You call this a party?

Posted on by

May I vent? On Sunday I went to the India Day celebration in New York. It was my first one since moving here, after years in a smaller city where there wasn’t much commemoration. Riding the subway downtown I was quite excited. I was also upset that I didn’t have a camera. I wanted to document the event for the mutineers to share in the party. I was annoyed that I’d have to find someone else’s blog or Flickr page to show you images of the day.

So I get down to 28th Street and start walking south on Madison Avenue. The street is empty. That’s OK, I can see the party a couple of blocks ahead. It looks small… but compact, right? Besides, it must spill out onto the side streets that I can’t see from here.

Aha! Here we go. Booths, stands, displays. I’m ready to get my culture on. I’m hoping for musicians, arts organizations, political groups of all stripes, regional and ethnic groups, maybe some cool vendors…

And what do I get?

  • Shaadi.com

  • BharatMatrimony

  • State Bank of India

  • Direct TV

  • Satellite TV channel #1

  • Satellite TV channel #2

  • Insurance agency

  • Another bank

… and that’s about it.

I mean, this was pathetic. Pathetic! India Day, commemoration of 59 years of Independence and all that, aunties walking around in tricolor saris, kids with face paint, and almost every single organized presence is hawking middle-class consumer services.

The exception was a bone marrow drive, but even that was being promoted by brothers from a desi fraternity. I’m not hating, especially not on bone marrow drives, but the frat-boy flavor certainly didn’t bring any cultural diversity to the event.

Yeah, there was a stage with performances. Just one stage, and the little I saw was, eh… just OK.

And yeah, I missed the parade. I’d been told to watch for the floats. Well, here’s a brother who took pictures: Corporate flatbeds rolling by empty sidewalks. A few Republican politicians.

The most flavor at the entire event was the Hare Krishnas.

Is it always this way? Continue reading →

Snake Boat Races in Kerala

Posted on by

Every year on the second Saturday in August, the town of Allapuzha (or Allepey), Kerala — the “Venice of the East” — hosts the Nehru Trophy Boat Race. Aranmullavallamkali.jpg The boats used in the comptetition are traditional “snake boats” or “Chundan Vallam”. The boats have as many as 120 oarsmen, and have a large hood in the rear that rises twenty feet in the air, which resembles a cobra’s head. I’m not quite sure what the function of this hood is from a “boat science” perspective, but these boat races are both ancient and highly ritualized, and I get the feeling no one is thinking about a fiberglass redesign. Anyway, the snake boats look pretty cool; see more snake boat images.

allapuzha boat race.jpg For the first time this year, a team of 10 foreign women of various nationalities came from Dubai to participate in the women’s race. The foreign team was led by a British woman named Julie Amer, who describes herself as an “adventure tourist.” The team from Dubai worked together with 25 local Allapuzha women — and their boat came in first in the women’s race.

Two thoughts: 1) It’s cool that the women race in Saris (or are they Mundus?). 2) I love the umbrella; I wonder if it’s only for the women’s boats?

The winner in the men’s competition, for the third year in a row, was the “Payippad Boat Club.” Threepeat! The “Jesus Boat Club” came in second in its first appearance, according to the Hindu.

About 300,000 people went to Allapuzha to watch the race this year. Among them were about 5000 foreigners. Continue reading →

LTTE Arms Buyers Arrested in U.S.; Intense conflict in Sri Lanka

Posted on by

Thirteen LTTE supporters have been arrested in various parts of the U.S., after some of them attempted to buy arms from a U.S. agent (thanks, tipsters). sri lanka bombs.jpg Others were involved in a bribery plot to have the LTTE removed from the U.S. State Department’s list of terrorist organizations. One person (the liasion between the group of 13 and the LTTE in northern Sri Lanka) is still being sought.

Sense any irony here? In case not, let me spell it out: if you’re trying to buy bombs to use in terrorist attacks, it may be difficult to “convince” the State Department that you’re not a terrorist organization.

Another thought: this is the first time I can remember that LTTE supporters have been arrested in the U.S. for involvement in terrorism.

The government in Sri Lanka is by no means innocent in the current conflict. It has, to begin with, bombed the Tamil-controlled areas of Sri Lanka pretty aggressively. The LTTE claims one of the recent targets was a home for orphaned girls, and that sixty of the schoolgirls living there were killed, and another sixty wounded. (The LTTE claims have not been confirmed by any neutral observers, so it might not be true. The Sri Lankan government claims the site was an LTTE military facility.) And a Swedish negotiator has criticized the Sri Lankan government for starting military action against the LTTE too soon after negotiations over water ran into trouble three weeks ago. The same negotiator argues that the dispute over water was both overblown and on the brink of being resolved at the time the government started its artillery assault.

