After a few weeks of being immersed in Disaster Risk Reduction – thanks to the documentary, Farmer Suicides and the way out – thanks to our Marathi feature film “Jhing Chik Jhing”, and politics & elections – thanks to the elections; I am back to my normal reading. (disclaimer: my normal and other people’s normal may be two different things ).
Some interesting articles / blogs / analysis ? opinions i read last week :
a) Hindu Divided Family – by Sudheendhra Kulkarni in Tehelka.
For me, Mr.Kulkarni is the acceptable face of the Right in India – more economically and politically right of centre than in a relgiious nationalistic sense; which, readers of this blog know, scares me. He says, in this brilliant piece of introspection,
the BJP could not convince the voters that they should vote in favour of change. Rather, the truth is that the people wanted change but were not convinced that the BJP or the BJP-led NDA assured the kind of change they wanted.
The BJP’s failure to convince the people on this score is rooted in a combination of structural, political, ideological, organizational and campaign-related reasons.
He also takes a long hard look at “Hindutva” and the reasons for defeat – and takes on the Sangh Parivaar. I predict that just as the old style Communists in the Soviet Union or the pro Apartheid regime of South Africa used to exile people, Mr. Kulkarni is in for a long period of political exile. But, i really don’t think that he minds. I hope that he and others can lay the foundation for a right of centre party that provides a genuine alternative to the Congress.
2) A Wish List For New I&B Minister Ambika Soni: The CEO’s Agenda – from Social “Media India” – interests me as a media professional.
The list includes issues as varied as a single tax window, clarifying the Content Code, FDI, etal. To these i will add my two wishes :
a) Terrestrial Broadcasting – Doordarshan sucks. it really , truly does. Doordarshan is supposed to be a Public Service Broadcaster. However, the way it is run, it has become a money making machine which is neither Public, nor Service, the only thing that it is is a broadcaster. Free up the Terrestrial media – allow private sector entities, lay down rules that ensures Public Service Broadcasting; and finally remove the chains from DD that allows it to compete. It cannot spend its time selling slots that can only be monetized if you make a programme at zero cost.
b) Rating Services – the media rating services have to be more representative, both at the top & bottom ends of the audience. It is as important to have a metric that looks at what 25 year old graduates, who have a disposable income of Rs.25 k, watch – as it is to have one that looks at what someone who earns 4k a month watches. the current system is geared to the latter. And while, the numbers are there – you can’t sell too much beyond low value products..In the interest of diversity, audiences, and clients – it would be good if the minister took the lead in guiding the system away from its comfort zone – into something that offers choice.
A Note on Identity Politics by Paul Krugman in the NYT Blogs – What interested me was the dilema of the conservatives
The thing that is really driving conservatives crazy, I think, is that their identity politics just isn’t working like it used to. Their whole approach has been based on the belief that Americans vote as if they live in Mayberry, and fear and hate anyone who looks a bit different; now that the country just isn’t like that, they’ve gone mad.
replace Americans and Mayberry, with Indians and Ahmedabad, and you could be talking about the BJP.
4) Doc Soup – Fund Raising Woes – how documentary film makers worldwide are impacted by the recession, and what are the steps that they are taking to continue making their films.
5) Free gold ring for babies with Tamil names –
It is so interesting to a government give economic incentives to change behavior, rather than impose blanket bans or take to the streets in violent protest.
Others:
1) Media Neutrality in India -problem and solution by Chakresh
2) To RSS with Love: The Real Story of 2009 Elections – by Aditya Nigam in Kafila
And finally,
3) Rope A Dope Soap by Amrita – rotfl – so true
But then again identity politics does work in india
relace ahmedabad and modi with rahul and amethy or sonia and rai bareli .,,, there are so many such instances
lastly it may be a better approach for u
but using taxpayers funds for golden rings is absurd in my thinking
these funds should be for development and schools and likes
if knidhi wants to do it why does he not use his own nidhi?
read that article,
and am sad to read ur reaction
posting these …
shiju,melbourne,says:His own sons name is Stalin?? Which is not a Tamil name, he will not do it himself, but force others to do, and this indicates the dishonesty of Karunanidi towards the Tamil people.
Swapnil,Seattle,says:He has been promoting Tamil language and he named his son Stalin!
Hi Prax
i am hoping that identity politics will come to an end soon. it is not about sonia or modi – but about all of looking at ourselves wrt our ethnic/caste/ regional identities and not as Indians. and, that is one of the things i am heartened about the elections – people came out to vote for India, and the idea of being Indian – rather than being Vaidarbhi or Sikkimese or Kashmiri or from Telengana.
on the nose ring part – it heartens me because of an economic incentive as opposed to being a unilateral directive. if you don’t want a nose ring, then call your kid what you want. but, if you do – you get this.
Very often cultures or languages are imperiled because interest groups want to use force. why not use economic incentives. For example, if the Maharashtra Government used economic incentives for spreading Marathi – then the MNS issue would have never come up.
