this phenomenon.

Rajesh Khanna

Rajesh Khanna became a superstar in 1969. At that time the Bollywood was ruled by famous trio of Dev Anand, Raj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar. However, the equation was changed with arrival of Rajesh Khanna on the scene and he gave incredible 17 hit films in just three years. This feat is not achieved by any star in any language around the world till date. But this stupendous success came with a price. The people’s expectations were soaring with every hit movie and people wanted to see more and more of Rajesh Khanna. However, after seeing the stereotyped role of Rajesh Khanna for three years, people had enough of him. His films started doing average business. Amitabh Bachchan took the mantle from him by introducing the image of an angry young man in 1973 with ‘Zanjeer’.

Rajesh Khanna worked for rest of his life, almost 40 years, in supportive roles without the charisma. His solo movies literally struggled and failed at the box office from 1973 onwards. The aftermath of this sudden fall after meteoric rise must have been very painful for Rajesh Khanna. In contrast, Amitabh Bachchan has another record on his name. He gave one hit film per year for a continuous 16 years. That was a steady success which is glowing even after 40 years.

Kolaveri Di

The song Kolaveri Di is another example. It rose to fame almost in few hours after it went viral on the internet. It boasts of the maximum hits on YouTube in record short time. Suddenly everyone was singing Kolaveri Di. Many people searched for the song and heard it because of the hysteria it created among the people. All the TV serials immediately incorporated scenes involving the song in their episodes. Soon, there were imitations and remixes formed in several languages making it even more popular.

If one really analyzes the song, it does not have a great meaning. Rather, it does not have any meaning. It is a jumbled up mixture of some rhyming words. The shooting of the song was not great either. It is a dull recording studio with some unknown faces. Of course, the tune is catchy, but that was not the reason for its fame. The song got famous because of human inquisitiveness and ‘mob frenzy’ rather than any merits of the song. Since everyone is listening, I must also listen… this was the reason.

Today, we do not hear the song anymore. In any of its version...! Many people do not know the film, which this song belongs to. If and when the film will get released, people will surely get bored to see this song, as they have had ‘enough of it already in a short time’. Its too-fast-too-much success has killed its future.

Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal

Both Anna Hazare and Arvind Kejriwal shot into fame on national scene simultaneously with the famous 13 day fast in August 2011. The agitation spearheaded by these gentlemen is still a wonder for various reasons. It is rarely that we see the middle class come out on roads across India in such large numbers for a common cause. People say that it had happened before in seventies during Jaiprakash Narayan’s agitation. It is very unlikely that even Anna Hazare himself can recreate the same magic again.

The point here is that they got too much success in short time. So, people’s expectation grew as well. And when they could not meet their expectations, there is already a sense of disillusionment among the people. After parting ways, Arvind Kejriwal had made some sensational exposes. However, the status today is that people are not taking him seriously anymore. The politicians, who were damn afraid of him, are now even ridiculing him. Anna Hazare has formed a new core committee, but its success is yet to be seen. Their past huge success has become a burden on them now.

Steady success

The examples of steady success are Amitabh Bachchan, Lata Mangeshkar and Sachin Tendulkar. They had their bits of failure too. But they rose stronger after every fall. That’s why it is said that it is easy to reach the top, but very difficult to retain the top spot.

And finally, in a larger perspective, success spoils a person in hundred ways while a failure teaches him hundred lessons…!

A carpenter who became a millionaire…!

We have a three seater garden swing (Jhula) bought from ‘Home centre’ couple of years back. This is kept in the balcony and has been one of favorite place for us and our guests to relax either in the mornings or evenings while sipping hot tea or reading newspapers.

As the swing aged, its seat, comprising of thin flat plastic strips woven around the structure, became brittle and some of them started breaking. So, it needed a repair. Just as it was a pride of the home in its good condition, we were worried that it might become an embarrassment in its present and future condition, if not repaired soon.

So, I started my search one evening going from one furniture shop to another asking whether they would take up the repair works. I had carried with me the photos of the swing in my mobile so that it becomes easier to explain my requirement. After visiting three shops, I realized that it was going to be difficult, as no one was willing to do repair works. Then I had the final option of visiting the furniture lane in Karama where there are at least 25 furniture shops. I was quite sure to find someone there who could repair my swing.

