OPEN Magazine 28 July 2014

Arun jaitley ON HIS BUDGET

l i f e

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t i m e s .

ALEX BELLOs DEATH OF THE BEAUTIFUL GAME

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2 8 J U LY 2 0 14 / R S 4 0

FEAR and FOREBODING in SOUTH BLOCK The Mechanics of Modi’s No-Nonsense Government.

The Inside Story

INSIDE THE Passions of nadine gordimer

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Open Mail | editor@openmedianetwork.in Haima Deshpande (Mumbai) Mumbai bureau chief Madhavankutty Pillai Associate Editor (Web) Vijay K Soni assistant editors

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Volume 6 Issue 29 For the week 22—28 July 2014 Total No. of pages 64 + Covers

28 july 2014

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BRITAIN?

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T I M E

SALMAN KHAN SALIM KHAN ON

Y E V E R

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INSIDE R THE POWE OF SHAH

S 40 2 0 14 / R 2 1 J U LY

KR Srinivasan

The decision of the Congress-NCP Government in Maharashtra to accord 16 per cent reservation to Marathas and 5 per cent to Muslims in government jobs and educational institutions is a retrograde step and goes against the apex court’s ruling that reservations shall not exceed 50 per cent (‘Grant Maratha’, 14 July 2014). Such a move is fraught with social and political consequences especially when reservations have failed to correct The move by the inequalities. The move by the Maharashtra Maharashtra government is obviously government is a a desperate move to woo desperate move to woo voters in these two Maratha and Muslim communities ahead of voters ahead of the the Assembly election Assembly election this year end. This is clearly appeasement politics, and this would only alienate people further on community lines. In fact, Marathas do not require any reservation as the community is well established in various fields. It is time political parties stop appeasement politics and stop patronising communities with undue reservation quotas, and instead come up with fresh ideas for good governance to benefit all segments of the population, particularly the economically disadvantaged.  letter of the week A Balanced Budget

no budget can please one and all, it will have its own pluses and minuses (‘The Right Act’, 21 July 2014). By leaving MGNREGA, PMGSY and other social sector schemes untouched, the Government has proven that there is no vendetta against the UPA Government. Setting up 100 smart cities is a great idea, which will have a multiplier effect on various industries like cement, hardware, etcetera. Achieving the high tax collection target and keeping the fiscal deficit at 4.1 per cent are the two biggest challenges. But this is the best the Finance Minister could have done in 45 days. He had to maintain a balance between keeping the aam aadmi and corporate sector happy and his

party’s prospects in upcoming state polls; which he did well.

Hopefully, he will clear all the bottlenecks to reach his targets.  Bal Govind

Prosperity at Any Cost

all so-called secular political parties, intellectuals, liberals, and Leftists are corrupt to the core and give a damn about this country (‘Saint Antony and the Oligarchy of Communalism’, 14 July 2014).

That’s why you can see political dynasties flourishing in all secular political parties at the national and regional levels. To top it all, liberals and intellectuals debate what’s wrong if a son/daughter of a politician carries the mantle.

The fact is, for our politicians, politics is a career like any

RIGHT ACT

Arun Jaitley’s Budget of nt Understateme

21 JULY 2014

Anil Budur Lulla (Bangalore), Shahina KK, Aastha Atray Banan, Mihir Srivastava, Chinki Sinha, Sunaina Kumar, Rajni George Special Correspondents Aanchal Bansal, Lhendup Gyatso Bhutia (Mumbai), Gunjeet Sra senior copy editor Aditya Wig copy editor Sneha Bhura Assistant Art Director Anirban Ghosh SENIOR DESIGNER Anup Banerjee assistant Photo editor Ritesh Uttamchandani (Mumbai) Staff Photographers Ashish Sharma, Raul Irani photo Researcher Abhinav Saha

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THE END OF

ISSUE 28 VOLUM E 06

Editor S Prasannarajan managing Editor PR Ramesh Deputy Editors Aresh Shirali, Ullekh NP art director Madhu Bhaskar Senior Editors Kishore Seram,

ILL JAMES AST

TER ANCE MINIS HOW THE FIN FIRST BUDGET SCRIPTED HIS

other. In layman’s terms, a career is a means to prosperity.

That is what they are doing— prosperity at any cost. Here, it’s the nation that pays.  Hemant

Mindless Aping

this refers to ‘The Backward Is the New Brahmin’ (14 July 2014). OBCs have been the ‘neo Brahmins’ for a while now in some parts of India, including Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. And that isn’t a compliment. It’s a sorry, mindless aping of all that was wrong with Brahmins as a ruling class.  Prabha Jagannathan

the younger generation of India doesn’t care a damn about caste. People who haven’t inferred this from the 2014 election results are living in another era. This article is also irrelevant, except for academics and intellectuals.  piyush

Unconvincing Contention

i am not a Modi fan, but this is an unconvincing narrative of why Modi is a majoritarian and authoritarian leader (‘Modi and the Uses of Dissent’, 7 July 2014). It would be wonderful if social scientists spoke of more cogent things in their criticism, like how the IB is going to be misused and how the Government means to interfere with autonomous institutions as well. Why is it that every criticism of Modi or BJP must make a reference to Congress populism? Is that a desperate attempt to sound not ‘pseudo-secular’?  A R oy

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small world

dinodia photos

two-winged classic A Messerschmitt 109 shot down during World War II

Enigma of the Missing Aircraft Lost and found?

Has a Messerschmitt Bf-109 sold illegally in Karnataka resurfaced in the UK?

B a n g a l o r e In 2002, a Messerschmitt Bf-109 World War-II fighter jet was illegally sold for the ridiculously small amount of Rs 1 lakh by an engineering college in Karnataka. It was believed to have been shipped out of the country. But a few months ago, the grey market of aircraft antiques reported a refurbished Messerschmitt Bf-109 for sale in the UK. While it is not certain if it’s the same aircraft, as military planes do not have tail numbers like civilian ones, some believe it might be the 28 july 2014

same. The website warbirdsofindia.com claims that a Thai national bought it and later sold it to a London collector.

The single-propeller aircraft was presented to the Nizam of Hyderabad by the Royal Air Force. In 1968, the district administration gifted it to the PDA Engineering College run by the Hyderabad Karnataka Education Society (HKES). In 2002, HKES sold the rusting aircraft for Rs 1 lakh even though its value in the vintage aircraft market was then $300,000 (approxi-

mately Rs 1.5 crore).

SK Kantha, a former freedom fighter and politician, lodged a police complaint. A chargesheet was filed in 2006 accusing 16 persons of collusion, cheating and forgery. This included the HKES chairman and two-time Congress MP, BG Jawali, and a Bangalore-based antique dealer, Girish Naidu, who facilitated the sale to a foreign national. Air Marshal (retd) B Pandey says there is a huge market of billionaire enthusiasts for antique metal birds. “But if they

belong to the Government, nobody can sell it.”

Meanwhile, the Karnataka Police do not seem interested in finding out whether the UK aircraft is the same as the one illegally sold. “Our duty ended with establishing that the aircraft was an antique piece and that it was indeed sold by a decision taken by the society’s board,’’ says an officer on condition of anonymity. Next week, the High Court has summoned two of the accused for a hearing on the issue. n Anil Budur Lulla

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contents

14

cover story Inside the Modi government

rashtrapati bhavan

Renaissance on Raisina Hill

22

6

8

hurried man’s guide

To the IsraelHamas conflict

interview

open essay

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley

The death of Jogo Bonito

locomotif

The free spirit

28 modi and world

The pragmatic nationalist

In memoriam Jamil ahmad

The Last Falcon The late bloomer from Pakistan immortalised the lives of the frontier rajni george

T

his Monday, we lost Jamil Ahmad,

long-time Pakistani civil servant and late-in-life author; Ahmad made his literary debut when he was 79 with The Wandering Falcon (2011), and passed away at home in Islamabad at 83. The book was the result of two decades in Pakistan’s semi-autonomous Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA); Ahmad was commissioner of Swat and later of Waziristan, as well as minister in Pakistan’s embassy in Kabul before and during the Soviet invasion. Shortlisted for the Man Asian Literary in 2011, his work became a small, quiet classic, contemporary yet old-world in its depiction of the harsh world of the tribes, pre-Taliban.

The stories feature Tor Baz (or black falcon), the son of a couple who elopes; he is the ‘wandering falcon’ of the title, after his parents are killed. Through him, those who make the news yet remain distant, are shown up close.

Ahmad writes of this elusive world: ‘This way of life had endured for centuries, but it would not last forever. It constituted defiance to certain concepts, which the world was beginning to associate with civilisation itself. Concepts such as statehood, citizenship, undivided loyalty to one state; settled life as opposed to nomadic life, and the writ of the state as opposed to tribal discipline.’

The prose read quaint for a reason; the book had been written in 1974 and literally shelved (aside from attempts

by Ahmad’s wife Helga to show it around) till a short story competition was announced on radio. Taking 4 open

the nine linked stories to publishers, it set Ahmad on his path to modest literary stardom.

After reading 900 stories for The Life’s Too Short short story prize she co-ran, editor and critic Faiza Sultan Khan took Ahmad’s manuscript on a first trip to Bombay, though wary of a submission from an elderly bureaucrat—and never left the hotel except to eat. “Before I met Jamil sahib, I didn’t realise un-pompous bureaucrats existed—he was funny, charming, self-effacing, incredibly well-informed and as happy to discuss the literary merits of Joseph Conrad as he was to chat about his favourite Sidney aamir qureshi/afp

Sheldons,” says Khan. “He told me we’re all from some tribe or other. I think his great wish was that his book would bring some attention to the people he’d written about and dispel some of the pervasive ignorance about tribal life and tribal codes of honour. ” From Khan, the book went to Meru Gokhale, now Publishing Director at Penguin Random House, then Penguin Books India’s Senior Commissioning Editor in London. Gokhale championed Falcon abroad, selling rights in the UK and US, and praise spread through critical approval and by word-of-mouth. The Independent compared Ahmed’s Granta debut (‘The Sins of the Mother’) to Arundhati Roy’s; NPR likened him to Cormac McCarthy. Poignantly, he was the oldest person to win an Indian literary prize for debuts, the Shakti Bhatt First Book Award.

“Ahmad’s writing had so much feeling and yet it was plain, almost classical. You felt you were there with the tribes on the frontier,” says Gokhale.

“We met for the first time in London, when he came with his family for the publication. He had great style.” In 2013, when Ahmed visited India for the first time since he had left as a child during Partition, Delhi dinner parties adored the tall, charming man, full of tales from the border. “It was a pleasure and an honour to have known him,” says Gokhale. “He took the long view.”

No one might ever have read those tucked away pages. Now, many have seen through the eyes of the falcon. n 28 july 2014

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Television dramas from Pakistan

Battle against carnivores

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Vidya Balan: Delightfully unapologetic

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Biha Binay

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f o r blaming mobile phones and

non-vegetarian food for the rise of sexual attacks on women Political leaders in India, often prone to gaffes, have in the recent past made absurd remarks about the spate of sexual molestation and rape cases in the country. Recently, yet another inane reason was floated by Bihar’s Art, Culture and Youth Affairs minister Binay Bihari. He stated that

NOT PEOPLE LIKE US

56

The success of Cider

the chief culprits behind sexual crimes are cellphones and non-vegetarian food.

According to him, students’ minds are polluted by the porn and obscene songs they watch and hear on their mobile phones. Nonvegetarian food, he further claimed, contributes to ‘hot temper’, and cited sermons from saints who claim vegetarian food keeps the body and mind pure and healthy. He claims he will now seek a ban of cellphones on school campuses and make surprise visits to ensure the ban is enforced. The minister even offered an analogy to The Indian Express to add clarity to his explanation. “[the cell phone] is like issuing a licence for a revolver to individuals in the name of self-defence, but misused for criminal purposes,” he said. Such statements reflect the inadequacy of many of our political leaders, who instead of ensuring better law and order, waste precious time pursuing silly preoccupations. n

63

Ranbir’s run-in with Salman

Ved Pratap Vaidik was comfortable with the idea of an independent Kashmir in Pakistan.

Within a day of the airing of his interview, his opinion had completely changed s H IF T ING GEAR S

“If Kashmiris on both sides agree and if both countries agree, then there is no harm in [independence of Kashmir]”

“I have always maintained ‘yes’ to freedom and ‘no’ to separation...

[Kashmiris] should have the same freedom that I have in Delhi and any other leaders or journalists in Lahore”

—Ved Pratap Vaidik to Dawn News

—Ved Pratap Vaidik to ANI, 15 July

turn

on able Pers n o s a e r n U ek of the We

drink

around

Need for Mutually Assured Decisions The Supreme Court collegium’s decision to overrule the Government’s reservations on its recommendation to appoint Karnataka High Court judge KL Manjunath as Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court has led to a fresh stand-off between the Judiciary and the Executive. The Government’s reservations were based on certain allegations against Manjuanth. But the collegium has held that the Centre’s objections to the elevation of Manjunath are baseless. deadlock

In the crosshairs KL Manjunath in Bangalore 28 july 2014

k. murali kumar/the hindu archive

The face-off between the two sides clearly suggests that the system of selection of judges needs a fresh look. A similar confrontation between the two arms of the State over the appointment of Justice PD Dinakaran as a Supreme Court judge five years ago had caused considerable embarrassment to the Judiciary.

After the Rajya Sabha initiated removal proceedings against Dinakaran, the judge had to resign from the Judiciary. The two sides should now work out a method that would provide little room for needlessly controversial appointments. n open www.openthemagazine.com 5

angle

A Hurried Man’s Guide

On the Contrary

to the ongoing episode of the Israel-Hamas conflict The current Israel-Hamas conflict is one of the deadliest confrontations between the two in several years. It has, according to Palestinian officials, already led to the death of over 202 people, most of them civilians, and almost 1,500 have been wounded. Since 8 July, Hamas has fired nearly 1,000 rockets and mortars into Israel, and Israel has carried out about 1,500 strikes against targets inside the Gaza Strip.

The Gaza Strip has been a recurring flashpoint in the Israel-Palestinian conflict for several years. Although Israel pulled out its troops and settlers from Gaza in 2005, it continued to control the borders and the movement of people and Since 8 July, goods in the area, claimHamas has fired ing security exigennearly 1,000 cies. But Palestinians in rockets and Gaza complain how this mortars into Israel is leading to severe soand the latter has cio-economic hardships. carried out about Hamas, the political 1,500 strikes formation that controls this region, claims Israel’s restrictions are intolerable.

lefteries pitarakis/ap

The latest outbreak of violence can be traced to the abduction and killing of three Israeli teenagers in June, which Israel blames on Hamas and which led to a crackdown on the group in the West Bank, although Hamas

asymmetry The Gaza Strip gets battered by Israel

has denied the charges. Tensions worsened after the killing of a Palestinian teenager in Jerusalem, a suspected ‘revenge attack’. As the two escalated their attacks on each other, Israel’s deadly bombing raids on Gaza have earned it severe condemnation worldwide.

Egypt, the traditional regional mediator, has tried to broker a ceasefire between the two. Israel, under heavy international pressure, has agreed to it, but Hamas has so far refused. Hamas, whose popularity ratings in the area were at an all time low because of a sluggish economy, is likely to gain sympathy among Palestinians for hitting back at Israel. n

The Age of Criminal Reason An adult for some crimes—and a juvenile for others?

M a d h ava n ku t t y P i l l a i

I

f someone is between 16 and

18, the Indian state does not think him mature enough to vote; he is unfit to exercise a considered opinion on who should make the laws that govern him.

When it comes to his right to get married, an Indian man is not thought fit to assume that responsibility till the age of 21. That is when he is allowed to be adult enough to start a family. When it comes to alcohol, his adulthood differs from state to state. In Maharashtra, he has to be 25 years old, but 18 and 21 are the general rules of thumb. He can’t do property transactions independently until he is 21. He can enlist in the armed forces by 16, but can’t get into active combat until he is 18. A slew of laws monitor, protect and legally emasculate an Indian if he is below 18 years old.

And now turn to the position taken

by Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi that someone between 16 and 18 should be treated as an adult for serious crimes like premeditated murder and rape; he should not be allowed to get away with the three-years maximum imprisonment that the Juvenile Justice Act sets as of now. She argues that those who are in that age bracket and are committing these crimes will be scared if they get the same punishment as adult criminals.

It is true that teenagers commit serious crimes that are as terrible as any an adult can. The examples we have of this are some of the Shakti Mills gang rapists. Soon after Gandhi’s statement, a juvenile court sentenced two of them this week to three years in a correctional home.

After their rape of a photojournalist, another woman came forward and said that she too had been raped by them. And there are probably more victims who are still unable to speak up. These are repeat offenders. The

rest of the rapists in the case who were adults have all been given death sentences or life imprisonment. You could say being just a couple of years younger should not allow the two of them to get away with such a lenient sentence.