But the LTTE has also delivered a number of bombs to Colombo this summer, the worst of which being a June 15 bombing that killed 64 people (civilians). And there have been many others, including a bombing this week that killed seven and injured many more in Colombo. And thus far, it is the LTTE that has resisted returning to the table to resume talks; according to this report, the government has made it clear that it wants talks to get underway again as soon as possible.

The folks at What is Really Going On? point out that the number of dead in Sri Lanka this summer — 800+ — equals or exceeds the number of people killed in the recent Israel-Hezbollah conflict. The site is not a neutral one, but the point they make is valid. Despite the large number of deaths, the news about the conflict has been effectively absent from the U.S. media (and, for that matter, from the internet). Continue reading →

Mutiny-Wallah. The Sequel.

Posted on by

Aaaaaand I’m back! What, you thought they could keep me away from the bunker forever?

It has been a few months since my gig as Mutiny-Wallah has been up, and I have since been in the real world sitting at cubicles writing humdrum policy reports, all the while dreaming of the happy days with the monkeys in the Sepia Mutiny bunker. Boy, did I miss those monkeys.Boy, did I miss those monkeys. When to my surprise, a couple of nights ago while planning my revolution, I was suddenly blindfolded and kidnapped. I was whisked away from Los Angeles on an autorickshaw (we were supposed to fly Jet Blue, but you know…) and when the blindfold was taken off a couple of hours ago, I found myself once again in the Sepia Mutiny bunkers. Yay!

How long will I be a mutiny-wallah this time around? They keep things hushed around me, but rumor has it it will last through November 7th. That is right, Election Day. You see kids, for those of you living under rocks, or not in this nation, we are at the beginning of a heightened election season, for the midterm elections. Here at Sepia, we’ve already brought you an interview with Raj Bakhta and of course, there was the whole Macaca Mutiny. In anticipation for the upcoming stories surrounding the 2006 elections, I have been brought on to assist you on this path. Think of me as the desi George Stephanopoulos, or the Anderson Cooper of the mutiny. I plan on bringing you investigative Election 2006 coverage, hard hitting interviews with political candidates, and keep you educated with the latest issues that will help in casting your ballot on November 7th. Of course, knowing the work that I love to do, you didn’t think you’d get away without a little voter registration, voter education and get-out-the vote, did you?

This is my 9th year working an election, and I know that there must be plenty of you out there working it too. Are you a desi running for office? Let me know. Registering voters? Campaigning on a ballot initiative? Writing a report about the South Asian Vote? Need to know where to register, where your poll is? Let me help and be devoted to getting you the best South Asian American blog Election 2006 coverage. And now, let the real mutiny begin- again.

Continue reading →

Shorba Nazis

Posted on by

It’s not the Sepia Mutiny model to just post news items without comment, but sometimes the material doesn’t leave us with much to add. With that said, here are the latest developments in Bombay dining:

NAVI MUMBAI: A new restaurant at Kharghar has actually been named as Hitler’s Cross and it was inaugurated by the who’s who of Navi Mumbai on Friday evening.

A huge poster of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler was put at the inauguration function of the restaurant in sector 4 of Kharghar, much to the surprise of the invitees.

Actor Murli Sharma, who has featured in films like Apharan and Teesri Ankh, was one of the guests present at the inauguration. “I found the huge posters of Hitler at the restaurant amusing. That’s all I can say,” he told TOI over phone.

When asked if he felt disturbed by the name of the restaurant, Sharma said: “I am not really agitated as I have not read much about the man (Hitler). However, from what I know about Hitler, I find this name rather amusing.”

Important dignitaries such as Navi Mumbai mayor Manisha Bhoir and former mayor Sanjeev Naik were also invited as chief guests to the restaurant by one Sablok Builders group, who are reportedly behind the management of Hitlers Cross.

A Reuters report picked up by DNA has more:

“We wanted to be different. This is one name that will stay in people’s minds,” owner Punit Shablok said.

“We are not promoting Hitler. But we want to tell people we are different in the way he was different.“…

“This place is not about wars or crimes, but where people come to relax and enjoy a meal,” said restaurant manager Fatima Kabani, adding that they were planning to turn the eatery’s name into a brand with more branches in Mumbai.”

Someone in Mumbai is going to have to do the investigating on this. A field report from Manish, perhaps?

