THE BUSINESS OF EDUCATION - International Indian
THE BUSINESS OF EDUCATION - International Indian
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15th<br />
Year!<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL<br />
The Region’s Oldest, Authoritative<br />
Magazine of Gulf <strong>Indian</strong> Society & History<br />
Fabulous Pearls<br />
For subscribers!<br />
HAPPY<br />
DIWALI<br />
TO OUR<br />
READERS!<br />
2008 • ISSUE 5 • VOl. 15.5 • EST 1992<br />
<strong>THE</strong> <strong>BUSINESS</strong> <strong>OF</strong> <strong>EDUCATION</strong><br />
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum<br />
Ruler of Dubai, Prime Minister & Vice President of UAE<br />
Sunny Varkey,<br />
Chairman, GEMS<br />
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Hankook Performance Point - Sharjah Tel.: 06-534 6167 Fax: 06-534 6176 Email: shj-service@aldobowi.com
[ EDITORIAL ]<br />
Calling <strong>Indian</strong> Hindus, <strong>Indian</strong> Muslims,<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> Christians: Divide and They Win<br />
Longstanding readers of TII are familiar<br />
with my views on institutionalized faith<br />
through middlemen vs personal faith<br />
in God. One keeps you horizontally bound<br />
to man-made dictates, the other vertically<br />
connects with the Creator. In my own spiritual<br />
journey I discovered there is a life changing<br />
difference between following something<br />
called Christianity and genuine faith in Christ.<br />
So my reaction to the current destruction of<br />
Christian worship places in India that people<br />
call “church’’ differs from the general outcry.<br />
The word ‘church’ is not an exclusive<br />
Christian term anymore than geographically<br />
‘Hindu’ is exclusively for practitioners of<br />
Hinduism. It originates from ekklesia, a word<br />
used in the context of Athenian democracy by<br />
referring to a chosen assembly of individuals.<br />
Somehow church buildings have acquired<br />
unnecessary religious significance, missing<br />
the wood for the trees. In destroying churches,<br />
the perpetrators of violence against <strong>Indian</strong><br />
Christians need to understand that true<br />
faith-not the cultural variety is impossible to<br />
eradicate. They only have to study ancient<br />
Rome, Russia or Communist China’s relentless<br />
attempts to wipe out their people’s faith and<br />
carefully evaluate the situation there today.<br />
It is now obvious what the Sangh Parivar<br />
is up to across the country, but if the BJP’s<br />
proxy army of goons doesn’t halt ‘Operation<br />
Persecute’ they could eventually be responsible<br />
for altering India’s spiritual landscape into one<br />
they least expect. Wishful thinking? Not really,<br />
just a lesson from the pages of history. Genuine<br />
faith in Christ is not like a club membership-it<br />
cannot be inherited, bought, sold, transferred<br />
or forcibly implanted. The scriptures (John<br />
15: 16) in fact clarify that God chooses people,<br />
not the other way around. Paradoxically in<br />
his great mercy he also says, “Ask, and you<br />
will receive.” That incredible transaction for<br />
salvation is not signing up to something manmade<br />
called Christianity, it is fulfilling the<br />
longing of every human heart to be freed from<br />
sin and certain of a place in eternity.<br />
It is a privilege to interact with people of<br />
various faiths who genuinely seek the vertical<br />
divine connection and share important<br />
convictions. Long ago I stopped seeing<br />
people as Hindus, Muslims, Christians etc.,<br />
so taking sides and joining the blame game<br />
against a particular religious community for<br />
the atrocities in India is not an option. All we<br />
<strong>Indian</strong>s need to be clear about is that a nexus<br />
of criminal politicians, disaffected individuals<br />
goaded by unlawful political and religious<br />
groups is single-mindedly at work in our land.<br />
If they succeed in dividing us, they win.<br />
India is being taken over by hoodlums and<br />
neither the state nor the citizenry seem to<br />
understand the grave danger. Petty rajahs ruled<br />
before and the British seized their kingdoms,<br />
but today individuals with private armies<br />
possess wealth and influence from established<br />
power bases throughout the country. Lawless<br />
organisations like the Bajrang Dal, MNS etc.,<br />
effortlessly challenge the state. Someone like<br />
a Raj Thackeray is only a more prominent<br />
incarnation of local goondas in every state who<br />
operate with impunity. Long before Indira<br />
Gandhi allowed the likes of Bhindranwalle to<br />
run free, India has been turning a blind eye<br />
to a growing network of political and criminal<br />
masterminds who know how to subvert<br />
democracy, and manipulate our unwieldy<br />
parliamentary government. Now the chickens<br />
are coming home to roost.<br />
We are casual about injustice in India but<br />
whatever our stand on faith or politics the<br />
slaughter of innocents and the plight of our<br />
fellow <strong>Indian</strong>s is heartbreaking. They are<br />
being blown up by fanatics manipulated<br />
to believe their religion calls for revenge<br />
or butchered by rented mobs for political<br />
mileage. Hordes are motivated strategically<br />
by the absurd religious conversion issue that<br />
clearly violates our fundamental rights. If<br />
you belong to the silent, impotent majority of<br />
<strong>Indian</strong>s who remain mute bystanders as the<br />
killings continue, you have only an illusion<br />
of safety. The forces being unleashed in our<br />
land may kill your neighbors in the name of<br />
religion today; unchecked, they will find other<br />
reasons to deal with you tomorrow.<br />
German Chancellor Bismarck once<br />
observed that, “God looked after idiots,<br />
drunks and the United States of America.”<br />
But publications like Der Spiegel in Germany<br />
say the era of American fiscal dominance in<br />
the world has ended. But India’s corrupt, pus<br />
infected underbelly is even more vulnerable<br />
and our most essential social foundations<br />
highly uncertain. <strong>Indian</strong> democracy may have<br />
withstood six decades of social, economic and<br />
political challenges, but the rule of law is still<br />
not established in the country. Religion in<br />
India is controlled by politicians and tainted in<br />
blood, the <strong>Indian</strong> tendency to claim spiritual<br />
high ground is a bad joke. There is something<br />
seriously wrong with India.<br />
In the past I have speculated that in a country<br />
with plural beliefs like ours, an idea to consider<br />
is combined places of worship for all, where<br />
we could share the most meaningful truths<br />
of our faiths. In community halls where there<br />
is harmony, our understanding of each other<br />
would radically improve and large chunks of<br />
prime real estate put to more practical use!<br />
Popular belief often ignores the fact that while<br />
places of worship have religious and historical<br />
significance, they are also monuments to the<br />
ambitions and dubious motivations of various<br />
institutions and clergy hooked on expansion.<br />
Jesus set no such example for earthly<br />
increase - religious empires are entirely<br />
man’s idea.<br />
Frank Raj<br />
Publisher & Founder Editor<br />
2<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ CONTENTS ]<br />
ISSUE 15.5 2008: ISSN 0964-8437<br />
Cover Story<br />
Sunny Varkey:<br />
56<br />
Entrepreneur<br />
& Educator of<br />
Excellence<br />
Sunny Varkey’s mission of redefining<br />
education in the UAE and beyond<br />
has succeeded in creating what no<br />
single entrepreneur has managed to<br />
achieve in the field of Middle East<br />
education.<br />
By Mona Parikh McNicholas<br />
and Frank Raj<br />
The Changing<br />
Face of Diwali:<br />
Politics<br />
The India Column 8<br />
by Vishal Arora<br />
Arab View 16<br />
by Rami G. Khouri<br />
Columns<br />
Guptara Garamagaram 18<br />
by Prabhu Guptara<br />
14<br />
Less emphasis<br />
on rituals,<br />
but more<br />
ostentatious.<br />
That’s the<br />
hallmark of<br />
the modern, affluent India. There<br />
are more lights, and electric ones.<br />
By Nita J Kulkarni<br />
Community<br />
Hyderabadi:<br />
Women’s Arena 25<br />
by Barbara Lewis<br />
Let’s ask Dr. Dobson 28<br />
Humour 30<br />
by Melvin Durai<br />
Foreign Affairs 32<br />
by Sreeram Chaulia<br />
India These Days: Tuticorin<br />
by Ashok Dongre 36<br />
44<br />
The Hindus and the Muslims are the<br />
warp and weft of the social fabric, the taana<br />
and the baana. Together they have woven<br />
wonders and held up a shining picture of<br />
communal amity. Unfortunately the actions<br />
of a few people have created this crazy picture<br />
where a wrong doer is always a Muslim<br />
with a beard and a skull cap.<br />
By Shyamola Khanna<br />
Sex, Lies and Truth 38<br />
by Melissa and<br />
Louis McBurney<br />
I Believe 61<br />
by Karan Thapar<br />
Buzzword 78<br />
Future Quest 80<br />
Features<br />
Investment 10<br />
by Archisman Dinda<br />
Business of Music 22<br />
by Archisman Dinda<br />
From UK - Dare to Achieve 40<br />
by Sarina Menezes<br />
From USA – Seniors Rock On 52<br />
by Prem Kishore<br />
Sangliana Saga 64<br />
by Ingrid Albuquerque<br />
From Canada – Mixed Marriages 66<br />
by Rubina Jacob<br />
Bollywood Profile – Anupam Kher 68<br />
by Amita Sarwal<br />
<strong>International</strong> Adoption 70<br />
by Ingrid Albuquerque<br />
Big Bad Branding of Bollywood 73<br />
by Naseem Javed<br />
Moneywise: Employee Benefits 76<br />
by Bob Parker<br />
Interview<br />
See U at the Top: Jonathan Jagtiani,<br />
CEO, Home Centre 48<br />
Miscellany<br />
Editorial 2<br />
Letters 6<br />
TII Hall of Fame 50<br />
Dr. H. Narsimhaiah, educationist,<br />
born Hosur, Karnataka, 1920<br />
The <strong>International</strong> <strong>Indian</strong> is owned by Global <strong>Indian</strong> Travellers Association (GITA), a private limited company incorporated in England and Wales under the Companies Act 1985 on 14 January 1998 (Company No:<br />
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Distributors: Dar Al Hikma LLC, Dubai, UAE. All material inside is copyrighted. E mail: editor@intindian.com Website: www.intindian.com<br />
4<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
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[ LETTERS ]<br />
Stand United<br />
I<br />
strongly condemn the senseless violence<br />
perpetrated against the Christians in Orissa and<br />
express my deepest concern. Christians practice<br />
their faith in peace and respect other faiths. It is<br />
disheartening to know that many innocent people<br />
have been killed in Orissa by communal groups and<br />
several houses, orphanages, and churches gutted<br />
during the recent communal violence.<br />
The Constitution of this great nation guarantees<br />
her citizens the fundamental right to practice<br />
their faith without fear. All <strong>Indian</strong>s are equal and<br />
no group of individuals can take the law into<br />
their hands and deprive other citizens of their<br />
fundamental rights. Of late the secular fabric of our<br />
Mother India is tarnished by the senseless acts of<br />
communal forces.<br />
I also strongly condemn the subsequent decision<br />
of the Directorate of Education, Government<br />
of Karnataka, to serve notices to the Christian<br />
institutions who had closed their institutions on<br />
Friday, August 29, 2008. This was a peaceful protest.<br />
Not a single incidence of violence was reported<br />
Secular India!<br />
our latest magazine carrying an article written<br />
Yby Nita J Kukarni on Ramzan in India is really a<br />
thought provoking one and it kindled nostalgia of<br />
India within me. I spent a major part of my life in<br />
a small upcoming town down south – Coimbatore<br />
in Tamil Nadu. I recall those happy days with lot<br />
of friends. We used to celebrate all the festivals<br />
together – Diwali, Onam, X-mas, Easter, Eid,<br />
Ramadan. All our friends used to ensure that we<br />
were together on such functions with our families,<br />
enjoying the festive spirit. The important thing<br />
which I would like to point out here is that we were<br />
together not only in celebration, but even in times<br />
of difficulties – a treatment in hospital or death<br />
in family – we were together. Secularism in India is<br />
born with each and every <strong>Indian</strong> and politicians are<br />
hijacking it for their mean purposes.<br />
Proud to be an INDIAN!<br />
Vinodhkumar P,<br />
Dubai<br />
from anywhere. These institutions serve the people<br />
of all walks of society and provide education to all,<br />
without any discrimination of caste, religion, or<br />
social status. In a democracy, people have the right<br />
of expression and what is wrong when this is done<br />
in a peaceful manner?<br />
Let us stand united and demand:<br />
1. An impartial Central enquiry into the recent<br />
communal violence in Orissa.<br />
2. The guilty should be arrested and stern action<br />
taken against them.<br />
3. Preventive measures to be taken by the<br />
authorities throughout the country to prevent such<br />
incidents and deal with the police authorities who<br />
failed to take preventive action despite advance<br />
information given to them.<br />
Do forward this mail to as many friends to solicit<br />
their support for a cause. Do respond to<br />
contact.drhtsangliana@gmail.com with<br />
your name, address and telephone number for<br />
communication.<br />
God Bless our Great Country,<br />
Dr. H. T. Sangliana, Member of Parliament<br />
Great Articles<br />
think The <strong>International</strong> <strong>Indian</strong> contains some<br />
I absolutely fantastic articles targeted at the<br />
Gulf- <strong>Indian</strong> readers. I am not sure if I have seen the<br />
forward features list, I believe your website is under<br />
reconstruction. Overall, I found the magazine very<br />
interesting as a NRI reader myself – good work!<br />
Aakriti Kaushik<br />
London<br />
Correction Please<br />
I<br />
n the last issue, TII 15.4, we’d like to correct our<br />
mistake. Ajmal Perfumes’ turnover for the GCC is<br />
US$ 167 million; this is not the net profit as stated<br />
earlier. In terms of Zakat, Ajmal Perfumes gives 2.5%<br />
and an additional 10% towards charity. Both the<br />
amounts are taken from the net profit, which we do<br />
not disclose.<br />
Zubair Haider, Dubai<br />
Executive at Ajmal Perfumes<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL<br />
Est. 1992: The region’s oldest, authoritative<br />
magazine of Gulf <strong>Indian</strong> Society & History<br />
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CONTRIBUTING EDITORS<br />
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Benjamin Parker<br />
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6<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN<br />
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[ <strong>THE</strong> INDIA COLUMN ]<br />
Futility of Inquiry Commissions<br />
“How long can the governments fool people by temporarily calming their anger by<br />
setting up commissions, which are nothing more than tokenism?”<br />
[ By VISHAL ARORA ]<br />
It is typical of state governments in<br />
India to set up inquiry commissions<br />
under the Commission of Inquiry<br />
Act of 1952 after incidents of largescale<br />
communal violence. But, is this<br />
exercise fruitful? There are at least<br />
thee reasons why it is not.<br />
One, commissions take too long<br />
in submitting reports and recommendations.<br />
For instance, March<br />
2010 is likely to mark half a century<br />
of the extension of the Justice M.S.<br />
Liberhan Commission, which continues<br />
to probe the 1992 demolition of<br />
the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya (Uttar<br />
Pradesh). On September 30, its term<br />
was extended for the 47th time by six<br />
more months.<br />
The Liberhan Commission was set<br />
up by the then P.V. Narasimha Rao government<br />
10 days after the demolition of the<br />
mosque on Dec 6, 1992. The order setting<br />
up the commission stipulated that it complete<br />
the inquiry “as soon as possible but not<br />
later than three months”. Regrettably, the<br />
three months’ deadline has been stretched<br />
to 16 long years.<br />
One fails to understand how an inquiry<br />
panel can investigate a crime months or years<br />
after its occurrence? It is simple logic that<br />
the longer one waits, the lesser the chances<br />
of gathering evidence against the perpetrators.<br />
But, the fact that the Liberhan Commission<br />
has recorded statements of several<br />
senior BJP leaders, including L.K. Advani,<br />
Murli Manohar Joshi and Uma Bharati, and<br />
former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Kalyan<br />
Singh, suggests why there is such a delay.<br />
Two, the independence and neutrality<br />
of commissions are questionable. For<br />
example, five days before the term of the<br />
Liberhan Commission was extended, the<br />
first part of the Nanavati Commission report<br />
was tabled in the Gujarat state assembly.<br />
The report said the burning of the S-6<br />
coach of the Sabarmati Express train on<br />
February 27, 2002 near the Godhra railway<br />
station was an act of some local Muslims.<br />
It also absolved the Bharatiya Janata Party<br />
(BJP) government, which was believed to<br />
be behind the gory anti-Muslim violence<br />
that ensued. In other words, the report stated<br />
exactly what Chief Minister Narendra<br />
Modi wanted to hear and advertise on the<br />
eve of general elections.<br />
The Nanavati Commission report, which<br />
gave a clean chit to the chief minister<br />
who was called a modern day Nero by the<br />
Supreme Court of India for failing to protect<br />
the lives of Muslims, contradicted the report<br />
of a committee set up by the railway ministry<br />
under the leadership of Lalu Prasad Yadav<br />
and headed by former judge U.C. Banerjee.<br />
In its interim report submitted in January<br />
2005, the Banerjee Committee stated the<br />
train fire was an accident and that there was<br />
no evidence to suggest that it was planned.<br />
Besides, numerous independent inquiry reports<br />
held the Modi government guilty of<br />
allowing extreme Hindu nationalist groups<br />
to perpetrate violence on Muslims with almost<br />
total impunity.<br />
The Nanavati Commission report<br />
dismayed the minority Muslim<br />
community in India, but there<br />
was nothing surprising about it. For,<br />
the Commission, which was set up<br />
by the Modi government in March<br />
2002, comprised of two justices,<br />
G.T. Nanavati and K.G. Shah. Justice<br />
Shah expired earlier this year,<br />
and the government appointed in his<br />
place former judge Akshay Mehta,<br />
who is believed to be close to Modi.<br />
The appointment of Justice Mehta<br />
and the time of the submission of the<br />
report that was still incomplete raise<br />
doubts in the minds of people about<br />
its neutrality.<br />
Lastly, the findings and recommendations<br />
of inquiry commissions<br />
are not binding. Take for example<br />
the Justice Srikrishna Commission,<br />
which in 1998 clearly indicted the Shiv Sena<br />
in the infamous incident of communal violence<br />
against Muslims in Mumbai in 1992-<br />
93. It made several recommendations, but<br />
they have neither been accepted nor acted<br />
upon by any Maharashtra government since<br />
then. This, despite loud hues and cries being<br />
raised by numerous non-governmental<br />
organisations.<br />
If commissions take years to come up<br />
with findings, if they are not shielded from<br />
a possible influence of ruling governments,<br />
and if their recommendations are not binding,<br />
who needs commissions of inquiry?<br />
How long can the governments fool people<br />
by temporarily calming their anger by setting<br />
up commissions, which are nothing<br />
more than tokenism? Two years ago, the<br />
Supreme Court rightly observed that commissions<br />
were appointed for only mere<br />
political reasons “knowing fully well that<br />
nothing will come out of it”.<br />
Vishal Arora is a freelance journalist<br />
based in New Delhi.<br />
8<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ INVESTMENTS ]<br />
‘Do not keep all your<br />
eggs in one basket’<br />
“Actually, long-term<br />
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to take hasty decisions<br />
in taking fresh calls<br />
and are waiting for<br />
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in real terms there<br />
have not been<br />
significant changes.”<br />
[ By ARCHISMAN DINDA ]<br />
The old proverb that whatever goes<br />
up must come down seems to be<br />
making an impact in the <strong>Indian</strong><br />
financial markets. After a sustained period<br />
of bull reign, the bearish moods seems to<br />
be prevailing far more than what analysts<br />
anticipated. With the BSE sensex slipping<br />
below the 10, 000 mark in the last month<br />
and then recovering after assurances from<br />
the government, what is worrying the<br />
analyst is the kind of impact that global<br />
factors have on the <strong>Indian</strong> markets. With<br />
major international financial institutions<br />
in the doldrums, there is a worry about<br />
how safe we are in globalised India. “If it<br />
can happen to them it can happen to us any<br />
day,” believes a major broker unwilling to<br />
be named. Even assurance from the finance<br />
ministers is of little help to the teetering<br />
retailers. And this negative sentiment is<br />
what is hurting the markets more than<br />
anything believe analysts.<br />
The very lack of confidence in the market<br />
is making sure that there is no buying even<br />