But the problem with treating juveniles like adults for a few crimes is not that they don’t deserve it, but because it is hypocritical. For instance, let us assume that a 16-year-old juvenile commits a crime which is not rape or premeditated murder; say, a robbery or a non-sexual assault. If such a juvenile is To say that thought unfit to be tried as an a juvenile adult for these can think crimes, then the like an adult principle behind while raping it is not that the someone but crime is lesser but that his is still a child when picking judgment is impaired by someone’s virtue of his not pocket is understanding somewhat the implications contradictory of what he is doing as an adult would. And this principle has to be the same across all crimes. To say that he can think like an adult while raping someone but is still a child when picking someone’s pocket is somewhat contradictory.

The second problem is that no matter what the police or Maneka Gandhi say, it is hard to believe any juvenile is going to first evaluate the quantum of punishment before committing a premeditated murder or rape. To accept this argument would mean that juvenile offenders are okay with going to jail for three years. But does anyone, least of all someone who doesn’t think like an adult, ever commit a crime expecting to get caught? n 28 july 2014

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S PRASANNARAJAN

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The Free Spirit

the Swedish Academy.

I met Nadine Gordimer when she was in Delhi in November the larger drama of history, and the text 1995, a year after Nelson Mandela became the president of of their imagination struggles to keep post-apartheid South Africa, to deliver the Nehru Memorial pace with the context of their existence.

Lecture. In our conversation (published in The Indian Express), When Mandelstam sang against Stalin, she explained what it was like to be seen as a writer whose banishment was the reward; later, others identity was coloured by her political positions—a white radwould follow, daring the lies of the state ical against white racism: “When people read my books, they and listening to the call of the conscience. look for what they know about South Africa. They want to reSolzhenitsyn, communism’s most famous—and endurinforce their own beliefs. There is a refusal to look beyond the ing—exile, had a great tradition of writers as freedom fightpolitical aspect. But my fiction is more than that…I’m aware ers behind him. So when the empire fell, it was the vindicathat my social role has conditioned the general perception the tion of manuscripts burned and banished. In Eastern Europe outside world has of my works.”

1989, the most romantic moment of freedom had its origin “Does the liberation’s day after make your identity more in a theatre called The Magic Lantern in Prague. The Velvet ambiguous?” I asked her.

Revolution, led by Václav Havel and other amateurs, was a “You are putting me in a category I don’t belong. Long ago, writers’ ball, and in the end, the philosopher king was in place. in the 50s, when all the whites and the Blacks were totally sepElsewhere, there were more flamboyant manifestations of arated, there were whites in the Black struggle. Someone like writer as street fighter, and no one could beat the French at myself, who has identified with the Black struggle, with the that. Sartre to Camus to Malraux to Bernard-Henri Lévy, it was ANC, could not have approved of racial stereotypes.” the sight of the writer stepping out of the study and fighting “The liberal conscience of South Africa continues to have for the wretched. Mario Vargas Llosa and Michael Ignatieff its best expressions, at least in literature, in white writers like even went to the extent of contesting elections for the highest Breyten Breytenbach, Coetzee, André Brink, and of course, political offices in their respective countries. yourself.”

Writing, for some, is not a disengagement from the world.

“Let me tell you one thing. Breyten Breytenbach is not libThe life of Nadine Gordimer (1923–2014) was inseparaeral. We are radicals. You have to make this distinction. True, ble from the struggle of Black South Africa. She was the white writer in a country where the colour for so long stood for racial white writers are more read outside. We had the privilege of better education.” domination, and she, an advocate of ANC’s revolution, “Reading your essays, it seems you have a special affinity tobecame ‘a minority within a minority’. When she won the wards writers with what you call ‘amputated sensibilities’: Nobel Prize for literature in 1991, it was seen by some, and Camus, Miłosz, Kundera…” justifiably so I think, as yet another instance of the Swedish “Like them, I have been part of a cruel Academy’s habit of making the writAdrian Steirn/21 Icons/Getty Images history. I was born into it. As you grow er’s extra-literary achievements the up, if you have a sense of injustice winning factor. And the best of her inside, you begin to peel off the privioeuvre—A World of Strangers, A Guest leged prejudice you have. Camus is very of Honour, The Conservationist, July’s special to me. He was very much like People—mapped the physical as well me. Born in Algeria, he was a writer as psychological topography of a soinfluenced by the moral questions of ciety in trauma. The ‘whiteness’ of race and power. His sense of extra-litthe writer was a social as well as morerary responsibility was natural, like al obligation, and in her own words, mine.” the white writer “has to try to find a In the course of our conversation, way to reconcile the irreconcilable while dreading the possibility of an within himself, establish his relation African gulag in the context of Achebe to the culture of a new kind of posited the exile and Soyinka the fugitive, she community, non racial but conceived said: “The word is in danger.” The words with and led by Blacks”. This moral of Nadine Gordimer made South Africa position enhanced her imagination, a less dangerous place—and literature and the backdrop of a freedom strugan argument for freedom. n gle must have made it irresistible to

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ertain writers become characters in

28 july 2014

open essay

By alex bellos

ueslei marcelino/reuters

DEATH OF THE BEAUTIFUL GAME

It was the World Cup where the myth of Brazilian football came to an inglorious finale

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28 july 2014

of unexpected turnarounds. Six weeks ago, before the first ball was kicked, the hosts were the overwhelming favourites to win the tournament for a record sixth time. Off the pitch, however, Brazil’s image was in tatters: overpriced stadiums barely finished in Alex Bellos time, protests rocking the country, and is a renowned unfinished infrastructure projects that UK-based football threatened chaos for the hundreds of writer. He is the thousands of arriving fans. author of Futebol: Instead, what took place was one of the best World Cups of all time, if not the The Brazilian best. The football was exciting, full of Way of Life classic matches, unforgettable drama and great goals. The hospitality was excellent, the stadiums looked fantastic, and the airports ran smoothly. The event provided a picture postcard of Brazil that has unquestionably improved the way the country is seen abroad. Goooooal for Brazil!

And yet this was the World Cup where the myth of Brazilian football died. The national team’s 7-1 defeat to Germany in the semi-final was one of the most extraordinary matches in the history of international football. It was Brazil’s worst ever result in a World Cup, and the biggest ever defeat of any semifinal, and of any host country.

Brazil likes to call itself the ‘football country’, and it remains the only country to have won the World Cup five times.

(Germany, this year’s winners, and Italy, are biting at their heels with four victories each.) Stars like Pelé and Garrincha, and remarkable teams like the 1970 Brazil side, played with an artistry and athleticism that became the gold standard of football, popularly known as the jogo bonito, or beautiful game. Yet the 7-1 thrashing showed that on the biggest stage, with all the world watching, Brazil is neither the home of beautiful nor successful football anymore.

I watched the game at a bar in Copacabana, Rio’s beach district, just next to a crowded Fan Fest. A few minutes after kick-off it started to rain, gradually getting heavier, and by full time it was torrential.

The downpour felt symbolic: either the heavens were weeping copiously, or this was some kind of mass cleansing of the soul. In Brazil, where football is the greatest symbol of national identity, the results of World Cups deeply affect national aspiration and self-esteem.

The result of the final game in 1950, the only other time Brazil has hosted a World Cup, is

Neymar’s story was played out as a national tragedy, the collective experience bonding Brazilians together. It was the country’s Princess Diana moment

28 july 2014

considered by some historians to be the greatest tragedy in contemporary Brazilian history. Brazil faced Uruguay at the Maracanã in Rio, requiring only a draw to win the trophy. The Brazilians had played dazzling football in the previous games.

They were the superior team. Everyone took victory for granted. But with only 13 minutes to go, Uruguay scored the winner.

The trauma was felt for decades. ‘Because it happened collectively and brought a united vision of the loss of a historic opportunity, because it happened at the beginning of a decade in which Brazil was looking to assert itself as a nation with a great future, the result was a tireless search for explanations of, and blame for, the shameful defeat,’ wrote the anthropologist Roberto DaMatta.

In 1958, Brazil won the World Cup for the first time, and they won it again in 1962 and 1970. Yet even though they had established themselves as undisputed champions, playing a style of football a class above everyone else, the country never forgot the pain of losing 1950 at home in the Maracanã.

In the run-up to this year’s tournament, the tragedy of 1950 was often mentioned. The hope was that a win here would put these old ghosts to rest once and for all. No one expected that the World Cup would create a new national tragedy, one that,

FOUL FATE Neymar being carried off the field during the quarter-final on 4 July

fabrizio bensch/ap

F

or Brazil, this was a World Cup

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in pure sporting terms, is the greatest humiliation in the country’s history. In fact, 1950 and 2014 can be seen as dramatic bookends of the rise and fall of the beautiful game.

From the start, this year’s tournament was fascinating, dramatic and emotional for South America’s largest nation. I was present at the opening game, Brazil vs Croatia, at São Paulo’s brand new stadium, the Arena Corinthians. The fans stood up and sang the Brazilian anthem a capella, beyond the recorded musical accompaniment, making a rousing wall of sound that made your hair stand on edge. (This practice started at the Confederations Cup last year, where it was seen as a powerful incentive for the team and a statement of unity at a time when thousands were protesting outside the stadiums.)

After the singing of the anthem, however, the Brazil crowds barely made a noise, certainly not as much as the supporters of the other South American nations in their games; and this became the subject of much soul-searching.

One explanation was that the only

people who could afford tickets were White, rich Brazilians, who normally didn’t go to football games and didn’t know how to chant. And it was true, there were almost no Black faces among the Brazilian fans, only among the players on the pitch, a reminder of the injustices inherent in Brazilian society. Fair weather fans are a problem in all World Cups, but it seemed worse in Brazil where football is such an important unifier, and where social differences are so extreme.

There was another reason that Brazilian fans were not cheering very loudly: the team was not playing very well. Even though Brazil won the Confederations Cup, everyone knew that this was an average Brazil team with only one outstanding player, Neymar, or possibly two, including Thiago Silva. The team were not convincing against Croatia, only winning 3-1 after going down to an early goal. During the singing of the national anthem before the second game against Mexico, Neymar cried.

His tears were the first indication of the immense pressure he was under.

Stars like Pelé and Garrincha, and remarkable teams like the 1970 Brazil side, played with an artistry and athleticism that became the gold standard of football, popularly known as jogo bonito, or beautiful game

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28 july 2014

andre penner/ap

no comparison The legendary 1970 Brazil football team (facing page); the ill-fated 2014 Brazil team (above)

For Brazilians, anything less than winning is seen as failure, a view endorsed by coach Luiz Felipe Scolari, who always made a point of saying that Brazil would win.

The team’s fragile emotional state was laid bare in their first knock-out game, against Chile, which ended 1-1 after extra time. Before the penalty shots were taken, Brazilian captain Thiago Silva and the goalkeeper Júlio César began to weep uncontrollably, as if peering into the abyss that would have been the most humiliating result in the history of Brazilian football. Even though Júlio César’s saves won them the game, the national debate became less about tactics than the emotional state of the players, and—by extension—the emotional state of the country.

W

hat sort of country cries over exiting a World Cup but barely registers much when two people are killed by a concrete bridge that falls on them, as happened the day before the quarter-final against Colombia? The bridge was one of the many pieces of planned transport infrastructure that had not finished in time for the tournament.

Yet, it was a different sort of disaster that truly united Brazil.

Shortly before the end of the 2-1 quarter-final victory against Colombia, Neymar was seen lying on his front in agony, with his hands over his eyes. This time, his tears were of pain. His spine

28 july 2014

fractured, he would take no more part in the World Cup. Even though Brazil had made it to their first World Cup semi-final since 2002, there were no celebrations. Instead there were cathartic outpourings of grief and anger at the injustice and bad luck.

Neymar’s story was played out as a national tragedy, the collective experience bonding Brazilians together. It was the country’s Princess Diana moment. The anguish was not just because Neymar is Brazil’s best player, and therefore Brazil’s chances of winning the tournament had been effectively dashed, but because he plays in a Brazilian way, the only person who harks back to greats like Pelé. Without him, the team felt less Brazilian. Brazilians were grieving because ‘Brazil’ had been eliminated from their own World Cup. The team were still thinking about Neymar when they arrived at the Mineirão in Belo Horizonte to play Germany. They all had baseball caps with Neymar’s name on, and they held his shirt up for the team photo. Yet no one was prepared for how the end ultimately came. In a six-minute period, the team let in four goals. It was 5-0 by half time, the game effectively over.

In Copacabana, Brazilians started to leave the Fan Fest on the beach in the tens of thousands. The nature of the defeat was so brutal that it was only possible to view it with detachment, and even humour. This time, the tears only fell from the sky.

“It’s all over,” one fan told me. She didn’t mean the World Cup. She meant the beautiful game. n open www.openthemagazine.com 13

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meet a young minister recently for a private chat because the instructions of Prime Minister Modi forbade him from doing so. By Modi’s diktat, ministers must treat corporate leaders with respect and meet them in their offices, not at residences or hotels. The billionaire tycoon finally met a senior Cabinet minister, but in his office, and in the presence of bureaucrats. “No, we are not anti-corporate. On the other hand, we are pro-business but not pliable to machinations by top industrial houses, like the UPA Government used to be,” says a minister who adds that the NDA Government isn’t merely posturing here “to prove any point” but “is genuinely committed towards” creating an investor-friendly environment without interference and rule-flouting by big industrialists.

In the run-up to the Lok Sabha election earlier this year, the BJP had come under attack for being soft on some corporate houses, implying that once it came to power, the

party would dole out sweet deals to these companies. “It is that perception that the Prime Minister wants to get rid of. ‘No malice to anyone, but no undue favours either’ is his policy,” says a senior BJP leader.

So far, so good.

In a government where the Prime Minister is the only boss, the message has been sent out time and again that the wishes of business houses won’t be the regime’s commands. “We mean business,” says the minister, refuting charges that the Government is indulging in a mere public relations exercise. If so, he asks, why slap penalties on companies perceived to be close to the BJP-led coalition, like the Adani Group and Reliance Industries Ltd? His logic is that friendly business houses were never ‘touched’ during Congress rule. Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani himself had jokingly referred to the UPA as “our own government”, as heard quoted by an aide. It wasn’t any secret that many UPA ministers were close to Reliance, which had also managed to have ‘favourable’ ministers in charge of petroleum and natural gas, its core business sector. Both Mani Shankar Aiyar and S Jaipal Reddy have been vocal about their opposition to tweaking rules to suit the company’s needs. And they paid a price for it.

Last week, India’s fair-trade watchdog Competition Commission of India (CCI) imposed a penalty of more than Rs 25 crore on Adani Gas for violating competition norms by abusing its dominant market position. The CCI ruling was on a case related to the supply and distribution of natural gas in Faridabad by Adani Gas Ltd—a unit of Adani Enterprises, which is part of the diversified Adani Group headed by its founder and chairman Gautam Adani, who is known to be a friend of Modi. “No such considerations are accorded by the current Government. Since coming to power, it has allayed the [fear] that it would allow itself to be run by corporates,” says a government official.

Similarly, Reliance Industries, which has been trying to warm up to the Government and earn the ‘goodwill’ it enjoyed of the previous regime, was slapped a fourth penalty this week for failing to meet gas-production targets

The Centre has shown no reluctance in taking punitive action against businesses owned by those seen as close to the regime

nothing personal Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani attend the swearing-in ceremony of Narendra Modi as 15th Prime Minister of India solaris images

28 July 2014

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at its Andhra offshore field. With this additional Rs 3,500 crore fine, the total sum of fines imposed on the company stands at Rs 14,200 crore over four financial years starting 1 April 2010.

Explaining the Government’s move, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said in the Lok Sabha last Monday that the Centre’s profit share would increase by $195 million with these actions. A production-sharing contract allows RIL and its partners, BP Plc and Niko Resources, to deduct all expenses incurred on the project before sharing its profits on the sale of gas with the Government. The accounts have been controversial. During the UPA rule, the Oil Ministry under Jaipal Reddy’s watch had served violation notices to the company for a total fine of $1.79 billion ($457 million for 201011, $548 million for 2011-12 and $792 million for 2012-13), but he was soon shifted out of the Ministry. RIL, for its part, has maintained that the government’s latest move contradicts the contract.

“Lobbying has never been this tough for businesses. It is frustrating for big business houses used to the luxury

of walking into ministerial offices or homes of ministers and getting their work done. So far, the new Government has managed to keep them at bay. You never know how long they can resist corporate pressure and wooing. But as =of now, everybody within the Government is scared of being seen talking to corporates. There is fear of Modi,” says a Mumbai-based CEO of an IT firm.

While the Government refused to bow to demands by oil-marketing companies to raise gas prices, it has created consultation panels to ease cumbersome procedures for doing business in several key sectors such as power, transport and water. This means, argues the BJP minister, that Modi will not buckle under pressure or yield to lures, but will, at the same time, work towards ushering in a greater level-playing field for entrepreneurs.