However, I was getting a flat refusal from every shop there also, with an occasional advice to use super glue to the broken pieces, or to take it to a Chinese mall. None of the shops gave me any headway or positive indication of repairing the swing. As I had just one more shop left, I reluctantly entered inside the shop, more out of formality to complete my task rather than any expectation of finding a solution to my problem.

I saw the sales guy sitting on one of the display sofas kept in the showroom. I enquired him whether he would be able to repair a swing and showed him the photographs. For once, he said, yes it is possible. He estimated from the photo the material required for this and also the labor cost to complete the work. He enquired me for how much did I purchase this swing. When I told him the cost, he said, the repair cost would be around 70 – 80% of the purchase cost. But he kept on reiterating that it is possible.

I was in a dilemma. Should I get the swing repaired at such a cost or buy a new one. It was then that the discussion continued and he said that he was a carpenter who came to Dubai 27 years ago in search of a job. Over these years he became an owner of a chain of furniture showrooms. He said this to me not with any intentions of boasting, but just to give me an idea that he had the skills to estimate the work readily, as he had worked as a carpenter before. I was dumbfounded. I was standing in front of one of the most inspirational characters I ever met in my life. Often we read or hear about some rags-to-riches stories, but rarely do you get a chance to meet them. Here was one. There were several lessons to be learnt from this person.

I learnt my five lessons. They are as follows:

Positive attitude: When all other shops were refusing to take up this repair works mentioning that it is not possible, here was this man exploring how to make it possible. While others did not even bother to think about it, he actually estimated the costs for repair. He did not say NO. He provided options instead. This surely must have been one of his strategies on the way to success.

Hard work and dedication: It is amazing to see that a carpenter landing in Dubai 27 years ago has gone on to become owner of chain of furniture shops. This is only possible by hard work and dedication towards the profession. There could have been many carpenters who landed in Dubai along with him, but almost all of them would be either working as senior carpenters or might have returned back after their retirement.

Don’t forget your origins: I wondered that this person did not have any inhibitions in revealing to me that he was a carpenter 27 years back. One may branch out very high and in several areas in course of life, but one must not forget his roots. A person must respect his past because whatever he has achieved today is due to his yesterday’s conditions. The steel king Mittal has still kept his old fiat car in perfect condition and whenever he is in Kolkata he goes on long drives in evenings with his wife in his old car.  

Be simple and humble: A person’s greatness is reflected in his simplicity and humility. He was a millionaire, yet he was very humble. He wore very simple clothes. If he wanted he could be spending his evenings partying around, dressed in jazzy clothes, in high profile hang out places. Human desires have no limitations, anyway. But he chose to look after his business sitting in the showroom, focusing on each and every customer. He seemed to derive much pleasure from this activity. Some of the most successful yet down to earth humble people of our times are Amitabh Bachchan, Sachin Tendulkar and Lata Mangeshkar.

Be ambitious: Azim Premji once said, ‘One must have ambitions at all times during the life time. With age there comes some limitation in what one can aspire for, but then one must continually revise his ambitions suitable to his age and circumstances. The important point is that one should not be left without any ambition’. Failure is acceptable but low aim is crime. This carpenter started dreaming big after landing in Dubai. He nurtured his ambitions. A person without any worthwhile ambition in life is like a boat left in the sea without controls. It moves in any direction. When a machine under performs to its capacity we repair it. But when a person under performs to his capacity, it is a wastage of the community and the country.

I did not ask his name. But it was not required either. He was a real life hero, who made the best use of his skills, capabilities, ambitions and desire.    

5 important lessons of life learnt from a Pigeon…!

One day we observed that there was an increased movement of Pigeon in our balcony. On closer observation, we found out that there was a nest being constructed on the pipelines near ceiling of the balcony. We were not in favor of pigeons making their abode in our home due to the cleaning issues and the smell associated with it. So, we decided to get the nest removed before the pigeons start actually living there.

However, it was 2 – 3 days by the time we called our watchman to remove the nest from balcony. The watchmen are adept at doing all such odd jobs without any inhibitions or qualms. He stood on a plastic chair, stepped up on the balcony wall holding the grill and reached the nest. He just removed the nest comprising of a neatly woven dry grass, leaves and wooden sticks. As he removed it we had a closer look at the nest and… were shocked to observe that it had two small eggs in it. So, the pigeons had been preparing a home for welcoming new arrivals in their family and had actually zeroed in, in our balcony for this auspicious occasion in their family.