at the lowest levels. ‘There is no fresh<br />
commitment coming in. People are taking<br />
up opportunistic positions. Therefore, there<br />
is little commitment left in the market. At<br />
this point, the problem with the market is<br />
the lack of commitment and sustained fund<br />
inflows. Market analysts however prescribe<br />
sustained buying to get out of the current<br />
rut. Analysts are adviasing people to stay<br />
with known names in this market. The very<br />
basis of the <strong>Indian</strong> economy is on strong<br />
footing like never before, and nothing<br />
dramatic has taken place domestically. Both<br />
politically and economically, except for the<br />
rising inflation and the corporate numbers<br />
still showing substantial resilience, and<br />
the GDP remaining stellar, crude prices<br />
are showing signs of coming down, and<br />
analysts are hopeful of better tidings.<br />
However, the predicament lies in the lack<br />
of confidence and no one is willing to buy<br />
this elementary truth. “Actually, longterm<br />
investors are unwilling to take hasty<br />
decisions in making fresh calls and are<br />
waiting for clearer signals.<br />
Even as inflation and global crude oil<br />
prices have been showing signs of coming<br />
down, in real terms there has not been<br />
10<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ INVESTMENTS ]<br />
significant change. Two things – the<br />
greenback’s appreciation against the rupee<br />
in recent weeks and the lag effect in having<br />
weekly inflation numbers – may have<br />
caused the difference. For example, crude<br />
oil at $106 a barrel in real terms now means<br />
$118 a barrel owing to the appreciation<br />
of over 11 per cent in US Dollar vis-à-vis<br />
rupee in the past four months,” believes<br />
analyst Sundar Patel.<br />
But such is the sentiment, that even<br />
known names are finding it hard to sell their<br />
brand value in such sluggish weather. In the<br />
middle of August, Tata Motors announced<br />
its plans to raise funds to part finance the<br />
$2.3-billion acquisition of Ford’s iconic<br />
auto brands Land Rover and Jaguar. The<br />
latest proposal is slightly different from one<br />
the auto major announced in May: That it<br />
would raise Rs 7,200 crore via three rights<br />
issues. There’s no change in two proposed<br />
issues to raise Rs 4,200 crore. However, the<br />
Tata’s have dropped a third rights issue of<br />
five-year 0.5 per cent convertible preference<br />
shares to raise Rs 3,000 crores. Instead, the<br />
commercial vehicles and car giant has opted<br />
to raise that amount through a divestment<br />
of its stakes in group companies.<br />
Around the same time, the Aditya Birla<br />
group company Hindalco became another<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> mega-corp— which had also made<br />
a multi-billion acquisition, of aluminum<br />
giant Novelis for $6 billion—to reign its<br />
capital-raising game plan. In June, the Birla<br />
aluminum major had proposed to raise<br />
Rs 5,000 crore by issuing one rights share<br />
for every three held, at a price of Rs 120.<br />
According to the Centre for Monitoring<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> Economy (CMIE), Corporate India<br />
has investments totaling Rs 71,10,334 crore<br />
lined up. But the question is: Where is all<br />
that money going to come from?<br />
The tamed sentiment on the Dalal<br />
Street is taking its toll on all forms of<br />
equity capital-raising: Initial public<br />
offerings, follow-on public offerings,<br />
private placements and depository receipts.<br />
Rights issues have been a trendy way for<br />
corporations, but as the tinkering in the<br />
Tata and Hindalco blueprints indicates,<br />
such fund-raising isn’t , without its share<br />
of hiccups. Hence, bank lending has raced<br />
up but as corporate chieftains (like ICICI<br />
Bank MD K.V. Kamath) have warned,<br />
“<br />
There is a<br />
possibility that we<br />
would get better<br />
levels. Therefore,<br />
there is no compelling<br />
reason to go and buy<br />
because stocks have<br />
corrected now. The<br />
broader undertone<br />
will continue to<br />
remain bearish.<br />
”<br />
rising interest rates (which haven’t yet<br />
peaked) threaten to throw a huge spanner<br />
into the mega-expansion plans of <strong>Indian</strong><br />
promoters. What’s more, the higher cost<br />
of debt will result in interest costs rising<br />
further, eating more into India Inc.’s profits<br />
(interest expenses as a percentage of sales<br />
have already begun rising in the quarter<br />
ended June 2008, compared to the previous<br />
year’s corresponding period).<br />
So what does all this means to retail<br />
investors? Should they hold on? Technical<br />
analyst Deepak Mohani thinks that for<br />
those people who have got a nice blue<br />
chip portfolio for several years, there is no<br />
reason to dump. “There is no reason for<br />
people with a long-term portfolio of blue<br />
chips they have had from 5 or 6 years to<br />
get out. They can absorb this decline and<br />
get into the next bull market,” he says.<br />
According to him, the trouble is more for<br />
those people who have got into the market<br />
in the last one or two months. He advises<br />
them to “book their losses even though they<br />
may be substantial enough.”<br />
Jaideep Goswami of HDFC Securities,<br />
on the other hand asks people to bide their<br />
time and postpone their buying. “There is<br />
a possibility that we would get better levels.<br />
Therefore, there is no compelling reason to<br />
go and buy because stocks have corrected<br />
now. The broader undertone will continue<br />
to remain bearish,” he says. “We need to see<br />
the overwhelming sense of optimism, which<br />
is not yet back. People are basically looking<br />
for profits even now. We may see some<br />
buying coming at lower levels in stocks<br />
like Larsen & Toubro or Ashok Leyland or<br />
Maruti Udyog for that matter,” he adds.<br />
Clearly, there is a sense of caution and<br />
even analysts are not sure which way the<br />
markets would swing now and what kind of<br />
strategy would be effective in these troubled<br />
times. This dilemma is best summed up<br />
by T S Harihar of Karvy Stock Broking.<br />
“The only strategy that I can think of is<br />
a volatile strategy, where one just takes a<br />
bet that the markets will be volatile. The<br />
only thing that I can bet on is volatility.<br />
One can make combination buy calls and<br />
puts. Other than that, it is very difficult to<br />
take a directional strategy in this market,”<br />
Harihar concludes.<br />
However, there could be some brave<br />
souls who are even now looking for profits<br />
in this volatility. In a volatile stock market,<br />
where prices change rapidly, there are two<br />
main strategies that can deliver good longterm<br />
gains to investors. The first rule<br />
is to believe in another age-old proverb.<br />
Do not keep all your eggs in one basket.<br />
Hence, diversify. You should invest in a<br />
wide range of different shares that can act<br />
as protection against other sectors. Also, do<br />
put everything into the highest risk areas.<br />
Invest in long established companies that<br />
offer stable results. Fast changing stocks such<br />
as those in the travel and technology sectors<br />
traditionally do well seasonally, but are also<br />
affected significantly by international news<br />
events. Secondly, you need to be on your<br />
toes to decide when to buy and sell in order<br />
to get the best returns. A fast changing<br />
market gives you plenty of opportunities<br />
to buy and sell, taking advantage of the<br />
best price for either action, but you need to<br />
commit yourself to spending serious time<br />
poring over your portfolio to discern the<br />
optimum moment for making your move.<br />
It is important to recognize the long-term<br />
trends that underlie short-term volatility,<br />
and position yourself to take advantage.<br />
Archisman Dinda is a freelance writer<br />
based in Kolkatta.<br />
12<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ DIWALI ]<br />
The Changing<br />
face of Diwali<br />
“Less emphasis on rituals, but more ostentatiousness. That’s the hallmark of the<br />
modern, affluent India. There are more lights, and electric ones.”<br />
[ By NITA JATAR KULKARNI ]<br />
When Mrs Sayantara<br />
Purandare went to<br />
perform pooja of a<br />
cow and calf on the day of Vasu-<br />
Baras (the first day of Diwali for<br />
Maharashtrians) she was surprised<br />
to see a lone cow standing under<br />
the tree bereft of calf. As the<br />
presence of the calf is equally<br />
important (to venerate the mother<br />
for sharing her milk with human<br />
children), Sayantara was upset, but<br />
saw that a lot of women were not<br />
too concerned. After all the man<br />
had a glib answer: “The cow is<br />
pregnant,” he told them, extending<br />
his hand shamelessly for the dakshina. This<br />
would have been unthinkable a few decades<br />
back…no tout would have dared to mess up<br />
with an age-old tradition. But this is the face<br />
of Diwali today. Rank commercialization,<br />
and conmen able to make a fast buck because<br />
people are less finicky about rituals.<br />
Less emphasis on rituals, but more<br />
ostentatiousness. That’s the hallmark of the<br />
modern, affluent India. There are more lights,<br />
and electric ones. And not just in homes, but<br />
in neighborhoods and shopping complexes<br />
as well. Fireworks have got louder and more<br />
organised. So has the music. There are Diwali<br />
dances, Diwali beauty queens and Diwali<br />
shows. Diwali cards and Diwali gift packs.<br />
Rangolis are not the pretty decorations that<br />
one slaved at in one’s own courtyard but are<br />
now the subject of neighborhood competitions.<br />
Sweets and savouries are bought not made,<br />
and the well to do often exchange expensive<br />
gifts even if tradition dictates that it’s sweets<br />
and savouries that need to be exchanged.<br />
Chocolates are in fact the new fashion and<br />
ghee laden sweets are getting the go-by. Maybe<br />
diseases like high blood pressure, cholesterol<br />
and diabetes are restraining factors!<br />
Other rituals like decorating houses with<br />
rangolis, taking the ritual oil baths and<br />
performing aukshans are becoming optional,<br />
particularly amongst the younger lot. As for<br />
spring-cleaning (used to start a good 15 days<br />
before Diwali) it has become a superficial<br />
exercise, if done at all. All this leaves people,<br />
particularly elders, with doubts about<br />
whether the spirit of Diwali is intact.<br />
What do we mean by the spirit of Diwali<br />
anyway? Diwali signifies the victory of Good<br />
over Evil (return of Rama from<br />
a 14 year exile for north <strong>Indian</strong>s<br />
and defeat of Narkasura by Lord<br />
Krishna in the south). In most<br />
parts of India Laxmi (the Goddess<br />
of Wealth) is worshipped. People<br />
purchase gold and remain at<br />
home to welcome Laxmi. It’s a big<br />
day for those in the northern and<br />
western parts of India and if one<br />
has to test the sanctity of Diwali,<br />
one needs to test it on this day.<br />
What one sees is heart-warming.<br />
The majority of people stay at<br />
home to celebrate Laxmi pooja<br />
as it is considered inauspicious to<br />
travel during this time or even<br />
leave the house. Fifty year old<br />
Sarita Poha doesn’t even party that day as the<br />
thought of locking up the house is anathema<br />
to her. “It’s not superstition,” she insists. “It’s<br />
religion, and I believe in it and so do my two<br />
grown-up daughters.”<br />
On the other days of Diwali, rituals are<br />
not adhered to as strictly. People may not go<br />
out and buy new utensils on Dhanteras but<br />
they do lights lamps and there is a festive<br />
atmosphere at home. People come and go<br />
and there are get-togethers. “The days are<br />
not unnoticed. I think faith is intact in spite<br />
of the dilution of ritualistic practices,” says<br />
Usha Vaidyanathan, a traditional Tamilian,<br />
and she doesn’t think that this change is a<br />
bad thing. “With the younger generation<br />
festivals are becoming less associated with<br />
religion and rituals and becoming more<br />
like social events and occasions for get-<br />
14<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ DIWALI ]<br />
Sayantara Purandare is upset that Diwali has become<br />
more commercial and age-old traditoinal rituals<br />
forgotten<br />
togethers – more like how it is for desis<br />
overseas and in my opinion it is good.”<br />
Worshipping is a private affair with close<br />
family members and after that people party,<br />
splurge and “enjoy.” The emphasis being on<br />
bonding with others, not just close relatives.<br />
That is in fact what the spirit of Diwali is<br />
about. Bonding with the community. It cannot<br />
be a coincidence that Diwali takes place around<br />
the harvest season. In fact some major festivals<br />
of India like Diwali, Holi and Pongal take<br />
place during such times. On Holi there is an<br />
emphasis on togetherness, people drink and<br />
make merry. And well, Diwali is like that too.<br />
Why, in some regions gambling is part of the<br />
Diwali tradition. Goddess Parvati is thought to<br />
have played dice with her husband Lord Shiva<br />
on that day and ordained that people who do<br />
so will prosper the rest of the year. People may<br />
not gamble for the sake of Goddess Parvati’s<br />
blessings, but they do gamble!<br />
So, when revelers are not praying, they are<br />
feasting, bursting crackers, shopping, dressing<br />
up, gambling and partying! The fatter their<br />
pockets, the more intense the revellery! No<br />
one thinks it’s wrong…because most people<br />
follow the “important rules” of Diwali.<br />
Affluence, women working, and an<br />
impatience with rituals may the reasons for<br />
Diwali celebrations becoming irreverent in<br />
the metros today, but the nuclear family is<br />
another reason. A Diwali sans elders is bound<br />
to be a little informal. “If close relatives were<br />
here, we would meet them… but they are<br />
spread out all over the world,” says fifty five<br />
year old Pushpa Zawar, a traditional Marwari<br />
What Diwali means to<br />
different communities<br />
Although all Hindus celebrate Diwali,<br />
it’s importance varies with different<br />
communities. In Bengal, Durga Puja (which<br />
arrives before Diwali) is more important than<br />
Diwali, and in Kerala it’s Onam, and in Tamil<br />
Nadu it’s Pongal.<br />
Diwali also starts differently for different<br />
communities. Maharashtrians start it off with<br />
Vasu-Baras, while for most other communities<br />
of India, the day of Dhanteras is the first day<br />
of Diwali, which many in north India call Choti<br />
Diwali. There are many legends associated<br />
with Dhanteras, but primarily it is the worship<br />
of wealth. And while the main day of Diwali<br />
for those in northern and western parts is<br />
Laxmi Pooja, for many states in the south, it’s<br />
Naraka Chaturdashi. It is believed that Lord<br />
Krishna killed Narakasura on this day.<br />
On the day of Lakshmi Puja it is considered<br />
auspicious to purchase gold. Houses are<br />
lighted up and the doors kept open for<br />
Lakshmi (Goddess of Weath) to enter the<br />
home. The Bengalis however do not worship<br />
Lakshmi, but Durga.<br />
Bhaiya Duj celebrates the love between<br />
brothers and sisters and the sisters perform<br />
an aukshan for their brothers and in return<br />
get a gift. But the importance of this festival<br />
varies across India and in some communities,<br />
like in Tamil Nadu for example, it is not<br />
celebrated at all.<br />
housewife. Brothers, sisters and parents live<br />
far away, and the telephone and the internet<br />
is what helps them connect, particularly<br />
around Diwali. Pushpa also confesses that<br />
when she was a new daughter-in-law all<br />
rituals were followed religiously as elders<br />
were watching. Although a religious person,<br />
today she ignores some inconvenient rituals<br />
like rising before sunrise, the oil baths and<br />
the cooking of elaborate Diwali “goodies.”<br />
Sarita Poha: It’s not superstition, it’s religion. I believe<br />
in it and so do my two grown-up daughters<br />
Some have even stopped bursting crackers<br />
during Diwali, either because of personal<br />
safety issues or for societal reasons. There<br />
is an awareness about the Sivakasi factories<br />
which employ child labour, and then there is<br />
also the question of the exorbitant prices of<br />
crackers today.<br />
What’s interesting is that Diwali is becoming<br />
more pan <strong>Indian</strong> than ever. For example, Tamil<br />
Nadu tradition did not demand that diyas be<br />
lighted during Diwali, but that is not the case<br />
anymore. “People have begun to borrow what<br />
they like from other states and we find many<br />
Tamilian houses lit up with diyas on deepavali<br />
night,” says Usha. Another example is that of<br />
Bhayya Duj (a Diwali day which celebrates<br />
the love between brothers and sisters). It is<br />
giving way to Rakhi amongst the younger<br />
generation in Maharashtra, a similar festival<br />
which falls weeks before Diwali. Rakhi is not<br />
a traditional Maharashtrian festival; Bhau Beej<br />
is. Increased mobility within India has meant<br />
a familiarity of religious rituals from other<br />
states, rituals which are imbibed, often at the<br />
cost of traditional ones.<br />
People do what they want, the way they<br />
want, but they do celebrate Diwali. And not<br />
just Diwali, but other festivals as well. They<br />
are doing it with gusto, picking up the rituals<br />
they find exciting, but they are celebrating.<br />
If not with close relatives and elders, with<br />
friends then. The emphasis is on bonding.<br />
And young <strong>Indian</strong>s are increasingly doing it<br />
on their own terms.<br />
Nita Jatar Kulkarni is a freelance writer<br />
based in Mumbai<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 15
[ ARAB VIEW ]<br />
Demeaning Democracy<br />
“As the consequences and costs of the Iraq war, the global war on terror and the<br />
economic mismanagement unfold, so does the 2008 US presidential election.<br />
Now, even the latter appears to disgrace the once admired ideal of America’s<br />
democracy in the eyes of the world.”<br />
[ By RAMI G. KHOURI ]<br />
BEIRUT – Watching the US presidential<br />
election from the Arab region<br />
is a confusing vocation. At one level,<br />
American democracy is an impressive,<br />
vibrant, often stunning, phenomenon that<br />
permits any citizen – certified idiots and<br />
genuine geniuses alike – to seek and assume<br />
public office, and control the destiny of<br />
society. It produces some of the most<br />
monumental errors and costly adventures in<br />
world history, in the military and economic<br />
fields; but it also contains the mechanisms<br />
for its own self-correction, reconfiguration,<br />
improvement and re-birth – as we witness<br />
these days in the economic arena.<br />
At another level, America also provides<br />
a powerful argument against a totally open,<br />
unregulated democratic system, because it<br />
allows the volatile and sometimes infantile<br />
emotional psyche of a bare majority of citizens<br />
to determine the exercise of immense power.<br />
Three specific examples of the exercise<br />
of power show how American politicians can<br />
have devastating impact all over the world: the<br />
economic crisis that has hit the financial and<br />
housing sectors most severely, the war in Iraq<br />
and its assorted regional consequences, and the<br />
wider “global war on terror” that the United<br />
States launched and has led since 2001. All<br />
three reflect decisions made by democratically<br />
elected leaders in both the White House and<br />
the legislature. In their own ways, all three<br />
have made the world a more dangerous and<br />
fragile place, adding American incompetence<br />
and criminality to the destructive work of<br />
those many thugs, thieves and killers who<br />
already haunt much of the rest of the world.<br />
The consequences and full costs of the three<br />
policies of Iraq, the global war on terror and<br />
economic mismanagement are still unfolding.<br />
While historians will long argue the rights<br />
and wrongs of these policies, the world’s<br />
current verdict seems widely critical. The<br />
fascinating element for me is not if a specific<br />
policy is judged to be good or bad; it is that<br />
reckless and destructive decisions have been<br />
repeatedly made by the most open and vibrant<br />
democracy in the world.<br />
At the same time, American leaders continue<br />
to preach to the rest of us that democracy and<br />
freedom are our best hope for a better future. I<br />
agree in principle. In practice though, watching<br />
American democracy at work dampens many<br />
people’s enthusiasm for that particular model.<br />
Rather, we need to temper the extravagant<br />
excesses of democratic systems that are so<br />
vulnerable to manipulation by special interests<br />
and lobbies, or that pander to mass hysteria.<br />
Watching the current American presidential<br />
contest brings these issues to the fore once<br />
again, especially on the Republican side. The<br />
Democrats have selected a pair of candidates<br />
who pretty faithfully perpetuate that party’s<br />
traditions, with the added fact of an African-<br />
American candidate with a Muslim father. The<br />
Republican ticket of McCain and Palin, on the<br />
other hand, is a much stranger beast, especially<br />
in the vice presidential slot.<br />
The fact that someone like Governor Sarah<br />