My grandmother used to tell me that Tamillians were very interested in learning Hindi, till the Centre tried to impose it. and then the whole thing derailed.
it is not about whether i agree or disagree with the Mayor of Chennai – it actually does not matter to me – it is about the method he has used. we often wave the stick and not the carrot.
now on the issue of tax payer’s money – culture & language are a part of the Government’s – local/state/central – roles and responsibilities. i have more issues on free TV sets for the poor, than i have for this 🙂
and Prax, there is no force. it is an incentive. which is where the respondent has got it wrong. Karnunanidhi’s wife (one of them) will not get the nose ring 🙂
>For me, Mr.Kulkarni is the acceptable face of the Right in India
Quite ironic in that a former Leftist should seem to be the ‘acceptable face’ of the Right
hi middlepath
at the core the left and the right are mirror images of each other. they are patriarchal, centralists, where identity (communist or religious) overwhelms all other…..where it is their way or the highway.
not surprising at all 🙂
Being a long-time reader of Kulkarni’s column in IE, I was watching with keen interest how he was trying to lead the BJP’s election-strategy. There seemed an obvious disconnect lurking beneath the surface. Now it has erupted, as I had anticipated.
I share your hope that there evolves a right-of-center party in India that doesn’t play the religion card. Meghnad Desai has been sharing some brilliant observations in this respect, comparing the BJP’s debacle with the Labour Party’s debacle in the UK, and how it took them a long time to get rid of their most conservative ideologies. Desai wonders how long it will take for the BJP to cut off its umbilical cord with the RSS, though I am not too hopeful of that happening anytime in our lifetime!
Hi Mahendra,
what is more interesting is the response from the Sangh High Command. the brotherhood does not like dissent. Tho’ i am not sure if Kulkarni is a Sangh Member.
I hope so – if atleast to provide the alternative. if the BJP is not the party, someone else will step into that vacuum. The BJP has only two alternatives (and here i am following thro’ with the Brit example) to be a pre Thatcher Conservative Party or the British National Party.
the Labour party atleast has a second & a third rung, i don’t even see that in the BJP.
Any person (more so if associated with the BJP) who comes out with a criticism of the party, he instantly becomes a darling of the chatterati. I am surprised at the amount of gloating doing the rounds and the certitude in claims that “Hindutva” is dead, BJP needs to become “secular” to survive etc.
This solution is akin to treating a flu sick man by sapping off his blood. Hindutva is BJPs blood, its core idealogy or at least it should be.
The reason BJP lost is because it diluted its agenda. BJP has to go back to its roots, never mind if it loses allies in that process.
As far as I am concerned it is Vajpayee who started the rot, with his attitude of compromise even if it meant ditching the core principles of the party.
The first thing to do for the BJP is to cut down to size the number of backroom dealers like this Kulkarni, Jailtley, Rajnath, Sushma etc. Hand over the reins to Modi for its revival.
For congress supporters such as the author of this blog, it is amusing that your obsession with BJP refuses to die down even after the election. It would be better if you reserve your worries for the country, the new govt and its agenda.
@ reality – welcome to this blog. thank you for your comments.
the BJP claimed to be secular, and they went after the Congress for being pseudo secular. but, maybe i digerss with facts 🙂
i will be very happy if Mr.Modi takes over the BJP – it means that the BJP becomes unelectable.
finally, Hindutva is not policy. At best it is philosophy – and philosophy does not win elections, policies – on how to combat everyday issues like food, employment, roads, energy – do.
i hope that the BJP can play its role as able and effective opposition, and not spend its time on fatricidal infighting, to ensure that a) there is development, b) there is opposition.
thank you.
“i will be very happy if Mr.Modi takes over the BJP – it means that the BJP becomes unelectable. ”
Yeah.. thats why BJP has been winning elections after elections in Gujarat… because of unelectability.
Another one of your gems:
“…Mr. Kulkarni is in for a long period of political exile. But, i really don’t think that he minds. I hope that he and others can lay the foundation for a right of centre party that provides a genuine alternative to the Congress.”
Who are the others apart from Kulkarni you are referring to? Chandan Mitra, Swapan Dasgupta, Jaitley? These worthies are supposed to set up a national party after quitting the BJP as an alternative to congress? None of them have any mass base. I am sorry to say that this is just delusional.
I agree philosophy does not win elections on its own, and conversely does not lose elections either. Which is exactly the reason this “blame Hindutva for BJPs loss” line of reasoning is out of place.
Gargi,
First i agree with identity discussion but don’t see things changing in the foreseeable future
we are to family/clan oriented very tribal in our core
no wonder we prefer foreign rule
I know its economic incentive, but it is a horrid way, just like conversions and the prayer box and evangelists
first dont see the correlation between a tamil name and how it promotes the language and culture…
why does knidhi not practice before he preaches?
Lastly i see it as a continuation of ruin/dole politics like free tv sets, e/c, 2 rs rice, alcohol, chicken mutton etc- not even remotely related to incentivising tamil education
For that u need better tamil schools, and teachers who teach instead of being absent …..
@ Prax:
a) his name is not knidhi, but karunanidhi – it is one word. most tamillians do not have the name surname concept that the North has.
b) India, back in the 1950’s, was carved up into linguistic states . the role of the state is to protect the language, and culture is associated with it.
c) it is not the State government that is imposing this rule, but the Chennai municipal commissioner.
d) it is akin to have tax payer’s money going towards spreading Hindi or Sanskrit or Assamese or funding Manipuri dance or whatever.
and finally, the school system – especially in rural TN – is really good. we are talking about Chennai city in this article.
i don’t see what the issue is. i really don’t.
a)
i was typing in short
everything that he does is vote bank centric !
this i think is one more stunt
b) what has naming kids got to do with promoting language ? beats me – it would be better if money was provided to create literature, translate books into tamil or make tamil more uptodate … in the sense that people get access to the latest knowledge
Yup, I’m with you all the way there.
BTW, does your upgrading to WordPress 2.8 mean we will have nested comments here? 🙂
yes 🙂