Aiming the Shuttlecock Higher

Badminton, a sport which requires immense amount of dedication, perseverance and determination. At the age of 13, Sachin Menon reveres his shuttle bat over anything. He walked into the room in his sport gear, ready for his next practice session. His eyes shine with excitement. He says, "Today is match day. I will be playing against my teammates. It is most exciting, the thrill of playing a match. If you do win, it is bonus happiness." Sachin has already secured many trophies and titles at this tender age. He made his family, teachers and friends proud when his team won the silver medal at the National Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan Sports meet held at Allahabad. This achievement is only one of the few to his credit. 
Studying in Class VIII at Kendriya Vidyalaya, Calicut, Sachin balances his studies and sports quite comfortably. "I have my parents to thank for it, who have supported me relentlessly. More than them, I am grateful to my uncle whom I lost recently. He is an avid sport enthusiast who was a State-level football player himself. It was his dream to open a badminton coaching academy, which is of world-class quality in our place. He initiated me into the game. He was like a father to me...he loved, cared, scolded, taught, played...He will always remain an inspiration to me", said Sachin, his eyes welling up. 
Like any teenager, his interests include playing football and cricket with his friends, video games and watching WWE. John Cena is his favourite wrestler, he lets on with a sheepish grin. He adds that while he enjoys going to school and having a good time with friends, he wants to take up Badminton as his career. "My dream is be known as a good player and of course, to win an Olympic medal like any other sportsperson. I know it will be very difficult, but I will work hard and make my family and country proud", he says proudly. As APJ rightly said, "You have to dream before your dreams can come true." Up and coming sportsmen like Sachin who invest their sweat and soul into the game becomes the dream of a whole nation. 

Censorship and Government: my thoughts on "Censor and Sensibility" by Anuradha Raman

Anuradha Raman's article "Censor and Sensibility" that appeared in The Hindu on 7 January 2016, critiques the government for its increasing interference in the film certification process. She raises relevant questions about the irony of the whole matter. This particular article is with reference to Shyam Benegal committee drawing up a framework for certifying films, which is itself formed by the Ministry of of Information and Broadcast. 

Raman criticises the Indian state for acting like a Big Brother deciding what the nation should watch and what it shouldn't under the guise of protecting the nation from "the corrupt influences of cinema".

She roots her argument in the fact that every government, be it UPA or NDA, has manipulated the Ministry to their own benefit. She lists out various instances where filmmakers have been forced to make a cut because of the ruling party's agendas.

Raman calls for an apolitical certification committee whose members are appointed by the fraternity itself, similar to the model followed in the U.S. (Motion Picture Association of America) that can be adapted to suit the Indian sensibilities. 

In a democratic country like ours, why do we need government-appointed people deciding what the nation should or should not watch is the question she raises. 

Nostalgia of a Schoolgirl

It had not been many years since India had its tryst with destiny. The city of Calicut was decked up to welcome the then Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru. Nehruji with all his suaveness and elegance, waved at the sea of people who had gathered just to see a glimpse of the great visionary and the paramount leader. Accompanying him was his young daughter- Indira Gandhi and the Defence Minister V.K. Krishna Menon. Nehruji gracefully waved and said Namaste to the crowd. In the crowd was a schoolgirl whose hair was neatly combed into two long pleats who stood transfixed at the sight of the great man. She had heard a lot about him from the elders in the family, who were staunch Congress loyalists. She was proud to tell her friends that she shared her birthday with Chacha Nehru. 

Pt. Nehru greeting the crowd during his visit to Calicut.
Photo Courtesy: digitalpaper.mathrubhumi.com

      My Ammamma's (Vilasini Chandrasekhar) eyes would light up each time she narrated this incident to me. She would then go on about how the leaders then would work tirelessly for the party and the nation selflessly, unlike today. "Life those days were difficult but peaceful. We did not have a lot of money as my father, an army officer was the sole earning member who had provide for his wife, five children and his younger sisters. The cities were not this developed or progressive, but we were happy. Families do not seem happy nowadays", laments my grandmother. She was the first girl in the family to receive formal schooling. Education for girls was not a granted thing then, she says. 

       Untouchability was widely practiced regardless of its abolishment and women of lower casts were not allowed to cover their breasts. Even though we belonged to a respectable Nair family, she recounts how her previous generation was not allowed into temples. Her father( my great-grandfather) thought it better to serve in the Royal Army than to serve the Zamorin monarchs where petty politics mattered over people's problems. Things had changed for better when she was growing up.

A file picture of my maternal grandparents. Late Capt. T.K. Chandrashekharan
Nair and Vilasini Chandrasekharan.

I come from a family where, growing up, I listened to my elders discussing politics over tea. Within a matter of minutes it would escalate to a level where my uncles-Congress loyalists, would be drinking a glass of water to calm their tempers and blood pressures down, arguing with younger dissenting voices. It looks nothing less than an episode of Arnab Goswami's News Hour. That was our definition of family drama. I learned more about Indian history from them than from any school textbook. It is now that I realise the worth of personal narratives of history, which goes unheard otherwise. One understands about our own sense of history, legacy and tradition from these stories, arguments and hazy memories.