Palin, who lacks any national or international<br />
experience – perhaps even basic knowledge<br />
– can be a potential vice-president is a sign of<br />
American democracy at its worst. In one swift,<br />
serendipitous moment, she was transformed<br />
from a moose hunter in Alaska to a global mullah<br />
hunter in a contest and a world about which she<br />
knows zilch – as she reconfirms every time she<br />
opens her mouth.<br />
The fact that respected conservative analysts<br />
and commentators have already asked for her to<br />
be dropped from the ticket is about as damning<br />
a verdict as there can be of her qualifications.<br />
This is much more problematic, though, for<br />
what it tells us about John McCain, and the<br />
entire American political system. Clearly,<br />
something is wrong with a system that turns<br />
democratic electoral contestation into either<br />
a fantastic gambling orgy for impulsive and<br />
ambitious elderly men, or an exercise in mass<br />
psychotherapy for millions in the electorate<br />
who seek solace and emotional recovery by<br />
embracing the image of the bouncy cheerleader<br />
next door, regardless of what this could mean<br />
for the United States and the world.<br />
The open and honest American system<br />
once again simultaneously shows us its best and<br />
worst. There is historic brilliance in designing<br />
a checks-and-balance governance system<br />
anchored in the consent of the governed, and<br />
open to every man and woman who aspires<br />
to public service, regardless of color, religion<br />
or gender. Alongside this, however, there is<br />
also bombastic buffoonery in the manner in<br />
which desperados and simpletons occasionally<br />
gravitate to control the system by offering the<br />
electorate a hybrid candidacy of cheerleading<br />
razzle-dazzle with macho emotionalism.<br />
For now, the signals from this campaign<br />
and from the past seven years are frightening.<br />
They confirm that America’s political<br />
democracy and economic governance<br />
systems – in their current forms – are less<br />
impressive export items than its iPods,<br />
computers, popular culture or universities.<br />
May the best team win, and in the process not<br />
ruin the good name of democracy.<br />
Rami G. Khouri is Editor-at-large of ‘The Daily<br />
Star’ and Director of the Issam Fares Institute<br />
for Public Policy and <strong>International</strong> Affairs at the<br />
American University of Beirut, in Beirut, Lebanon.<br />
16<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ GUPTARA GARAMAGARAM ]<br />
Diwali and the<br />
Soul of India<br />
“More and more, the fundamentalists are hijacking not only<br />
our festivals but even our language. ”<br />
[ By PRABHU GUPTARA ]<br />
In case you are not familiar with<br />
Diwali, it is an ancient <strong>Indian</strong><br />
festival which lasts four days and<br />
celebrates the return of Shri Ram,<br />
an incarnation of Lord Vishnu,<br />
from his 14-year exile in the forest,<br />
after killing a demon king, Ravana.<br />
Diwali signifies the renewal of<br />
life and the victory of good over<br />
evil, and encourages society to<br />
dispel darkness and ignorance, and<br />
to spread the power of love and<br />
wisdom. It has been described as a<br />
time for cleansing, for closure of past<br />
negativities, and for re-committing<br />
oneself to one’s ideals and dreams.<br />
My childhood memories of<br />
Diwali are so vivid: visiting friends<br />
homes taking mithai and going to<br />
visit friends and relatives - where<br />
we would be confronted by stacks<br />
more of mithais and namkeens. I<br />
remember the deeyas on the roofs<br />
and on the lintels and windows, lighting up<br />
magically every house, no matter how poor.<br />
Fireworks everywhere. Rockets that lit up<br />
the sky. When I was very little, the terror and<br />
fun of sparklers in one’s own hand. Pataakas<br />
of various sorts - and the terror and fun of<br />
lighting one of them and rushing away before<br />
it went off! And the even greater excitement<br />
of going to check why a pataaka wasn’t going<br />
off - was it a dud? Or was it only the fuse that<br />
had failed? - just in case it went off while you<br />
were approaching it or poking about! Most<br />
of all, Diwali was running about with friends,<br />
and all the fun and card games and Monopoly.<br />
Not just for an hour, which might happen any<br />
time, but for four whole days!<br />
The great thing about <strong>Indian</strong> festivals<br />
when I was growing up was that all our<br />
festivals were entirely secular. Muslims and<br />
Christians celebrated all the Hindu festivals<br />
such as Diwali and Holi. Hindus and Muslims<br />
celebrated Christmas and New Year. Hindus<br />
and Christians celebrated Id and enjoyed the<br />
special and rather delicious<br />
Ramadan meals (though only<br />
at night of course). The same<br />
applied to Buddhist, Jain and<br />
Sikh festivals and, depending<br />
on where one lived, I am<br />
sure that applied equally<br />
to local festivals. Everyone<br />
took presents around to all<br />
one’s friends and everyone<br />
was treated with respect and<br />
love beyond any thought of<br />
whether the person belonged<br />
to “your” religion or not.<br />
Sadly, those days appear to<br />
be disappearing in India. More<br />
and more, the fundamentalists<br />
are hijacking not only<br />
our festivals but even our<br />
language (“only PURE Hindi,<br />
please!”). Fundamentalists are<br />
also weakening our already<br />
corrupted and enfeebled<br />
institutions, so that the police<br />
and other government officials<br />
are increasingly unreliable not only when<br />
it comes to protecting minorities but even<br />
innocent people who are from the majority<br />
community if they are secularists, or not<br />
“powerful” or “connected” enough.<br />
In fact, it seems to me that there is a tussle<br />
going on for the soul of India. At Independence,<br />
the secularists were in the ascendant, due to<br />
the influence of the British and of Britisheducated<br />
<strong>Indian</strong>s such as Gandhiji and<br />
Nehruji. Even though the secularists were<br />
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<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ GUPTARA GARAMAGARAM ]<br />
tiny in number, it was they who set the tone<br />
for the nation. At Independence, most of<br />
our leaders were secular. Now there are<br />
few political leaders who are truly secular.<br />
Hypocritically, they talk secularism only to<br />
get political mileage out of it.<br />
Now, 60 years and two generations of<br />
leaders later, the influence of the British<br />
is of course (quite rightly!) gone, and the<br />
influence of the secularists, though it is still<br />
expanding in terms of numbers, is losing its<br />
moral authority both because of political<br />
fragmentation and because of corruption.<br />
With the decline of secularism as a force,<br />
there is a rising threat from fundamentalists,<br />
who are using mass violence to try to<br />
intimidate not only the minorities but also<br />
those elements in the police, judiciary<br />
and administration who are secular. The<br />
attempt is not new. What is new is the extent<br />
of their activities. Once the fever around<br />
Independence passed, there were of course<br />
a few occasional riots against Muslims. Over<br />
the last few decades, we see more and more<br />
riots all over the country, happening at the<br />
same time against Muslims and Christians,<br />
along side threats to any Buddhists, Jains or<br />
Sikhs who insist on considering themselves<br />
“non-Hindu” (and the traditional violence<br />
against Dalits and OBCs).<br />
Looking to the future, it seems to me<br />
that the next general elections, which could<br />
take place any time after April 2009, may be<br />
crucial to the future of secularism in India.<br />
Why? Because we have a tradition of<br />
throwing out the party in power. So it seems<br />
to me a foregone conclusion that the Congress<br />
will be thrown out. Why do we have a<br />
tradition of throwing out the ruling party?<br />
Because all parties are equally corrupt and<br />
none of them delivers much to the public.<br />
So, though Congress could still win by some<br />
miracle, let us examine the alternatives.<br />
One is the Hindu fundamentalists<br />
represented by the BJP, the political arm<br />
of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and its thugs<br />
in bodies such as the Bajrang Dal. “The<br />
BJP can’t win”, I am told, “because they<br />
are not a national party”. Well, they may<br />
not be a national party, but they could still<br />
be the undoubtedly largest party after the<br />
elections, even if they have to go into a<br />
coalition with minority partners in order to<br />
“<br />
If the Dalits/<br />
OBCs can resist the<br />
temptation of power at<br />
any price simply to line<br />
one’s own pockets,<br />
then we could see the<br />
return of secularism<br />
perhaps in a new<br />
political form. We<br />
could see the soul<br />
of our country being<br />
restored - and we<br />
could look forward to<br />
a time of cleansing.<br />
”<br />
rule. And if the BJP does come to<br />
that kind of power, this time they won’t have<br />
the moderating influence of very powerful<br />
partners in the last coalition, nor the<br />
moderating influence of Vajpayeeji. Their<br />
new leaders are out and out ideologues who<br />
have made it quite clear, by their words<br />
as well as by their actions, that they will<br />
unleash Hitlerite actions in the country<br />
against all minorities.<br />
So if the country does not want to be<br />
taken “back” into a new “Ram Raj”, what are<br />
the alternatives? First, it seems to me often<br />
forgotten that a major alternative is Maoism<br />
(“Naxalism”), which has recently taken over our<br />
neighbouring country, Nepal. The reaction,<br />
when I mention this, is usually absolute<br />
disbelief - till I point out that, according to our<br />
government’s own figures, Maoists already<br />
control 10% of India’s districts. Their recent<br />
murder of the Swami Swami Lakshmananda<br />
Saraswati in Orissa does not make any sense<br />
unless one sees it as their assertion of strength<br />
against Hindu fundamentalists.<br />
So if we don’t want the Hindu<br />
fundamentalists and we don’t want the<br />
Maoists, do we have an alternative?<br />
Surprisingly, we are seeing, into the third<br />
generation after Independence, thanks in<br />
large part due to the reservations system<br />
(with all its inequities!), that Dalits/ OBCs<br />
are finally being freed in massive numbers<br />
from the oppressive hold of castes such<br />
as mine. Naturally, no one likes to lose<br />
privileges and perks that go back thousands<br />
of years. Equally, some individuals from<br />
the Backward Classes, and even from<br />
the minorities, are sympathetic to the<br />
Hindutvans for reasons ranging from their<br />
own advantage to seeing (however rightly or<br />
wrongly!) in the Hindutvans a less corrupt<br />
and more efficient administration than that<br />
provided by the secularists. But that does<br />
not take away from the fact that the Hindu<br />
fundamentalists, at least in the rural areas, are<br />
attempting essentially to re-impose the hold<br />
of traditional structures. But we know that<br />
such an attempt will not succeed in the long<br />
term, whatever happens in the short term.<br />
So the long term future lies with our<br />
masses being finally enlightened enough to<br />
provide a corruption-free government that<br />
actually delivers the progress that we thought<br />
was within our grasp at Independence, but<br />
which has been so cruelly betrayed so far by<br />
our brown sahibs.<br />
If the Dalits/OBCs can resist the temptation<br />
of power at any price simply to line one’s own<br />
pockets, as all the other politicians have done,<br />
then we could see the return of secularism<br />
perhaps in a new political form. We could<br />
see the soul of our country being restored<br />
- and we could look forward to a time of<br />
cleansing, closure of past negativities, and<br />
re-committing our nation to our ideals and<br />
dreams of darkness and ignorance finally<br />
being dispelled, and the power of love and<br />
wisdom being spread all round. Then I could<br />
not only be able to look forward to future<br />
Diwalis, Holis, Christmases, Easters, Ids,<br />
Ramadans and other festivals with a secular<br />
ambience once again, but life itself in our<br />
country could be a Diwali.<br />
Professor Prabhu Guptara is Executive Director,<br />
Organisations Development, at Wolfsberg. He is<br />
responsible for the UBS Think Tanks on a wide<br />
variety of market and global issues. Professor Prabhu<br />
Guptara writes here in a purely personal capacity.<br />
He blogs at www.prabhuguptara.blogspot.com<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 19
[ <strong>BUSINESS</strong> <strong>OF</strong> MUSIC ]<br />
The Rhythm<br />
of Money<br />
“... with technology advancing so rapidly, musicians want a share of the pie on not just<br />
cassettes and CDs but also from radio and television channels that air their songs,<br />
from sites that allow people to download music, and from ringtones that are being<br />
downloaded at a rapid pace.”<br />
[ By ARCHISMAN DINDA ]<br />
The century old <strong>Indian</strong> music<br />
industry, one of the prime forces<br />
that promotes <strong>Indian</strong> culture and<br />
makes India so omnipresent in the West is<br />
making up lost ground faster than any other<br />
music industry in the world. The industry<br />
from its high turnover of Rs 1,150 crores<br />
in 1990 touched the abysmal low of Rs<br />
450 crore in 2002, but since then has been<br />
growing at a normal pace and is expected<br />
to touch Rs 1,500 mark by 2009 with both<br />
CD and digital sales combined. Though<br />
all that seems good news, there are notes<br />
of discontent, and the melodies are shaky<br />
as the industry tries to rejuvenate itself<br />
from the slump. The growing discontent is<br />
openly voiced.<br />
“As long as the issue of royalty remains<br />
unsettled, musicians will continue to be<br />
insecure,” said a well-known composer with<br />
a request for anonymity. Music companies,<br />
he felt, need to have faith in their artistes,<br />
and the industry on the whole needs to be<br />
structured properly and give artistes their<br />
rightful share of money. What’s more, with<br />
technology advancing so rapidly, musicians<br />
want a share of the pie on not just cassettes<br />
and CDs but also from radio and television<br />
channels that air their songs, from sites that<br />
allow people to download music, and from<br />
ringtones that are being downloaded at a<br />
rapid pace. “These people are using our<br />
creations to earn money but are refusing to<br />
pay its rightful owners,” said Sonu Nigam,<br />
who launched Singers’ Association of<br />
India (SAI) a few years back along with his<br />
colleague Alka Yagnik. “ The association<br />
aims to tap the real issues that music<br />
companies fail to address,” he added.<br />
Music composers are disturbed by<br />
the lack of recognition. “If you hear the<br />
hit song Kajrare from the film Bunty aur<br />
Babli, it’s called the Aishwarya-Amitabh-<br />
Abhishek song. No one calls it the Shankar<br />
Mahadevan-Alisha Chinai-Jaaved Ali song.<br />
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<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ <strong>BUSINESS</strong> <strong>OF</strong> MUSIC ]<br />
It’s such a wrong attitude, and that’s<br />
what we want to change,” said Shankar<br />
Mahadevan over a telephonic conversation.<br />
The <strong>Indian</strong> music industry has a unique<br />
structure compared to most global markets.<br />
Until 1990, it was completely dominated by<br />
film and devotional music. With the advent<br />
of satellite television and private radio<br />
stations, increasing consumer exposure to<br />
non-film albums and remixes have gained<br />
popularity. In the non-film category,<br />
devotional music produced by smaller and<br />
local companies is the most popular. A few<br />
late entrants to this category have decided<br />
to stay away from the vagaries of film music<br />
and have focused on high-end classical<br />
devotional and other niche genres instead.<br />
“These days all music labels have at least<br />
something in the non-film segment and for<br />
new entrants like us, we would prefer to<br />
work in that segment only,” said Samiran<br />
Gupta, of India Beat.<br />
Though artists are happy with the growth<br />
of the segment, they complain that music<br />
companies are not willing to shell out money<br />
on the artistes and would prefer the artistes<br />
to give them the finished product. Usually,<br />
the cost of bringing out a non-film music<br />
album is anywhere between Rs 35 lakhs<br />
and Rs 50 lakhs. This means that the artiste<br />
records the album, complete with mixing<br />
and mastering, and also shells out the money<br />
for the music videos.<br />
“It is extremely difficult, especially for<br />
new entrants to have that kind of moolah,”<br />
complains singer Ritika Sahni, who recently<br />
launched his second solo album. “Music<br />
companies continue to encourage halfbaked<br />
products and subsequently decline<br />
in quality,” says an arranger. The situation,<br />
according to musicians, is getting bleaker,<br />
especially as a new trend arises. A trend<br />
where companies loan a certain amount<br />
to an artist for bringing out an album. The<br />
artiste, in turn, is expected to pay it back at<br />
the end of a certain period. Though music<br />
companies remain tight-lipped on this issue<br />
and artistes prefer not to talk about it in the<br />
open, the status is obvious.<br />
A majority of established artistes are<br />
finding it increasingly tough to convince<br />
music companies to invest money in their<br />
projects. The biggest losers have been the<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 23
[ <strong>BUSINESS</strong> <strong>OF</strong> MUSIC ]<br />
classical artists, specially the upcoming<br />
ones, says multi-percussionist and tabla<br />
player Bickram Ghosh. “These days you<br />
will hardly find new albums of classical<br />
artists and musicians. All that is being<br />
launched is basically old wine in a new<br />
bottle,” he added. This method of re-release<br />
has become the model of content creation in<br />
an industry that appears to no longer find<br />
viability in producing new content.<br />
The <strong>Indian</strong> classical music industry is<br />
stuck in a rut, and topmost on everybody’s<br />
blame list is the record label. “Where is the<br />
musical diversity that India is known for?<br />
When categories like classical music are<br />
relegated to the back of the store where five<br />
racks have become one rack, you know we<br />
have a problem,” says vocalist Anupana Sen,<br />
who has been trying in vain, to produce a<br />
cassette for more than three years inspite of<br />
her phenomenal success in various concerts<br />
both in <strong>Indian</strong> and overseas. “If young<br />
talent has been recorded, it is the offspring<br />
or disciples of the really big artistes,” she<br />
added painfully.<br />
Erstwhile champions of the category like<br />
Sa Re Ga Ma and Music Today are being held<br />
answerable for not sustaining their interest<br />
in the genre and repackaging their existing<br />
inventory. Sa Re Ga Ma admits it has not<br />
launched a single new artiste in the last five<br />
years in the classical genre. The spokesperson<br />
of Music Today, is defensive - if the entire<br />
music industry has slipped from Rs 1,200<br />
crore in 2002 to Rs 600 crore today, the share<br />
of classical music is no more than Rs 10 crore.<br />
“Sales in the classical music category have<br />
been stagnating. It has occupied 3.5 per cent of<br />
Planet M’s total business for the last two years,”<br />
informs its Public Relationship Officer.<br />
To put that in perspective, Hindi film<br />
music contributes to 50 per cent of Planet M’s<br />
business. At Rhythm House, a music store<br />
in Mumbai’s Kala Ghoda district, you will<br />
still find over 1,500 <strong>Indian</strong> classical titles,<br />
but Mehmood Curmally, the store’s director,<br />
says new releases at the store are down to<br />
less than 30 a year. “The others are all rehashed<br />
compilations,” he explains. “What’s<br />
happening is that more people are listening to<br />
more music but much of it is on the radio or<br />
on the mobile phone,” retorts Singh. Over the<br />
last 10 years most recording companies - Sony,<br />
Times Music and Venus - have ventured into,<br />
FIGURATIVELY SPEAKING<br />
Rs 1,150 crore<br />
The total size of the <strong>Indian</strong> music industry<br />
Rs 450 crore<br />
Losses due to piracy<br />
Rs 15 crore<br />
Money earned through ringtone downloads<br />
Rs 400 crore<br />
Organised market of film music in India<br />
Rs 100 crore<br />
Organised market for non-film music in India<br />
APPROXIMATE COST <strong>OF</strong> INVESTING IN A<br />
MUSIC ALBUM<br />
Total cost<br />
Anywhere between Rs 35-50 lakh<br />
Dubbing, mixing mastering<br />
Approximately Rs 12 lakh<br />
Cost per video<br />
Rs 10 lakh (usually the artiste does two<br />
videos)<br />
Cost of promoting the album (ad spots on<br />
radio and television, posters etc)<br />
Rs 15 lakh<br />
“<br />
Where is the<br />
musical diversity that<br />
India is known for?<br />
When categories like<br />
classical music are<br />
relegated to the back<br />
of the store where five<br />
racks have become<br />
one rack, you know we<br />
have a problem.<br />
”<br />
and exited, classical music. “Not every company<br />
has the understanding or the wherewithal to<br />
