Durga Puja 2009

Mandrake @ 75

I generally try to keep myself abreast of such events, especially if it is the 75th anniversary of an iconic comic character. Though many ezines reported the event, this time I somehow missed it completely!

Mandrake the magician, the inscrutable sorcerer never fails to charm me even at this age. My first acquaintance with this pencil-thin mustached and impeccably dressed superhero was through the Sunday supplement pages of Anandabazar Parika. In fact, if I am not mistaken, most of the bongs were introduced to the world of Xanadu through ABP's sunday supplementary (though much before ABP, in the 70s and till late-80s, Indrajaal Comics published Mandrake comics in almost all major Indian vernaculars, apart from English. A lot of people still possess several issues hardbound in patterned cardboard covers with rexine ears.) Later on, in 2002, when the Sunday strips were discontinued (which of course irritated all the comic aficionados), the king of hypnotism found its place on the daily editions of ABP. Most of our friends, including me, suffered from a huge infatuation for Narda--the only reason why we, at times, built enmity with the illusionist. Another aspect of Mandrake that also amazed us was his unruffled hair even after the hardest of the hullaballoo with the villains.

Couple of years back, while penning a feature for Anandamela on the history of comics, I had a talk with Mr. P C Sorcer. Instinctively I quizzed him on Mandrake. The great magician seemed not very pleased with his fictional counterpart. He objected to the rationality of Mandrake's hypnotic way of dealing with the baddies. "Lee Falk aberrated in defining hypnotism. However, if I consider Mandrake as a work of fantasy or fiction I would keep Bantul the Great way ahead of Mandrake.", he opined.

Image copyright King Features Syndicate.

Customer Service: The SBI Way!!

'Customer service' has earned a new meaning in the era of privatisation. While the corporate conglomerates are competing fiercely to outwit each other in their 'customer friendliness', our very own State Bank of India employees are trying to set their own examples!

This morning I called up 63, NSC Bose Road branch of the SBI to inquire about the availability of the primary teachers' recruitment examination form. The gentleman (?), who picked up the phone, was apt in his reply, "You've to come to the branch to obtain the information." He hung up the phone denying me to react. I wondered for a few seconds why be abnegated me of a simple information and then mustered up courage to call the Tollygunge Circular Road branch of the bank. This time my luck didn't betray!

Whither One-day Cricket?

Cricket is fast turning out to be a game which is never devoid of controversy. After WADA, it is now the fate of the one-day cricket which is creating all the ruckus. ECB's decision to scrap the 50-over format of the game from their domestic calendar has drawn a lot of debates in the cricketing fraternity. With the advent of T-20s, the 50-over matches are losing their relevance, that's what the ECB officials feel. And hence the decision of phase out. It's not long past when even one-day internationals were invented. Even at that time, the shorter versions of the game were more entertaining than their 5-day counterparts. But, that did not kill Test matches! Rather, the art of playing Tests changed drastically, which I would say, made Test matches more interesting and watchable. Similarly, why can't we consider T-20s as just another format of the game? It's quite infantile to say that all the three versions of the game can't exist alongside. I hope ICC wouldn't fall prey to ECB's insistence.

The Curious Case of Kolkata Metro

"Dada, sotti sotti Garia bazar obdi Metro cholche?" (Is the Metro service indeed available till Garia Bazar, Dada?)
"Han didi. Jan na dekhe asun. Debo naki ekta Kabi Nazrul?" (Of course didi. Take a ride. Shall I give you a ticket to Kabi Nazrul?)

I overheard this conversation while purchasing tickets in Dum Dum Metro station last Sunday. I was in a hurry and hence did not wait to see whether the didi took the joyride like most of her fellow Kolkatans. It was my first ride in the underground railway since the inception of the extended service. Though I got down at Tollygunge, the half-hour long journey was full of amusing incidents. While leaving the counter, I heard the next man in line asking for 'one Netaji and two Surjyo Sen'. Two youngsters standing beside me were busy in arguing whether the new 'Netaji' is the abbreviated version of the 'Netaji Bhawan' or not. Their confusion soon subsided when they discovered both the 'Netajis' in the station chart. People were cramming to get nearer to the station charts. Most of them seemed confused and were trying to figure out where to get down if his or her destination is Naktala or Bansdroni. Is 'Gitanjali' the destination or 'Kabi Nazrul' would be the intended one? Who dreamt that our Railway Minister's adoration for freedom fighters would turn out to be so painful?

