The Clash of Mismatch’s - Dilwale vs Bajirao Mastani

                        

B-Town experienced interesting scenarios last weekend as release date clashes resurfaced, this time the Sanjay Bhansali produced “Bajirao Mastani” took on the Rohit Shetty-SRK star-powered “Dilwale”. Though the cast lines showed clear inclination towards Dilwale, speculations were abuzz as the D-Friday drew nearer.

While Bajirao Mastani was a retro-classical drama based on the epic love story of guerrilla fighter tribe leader Bajirao and princess Mastani Bai, Dilwale was a family entertainer that also marked return of the famed SRK-Kajol romantic pair on the silver screen. Clearly both the movies had nothing in between to clash box-office collections except for the interestingly common release dates.

First day collections saw a clear inclinations towards Dilwale, as expected, but amidst all the din was hidden the mysterious screen division. While it was expected for superstar SRK starer Dilwale to have a greater screen hold, however, in actuality it was Bajirao Mastani that ruled screen counts, more so in the Single Screen theatres. The reason behind this was a shrewd secret-deal made by the distributors Eros International during prior rights distributions.

Protests across various sections by saffron brigades against the controversial statements made by Shahrukh regarding rising intolerance in the nation hit the occupancy rates further and coupled with the lower number of screen counts, the family entertainer didn’t shoot-off as expected.

Trade analyst Reveal Bajirao's lead over Dilwale

On the other hand Bajirao Mastani, riding on a better word of mouth and a remarkably high screen count saw steady rise after an average first day collections. But incredibly unpredictable scenes erupted when the first Monday collections saw Bajirao turn tables with a marginal lead over Dilwale. While many saw this as the increased inclination of bolly-viewers towards meaningful plots, critics also interpreted as fall of SRK’s magic hold on the silver screen.

All in all, the clash brought about epic scenes aboard the B-town business times it also proved once and all that in the end it’s all about the plot that matters more than just the casts. But then Clashes are never good for any reason whatsoever, and ultimately it’s the B-town as the end-loser as it made fewer collections than it should with two reasonably good plots, both perfect mismatches to each other. 

The Intolerant Indians...

My India…..

A country that till 18 months ago, was blessed with perfect communal harmony, the country that enjoyed an absolute freedom of expression, the country that had not banned a single book, movie or play.

No one had heard of the word ‘caste' in my India and the word ‘religion' either. There was no hunger,
nor there was poverty. All the farmers were billionaires so no one ever committed suicide. It was a wonderful country where people could eat as much beef they wanted, anywhere they wanted. There were no laws banning cow slaughter in any state. No one had heard of words like corruption, murders and rape.

Communal violence and riots were unheard of. The years 1947 and 1984 skipped India, therefore there were no such things as partition riots and anti-Sikh riots. The year 2002 however did happen in a terrible place called Gujarat, the single stain on the spotless secular fabric of India! Kashmiri Pandits lived in the valley in peace and harmony with their neighbours. The ethnic cleansing of the valley never happened. Serial bomb blasts and terrorist attacks were also terms that did not exist.

Indians did not know what unhappiness or poverty or suffering meant. If they wanted to experience it, they would go on a conducted tour to Sudan or Palestine!

Such was the paradise that was my India!

Unfortunately, the good run did not last.

16th May 2014, I still remember that dark day - the day Fascist Patriarchal Hindu Male Narendra Modi became the Prime Minister!

That was the day India saw poverty, communal violence, law and order issues, farmer suicides, caste discrimination, gender discrimination, murders, rape, tax avoidance, spitting on the roads, litter in the streets, road rage and every other social evil that you can think of, for the very first time!!

Thanks to this evil guy Modi, communal violence has crossed all limits. Every day millions of people are being massacred in India. At this rate, there will be no voters left to cast their vote in 2019!

Some eminent historians and liberal thinkers have compared this regime to the Taliban - that social organisation formed by terrorists with no religion. The Taliban however is so hurt with this comparison that it wants Arvind Kejriwal to hold a dharna on its behalf!

We enlightened citizens know that PM Modi is PERSONALLY responsible for everything from our constipation to clogged toilets at a railway station. I am upset that Modi has NOT issued a statement yet on why there are paan stains on the staircase leading to my building. Everything that is wrong in this country is the PM's fault. NO ONE else is to be blamed.

Oh my poor poor India! What have you done to deserve this? I need to find a suitable award to return to protest against this.

I hope this Modi resigns soon and we liberal intellectuals can return to the perfect Utopian paradise that was India under the great leadership of intellectual icon, Rahul Gandhi, king of development Nitish Kumar or Honesty certificate issuer Arvind Kejriwal.