manage the category,” says Singh. It is not that<br />
there is no upcoming talent, so what is the<br />
reason for this newfound anathema.<br />
Some suggest the growing demand for<br />
other traditional music genres like spiritual<br />
music is another reason why record labels are<br />
losing interest in classical music. Spiritual<br />
music accounts for a fifth of Music Today’s<br />
top line. In addition, the new releases are<br />
not upto the mark, believes Chaiti Jacob, a<br />
music critic. “Last year there have been few<br />
releases that are being marketed as <strong>Indian</strong><br />
classical bands, which will do more harm than<br />
good,” she believes. “People are habituated<br />
in accepting classical music in a said format.<br />
If suddenly, it is changed, the acceptability<br />
will fall even further.” However, renowned<br />
slide-guitarist Debashish Bhattacharya,<br />
is unwilling to accept the theory of lack of<br />
acceptability. “How can record labels claim<br />
the genre is not profitable when concerts are<br />
packed every time?” he questioned. Actually,<br />
it doesn’t have the higher rate of return and<br />
that’s what dissuades then from investing, ”<br />
believes Gupta, whose company is all set to<br />
release atleast five new classical albums.<br />
Music on the Move<br />
The advent of new technology where you<br />
need not buy cassettes from stores but simply<br />
download even while travelling, has opened<br />
a new opportunity, but is also a threat to the<br />
existing notions of vending music. Palash<br />
Sen, lead singer of New Delhi-based group<br />
Euphoria, says, “Technology has advanced<br />
considerably and expanded the listeners’<br />
base, with people downloading music at a low<br />
cost. Music is easily heard on radio channels,<br />
music videos are shown on television and<br />
people are happily listening to innumerable<br />
songs on their MP3 players. However, this<br />
is precisely what has led to a considerable<br />
decrease in the sales of the music albums.”<br />
“Nobody,” says Sen, “wants to buy music<br />
cassettes or CDs any more because they’re<br />
happily downloading music off the Net.”<br />
Kirit Sengupta of <strong>Indian</strong> Music Industry<br />
(IMI) agrees, citing this as one of the prime<br />
reasons why the industry has bled profusely<br />
in the past few years. “Though many of our<br />
member companies have opened avenues<br />
for digital sales, it will take some time for<br />
others to catch up because the one time<br />
investment for such technology is still on<br />
the higher side,” adds Sengupta.<br />
Archisman Dinda is a freelance writer<br />
based in Kolkata.<br />
24<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ WOMEN’S ARENA ]<br />
An Aria to Change<br />
Wasfi Kani<br />
From stately homes to prison cells, British <strong>Indian</strong> Wasfi Kani has crossed<br />
cultures and classes and smashed through glass ceilings by rising to the top of<br />
the elite world of opera and then taking the art form to the disadvantaged.<br />
[ By BARBARA LEWIS ]<br />
Kani’s years of determination have<br />
earned her an Order of the British<br />
Empire (OBE) and this May, she<br />
was recognised by the Asian Women of<br />
Achievement Awards. “I often say that I’m<br />
an alpha male in a female body. If you want<br />
to do something, enough, nothing will get in<br />
your way,” said Kani of her success in opera,<br />
whose management roles tend to be maledominated.<br />
“By combining theatre and music,<br />
opera is for me the most thrilling art form. It<br />
assaults the eyes, the ears and the heart.”<br />
Grange Park Opera, of which she is chief<br />
executive, was set up by Kani in 1998, while<br />
continuing to lead Pimlico Opera, which she<br />
founded in the late 1980s, to stage operas<br />
in unusual locations, most notably prisons.<br />
Productions, bringing together prisoners and<br />
professional opera singers, have included Les<br />
Miserables at Wandsworth prison, London,<br />
and The Marriage of Figaro at Wormwood<br />
Scrubs, also in London, near Kani’s old<br />
grammar school, where she excelled at maths<br />
and music.<br />
Because the glamorous country house<br />
operas help to fund the prison work, Kani<br />
has earned a reputation as Robin Hood of<br />
the music world, robbing from the rich to<br />
give to the poor, but she says it is a two-way<br />
exchange, as well-heeled opera-lovers wake<br />
up to harsh realities. “What has been amazing<br />
is that these people who would otherwise<br />
have had no contact with prison, embrace<br />
the idea of the need for prison reform and<br />
have been very generous towards our prison<br />
Wasfi Kani (centre) receiving the Asian Women of Achievement Award this year<br />
projects,” she said.<br />
For the inmates, the benefits are manifold.<br />
“Often the prisoners have never even been to a<br />
theatre but through the rehearsal period of six<br />
weeks, they must all work together alongside<br />
a professional director and production team,<br />
overcome their fears and work towards<br />
singing before a public audience,” she said.<br />
“The prisoners gain self esteem as the<br />
project progresses and find talents they did<br />
not know they possessed. The change in their<br />
attitudes is very evident, but the audiences are<br />
also challenged to reconsider their attitudes<br />
to prisons and how they may better prepare<br />
prisoners to be good and useful members of<br />
society on release.”<br />
Kani’s own background is a mixture<br />
of privilege and<br />
grit. Her mother’s<br />
family worked at<br />
the Mughal court in<br />
Agra from the 17th<br />
century onwards and<br />
her father’s family<br />
came from Delhi.<br />
Both Muslims,<br />
her parents left<br />
India at the time of<br />
Partition and went<br />
briefly to Pakistan<br />
before heading for<br />
England, firstly to<br />
London’s poor East<br />
End, where Kani<br />
was born in 1956,<br />
and then to west<br />
London.<br />
As a talented violinist, Kani at the age of 14<br />
won a place in the prestigious National Youth<br />
Orchestra where she was the only non-white<br />
member. At the age of 18, she was offered<br />
a place at the Royal Academy of Music in<br />
London, but she turned this down to read<br />
music at Oxford University. On graduation,<br />
she opted not for music, but for London’s<br />
City. Ten years work there in computer<br />
programming and designing computer<br />
systems gave her experience that proved<br />
invaluable when, in 1993, after studying<br />
conducting in her spare time, she decided to<br />
switch to a full-time career in music.<br />
(Text and picture, Courtesy:<br />
Women’s Feature Service, New Delhi)<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 25
[ LET’S ASK DR DOBSON ]<br />
The Poison of Popular Culture<br />
James C. Dobson, Ph.D., is Founder<br />
and President of Focus on the Family, a<br />
non-profit organization dedicated to the<br />
preservation of the home. His syndicated<br />
radio programmes are heard on more than<br />
2,500 broadcasting facilities in North<br />
America and on over 3,000 facilities in<br />
over 40 countries. His website www.<br />
family.org is extremely popular too. Dr.<br />
Dobson served for 14 years as Associate<br />
Clinical Professor of Paediatrics at the<br />
University of Southern California School<br />
of Medicine, and was an attending staff<br />
psychologist for 17 years at the Children’s<br />
Hospital of Los Angeles in the division of<br />
Child Development and Medical Genetics.<br />
His first book for parents and teachers,<br />
‘Dare to Discipline’, has sold over two<br />
million copies and was selected as one of<br />
50 titles to be rebound and placed in the<br />
White House Library. His subsequent 12<br />
books on the family are also best-sellers. Dr.<br />
Dobson’s premier film series, Focus on the<br />
Family, saw immense popularity, and to<br />
date has been viewed by more than seventy<br />
million people. Numerous awards and<br />
honours have marked Dr. Dobson’s lifetime<br />
of work, including the 1987 Marian<br />
Pfister Anschutz Award and recognition<br />
of Distinguished Humanitarian Contributions<br />
by the California State Psychological<br />
Association in 1988.<br />
Can you illustrate your concerns about<br />
the lyrics of contemporary teen music,<br />
especially as it relates to attitudes<br />
towards parents?<br />
It might be helpful to see how popular<br />
music has changed over the years. Let’s go<br />
back to 1953, when the most popular song in<br />
the United States was sung by Eddie Fisher<br />
and was entitled Oh, My Papa.<br />
Here’s a portion of the lyrics:<br />
Oh, my papa, to me he was so wonderful.<br />
Oh, my papa, to me he was so good.<br />
No one could be so gentle and so lovable.<br />
Oh, my papa, he always understood.<br />
Gone are the days when he would take me on his knee,<br />
And with a smile he’d change my tears to laughter.<br />
Oh, my papa, so funny and adorable,<br />
Always the clown, so funny in his ways.<br />
Deep in my heart I miss him so today.<br />
That sentimental song accurately<br />
reflected the way many people felt about<br />
their fathers at that time in our history. Oh,<br />
sure, there were conflicts and disagreement,<br />
but family was family.<br />
By the time I had reached college age,<br />
things were starting to change. The subject<br />
of conflict between parents and teenagers<br />
began to appear as a common theme in<br />
artistic creations. The movie Rebel Without<br />
A Cause featured a screen idol named James<br />
Dean who seethed with anger at his ‘old<br />
man’. Marlon Brando starred in The Wild<br />
One, another movie with rebellion as its<br />
theme. Rock-n-roll music portrayed it too.<br />
But what began as an engaging drama<br />
turned decidedly bitter in the late sixties.<br />
Everyone in those days was talking about the<br />
‘generation gap’ that had erupted between<br />
young people and their parents. And their<br />
anger toward parents began to percolate.<br />
The Doors released a song in 1968 entitled<br />
The End in which lead singer Jim Morrison<br />
fantasized about killing his father.<br />
In 1984, Twisted Sister released We’re Not<br />
Gonna Take It, which referred to a father as<br />
a “disgusting slob” who was “worthless and<br />
weak.” Then he was blasted out the window<br />
of a second-storey apartment. This theme of<br />
killing parents showed up regularly in that<br />
decade. A group called Suicidal Tendencies<br />
released a recording in 1983 called I Saw<br />
Your Mommy. Some of the phrases in this<br />
song are “I saw your mommy and your<br />
mommy’s dead... chewed off toes on her<br />
chopped off feet…I saw her lying in a pool<br />
of red; I think it’s the greatest thing I’ll ever<br />
see – your dead mommy.” For sheer banality,<br />
nothing yet produced can match Momma’s<br />
Gotta Die Tonight, by Ice-T and Body Count.<br />
The album sold 500,000 copies and featured<br />
its wretched lyrics on the CD jacket. Most of<br />
them are unfit to quote here, but they involved<br />
graphic descriptions of the rapper’s mother<br />
being burned in her bed, and then beaten to<br />
death with a baseball bat she had given him<br />
as a present. There was not a hint of guilt or<br />
remorse expressed by the rapper while telling<br />
us this murder. My point is that the most<br />
popular music of our culture went from the<br />
inspiration of Oh, My Papa to the horrors of<br />
Momma’s Gotta Die Tonight in scarcely more<br />
than a generation. And we have to wonder,<br />
where do we go from here?<br />
One thing is certain: The younger<br />
generation has been bombarded with more<br />
antifamily rhetoric than any that preceded it.<br />
When added to equally disturbing messages<br />
about drug use, sex, and violence against<br />
women, the impact has to be considered<br />
formidable. And the most profane and<br />
obscene rock stars have become the idols<br />
to many impressionable teenagers. MTV,<br />
which promotes the worst stuff available,<br />
is telecast into 231 million households in<br />
seventy five countries, more than any other<br />
cable programme. Though it will not be<br />
popular for me to say it, I believe many of the<br />
problems that plague this generation, from<br />
suicide to unwed pregnancy to murder, can<br />
be traced to the venom dripped into the veins<br />
of the entertainment industry in general.<br />
One of the consequences of this shift in<br />
the popular culture is a generation that<br />
sees itself and its elders less respectfully<br />
than those who have preceded it. There are<br />
still millions of responsible and respectful<br />
teenagers out there, of course, but the<br />
culture in which they are growing up has<br />
changed – for the worse.<br />
28<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
Free zone benefits. Flexible office space up to<br />
15,000 square feet per floor. Latest technology.
[ HUMOUR ]<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> English: It vill<br />
be wery helpful, yaar!<br />
[ By MELVIN DURAI ]<br />
It is the year 2020 and call centres are<br />
opening all over the West, as the new<br />
economic power India outsources work<br />
to the countries where many jobs originated.<br />
Millions of Americans, still struggling to<br />
adapt to a global economy, are willing to<br />
accept jobs that pay them in a new currency<br />
sweeping much of the world: EuRupees.<br />
Some of them, eager to land one of the<br />
customer service jobs from India, are attending<br />
special training sessions in New<br />
York City, led by language specialist Dave<br />
Ramsey, who goes by a simpler name for his<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> clients: Devendra Ramaswaminathan.<br />
On this warm afternoon, the professor is<br />
teaching three ambitious students how to<br />
communicate with <strong>Indian</strong> customers.<br />
Professor: “Okay, Gary, Randy and Jane,<br />
first we need to give you <strong>Indian</strong> names.<br />
Gary, from now on, you’ll be known to<br />
your customers as Gaurav. Randy, you’ll be<br />
Ranjit. And Jane, you’ll be Jagadamba. Now<br />
imagine you just received a call from Delhi.<br />
What do you say?”<br />
Gary: “Name as tea?”<br />
Professor: “I think you mean ‘namaste.’<br />
Very good. But what do you say after that?”<br />
Gary: “How can I help you?”<br />
Professor: “You’re on the right track. Anyone<br />
else?”<br />
Jane: “How can I be helping you?”<br />
Professor: “Good try! You’re using the<br />
correct tense, but it’s not quite right. Anyone<br />
else?”<br />
Randy: “How I can be helping you?”<br />
Professor: “Wonderful! Word order is<br />
very important. Okay, let’s try some small<br />
talk. Give me a comment that would help<br />
you make a connection with your <strong>Indian</strong><br />
customers.”<br />
Randy: “It’s really hot, isn’t it?”<br />
Professor: “The heat is always a good topic,<br />
but you haven’t phrased it correctly. Try<br />
again.”<br />
Randy: “It’s deadly hot, isn’t it?”<br />
Professor: “That’s better. But your tag question<br />
can be greatly improved.”<br />
Randy: “It’s deadly hot, no?”<br />
Professor: “Wonderful! You can put ‘no?’<br />
at the end of almost any statement. You are<br />
understanding me, no?”<br />
Jane: “Yes, we are understanding you, no?”<br />
Professor (smiles): “We may need to review<br />
this later. But let’s move on to other things.<br />
Have you ever heard <strong>Indian</strong>s use the word<br />
‘yaar’?”<br />
Randy: “Yes, my <strong>Indian</strong> friends use it all the<br />
time. Just last night, one of them said to me,<br />
‘Randy, give me yaar password. I am needing<br />
it to fix yaar computer.”<br />
Professor (laughs): “That’s a different ‘yaar,’<br />
yaar. The ‘yaar’ that I’m talking about means<br />
friend or buddy. You can use it if you’ve developed<br />
a camaraderie with a customer. For<br />
example, you can say, ‘Come on, yaar. I am<br />
offering you the best deal.’ Do you understand,<br />
Jagadamba?”<br />
Jane: “Yaar, I do.”<br />
Professor (smiles): “Okay, let’s talk about<br />
accents. If your client says ‘I yam wery<br />
vorried about vat I bought for my vife,’ how<br />
would you respond?”<br />
Randy: “Please don’t be vorrying, yaar. She<br />
vill be wery happy and vill give you a vild<br />
time tonight.”<br />
Professor: “Vunderful! I mean, wonderful.<br />
You have a bright future, Ranjit. And so do<br />
you, Jagadamba. But Gaurav, you haven’t<br />
said anything in a while. Do you have any<br />
questions about what we’ve just learned?”<br />
Gary: “Yes, Professor, I do have one question:<br />
Wouldn’t it be simpler to learn to speak<br />
Hindi?”<br />
Melvin Durai is a Manitoba-based writer<br />
and humorist. A native of India, he grew up in<br />
Zambia and has lived in North America since the<br />
early 1980s. Read his humor blog at<br />
http://www.Nshima com<br />
Write to him at comments@melvindurai.co<br />
30<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ FOREIGN AFFAIRS ]<br />
Nationalism From Afar<br />
“Prime among the alternative foreign sources of succour for rebel groups are<br />
expatriates from the Diaspora who settle in wealthy countries but have strong emotional<br />
affiliations with the self-determination war in their original homeland.<br />
Nationalism among refugees and immigrants is centuries-old, but modern technological<br />
innovations make it deadlier in contemporary times.”<br />
[ By SREERAM CHAULIA ]<br />
Since the end of World War II, the<br />
dominant form of armed conflict has<br />
been internal war that is fought within<br />
the boundaries of states. Classic interstate<br />
wars have been far and few between<br />
compared to the rising tide of intra-state<br />
wars, thereby changing the very dynamics<br />
and context of large-scale violence. The<br />
dictionary of warfare today is loaded with<br />
terms like insurgency, counter-insurgency,<br />
guerrilla, terrorism, secession and national<br />
self-determination.<br />
Yet, the distinction between ‘internal’<br />
and ‘international’ is blurred by the<br />
internationalisation of many internal wars.<br />
If the most common violent confrontation<br />
of our times is between a rebel movement<br />
and a state, it is also a pattern that each of<br />
these two parties receives external military,<br />
economic and diplomatic support. The<br />
degrees of internationalisation may vary<br />
from one internal war to another, but there<br />
is a discernible ‘foreign card’ that each side<br />
plays on the other for gaining an advantage<br />
in almost every internal war.<br />
During the Cold War, foreign assistance<br />
to internal armed conflicts came primarily<br />
from governments of states which became<br />
notorious for igniting ‘proxy wars’. While<br />
an internal war may have its own local bones<br />
of contention, foreign states added fuel to<br />
the fire in pursuit of their own strategic<br />
objectives and priorities. If the intervening<br />
foreign states were neighbouring countries,<br />
then one witnessed the phenomenon of<br />
‘regionalisation’ of an internal war. If<br />
the interveners were great powers with<br />
worldwide outreach, then the internal war<br />
stood chances of becoming ‘globalised.’<br />
In general, the greater the foreign<br />
involvement in an internal war, the more<br />
protracted and bloody the conflict tended<br />
to become. If one takes the example of<br />
Angola, the USA’s all-out championing<br />
of the rebel group UNITA pushed the<br />
Angolan government to seek Cuban and<br />
Soviet help and plunged the country into<br />
a devastating three-decade-long war.<br />
Vietnam, Afghanistan and Lebanon also<br />
underwent prolonged spells of destruction<br />
due to globalisation or regionalisation of<br />
their internal political conflicts.<br />
With a vast supply line of foreign<br />
armaments and funds on both sides of the<br />
divide, internal wars attained a ‘balance<br />
of power’ despite being asymmetric wars.<br />
Typically, the state which is defending<br />
its territorial integrity and sovereignty<br />
has more resources and force capabilities<br />
on hand compared to the rebels. But if<br />
violent non-state actors manage to obtain<br />
overseas backing, it evens out some of their<br />
conventional inferiorities and equips them<br />
for a long campaign of attrition.<br />
The dilemma for guerrilla movements<br />
is that foreign sponsor states could change<br />
their policies due to the dynamic nature of<br />
international relations. For instance, at the<br />
end of the Cold War, a number of guerrilla<br />
groups which had been sustained by<br />
American or Russian largesse found their<br />
taps running dry. The essential fickleness<br />
of foreign state patrons is not unknown to<br />
armed revolutionary organisations, who<br />
have bemoaned numerous ‘betrayals’ by<br />
their former foreign allies. Given this<br />
uncertain mode of external support,<br />
guerrillas look to diversify their funding<br />
and alliance bases abroad.<br />
Prime among the alternative foreign<br />
sources of succour for rebel groups<br />
are expatriates from the Diaspora who<br />
settle in wealthy countries but have<br />
strong emotional affiliations with the<br />
self-determination war in their original<br />
homeland. Nationalism among refugees and<br />
immigrants is centuries-old, but modern<br />
technological innovations make it deadlier<br />
in contemporary times. The speed and<br />
ease with which an international money<br />
transfer or remittance can be transacted has<br />
upped the value of Diaspora nationalism in<br />
internal wars.<br />
The first major case of Diaspora<br />
nationalism benefiting a rebel movement<br />
after World War II is that of the Irish.<br />
The Irish Republican Army (IRA), a<br />
militant Catholic movement fighting for<br />