An Open Letter to Mr. Suvaprasanna

Dear Mr. Suvaprasanna,

Many congratulations to you and your associates on being appointed the chairman of the Passenger Convenience Committee of Indian Railways. Sir, I am not aware how often the nominated members travel in train, but I do quite often. In fact, I am among those hapless passengers who had no option but to travel almost daily in passenger trains to make my both ends meet. I also do not know whether the purview of your work would stretch beyond the mail and express trains. However, as a frequent passenger, I have a few requests to make to your committee.

Firstly, I'd request you to try boarding any of the trains of Sealdah section in any weekday, preferably during office time. Even if you are able to board, I am pretty sure, the daily passengers won't let you seat, even if there are empty seats available, as they are reserved for their feel-good buddies who will get on from the subsequent stations. Neither would you be allowed to stand comfortably, as this would disturb their daily chores of playing cards. Let some time pass and you would find some of them taking out cigarettes and bidis from their pockets and utilising them apathetically as if they are travelling in their private jets! The news of ban on smoking in public places has not yet reached them!

I know that your team have been instructed to look after some of the other major aspects of a passenger's life (such as toilets, sitting arrangement in stations, passenger safety etc.), so there is no point in harping on these issues. Try mixing with people and you'd understand there's lot to be done.

I earnestly hope you and your team would be able to bring 'change' in passenger amenities this time as well.

Regards,
An over-optimistic passenger

Saga of the Shiulis

Over the last couple of weeks my morning starts with patches of white with occasional orange dapples within in front of my rented house. The colour combination of Shiuli ((Night-flowering Jasmine) is synonymous with Durga Puja and marks the onset of Sarat—a non-present entity in English calendar. The fragrance also brings back so many sweet memories of childhood.

Our erstwhile house, situated at a suburban township, had a huge Shiuli tree in its courtyard. The tree was so high that some portions of it reached the rooftop of our three-storeyed house. The bloom time was accompanied by an early rise. I had to collect as many flowers as I could before other boys and girls from the locality could jump into action. However, no one was allowed to go to the rooftop. It was only me who had the exclusive privilege of collecting flowers from there. Had I missed the morning bell by any chance, my only solace laid over there. But that somewhat was dull. Collecting flowers, with so many people ready to give you competition, used to provide me a tremendous sense of achievement.

There is no dearth of youngsters in my neighbourhood. But, none has the time to pluck flowers!

Spectacular

Let me introduce you to a small change to my otherwise mundane appearance.

Yesterday onward I have been aided by an optical instrument consisting of a frame that holds a pair of lenses for correcting defective vision (also called spectacles) in my daily chores.

Don...Again

Thanks to Mr. Mayukh Das for the creation.

Mayukh is a freelance graphic artist based in Kolkata, India and can be reached at mayukh786@gmail.com for any consultancy purposes.

On Losing Side---Yet Again

The morning started in a disappointing note.

Last night I retired from my television set at around 12 o'clock leaving India well placed at 40-plus runs with 9 wickets in hand and with run-a-ball chasing equation. Defending a paltry run on board, I was quite sure that this was not the night of the Proteas and Dhoni's men will at last get a chance to leave the ground on a winning note at the Super 8 stage. It takes only special talents to loose a match from here and the the MSD brigade had just done that.

With many experts owing India's defeat to fatigue and over-exposure to cricket, I beleive it's the sheer callousness of the Indian cricketers that catalysed India's exit from the World T20 championship. Even in yesterday's match, while the South Africans were more interested in converting their ones into twos, most of the Indians fell in the process of hitting over the rope when it was an extravagant option. The skipper himself fell pray to an imaginative run that was never on the card.

Let's hope the team will bounce back in West Indies.

Check Your Social Networking Literacy

If you are a netizen, especially somewhat taken up by the concept of social networking, this is a must read for you.

Week-end Watch: Kshudhito Pashan

I was waiting for this movie to re-release ever since I heard that a copy of Kshudhito Pashan (Hungry Stones) has been found after a long period. Even couple of years ago, watching the Tapan Sinha classic inspired by a Rabindranath Tagore short story seemed like a forlorn hope as it was assumed that like Balika Badhu and Manjari Opera, copies of this masterpiece have also been lost for ever.

The DVD was released on last Friday, I picked it up from Planet M and that started my weekend. The story revolves around ayoung government officer posted in a remore area under Nijam's rule. He decides to stay in an ill-famous archaic palace even after repeated warnings from the people around. Nights after nights, he discovers the cruel chronicles of the palace and ultimately realises that he is also going to face the same fate as that of Meher Ali, a once-inhabitant now-mad resident of the palace with his enigmatic 'Sab jhut hai, tafat jao' blares.

