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E-mail from readers the world over
Date sent: Mon, 7 Sep 1998 21:55:35 EDT A new convert has to justify the reason for converting. Environment, economics and market define religious orientation, not some divine intervention. Can she do charity without proclaiming she is Christian, Hindu, or of any other religion? If not, the charity already is biased and not truly selfless.
Date sent: Fri, 04 Sep 1998 15:30:23 +0900 Thanks to Kanchan Gupta for a lucid portrayal of how Nelson Mandela raised the Kashmir issue. Mandela, however well-respected he may be, has no right to bring up bilateral issues. It proves beyond doubt that because South Africa feels that India is no longer important in their scheme of things, they unabashedly turn against India. South Africa deserves condemnation for being so irresponsible, myopic and prejudiced.
Balaji
Date sent: Fri, 4 Sep 1998 11:17:42 -0700 This article sparks hatred in many of us. It was the Indian people and government which supported Nelson Mandela during his struggle. I have no other words rather than to label him as an ungrateful, selfish person. Having achieved what he wanted by using the Indian government, he is now turning towards more opportunistic partners. How can Mandela forget that it was India that stood against the anti-apartheid regime, it was India that invited the South African cricket team to India when all other countries had banned them. There is a lesson in this -- one to be learnt for India -- be powerful and whatever you do will be appreciated.
Date sent: Fri, 04 Sep 1998 14:07:34 PDT Tara Shankar Sahay's article titled 'Sonia tears into BJP Ideology' starts off by saying that she launched into a blistering attack on the BJP government. The article did not list any new issues raised by her; the only attack she seems to have made was about the non-performance (what an objective criterion) of the government. What was so blistering about the attack? Ridiculous journalism is running rampant. The more I read articles by Indian political journalists, the more it seems like their journalism courses consisted of Adjectives 101, More Adjectives 102 and All the Adjectives 103. All articles use cliched, outmoded terminology. Phrases such as 'cleverly evaded,' 'blistering attack,' 'frontal attack,' 'questioned the propriety,' 'categorically denied,' 'without naming referred to,' 'indirectly hinted' and so on dominate the pages of Indian newspapers. Most journalists are nothing but bad precis writers. Quality Indian political journalists are indeed so rare as to merit being declared an endangered species. Does Rediff have to tarnish its image by providing space to such journalists. Rediff has absolutely the best commentary on many issues. Why then does it also carry substandard work? Prem Natarajan
Date sent: Sun, 6 Sep 1998 09:04:13 EDT It is such a disappointment to me that a project as big and as important as this -- one on which the very existence of the lifeline in India dwells -- is based on the opinions of one or two individuals. Why? Is not Mr Vajpayee aware of this? Does he not want Gujarat and other neighbouring states to get Narmada's waters because one or two individuals have proposed a big harm to a small town somewhere in Maharashtra? Look at how the world's dams have been constructed. There was always a displacement of people and villages. Why is this not a satisfactory solution in India? I cannot call any United Nation agency working in the real interest of India if it was to stop or retard such progress. Maharashtra got Bombay and what did it do? Turned it into Mumbai filled with gutters and slums and eccentric leaders. Gujarat got its state without Bombay -- thanks but no thanks to Jawaharlalji, and see how many jobs it has created from where they were prior to the state was created. Dilip Kapasi
Date sent: Tue, 18 Aug 1998 21:38:38 PDT It is a pity to find people opposed to the national song on grounds of religious sentiments. Only the first two stanzas of the poem constitute the national song and no word, leave alone any sentence of the whole poem can be considered communal. Is it communal for Indians to call India their mother and bow their heads in respect to her? The select few opposed to the national song are blinded by their own narrow interpretations, and as such are doing a great disservice to themselves and their religion. Isn't it an irony that Jana Gana Mana which was penned by Gurudev in honour of King George V in 1911 finds greater acceptance amongst the same select few than Vande Mataram which is more inspiring and patriotic? It calls for some soul searching on part of the opponents of Vande Mataram assuming that they have read the actual translation.