independence of Northern Ireland from<br />
the United Kingdom, set up a sophisticated<br />
fundraising infrastructure in north-eastern<br />
United States in the 1970s. Radical Irish<br />
American Catholics believed fervently<br />
that the IRA’s terrorist activities were<br />
justified due to the brutal oppression of<br />
their co-religionists by Protestant British<br />
troops. Without their money streaming<br />
into Ulster through bank drafts, couriers<br />
and laundering, the IRA would not have<br />
32<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ FOREIGN AFFAIRS ]<br />
had the firepower to seriously threaten the<br />
British state’s military occupation. The IRA<br />
enjoyed a safe haven in the USA to generate<br />
donations and weapons caches because of<br />
lax American laws up to the early 1990s that<br />
allowed considerable freedom to Diaspora<br />
groups engaging in ‘political’ actions.<br />
The opportunity space for Diaspora<br />
nationalism was even more liberal and easy<br />
to exploit in Canada, whose multi-cultural<br />
ethos and respect for minorities offered<br />
a favourite haunt for fundraisers of rebel<br />
organisations in South Asia. When the<br />
Khalistan insurgency reached its peak in<br />
the northern <strong>Indian</strong> state of Punjab in the<br />
1980s, the Sikh Diaspora in Canada and, to a<br />
lesser extent in the UK, emerged as a potent<br />
reservoir of militancy. Nostalgic visions<br />
of re-establishing the Sikh empire in the<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> subcontinent and boiling anger at<br />
the heavy handed military tactics of Prime<br />
Minister Indira Gandhi drove wealthy<br />
Canadian and British Sikhs into arranging<br />
massive propaganda, logistical and financial<br />
assistance for banned terrorist outfits like<br />
the <strong>International</strong> Sikh Youth Federation<br />
and the Babbar Khalsa <strong>International</strong>.<br />
As in the case of Irish Americans who<br />
stopped bankrolling terrorism in Ulster<br />
once a peace process took hold in the late<br />
1990s, the Sikh Diaspora’s sympathies<br />
for militancy declined as Punjab limped<br />
back to normalcy in the nineties. ‘Hindu<br />
imperialism’, which once agitated rich Sikhs<br />
in Toronto and Southall into religious rage,<br />
lost its appeal by the early 21st century and<br />
was replaced by the traditional moderation<br />
of the mainstream Sikh Diaspora.<br />
The South Asian rebel group that has truly<br />
mastered the art of roping in the Diaspora<br />
for fundraising and public relations is the<br />
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),<br />
which has been fighting for three decades for<br />
an independent state of the Tamil minorities<br />
of Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan Tamil expatriates<br />
living as refugees and immigrants in Canada,<br />
Australia and Western Europe are the<br />
principal sources of the LTTE’s seemingly<br />
bottomless treasury which has upheld a<br />
world-class fighting unit.<br />
In the formative years of its international<br />
network, LTTE solicited contributions<br />
from individual businesspersons in the<br />
Tamil Diaspora who were highly motivated<br />
“<br />
Long distance<br />
nationalism has proven<br />
to be a big propelling<br />
factor of high resilience<br />
in a number of identitybased<br />
internal wars.<br />
It thrives on the guilt<br />
complex of expatriates<br />
in the Diaspora<br />
that they might be<br />
accused of forsaking<br />
their brethren back<br />
home who are being<br />
mauled by the might of<br />
repressive states.<br />
”<br />
by the separatist cause in Sri Lanka. Later,<br />
it resorted to establishing humanitarian<br />
front organisations that collected funds in<br />
the name of charity for Tamil war victims.<br />
The LTTE’s ‘third generation’ modus<br />
operandi for overseas fundraising is now<br />
said to include business ventures selling<br />
prepaid phone cards and satellite television<br />
channels in Western countries with large<br />
Tamil Diaspora concentrations.<br />
By means of innovative ideas and<br />
its legendary secrecy, the LTTE has<br />
successfully evaded the dragnet of Western<br />
host state restrictions on Tamil Diaspora<br />
remittances, which continue to reach the<br />
guerrilla group in various guises. As long<br />
as the government of India was the LTTE’s<br />
chief benefactor in the 1980s, the Tamil<br />
Diaspora’s role as financier of the Eelam<br />
wars was not crucial. Ever since New Delhi<br />
dropped the LTTE as a hot potato after the<br />
assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, however, the<br />
Diaspora has been the organisation’s mainstay<br />
in its war against the Sri Lankan state.<br />
A similar change of hands between a<br />
foreign state sponsor and a nationalistic<br />
Diaspora occurred in the case of the<br />
Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK), which<br />
has spearheaded a violent uprising against<br />
Turkey for separate statehood of Kurdish<br />
minorities since the 1970s. The PKK was<br />
originally financed by Syria, Iran and<br />
Greece, who were interested in weakening<br />
Turkey. Syrian support lasted up to 1999,<br />
after which Damascus cut back its PKK<br />
partnership to avoid a Turkish invasion.<br />
In 2002, Ankara also entered into an<br />
agreement with Iran to ban the PKK as a<br />
terrorist organisation.<br />
As the state sponsorship evaporated, PKK<br />
turned to the Kurdish Diaspora in Germany,<br />
the Benelux countries, and Scandinavia for<br />
a stable source of income. It raises around<br />
US $ 9 million from the German Kurdish<br />
Diaspora alone and supplements it with a<br />
dose of heroin trafficking by expatriate<br />
Kurds. Turkey complains of inadequate<br />
cooperation from EU states for stemming<br />
the PKK’s overseas financing mafia and,<br />
indeed, the alacrity with which the EU has<br />
frozen the tracks of Basque separatists from<br />
Spain has not been matched in the PKK’s<br />
case. Perceptions that Kurdish rebel groups<br />
and their Diaspora proponents are fighting<br />
for a just cause persist in Western countries<br />
and weaken efforts to neutralise them.<br />
Long distance nationalism has proven to<br />
be a big propelling factor of high resilience<br />
in a number of identity-based internal wars.<br />
It thrives on the guilt complex of expatriates<br />
in the Diaspora that they might be accused<br />
of forsaking their brethren back home who<br />
are being mauled by the might of repressive<br />
states. With this kind of mindset, the least that<br />
immigrants and refugees who have escaped<br />
to a comfortable existence in the West can<br />
think of doing is to write out cheques for<br />
‘liberations’ and ‘freedom struggles’.<br />
If war has taken on transnational<br />
dimensions in the age of instant<br />
communication, Diasporas bear their<br />
portion of the blame.<br />
Sreeram Chaulia is a researcher on international<br />
affairs at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and<br />
Public Affairs in Syracuse, New York.<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 33
[ FOREIGN AFFAIRS ]<br />
had the firepower to seriously threaten the<br />
British state’s military occupation. The IRA<br />
enjoyed a safe haven in the USA to generate<br />
donations and weapons caches because of<br />
lax American laws up to the early 1990s that<br />
allowed considerable freedom to Diaspora<br />
groups engaging in ‘political’ actions.<br />
The opportunity space for Diaspora<br />
nationalism was even more liberal and easy<br />
to exploit in Canada, whose multi-cultural<br />
ethos and respect for minorities offered<br />
a favourite haunt for fundraisers of rebel<br />
organisations in South Asia. When the<br />
Khalistan insurgency reached its peak in<br />
the northern <strong>Indian</strong> state of Punjab in the<br />
1980s, the Sikh Diaspora in Canada and, to a<br />
lesser extent in the UK, emerged as a potent<br />
reservoir of militancy. Nostalgic visions<br />
of re-establishing the Sikh empire in the<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> subcontinent and boiling anger at<br />
the heavy handed military tactics of Prime<br />
Minister Indira Gandhi drove wealthy<br />
Canadian and British Sikhs into arranging<br />
massive propaganda, logistical and financial<br />
assistance for banned terrorist outfits like<br />
the <strong>International</strong> Sikh Youth Federation<br />
and the Babbar Khalsa <strong>International</strong>.<br />
As in the case of Irish Americans who<br />
stopped bankrolling terrorism in Ulster<br />
once a peace process took hold in the late<br />
1990s, the Sikh Diaspora’s sympathies<br />
for militancy declined as Punjab limped<br />
back to normalcy in the nineties. ‘Hindu<br />
imperialism’, which once agitated rich Sikhs<br />
in Toronto and Southall into religious rage,<br />
lost its appeal by the early 21st century and<br />
was replaced by the traditional moderation<br />
of the mainstream Sikh Diaspora.<br />
The South Asian rebel group that has truly<br />
mastered the art of roping in the Diaspora<br />
for fundraising and public relations is the<br />
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),<br />
which has been fighting for three decades for<br />
an independent state of the Tamil minorities<br />
of Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan Tamil expatriates<br />
living as refugees and immigrants in Canada,<br />
Australia and Western Europe are the<br />
principal sources of the LTTE’s seemingly<br />
bottomless treasury which has upheld a<br />
world-class fighting unit.<br />
In the formative years of its international<br />
network, LTTE solicited contributions<br />
from individual businesspersons in the<br />
Tamil Diaspora who were highly motivated<br />
“<br />
Long distance<br />
nationalism has proven<br />
to be a big propelling<br />
factor of high resilience<br />
in a number of identitybased<br />
internal wars.<br />
It thrives on the guilt<br />
complex of expatriates<br />
in the Diaspora<br />
that they might be<br />
accused of forsaking<br />
their brethren back<br />
home who are being<br />
mauled by the might of<br />
repressive states.<br />
”<br />
by the separatist cause in Sri Lanka. Later,<br />
it resorted to establishing humanitarian<br />
front organisations that collected funds in<br />
the name of charity for Tamil war victims.<br />
The LTTE’s ‘third generation’ modus<br />
operandi for overseas fundraising is now<br />
said to include business ventures selling<br />
prepaid phone cards and satellite television<br />
channels in Western countries with large<br />
Tamil Diaspora concentrations.<br />
By means of innovative ideas and<br />
its legendary secrecy, the LTTE has<br />
successfully evaded the dragnet of Western<br />
host state restrictions on Tamil Diaspora<br />
remittances, which continue to reach the<br />
guerrilla group in various guises. As long<br />
as the government of India was the LTTE’s<br />
chief benefactor in the 1980s, the Tamil<br />
Diaspora’s role as financier of the Eelam<br />
wars was not crucial. Ever since New Delhi<br />
dropped the LTTE as a hot potato after the<br />
assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, however, the<br />
Diaspora has been the organisation’s mainstay<br />
in its war against the Sri Lankan state.<br />
A similar change of hands between a<br />
foreign state sponsor and a nationalistic<br />
Diaspora occurred in the case of the<br />
Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK), which<br />
has spearheaded a violent uprising against<br />
Turkey for separate statehood of Kurdish<br />
minorities since the 1970s. The PKK was<br />
originally financed by Syria, Iran and<br />
Greece, who were interested in weakening<br />
Turkey. Syrian support lasted up to 1999,<br />
after which Damascus cut back its PKK<br />
partnership to avoid a Turkish invasion.<br />
In 2002, Ankara also entered into an<br />
agreement with Iran to ban the PKK as a<br />
terrorist organisation.<br />
As the state sponsorship evaporated, PKK<br />
turned to the Kurdish Diaspora in Germany,<br />
the Benelux countries, and Scandinavia for<br />
a stable source of income. It raises around<br />
US $ 9 million from the German Kurdish<br />
Diaspora alone and supplements it with a<br />
dose of heroin trafficking by expatriate<br />
Kurds. Turkey complains of inadequate<br />
cooperation from EU states for stemming<br />
the PKK’s overseas financing mafia and,<br />
indeed, the alacrity with which the EU has<br />
frozen the tracks of Basque separatists from<br />
Spain has not been matched in the PKK’s<br />
case. Perceptions that Kurdish rebel groups<br />
and their Diaspora proponents are fighting<br />
for a just cause persist in Western countries<br />
and weaken efforts to neutralise them.<br />
Long distance nationalism has proven to<br />
be a big propelling factor of high resilience<br />
in a number of identity-based internal wars.<br />
It thrives on the guilt complex of expatriates<br />
in the Diaspora that they might be accused<br />
of forsaking their brethren back home who<br />
are being mauled by the might of repressive<br />
states. With this kind of mindset, the least that<br />
immigrants and refugees who have escaped<br />
to a comfortable existence in the West can<br />
think of doing is to write out cheques for<br />
‘liberations’ and ‘freedom struggles’.<br />
If war has taken on transnational<br />
dimensions in the age of instant<br />
communication, Diasporas bear their<br />
portion of the blame.<br />
Sreeram Chaulia is a researcher on international<br />
affairs at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and<br />
Public Affairs in Syracuse, New York.<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 33
[ FOREIGN AFFAIRS ]<br />
had the firepower to seriously threaten the<br />
British state’s military occupation. The IRA<br />
enjoyed a safe haven in the USA to generate<br />
donations and weapons caches because of<br />
lax American laws up to the early 1990s that<br />
allowed considerable freedom to Diaspora<br />
groups engaging in ‘political’ actions.<br />
The opportunity space for Diaspora<br />
nationalism was even more liberal and easy<br />
to exploit in Canada, whose multi-cultural<br />
ethos and respect for minorities offered<br />
a favourite haunt for fundraisers of rebel<br />
organisations in South Asia. When the<br />
Khalistan insurgency reached its peak in<br />
the northern <strong>Indian</strong> state of Punjab in the<br />
1980s, the Sikh Diaspora in Canada and, to a<br />
lesser extent in the UK, emerged as a potent<br />
reservoir of militancy. Nostalgic visions<br />
of re-establishing the Sikh empire in the<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> subcontinent and boiling anger at<br />
the heavy handed military tactics of Prime<br />
Minister Indira Gandhi drove wealthy<br />
Canadian and British Sikhs into arranging<br />
massive propaganda, logistical and financial<br />
assistance for banned terrorist outfits like<br />
the <strong>International</strong> Sikh Youth Federation<br />
and the Babbar Khalsa <strong>International</strong>.<br />
As in the case of Irish Americans who<br />
stopped bankrolling terrorism in Ulster<br />
once a peace process took hold in the late<br />
1990s, the Sikh Diaspora’s sympathies<br />
for militancy declined as Punjab limped<br />
back to normalcy in the nineties. ‘Hindu<br />
imperialism’, which once agitated rich Sikhs<br />
in Toronto and Southall into religious rage,<br />
lost its appeal by the early 21st century and<br />
was replaced by the traditional moderation<br />
of the mainstream Sikh Diaspora.<br />
The South Asian rebel group that has truly<br />
mastered the art of roping in the Diaspora<br />
for fundraising and public relations is the<br />
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),<br />
which has been fighting for three decades for<br />
an independent state of the Tamil minorities<br />
of Sri Lanka. Sri Lankan Tamil expatriates<br />
living as refugees and immigrants in Canada,<br />
Australia and Western Europe are the<br />
principal sources of the LTTE’s seemingly<br />
bottomless treasury which has upheld a<br />
world-class fighting unit.<br />
In the formative years of its international<br />
network, LTTE solicited contributions<br />
from individual businesspersons in the<br />
Tamil Diaspora who were highly motivated<br />
“<br />
Long distance<br />
nationalism has proven<br />
to be a big propelling<br />
factor of high resilience<br />
in a number of identitybased<br />
internal wars.<br />
It thrives on the guilt<br />
complex of expatriates<br />
in the Diaspora<br />
that they might be<br />
accused of forsaking<br />
their brethren back<br />
home who are being<br />
mauled by the might of<br />
repressive states.<br />
”<br />
by the separatist cause in Sri Lanka. Later,<br />
it resorted to establishing humanitarian<br />
front organisations that collected funds in<br />
the name of charity for Tamil war victims.<br />
The LTTE’s ‘third generation’ modus<br />
operandi for overseas fundraising is now<br />
said to include business ventures selling<br />
prepaid phone cards and satellite television<br />
channels in Western countries with large<br />
Tamil Diaspora concentrations.<br />
By means of innovative ideas and<br />
its legendary secrecy, the LTTE has<br />
successfully evaded the dragnet of Western<br />
host state restrictions on Tamil Diaspora<br />
remittances, which continue to reach the<br />
guerrilla group in various guises. As long<br />
as the government of India was the LTTE’s<br />
chief benefactor in the 1980s, the Tamil<br />
Diaspora’s role as financier of the Eelam<br />
wars was not crucial. Ever since New Delhi<br />
dropped the LTTE as a hot potato after the<br />
assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, however, the<br />
Diaspora has been the organisation’s mainstay<br />
in its war against the Sri Lankan state.<br />
A similar change of hands between a<br />
foreign state sponsor and a nationalistic<br />
Diaspora occurred in the case of the<br />
Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK), which<br />
has spearheaded a violent uprising against<br />
Turkey for separate statehood of Kurdish<br />
minorities since the 1970s. The PKK was<br />
originally financed by Syria, Iran and<br />
Greece, who were interested in weakening<br />
Turkey. Syrian support lasted up to 1999,<br />
after which Damascus cut back its PKK<br />
partnership to avoid a Turkish invasion.<br />
In 2002, Ankara also entered into an<br />
agreement with Iran to ban the PKK as a<br />
terrorist organisation.<br />
As the state sponsorship evaporated, PKK<br />
turned to the Kurdish Diaspora in Germany,<br />
the Benelux countries, and Scandinavia for<br />
a stable source of income. It raises around<br />
US $ 9 million from the German Kurdish<br />
Diaspora alone and supplements it with a<br />
dose of heroin trafficking by expatriate<br />
Kurds. Turkey complains of inadequate<br />
cooperation from EU states for stemming<br />
the PKK’s overseas financing mafia and,<br />
indeed, the alacrity with which the EU has<br />
frozen the tracks of Basque separatists from<br />
Spain has not been matched in the PKK’s<br />
case. Perceptions that Kurdish rebel groups<br />
and their Diaspora proponents are fighting<br />
for a just cause persist in Western countries<br />
and weaken efforts to neutralise them.<br />
Long distance nationalism has proven to<br />
be a big propelling factor of high resilience<br />
in a number of identity-based internal wars.<br />
It thrives on the guilt complex of expatriates<br />
in the Diaspora that they might be accused<br />
of forsaking their brethren back home who<br />
are being mauled by the might of repressive<br />
states. With this kind of mindset, the least that<br />
immigrants and refugees who have escaped<br />
to a comfortable existence in the West can<br />
think of doing is to write out cheques for<br />
‘liberations’ and ‘freedom struggles’.<br />
If war has taken on transnational<br />
dimensions in the age of instant<br />
communication, Diasporas bear their<br />
portion of the blame.<br />
Sreeram Chaulia is a researcher on international<br />
affairs at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and<br />
Public Affairs in Syracuse, New York.<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 33
[ INDIA <strong>THE</strong>SE DAyS ]<br />
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Why are the Enterprising Gujjus<br />
Going to Tuticorin?<br />
Why are the Bollywoodwallas<br />
Going to Tuticorin?<br />
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tuticorin.indd 2 10/10/2008 14:41:33<br />
36<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
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[ SEX, LIES & TRUTH ]<br />
Real Sex<br />
[ By MELISSA & LOUIS MCBURNEy ]<br />
My Wife’s Just Faking It<br />
During a recent argument, my wife<br />
confessed that for the whole ten years<br />
of our marriage she’s been faking her<br />
orgasms. I couldn’t believe it – and I feel<br />
really angry and betrayed. I thought I was<br />
doing everything possible for her during<br />
sex. Now I don’t even want to have sex;<br />
her deception seems so cold to me. Is there<br />
any hope for our sex life?<br />
Louis: A recent survey reported that more<br />
than 60 percent of women have some problems<br />
achieving orgasm and 10 percent never have<br />
had an orgasm. So a wife’s “faking” an orgasm<br />
is not an uncommon occurrence.<br />
In a sense, your wife chose to give you<br />
many exciting nights of sexual pleasure as a<br />
loving gift. However, I can understand your<br />
disappointment in the way she hit you with this<br />
information – it must’ve been a real kick in the<br />
groin. I know my sense of being an adequate<br />
(or even super) lover has been important to my<br />