Source:https://www.facebook.com/pati.anirban/posts/10205155120179408?fref=nf

The last match at Barabati....

A major part of relating to any given sporting event doesn’t necessarily concern ‘what you remember about it?’ but rather ‘how you remember it?’ Hence unfortunately in years to come people won’t remember that South Africa beat India by 6 wickets but rather talk about a bizarre incident of crowd indiscipline that took place in Barabati Stadium, Cuttack on 5th October 2015.

I am an Odia and we love to take pride in the smallest of affairs. So now we can take pride in humiliating the spirits of Cricket South Africa that is touring India, playing a series dedicated to Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela. We can be proud of the fact that after Eden Garden in 1996 World Cup, this becomes the most shameful crowd incident in India. Oh! And don’t you think this is the first time Barabati audience threw rubbish on the ground. It happened in a small and unnoticeable way when India played England and West Indies in the past. It is just this time we decided to make it a little grander and added a bit of chutzpah to it.

Moving away from the customary sarcasm, we live in a world of powerful electronic media that doesn’t let people forget easily. Images of plastic bottles scattered on the outfield, videos of match officials and players waiting helplessly to begin the match will haunt us for a long time. It is a fact that Barabati gets very few International games. So it is quite understandable that a dismal performance by Indian team would cause a great amount of frustration. But then nothing explains the shameful outrage. Ranchi has come up with their lovely stadium, Eden Garden continues to be the home of cricket in India, Dharamshala and its sceneries are unparalleled – there is no dearth of venues to host cricket matches. So, despite Barabati Stadium being a stunning one, this incident has somewhat washed away all chances of us getting a game in the T20 World Cup 2016.

People in Pakistan were desperate to see their national side play in front of them. Thanks to Zimbabwe who made that historic tour. And here we are, lucky enough to see our national side play from yards distance and still manage to do something utterly stupid that brings tag of being irresponsible for the state and country as well. Barabati doesn’t deserve another International game because there is a lack of basic sensibility.

Odisha hosts a number of games both in IPL and HIL but an International event is the perfect outing to show the world how good an ambassador of the sport we are but unfortunately we have let ourselves down.

We all go to watch cricket matches because we love the game and obviously would love to see our team win and when the contrary happens, disappointment is natural. But we must never forget, under any circumstance, that when we attend such international events in our State which is being telecast live around the world, we by default become ambassadors of our State. We must not forget that the entire world is watching us. If we are not sportive enough to accept defeat which is a part and parcel of the game, then we must not attend such events and bring disrepute to the state with our behaviour.

Having said this, in situations where the team performs as dismally as it did yesterday, when India was expected to level the series, we as spectators have to find better ways to show our disappointment than to throw bottles on the ground and disrupt play. What we did yesterday was, in plain words, shameful and uncultured. So much so that the focus of the entire nation and media is on the unruly crowd behaviour at Cuttack rather than the extremely poor performance of the team.

Public unrest is a problem and the first step to solve a problem is to acknowledge that there is one. A state which is obsessed with chasing self-proclaimed God men, a state which boasts of its rich cultural heritage has a bit of a soul-searching to do here.

And from media houses to cha khattis when we ask our cricketers “what are you playing for?” It high time we ask ourselves “Why do you follow this game for?” I hope the answer still is “for the love of it.”

Source: http://odishasuntimes.com/2015/10/06/why-barabati-doesnt-deserve-any-more-international-matches/

KKPK- A Kapil Sharma laughter riot!!

Comedy King Kapil Sharma has announced himself on the big screen in some emphatic way as KKPK goes on tumbling down figures of box office collection, riding high on positive word of mouth despite average reviews from critics. The movie also makes first look of director duo Abbas-Mustan in comedy, a distant cousin of their familiar shores of thriller action-packed scripts.

The Story revolves around how Kapil and his half-brother Varun handle the complicated case of Kapil’s married life involving four beaus. The story line is jam-packed with terrific punch lines, and there is a smooth flow of the plot through most parts. Kapil and Varun have proved to be killer combo with their fantastic comic timing and acting skills.

Music is somewhat a weak link in the plot, with the album lacking decent number of hit tracks which would have added another feather. Kapil has also made an infamous entry as a singer in this film with as many as three song records.

In short, KKPK is an overloaded list of LOLs, trolls and ROFLs, provided you do not intend to apply your know how in science*!!

*(pun intended)  

He had a name, all in seek was a home !!

As harrowing scenes of the lifeless body of 3-year old boy clad in a red shirt and tiny sneakers lying face down at Turkish shores continues to haunt humanity particularly Europe, the migration crisis of European Union has now the prime media glare across the globe. Aylan Kurdi is one of many refugees who have lost their lives en-route to seeking asylum fleeing troubled situations back home but is the most heart rending scenes that has put the European leadership in a real fix to handle the alarmingly escalating number of refugees seeking asylum in member nations.