Once the nest had been taken off, there was no question of trying to put it back, as it cannot fit in same place again. It had been constructed bit by bit by taking support of the pipe and wall. Once it is removed from the spot, it won’t really fit there. Moreover, we had requested the watchman to remove it all along, so just because there were two small eggs in it, we did not want to change our opinion. The watchman filled up the space with a plastic sheet to restrict the pigeons from constructing a new nest in same place.

However, we were not happy. The feeling started coming again and again in our minds that we were not being right in removing the nest. The mother pigeon was taking care of her unborn kids. The two lives were being formed in that nest. And in one stroke, just for our comfort, we destroyed their world. What right did we have to spoil someone’s happiness like this? We are vegetarians and so eggs are not something which we eat or bring home from market. Otherwise, the intensity of feeling would have been much reduced, or probably not there at all, since in process of our culinary desires, we would have broken several eggs.

We saw the mother pigeon come to balcony just few minutes after the watchman had left after doing this simple job of removing the nest. The mother pigeon was shocked to see the nest disappear and instead a plastic sheet in that place. The emotions do not clearly appear on pigeon’s faces otherwise we would have seen absolute shock, anxiety and anger on her face. Nevertheless, her movements reflected her feelings very well. She was moving continuously from the balcony grills to the spot where nest was, then unable to rest there due to lack of support, she was again flying to the grills. This happened repeatedly for next few minutes. We were very sorry for the pigeon.

We came inside the house and diverted our minds in other subjects like TV, newspapers etc. After some time, we went again to the balcony and saw that the pigeon had disappeared. The pigeon had seen us all along standing in the balcony and must have figured out that we were responsible for the calamity happened to her. Yet, she did not try to harm us in any whatsoever manner. She forgave us. I am sure, if any human being’s children were harmed by a pigeon, he would have definitely taken revenge on the pigeons. This was the lesson number one learnt by us from the pigeon. Forgive and forget others. In life there are several moments when we hold grudge against others. But it does not help the person in any manner. Instead he burns himself in the process. Nobility lies in not just forgiving but forgetting others for their mistakes.

We were relieved that the pigeon’s intensity of sadness had reduced. Surprisingly in afternoon, we saw the pigeon with a dry stick in her beak sitting on the balcony grills and looking for a right place to build a nest. So, the pigeon had accepted the misfortune befallen on her and had commenced the search for a new place for nest with a new enthusiasm. How quickly the pigeon had recovered from her grief? This was the lesson number two from pigeons. Many times in life we suffer calamities or adversities. But it will not solve the problem if we just sit down and brood over it again and again. At some point or other, we need to leave the past behind and make a new start. The earlier we start, the earlier we stand a chance to recover from the situation.

We also observed that the pigeon was now not just focusing on same spot, but was looking at new places as well. It was going in our neighbor’s balcony, our opposite house’s terrace, the tree near our house etc. So, it was keeping its all options open. Lesson number three. When we face a road block in our lives, don’t just look at the dead end. Explore other avenues to move forward. There ought to be new ways to proceed forward in every situation, one just need to explore them.

What also surprised us was the fact that the pigeon did not wait for the last minute when it was about to lay eggs next time, to look for a good place to build the nest. It took just few hours to arrive at the conclusion and start the process to build a new nest. Lesson number four. One should not wait for the need to become an urgency to act on the matter. If we act in advance with proper planning, we are bound to get good results. It is wrong for anyone to wait for the last minute to make a move in the desired direction, as many favorable options would have been closed by then. One is left with very few choices to make a decision in such a situation.

And lastly, the most important lesson learnt was that one should not lose enthusiasm while doing anything. The pigeon was appearing very active while searching for the new accommodation. It did not carry the sad feeling anymore. Any work which is not done with enthusiasm will not yield positive results. It is better not to do a work, rather than doing it without enthusiasm. Half hearted efforts always yield average results. For getting best results, the efforts also need to be great.

A pigeon had become our Guru teaching some important lesson of life to us…!