well-being. I wonder now whether your ego is<br />
so fragile that you won’t be able to change your<br />
focus from your own wounded-ness to your<br />
wife’s ten years of frustration and distress. If<br />
you can make that shift and show legitimate<br />
concern for her, there’s plenty of hope for your<br />
sex life. Your physical intimacy could become<br />
explosively erotic.<br />
Your attitude is foundational, but not the<br />
only factor. The second key issue is learning<br />
to deal with conflict more effectively. Your<br />
wife’s “confession” of her sexual frustration<br />
indicates her inability to keep short accounts.<br />
It would’ve been much less devastating to you<br />
if the two of you had talked about this with,<br />
say, nine years less accumulated tension. If you<br />
want to work toward a positive sex life, you’ll<br />
have to address other areas of your marriage<br />
– such as communicating about problems and<br />
working through them right away.<br />
Melissa: I’m glad you’ve desired in the<br />
past to “do everything possible” for her;<br />
that indicates a willingness on your part to<br />
discover what might be holding her back. And<br />
there are plenty of reasons for inorgasmia.<br />
Very rarely, a woman’s inability to achieve<br />
orgasm is tied to a physiological problem, but<br />
you could have a gynecologist evaluate that<br />
possibility. More commonly a woman doesn’t<br />
reach orgasm because some aspect of the<br />
lovemaking technique needs to be changed<br />
for her – timing, lubrication, foreplay.<br />
But most of the time the factors that hold<br />
women back from orgasm are emotional: a<br />
history of sexual abuse; unresolved guilt over<br />
premarital sexual experiences; fearfulness to<br />
release control as sexual intensity approaches<br />
climax; anger, resentment or disappointment<br />
in other areas of the marriage; a sense of<br />
sexual inadequacy reinforced by her lack of<br />
orgasm or an unrealistic expectation that a<br />
spouse won’t be able to handle the truth. And<br />
as with all sexuality issues, the side effects of<br />
drugs and alcohol must be kept in mind.<br />
Here’s the good news: your new skills in<br />
communication and sexuality are self- reinforcing.<br />
That means the better you get at connecting<br />
personally and sexually, the more exciting and<br />
fulfilling your marriage will become.<br />
Addicted to Lust<br />
My husband and I have been married seven<br />
years. During that time he’s been involved<br />
with pornography and voyeurism. He has<br />
been through therapy and counseling<br />
again and again, but nothing changes. It’s<br />
impossible for me to feel like having sex<br />
with him, since I know how much time he<br />
spends lusting after images of other women.<br />
It’s intolerable, but I’m trapped since lust<br />
doesn’t constitute biblical grounds for<br />
divorce. Am I just supposed to live with my<br />
husband’s addictions?<br />
Louis: Let me start with two disclaimers. First, I<br />
maintain a hopeful attitude about recovery, even<br />
though addictive disorders do present very difficult<br />
challenges. I’m wondering how motivated your<br />
husband really is to change. A “bottoming out”<br />
seems necessary before most addicted individuals<br />
will commit themselves to change. The most<br />
crucial ingredients are the motivation to change,<br />
the willingness for a spouse to be involved in the<br />
process and the man’s determination to seek help<br />
from God in his healing.<br />
Second, I rarely recommend divorce.<br />
The long-range effects on the individuals,<br />
families, children and our culture have been<br />
devastating. I’m glad you’ve had the bravery and<br />
determination to hang in there for seven years.<br />
Having said that, there are times when a<br />
spouse must show “tough love” – particularly in<br />
situations involving addictions. If you honestly<br />
feel there is no indication of your husband’s<br />
desire or willingness to break his addiction, it<br />
may be necessary to draw some lines. Setting<br />
sensible boundaries and sticking with them is<br />
often the only course of action that works.<br />
Reasonable limits in marriage are sexual<br />
fidelity, honesty, financial responsibility and<br />
mutual need-meeting. To clearly spell out the<br />
limits and the consequences of a mate’s refusal<br />
to abide by a commitment is well within your<br />
rights. Such boundaries should be communicated<br />
in first-person statements. For instance,<br />
you might say, “I realize you have a serious<br />
addiction. I’d like to have a relationship with<br />
you, but recognize my inability to change<br />
your behavior or to continue to live with you<br />
as long as the addiction remains. So I want to<br />
make clear my decision. I will stay with you until<br />
I have reason to believe you’re still involved in<br />
your addictive behavior. At that point I want you<br />
to move out. We can pursue a legal separation<br />
at that time (or whatever course of action seems<br />
appropriate) until I can be assured of your<br />
recovery.” If a predetermined time limit seems<br />
important to you, that should be clearly defined.<br />
Whatever boundaries you set will likely be<br />
challenged, so a great deal of resolve is necessary<br />
for this kind of intervention to be effective.<br />
This puts the ball in your husband’s<br />
court, making him responsible for changing<br />
his addiction. That’s important because<br />
most addictive personalities assume a<br />
passive, victim role, blaming others for their<br />
problems. If you’ve been carrying blame and<br />
responsibility, I encourage you to “resign”<br />
from playing the parent in a no-win scenario.<br />
You have shown great courage and character<br />
in sticking with your husband.<br />
Real Sex columnists Melissa and Louis McBurney,<br />
M.D., are marriage therapists and co-founders of<br />
Marble Retreat in Marble, Colorado, where they<br />
counsel clergy couples. Credit: Christianity Today<br />
38<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ FROM UK ]<br />
Dare to Achieve<br />
“Many terms are commonly used to describe British <strong>Indian</strong>s – <strong>Indian</strong>s, South<br />
Asians, British Asians, even Br-Asians. There are more than two million people<br />
in Britain from the <strong>Indian</strong> subcontinent and around half of them are from<br />
India itself. If you think India and <strong>Indian</strong>s affect the UK in a big way that<br />
impact is only going to increase. In the future India is going to become an even<br />
bigger part of the global scenario.”<br />
[ By SARINA MENEzES ]<br />
The <strong>Indian</strong> community in the UK<br />
is already the largest minority<br />
national group. London for example<br />
would not be the hugely successful city it is,<br />
and indeed it would be a very different city,<br />
without the economic, cultural and social<br />
contribution that <strong>Indian</strong>s bring to the capital<br />
and the country.<br />
The <strong>International</strong> <strong>Indian</strong> meets three<br />
<strong>Indian</strong>s who with their business acumen,<br />
skills, courage and a dare to achieve attitude<br />
have made great strides in their respective<br />
fields, adding value and contributing to the<br />
economy.<br />
Asheesh Dewan, 39, owns and manages<br />
seven restaurants under the Jaipur chain of<br />
fine dining restaurants in Ireland and the<br />
stylish Benares located in Mayfair, London.<br />
He is also a partner in the technology<br />
consultancy firm, Segala, which is based<br />
in Sandyford. With a business turnover of<br />
12.7 million euros per annum, his employee<br />
strength is over 170.<br />
Asheesh moved to Ireland from India<br />
in 1995. All he arrived with was loads of<br />
determination, his culinary skills and well<br />
rounded experience with world class hotels<br />
like The Oberoi Group and The Hyatt.<br />
He was recently presented with the TSB<br />
Permanent Ethnic Entrepreneur of the Year<br />
Award 2008 in Ireland. Permanent TSB is<br />
one of Ireland’s leading banks and financial<br />
institutions. The award aims to celebrate,<br />
promote and encourage ethnic entrepreneurs<br />
Asheesh & Rupa Dewan receiving the TSB Permanent Ethnic Entrepreneur of the Year 2008 Award<br />
grow their businesses and promote value<br />
and community integration of Ethnic<br />
Entrepreneurs.<br />
“My wife Rupa was already in Ireland<br />
running lifestyle boutique stores which she<br />
was on the verge of giving up to start our<br />
home. Dublin at that time lacked stylish fine<br />
dining restaurants and we both had a vision to<br />
start one. I went on to do an MBA degree and<br />
in 1998 started our first restaurant, Jaipur,”<br />
shares Asheesh.<br />
“The fact that I was <strong>Indian</strong> did not matter<br />
at all, in fact personally it’s an advantage as<br />
we are more driven, aggressive but optimistic<br />
with the great pain and emotional threshold<br />
that keeps us going. On the business front,<br />
it took a lot to convince bankers about the<br />
proposition because they receive so many<br />
each day and the market is crowded with food<br />
businesses trying to survive,” adds Asheesh.<br />
“However, setting up and surviving<br />
the first one is always the most difficult<br />
and toughest. My confidence was firmly<br />
established once Jaipur was; and the<br />
concept of eating <strong>Indian</strong> food in a stylish<br />
environment became popular in the market.<br />
But my true motivation was Rupa.<br />
Her constant encouragement led me<br />
40<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ FROM UK ]<br />
Karl Pinto and his daughter Anya in Florida<br />
to envision a chain of fine dining <strong>Indian</strong><br />
restaurants. Jaipur in Dalkey was the next one<br />
in the year 2000, soon to be followed by Blue<br />
Orchid, Dublin in 2001, Jaipur, Malahide in<br />
2003, Benares, London in 2004, Chakra by<br />
Jaipur Greystones in 2005, Mantra by Jaipur<br />
Ongar in 2007 and Aananda by Jaipur Dublin<br />
in 2007-2008.<br />
It has been an exciting and rewarding<br />
journey for Asheesh and Rupa who have a<br />
small family of two little girls aged eight<br />
and two years. For them taking time out to<br />
be with the extended family in India or an<br />
annual holiday is a must which they do about<br />
two to three times a year.<br />
“Our <strong>Indian</strong> culture is richly imbedded in<br />
us taking it with us wherever we go. We have<br />
this innate ability to influence cultures and<br />
people around us. Together with our faith,<br />
it helps us survive better especially in tough<br />
times. I have noticed NRIs today are more<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> simply because it bonds us together<br />
and helps us maintain our identity. Rupa’s<br />
family have a temple in their home which<br />
is open to all and everyone is welcome,”<br />
concludes Asheesh.<br />
Vimmi Singh, 36, is founder and CEO<br />
of DAWN (Dynamic Asian Women<br />
Network) - a hub for dynamic professional<br />
& entrepreneurial Asian women. Vimmi is a<br />
chartered accountant and company secretary<br />
and has an MBA from the London Business<br />
School, specializing in Venture Capital and<br />
Entrepreneurial Finance. With an illustrious<br />
career as a venture capitalist<br />
at JP Morgan Chase and<br />
Lazard Brothers, she was at<br />
one time one of the youngest<br />
company secretaries of a<br />
public limited company in<br />
India.<br />
In 2003, Vimmi co-founded<br />
DAWN with the vision of<br />
freeing, connecting and<br />
transforming the potential<br />
of Asian women. At DAWN,<br />
she brings her knowledge and<br />
financial services experience<br />
to focus on growing<br />
young businesses through<br />
entrepreneur programs,<br />
workshops and mentoring.<br />
In spite of coming from<br />
an illustrious corporate background we<br />
asked Vimmi how it felt to give it all up to<br />
start DAWN and the motivation behind<br />
this opportunity for Asian women in the<br />
UK. Her reasons were unique. “During my<br />
working career, I made some uncomfortable<br />
observations, the key one being the near<br />
absence of Asian women in corporate and<br />
entrepreneurial roles. And yet the Asian<br />
influence in British business is staggering<br />
though male dominated. Asian-owned<br />
businesses in London have a turnover of<br />
about £60bn a year and real Asian wealth<br />
increased by 69% between 1998 and 2005<br />
compared with UK GDP up by 23%.”<br />
There were a few isolated Asian women<br />
high achievers and there was a need to link<br />
them and provide a platform to especially<br />
mentor and inspire the younger generation.<br />
Today DAWN has over 1000 members,<br />
most being South Asian professional and<br />
business women from all industries. They<br />
are highly educated and between 25 to 50<br />
years of age.<br />
“My constant motivation is to ensure<br />
that Asian women, with all the cultural<br />
influences and social responsibilities at<br />
home, are progressing towards better<br />
careers, training and creating networks for<br />
themselves as a safety net and a trapeze,”<br />
she adds. “We have a partnership with the<br />
British Library and host many of our events<br />
at their conference centre mainly attracting<br />
high profile Asian and non Asian speakers<br />
to our events.”<br />
Vimmi believes in a balanced lifestyle<br />
and like most women, multi tasking comes<br />
easily to her. “I have a son, five years and a<br />
daughter, two years old. We have had a live-in<br />
nanny since the first was born. I leave in the<br />
morning for my appointments and on most<br />
days manage to conclude all my meetings<br />
by 3pm. I try to pick up my son from school<br />
and on the drive back, I learn a lot about his<br />
day, his highs and lows and stay in tune with<br />
his life. The children have activities after<br />
school - judo, swimming, football or have<br />
friends over. I slip into the office at home<br />
and catch up on my emails and documents<br />
before dinner and sometimes after their<br />
bedtime.”<br />
With a busy schedule in a city like London,<br />
Vimmi still finds time for herself. She adds,<br />
“For fitness, I combine personal training<br />
and Bikram yoga. I am at events, awards or<br />
dinners about two weeknights. My husband<br />
travels extensively so we often go out with<br />
friends on Fridays and just the two of us on<br />
Saturdays. Sunday lunch is sacred – we eat at<br />
home or go out as a family and depending on<br />
the weather, often end up in the park.”<br />
As a family, holidays are really special<br />
for this close knit family especially when<br />
you desire to get out of a bustling city like<br />
London. “We spend some of the summer in<br />
Portugal and usually spend Christmas with<br />
family in New Delhi, Goa or the Far East.<br />
In addition, my husband and I end up in<br />
New York every year without the kids. We<br />
also try doing something new during the<br />
Easter holidays.”<br />
What Vimmi is most looking forward to<br />
is her shift to Mumbai where her husband<br />
Amrit Singh will be heading the Mergers &<br />
Acquisition wing of Deustche Bank.<br />
“We are eagerly looking forward to being<br />
with both our families and our parents<br />
especially are glad to have this opportunity<br />
to spend time with the children.<br />
Of course, it will take us time to settle<br />
in and find our place socially but I have no<br />
doubts it will be an exciting experience.<br />
I have traveled and lived in various cities<br />
around the world including New York so we<br />
are used to adapting to new environments,”<br />
Vimmi says.<br />
During her time in India, DAWN will<br />
continue to function in London under an<br />
established team with Vimmi functioning out<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 41
[ FROM UK ]<br />
of a Mumbai base with the occasional travel<br />
to London. On future plans or aspirations for<br />
DAWN, she shares, “Would I like to achieve<br />
my five year plan in one? Yes, very much. But<br />
DAWN has a pace and life of its own. My<br />
vision is that DAWN will evolve along with<br />
the needs and expectations of our members.”<br />
Karl Pinto, 38, serves as Chairman of the<br />
Board of Goodwin Biotechnology, Inc. (Wallace<br />
Group) a Florida based biotherapeutics<br />
contract manufacturing and services company.<br />
With a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering and<br />
a Masters in Business Management, Karl’s<br />
career spans 15 years with active experience in<br />
international business development, executive<br />
management and Mergers & Acquisitions in<br />
the USA and India.<br />
He started his career with the Tata Group<br />
and spent the next 10 years in the US with<br />
Wipro Technologies, Infogain Corp and<br />
Syntel, Inc. “I moved to the US in the mid<br />
nineties long before the IT outsourcing<br />
industry became the juggernaut it is today.<br />
Sometimes we carried a map of the world<br />
in our pockets to show American clients<br />
where exactly India was, before convincing<br />
them to send their mission-critical software<br />
development and the IT business.”<br />
Karl envisioned that the next big thing was<br />
going to be Life Sciences, another industry<br />
where India would play an important role.<br />
And how right he was! With a clear vision<br />
and determination, he set out to evaluate<br />
investment options within the US. Having<br />
family ties in the pharmaceutical industry<br />
in India also helped. “In 2004, I put<br />
together an advisory team and went around<br />
the US scouting for opportunities in the<br />
biotechnology business. This culminated in<br />
us acquiring GBI,” says Karl.<br />
As an <strong>Indian</strong> and having worked in the<br />
US for most of his career, Karl found that<br />
molding management styles was the biggest<br />
challenge but also an opportunity. “The US<br />
has a rich culture of innovation, risk taking<br />
and scientific management techniques.<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> business is characterized by relatively<br />
cautious and measured aggression, cost led<br />
innovation and steady if not spectacular<br />
growth,” discovered Karl.<br />
Karl has been instrumental in putting to<br />
practice and amalgamating both these styles<br />
at GBI and since the acquisition in 2004,<br />
investments in the company’s infrastructure has<br />
Vimmi Singh with her children in their holiday home in Portugal.<br />
led to improved management and systems and<br />
an increase in the employee base by 250%.<br />
No wonder <strong>Indian</strong>s are perceived as<br />
good businessmen and in the international<br />
marketplace, considered smart and<br />
intellectually oriented. Earlier, this was<br />
due to the multitude of IIT graduates that<br />
moved to the US. In the nineties <strong>Indian</strong>s got<br />
the reputation of being IT Gurus. But it’s in<br />
the last 10 years that <strong>Indian</strong> management<br />
strengths and their capacity to invest in<br />
global companies have begun to showcase<br />
themselves on the world stage.<br />
From a social perspective, the American<br />
society is by and large inclusive making it<br />
easy to be <strong>Indian</strong> and retain one’s <strong>Indian</strong>ness.<br />
“Americans know more about India and<br />
<strong>Indian</strong>s today than they did even a decade<br />
ago. It’s simply because India has made<br />
great strides in becoming America’s key geo<br />
political and economic partner. Coming<br />
from a cosmopolitan city like Mumbai, it was<br />
never a problem for me. My family and I have<br />
learned to imbibe the positives of American<br />
society while maintaining the important<br />
and sometimes conservative attitude of our<br />
<strong>Indian</strong>-ness,” explains Karl.<br />
Karl lives in sunny Florida with his wife,<br />
Divya who is a practicing pediatrician and<br />
a 21 month old daughter. With another one<br />
on the way later this year, Karl believes<br />
that family is important in order to perform<br />
optimally in life. “Ever since Anya’s arrival,<br />
family time revolves around her. From trips<br />
to the park to watching her develop her skills,<br />
Divya and I try hard to get involved in her<br />
life knowing these days will not last.”<br />
As for future plans, here’s another family<br />
who are eagerly looking forward to their<br />
move to India in 2009. “Professionally, we<br />
want to be a part of the excitement in India<br />
and ensure that we folks living overseas are<br />
not left behind. India today is in the midst of<br />
the optimism, euphoria and opportunity that<br />
knocks once in a lifetime. On the personal<br />
front we are looking forward to being closer<br />
to our families,” concludes Karl.<br />
All success stories start small. No wonder<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> entrepreneurs like Karl, Asheesh,<br />
Vimmi and many others are causing ripples<br />
right across the globe. Be it the UK, Ireland,<br />
US or any where else, this pinnacle of<br />
success can only be reached by hard work,<br />
vision, and an entrepreneurial spirit. <strong>Indian</strong><br />
businessmen will continue to spread their<br />
tentacles in various corners of the world<br />
and flourish under globalization.<br />
Sarina Menezes is a free lance writer<br />
based in the UK.<br />
42<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ COMMUNITy HyDERABADI ]<br />
Communal Harmony:<br />
Past, present and future<br />
“The Hindus and the Muslims are the warp and weft of the social fabric, the taana<br />
and the baana. Together they have woven wonders and held up a shining picture of<br />
communal amity. Unfortunately the actions of a few people have created this crazy<br />