Continue reading →

Ustad Bismillah Khan, R.I.P.

Posted on by

bismillah khan-1.jpgUstad Bismillah Khan, who played the shehnai at the Red Fort on the eve of India’s independence and brought the instrument to prominence in Hindustani classical music, passed away today. He was 90 or 91 (reports vary). Born in Bihar, he came to Varanasi as a child and remained there the rest of his days, living a simple, impecunious life when others of his musical generation achieved fortune in India and overseas. He was a devout Shia Muslim who also took part in Hindu worship, believing in the unity of pathways to God and in the spiritual role of music. Although he had disciples and his sons all became musicians, he leaves — as far as I know — no single obvious musical successor.

An obituary from the BBC is here. The Indian papers covered Khansaheb’s illness and will presumably have tributes and recollections in the coming days. Here is a 2005 interview with Indian Express editor-in-chief Shekhar Gupta that gives a sense of the character and his outlook.

Here is a link to two articles: the second one, which apparently ran in India Today in 1986, includes this description:

His house in Varanasi, in Sarai Harha, is an ample but decrepit structure. His living room which also serves as guest room, is sparsely furnished with creaky wooden benches and a large takht on which, at given time of the day, his children perform namaaz, oblivious of guests and visitors. Still in incessant demand as a player he travels by train regularly with his troupe, often by second class. He hates to fly. And when travel arrangements are being made, the house buzzes with activity as instruments are laid out, ancient steel trunks and torn British Airways flight-bags are packed with clothes and lunch boxes stuffed with rice and samosas. The shehnai player, whose name is familiar even to the international jet set as that of Ravi Shankar, travels by cycle rickshaw. And as he wheels down the city’s streets at the head of a caravan of rickshaws, smiling at well wishers, he looks as happy as a British Lord in a Rolls Royce.

It also includes this quotation:

“I am getting old now. Not in my heart. But in my body. The heart yearns to go on and on but this body sometimes tires and these wretched knees start aching after four hours of playing. And I now have that all-too-human worry. Thirty years ago, I used to think I had conquered or was about to conquer the world. What foolishness! Now I say, Bismillah, you haven’t reached anywhere. The world may know and listen to your ragas, but Bismillah, life will soon finish and your yearnings will still remain. This music is still an ocean. I want to cross it. But I have barely reached the shore. I haven’t yet even taken a dip in it.”

Continue reading →

Anish Kapoor @ Rockefeller Center

Posted on by

anish kapoor kenn.600 small.jpg The Indian born artist Anish Kapoor has a major sculpture going up at Rockefeller Center in New York next month, and there’s a detailed profile of him in the New York Times (thanks, Tamasha).

The sculpture is called “Sky Mirror,” and it’s essentially a large, convex piece of highly polished stainless steel, roughly in the shape of a contact lens. From the image at the Times (which is computer generated) as well as images of the same sculpture at other sites, I have a feeling this piece is going to be a bit of a tourist sensation.

This high-profile placing of one of Kapoor’s sculptures is a coup for the artist, but hardly the first time he’s been given pride of place in the western art world. Major pieces of his are on display in the MOMA and the Tate Modern in London, the most famous of which might be Marsyas, a massive construction that filled the Tate’s vast Turbine Hall four years ago. Kapoor is one of the most important and influential practitioners of a movement in abstract sculpture called either minimalism or post-minimalism, depending on how exact we’re being.

It’s a long way to come for a Doon School boy. Continue reading →

Posted in Art

Macacas bumrushing borders

Posted on by

It’s been a little while since we last had a good dust-up about illegal immigration. Thankfully the U.S. Government’s Office of Immigration Statistics has some fresh material for us to chew on. (Thanks to SAJA for the tip.) It has just released a report estimating the number of illegal immigrants residing in the U.S. in 2005 by period of entry, state of residence, and country of origin. Here are the big-picture findings:

Mexico was the leading source country for unauthorized immigration with nearly 6.0 million residents in the United States in 2005. El Salvador, Guatemala, India, and China were the next leading source countries, accounting for a combined total of nearly 1.4 million unauthorized immigrants. Among the 10 leading source countries, the annual average increase in the unauthorized population from 2000 to 2005 was greatest among Mexican immigrants (260,000). However, the greatest percentage increase in the unauthorized immigrant population from 2000 to 2005 occurred among immigrants from India (133 percent) and Brazil (70 percent).