The Government has deferred a gas price hike, saying the whole issue as well as the guidelines for gas pricing require a comprehensive discussion to take care of public interest. It is well known that demand for gas in the coun-

BJP President Amit Shah closely monitors many ambitious projects that have the potential to deliver electoral dividends to the party

28 July 2014

open www.openthemagazine.com 17

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congeniality Nirmala Sitharaman (centre) is among the most ‘talkative’ ministers in Modi’s Council of Ministers

try far outstrips output, but prices have been kept low for crucial segments such as fertilisers and power.

Inside the Government

Nripendra Misra, principal secretary to the Prime Minister, is hands-on and powerful, unlike principal secretaries during the UPA rule who were seen as inefficient.

According to people close to the regime, he executes Modi’s insistence on the “vertical movement” of files and speed with which they are processed. “To and fro hurling of files is not there now. It is a big change from the days of the UPA, when files got stuck between bureaucrats and ministries over ego issues or lack of clarity on policy,” says a Government official. Misra also ensures ‘seamless’ communication between ministries over decisions. “He speaks to most ministers in chaste Hindi and leaves no chance for confusion about certain measures,” the official adds, emphasising that the former TRAI chairman also vets each Cabinet note and brings it to Modi’s attention before it goes to the Cabinet secretary. The new benchmark being set for effective governance is a maximum of four signatures to every file as it goes from a director-level officer to the minister.

Ministries have also been told not to seek legal opinions, often a ruse for delaying files in the past; such advice 18 open

can be sought only if a clear case is made for it. Besides, if there are conflicts of interest between ministries, the officer concerned has been advised to walk over to the other one and try resolving the issue in person rather than have long letters being shot back and forth. Modi has adopted a ‘zero-tolerance approach’ to any unwanted delays in clearing files. This forces many ministers to spend close to 20 hours a day in office.

Unlike in the days of the NDA Government led by AB Vajpayee, who had to negotiate big egos and diverse views within his cabinet, Modi has a well-coordinated team at work, making Misra’s job much less abrasive than Brajesh Mishra’s (who held the twin positions of principal secretary and national security advisor). Back in those days, Vajpayee and Mishra had to strategise their moves in order to win majority backing of the Cabinet and Council of Ministers over key issues. For instance, to push forward with the disinvestment of some public-sector units, the duo had to first call a meeting of ministers such as Jaswant Singh, Yashwant Sinha and Arun Shourie, who favoured the action, to gain an edge over its opponents in the Cabinet such as LK Advani. Vajpayee and his team once even managed to secure the support of MM Joshi, typically a votary of Swadeshi politics, to take on the likes of Advani and Ram Naik. Ministers used to take part in de28 July 2014

bates in the alphabetical order of their names. Then Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission KC Pant used to be the final member to make a statement. “There were very powerful ministers and party leaders in the Cabinet then. Now, Modi has a smoother run,” says a former bureaucrat who has worked closely with Vajpayee.

Under the previous dispensation, Cabinet ministers could walk in half-way through meetings or leave before they ended. But not anymore. Modi is the last one to enter a Cabinet meeting and the first to leave. Ministers such as Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Nirmala Sitharaman are the most ‘talkative’ ones in the current regime. Modi hears out each minister in a Cabinet session. When it comes to political issues, Home Minister Rajnath Singh is the one whose opinion is often sought by the Prime Minister; Arun Jaitley is given the floor when it comes to economic issues.

Modi is intolerant of ministers who come up with frivolous suggestions. Nor are ministers allowed to flout etiquette or procedural propriety.

According to people in the know, a request

by HRD Minister Smriti Irani to raise an issue over the midday scheme for school children was declined because she had not gone through the process of taking suggestions from the PMO on a Cabinet note on the issue.

cer of the Gujarat cadre. He had served between 2001 and 2004 as principal secretary to Modi when he was the CM of Gujarat. He was chairman of the Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission after his retirement in 2008 for a five-year term. Mishra has a long association with the Prime Minister and has known him since his days as an RSS pracharak.

Others who work very closely with Modi include NSA Ajit Doval; Joint Secretary AK Sharma, a 1988 batch IAS officer of the Gujarat cadre who has deftly managed Modi’s showpiece Vibrant Gujarat summits; Public Relations Officer Jagdish Thakker; and IT expert Hiren Joshi, who handles the social media for Modi. Other ju-

On political issues, Rajnath Singh is the one whose opinion is often sought by the Prime Minister; on economic issues, it is Arun Jaitley

The PMO

Modi has put in place a Prime Minister’s Office that is similar to the Chief Minister’s Office in Gujarat, where it served as the main centre of power, offering quick decisions on crucial matters, including big-ticket project clearances. However, unlike officials at his CMO, officers in the PMO neither remain low-key nor stay away from the media glare. They are, like the CMO staff, hardworking and available on call 24X7.

While Misra, a retired IAS officer of the 1967 batch from the Uttar Pradesh cadre, plays the pivotal role, one of Modi’s favourite officers, PK Mishra was brought in to assist him as additional principal secretary. A former agriculture secretary, Mishra is a 1972-batch retired IAS offi-

specialists in the cabinet Rajnath Singh with Arun Jaitley after a meeting in New Delhi 28 July 2014

sanjay sekhri/the times of india

the hindu archive

high level coordination National Security Advisor Ajit Doval (left); Nripendra Misra, principal secretary to the Prime Minister

nior officers include his favourites such as Sanjay Bhavsar, who is Modi’s point person on appointments.

Thanks to such a closely knit and cohesive team, Modi often ends up impressing rival politicians with his grasp of subjects under review. He will shortly name an IAS officer at the PMO to oversee media affairs.

Power Centres

With his ascension as BJP President, Amit Shah is clearly the secondmost powerful person in the NDA regime. He also takes a keen interest in running the Government, according to people close to the party’s affairs. “That he enjoys Modi’s blessings in no secret. Modi also expects him to come up with out-of-the-box ways to improve governance,” says one of them.

Shah, it is learnt, has made crucial suggestions to officials and ministers to envision projects and come up with ways to ease India’s myriad infrastructural bottlenecks. The Government is currently toying 20 open

with the idea of ‘Israel-style’ implementation of infrastructure projects, by which it ropes in various arms of the State for civilian undertakings.

With the Modi Government laying a lot of emphasis on water, power and transport, many such projects are likely to take shape in the near future, say officials. The internal target of the Modi Government is to cover 75 per cent of India’s homes with round-the-clock power over the next five years. Suresh Prabhu, a former minister and power-sector expert, has been roped in to advise various ministerial panels and stakeholders in refurbishing the country’s power sector. While the Centre isn’t pleased with one of the BJPled state governments for not cooperating well enough in aiding the generation of a higher quantum of electricity in the short term, it has put in place mechanisms to iron out differences between various states over generating and distributing extra power.

In addition, reforestation, Ganga cleaning and railway modernisation are also top priorities of the Government. Others include running trains to pilgrimage cen-

Thanks to a closely knit and cohesive team, Modi often ends up impressing rival politicians with his grasp of subjects under review

28 July 2014

raj k raj/hindustan times/getty images

coal importer. The opening of this mine highlights the Modi Government’s priorities in the sector, Power Minister Piyush Goyal had said.

The Cabinet often has senior ministers chipping in with advice for junior colleagues. While External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj remains largely low-profile, since Modi steers foreign policy, it is Jaitley who often plays the mentor’s role for many colleagues such as Pradhan, Goyal and Sitharaman, as also Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, among others, besides handling finance-related issues.

It helps that Jaitley was senior to most others in the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the BJP’s students wing, as well as in the party. As Defence Minister, Jaitley knows only too well that he faces insurmountable odds to modernise the Sovietera weaponry of a country that has in the recent past seen a lot of scams related to deals for the purchase of helicopters and other defence equipment. After a lull following an election year, defence manufacturers from across the globe have now arrived in the country, the world’s largest defence importer, peddling their products. “One has to take extreme care in the process of purchase. The Government’s tenacity will be tested as it goes ahead with replacing obsolete weaponry and buying new [equipment],” says a Defence Ministry official.

Meanwhile, the Government has earned negative publicity over the its refusal to name Gopal Subramaniam as a Supreme Court judge—the apex court expressed its displeasure over the controversy that ended with Subramaniam pulling out of the race. Similarly, the appointment of Y Sudershan Rao as chairperson of the Indian Council of Historical Research raised many eyebrows over his qualifications.

With Modi’s great expectations from his colleagues to work hard and preserve integrity, business houses accustomed to buying their way through to secure major gains are feeling the pinch. For them, a curtain has descended over Raisina Hill—and power has shifted from The Chambers and Belvederes to Shastri Bhavan and South Block.“It is a time of dread for them. The idea should be to get them used to it,” forewarns a senior bureaucrat.

The Modi model of governance abhors the secret hand. n

Nripendra Misra ensures ‘seamless’ communication between ministries over decisions; he speaks to many ministers in chaste Hindi

tres considered holy by Hindus, such as Badrinath, Kedarnath and so on. “Many officers are working in silence towards meeting many internal goals set by the Prime Minister,” says an official.

Shah, like Modi, will also be closely monitoring various government projects. At least one junior minister has disclosed that the BJP President doesn’t take kindly to sloppy work. Says a government official: “That Shah is watching every minister and how they work puts them on their toes. Besides Modi’s instructions, Shah’s capacity to monitor each and every person in the Government and his or her movement puts fear in the minds even of bureaucrats who could be approached by corporates.”

The BJP heavyweight, whose stature in the party has risen rapidly over the past year thanks to his proximity to Modi and his own skills at poll campaigning, and Finance Minister Jaitley have been closely watching the country’s coal sector—as part of efforts to reduce the shortage of this fossil fuel. The country’s coal production was 566 million tonnes last fiscal year, but its demand was in the range of 715-720 million. The Power Ministry recently launched its first major new project in at least five years at the Amrapali open cast pit in Jharkhand. The country has so far failed to raise output despite sitting on the fifthbiggest reserves in the world, making it the third-largest 28 July 2014

open www.openthemagazine.com 21

o n t h e r eco r d

“The Neo-Middle Class Has to Be Supported” It was as if Arun Jaitley had been working all those ten years since the last NDA Government for this moment.

As the architect of the Narendra Modi Government’s first Budget, the Finance Minister was aware of the enormity of public expectation, but it was not a time for flamboyant gestures; national interest demanded quiet pragmatism and a detailed map for modernisation. The message was in the detail, and Jaitley, a stickler for nuances, presented a budget where the big idea of India Rebooted was lost only on the instant pundits of airwaves. The whole exercise of making the first draft of growth was both exhaustive and exhausting for Jaitley. He has not yet recovered, but finds time for a conversation with Managing Editor PR RAMESH. Excerpts tashi tobgyal/express archive

What was the one big idea that propelled you while making the Budget?

My principal task in preparing the Budget was to restore the credibility of the economic decision-making process in India. The UPA saw lack of decisionmaking or the absence of decision-making. Absence of project clearances was the norm. It saw retrograde actions like retrospective taxation. Policy paralysis and tax terrorism became part of the vocabulary of Indian economic management. Growth rates had gone down, tax collection was low, manufacturing was nil. International investors were unwilling to invest. Domestic investors were trying to move out of the country. Now, credibility had to be established. We did it by smoothening the tax administration and clarifying our tax policy.

Opening up new areas of investment, giving clarity on the roadmap [for] infrastructure, manufacturing, real estate, townships, agriculture. These are the engines of growth. But at the same time, we did not compromise on our commitment to the middle-class or the poor. No Budget has given as much relief to the middle-class as mine did. I encouraged savings. All social sector schemes, with or without alterations, and new schemes are being maintained or re-established.

Do you think you managed to strike the right balance between national economic imperatives and your political objectives?

The Budget itself is growth oriented. It encourages economic activity. And yet, it accepts the daunting task of fiscal consolidation.

They call your budget a ‘right-wing budget’.

Is that a compliment?

I would rather not get caught in dogmatic phrases. I am for enlarged economic activity that creates jobs and generates revenue. That revenue has also to be used for social sector and poverty alleviation schemes.

Are you recalibrating India to match aspirations?

Of course, we are recalibrating India to match aspirations. There is an aspirational India whom I have referred to as the ‘neo-middle-class’. It has to be

supported and strengthened.

Several economists are of the view that you signalled a pro-investor and pro-business environment. However, they are a bit disappointed that you did not scrap the retroactive tax law. Your comments.

Well, I have given a cushion against the retrospective tax, creating new liabilities for the future. I have not used the legislative power of Parliament to nullify existing litigations. I thought that was the correct balance.

Do you think the Budget has managed to satisfy important sections that drive growth?

We want to encourage industry. We want to encourage business. India will grow only if the economy grows. I have been quite clear about it. But at the same time, I see no contradiction between being pro-business and being in favour of social sector spending.

A commentator suggested that your Budget is ‘social’ without being ‘socialistic’…

I have encouraged business and investment. But I have a social conscience. And here, the emphasis is on ensuring that the average citizen gets an opportunity to prosper. And here, our outlook differs radically with that of the Congress. The average citizen is not satisfied with mere entitlements.

What he is looking for is opportunities.

‘‘

No Budget has given as much relief to the middle-class as mine did. I encouraged savings. All social sector schemes, with or without alterations, and new schemes are being maintained or re-established”

And the environment that the Congress created was stifling for the common man.

How different is this Budget from that of the Congress?

One, there is decisiveness. Two, there is clarity. Every step we take is in one direction—to encourage investment, economic activity and growth. Three, it resolves a large set of problems that the Congress has created. The uniform pattern is lower taxation and greater economic activity. It was never the Congress philosophy. It consciously seeks to support the aspirational class, the neo-middle-class and the middle class. There is a considerable amount of social sector spending.

Do you see the Government confronting trouble over hiking the FDI limit in defence?

It will not face any trouble. The sector needs large capital investment. It will not come to India with the current FDI limit. Larger FDI will make India a defence hub. There cannot be any quarrel with this, as we are currently accessing equipment completely from foreign companies. This will move production substantially into India.

How will other things pan out in the postBudget phase?

The political class and my electoral constituency are quite supportive of the direction [taken by] the Budget. There are a lot of reforms that are carried out outside the Budget.

Such as labour reform...

I am not mentioning any. I think it is possible to move in the right direction with the support of the party and the people. The voices of opposition to this Budget are muted.

What is it that you enjoyed the most while preparing the Budget?

The interaction that you have with a large section of stakeholders brings diverse opinions, and it is a learning process. There are different layers— there is the larger public, there is the political class, Parliament, trade and industry, working class, columnists, and then there are studio commentators. Each one reacts differently. n

GROUP OF FIVe (Left to right) Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, Chinese President Xi Jinping and South African President Jacob Zuma at the BRICS Summit in Fortaleza, Brazil, on 15 July

nelson almeida/afp

FO R E I G N P O L I C Y

THe Pragmatic Nationalist That is what the Prime Minister is on the global stage, writes Ullekh NP

B

efore he left for the BRICS Summit in Fortaleza, Brazil, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had struck down a suggestion by his own external affairs establishment—a few senior officials wanted him to say ‘no’ to the creation of a BRICS development bank, seen as a counterweight to the World Bank, if New Delhi wasn’t made its headquarters. Modi dismissed the recommendation as “agitationist” and argued that it was no time to adopt such “rigid” posturing. The BRICS group, made up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, finally agreed to create a development bank that will be based in China’s commercial capital Shanghai, but with an Indian appointed as its first president; meant for project lending, this bank will have an initial capital of $50 billion, funded equally by each country.

“Had the Prime Minister listened to that recommendation, which, in hindsight, looks entirely premature, the creation of the development bank as well as a reserve fund, along the lines of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), would have remained a mere dream at a time

india news network

when emerging economies such as ours need more finance for infrastructure projects and mechanisms in place to face a future economic crisis,” a Foreign Ministry official tells Open. The formation of such institutions, he emphasises, comes in the wake of renewed demands by the BRICS bloc for reforms of the IMF, where voting rights remain skewed against emerging countries.

In the spirit of that argument, the BRICS fund will offer equal voting rights to all five members. This reserve fund, meant for external-crisis relief, will raise $100 billion; China will make the biggest contribution of $41 billion towards this fund, followed by India, Brazil and Russia putting in $18 billion each, and then South Africa with $5 billion. The emergency reserve fund, which was announced as a ‘Contingency Reserve Arrangement’, is broadly aimed at helping developing nations avoid ‘short-term liquidity pressures, promote further BRICS cooperation, strengthen the glob30 open

al financial safety net and complement existing international arrangements’. In the current global context, the immediate aim would be to fight off any volatility—in the value of a country’s currency, for example—that may arise from the US Federal Reserve doing away with its stimulus policy in the near future.

Firm Yet Flexible Persona

It was Modi who insisted on equal participation by all five members in the development bank and on the ‘one country one vote’ policy of the proposed reserve fund, showing that the Prime Minister was at his assertive best not just at home, but also overseas. The logic was that unlike the Bretton Woods organisations and the Asian Development Bank, which are dominated by the US and Japan respectively thanks to their disproportionate shareholding, no country should get to dominate others in the new entities.