The EU migrants’ crisis originates from trouble torn nations such as Libya where a fresh spark of disturbance has been born, the war ridden Syria, many of the North African instable nations such as Somalia, Nigeria and even Afghanistan, Pakistan and so on. Statistics state a total of 36,800 pending asylum requests, mostly for Germany after it opened doors to all immigrants, while illegal immigrants’ counts suggest something around 200,000. This has led to a huge pressure on the resource constraints of the nations with such high numbers of migrants thereby prompting the EU’s Frontex to upgrade external Schengen borders.

The primary movement of refugees is from Turkey into Greece, making Greece a prime entry-point to Germany. Unpleasant scenes of sufferings by the refugees have surfaced in recent times with the Greek government refused the migrants to take a train to Germany. The Budapest station is thronged by thousands of such immigrants waiting to complete their journey onwards. It was only yesterday when the Greek government finally allowed a train to Germany overcrowded with refugees. 

Sans this, the other key route to enter EU is through the Mediterranean sea where drowning of overcrowded boats has accounted for as many as 22,000 lives lost or disappeared. As the Italian mission to search and rescue incoming refugees stays constraint owing lack of financial support from EU, the tentative approach of employing gunboats for driving away refugee boats came under severe criticism with pics of dead Aylan leading newslines.

Presently, EU is facing serious problems with the alarming statistics of immigrants and the threads of union are loosening as member nations struggle to find a suitable solution to this precarious situation. The erstwhile refugee policy drafted way back during World War II has been rendered lacklustre for this situation demanding fresh brainstorming into the issue.

Though the problem is critical and diplomatic in nature, the solution to this crisis, must be drafted keeping humanity in the driving seat than politics. 

Parliament – the seate of Repre-shame-tatives of India!!

Indian Parliament off late has become the biggest cause of shame to the nation. The house representing the voice of the common citizens of the country has climbed down the stairs of respect and integrity with every new day. In a country where Right to speech guarantees opposite views, misuse of the fundamental right is best picked from scenes within the house of the people.

Every other day there is news of the house being adjourned in sake of something that has almost no relevance in any form to the nation’s affairs. Today the prime view of Indian opposition is that of persons seemingly lacking rationale, opposing everything the party in power seems to do because it’s the only meaning derived by them for their tag- opposition.

Broken mikes, slogans, dharnas, catchy statements and incessant demand of resignations over a fly’s bite is the characteristics of our Parliament. In the present running session of the Parliament, the house of elders (for namesake) hasn’t functioned a single whole day of agenda. This shows the effective lessons of Punctuality and Duty displayed for the nation to follow by our so called “Elder” leaders of the nation.

The Lok Sabha had recently seen scenes of as many as 25 MPs suspended for inappropriate

behaviour in the house, a house chaired by a women speaker which just goes on to say why India is considered a place with low regards for women. And as if reverberations of the act, the opposition chooses to stall proceedings with the same issue and some other irrelevant issues just because of their numerical supremacy in the Rajya Sabha.

What is hidden behind this is that a stalled house implies a stalled nation. Rajya Sabha is due to table some legitimate bills that could pave the future course of the country such as “GST act” , “land acquisition bill” reforms, etc. to name a few.If this was not enough the latest shame they have brought before a visiting Bhutanese delegation in the house has lifted all trust in our opposition forces.

India has voted a majority government to power in the last elections with a believe to empower the worthy leaders to change the seemingly faltering nation’s fate and just when the nation had begun to grow restless for a Maggi styled “Ache Din”, the opposition led by the phenomenal loser who incidentally was the PM candidate against the present PM has done what it does best: swung back the public sentiments with the government.

All this leads to a valid question, was the last election a phase-I to empower the Modi-fied India and should as patriotic Indians who wish to ensure the Parliament remains our democracy’s temple ensure those 40 reduce to zero in 2019 ??

The last Class – a tribute to India’s Missile Man

Dr. Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam, more popular as Dr. APJ Abdul kalam, a true patriot, nationalist and an ocean of knowledge is a loss India will mourn for life. Having very humble beginnings as a newsboy, Dr. Kalam went on to become one of the pioneers of science and technology laying the cornerstone for modern India. It was under his visionary leadership that India conducted its first Nuclear test in Pokhran, making India the first nation in the subcontinent to have Nuclear weapons in arsenal.