picture where a wrong doer is always a Muslim with a beard and a skull cap.”<br />
[ By SHyAMOLA KHANNA ]<br />
In the 400 plus years of recorded history<br />
of Hyderabad, there has been no mention<br />
of any communal discord. Hindus,<br />
Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Parsis and<br />
others have lived together peacefully for<br />
years. Mutual respect and tolerance of each<br />
other’s needs has been the bottom line—the<br />
Hyderabadi language (more a dialect!) and<br />
tehzeeb is inclusive of all this and more.<br />
At the time of writing this, the Ganpati<br />
festival for the Hindus and the month of<br />
Ramzan for the Muslims is going on. So far,<br />
no untoward incident has taken place.<br />
But why should I expect it and why<br />
am I relieved and happy that it has not<br />
happened so far? Why is there this kind of<br />
an apprehensive state of mind? In the twin<br />
cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad,<br />
communal harmony has always been the<br />
order of the day and never an exception, yet<br />
there is this underlying sense of fear.<br />
Two days ago, the horrific bomb blasts took<br />
place in Delhi’s most crowded market areas,<br />
very shortly after the bomb blasts in Jaipur<br />
and Ahmedabad The police in Hyderabad<br />
were on a high alert and once again people<br />
were scared to step out.<br />
But I love the resilience of the Hyderabadis.<br />
Notwithstanding the bomb blasts in other<br />
places and the high alert in the city, the<br />
organizers of Ganesh Utsava Samiti of Moti<br />
Nagar and Kabeer Nagar hosted a fabulous<br />
Susan and Anand Jaywant Rao with their two daughters, Lebanese son-in-law John, the grandchildren<br />
- Maya and John junior<br />
‘iftar’ for their Muslim brethren at their<br />
Ganesh Pandal. The area which is known<br />
as Borabanda has a great reputation for<br />
Hindu Muslim amity. Both the communities<br />
celebrate each other’s festivals with great<br />
joy. There were plenty of fruits, dry fruits,<br />
vegetable Biryani and other vegetarian fare.<br />
The editor said I need to look at some<br />
mixed marriages as a barometer of communal<br />
harmony in Hyderabad. My personal opinion<br />
is that in a marriage, once the hype and hoopla<br />
about religion etc is over, finally it is the<br />
equation between two people: how much they<br />
are willing to adjust and how much of a give<br />
and take there is between the two individuals.<br />
The first success story I came across is<br />
of Ayesha (31) and Azhar Mujahid (37) who<br />
are running the Abid’s Lakhotia Fashion<br />
Institute. They have been married for 12<br />
years and have two lovely boys: Aman (11)<br />
and Rahil (6). Ayesha completed her studies in<br />
fashion designing and then joined a computer<br />
course where Azhar was an instructor. Cupid<br />
struck and both the Hyderabadi youngsters<br />
realized that they would have to work<br />
hard to convince their parents who<br />
44<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ COMMUNITy HyDERABADI ]<br />
were both initially quite concerned.<br />
Azhar is the eldest in his family with a<br />
younger sister and brother. His mother is<br />
a practicing gynecologist and they all live<br />
together. Good sense prevailed and the<br />
wedding was performed without too much<br />
of a brouhaha. With the passage of time,<br />
both the families have realized the value<br />
of what the young couple have brought to<br />
the fold.<br />
So what has the journey been like for<br />
Ayesha? “Between my husband and me,<br />
we have a lot of understanding. He is a<br />
very trusting and accommodating person<br />
and helps me a lot. He has given me a lot<br />
of freedom to be my own person. Initially<br />
there were a whole lot of relatives who used<br />
to pass a lot of snide remarks about me. He<br />
used to shield me from all that. I have made<br />
my own compromises and have earned a lot<br />
of respect from the other members of the<br />
immediate family.<br />
“When we started the fashion institute,<br />
we had some teething trouble. Now my<br />
father-in-law and mother-in-law are both<br />
involved in it and I feel that is why we have<br />
been fairly successful.”<br />
Mukul Puitandi Zaheer (55), is the CEO of<br />
Russell’s Institute of Spoken English which was<br />
started in the year 1986 as a small social service<br />
venture. Today, Russell’s is the longest surviving<br />
institute for spoken English in Hyderabad. In<br />
1988, she turned commercial and her husband<br />
also joined her in the venture.<br />
Mukul is the daughter of a bureaucrat;<br />
she was born in Purulia but was brought up<br />
and educated in Delhi. She was working with<br />
the UN in Iran, when she met Mir Ashfaq<br />
Zaheer, a Hyderabadi who was then working<br />
with Iran Air. The two met, fell in love and<br />
decided to make a life together.<br />
They were married in 1981 in Hyderabad.<br />
They have one son who is called Russell and<br />
the institute is named after him. Mukul, who<br />
is known as Nishat at home, laughs and says,<br />
“National Integration!” She is quite satisfied<br />
with the way her life has shaped up. She insists<br />
that she and her husband have both worked<br />
very hard on their marriage, “because a<br />
marriage like this needs dedicated hard work<br />
otherwise it cannot survive!”<br />
She clarified that while she was in Iran,<br />
she discovered that Islam has a very clear<br />
cut connection with the Almighty, and there<br />
are no middlemen required. So when her<br />
Azhar, Chairman, and Ayesha, CEO, Abids Lakhotia<br />
Institute of Art and Design, Abids Lakhotia Institute of<br />
Hospitality and Management<br />
father-in-law who was a retired judge of the<br />
AP High court, asked her to convert, she was<br />
more than ready for it.<br />
Among the hundreds of professionals<br />
making a mark in the field of architecture and<br />
interiors, a name to reckon with is the house<br />
of Siraj and Renu. This couple has built up a<br />
formidable reputation for being exceptional<br />
in their work. Siraj Hassan and his wife Renu<br />
Verma have been married for 35 years and<br />
they have this wonderful understanding<br />
between them which would be the norm<br />
rather than the exception in a marriage and<br />
work partnership which has spanned more<br />
than three decades!<br />
Renu tells me that all the three sisters<br />
– one older and one younger – married<br />
Muslims in Hyderabad. When her elder<br />
sister married way back in ’65, there were<br />
some rumblings from both families. But<br />
when Renu and her younger sister came<br />
of age and wanted to marry out of the<br />
community, the elders were willing to<br />
accept and allow the younger people to<br />
choose their own partners. “My parents<br />
were always open to our interactions with<br />
people from all other communities. I<br />
cannot recall my parents ever speaking ill<br />
about others in any context. We had friends<br />
in school and college and we had neighbors,<br />
from all other religious groups; there were<br />
hardly any Punjabis at that time.”<br />
Mixed marriages of the other kinds<br />
Hyderabad has all kinds of mixed marriages,<br />
other than the Hindu Muslim ones. There<br />
are some quite “mixed up” ones where<br />
there are more than two or three different<br />
cultural and religious groups, married and<br />
happily living together. My friend Susan<br />
is of Christian Malayali-Parsi parentage<br />
and she is married to Anand Jaywant Rao,<br />
the younger son of Telugu-Coorg parents.<br />
He has some Anglo <strong>Indian</strong> cousins and his<br />
elder brother, Dilip is married to Nalini<br />
who is of Hindu - Christian parentage. Her<br />
son has recently married a Brazilian. Susan’s<br />
elder daughter has married a Lebanese<br />
Christian.<br />
Are you still with me? Want some more?<br />
One of Susan’s brothers has married a<br />
Bohri Muslim while her sister, Anu has<br />
married a ‘mohna’ sardar (a shaven Sikh)<br />
The Jaywant Raos celebrate Diwali and<br />
Christmas with equal fervor. There are no<br />
narrow parochial thought processes here-<br />
--they are wonderful citizens of the world<br />
and happy being that way! Their open way<br />
of accepting anyone in their families is very<br />
endearing and attractive. Like Susan says,<br />
“there are no barriers of religion, language<br />
or community” She is a great ‘foodie’ and is<br />
thrilled at the kind of variety of foods that<br />
this whole ‘mixed up’ clan gets on its tables<br />
across the world!<br />
Across the road live the Nagraths a<br />
retired couple living in a quiet bungalow.<br />
He is Punjabi while his wife is a Muslim.<br />
Their daughter, Seema is married to a Mallu<br />
doctor. Brig Nagrath(retd) tells me he has<br />
people from all nationalities in his side of<br />
the family – apparently there are Afghanis,<br />
Bolivians, Argentineans and a couple of<br />
others married into his Punjabi clan! They<br />
live in cities across the world; he and his wife<br />
are the only ones who live in Hyderabad.<br />
My husband’s family were émigrés from<br />
Pakistan. The brothers and sisters grew up in<br />
Hyderabad and now the next generation has<br />
taken the meaning of national integration a<br />
whole step further. In the fold one can count<br />
Sindhis, Telugus, Mallus, Bongs, Tantyas,<br />
Kannadigas , Kashmiri Pandits, Gujjus –<br />
what more do you need? Yes, the far eastern<br />
states are not yet represented. Maybe one of<br />
the next generation will keep that in mind!<br />
Is it Hyderabad?<br />
The spirit of coexistence has been nurtured<br />
in Hyderabad for a very long time, post<br />
the collapse of the Mughal Empire and the<br />
cruel impositions of the last few stalwarts<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 45
[ COMMUNITy HyDERABADI ]<br />
Siraj & Renu: All three Punjabi sisters are married<br />
to Muslim men<br />
of the clan. With the establishment of the<br />
Asaf Jahi rulers and the benign control of the<br />
British, when Secunderabad was established<br />
as a garrison centre for the British army, the<br />
Nizams allowed the Parsis to establish their<br />
homes and trade centers, the Sikhs came in<br />
to look after the treasury, and the Marwaris<br />
and Gujjus set up the shops while the Anglo<br />
<strong>Indian</strong>s looked after the Railways etc. From<br />
such a beginning, the cosmopolitan air of<br />
the twin city grew and flourished.<br />
One has to walk through the narrow<br />
lanes of the Charminar area in the old city<br />
of Hyderabad and observe the names of the<br />
shops all around – if there is a Muslim name<br />
on the shop, the next one is bound to be a<br />
Hindu one. I sat and observed a Muslim<br />
youngster setting up his bhatti (oven) to start<br />
making bangles. Then he suggested that I<br />
go to the ‘lakhwaras’ (the Hindu guys who<br />
work with lac) since those guys started their<br />
work much earlier. I was nonplussed and<br />
told him that since I was new to the place, I<br />
would not be able to find the way. He called<br />
one little boy and said, “Amma ko mitti ka sher<br />
le jaa! ” (take Amma to the clay lion).<br />
Before I could gather my wits, the little<br />
fellow took off – through winding lanes,<br />
across alleys with my husband and me in<br />
hot pursuit! Suddenly we were there! The<br />
mitti ka sher was a clay statue of the Hindu<br />
Goddess, Durga who sits astride a lion. It<br />
marked the Hindu area. Then I started<br />
looking around and found a common wall<br />
between a girl’s school with a Hindu name<br />
and a madrassa whose name had been<br />
written in English as well as Urdu.<br />
The Patel market inside Charminar is the<br />
Mrs Mukul Puitandi Zaheer (55), along with<br />
her husband Mir Ashfaq Zaheer and son Russell<br />
place for the Muslims to buy their zakaat<br />
gifts. A recent article said that there were<br />
people buying as much as Rs 20,000 worth<br />
of gifts to give away to the poor.<br />
A number of people, especially those<br />
who are long time residents of the cities<br />
claim that communal harmony is intrinsic to<br />
Hyderabad and Secunderabad. One doesn’t<br />
have to announce it from the roof tops. It is a<br />
given; if there is trouble it is because outsiders<br />
interfere. Many believe that if there is any<br />
kind of communal trouble, you can rest<br />
assured that it is politically motivated.<br />
Group Captain S.M. Ghouse (retd) (64)<br />
is an old time resident of Hyderabad and<br />
when I asked him his opinion about the<br />
same issue, I could read the pain in his voice<br />
as he explained how a few vested interests<br />
were “ trying to break the beautiful fabric<br />
of the city. The Hindus and the Muslims<br />
are the warp and weft of the social fabric,<br />
the taana and the baana. Together they<br />
have woven wonders and held up a shining<br />
picture of communal amity. Unfortunately<br />
the actions of a few people have created<br />
this crazy picture where a wrong doer is<br />
always a Muslim with a beard and a skull<br />
cap.” Then he asked me, “Do I look like a<br />
terrorist to you – I also wear a skull cap and<br />
keep a beard?”<br />
How could he? I have known him for<br />
years. His lovely wife, Tayaba and Ghouse<br />
have treated all of us hungry hordes of the<br />
squadron to the most exotic Hyderabadi<br />
biryani with all its accompaniments. He<br />
was a religious man then, and remains one<br />
even today. But he never pushed his beliefs<br />
and values down anyone’s throat! He did<br />
Mr & Mrs Nagrath: There are many nationalities in<br />
his side of the family<br />
not drink and he did not offer any liquor to<br />
anyone else and laughingly told all the hudaks<br />
(the daaruwalas, the drinkers!) to have their<br />
quota at home before coming to his dinner!<br />
But then I would put Ghouse in the<br />
category of educated, moderate peace loving<br />
Muslims who have lived in Hyderabad for<br />
many generations and have added a deep<br />
and abiding glow to the love and affection<br />
shared by old denizens of the city. But then<br />
the catchword here is ‘old’ or ‘elderly’.<br />
What do the younger people have<br />
to say?<br />
In one of the BPOs, one young man sought<br />
permission to go out for his Friday prayers.<br />
When refused he started sending out rambling<br />
hate mails to the HR for refusing him special<br />
time. The management asked the HR to<br />
handle the issue with ‘care’. No one wants<br />
trouble. Ghouse says that he had a similar<br />
situation on his hands. He told the young man<br />
to go and pray during his lunch hour and if he<br />
extends the break, then he should work the<br />
extra time, to make up for the delay.<br />
I appreciate the voices of moderation like<br />
Ghouse and that of Asaduddin Owaisi, a<br />
Member of Parliament, who has spoken up<br />
against the sops given out to the minorities<br />
by political parties. His was the one rallying<br />
voice who insisted that there should be peace<br />
and quiet after the Mecca Masjid blast that<br />
rocked the city, a while ago. He does not want<br />
sops, like reservations for the minorities – he<br />
wants equal opportunities!<br />
Shyamola Khanna is a freelance writer<br />
based in Hyderabad.<br />
46<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
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[ SEE U AT <strong>THE</strong> TOP ]<br />
‘Set a goal and don’t<br />
take shortcuts’<br />
“It is always great to work alongside committed people, individuals who are self<br />
motivated and have their own spark which allows them to be focussed and make<br />
their own special contribution to the overall organisation.”<br />
[ By A STAFF WRITER ]<br />
Jonathan Jagtianin, CEO, Home Centre,<br />
shares his views on the challenges of business,<br />
success and life as seen from the top.<br />
TII: What do you enjoy about this industry?<br />
The people, they are simply great to work<br />
with, whether they are customers, suppliers<br />
or our own teams. By nature in this industry<br />
we tend to build long lasting relationships<br />
with great customers and suppliers. We grow<br />
together with them and over time a great<br />
understanding develops.<br />
TII: Give an example of when you have<br />
worked under pressure.<br />
Most of the pressure came when we were<br />
just staring out. We had a very small team<br />
in 1995 when we opened our first showroom<br />
and getting everything done on time did<br />
create a lot of pressure. We started with a<br />
shoestring budget and looking back despite<br />
the long hours I still feel it was the best<br />
way to begin. Fortunately in those days the<br />
market was a lot more forgiving and we had a<br />
steep learning curve. After the first year the<br />
pressure was on again as we added twice the<br />
space in the ensuing four months in two new<br />
countries but we managed and by the time<br />
we opened the fourth showroom in Riyadh,<br />
the effort to grow was certainly a lot easier as<br />
many support roles had been added.<br />
Left to Right: Ibrahim Askar Jonathan Jagtiani, CEO, Home Centre, Vipen Sethi, CEO, Landmark Group, Balaji<br />
Sambasivam, GM, Home Centre, and Micky Jagtiani, Chairman, Landmark Group<br />
It is always great to work along side<br />
committed people, individuals who are self<br />
motivated and have their own spark which<br />
allows them to be focussed and make their<br />
own special contribution to the overall<br />
organisation. I also admire team leaders who<br />
can develop their own people, who keep<br />
others motivated especially when they are<br />
faced with difficulties.<br />
could be considered obvious measurements,<br />
I am always pleased to see the success of new<br />
products in the stores, new efficiency drives<br />
being implemented and great feedback from<br />
some of our advertisements. Being part of a<br />
retail company which is recommended means<br />
a lot to everyone here, the feeling of an existing<br />
customer advising someone new to the country<br />
that Home Centre is a great place to shop.<br />
TII: What kinds of people do you like<br />
working with?<br />
TII: How do you measure your own performance?<br />
Although sales growth and number of showrooms<br />
TII: What are you contributing to your<br />
organisation?<br />
48<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ SEE U AT <strong>THE</strong> TOP ]<br />
Seeing and understanding the right level of<br />
growth, planning for that growth and not taking<br />
undue risks which could burden the operations<br />
without adding value to the overall business. I<br />
am involved in the study of new markets and to<br />
question how far we can develop these.<br />
TII: How would you describe your working<br />
style?<br />
My working style is to lead by example. The<br />
beliefs we have at Home Centre are built on<br />
integrity, teamwork and respect for people.<br />
I am relatively relaxed these days and am<br />
focused on empowering the right people to<br />
manage many of our key functions. People<br />
can do extraordinary things if they like what<br />
they do and who they are doing it for. I do try<br />
and be a good listener and look to find every<br />
practical solution to any problem.<br />
TII: What is your passion in life?<br />
I enjoy working with passion and I love<br />
reading novels, it enables me to unwind and<br />
move my head into another dimension. Most<br />
importantly, however, my wife and our three<br />
children keep my feet on the ground and<br />
remind me of what is really important in life.<br />
TII: In your experience why do people<br />
discriminate for the most part?<br />
I would imagine any discrimination is<br />
based on either on ignorance and a lack of<br />
opportunity for dealing with different people.<br />
We employ a great number of nationalities<br />
and rarely do we come across any major<br />
forms of discrimination.<br />
TII: What advice would you give to aspiring<br />
young professionals?<br />
There is no shortcut unfortunately and it always<br />
takes longer than you first envisage. You really<br />
have to be prepared to work with commitment,<br />
believe in what you are doing, plan what you<br />
want to achieve in life and always think long<br />
term. Do have a goal and stick to it while putting<br />
in the hard work. Above all else remain true to<br />
your values, be open to emerging opportunities<br />
and be resilient. Try not to follow popular<br />
opinion but see for yourself if things can be<br />
done in a new way<br />
TII: What do you consider your biggest<br />
achievement?<br />
I have always aspired to spot new opportunities,<br />
Jonathan Jagtiani (centre) with colleagues (L-R) Ajay Antal, GM (Furniture Buying), Rajan Narayan, GM<br />
(Household Buying) and Bhaskar Venkatraman DG M (Finance)<br />
make a difference and maintain my integrity.<br />
I am proud of how fast we grew and how<br />
quickly we established a recognizable brand,<br />
however, one of my biggest achievements is<br />
to hold onto my principles and to only do<br />
things I believe.<br />
TII: What is the greatest benefit you have<br />
gained by your success? Discuss several<br />
if you like.<br />
Being successful allows you to learn about<br />
yourself and to develop the business in ways I<br />
would not have earlier thought possible and to<br />
be able to keep an open mind on new directions<br />
the business can grow. Working in a successful<br />
organisation also allows one to work along side<br />
other successful people. It certainly improves<br />
the quality of one’s working day to be able to<br />
attract like minded individuals who help to<br />
ensure we are all raising the standards.<br />
TII: What is your vision for the company?<br />
Our vision for Home Centre is to become the<br />