“He was very firm in overruling his colleagues’ suggestions—as well as at the

[recently held] BRICS meet [at Fortaleza],” claims the foreign ministry official.

That image of the ‘flexible yet firm’ Prime Minister fits in with Modi’s desire to wield a more nationalistic foreign policy, one that aims to assert India’s national interests abroad and still gets work done, notes Michael Kugelman, an avid India watcher and senior program associate for South and Southeast Asia at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. “An important way of doing this is making sure India’s concerns are voiced in multilateral settings, such as BRICS meetings. A South Asian Bank would help promote Modi’s goal of better relations within South Asia in order to promote greater regional integration and, by extension, greater economic growth,” Kugelman elaborates.

Rathin Roy, director of National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, and member of the Seventh Central Pay Commission, feels that getting BRICS to adopt the ‘one stakeholder one vote’ prin14 July 2014

“Bordering countries must be treated with 101 per cent consideration.

The Pakistani military will sabotage reconciliation, but all the others would respond” Edward Luttwak Military Historian

any country, and would even be for the US if it attempted something similar. “That is why the US never bullies Canada or Mexico,” says Luttwak, “If the US had gone after Canada or Mexico (by quarrelling over land, natural resources or for regional dominance), they would have had Soviet bases there. The US doesn’t even opt for ‘hot pursuits’—chasing criminals once they cross the border to Mexico or Canada.”

According to Luttwak, who has authored many books on China and military strategies of empires: “The power balance is off the table in all dealings with bordering countries, which must be treated with 101 per cent consideration. The Pakistani military will sabotage reconciliation, but all the others would respond.”

Trade as Priority

THE HIGH TABLE (clockwise from left) Nawaz Sharif, Tshering Tobgay, Narendra Modi, Pranab Mukherjee, Hamid Karzai and Mahinda Rajapaksa at a dinner hosted at Rashtrapati Bhavan on 26 May

ciple, which is in direct contrast with the practice at other development banks, is a big gain for India. Roy, who has often been consulted by the Government on the nuances of a BRICS development bank, has always argued in favour of a “broader core membership” for India to combat potential Chinese dominance of such a bank.

The five BRICS countries together represent 40 per cent of the world population and a fifth of the global economy.

Love Thy Neighbour

“I would call Modi’s a pragmatic nationalist approach,” says another Government official close to the matter, “Frankly, his focus is more on the neighbourhood than the BRICS nations. His idea is to focus on the neighbourhood and beyond, not the other way around.”

The Prime Minister’s special emphasis on relations with immediate neighbours was on full display at his swearing-in ceremony on 26 May this year, to which he invited the likes of Prime Minister 14 July 2014

Nawaz Sharif of Pakistan and Mahinda Rajapaksa of Sri Lanka despite protests.

Most leaders of South Asian Association of Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries turned up for the grand ceremony.

While he highlighted the importance of trade within the region in his talks with Sharif and others, his first visit to a foreign country was to India’s northeastern neighbour Bhutan.

That is how it should be, feel many analysts. Edward Luttwak, a historian and expert on Subcontinental politics, goes to the extent of asking Modi to skip the “BRICS fantasy” and instead focus on improving relations with Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Myanmar and so on by instituting what he calls ‘US rules’. He argues that India will do well by not following China in quarrelling with neighbours. The People’s Republic, as he sees it, is in the process of paralysing itself by picking fights with all its neighbours such as Vietnam, India, Japan, Taiwan and so on. This, he says, is a fatal mistake for

Kugelman agrees that building ties with SAARC neighbours is at the heart of Modi’s foreign policy, which is far more nationalist than that of his predecessor—who headed a coalition long hobbled by a Nehruvian mindset and antiAmericanism. “I expect Modi to make a bigger push than his predecessor to improve ties with India’s neighbours,” says Kugelman, “South Asia is one of the least integrated regions in the world (in terms of trade and other measures of connectivity), and a big reason for this is that so many countries in this part of the world simply don’t get along.”

Modi, says the Pennsylvania-based India expert, understands how politics has constrained the chances of forging a better integrated region, and because of his strong interest in trade and investment, he will want to address these problems. “Consider one of Modi’s first moves as Prime Minister: he invited the leaders of all SAARC countries to his inauguration,” says Kugelman, “He was sending a message: despite all the problems of SAARC, he intends to engage [with] it and will waste no time in doing so.”

Meanwhile, many former diplomats and foreign policy experts, including Kugelman, contest the view that a hardline nationalist government will imperil relations with Pakistan. The Foreign Ministry official says that Modi will follow the ‘trade route’ to building relations with India’s hostile neighbour. Kugelman believes that the safest way is by focusing open www.openthemagazine.com 31

Many pundits expect India to step up collaboration of all sorts, including the military kind, with Japan as part of a larger coalition-building effort that could benefit other emerging countries as well afp

other, admittedly, is Modi himself. If India is hit by a terror strike that is traced back to militants in Pakistan, Modi will likely engage in sabre-rattling and other provocative actions that could increase bilateral tensions and imperil any forward movement made on MFN [status].”

Aligning with Japan

FROM INDIA WITH LOVE Prime Minister Narendra Modi being received by Bhutanese Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay at Paro Airport on 15 June 2014

on the soft diplomacy of trade and economics. “There is great potential here, given that India and Pakistan have been negotiating a Most Favoured Nation [trade] relationship, and they really aren’t that far away from consummating it. Modi, as a big free-market supporter and pro-trade 32 open

leader, understands the advantages of a formal commercial relationship with Pakistan.” However, he adds, there are numerous challenges on this front. “One is the apparent obstructionist position of Pakistan’s security establishment, which is reluctant to draw closer to India. The

Many pundits expect India to step up collaboration of all sorts—including the military kind—with Japan as part of a larger coalition-building effort that could benefit other emerging countries as well. The simple logic is that even if the Chinese, who have made incursions into Indian territory in the east, do not take Indian warnings seriously, Beijing cannot ignore an Indo-Japanese coalition.

At the BRICS Summit in Brazil, Modi asked Chinese president Xi Jinping to address New Delhi’s concerns over such incursions, and also held talks on setting up Chinese industrial parks in India, besides taking up trade issues. However, many China watchers feel that Beijing will not take India seriously until it forges a coalition of sorts in the region and beyond.

Certainly, Modi’s intensive diplomacy will extend beyond South Asia as he seeks to improve relations with the rest of Asia as well, especially with Japan.

“The India-Japan relationship is a logical partnership—two countries linked by concerns about China’s rising influence in the region. There is also a very heavy trade dimension to this relationship.

Modi will want to deepen ties with Tokyo for sure,” says Kugelman.

A former diplomat feels that both Modi and Shinzo Abe, being nationalists, could “gel easily” on matters of a global worldview.

Most experts that Open spoke to say that the most noticeable foreign policy trait of Modi would be his response to provocations from across the border.

“Don’t expect Modi to be nearly as restrained as Manmohan Singh was,” says Kugelman, “This isn’t at all to say Modi would provoke a conflict, but his response would be noticeably more robust than that of the last government.” n 14 July 2014

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Renaissance The Rashtrapati Bhavan is shedding its imperial attitude and second anniversary of the Pranab Mukherjee presidency,

THE STABLES Wax statues of Pranab Mukherjee and past presidents in a new museum at Rashtrapati Bhavan 34 open

28 july 2014

on Raisina Hill opening its splendid doors to hoi polloi. On the eve of the SUNAINA KUMAR takes a tour of the House that is changing

photographs by ashish sharma 28 july 2014

open www.openthemagazine.com 35

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n the day he assumed office—25 July 2012—as the thirteenth President of India, Pranab Mukherjee said, “I have seen vast, perhaps unbelievable changes during the journey that has brought me from the flicker of a lamp in a small Bengal village to the chandeliers of Delhi.” As the second anniversary of his Presidency approaches, it would be appropriate to say that he has brought “vast, perhaps unbelievable changes” to his role, and the house he resides in on top of Raisina Hill.

When Pranab Mukherjee expressed his intent to be President, it was seen as an unusual move for an active career politician, one who was referred to as the principal troubleshooter of the ruling party, and considered the sharpest and most competent of all Members of Parliament.

Rashtrapati Bhavan, after all, was long perceived as a vacation home where retired, inactive or non-politicians, preferably also non-entities, were sent to fill a role that is largely ceremonial. Think about some of his predecessors; Pratibha Patil was a politician plucked from obscurity, APJ Abdul Kalam became popular only after he took office, KR Narayanan was a career diplomat, and SD Sharma was brought out from retirement.

Rashtrapati Bhavan was the ‘dumping ground’ for failed ambition, as Mukherjee’s opponent for the job, NDA presidential candidate PA Sangma, had implied; though that did not stop him from craving it himself. In the two years since he took office, Mukherjee, who vociferously disapproved of this comment, has set out to demonstrate thoroughly and meticulously that Rashtrapati Bhavan is not just a place to enjoy stately banquets and long walks in its Mughal Gardens, or smell the roses while waiting out the winter of old age. It can, in fact, be the seat of ambition and power, although of a different kind. There was never really any doubt that Pranab Mukherjee would make for a great President. What was unexpected is the air of reinvigora36 open

tion he has brought to the job.

The swearing-in ceremony of Narendra Modi with its pomp and pageantry, held at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan, was for most people a peek into an impenetrable fortress, a relic of our colonial past. There were many famous faces in the crowd that day in May, but the star of the show, the one that stood out was Rashtrapati Bhavan itself. The “curves and arches that express feeling in design” as Charles, the Prince of Wales, once eloquently put it, were visible in the background. The red sandstone glowed in the setting summer sun. The President’s Bodyguard stood stiffly in red uniform, a symbol of old times that seemed to oddly fit in with the mood of the occasion.

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t was RASHTRAPATI BHAVAN’S com-

ing out moment, but it was just one part of the cultural renaissance that is taking place under Pranab Mukherjee.

The last two years have been a transformative period for the President’s palace. Edward Lutyens’ masterpiece, one of the largest residences in the world, built over 330 acres and with 340 rooms in 1929, has always been a mystifying place. In an assertion of democratic principles by a man who has spent six decades in politics, the palace has been made accessible to the general public. Visitors can take guided tours of Rashtrapati Bhavan, there are residence programmes for artists and innovators to stay there, and a massive outreach programme through the President’s website and his social media presence on Facebook, YouTube and, just recently, on Twitter. He has travelled to almost every state in the country, giving speeches and reaching out to people. “Through his public speaking, the President has struck a chord, and been noticed by people. They have also added to his stature and his image [as] someone who has left his political past behind and been able to carve out an independent place for himself as the elder statesman and First Citizen of the country,” says Venu Rajamony, press secretary to the President. He also takes his role as Visitor to all Central

Universities more seriously than most other Presidents, making it a point to engage with educationists.

If President Kalam was committed to science and technology, Pranab Mukherjee’s great passion is history. In the changes that Mukherjee has brought about, there is a method to restore and conserve history, to document it, and to open up access to the public—these are the cornerstones of his policy. He has been known to express the view that Rashtrapati Bhavan belongs to the nation and its people, and its heritage value is something he is well aware of. An extensive restoration project has been undertaken, rooms that were not being used have been opened, and furniture designed by Lutyens has been brought out from the storerooms. in preparation for the second anniversary of Mukherjee’s Presidency, an un28 july 2014

usual flurry of activity can be seen at the President’s Estate. Workers are busily moving about, shifting paintings and statues, and putting last minute touches to ‘The Stables’, which will house a new museum for the public, chronicling the history of Rashtrapati Bhavan and the Presidents of India. It is the last week of June and everything is to be readied by 25 July. Cardboard boxes are lying open, rolled up carpets are pushed against walls, paintings and artefacts, and gifts from the Toshakhana (treasury) are strewn about haphazardly. A stunning royal blue velvet gown gifted by the President of Uzbekistan to Abdul Kalam is wrapped up in plastic, next to a one-kilometre long thread of khadi given to R Venkataraman by a weaver from Nabadwip; a gold wreath with ivory leaves gifted to Pratibha Patil by the Prime Minister of Greece and a golden dagger presented to 28 july 2014

KR Narayanan by the King of Morocco are in a glass showcase. Chairs and tables designed by Lutyens have been brought in from all parts of the mansion, and painted replicas of every famous room of the palace—the Ashoka Hall, the Durbar Hall, the library—have been created.

Slated to open later this year is a second public museum, ‘The Garages’. The stables for the horses and garages that are in the basement, both spaces designed

by Lutyens, have been lying in disuse for many years, and are a reflection of the President’s policy to put every available space at Rashtrapati Bhavan to good use. On the first anniversary of his presidency, he had opened up another unused building in the Estate to house a library for members of the staff.

Earlier this year, the guest wing, which had been in a state of disrepair— overtaken by dust and mites, and water

A ROOM WITH A VIEW Ashoka Hall, the ceiling of which is decorated with a fresco of Fateh Ali Shah out on a hunt with 22 of his sons

seepage on the intricately painted ceilings—was restored and reopened after almost 20 years. The first guests to stay in the sumptuous rooms were the King and Queen of Bhutan. The guest wing has a back storey which has become legendary, the luxurious suites were originally meant for the Viceroy. But, when C Rajagopalachari moved in as the Governor General to Government House (as it was then called), taking over from Lord Mountbatten, he decided that the rooms were too opulent for his tastes and moved into the quarters of the Vicereine’s lady-in-waiting; and that tradition continues till this day.

While living in opulence, the President must set an example of austerity. open www.openthemagazine.com 37

When Pranab Mukherjee first saw the library, he is supposed to have said,

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or the last year and a half, Rashtrapati

Bhavan has thrown its doors open to the people of India, who can register online, and for a negligible fee, take a detailed guided tour of the place every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. On weekends, it is not unusual to find groups of families, foreign tourists, students, teachers, architects, historians and curious souls visiting the Bhavan.

The tour goes through Marble Hall (portraits and statues of British Royalty and Viceroys), the Kitchen Museum (opened

by Kalam, displaying crockery and utensils that date back to the time of the British), Durbar Hall (famous for its two-tonne chandelier), Ashoka Hall (the most opulent room, with a Persian flavour and a painting of Fateh Ali Shah on the ceiling), the newly-restored library, and the Mughal Gardens. Sune Basson, a tourist from South Africa, standing in front of a statue of King George V, tells her friend that this is a colossal waste of money. “Even though the building is beautiful, how can so much money be spent on a house?�

Shanti, a young woman who is a research scholar and works as a guide for three days a week at Rashtrapati Bhavan, takes tours in both English and Hindi. Though the job is not very well paying, it is rewarding as she gets to interact with people from all walks of life, from VIPs and bureaucrats to ordinary people from all corners of the coun-

38 open

RESTORED GLORY (clockwise from top) The Dwarka suite in the refurbished guest wing; the Durbar Hall; Pranab Mukherjee in the Main Library Room 28 july 2014

try. “People feel it’s a real democracy as they can visit the house of the Head of State, and they feel special when they’re here. It’s a good feeling to be able to facilitate that.”

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photo courtesy rashtrapati bhavan

“I can spend all my five years just reading here”

28 july 2014

very inch of stone at Rashtrapati Bhavan is steeped in history, and it couldn’t have found a better caretaker than Pranab Mukherjee, who invited scholars and researchers at a book release earlier this month to help identify the room in the palace where the Gandhi-Irwin pact of 1931 was signed. As an avid historian, he is aware of the import of this quest, as well as the need to engage with history, and he couldn’t have found a better passion project than Rashtrapati Bhavan. The first time that Gandhi entered the Viceroy’s House, the King-Emperor wrote to Lord Irwin, disapproving of the ‘religious fanatic with his restricted covering being admitted to your beautiful new house’.

Pranab Mukherjee is a man of literary tastes. When he first saw the library next to Durbar Hall with its collection of 2,000 rare books, he is supposed to have said, “I can spend all my five years just reading here.” At that time the library looked more like a storeroom, with stacks of files everywhere and the books in disarray. Now that it has been restored, the books are arranged in chronological order. “He is the only President to have visited the library as often,” says SNS Prakash, the librarian at Rashtrapati Bhavan for 31 years.

As part of his self-professed mission to ‘restore the glory of Rashtrapati Bhavan’ is an ambitious multi-volume documentation project, which will include nine volumes that record different facets of the palace, like its art and architecture, history, landscape, flora and fauna, food, President’s Bodyguard and the Presidential Retreats.