Popularly named “Missile Man”, Dr. Kalam’s contribution in developing indigenous Missile technology is unmatched. The SLV-III and PSLV, India’s pride and world’s awe, also the launch pad for MOM (Magalyaan) as also several others are brain child of Dr. Kalam. Failing to cut into as an Air Force Fighter pilot, Dr. Kalam first joined in as a scientist with the DRDO where he created a small helicopter for the armed forces. But, unsatisfied with his job, he switched to DRDO where he created the foundation of military strength of today’s India.

Under his directorship, India achieved some great feats including India’s first indigenous satellite, as also Pokhran-I and Pokhran-II that marked India in the technology map of world.

Dr. Kalam also the 11^th President of India is probably the only befitting his tag of “People’s President”. From opening the Raisina Hills to common man to freelance visit for students, Dr. Kalam made Rastrapati Bhavan accessible to one and all. As a President, Dr. Kalam rose above all affiliations, to ensure doing all he could as India’s first citizen. As President, he was no easy-pass, he would weigh pro’s and con’s with the acumen of a true nationalist and has returned a record number of resolutions for re-consideration.

Sans his term as President, Dr. Kalam dedicated himself as an open book for the youth of the nation and had always been on the move, imparting and deciphering the vast ocean of knowledge he possessed. Even in his last days, he was a visiting faculty of IIMs Shillong, Ahmedabad and Indore, besides being the Chancellor of IIST Thiruvanantapuram, as also several other institutions.

Dr. Kalam was a man deeply rooted to his bases as an idealist Indian citizen, but at the same time he was extremely far sighted of the future as imminent from his authored books “INDIA 2020”, “Wings of Fire”, etc.

For a man who believed in investing all his wisdom in the nation’s youth, it’s only just that his last moments were at an address to the future of the nation at IIM Shillong. Dr. Kalam’s loss has left a profound void in the heart of every Indian and will be mourned for ever.

Bajrangi Bhaijaan- Cutting along the barbed lines of differences…

Bajrangi Bhaijaan is galloping along numbers, breaking past records

India and Pakistan, two independent, democratic siblings born out of shrewd and wicked application of the erstwhile British policy of “Divide and Rule” are at warfront ever since coming to existence owing to lack of mutual distrust and lacklustre efforts to resolve diplomatic differences among the respective leadership. But if there is something prominent amongst the many similarities of masses belonging to both sides of the barbed lines is the taste of entertainment. Both the siblings love their movies with the characteristic heroic plots revolving around intermediate songs, a characteristics of Bollywood. Both masses love and adore their reel life Superstars so as that there aren’t any fans but followers. So when “Bajrangi Bhaijaan” hit the floors with a message for masses across the barbed borders of division, little did it surprise anyone with its galloping march in box office collections.

Salman and Harshali in the Film

Bajrangi Bhaijaan is amongst the few films that has been critically acclaimed by critics of both sides for its marked positivity and beautiful storyline. The storyline revolves around a staunch devotee of Hindu Lord Hanuman coming to the rescue of a Muslim cutie pie alienated from her mother during her return journey to Pakistan after visiting the revered Hajrat Nizamuddin Chisti at Delhi. The action features the historic “Samjhauta Express”, one among the few common railroads between the two countries.

As the story progresses we see how differences brew suspicion amongst people of two sibling nations, so much as a Visa is denied to legally enter the neighbouring country to enable safe return of the lost child. But then, committed to the cause, the Hindu devotee, played by Salman Khan himself does the un-thinkable by entering into Pakistan illegally in pursuit of the lost child’s parents played by the adorable Harshali. The remaining story revolves around the hardships faced by Bajrangi( Salman) in convincing the Pakistani mass of his noble intentions, who doubt him as a Indian spy.

Nawaz has played an incredible part

Amongst all adversities faced, comes a helping hand in form of a local journalist, played by the charismatic Nawazudin Siddique who leaves no stone unturned in the search that seemed to be heading nowhere. The drama concludes amidst emotionally charged scenes of the girl finally uniting with her parents and Bajrangi getting caught as an illegal entrant into Pakistan. The scene closes with masses of Indian Occupied Kashmir and Pakistan Occupied Kashmir raising their voices, together in efforts to ensure a safe return of their Bajrangi Bhaijaan across to India, through the ugly barbed lines between us.

Bajrangi Bhaijaan is a distant plot from Salman Khan’s characteristic movies that are tastefully decorated with action scenes. Instead what is in offer is a plot that is full of emotions of love, kindness and affection for peoples of India and Pakistan for each other. Kabir Khan has shown yet agin why he is among the bests of business in direction. Nawaz proved yet again of being a heavy load of talent, but the star who stole limelight was cute Harshali with her high dose of sweetness. And Salman showed why he’s considered the master of Bollywood, a Superstar in true form.