To be frank enough, from the cinematic point of view, Kshudhita Pashan disappointed me. The sript was unlike a Tapan Sinha movie and the narrative seemed too predictable and shoddy. Soumitra was more than outstanding as Mayurbahan in Jhinder Bandi, but here his acting appeared a little subdued to me. However, Radhamohan Bhattacharjee's impeccable Urdu and quotes from Ghalib were simply outstanding. Chhobi Biswas also justified his standard in the small role of a postmaster (his character was not there in the actual story). Arundhati Devi also had very little to do.

The most astounding factor was Ustad Ali Akbar Khan's music. The master musician was at his best in amalgamating Indian classical music with Rabindrasangeet.

Thanks to all the people who made this movie available once again.

Federer's French Revolution

What could have been a better way to end the weekend than watching Roger Federer win the record-equalling 14th Grand Slam and that too with a tournament that had evaded him throughout his career?

Though Roger was never near his best tennis in the final, it was enough to maul Soderling. The world number 23 played good tennis in the 2nd set (and also throughout the tournament) and took it to the tie-breaker, but that was not enough to stop the indomitable Swiss.

Fedex must thank Soderling for making his task easier as it was a final in Roland Garros sans Rafa. Nevertheless, he is one of the greatest (if not the greatest) and will remain so.

Image © FFT

World Environment Day

An educative read on the World Environment Day.

Jai Ho....

'Ane De' (Let them come) was the call from all over the country since the last few weeks. And finally, the d-day has arrived. The MSD brigade is all set to defend their world champion title in the shorter version of the game. With an explosive set of cricketers, ameliorated with the IPL experience, India seems to be the top contender for the cup. The only worrisome factor was the opening combination. How the injury prone Viru and struggling Gauti wouldfare was the concern for every cricket-loving Indian. However, Rohit Sharma's escapades in the practice matches and a decent performance from Gambhir must act as respites for frowning Dhoni.

Best of luck to the experient young brigade.

New Zealand and South Africa are my other favourites for the tournament.

What is your call?

What It Takes To Be A Madam Speaker?

The Congress led UPA has done it again!

After India's first female President, it gifted the world's largest democracy with its first female Lok Sabha speaker and that too with a 'Dalit' tag attached to it. It's no surprise that Congress's bid to create history has drawn flak from different corners of the society. Many are labelling this as a ploy to counter Mayawati. Though for obvious reasons the Congress think tank is not ready to buy the argument and is all set to defend their decision, the appointment is bound to raise a few questions.

Firstly, the word 'Dalit' is often referred in India to denote an oppressed class of the society. Even if Congress's contention of Dalit empowerment is accepted, why not appointing somebody who is not from the upper echelon of the society? Ms. Meira Kumar's background (The daughter of the late Babu Jagjivan Ram decided to enter politics in the 1980s after a successful stint with the Indian Foreign Service and has been elected to the Lok Sabha five times since then) comes nowhere near a really oppressed Dalit.

Secondly, Ms. Kumar appears to be a naive, soft-spoken lady. I am not averse to appointing women to the top constitutional posts if it is based purely on meritocracy. My only fear is given the abusive nature of the representatives of the Indian parliament, will she be a proper replacement for Mr. Somnath 'Headmaster' Chatterjee?

Only time will tell.

Meanwhile, an informative read on the former speakers of Indian parliament.

Love in the Time of Global Worming

It seems that the e-entrepreneurs are never short of ideas, even if the business foundation is based on the trite concepts like social networking and online dating. The latest in the line is EcoDater.

It is an online community targeted at green singles. To be more precise, it is an eco-friendly online dating community. Members include environmentalists, vegans and vegetarians, organic farmers, outdoor enthusiasts, yoga practitioners, activists and much more.

So, if you consider yourself an environment enthusiast and are still single, don't waste your time.

The Smoky Image

31st May was the World No Tobacco Day. Today onwards, cigarette packets are supposed to feature pictorial health warnings. But is that going to dissuade the smokers in any way? Even from smoking in public places?

With much fanfare, a ban was enforced on public smoking in the country in October 2008. Even after that, smokers allover India, have made a mockery of the rule. Though smoking in public vehicles and to some extent in public placeshave reduced considerably, the initiative is yet to get whole-hearted support from the smoke-lovers.What is intimidating is that even the civilised society does not understand the implication of a court ban! In mostof the IT parks in the Salt Lake City, Kolkata, you will find people (most of whom are considered to be the creme de la creme of the society) smoking inside the building premises, which strictly are 'No-smoking' zones. If a court verdict cannoteducate us, what is the guarantee of success of another such initiative? Nevertheless, we should keep on trying.