The first volume, Indradhanush—a record of the cultural performances hosted— will be out this month in time for the anniversary. Dr Sudha Gopalakrishnan, executive director at Sahapedia, which is collaborating on the project, says, “It is a unique project. It will be for the first time that Rashtrapati Bhavan will be documented from a primary research perspective. There have been books on it before, but this has been commissioned. In some ways, it is like Rashtrapati Bhavan telling its own story, and that is exciting.” n open www.openthemagazine.com 39

fo o d

OFF MY TABLE, YOU DAMN CARNIVORE! The rise of vegetarian terrorism Lhendup G Bhutia

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egetarian activism in India, unlike the West, is not limited to spot-shaming celebrities wearing fur or the token protest over a dinner table. Here, vegetarians suffer from a virulent strain of militant evangelism that makes them bend rules, create new ones, and form vigilante groups to bully others into vegetarianism. They will, upon brushing against a non-vegetarian stranger in a crowded Mumbai local train compartment, suggest that she should not eat meat as it increases ‘body warmth’, and when the stranger tells them their advice is unsolicited, tell her she also owes her ‘temper’ to her vile diet. When they band together in their conviction, extreme symptoms of their condition start showing up. They will spit on patrons of non-vegetarian restaurants in their neighbourhood, aggressively demand that malls shut down their nonvegetarian sections, and amend housing society bylaws to 40 open

keep out non-vegetarians.

These militant vegetarians will, with saccharine piety, discuss the morality of their cause. How a diet of sprouts and tofu is not just a healthy and ethical choice, but a solution to world hunger and safeguard of the planet. Specious as these arguments are, they are usually marked less by concern for animal welfare and more by religious and caste chauvinism, and by related notions of the superiority of their own diet—and by extension culture—over that of others.

This extreme form of vegetarian supremacy is currently being played out in Palitana in Gujarat. Monks from Jain sects are trying to convert this town, considered a pilgrimage spot with hundreds of Jain temples, into an exclusively vegetarian zone.

However, this town is not home to vegetarian Jains alone. Of the estimated 65,000 people living in Palitana, at least 17,000 28 July 2014

are non-vegetarian Muslims.

The fracas began about a month ago, when, after holding a meeting with the sub-divisional magistrate of the town demanding the conversion of the town into a vegetarian zone, around 200 Jain monks went on an indefinite fast to push their case. The object of their ire is butchers and owners of eateries— mostly Muslim, incidentally—who sell chicken, eggs, and other meat items. The monks ended their fast on the fourth day after apparently receiving confirmations from two political leaders, BJP Member of Parliament Mansukh Mandavia and Gujarat’s Minister of State Tarachand Chheda, who visited them, that the proposal would be considered for implementation by the administration.

this order and challenged its legality at the Gujarat High Court, where the matter is still awaiting judgment.

This time round, however, Jain monks are not just seeking a governmental nod for their plans. They have conceptualised what they term a ‘rehabilitation plan’. The monks have identified a total of 68 butchers and owners of non-vegetarian establishments and calculated that with a sum of around Rs 2 crore, they can persuade them to take up alternate livelihoods. “We are not leaving them without jobs,” Virag Sagar Maharaj says with an air of generosity, “We will rehabilitate them. We will give them a way out.”

These proposals, however, have resulted in deep resentment among Muslims of the affected area. Many of them are afraid

“Why should we allow animals to be slaughtered here? This is our Mecca,” says Virag Sagar Maharaj, a protest leader

illustration by anirban ghosh

Virag Sagar Maharaj of Jambu Dwip, a subgroup within the Shwetambar sect of Jainism, who led the group of 200 fasting monks, appears incredulous when asked how a community of people can suppress the food habits of another. “Why should we allow animals to be slaughtered here? This is our Mecca,” he says. “Today they want meat, tomorrow they will want alcohol,” he says, ‘they’ being the town’s non-vegetarians, “Are we supposed to tolerate this?”

The attempt to convert the town into a vegetarian one started several years ago. After several pleas by Jain groups, a district magistrate notification in 1999 turned a 2.5-km-odd stretch of road that leads to Shat’runjaya hill, which houses many temples, into a ‘vegetarian zone’. This notification also covers 250 metres on either side of the road, areas where no non-vegetarian food would be allowed. However, Muslim groups contested 28 July 2014

of speaking on record, believing that this might bring them harm. A Muslim butcher says, “They say this [vegetarianism] is the true and right way. But we too have always lived here, and our way isn’t like that.” Razaq Ismail Saiyad, president of the All Muslim Jaman, a local grouping that is opposing the attempt to turn the town allvegetarian, says, “The monks are offering money to either relocate or change our professions. But we don’t want their money and we don’t want to quit our professions.” He adds, “Qurbani (sacrifice) to us is as important as vegetarianism is to them.”

What ardent adherents of vegetarianism in India often fail to understand is that food is not necessarily a simple ethical pursuit. The origins of any diet can be traced to several factors, from the natural circumstances of people in any given location to changes through the flow of time. No one dietary preference is superior to another. In Mumbai, the failure to understand this has ensured large pockets of areas where no one but a vegetarian can live. Vegetarians have set up residential enclaves in various parts of the city from posh localities in Malabar Hill to modest middle-class localities in Matunga, Sion and Ghatkopar, and tweaked their housing complex bylaws to forbid the selling and renting of properties to non-vegetarians.

A few years ago, when Ashok Khamkar, the proprietor of a well-known store that sells spices, Khamkar Masala, wanted open www.openthemagazine.com 41

India Picture

to purchase a flat near his store in Lalbaug, a predominantly meat-consuming Maharashtrian locality, the builders of two residential buildings refused to sell one to him. “I was shocked,” he says. “I have lived in this area since childhood and had never heard of a vegetarian-only policy. When I asked the builder for his reasons, he told me allowing meat-eaters would create ‘a bad vibe’ and ‘disturb the sanctity’ of the place.” Khamkar eventually found a flat in a nearby locality.

Bhumika, who requests that only her first name be published, lives in a residential complex in Mumbai’s swish Malabar Hill area that has abolished the consumption of meat.

This marketing professional, along with her husband, however, has been leading the secret life of an occasional meat and egg consumer for over ten years. To indulge in what their Jain and Marwari neighbours consider unholy, the couple never buy meals from non-vegetarian restaurants nearby, or order meat and eggs. They always purchase these commodities several kilometres away on their way back from work. When they cook meat, it is always accompanied with the burning of incense to mask the smell.

Bhumika and her husband feel watched. While they were having a meal about a year ago, a neighbour dropped by on some flimsy pretext and expressed wonder about why such a seemingly non-spiritual couple always burnt incense during the day. “I feel some of my neighbours suspect us,” says Bhumika, “They often turn up unannounced. And I get the feeling they are also going through our garbage bags. But I never dispose the meat, or even egg shells, into the bags. The two of us take turns driving after a meal to throw whatever we need to.”

Some years ago, when two non-vegetarian eateries came up in Bhumika’s neighbourhood, vegetarian residents of the area bullied the owners of the restaurants into shutting them down.

Patrons of Roti, a non-vegetarian eatery operated by Mars Hospitality, which runs several other successful restaurants, came in for special treatment. They would be sprinkled with spit from the residential floors above. On other occasions, the greeting was in the form of tumbling trash. Often, guests’ cars would get mysteriously scratched. The other eatery, a Domino’s pizza shop, was shut down after a local leader, BJP MLA Mangal Prabhat Lodha, led a group of vegetarians to protest against smells emanating from the outlet.

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egetarianism, as it turns out, is a highly exaggerated

virtue in India. A 2006 survey conducted by CNN-IBN and The Hindu found that overall only around 21 per cent of Indian families are purely vegetarian. In comparison, 44 per cent of all Indian families consume some form of meat. In fact, not just meat, historians and scholars have argued that Hindus in ancient India slaughtered all types of cattle, including cows, for both food and rituals.

Yet, earlier this year, a venerable newspaper from the South, as a leaked human resources department notice showed, asked staffers not to bring non-vegetarian food into the office dining area, as it ‘causes discomfort to the majority of the employees who are vegetarian’. The newspaper began receiving flak online, with many commenting on how the company’s move was a reflection of its caste-bias, since many employees at the news42 open

matter of taste A view of Gujarat’s Palitana, which Jain monks are trying to convert into

paper are Brahmins. One of the editors defended the decision, remarking on Twitter, ‘… Vegetarianism is part of an increased sensitivity to animals & other species. Crazy to link this to a secularism debate’.

But linking the prohibition of meat to caste bias is not as crazy as some may claim. Two years ago, when Dalit student groups staged a beef festival at Osmania University, in an attempt to assert the culinary rights of Dalits and Muslims in public (after having taken permission from the police and college authorities), right-wing students from other unions attacked the festival and its organisers. Says B Sundarshan, one of the festival’s organisers, “We knew some people were upset. But we never expected protestors to behave in such a violent manner.”

In the ensuing melee, two vehicles were torched, one student was stabbed, and several students were injured, leading to much tension on the campus premises for several weeks.

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ccording to Deepak Gupta, president of the Maharashtra

Gopalan Samiti (MGS), a vocal pro-vegetarian group, vegetarian activism has to be pro-active because Westernisation is seducing a younger generations of vegetarians to start eating meat. When the Aditya Birla Group started stocking meat at its chain of retail stores, More, the MGS led protests against the outlets, carrying placards that expressed shock that a vegetarian Marwari business house like Aditya Birla was dealing with meat products. The vegetarian group also spearheads protests outside shopping malls in the city that stocks non-vegetarian food. “A mall is a public space,” he explains.

28 July 2014

The Hindu Archive

an exclusively vegetarian zone; a vehicle (right) of a TV channel is set afire by irate mobs protesting a ‘Beef Festival’ in Osmania University

“And stocking non-vegetarian food along with vegetarian food is wrong. Every time we shop for groceries and vegetables at a mall, we have to deal with the awful sight and smell of a non-vegetarian section.”

The MGS also keeps cows rescued from illegal slaughterhouses at a farm the group operates in a Gujarat village near Vapi.

Most of the locals of this area are tribal, whom they believe they are helping by asking them to convert to a vegetarian diet. “Last Diwali, we took them ladoos. They were so surprised. They had never even seen one,” he remarks.

Others like Ashoo Mongia, president of the Rashtriye Goraksha Sena in Delhi, is a vigilante who takes other members of his group on raids that he zealously conducts in Delhi’s grocery markets to ensure no one sells cow meat. After receiving tip-offs from the Sena’s network of contacts, Mongia also tries to intercept trucks suspected to be ferrying cows to slaughterhouses. “The law and police may be lax, but we will actively try to protect [the cow],” he says. Two years ago, when some students of Delhi’s Jawaharlal Nehru University sought to celebrate a ‘beef and pork festival’ to mark their right to eat what they wanted, Mongia ensured that no such festival was held by filing a case against the proposed idea at the Delhi High Court.

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n Mumbai, the hotspot these days of vegetarian activism is

not any shopping centre or residential locality. It is the city’s sole abattoir in the distant suburb of Deonar. This slaughterhouse, a constant subject of shut-down requests, especially during Jain festivals, is expected to be modernised soon, a move

28 July 2014

“Every time an animal is slaughtered, it has been proved that their tears cause Einsteinian Pain Waves,” claims activist Ahimsa Jain that will enable the city’s municipal body to increase animalslaughter volumes and thus generate more revenue. Vegetarian groups, aghast at this development, initially filed a Public Interest Litigation against the proposal. This did not achieve their objective. So now, every few days, hundreds of them picket the slaughter-house’s gates, trying to refuse the abattoir’s employees passage. They have started SMS campaigns and online petitions against the move as well.

The protesting vegetarians offer various reasons for their behaviour. This ranges from how animal slaughter is unethical to how the meat of Indian animals must not be shipped to Gulf countries, which they consider a serious possibility—and risk.

Rakesh Jain, a 27-year-old chartered accountant and a key member of one such group, Ahimsa Jain, offers yet another reason.

According to him, any spike in animal slaughter will lead to powerful earthquakes. “Every time an animal is slaughtered, it has been proved that their tears cause Einsteinian Pain Waves,” he believes, citing research of dubious validity, “These waves lead to major seismic activity. Imagine what will happen when Deonar increases its output!” Oh dear. n open www.openthemagazine.com 43

cinema

mindspace

a welcome invasion Why Pakistani television dramas are more nuanced than Indian soap operas 50

The old man and the lake

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o p e n s pa c e

Ranveer Singh Salman Khan Ranbir Kapoor

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n p lu

Humpty Sharma ki Dulhania Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

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cinema review

Vertu Signature Touch Breitling S3 ZeroG Chronograph Sony DSC-RX100M3

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Tech & style

Nature and nurture Booze spells trouble for the heart Drone Lighting

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science

The unifying power of Bollywood’s Punjabi inflection

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Roug h cu t

Lessons from the success of Cider

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Drink

Farzana by Julia Keay Passion Flower by Cyrus Mistry Interview with conservationist Vivek Menon

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books

Television dramas from across the border

e n t e rta i n m e n t

Vidya Balan: The greedy actress

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dinodia photos

Cinema

The Greedy Actress What sets her apart, says Vidya Balan, is her need to grab roles that demand what few others can deliver Aastha Atray Banan

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HEN FILM director Milan Luthria first started shooting The Dirty Picture in Mumbai’s Filmcity with Vidya Balan in its lead role, he felt something was not right.

After four days, he called off the filming. Just a couple of scenes had been shot—about the early life of her character Silk Smitha—and he wasn’t too happy with the outcome. While he immersed himself in what was going wrong, Luthria recalls, Vidya Balan kept calling him: “She thought she was doing something wrong.” And then it hit him. “I realised that Vidya was looking too beautiful for the role. We got the make-up guys back and changed her look, her skin tone. Then it started making sense.” What Luthria was struck by at the time was Vidya Balan’s positive attitude, her ability to deal with everything with ease. “Worry doesn’t exist for her,” says the filmmaker, “She just keeps laughing. She was hospitalised during the shoot as well, but we kept on.”

As it turned out, The Dirty Picture (2011) was one of the year’s biggest hits, and it fetched Vidya Balan a National Award as well.

“When I first took the script to her, she was shocked—and declined,” says Luthria, “But I knew she could do it. At the first look test, as soon as she appeared wearing hot pants, a knotted top and holding a cigarette, we knew we had got our Silk. I was electrified. People hadn’t been convinced of my choice; I’d fought to get Vidya. But look how that worked out!”

The film gave Vidya Balan the tag of a sex symbol, and one who had brought curves back into fashion, too, but it was her performance that won

her rave reviews. She was soon being spoken of as the film industry’s ‘female Khan’—someone who could pack halls just by starring in a film.

Vidya Balan’s latest, Bobby Jasoos, has her playing Bilkis alias Bobby, a woman from a middleclass family in Hyderabad who nurses the ambition of becoming a famous detective. Again, she is the film’s hero. And again, it is a reminder of how steep her learning curve has been since her early days on television screens as the near-deaf frumpy sister of Hum Paanch (1995).

She got her first big break with Vidhu Vinod Chopra and Pradeep Sarkar’s Parineeta in 2005, a period film set in Bengal about a lady in love with her neighbour, a childhood friend; and while films like Kismet Konnection, Heyy Babyy and Salaam-e-Ishq did not do much for her career, she followed up the success of Dirty Picture with Kahaani, another movie that has come to define brand Vidya Balan as the woman who does what she likes, likes being who she is, and is successful at it.

I

T IS A RAINY AFTERNOON in Mumbai, and Vidya Balan seems relaxed at her Juhu home that she shares with UTV head and husband Siddharth Roy Kapoor. Her hair is wet, and dressed in a cotton anarkali, she looks younger in person than she does onscreen. “I am a bit sleepy,” she confesses as she sips a cup of coffee, seated with her feet tucked under her on a sofa facing French windows that offer a clear view of Juhu Beach. “I have been reading this book, The Devotion of Suspect X [by Keigo Higashino], and

last night I was falling asleep but telling myself, ‘No, I want to read.’ I was sleeping with the book on my chest and with the lights on.”

She seems pleased with the success of Bobby Jasoos, but says watching it in a movie hall, as she recently did, was a stressful experience. “I was thinking, ‘Are people laughing at the right places?’ You are constantly focusing on the audience—who’s leaving, who’s not.

Totally unnecessary stress.”

She also remembers watching Dirty Picture at Gaiety, a single-screen theatre in Bandra, and describes that experience as unreal. “People were hooting, clapping, whistling,” she recounts, “I couldn’t hear any of the dialogues, and people were throwing money at the screen and dancing. And it was exactly like what was happening in the movie with Silk!”

In her latest release, she plays the affable neighbourhood girl who one can’t help but love. She could be playing herself, the only difference being Bobby is a detective who wants her strict father to be proud of her. “That’s what drew

“As soon as she appeared wearing hot pants, a knotted top and holding me to this movie. It’s the story of a female detective, but it’s about her family.

It’s about life in that mohalla, within her family, and how relationships develop within that construct. And what a cast!

They make the world so relatable.”

It is the third movie she has carried off as its sole star, and I ask if she gets up every morning and pats herself on the back for making this happen. She laughs loudly, and then ruminates a bit before answering. “It’s very… it’s very—I don’t really think about it actually. I just respond to scripts, and it has worked out beautifully. I do feel proud.