The movie is indeed a treat to watch, a thorough entertainer with a beautiful message of unity and togetherness, cutting along the barbed lines of differences.

BB has been critically acclaimed across India and Pakistan

Coming Coming and Gone ….. Did Odisha create another Singur ?

POSCO Odisha now seems a distant dream.

POSCO India, one of modern-era’s humongous steel deal has finally shown signs of being over, for once and all. The multi-billion steel manufacturing unit was to be set up at Jagatsinghpur, Odisha which would have made the South Korean giant the largest overseas steel merchant in Indian shores. But domestic opposition backed by suspicious foreign support, coupled with a headless opposition has finally led to doom, a deal that had left the whole Asia in awe.

It all began in 2005, when a MOU was signed between the then South Korean regime and Chief Minister Naveen Pattnaik leading way to a $12 billion investment to set up a mega-capacity steel plant in the otherwise faceless Jagatsinghpur district of Odisha. Right from the first day, the sheer size of the deal had the whole world in envy and POSCO India was expected to add-on great value to the mineral-rich yet poor state.

Kalinganagar Firing saw several casualties fueling unresty

CMAS rebels trained weapons

But, just like all good things, POSCO India was caught in stranger tides, when the local residents of the project site remained un-impressed with the idea of relocation and displacement, mostly citing lack of adequate compensation for their loss. Dialogues began and failed and with time slipping away, the state government tried use of force to evict the adamant agitators. What resulted in was un-

necessary blood shed leading to unwanted loss of life and also gave birth to the Chasi Mulia Adhivasi Sangha, a promoted tribal body banner-ed to oppose forceful eviction of the affected mass.

A twist in the tale was introduced when in 2014 it was discovered that foreign bodies with vested interest were funding the CMAS in its objective of blocking the POSCO Odisha project. Though disturbing, but such a report by the IB didn’t raise many eyebrows because such roadblocks were only expected in a project involving such huge numbers. As a result, the cover of CMAS and its premier Nachika Linga was blown off and the CMAS which was so far projecting itself as people’s saviour was on hot heels.

Eventually, the CMAS drama was over with a mass surrender of armed cadres and subsequently Nachika Linga was arrested. Land acquisition, which was now moving with a snail’s pace had now gathered some pace. But the final jolt was evident when PM Modi’s last visit to S.Korea had no mention of POSCO Odisha, a topic which ruled bi-lateral talks for the last decade- suspicion was born. The final air to this suspense was cleared today when POSCO India handed over it’s 2^nd floor, IDCO Towers office back to IDCO, and as we complete this write up perhaps POSCO India is being shelved back, a dream that was coming, kept coming and went away !!

POSCO India wears a deserted look.

#DeshKeLiye

Hockey is our national sport ….. No today the truth is of form:

Is Hockey our national game ??

India, a Cricket Crazy nation where the Indian Skipper gets the stature of a parallel head of the nation and any news, however petty in nature, if anyway related to Team India ( Read: Indian Cricket Team) finds its way into prime-time news has left all other sports bereft of any focus whatsoever and our national game Hockey is no different.

Hockey, a game having initial bases in the Indian Subcontinent is the contemporary version of the traditional gilli-danda, a game not alien to any Indian child’s nostalgia. With advent of globalization, this game of ball and sticks moved into international arena and as expected the Indian contingent played Big Daddy to the whole world, having won all coveted prizes of the game that include an unbeaten record from 1928 to 1956 during which it won 6 gold as also the World Cup in 1975. Indian Sporting diaspora found its initial bases with Hockey stars like Dhyan Chand ruling headlines across the globe.

But just as we say, “The only constant thing in this world is – Change”. Traditional hockey underwent changes with several modern additions to the game such as artificial turfs, modified rules, thereby making tough for the traditional Indian youth to come terms with the international arena version of the game, having spent all initial days playing the game, the initial ( Read: Indian) way, leading to a marked decline in Team Hockey India’s performance. This resulted in today’s scenario where Team India relates to a single sport- Cricket.

All along, Hockey India has been moving along slowly but surely marking its path of redemption with occasional success boosting its way. And here we stand today when Team India is again a force to reckon with, being the first one to gain a berth in the upcoming  Rio Olympics 2016. Today, the Sardar Singh led force has defeated all modern-era hockey champs, Team India is back to winning ways. Presently, Team India is fighting for our national game's pride at the Hockey World League Championship, beginning campaign with the sweet taste of success beating France 3-2 in a scintillating 90 minutes that witnessed another thriller, repeating wounds of the last encounter with the French when they were handed a 5-1 thump. Up next is the encounter with arch-rivals Pakistan and Team India is ready and all raring to have a go.All it desires is acknowledgement of the peaople it represents, of the people it belongs.