Interesting! Illegal immigrants from India more than doubled in the last five years, the fastest growth of all source countries; and it’s not a trivial number, since India ranks fourth, ahead of China, in total number of illegals. Of course these estimates are complicated to produce — the study gives details of the methodology — but clearly we are looking at a substantial trend.

Back in April when the big immigration marches were taking place, we noticed that South Asian organizations, especially Indian-American ones, didn’t seem to be much involved, and a number of commenters argued that, by and large, illegal immigration wasn’t much of a desi issue. At a minimum, these numbers suggest that we think again.

Here’s a key question: Who are these new illegal immigrants? Where do they live, what do they do for work? Where in India do they come from? I know we have plenty of readers who work “in the trenches” who could share some insight, even if it’s imcomplete or anecdotal.

Beyond that, what does this massive rise in illegals from India tell us about the Indian economy, given that it occurred during the much-vaunted time of “India Shining?”

And what about the desi community and the organizations and leaders who claim to represent it? It may serve the public image of Indian immigration to keep the rise of the illegal population out of view, but does that serve the community as a whole? Continue reading →

A mutiny we’d rather not be associated with (UPDATED)

Posted on by

In Spain recently, 150 passengers on board Monarch‘s Malaga-Manchester flight staged a revolt, refusing to board the plane until two Asian passengers were removed [thanks Chickpea]:

The trouble in Malaga flared last Wednesday as two British citizens in their 20s waited in the departure lounge to board the pre-dawn flight and were heard talking what passengers took to be Arabic. Worries spread after a female passenger said she had heard something that alarmed her. Passengers noticed that, despite the heat, the pair were wearing leather jackets and thick jumpers and were regularly checking their watches. [Link]

As the revolt spread, more and more passengers either refused to board or left the airplane. The staff responded, not by allaying people’s suspicions, but by removing the two men. They were not detained or charged, and flew back to the UK on a later flight:

… the aircraft was cleared while police did a thorough security sweep. Nothing was found and the plane took off – three hours late and without the two men on board. Monarch arranged for them to spend the rest of the night in an airport hotel and flew them back to Manchester later on Wednesday. [Link]

Conservatives in the UK called the passengers’ actions a victory for the terrorists:

Patrick Mercer, the Tory Homeland Security spokesman, said last night: “This is a victory for terrorists. These people on the flight have been terrorised into behaving irrationally. For those unfortunate two men to be victimised because of the colour of their skin is just nonsense.” [Link]

Can you imagine American conservatives defending the two men who were removed and criticizing the passengers for acting crazy? I’d plotz if I saw that on Fox News. Continue reading →

Let the “Games” begin…

Posted on by

sacredgames2.jpgAn excerpt of an excerpt:

Sartaj walked stiffly to the window. Beyond the fizzing yellow lamps in the compound of the neighbouring building, there was the darkness of the sea, and far ahead, a sprinkling of bright blue and orange that was Bandra. With a good pair of binoculars, you could even see Nariman Point, not so far across the sea but at least an hour away on empty night-time roads, and very far from Zone 13. Sartaj felt a sudden ache in his chest. It was as if two blunt stones were grinding against each other, creating not fire but a dull, steady grow, a persistent and unquiet desire. It rose into his throat and his decision was made.

Twelve minutes of fast driving took him through the underpass and on to the highway. The open stretches of road and the wheel slipping easily through his fingers were exhilarating, and he laughed at the speed. But in Tardeo the traffic was backed up between the brightly-lit shops, and Sartaj was suddenly angry at himself, and wanted to turn around and go back.

And with that, Sartaj Singh is back. He is the police inspector whom you might remember from “Kama,” one of the five novellas that make up Vikram Chandra’s superb second book Love and Longing in Bombay. Chandra’s new tome Sacred Games, a Big Bombay Novel about cops, the underworld, and the meaning of life, was released in India earlier this month. From the excerpt at Rediff.com, which is taken from the first two chapters, it seems Chandra is back in full form: the tone, the pace of the writing feel very much like those of Love and Longing. The big question will be how it all plays out over nearly 1,000 pages. I found Chandra’s first novel, Red Earth and Pouring Rain, too long: the stories within stories within stories, the jumps back and forth from medieval to modern times, from Mughal battlefields to American college campuses, got overwhelming and messy. Love and Longing, by contrast, had a formal structure that disciplined the plot lines and helped the writing soar. It’s my favorite of all the post-Midnight’s Children wave of Indian writing in English.

There are not many reviews out yet: Apparently everyone is still digesting the book. Here’s the bottom line according to Suchitra Behal in The Hindu: Continue reading →