Like after Dirty Picture, I was scared for Kahaani. I thought it would obliterate Kahaani, but people talk about Kahaani as well. Because people realised I could do Dirty Picture, so ‘Maybe Kahaani will be good’. I don’t know what people are going to say after Bobby; people are saying it’s my best. My father told me it’s 48 open

his favourite. They’re saying, ‘It’s so layered’. I don’t know... I’m just happy with the work I’m doing.”

Asked why she thinks she is such a unique actress, doing what she does, she chuckles. “Maybe they don’t have as much greed—and therefore need— as me,” she declares. “An actress recently told me that ‘I almost signed ‘different’ movies but backed out… because I don’t think I can do it like you.’ And then I was like, I just want to do movies, I don’t think of ‘carrying’ a movie. I have been just around for so long, seen so much… experience works.”

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AMAR SHAIKH, THE DIRECTOR of Bobby Jasoos, his directorial debut, remembers his first meeting with Vidya Balan clearly. He visited her at her parents’ home in Bandra and sat in a small room that housed all her acting awards.

“It was intimidating,” he says. But as soon as she stepped into the room, she put him at ease. ‘Bobby has entered the room,’ Shaikh recalls thinking. “She was asking me about my family, about the women in my family,” he says, “She wanted to know where I got the germ of Bobby. We used to ask questions like, ‘Did Bobby go to school?’, ‘Does she read Hindi newspapers or English?’ She made Bobby so much more than she was on paper. There were times we thought that Bobby is there in almost 90 per cent of the movie—will she get overbearing or irritating? But Vidya brings such subtlety, and she is the character. So it just never gets too much. She doesn’t try to be an actress. She is every woman.”

That’s partly because of how well Balan prepares for her roles. “I talk to the director extensively,” she says, “I have to trust him implicitly. I plan everything beforehand, so that on set, I am 28 July 2014

risk taker Vidya Balan in (L-R) The Dirty Picture, Kahaani and Bobby Jasoos

Does she now use her curviness to her advantage? She smiles. “So what?

I am not using it. I don’t care anymore what people say about how I look or what I am wearing. I met this 16-yearold the other day who was getting her chin done—a jaw enhancement! I was shocked: why would someone do that?

And her parents are paying for it! I am so glad I have reached a place where I just don’t care.”

She’s as non-diva as it gets, and it could be what translates on screen.

As Sahil Sangha, producer of Bobby Jasoos, says, “I first met her on the sets of Salaam-e-Ishq, and all of us assistant directors had a crush on her. She is just so affable and charming. As producer, I knew it would work because she has this unique combination of viability and talent.”

As our interview at her Juhu home winds down, we talk about movies she has liked of late. “I loved Her.” And

a cigarette, we knew we’d got our Silk” only reacting. I address all my issues with the script before I start shooting.

I have said, ‘I don’t believe in this’, but we sort out those issues. Like Samar used to ask me, ‘What would Bobby do?’ And we would think about that.

Finally, it’s a director’s medium.”

Apart from being a good actress, there is a common refrain about Vidya Balan that adds to her persona. She is just so relatable, she could be anybody.

And also, as Bobby shows, not afraid to look—for lack of a better word—ugly.

A scene in the movie has her playing an astrologer with dirty prosthetic teeth sticking out; in Dirty Picture, her character had an ample stomach on brave display. She has been outsized, awkward and pregnant without batting an eyelid. “I think 98 per cent roles represent women in a certain way. So they have to be a certain way. I know one movie can’t make or break you. I know 28 July 2014

Milan Luthria

you have to be near perfect. Everyone wonders if, for one movie, [one should] take the risk of being not-perfect.

That’s why I said my greed is greater.

I just feel like—if I’ve got this opportunity, why not do it? For me, beauty is what beauty does. If that astrologer works, then it works.”

She is aware of how she snapped Indian filmgoers out of the super-slim ideal of sexiness that globalisation had brought in its wake. “I think beauty is all about what you think of yourself. I was a fat child, and at 19, went through this crash diet. I only used to drink water, and became skinny. But when I started eating normally, the weight all came back. I spent most of my life hating my body. But seven years ago, I realised I couldn’t keep everyone happy, and I was falling sick, and I was unhappy. Then I said to myself, ‘I am imperfect’ and let’s just be me.”

Director of The Dirty Picture

what she does on her days off. “I laze, drink chai, do yoga and babysit my sister’s children. Those are the best days ever.” She is also a big fan of American TV shows, and has been waiting for the latest season of Mad Men on DVD. On DVD? “I don’t believe in piracy.

But everybody keeps giving me downloaded TV shows!”

Even though she is not sure of what she wants to do next, except push the envelope, she seems content with her career. “She has always been a real person,” says Pradeep Sarkar, who has seen her from her adfilm days, “That’s a given. But she is also a God-believing person, and has got tremendous faith. In dark times, she has told me to hold on.

Her faith in herself and God is unwavering and very strong. That’s what gives you strength, you know. That’s how she has held on in this vicious industry. It’s her faith.” Amen. n open www.openthemagazine.com 49

entertainment Another Pakistani Invasion Nuanced family dramas from across the border break the monotony of Indian soap operas on television SUNAINA KUMAR

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hat would John Oliver, the British comedian, make of Indian television soaps?

Indian news channels, he observed, are “not the most relaxing way to watch television”, pointing out that, “The only thing this is good for is potentially putting your elderly viewers in the hospital.” Certainly, our soaps can put many of us in hospital too. Consider a scene last week from Beintehaa, a Muslim social that airs on Colors at prime-time. Nafisa, a young woman, discovers her husband’s adulterous relationship, the camera zooms in for a tight close-up of her face, and then starts circling and whirling around her like a dervish. The background music sounds like a noisy group of children clanging pots and pans in the pantry.

As she vows revenge, her voice echoes and reverberates and echoes and reverberates. The scene lasted only a few minutes, but it was enough to nearly give this viewer a nervous breakdown.

For a decade-and-a-half since Ekta Kapoor’s game-changing Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi aired on Star Plus in 2000, Indian television soaps have relied on two tropes for depicting women: the pious lady, and her arch-enemy, the vamp. If you channel surf idly through Hindi General Entertainment Channels (GECs) on any day at any time slot, you will find she who stands in for the middle-class Indian woman—as scripted by these two archetypes—has not changed in the least.

Not in her relationships, not in her dilemmas, nor even in her wardrobe.

When these soaps first started, there was an effort to analyse their popularity despite their outlandish storytelling, tacky production, reductive depictions 50 open

of women and the sheer drivel that it all amounted to. For some years now, lulled by inertia and used to top-notch foreign television and the pleasures of piracy, we have stopped asking this question: why can’t we have better television in India?

The question has resurfaced in the last few weeks, since the Zee network launched Zindagi, a channel that runs syndicated shows from Pakistan; and where else but on social media can we catch the pulse of this satellite invasion? On Quora last week, a user posted, ‘Why can’t Indians create intelligent and realistic TV series like Pakistan’s Zindagi Gulzar Hai?’ This refrain was echoed on Twitter: ‘Feeling so ashamed and disgusted after watching the class of shows in Indian television. Pakistan hats off’; ‘Pakistani TV soaps > Indian TV crap’. It wouldn’t be going too far to say we’ve got a bad case of neighbour envy. Our disbelief is as clear as our admiration. How do Pakistan show-makers get it right? Like Indian television, family dramas are their mainstay, but the treatment, storytelling and act-

In an ironic reversal, mass audiences in Pakistan tend to spurn their local dramas in favour of Indian soaps.

Perhaps their own fare is a little too subtle for their appreciation

ing are vastly superior and far more progressive. This is not to say that all Pakistani shows are works of art. As is the nature of the medium, they have as many trashy shows teeming with stereotypes as any television industry anywhere in the world. At the same time, shows like Zindagi Gulzar Hai and Aunn Zara, which have found a huge fan following here through word-of-mouth, demonstrate that homegrown television made of authentic lives, language and idioms can be nuanced, thought provoking and pleasurable to watch.

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hailja Kejriwal is the program-

ming head of Zee and the creative mind behind the idea of bringing Pakistani shows to India. She has spent many years steering the content of Indian television as the former creative head of Star Plus, and is in many ways the woman behind the genre of saas-bahu sagas. She now seems to have a Frankenstein relationship with the genre she helped spawn. “For the past few years, I have been questioning the shows we’re making and the negativity they underline. Someone always has to play the part of a home-wrecker, or create a misunderstanding, or eavesdrop,

LITERARY FARE A still from Zindagi Gulzar Hai (above) and from Maat (left); both these shows have been adapted from Urdu novels

“I wanted my character to be bitter, angry. But my director convinced me that there is a form of feminism in forgiving her husband,” samina peerzada Pakistani actor

or plan a conspiracy. This is not what real lives are about.” She started viewing foreign content to see what others are doing with the medium; and while trawling through hours of Turkish, Korean, South African and Brazilian shows, she stumbled upon dramas from Pakistan, the easiest for Indians to connect with culturally.

There is also nostalgia. Most of us who have grown up in the 1980s and 90s and were exposed to fine drama from Pakistan like Dhoop Kinare, Ankahi and Tanhaiyyaan, to name just the cult classics, have a fond place in our hearts for such TV programmes.

Pakistan’s drama industry has had its share of hits and misses. Its renaissance period was the 1980s, followed by a listless decade. Around the time that Star Plus started in India, Pakistani audiences started obsessing with Indian TV open www.openthemagazine.com 51

Shows like Aunn Zara demonstrate that television that features authentic lives, language and idioms can be nuanced, thought provoking and pleasurable to watch FROM PAKISTAN WITH LOVE A still from Aunn Zara, a drama about a married couple

soaps. Its drama industry all but gave up making shows of its own. Yet, there were many in Pakistan who fought for a revival of indigenous drama, and over the last five years, that industry has seen a reversal of fortunes.

It is useful to delve into how and why Pakistani show-makers get it right.

Kejriwal points out two major differences between their culture and ours. The most important, according to her, is the Bollywood Bogey. “In Pakistan, the best talent of the country is drawn towards television, [since] the film industry has long been in a slump. In India, the writing talent all goes to the movies. Then, we make soaps with 1,000 episodes, so people must die and come back and all absurd things must happen; after all, writers do not have much choice.

Pakistan is making finite dramas which are mostly adapted from Urdu novels.”

Television in India is a young medium that draws high revenues, but this also makes the industry risk-averse, churning out assembly-line shows that cater to mass audiences, inspired by the same ideals—of conforming to rather than subverting tradition, of perpetuating age-old notions of duty. An anonymous comment left on a website by someone who has worked in the industry offers an insight into what happens behind the scenes of TV shows in India.

‘The shows are produced at breakneck speed. I know at least 8 shows that air for an hour a day, 6 days a week, each of which is written the night before, shot in the morning, edited in the afternoon, and then aired that night. 6 days 52 open

a week. For months on end. It’s intense.’

This may be a little exaggerated, most networks keep a buffer of two weeks in production, but it gives a sense of the factory-like environment that Indian television operates in. In comparison, drama shows in Pakistan go through rounds of rehearsals and readings for each actor, and months of preparation.

I

n an ironic reversal , mass audi-

ences in Pakistan tend to spurn their own local dramas in favour of Indian soaps. Perhaps their own industry’s fare is a little too subtle for their appreciation. “The drama industry in Pakistan is greatly driven by the elite and intelligentsia who have travelled the world and are exposed to ideas, and cater to a minority audience,” explains Kerjiwal, “They see it as an expression of art and not [as a means of] making money.”

Samina Peerzada, a veteran actress from Pakistan who plays the mother of three daughters whose husband walks out on her for a male heir in Zindagi Gulzar Hai, talks to Open from Karachi and confirms Kejriwal’s assessment.

“We have always specialised in slice-oflife drama,” she says, “The onslaught of Indian soaps veered us off course for a while, but there was a need to go back to our original stories that are backed by great writing, direction and acting.”

Peerzada’s character in that serial makes for an interesting study. She is a government school teacher who raises her well-educated daughters to be fiercely independent, but remains the peace-

ful conciliator between her children and the father who’d abandoned them in childhood. “I did not at first agree with the director [Sultana Siddiqui, the doyenne of Pakistan’s TV industry and founder of Hum TV]. I wanted my character to be bitter, angry. But she convinced me that there is a form of feminism in her forgiving her husband, in her resolve that her daughters will be brought up as important members of society. It’s an ode to the many women who stand by their families and are not counted for.” Without making much of a fuss, the show dwells on difficult themes like women’s rights and their place in society, and on class differences, all of it woven well into its plot.

Noman Ijaz, another senior actor who features in the show Noorpur Ki Rani, which has just started airing in India, says that these dramas are a window to Pakistani culture. “They show our daily lives, our happiness and sorrows. We have long been fascinated by life in India. Perhaps you will be [just] as welcoming of us.”

Other explanations abound of why Pakistan does better TV. In a country where going out to malls and movie theatres, pubs and bars, is not always a safe option, and where many people stay home, television is sure to be taken seriously. Also, hint some, out of conflict is born good art. But that’s just speculation. More to the point is the question of whether Indian soap-makers will take inspiration from Pakistan’s creativity and break out of the mould. Indian television audiences may welcome it. n 28 July 2014

books Begum of the Basilica Julia Keay tells the story of an extraordinary woman ruler who constantly reinvented herself to survive the turmoil of India’s passage to British rule Mark Tully FARZANA: THE TEMPESTUOUS LIFE AND TIMES OF BEGUM SAMRU

Julia Keay HarperCollins India | 328 pages | Rs 699

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ulia Keay tells the story of the most remarkable woman to straddle the chaotic second half of the eighteenth century; the years between the collapse of effective Mughal rule and the establishment of British control over the Subcontinent. It was a time when Marathas, Afghans, Rohillas, Jats and Rajputs battled for control of the Emperor, a time when loyalty counted for nothing, a cruel and violent time. In those years, Keay says, ‘Gratuitous brutality was commonplace. Beheadings, garrottings, hangings, mutilations, dismemberings, disembowellings—nothing was taboo.’ The heroine of this story, Begum Samru, survived being lashed to a gun carriage and left in the scorching summer heat for almost a week by her own step-son, who had led her troops in a mutiny.

The title of this book, Farzana, is the name that the Begum was known by at the Mughal court and the one she is largely remembered by. Keay says that her survival in those dangerous times and her remarkable achievements were due to her ability to reinvent herself. She started life in the unpromising position of what we would now call a ‘sex slave’. When she died in her eighties, she was undisputed ruler of the prosperous jagir of Sardhana near Meerut, commander of an army, friend of the British, holder of titles that declared her to be ‘the most beloved daughter of the Mughal Emperor’ and perhaps even more remarkably, considering she was born a Muslim, ‘the beloved daughter in Christ’ of the Pope. Farzana grew so close to Emperor Shah Alam that at one stage, according to Keay, his relationship with her became ‘crucial not just to the two principals but to the very existence of what remained of the Mughal Empire’. But when the British finally entered Delhi, she made herself acceptable in their society.

Farzana was a formidable military commander, capable of holding together an army of men, most of whom, according to one foreign military officer of those times quoted by Keay, were “drunken scroun-

drels capable of the most vile excesses”. She was also a formidable administrator. Under her rule, agricultural production rose in the jagir of Sardhana and its population expanded.

The Begum was a woman who attracted, as lovers, three of the ruthless foreign mercenaries who played important roles in the armies that fought the ceaseless wars of those times.

But for all her reputation as a lover and temptress, Keay suggests that the Begum’s conversion to Catholicism was at least in part inspired by piety: ‘[T]he possibility that she had undergone a genuine spiritual conversion cannot entirely be discarded.’ Keay goes on to point out that Farzana remained a practising Catholic for the rest of her life and employed a personal chaplain. While many of the palaces and forts built by other rulers of those times now lie in ruins, the magnificent church the Begum built was declared a Basilica by the Pope in 1961 and Catholic pilgrims still visit in large numbers.

This book is much more than a biography. In tracing the twists and turns in her heroine’s fortune, the author guides readers through the complexities of the alliances which were made and broken, the battles which were fought, making it clear that although Shah Alam II was ‘an enfeebled emperor’, being able to rule in his name still mattered greatly and the imperial titles he could bestow were still eagerly sought. Her graphic descriptions of the devastation, bloodshed, lawlessness and chaos of those times and the contrast after the British finally entered Delhi, show that, like it or not, there were benefits from the spread of their rule.

A story like this is difficult to tell. With so many changes, such fluctuating fortunes, it could easily become a jumble of names and dates. But Keay provides a coherent narrative built around the life of Farzana. With her gift for description and the portrayal of character, she makes her history of this period of transition what I can only call a good read.