Today, the traditional Indian youth has learnt the tricks of the trade and Indian Hockey is ready to return to its golden days, the Big Daddy is en-route back to glory. All it needs is a bit of support, of the great nation it was born to, support of the nation whose pride is what they play for !!

#MODI365 – MODIVERSARY Decoded !!

It all began in May 25 , 2015 when India set sails towards an un-explored horizon, in quest of release from the mighty load of unending corruption, an ever-rising inflation, fast-depleting optimism and a hugely dissatisfied population. At helm was the new captain of the ship PM Modi, who had become the latest poster boy for empowerment of the neglected, wretched lot of the 150 crore nation and who seemed the glimmer of hope for greener pastures for Incredible India. With the support of the only single-majority government in the last three decades of electoral polling, Modi promised a better, cleaner, and most important of all a whole-inclusive growing nation to the masses. The journey towards “Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas” had thus begun.

Right from the first day in office , the Namo government swung into action , whether it be checking out the bureaucratic punctuality of Shastri Bhavan, the Indian Administrative headquarters or imparting lessons on daily cleanliness (or filthiness) to government institutions , India witnessed many firsts. It was also on beset of the Modi government that India witnessed the presence of Barack Obama as state guests for a National Day celebration, making him the first POTUS ( President of the United States) to do so. This period also saw rocketed fuel prices and inflation gradually lose momentum and India set sights on the first signs of “ache din” revolution.

This period also saw a slew of measures taken by the government to strengthen the socio-economic standards of an average Indian, whether be the “Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna” or “Swach Bharat Mission”, several attempts were made to ensure a holistic change in the country’s fate. Blackmoney , that had been the topic for most newsroom debate for the last uncountable date, was put to rest by setting up an SIT to enquire upon and track trails of illegal ransoms stashed abroad. The “Namami Gange ” plan saw formation of a separate ministry to check for restoring the divinity of the holy Ganges. There were also plans in place to check and plug loopholes for containing corruption by introducing transparency as per the government’s “Minimum Government, Maximum Governance” ideology.

Today, as we complete the first year since the essence of the Modi government, India witnessed the first Report Card presented by India’s “Pradhan-Sevak” where in he highlighted how his government is dedicated to the upliftment of the poor and needy, to the strengthening the Indian youth, to the betterment of quality of life of the common mass and to face-lift the universal notion towards the nation.

Modi laid down his government’s measures to ensure financial-inclusion through the Jan-Dhan yojana , the Atal-Bima Yojana or the Mudra Bank. While the Jan-Dhan yojana ensures banking covers the last mile of the country , The “Atal Bima Yojana” ensures financial security in form of a insurance cover in lieu of a paltry Re 1/- per month. The Mudra Bank is aimed at financially empowering the small-scale tradesman and business houses for instant grant of loans ranging from 10k-10 lacs.

Modi also stated how, in contrast to opposition claims, his government was directed towards betterment of the agricultural sector through the “Krushi Sichai Yojana” , that aimed at quenching water and power requisites of the peasants, as also the “Soil Health Card” aimed at implementing scientific techniques and modern skills to improve the productivity.

Modi unraveled the measures taken to improve employ-ability of the Indian youth through skill development programs and by reviving the erstwhile sick industrial set-ups.

True to his nature, Modi also showed how by introducing cunning innovation, illegal diversion of Urea produced by government fertilizer industries was stopped by introducing neem-coating on the finished goods, thereby rendering it useless for chemical processes.

Concluding the mark, Modi promised endless efforts with utmost enthusiasm to achieve the goal embarked upon him, backed by the support of the Indian voters. He hailed “ache din” isn’t far as the “bure din” were over for now.

The Irish Challenge – Ind Vs Ire Match Report !!

“Clinical”, it’s the only phrase that can be used to describe India’s reply to the Irish challenge. Team India, travelling out of the drop-in Western Australia to the New Zealand leg of their world cup schedule, only had one concern surrounding their performance – complacency and a possible jet lag. Other than this , the men in blue had ticked  all boxes set forward as questionable aspect of their game and had awe-stricken the bests of cricketing experts and talisman with their astonishing turn around , especially after the tough times they had in the Australian tour leading to the mega event.

Ireland, on the other hand, were surrounded by a lot of positive vibe, right since the outset of their campaign and had even upset the mighty Windies in lead up to this encounter. With some really talented and professional cricketers up in their ranks, Ireland appeared as a force to reckon with. Fascination was even high for this game following what transpired through the cricketing world last evening, with the minnows Bangladesh eliminating the English knights from the world cup in a shocking upset. Could Ireland cause a mega upset here? The game was on.