Date sent: Tue, 25 Aug 1998 09:09:49 -0700 (PDT) I am a Hindu and I have studied in a Christian Jesuit school. All through my 10 years of schooling, every single day, we had an "assembly" where we would sing hymns and songs in praise of Jesus Christ and Mary. We had a LOT of Hindu and Muslim classmates and I never heard any Muslim organisation protest against this worship of Jesus Christ? Nor did I hear any of these well-meaning Christian groups asking for non-Christians to be excused from such an assembly. Nor did the "secular" school change the hymns to national songs or to praising a generic God. And I've certainly seen "idols" of Jesus and Mary all over churches! Did the Muslim religious feeling NEVER get hurt this time? Or is it because the school could very well tell them to find some other school if they had a problem? Yes, that seems to be the solution. If they have a problem with singing the national song by giving unjustified and false claims that it is idol worship then they should better find some other country! Muslims who oppose Vande Mataram have not even read the national song! How else could they claim that it is about idol worship? And now Christians are joining them??? This is the last straw! I feel these organisations are simply using these topics for political reasons against the BJP/RSS. They are in effect fermenting communal tension. The accommodating attitude of Hindus is what they are now exploiting. I also note that there seems to be no comment from Muslim youth regarding this controversy (in Dear Rediff). Most of the postings were by Hindus. Only one was by a Muslim and that too it did not address the subject at hand. Why are the Muslim youth quiet? Do all of them support these organisation?? Let me also add, in passing, Christian students had a subject called "Religion" where they study about Christ's life. Non-Christians had the corresponding subject named "Morals!" Hmmm...
Das
Date: Fri, 14 Aug 1998 14:46:29 +0530 I fully agree with all the three industrialists and understand their concerns. The present day politicians will send this country to the docks and it will take another 50 years for us to return to what we are today. There is not one politician, who has a positive attitude or will to implement the liberalisation programme that was initiated by Narasimha Rao and Manmohan Singh. Look at the present government, I am sure this is the worst ever government we have ever had after Independence. We don't have the required money to improve our infrastructure and when people come forward to invest money in our country, politicians play spoil sport. I blame the Opposition parties as their main duty is to oppose whatever the government does or tries to do. Not to forget the people who are in power now, have done the same thing when they were in the Opposition. With all these politicians, I am sure the infrastructure will not improve. Look at the classic example of the Bangalore International Airport. I am sure the city (the so-called silicon valley of India) will not have an international airport for another 10 years. Murali
Date: Sat, 15 Aug 1998 18:42:00 +0530 Dilip Thakore's views on the law and order situation and its effect on the economy of the country, the Srikrishna Report, and the call upon the judiciary to take cognisance of the findings were very pertinent. In spite of feeling the frustration and hopelessness of the culprits ever being brought to the books, one must keep the spirit of the freedom of thought, speech and expression alive by periodically bringing such articles. To remind potential sponsors that they cannot escape being exposed of their nefarious activity and the crime culture they subscribe to.
Date sent: Sun, 16 Nov 1997 00:26:57 -0600 It is indeed very unsettling to hear such an instance, of which there are many more that go unreported. The IIT's are the nation's pride as centres of educational excellence. The students from these institutions are much sought after in the Western world. I say the Western world because, that is where most of them see beckoning opportunity. It makes me proud as an Indian, that the universities are slowly being brought into the mainstream, not just as educational institutions but also as centers of cutting edge research. This brings to my memory a quote from one of Sir C V Raman's books, " ..it is only when the Universities of India identify with the needs of her society and work towards its betterment will the country as a whole make any real progress." I am an undergraduate student of electrical engineering at Purdue University and one of the reasons that prompted me to come to this university was the quantity of research being conducted in my field of interest. I see here students at every level being encouraged to take part in real world applications and thus make their knowledge more meaningful. How many colleges in India are known to do this? My argument is that if a research group from such an excellent institution has developed something that is more efficient, is it not fair on the part of the government that incidentally controls these institutions, to support and encourage such efforts by giving them a chance? I think we must have an opinion poll and submit a plea to the government. Raghuvira T Rayalu
Date sent: Tue, 25 Aug 1998 00:41:35 +0530 I think Mr V S Srinivasan just got peeved with the fact that Rahman did not agree with his points of view. I agree with Rahman's argument that what Srinivasan calls 'predictable,' he calls 'his style.' At least A R Rahman can be 'repetitive' and yet produce very listenable music. Compare this to other Bollywood music directors, who blatantly lift tunes from their counterparts in other parts of India, or Western tunes and shamelessly pass them off as their own. I believe some of them have even got national level awards! The song Jaana sanam from Khamoshi springs to mind -- copied, inclusive of the instrumental arrangements from Paul Anka's Bring the Wine I'm sure every music enthusiast can think of many more. So, Mr Srinivas, please give credit where it is due. Your introductory note to the interview smacked of either a personal dislike for A R Rahman and his music, or a petty 'getting back' attitude at being rebuffed. Subhadeep Paul
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1998 13:24:44 -0300 This article was superb. Simply one of the best on the net. It is about time we get to know Indian movie stars and celebrities up personal. I enjoyed reading it. Good luck to Sunny and thanks to Rediff.
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1998 01:00:30 -0400 The feature looks good. But it has some mistakes. The most prominent one is that it is said here that Kireedam was directed by Priyadarshan. Actually it was directed by Sibi Malayil. Kireedam being one of THE BEST EVER movies in Malayalam cinema, this slip could have been avoided. How Readers responded to Saisuresh Sivaswamy's recent columns
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