There is a sadness about the book, however, because after completing the first draft, Keay died of an illness she had suffered for more than a year. In the ‘Afterword’, her husband, fellow-historian John Keay, says, ‘Julia desperately wanted to retrieve Farzana’s reputation from the romancers and popularisers.’ She certainly succeeded in that. As William Dalrymple says in his introduction to Farzana, ‘Julia will be greatly missed and this book shows what an enjoyable writer we have lost.’ n

Farzana started life as a ‘sex slave’.

When she died in her 80s, she was undisputed ruler of the prosperous jagir of Sardhana near Meerut

28 july 2014

Mark Tully is a veteran broadcaster and author open www.openthemagazine.com 53

books Family Chronicles Fascinating Parsi characters fill Cyrus Mistry’s uneven collection of stories around hassled sons and lonely spouses Madhavankutty Pillai

PASSION FLOWER: SEVEN STORIES OF DERANGeMENT

Cyrus Mistry Aleph Book Company | 199 pages | Rs 495

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f the seven stories in Passion Flower, three have

Parsis in them, and they are the most compelling; it is clear Cyrus Mistry is most effective within his own community. Perhaps why the 58-year-old found literary success—the $50,000 DSC Prize for South Asian Literature this January for his second novel, Chronicle of a Corpse Bearer, after many plays and short stories—in a story set in the underbelly of the Parsi landscape. Take Mistry out of this milieu and the kernel of an interesting plot turns banal in the telling.

These stories span a broad period of contemporary Indian history, one going as far back as four decades ago. ‘Late for Dinner’ is set in 1976 and shows us a husband and wife waiting for the New Year in their flat. Husband wants them to celebrate in some fashion; she is stony and aloof. They are sad, lonely and ordinary and this has been the tone of their lives since a tragedy 23 years earlier, which they don’t speak of. Mistry builds up the tension gradually until they careen headlong into that memory, in a well-crafted story with great attention to detail: ‘Every evening, after her prayers were done, Sheramai would first light the small lamp of coconut oil which was placed on a low table by her bed. Shutting her eyes, she would touch reverentially the two photo frames of Zarathustra, one of which was on the same table by the lamp, the other on the wall above her bed. Then into the old cupboard, carved with tigers’ heads at its four top corners, would go Sheramai’s prayer book, whose torn binding was repaired with scotch tape.’

When Mistry’s stories move to non-Parsi settings, they often aren’t as convincing. ‘Two Angry Men’ has an urban corporate context. Ashutosh and Prashant are school friends but are now boss and employee. Ashutosh asks Prashant to come home for a drink and much of the story is an inner dialogue betraying mutual contempt and manipulation. Prashant is having a platonic affair with a much younger woman at the office, and boss Ashutosh uses this to needle him. This tale culminates in a compromise and resolution of sorts, but the

exchange seems artificial. For instance, when Prashant enters the house and is asked to make himself comfortable: ‘I will, I will, boss, thanks,’ said Prashant settling on the edge of a single-seater, ‘no hurry. I’ll help myself… I do know my way around.’

‘You’d better, you bum’, said Ashutosh. ‘All those years of hanging out together…’ They laughed. ‘But why so bloody late, man? I’m already starting to feel hungry.’

Childhood friends meeting daily don’t need to spell it out.

Then, in the eponymous story, Passion Flower, a schoolteacher is looking for a plant that is thought to be extinct for his thesis—the find that he expects to open a gateway to a career in the US. The twist to these established expectations doesn’t really work at the end, like some of the story’s casual characterisations, and the aftertaste is of disappointment.

The collection is redeemed by the Parsi stories, of which ‘Unexpected Grace’ is another one. Those who are familiar with the community will recognise the figure of the middle-aged bachelor living with his aged mother in a mixture of animosity and dependence, each imprisoned by the other. Thus, 34-year-old Percy Bhathena’s life is micromanaged by his mother, Banubai.

However, he has a secret life she is not in on—alone in the evening, he listens to Western classical music on a gramophone.

He is also part of The Bombay Gramophone Society and attends their meetings twice a week. Add a ghost, a prophecy and ultimately a form of freedom for a portrait of a tortured man.

Then, there is ‘Bokha’, again featuring the trope of the Parsi mother and son, but in a far more nasty fashion. Bokha’s mother Khorshedmai, an awful shrew, deliberately brings him up illiterate; only fit for a menial job, like delivery boy at a fire temple. Even at the age of 70, bedridden and obese, she enslaves him emotionally and financially. Bokha finds romance with a maid, but begins to obsess about what his mother will do.

His is not a misplaced fear; black magic gradually escalates the drama into something of a horror story that works, despite a predictable ending. The main characters are fascinatingly ugly—Bokha has four front teeth missing, the maid he loves has a bald patch on her head and his swollen mother’s ‘own corpulence had become too much for her to carry about’. This one, especially, lives up to the book’s subtitle, ‘Seven Stories of Derangement’. Some of the others don’t. n

The collection is redeemed by the Parsi stories. When Mistry’s stories move to non-Parsi settings, they often aren’t as convincing

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28 july 2014

Man of the Wild Conservationist Vivek Menon on charismatic mammals, environmental awareness and the urgent need for land securement Rajni George

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ndian wildlife does not make for an obvious bestsell-

er. But veteran conservationist and Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) founder Vivek Menon has managed to sell 20,000 copies and counting of his eight books on wild things (10, 000 of the last one), the latest being Indian Mammals: A Field Guide (Hachette India, 528 pages, Rs 850). Enamoured of elephants and admiring of gibbons, Menon travels widely and wildly, regularly procuring land to give over to wildlife. He spoke to Open amongst some of our most venerable mammals at Delhi’s India International Centre (IIC), before three weeks in the Arctic. Selected excerpts follow.

The book is very user-friendly; was this intentional?

What gets you hooked is something you can experience directly, even around your house; some people don’t notice the mammals around us. Look at Delhi; we have the largest antelope, the Nilgai, and people don’t even think about it.

Can it be used as a guidebook while walking through India?

Hopefully. I hope people use it in daily life or pass on this passion to others. On Twitter, someone posted a picture of a seven-year-old looking through my book to find the deer from a fairytale. She had the page opened to the blackbuck!

It’s fascinating when a book transcends [genres].

Why did you write on mammals specifically?

My original training was to study birds. But for a number of years, I worked with the elephant, and it became a passion. Somehow, people associate me with elephants, and with mammals.

Are elephants smarter than monkeys?

Yes. Elephants are near persons. (Apes are also close to us, as are whales and dolphins. But some monkeys are further from humans than elephants.)

If we were less arrogant as a species, we would call them ‘persons’, if personhood were defined as a set of attributes, and not necessarily ‘equal to a human being’. Like us, elephants plunder, run amuck, kill each other, rape– aberrant elephants mount other elephants of the same sex. Some aberrant elephants in Southern Africa have even tried to mate with rhinos. Their matriarchal structure appeals to me as a Malayalee, close to some of my relatives!

28 july 2014

It’s the cuddly mammals we seem to love, the dolphins and elephants.

Most mammals have forward-facing eyes; these are important to draw people in, our hormones get excited by them. We don’t relate to what make our eyes migrate to the side. With rodents, when the eyes migrate to the front, we say ‘So sweet’; when it’s a guinea pig or hamster, not a rat. I feel sorry for rodents, some of the most tested upon mammals. It’s barbaric.

Which are the most political mammals, aside from human beings?

Chimps. Once I’d gone to Rwanda to see gorillas, and I crossed over to Uganda and saw a group of chimps. The difference between these two is vast. I crossed over to them, they were chasing a colobus monkey and it was torn apart; then came squabbles over the best piece of meat. There was a female trying to get some meat from a male, proffering herself in exchange. I thought, ‘This is the closest we get to humans’. All the traits we see in ourselves, the moment we see resource. That small percentage of DNA that sets apart a gorilla and a chimp; you can see evolution taking place.

Which is the most dangerous mammal?

In India, other than us, the elephant. They kill 500 people a year. In the Northeast, the rhino. Then the three Bs: bear, boar and buffalo. The only mark I carry in 30 years of walking the forest is from the boar.

What has been your scariest experience?

Plenty—rhinos and elephants several times. I once saw a rhino chasing an elephant; it bit out a chunk. I mention in my book that Indian rhinos bite; African rhinos use their horns.

Does the human fear of decreasing resources lie behind apparent callousness toward other mammals?

I don’t think people link the two. And the moment there is climate change, you will want to see nature surviving around you. Gibbons, for example; they are our potential food tasters. It eats many wild fruits; potential resources.

What are the big needs in conservation?

The WTI lists seven big ideas. Ecological research; rescue realities; working with communities; anti-smuggling; litigation; public campaigns; and land securement. If you want to preserve nature, land is the ultimate solution. But what is the point of knowing all of this and saying we can’t do it? n open www.openthemagazine.com 55

DRINK

Temptation Uncorked Smart marketing has turned cider into a cool drink for a new generation. Toddy makers could learn a thing or two from this apple beverage’s success Manu Remakant maurice rougemont/gamma-rapho/getty images

O

ne morning, half the bars vanished from Kerala, most of them catering to the poor. Where would these men go for a drink? For the Kerala government, the decision not to renew the licences of more than 400 bars across the state was an election ploy to woo temperance movements gaining strength in the state in the backdrop of rising alcohol consumption. But drinkers will drink, and the state excise minister has already dropped hints of a hooch tragedy looming large on the horizon.

Many experts believe that one sensible way to wean people away from strong alcoholic drinks is to promote low-alcohol beverages. Toddy, for instance, would have been a perfect option. But sadly, real toddy, the meek, low-alcohol drink, the one that people once knew and chugged down with abandon, is long dead. Today, classic unadulterated toddy is as rare as a flying unicorn. So what must be done to have toddy play the saviour? The answer perhaps lies in the West, where efforts are on to bring back low-alcohol drinks like ale that are both natural and traditional. Benign taxation has encouraged such endeavours.

Consider the apple. Of all the fruits on earth, only a few have been as celebrated as this one. This fruit not only figured in Paleolithic cave art, but some scientists believe it goes a long way back, long enough to watch dinosaurs perish and mammals rear their meek hairy heads. So we may never know exactly when and where it was that a few apples tumbled into a pool of water and rotted, thanks to yeast cells around, turning the fluid punchy enough to entice a famished hunter-gatherer and give him a pleasant kick in the head that would bring him back the following morning with renewed thirst. Thus, one imagines, was cider born.

28 July 2014

T

he Romans who began to conquer Europe under Julius Caesar in 55 BCE found natives in England and other parts of the continent quaffing a curious drink made of tart crab apples. In no time, the newcomers also fell for the drink’s charm. To make it peppier, the Romans introduced new apple varieties from back home along with sophisticated orchard-farming techniques.

Later, it was Moors who took up the game: cultivating newer varieties of apples with techniques that gave the cider tradition a lease of fresh life.

Water-cider, alias ciderkin, the drink that people of the Middle ages drank, was a simple proposition: pick windpicked apples, steep them in water, let the juice ferment naturally, and throw a party. In a period when plain water was seen as unhygienic, people had little choice but to turn to their orchards for safe refreshment. Cider was simple, safe, and in plenty. Everyone drank it, including children across the continent. On the other side of the Channel, Normandy in France had already had premonitions of its destiny as the world’s cider capital. Across the Atlantic, America had picked up the taste and rave from England, and started planting apple trees fervently. The very fruit said to have brought about the expulsion of man from the Garden of Eden was on its way to create heaven on earth with its juice.

If you took a jaunt through the happy orchards of 17th and 18th century villages, you’d soon be besotted with this heady drink—unpasteurised and preservative-free. If cider is made well from a select blend of apple varieties, it may be served as a rich, dark and complex drink with a refreshing taste reminiscent of full-blown fruits. Real cider is merrily pastoral. Its roots twist around blind beliefs—druids, spirits and wassailing. Farmers have long observed rituals like wassailing that date back to pagan times aimed at protecting orchards by warding off evil spirits thought to haunt apple trees.

As the rage for cider rose in the West, people wondered what if the low-alcohol fluid packed a headier kick in every swig. The solution was to distill the cider. And so was apple brandy born.

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Calvados—from a special region of northern France—was distilled from the cider of designated apples and was an instant hit. In America, colonists who lacked the technical skill to make copper stills to distill their cider looked for natural methods. They found a way out. Soon, barrels of cider were seen left outside homes during winter nights.

Come morning, they’d siphon off the unfrozen alcohol to make applejack.

Despite stiff competition from beer and ale, demand for cider and apple brandy continued to increase for quite some time in the 19th century, luring the attention of unscrupulous entrepreneurs to apple orchards. To their jaded eyes, pure unpasteurised cider was not only bland and weak, it also had a much-too-short shelf life. Like toddy. So they started work by spiking the drink with non-fermenting sweeteners and artificial juices instead of perishable apples. Does that now sound more and more like the tragic story of India’s own toddy? Steadily, real cider lost its magic even among its most ardent fans the world over.

Towards the end of the 19th century, America’s temperance movement knew what would be the first victim it would goad towards the guillotine.

With dubious ingredients, ‘hard cider’, as cider is still known in the US, had come a long way from the mild neighbourhood drink of medieval times.

Farmers, converted by zealous teetotalers, feverishly chopped down their trees to check the flow of the abominable drink. For the next hundred years, cider, one of the oldest alcoholic beverages in the world, lived a sordid life—brewed in seedy places, laced with artificial sugars and methanol, sold in smoggy recesses—far away from the world of haute merriment.

I

t was after many had left cider for

dead that revival efforts in various corners of England and France began, first in meek trickles in small cideries, and then with bolder moves that turned into a wider movement aimed at reclaiming the past glory of this bucolic drink. Enterprising farmers piggybacked on new food trends and

back-to-nature youth romance to pave the path for cider’s return. The immediate task, they knew, was to give a radical makeover to cider’s poor image as ‘tramp juice’. It had to be rebranded, remodelled and made respectable. In its second coming, it shed its aspiration to give drinkers a hard kick, and began to stick to the basics—that is, to the retention of its apple flavour. With a few ice cubes clinking down in the glass —a cool new experience for cider—the drink was prepared to appeal especially to the young and young-at-heart.

Today, cider is England’s fastest growing drink, closing in on the sales of beer. Brands such as Magners, the famous Irish Cider that has just entered the Indian market, focus on retaining the rustic quality of the apple drink.

Meanwhile, old orchard traditions like wassailing have been revived in fun settings to woo the youth. The US, too, has taken on this trend from Europe. Big brewers like MillerCoors, AnheuserBusch and Boston Beer Company have jumped into the fray to take home big chunks of the liquid apple pie. Having made a dramatic comeback in the West, cider is now conquering newer terrains, continents and countries, including India. All it took for its success was an image makeover and hard work on quality-improvement, made possible by the concerted efforts of farmers, brewers, cider aficionados, nature lovers, and governments (which supported the efforts with tax concessions and promotional programmes).

Does that ring an idea in Kerala?

If we lay the script of cider over that of toddy, you may find several plot twists that may snugly fit right in. Like fermented apple juice, unadulterated toddy is both meek and appealing. In a way, it’s cider in sleep, waiting to be awakened to a renaissance. Sadly, unadulterated toddy is hard to come by.

Yet, it deserves a revival. Who knows what toddy, with all its songs and rituals of local lore, could become with some savvy marketing? The meek, after all, is the new strong. n The writer, an associate professor of English, runs the website, Rumroadravings.com open www.openthemagazine.com 57

rough cut

‘Yeh Duniya Pittal Di’ Mayank Shekhar

A

How Bollywood’s Punjabi inflection unifies India

s I step out of Karan Johar’s latest production

almost every weekend. They are organically set in the reHumpty Sharma Ki Dulhania (#HSKD, since we must alistically Punjabi quarters of Delhi. This is not a surprise. talk in hashtags), at no point does it occur to me that There is enough audience for it. In the 90s, a large number of I had all along been watching a Punjabi film. HSKD, set in Delhi based/educated filmmakers—actors, writers, directors, Ambala and Delhi, is a remake of another Punjabi blockbusttechnicians, musicians— migrated to Andheri in Mumbai. er, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (DDLJ).

Maybe Shah Rukh Khan’s success was their inspiration.

Like most Hindi film watchers, I’ve never spent time at Locals liken the Bollywood neighbourhood Lokhandwala to a sarson da khet in a pind in Punjab, or hung out in Punjabi a mini Delhi now. They naturally film their experiences. neighbourhoods in Delhi among beeji, tauji, papaji and othMumbai’s film industry is still hugely pluralistic, yet, proer typical folks. But something specifically Punjabi has ducers of Punjabi origin, it could be argued, have traditionequalled popular Hindi entertainment for so long that we aually dominated the production side. Up until the mid 40s, tomatically assume it to be universally ‘Bollywood’. We may Bombay’s cinema business was run by large studios that connot know what movie titles Total Siyappa or Dil Bole Hadippa trolled both distribution and content. Prominent studio exactly mean, but we get the drift. For the longest I thought owners would be Parsi (Ardeshir Irani), Gujarati (Chandulal the word ‘dolna’, quite popular in lyrics (‘Tere bin nahin lagda, Shah), Bengali (Himanshu Rai)... Hyperinflation during nahin lagda, dolna’), referred to ‘shaking’ (as in the Hindi word WWII made it impossible to import enough raw stock to sus‘dolna’). It actually means ‘beautiful girl’ in tain the production line of large-scale stuPunjabi. This knowledge—or lack thereof— dios. Freelance producers and distributors For a long time, I hardly interferes with our love for lyrics and took over the film business, betting their lingos that may be Punjabi in letter but are life savings on individual projects. The ‘star’ thought the word decidedly national in spirit. system replaced the ‘studio’ system. Several ‘dolna’ referred to Director Ram Gopal Varma once told me of these risk-takers were Punjabis (some shaking—as in the that only after he had attended Aishwarya of them Sindhis) who had migrated from Hindi word ‘dolna’.