Toss favoured the Irish skipper, who decided to bat, never minded by MSD who was looking to have a go with his bowlers first. Ireland sacrificed a tweak for pace, whilst India fielded an unchanged squad.

New ball bowlers were taken to cleaners by the Irish openers, as Ireland started running away with the score board, the pitch was found to be a belter and a run-feast was indeed on.

 MSD quickly moved towards his slow bowlers with Jaddu and Ashwin bowling in tandem. Ashwin tied the run score, while Raina was introduced as Jadeja looked out of sorts. Both Ashwin and Raina webbed around the Irish batsmen’s uncertain feet movement against spin and their vulnerability against spin was clearly exposed. Encouraged by the spinner’s success, Dhoni kept throwing the ball at all possible spinning options including Rohit Sharma, as Ireland lost the way losing wickets at regular intervals and as the run drought continued. Indian Speeding trio of Umesh, Shami and Mohit were finally re-introduced in the death, but they remained largely untested of their death bowling skills thanks to the devastating affect spin had on Ireland’s innings. At the end, Team India finally brought the Ireland innings to a halt with the 10^th wicket, achieving a never before record of “blowing away” the opposition clean before 50 overs, 5 times in a row.

India’s chase for the 260 runs target began with a handsome opening stand of 150+ between Rohit and Shikhar , an innings in which the elegant maestro and the hard hitting bully seemed to set a display of batting skills on exhibition. At the fall of the openers, which happened at the fag end of the chase, they were replaced by the run machine Virat and the ever-dependable Rahane, who ensured a 8-wicket win for India. During the chase, team India also brought down several records as in the highest opening stand registered in a world cup encounter and skipper MS Dhoni achieving a personal mile stone of being India’s most successful campaigner in the World Cup , also Team India ‘s charismatic skipper joined the elite club of greats Clive Lyod and Ricky Ponting having the most consecutive wins in World Cup matches.

In the end India’s effort and performance seemed to teach the Irish “The difference between Men and Boys”.

The Proteas Challenge !! – India vs South Africa Match Preview

Team India’s hard , dry run in the southern hemisphere finally came to an end  when the men in blue relished the sweet taste of victory over arch-rivals Pakistan in a high-voltage clash , which interestingly also began Team India’s title defence . But the reigning champions hardly had any time to rejoice , with the mighty Proteas lined up against them next .

As a build up to the Indo-Pak encounter , a TV commercial boasting of India’s invincibility over the Pakistan squad ruled airs , the story turns other way round with the Proteas leading 3-0 as far as World Cup face-off’s are concerned . All in all , a perfect sell out , a all 30 fit squad ( both sides included ) and a high morale India , makes a perfect recipe for a nail biting , edge of the seat thriller this Sunday .

Team Report

India : Led by the talismanic and charismatic MS , India seem to be raring to have a go , having tasted success after so long . The team had a short time winding down , and returned to business just yesterday . With all run machines in form and the bowling finally coming good , India are a force to reckon with . Also historically and Statistically , the venue supports the Champions .

South Africa : Tagged to be the most jinxed team in world arena , the Proteas always seem to be more mightier on paper . With a steamy bowling line-up including the inspiring and scintillating Dale Steyn , Morkel , quality spin and a reliable batting order , the Proteas are almost in everyone’s probable champs list . The venue might also particularly favour the tall , lanky fast bowling resource possessed by them , more than the Indians . And not to forget the incredible De’villiers , Proteas are gonna be India’s toughest opponents through the Pool stage .

All in all it’s set to be a super Sunday with a full sellout crowd for the ultimate encounter . Let’s see if the MS’s boys overcome AB’s daredevils and break the invincibility jinx , currently in possession of the Proteas !! 

The Bihar Turmoil

Political drama was ruling waves across the nation today as Bihar witness incredible , never seen before scenes from the State assembly complex . It all began way back , when Ex-CM Nitish kumar , for the first instance did a Kejriwal , apologizing to the masses for having done the blunder of stepping down from Bihar’s seat of power , following JD(U)’s humiliating and abject defeat in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections .

In what was considered to be a power-puppet show , Bihar was placed in the trusted hands of Manjhi , a trump card for JD(U)’s cast-ism facet of politi , with Nitish stepping down with a motto of

“reconnecting” with the masses and “eradicating” the spread of the so-called “communal forces” from regional legislation . Amidst all this , also happened the watershed moment of arch-rivals JD(U) and LJP-RJD leaving behind their mutual-bitterness to keep off the so-called “communal” forces from reigning Bihar state assembly . All in all , legislation in Bihar was all set for a roller-coaster ride , with the plot promising to better the “jungle-raaj” days .