And here is an advice for our Health Minister Mr. Ghulam Nabi Azad from Prahlad Kakkar. The veteran adman in his impeccable style proposes the inclusion of Salman Khan pictures on the cigarette packets. Given the long list of karnamas of the bad boy of the tinselville (he got drunk, killed people on the road, got into umpteen fisticuffs and people still kiss his ass, every time he passes by.), Salman is all what smoking is about, proposes Kakkar.

Sounds good. What you say?

ABCD Online

News for the Feluda-buffs!

A group of die-hard Feluda fans are working on a virtual museum dedicated to the sleuth. Inspired by the Sherlock Holmes museum at 221B Baker Street, London, an eclectic group of Feluda fanatics around the world have come together to form this online repository that contains various Feluda memorabilia including an expensive violin Amatir Bhepu owned by Indranarayan in Bosepukurey Khunkharapi, the journal on parapsychology that Feluda read en route to Jodhpur in Sonar Kella, a clavichord in Samaddarer Chabi, Thomas Godwin's ivory casket in Gorasthane Sabdhan and many more.

Interested to join the bandwagon? You can contribute too!

The first-cut version is available at:

http://felumuseum.tripod.com/

In the Land of the Dragon

The trek trail to Sandakphu requires you to often tread the land of Nepal. However, if you don't consider that as a foreign trip, last year's Bhutan trip was my first international tour in its truest sense.

The week-long journey took us to two of the fascinating Bhutanese cities — Thimphu and Paro. Beginning from Phuentsholing or Jaigaon (just across the border and in West Bengal, India), we reached Thimphu and went to Paro from there. The Himalayan state possesses a brazen natual beauty, which is somewhat different from what you see at Sikkim or Darjeeling.

Have a look at some of the shots:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/35067917@N00/

ZooZoos: Crazy Kiya Re..

The word was used as a connotation for something terrifying during our infancy. The ZooZoos are back again! But, this time it inspired more awe than fear.

The first time I saw them on television, I mistook them as animation characters. Later on I found out thatI was not alone. It was indeed amazingly funny to learn that the ZooZoo characters, created for the marketing campaign of a telecommunications major and broadcasted during this year's IPL cricket carnival, were actually real human beings in disguise of these extremely lovable pot-bellied characters. The ZooZoo aficionados, still growing in number, have probably even outnumbered the IPL fans.

Kudos to the O&M team for conceptualising this awesome advertisement.

To read more about ZooZoo, visit:

http://business.rediff.com/slide-show/2009/may/29/slide-show-1-welcome-to-the-world-of-zoozoos.htm

Manmohan's Jumbo Cabinet: Some Interesting Facts

• Agatha Sangma, daughter of former Lok Sabha Speaker P A Sangma, is the youngest minister (28 years).
• 77 year old S.M. Krishna, who is the new External Affairs Minister is the oldest minister in Dr. Manmohan Singh's team. Dr. Singh himself is 76 years of age.
• Two of the memebers of the cabinet, Farooq Abdullah and Sachin Pilot share the 'sasoor-damad' relationship.
• The cabinet includes former Chief Ministers Vilasrao Deshmukh (Maharashtra), Virbhadra Singh (HP) and Farooq Abdullah (J&K).
• The cabinet has nine women ministers, one less than the previous UPA government.
• Praful Patel is the richest member of the team, while Mamata Banerjee ranks at the bottom of the table in terms of money.
• Nine ministers have criminal cases against them. The cases include rioting, being part of unlawful assembly, criminal conspiracy, defamation etc.

Why 'Bonghomie'?

The name of my blog might appear to have some sort of sexual innuendo, but let me clarify that it has got nothing to do withthe 'Dostana'* effect. The name has been inspired by the word 'bonhomie'. The Oxford dictionary explains the word as 'good-natured friendliness'. I have just tried to add a little Bengali ('Bong' as they are commonly called worldwide) flavour to it.

Welcome to my blog.

*And for those, who are not aware of 'Dostana' effect, let me tell you that 'Dostana' is a product of Karan Johar stable, the over-hyped (of course in my opinion) Bollywood movie director. The movie has a homosexual theme and is one of the biggest hits (!) of recent times.