Rai and Abhishek Bachchan’s wedding did Pakistan after Independence. A producer or It actually means he recognise that Karan Johar actually makes a star’s son would often get a chance to be‘beautiful girl’ in realistic Bollywood movies! This realisation come the next star. This explains the same may be true for most of India. While each unsurnames—Kapoor, Khanna, Chopra etcetPunjabi happy Indian family is unhappy in its own era (besides the ‘pathan’ Khan of course)— way, all Indian families get made the same headlining the majority of Bollywood films way: through a weekend-long marriage function that inevin later generations. But this can only partly explain why itably starts with the cocktail/sangeet and ideally ends with Bollywood equals Punjabi. The fact is that there is no other the bridegroom on a horseback heading towards his girl Indian culture more suitably robust for mass entertainment: dressed in a ‘designer lehenga’. The wedding could take place money doesn’t sober its rich, drinking isn’t frowned upon, in Kanpur or among NRIs in California. The rituals may dancing is actively encouraged, dressing is happily bling, the owe their origins to Punjab. The cultural code comes from music is loud, and the poetry is unpretentiously colloquial.

Bollywood, which is an influential Indian state of its own.

Punjab, at least in its public image, naturally acquires a culThe spoken language of this state is Hindustani. The detural currency far exceeding its tiny landmass. bate over which is the more ‘official’ Indian language— Over the past few months, I have partied in Bangaon, a English or Hindi—crops up often in national politics. The village in Bihar, and Pasha, a discotheque in Chennai. The Government sought to promote Hindi through mass media crowds couldn’t have been more different. The music was in the 80s. Most people were turned off. the same. The lyrics: ‘Meri aahein gallaan. Jag sara karda, ni Bollywood’s done the language the most service by simply baar baar ve. Yeh dunia pittal di…’ Who cares if we understand morphing it into Hinglish and Pinglish, making it accessible what that means? We’ve danced the same way. That’s the to the whole country. English is still an aspiration. But how way, Mahi ve! n come the movies are so Punjabi-by-nature still?

Mayank Shekhar runs the pop-culture website TheW14.com There are firstly the ‘Dilliwallah movies’ that you see

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spirit of the matter For some time, observational studies have suggested that only heavy drinking is detrimental to cardiovascular health and that light consumption may actually be beneficial

Nature and Nurture Genes play as important a role in a child’s learning as environmental factors

Booze Isn’t Good for the Heart

klaus vedfelt/getty images

science

D

oes learning in children

depend only on environmental influences like schooling and home life, or do genetic factors also play a role? And is it true, as a common myth goes, that children can be either good at maths or literature, but very rarely at both? According to a new study, both the environment and thousands of DNA changes in genes combine to help shape a child’s performance at learning.

Also, it is not true that children can be good only at either maths or literature; the study found that both mathematical and reading ability are controlled by the same genes.

The research was conducted by scientists of United College London, University of Oxford and King’s College London, and published in Nature Communications. The researchers analysed the influence of genetics on the reading and mathematics performance of 12-year-old children (both twins and unrelated kids) from nearly 2,800 British families. The results of these tests were then analysed alongside their DNA data, which showed a substantial overlap in the genetic variants that influence mathematics and reading.

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A University College London press release cites one of the authors, Dr Oliver Davis, as saying: “We looked at this question in two ways, by comparing the similarity of thousands of twins, and by measuring millions of tiny differences in their DNA. Both analyses show that similar collections of subtle DNA differences are important for reading and maths.

However, it’s also clear just how important our life experience is in making us better at one or the other. It’s this complex interplay of nature and nurture as we grow up that shapes who we are.”

The finding deepens scientists’ understanding of how nature and nurture interact, highlighting the important role that a child’s learning environment may have on the development of reading and maths skills, and the complex, shared genetic basis of these cognitive traits.

The researchers write in the journal, ‘Understanding… these patterns increases our chances of developing effective learning environments that will help individuals attain the highest level of literacy and numeracy, increasingly important skills in the modern world.’ n

Contrary to what earlier reports have shown, it now appears that any exposure to alcohol has a negative impact on cardiac health. The new study, co-led by Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, reviewed evidence from more than 50 studies that linked drinking habits and cardiovascular health for over 260,000 people. Researchers found that individuals who carry a specific gene that typically leads to lower alcohol consumption over time have, on average, superior cardiovascular health records. Specifically, the results show that individuals who consume 17 per cent less alcohol per week have on average a 10 per cent reduced risk of coronary heart disease, lower blood pressure and a lower Body Mass Index. n

Drone Lighting

Researchers at MIT and Cornell University hope to change the way outdoor lighting is set up for photography by using squadrons of small, light-equipped autonomous robots that automatically assume the positions necessary to produce lighting effects specified through a simple, intuitive, camera-mounted interface. Their first prototype uses an autonomous helicopter fitted with lights to produce a difficult effect called ‘rim lighting,’ used to click silhouettes. The camera captures an image about 20 times a second that is transmitted to a computer running a control algorithm, which evaluates its rim width for a signal to be sent to the robot to adjust its position accordingly and cast light with calculated precision. n

28 july 2014

usb on-the-go Phones with OTG support allow users to connect additional devices—thumb drives, SD card readers, cameras, and even external hard-drives—to their phone via a micro USB port for added functionality

tech&style

Vertu Signature Touch This high-end handset redefines the meaning of a luxury smartphone gagandeep Singh Sapra $11,000 onwards

Breitling S3 ZeroG w Chronograph

Not for sale

As the main partner of the Swiss Space System company’s ZeroG flights project, Breitling has specially created the S3 ZeroG chronograph.

Equipped with a light and sturdy black titanium case and a SuperQuartz movement (ten times more accurate than standard quartz), this chronograph is distinguished by its S3 logo appearing on the dial as well as by its caseback engraving depiction of a parabolic flight. It is water resistant up to 100 metres. It will serve as a boarding card for weightless flight passengers and will not be retailed to others elsewhere. n

Sony DSC-RX100M3

V

ertu is redefining what a luxury smartphone should be with its Signature Touch. Featuring a Quad-Core Snapdragon 2.3 GHz processor, a 4.7-inch sapphire crystal full high definition screen and handcrafted finish, this smartphone is a sure winner.

Its acoustics, tuned in collaboration with B&O, feature Dolby Digital Plus virtual surround sound processing and stereo speakers. This hi-fi audio system is matched with a full HD 473dpi display, the highest definition available for a 4.7-inch screen.

By optimising connectivity options over all popular LTE, WCDMA, GSM and DC-HSPA+ bands, Vertu ensures you get the best coverage anywhere in the world.

To take a selfie or make a video call, this phone features a 2.3 megapixel front camera, and a 13 megapixel Hasselblad certified rear camera. The camera has autofocus and twin flash.

The Signature Touch offers a talk time of up to 15 hours and a standby 28 july 2014

of 380 hours; it can charge using a microUSB cable as well as wirelessly. It features NFC for wireless connection options, and has 64 gigabytes of internal storage. It also supports USB OnThe-Go for additional storage.

This smartphone comes in eight different styles: Jet Calf, Claret Calf, Pure Jet, Pure Jet Red Gold Mixed Metals, Seaspray Lizard, Damson Lizard, Pure Navy Lizard and Jet Alligator. Vertu also promises to bring out a range of cases in complementary materials and colours.

Also included with the Signature Touch are global WiFi access with iPass, anti-theft and an encryption service from Silent Circle that ensures your voice calls, video calls and text messages are all encrypted. This smartphone also gives you access to Vertu Life, which offers a personalised selection of exclusive privileges, unrestricted access to elite events and complimentary access to a wide range of exclusive private member clubs around the world. n

Rs 54,990

This point-and-shoot camera costs nearly as much as an entry level DSLR camera, but it captures some amazing frames both indoors and outdoors. In this third avatar of the RX100, Sony has added a pop-up OLED viewfinder and also made the camera a bit smaller. There is also a brand new user interface that makes the camera more interactive, and a full tilt screen in case you love selfies. The RX100M3 has a bright f/1.8-2.8 Zeiss Vario Sonar T*1(24-70mm) equivalent lens making it worth every penny you spend on it. It also features a 20.1 megapixel Exmor R CMOS sensor that works beautifully in low light. n Gagandeep Singh Sapra is The Big Geek at System3. He can be reached at gadgets@openmedianetwork.in

open www.openthemagazine.com 61

CINEMA

the faultlessness in our STARS Varun Dhawan recently called his co-star, Alia Bhatt, “the Robert De Niro of our generation”, a comment inspired by her Highway performance.

“Hopefully her success will rub on to me,” he added, “and I will have a hat-trick to boast of”

Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya A boorish film with one-dimensional acting, this is a poor parody of DDLJ ajit duara

o n scr een

current

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes Director Matt Reeves cast Gary Oldman, Keri Russel, Andy

Serkis

Score ★★★★★

Varun DHAWAN, Cast ALIA BHATT, a ukl Sh th ar Siddh nk Khaitan Director Shasha

S

ent with love, from one fanboy to

another, this movie is essentially a parody. A homage to Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge is acceptable, but the idea of making a movie on Humpty Dumpty’s ‘dulhaniya’ is a joke—producer Karan Johar’s flippant idea of what he thinks is ‘camp’.

The intellectual elevators in the films Johar produces are always stuck on the first floor—part of his ‘dumbing down’ strategy—but Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhaniya goes a little beyond that and becomes a mockery of that landmark film. In conversation, setting and acting style, it takes the earthy rural Punjab background of DDLJ and turns it on its head.

The attitude in the movie says, ‘Yaar, that was 1995, nobody speaks like that now’—girls like Kavya (Alia Bhatt) can drink boys under the table these days, hop into bed with them, even use foul language and be savvy about money.

Boys can have ridiculous names like

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Humpty (Rakesh) Sharma, so long as they can carry it off with slick chatter and goofy behaviour; so long as they know how to earn a few bucks by black mailing people and so long as they know how to ‘buddy talk’ the girl’s father and badger him into being their ‘yaar’. The old-world manners of the landed gentry in Punjab are history— boy now gets girl by kicking some ass.

Kavya is engaged to be married to an NRI (Siddharth Shukla) who is just too perfect to be true—medical profession, good looks, great cook. Humpty (Varun Dhawan) and his two sidekicks have a hunch that his is the face of the ‘gay NRI’; and that seducing him with a coy boy is the tactic that will help Humpty get his ‘dulhaniya’.

The two lead actors are lively, but their performances are one dimensional. They stay on the same pitch from first to last—in keeping with the zone of boorishness in which this movie is written. n

Any movie about humans and apes in which the leading ape is the best actor is a little short on talent; while the people in this film bark orders at each other, the apes conduct elegant conversation in sign language and a few words of spoken English.

In the future, around 2026, a simian virus has wiped people out, save a small colony of humans who have developed an immunity to the bug. These humans live in San Francisco, and the apes in the forest, and they soon head into a confrontation.

The violent and war mongering culture of humans, the film suggests, is an evolutionary flaw so contagious that it can even get passed on to other intelligent species—like apes. The film is particularly severe on American gun culture, with Caesar, the leader of the apes, banning guns from his forest. When a rebel ape called Koba picks up a gun and goes berserk, the scene looks uncannily like a scene from an American University campus, with teachers screaming and kids ducking for cover.

As an allegory on gun violence and the lack of human wisdom it exposes, this film is rather interesting. The problem is that it takes an obvious theme and tries to make it look profound. n AD 28 july 2014

Not People Like Us

R aj e e v M asa n d

Nuts over Dates

Karan Johar has a lot of patience, but he won’t forgive Ranveer Singh. Turns out KJo is still very upset with the RamLeela star for walking out of Shuddhi and choosing Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Bajirao Mastani instead. He has told friends that Ranveer is persona non grata at Dharma Productions.

One source reveals that Karan’s anger at the young actor comes from the fact that Ranveer had personally visited the filmmaker’s Khar office and agreed to a price and committed his dates to Shuddhi before going back on his word only days later. It wasn’t some casual agreement, but a firm commitment between the two that Karan insists Ranveer backed out of.

But those in the actor’s corner insist that Ranveer had no intention to ditch Karan. And that his backing out of KJo’s troubled project shouldn’t be viewed as an act of betrayal at all.

The actor’s friends say Ranveer committed to Shuddhi in good faith, and before Bhansali decided to cast him in Bajrao. When he did land Bhansali’s film, Ranveer immediately explained that he’d allocated his dates to Karan, and reportedly requested Bhansali to start Bajirao after he’d wrapped Shuddhi.

But the Devdas director, who has had a love-hate relationship with Karan for years, insisted he wanted the same batch of dates, and allegedly appealed to Ranveer’s conscience, insisting he couldn’t possibly choose Karan over him after Bhansali had given him his biggest hit yet in Ram-Leela.

When it became clear that Bhansali wasn’t going to shift his dates—in fact, he even announced the same release date as Shuddhi’s—Ranveer, after consulting his mentor Aditya Chopra, made the dreaded call to Karan, bowing out of Shuddhi.

Now Ranveer’s grouse against Karan is that despite being fully aware of the turn of events, it’s unfair that the filmmaker should still be upset with him. The actor has been complaining that he’s been manipulated in a battle of egos between the two filmmakers, and has no place to run.

Feuding Filmstars

Salman Khan may put up a brave front and behave like he couldn’t care less that his ex-girlfriend Katrina Kaif has moved on happily with Ranbir Kapoor, but industry insiders say the superstar is no fan of RK, and misses no opportunity to take a dig at the Barfi star. Salman is cordial—friendly, even—with Katrina, with whom he continues to share a business 28 july 2014

manager. Kat too remains close to Salman’s sister Alvira Agnihotri. But Ranbir is not a name that comes up often in the Khan household.

Recently while filming an item song with Nargis Fakhri for his upcoming film Kick, Salman reportedly brought up the subject of her Rockstar leading man, and launched into a verbal attack on him. Apparently, Salman kept provoking Nargis to say uncomplimentary things about Ranbir, but when she didn’t have much to add to that conversation, Salman repeatedly alleged that success had gone to Ranbir’s head, and that the 31-year-old still needed to prove himself before acting like he is God’s favourite child.

It’s ironic that Salman first clashed with Ranbir before RK was even an actor— and without Salman even knowing who he was. The beefy star famously roughed up Ranbir in a drunken stupor at Olive Restaurant in Mumbai, only to be informed by his drinking partner, Sanjay Dutt, that the kid was in fact Rishi Kapoor’s son. The following day, Salman reportedly sent a pile of shirts to the star kid’s home, and an apology for misbehaving the previous night.

The Price of Lechery

Not one, but two prominent filmmakers are the subject of water cooler conversations in Bollywood for indulging in similar misdeeds. The first reportedly made a lewd pass at his leading lady, then appealed to his well-connected friends to ‘handle’ the situation when the actress went to the cops with photographic evidence of his disgusting behaviour.

The second, a senior director, was allegedly accused by an upcoming actress of exploiting her under the false pretext of giving her a starring role in his next multi-starrer. When the girl saw the rushes of the film (still in production), she realised she’d been taken for a ride, and threatened the film’s producer that she would take legal action.

In both cases, sources say the actresses—the first a prominent leading lady, the second an obscure starlet—were paid off to stay mum and squash the respective cases. In both cases, the settlement money is believed to have been deducted from the directors’ fees. n Rajeev Masand is entertainment editor and film critic at CNN-IBN open www.openthemagazine.com 63

open space

The Old Man and the Lake

by AS H I S H S H A R M A

Haji Abdul Salam Butt, 75, is one of the oldest boatmen in Srinagar. He began working when he was 15 years old, and says the secret of his health is his profession as much as the regular swims he takes in Dal Lake. He has been witness to the city’s changing profile—from ‘Heaven on Earth’ to the ‘Terror capital of India’. In the 60s, he saw Shammi Kapoor shooting for the song Kashmir ki Kali (‘Blossom of Kashmir’), and remembers the long years of militancy that followed, a grim period when no tourists would come visiting and summer evenings were filled with the sound of gunfire. Nowadays, he is happy that tourists have returned to the valley— putting him back in business

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