With the advent of Manjhi , what returned also was low-key , class-biased statements and remarks , that made Manjhi media’s hero for unwanted reasons . In a very short time , Manjhi-led Bihar government was threateningly close to blow-off the lowest-lows India has seen in terms of political bantering .

All this while , when Bihar was experiencing worst days at the legislation , Nitish was lost amidst all

his self-assigned “home-work”  and then all of a sudden , Lord returned from his banavasa to reclaim the throne . But , Manjhi being no good child , politely refused , and thus was reached the climax of Bihar’s entertaining political blockbuster .

Since then , Bihar has been the central theme of Indian politi , be it Manjhi meeting PM Modi over “Team India” or Niti Ayog , or a Nitish vs Manjhi power show-off between respective supporters on Bihar roads , political suspense was at it’s peak !!

All this while , the struggle had included all possible parties , be the Central Government or the Governor , even the state’s Apex judiciary .Favouritism-led legislation was such extreme that a High court direction was required to be put in place , to prevent taters of Bihar legislation . A floor test in the state assembly was ensued .

The final twist in the tale was produced when Bihar BJP decided to join hands with Manjhi & Co. for the floor test and today was set to be inscribed deep into Bihar’s political history . News and speculations floated in as Manjhi went ahead to meet Guv early in the day as JD(U) and BJP took turns to protest for their respective causes in the state assembly complex .

The final verdict however remained covered , as Manjhi , in some sort of an anti-climax , put forth his resignation to the Guv , just moments before the main play , citing “death threats” to him and his supporters to be the cause behind . This brought an end to all speculations as expert analysis began into who actually gained or lost and what from this un-explainable political gimmick .

Well , whatever , it was , the plot was indeed incredibly entertaining and could better any classic Bollywood retro any day !!

The Delhi Mandate - An (in)-Ordinary verdict for the Ordinary party , courtesy - the Common Man !!

Delhi , the seat of power for Indian democratic set-up , has left everyone gaping out in surprise with a never seen before mandate that has shook all interested quarters from the media tp the political pundits , the political parties , and in short the whole nation .

The political stage at Delhi was prone to eye catching activities ever since AAP took center stage in the post-2013 assembly polls , where Arvind Kejriwal , the common man’s mascot was unfurled into the political arena . This was a short-lived joy though , with the government forced to move out , with paltry numbers in it’s petty . This short period was something that can be described best as action-packed as India witnessed pro-active politics  for the first time in decades . A government that lasted barely 49 days had left a lasting impact on the 65 years of Indian politics .

Since the common government leaped out of power , speculations ruled the Indian capital amid a foggy political scenario . As power swapped between the big-wigs of national politi , with the Lotus blossoming into the center , Delhi continued to be left remote-controlled via the lieutenant-general .
This period also saw the dramatic rise of PM Narendra Modi as a heavy weight leader , with Kejriwal facing defeat in first face-off of the duo .

Months into the “Sabka saath , Sabka Vikas” mantra , and Delhi was still on flight-mode . With allHaryana , Maharastra , Jharkhand and Jammu-kashmir , with the central ruling party leading state government machinery in most of them . Also, the period had somewhat seen hardcore , communal parent organization of the lotus tarnish the good governance model with communal hick-ups hijacking headlines .

possibilities of government formation ruled out , Delhi finally blew the battle horns , with the advent of new year .
Meanwhile , lotus had bloomed with powerful numbers in states of

AAP had meanwhile began covering all ground , mapping in all possible sections to back itself and apologising for the so-called “Political immaturity” , that had led it resign out of the government without completing a half century . A new AAP 2.0 had emerged !!

Poll campaign saw all star campaigners flexing their muscles , each trying to blow away their opponents . Several question marks were also created , with some even questioning on the credibility of the PM’s choice of words . AAP resorted to keep itself tied to it’s fundamentals , paying little or no heed to the hard lines hurled , but never leaving behind an opportunity to apologize .

Exit polls , opinion polls , experts all predicted a slight march above majority for AAP , or status quo for AAP and BJP as a favourable result , but the actual figures blew the lid off every ones head . AAP had come back , and that too with a 97 % majority , securing 67 of 70 seats leaving 3 for the ruling party . This also meant the most embrassing tally ever for Congress . Not only the mass and the media , but also the AAP was left stoned .

Now , as Arvind heads for the CM’s chair , exactly a year after he had left it , we can only hope Delhi gets more innovations ( like the DTC buses for night shelter ) and less of dharna and so-called “anarchism” from it’s IITian , Common CM .