best operator in its industry and to deliver<br />
innovative and effective solutions that bring<br />
unparalleled value to our customers. The whole<br />
team is passionate to achieve the highest level<br />
of efficiency possible and ensure customers, the<br />
employees and our suppliers benefit from this.<br />
We are at the tail end of a major<br />
restructuring of our organization. It has been<br />
a lengthy process and the end result will allow<br />
us to continue to grow over the next decade.<br />
Moreover, a longer term vision is to increase our<br />
social responsibility and to give back something<br />
special and lasting to the greater community.<br />
TII: What are your strengths?<br />
I believe I am continuously learning, and<br />
keeping the bigger picture in mind, of what<br />
we wish to do. I try to focus on pushing many<br />
members of our team to keep extending their<br />
thought processes and help them believe we<br />
can continue to achieve so much more.<br />
TII: What is your greatest weakness?<br />
Most likely my greatest weakness is<br />
impatience and wanting everything to be<br />
perfect from the outset. I need to learn and<br />
live with an understanding of what will take<br />
time but I do keep pushing for many new<br />
improvements at anyone time. The people<br />
who work with me understand this and seem<br />
to make allowances for me.<br />
TII: Define what success means to you?<br />
What are the secrets for success?<br />
Success has been seeing the business growing<br />
strong and with a better offering with every<br />
passing year. The secret to success is in<br />
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[ SEE U AT <strong>THE</strong> TOP ]<br />
knowing what you want to create, believing<br />
in your abilities, setting milestone goals and<br />
putting in the hard work.<br />
TII: How do you manage family time with<br />
work pressures and travelling?<br />
It is always a difficult balance between<br />
family life and work. Especially in the early<br />
years when the children were young it was<br />
tough balancing travelling and working<br />
late with spending time with them. People<br />
often talk about spending quality time with<br />
their families but any time spent with them<br />
is certainly quality time. Now with less<br />
pressure even when I am around the children<br />
are often busy with their own interests.<br />
TII: How would you describe your faith in<br />
God?<br />
Irrespective of ones beliefs, our faith<br />
reminds us of matters we often forget in the<br />
world of business, such as family and social<br />
responsibilities.<br />
TII: What are your views on India and its<br />
future, its place in the world arena?<br />
India has come a long way in a very short<br />
Jonathan Jagtiani (right) giving away certificates for long and meritorious service to the staff at the annual get together<br />
time, but the real growth has yet to come. Key<br />
growth has still been only in certain industries<br />
and has not reached to the majority of people.<br />
It will certainly take some time before India<br />
becomes competitive and consistent in areas<br />
such as manufacturing. Although there has<br />
been a lot of new job creation due to new<br />
types of businesses opening, there needs to<br />
be a stronger development of skills levels to<br />
support these new industries.<br />
[ HALL <strong>OF</strong> FAME ]<br />
“I challenge him to create a pumpkin”<br />
I am a Gandhian and bachelor involved with<br />
education for nearly 56 years. As a student<br />
I was arrested for participating in the Quit<br />
India movement. I did my Ph.D. in nuclear<br />
physics from America and was a professor<br />
there before returning to India. I served<br />
as Bangalore University’s vice chancellor<br />
and founded the Bangalore Science Forum<br />
in 1962 for popularizing science and<br />
inculcating a scientific temperament. Our<br />
organization logo is a question mark because<br />
I think questioning and the spirit of inquiry<br />
is the basis of all progress. We conduct<br />
lectures, quizzes, film shows and summer<br />
schools and organize science festivals.<br />
Unfortunately, science has become only a<br />
means of livelihood and not a way of life.<br />
Our people are going to America and far<br />
off places for higher studies in the sciences<br />
but remain<br />
rooted in<br />
superstitions.<br />
Nearly 25<br />
years ago, I had<br />
an encounter<br />
with the famous<br />
godman Sathya<br />
Sai Baba,<br />
whose devotees<br />
include many<br />
powerful<br />
people of<br />
India. He said<br />
that it is possible to create something out<br />
of nothing. I disagreed as that was against<br />
the laws of science. He is supposed to make<br />
watches and rings appear out of thin air, but<br />
these are small things and can be hidden<br />
anywhere. I challenged him to create a<br />
pumpkin instead. Our farmers, using simple<br />
agriculture, have created thousands of<br />
pumpkins over the years but this godman<br />
is yet to create even one! I do appreciate<br />
the social work he is doing but I believe in<br />
the Gandhian principle – the means are as<br />
important as the ends. There is no question<br />
of my retiring. I will retire only once, which<br />
will be the final retirement.<br />
Dr. H. Narsimhaiah, educationist,<br />
born Hosur, Karnataka, 1920.<br />
TII’s Hall of Fame features India’s elderly<br />
– great, interesting and unusual men and women.<br />
Excerpted from the book ‘Ageless Mind and Spirit’<br />
by Samar and Vijay Jodha<br />
www.agelessmindandspirit.com<br />
50<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ FROM USA ]<br />
Seniors<br />
Rock On<br />
“It’s a frightening scenario to anyone approaching<br />
the sixties. And very soon a mass of boomers will<br />
be nearing retirement. All they ask for is to enjoy<br />
retirement in a secure and supportive community.<br />
Unfortunately, most senior <strong>Indian</strong> immigrants do not<br />
even address issues and problems as they hate to take<br />
advantage of counselling, since this may spotlight their<br />
family, and prefer to suffer without any outside help or<br />
intervention.’’<br />
Prativad Narasimhan with Prem Kishore<br />
[ By PREM KISHORE ]<br />
I<br />
was eight years old. One afternoon<br />
during lunch break in school, my friends<br />
and I were huddled under a tree, ranting<br />
about the strict math teacher, when a group<br />
of older students passed by. There was a<br />
reverential hush. They were our “Seniors”<br />
and we were in total awe of this species. Was<br />
it their seniority in age, wisdom, intelligence,<br />
size? Whatever the reason, seniors were a<br />
special breed. And this intense worship of<br />
the seniors continued till I became a senior<br />
prefect and passed by a gaggle of adoring<br />
students, my head in the air, basking in a<br />
state of euphoria.<br />
Decades later, I am in the USA. Youth not<br />
seniority, I discover, is worshipped. Seniors<br />
are called “old geezers”. They are belittled,<br />
demeaned, denigrated, scorned on TV and<br />
talk shows. Tasteless quips label retirement<br />
communities as God’s Waiting Room. Comedy<br />
routines revel in absurd negative images<br />
of the elderly. The young are uncomfortable<br />
with an aging population. Being old is a liability.<br />
Women TV anchors and reporters,<br />
are hustled out as soon as they reach forty.<br />
There are radio stations in Los Angeles who<br />
do not take calls from seniors as they do not<br />
want young, hep, hip listeners to be put off by<br />
an old voice on the air. TV shows and magazines<br />
promote the young, body ad nauseum.<br />
Ads flaunt beautiful young people. There are<br />
some ads where seniors appear but all they<br />
do is promote a laxative, an anti depressant, a<br />
tranquilizer or health insurance.<br />
Seniors should be defined as “classic” old<br />
wine, old monuments, old trees, old cars, antiques<br />
are all cherished, so why not people?<br />
These objects are admired and appreciated<br />
precisely for their oldness, their increased<br />
beauty and the memories they contain. Seniors<br />
do not shut down as they grow older.<br />
Sure, some may be pernickety, conservative,<br />
stubborn and impatient. Today’s seniors are<br />
curious, alert, eager to experience every nuance<br />
of life. Most seniors are getting onto<br />
treadmills, hiking, volunteering, taking pilate<br />
and tai chi classes, volunteering and demanding<br />
to be recognized as a valuable asset<br />
to family and community. My aunt Beulah<br />
Souri who is 96, and lives in Seattle with<br />
her neurosurgeon son, has the sharpest of<br />
minds, reads the newspaper, watches TV, and<br />
quotes from Keats and Shakespeare (she was<br />
an English lecturer in India), sings hymns<br />
for half an hour every day, and was cooking<br />
a pilaf when I called her this morning.<br />
Though a little hard of hearing, she has a<br />
walker but has an amazing memory for<br />
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[ FROM USA ]<br />
faces, and names and constantly pores over<br />
her address book evoking remembrances and<br />
recollections of the amazing number of people<br />
who fill the pages. Since she lives with her<br />
son, she is content and sees her grandchildren<br />
and other daughter and son when they visit<br />
from the UK and California. This is a perfect,<br />
but rare scenario, a nurturing home base for a<br />
person growing old in a foreign country.<br />
A report states that about 12% of a population<br />
of 2.3 million <strong>Indian</strong> Americans in the<br />
USA, are seniors. Aging <strong>Indian</strong> Americans<br />
are the first generation of people who came<br />
to this country in the late sixties and early<br />
seventies. They qualify for health benefits<br />
and limited funding from the Government.<br />
The early immigrants to a large extent have<br />
adapted and merged in the mainstream and<br />
are entitled to all the senior benefits like<br />
Medicare and Social Security but now wonder<br />
where they should retire. The new immigrant<br />
seniors who have come to the United<br />
States to live with their families and enjoy<br />
the companionship of the grandchildren feel<br />
alienated, economically dependent on their<br />
children and miss the <strong>Indian</strong> rituals, the<br />
simple living back home, servants, friendly<br />
neighbors, and now have to cope with gadgets,<br />
indifference and loneliness. Some face<br />
language and accent problems or they cannot<br />
drive and receive limited or no health<br />
benefits. They encounter family conflicts.<br />
How do they earn respect and be self reliant<br />
and not be a burden on their children? With<br />
their families or in a retirement home? They<br />
have chosen to live in the USA. unlike some<br />
of their friends and relatives, who have gone<br />
back to retire in India. This group which adopted<br />
the USA when they were studying or<br />
working are challenging themselves by staying<br />
on.<br />
But there are problems. <strong>Indian</strong> seniors feel<br />
lonely since the adult children and grand<br />
children are away the whole day. Every day<br />
they question themselves. How do they cope<br />
with their increasing infirmities? If they live<br />
independently, who will take them to doctors<br />
and hospitals? Their sons and daughters<br />
may have transferable jobs. Would they have<br />
to uproot themselves and start all over again?<br />
What happens if they need convalescent<br />
care? Will the son in law/daughter in law tolerate<br />
their long term illnesses and their dependency<br />
on them? Will they be considered<br />
a liability, a crippling burden on the family?<br />
If they cannot drive will they be permanently<br />
housebound?<br />
You may ask why don’t the children of the<br />
aging community take care of their parents?<br />
This is not always possible. I know of a parent<br />
who is separated from his wife of 50 years. He<br />
lives with the son in Los Angeles because the<br />
daughter in law refused to keep the mother<br />
in law. The elderly lady is forced to live with<br />
another daughter in San Jose in Northern<br />
California, and sees her husband once in six<br />
months when he visits her. Many families<br />
take the Social Security or SSI or even food<br />
stamps (the seniors receive from the Government,)<br />
in return for providing shelter to their<br />
parents. I have heard of sons being indifferent<br />
to the injustices meted out to the parents by<br />
their wives and daughters. I have heard heartrending<br />
stories of parents harassed by a son in<br />
law who resents their presence in the house.<br />
Recently, a horrific incident took place in an<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> home in the USA where a son took a<br />
hammer and hit his aged father in the head.<br />
He believed that if the father was taken to the<br />
hospital he could qualify for assisted care in<br />
a senior facility.<br />
According to Sohail Inayatullah a political<br />
scientist/futurist, the aged, particularly those<br />
removed from family and community will<br />
be especially prone to mental illnesses. The<br />
World Health Organization estimates that by<br />
2020, depression will be the leading cause of<br />
disability due to a marginalized society.<br />
It’s a frightening scenario to anyone approaching<br />
the sixties. And very soon a mass<br />
of boomers will be nearing retirement. All<br />
they ask for is to enjoy retirement in a secure<br />
and supportive community. Unfortunately,<br />
most senior <strong>Indian</strong> immigrants do not even<br />
address issues and problems as they hate to<br />
take advantage of counseling, since this may<br />
spotlight their family, and prefer to suffer<br />
without any outside help or intervention.<br />
Enter retirement homes. There are choices<br />
offering flexibility of care and service.<br />
These places run by independent as well as<br />
the Federal Government (Housing Urban<br />
Development Program) is becoming a boon<br />
to those who wish to improve the quality of<br />
life as they grow older. Older people like to<br />
stay in their own home. I visited a Retirement<br />
Home, Leisure World, in Seal Beach<br />
Orange County spread over 500 acres, with<br />
6000 units and housing almost 10,000 retirees.<br />
Anyone over 55, with financial security<br />
L-R: Bobby, Prem Kishore with Prema and Rajmohani: Seniors are like classic old wine to be cherished<br />
can purchase independent one two or three<br />
bedroom condo. When the owner dies or<br />
moves away, the condo can be sold by the<br />
family. This particular facility which I visited<br />
had myriad activities ranging from travel<br />
and discussion focus groups to golf, bridge,<br />
music and gardening groups. There is a bank,<br />
on the premises, a hospital, indoor theatre,<br />
library, fitness centers, restaurants, computer<br />
labs, worship facilities for diverse faiths and<br />
even a shuttle service to ferry you across the<br />
campus. There is 24 hour security service.<br />
Twelve, eighty year old Caucasian women<br />
have founded Glacier Circle in California,<br />
the country’s first elderly co-housing<br />
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[ FROM USA ]<br />
develoopment, a community for older people.<br />
Eight town houses circle a courtyard. There<br />
will be a common house comprising of a<br />
shared kitchen and dining area, a living area<br />
and a studio apartment that will be rented<br />
to a skilled nurse. At meetings decisions are<br />
made weekly, visiting speakers are invited to<br />
talk on a variety of topics and a book club has<br />
been inaugurated. There’s an idea for <strong>Indian</strong><br />
American seniors.<br />
Seniors who cannot afford such retirement<br />
homes may qualify for federal or state<br />
funded low income housing or multi family<br />
government funded housing. Public housing is<br />
owned by a housing authority and you qualify<br />
for an apartment. Subsidized housing is owned<br />
by a private landlord who rents to low income<br />
seniors. Or you may receive a rental voucher<br />
and you find your own apartment. The rent<br />
is calculated as a percentage of your income,<br />
varying from state to state. It is usually around<br />
30 percent of your income. There are different<br />
eligibility requirements but generally speaking<br />
the criteria for eligibility depends on age<br />
(you must be over 62) household size, income<br />
and immigration status.<br />
I worked in a senior housing project for 14<br />
years in Los Angeles where we housed 240<br />
residents in 192 apartments. Sixteen languages<br />
were spoken in this facility. I interacted<br />
with <strong>Indian</strong>s, Iranians, Caucasians, Hispanics,<br />
American blacks, Russians, British, Filipinos,<br />
Fijians, Scottish, Chinese, Koreans, Vietnamese,<br />
Irish, Germans, Scandinavians, and Sri<br />
Lankans. They lived in one/two bedroom<br />
apartments which came with a kitchenette,<br />
bathroom as well as a communal dining plan.<br />
Seventy five year old Narasimhan, a financial<br />
analyst who lived in the UK for many years<br />
has now settled in Los Angeles, in a retirement<br />
home. He has been voted the President of the<br />
facility for three years and edits the monthly<br />
newsletter. He loves his independence, travels,<br />
performs Harikatha, drives, volunteers and<br />
enjoys his visits to his daughter’s home where<br />
he baby-sits his grandson from time to time.<br />
He recently performed in the acclaimed play<br />
In Search of Vishnu and at Redcat, Walt Disney<br />
Centre as well as in two TV pilot projects.<br />
This is the time when we have to seriously<br />
think of retirement homes for <strong>Indian</strong> Americans.<br />
These homes will have a special attraction<br />
for vegetarians who can cook their own<br />
food in the kitchen.<br />
In California, Dr Ulhas Bala, a former gynecologist<br />
is envisioning such a community<br />
If seniors wish<br />
to return to India<br />
and are able to live<br />
independently or have<br />
help they can be useful<br />
to the community in<br />
many ways<br />
and has already called it Vaanaprasti. She<br />
plans Cottages with 1,600 sq feet of ground<br />
floor, a two car garage, a swimming pool, tennis<br />
courts, a shopping center, gated security, a<br />
pharmacy, a spiritual place of worship and a<br />
community center. “I already have 18 people<br />
interested in the project,” she says. “These<br />
are people who have worked professionally in<br />
America and are looking forward to staying in<br />
a secure, comfortable environment independently.<br />
They all own homes and their children<br />
are settled. They plan to sell their homes and<br />
use the money to buy the new property in the<br />
senior community.”<br />
Raj Mohan an engineer working with the<br />
US Government has been abroad for the past<br />
35 years. Settled in his own home in Los Angeles<br />
with his wife Prema and living near his<br />
two daughters, he has no intention of either<br />
going back to India or entering a retirement<br />
home. “This is my home and I am not moving<br />
anywhere. My children and grandchildren<br />
live here and I need to be near them.” he states<br />
firmly. The government is encouraging a few<br />
programs where seniors can ask for home sup-<br />
“<br />
”<br />
port. An aide visits a few times a week and<br />
helps in cleaning and grocery shopping or<br />
visits to the doctor. This service is sponsored<br />
by the government and is free for those with<br />
limited income.<br />
Some <strong>Indian</strong> communities are determined<br />
to lessen these hardships and burdens by organizing<br />
senior citizens groups. Such agencies<br />
address Social Security, Medicare, citizenship,<br />
job opportunities, senior housing, living<br />
wills, nutrition and health care. One such is<br />
the National Indo-American Association for<br />
Senior Citizens (NIAASC) which provides<br />
information and referral. In Long Island in a<br />
population of 60,000 people of <strong>Indian</strong> origin,<br />
there are 7500 <strong>Indian</strong> seniors.<br />
When I visit adult day care centres and retirement<br />
homes as a volunteer, I tell them,<br />
reinvent yourself. To seniors reading this article<br />
I have suggestions. Start a book club or<br />
a discussion group in your home or temple.<br />
Become a member of a travel club. There<br />
are many deep discounts for hotels, cars, bus,<br />
rail and cruise packages with lower rates<br />
for seniors. Join a reading club. Get a few friends<br />
together and read from your favorite books or<br />
pick up books from your library. Discuss issues<br />
in the newspapers both American and <strong>Indian</strong><br />
and why confine your group to only <strong>Indian</strong>s?<br />
Invite senior neighbours from other communities.<br />
Browse the internet. There is a slew of websites<br />
which will exhilarate you every day and<br />
keep you up to speed. The need for information<br />
is always unending. Internet use by those<br />
over age 55 constituted the fastest rising demographic<br />
age group of all according to Jupiter<br />
Media Metrix. Grow old and it may be the<br />
best life yet. If seniors wish to return to India<br />
and are able to live independently or have help<br />
they can be useful to the community in many<br />
ways. Indo American organizations invite<br />
you to volunteer in education and health care<br />
projects. Now here’s a different spin on senior<br />
issues. An American from mid-west, sent his<br />
90 year old parents to Pondicherry to live in<br />
an independent home near the beach where<br />
they would be taken care of by <strong>Indian</strong> servants<br />
while he worked in a software office nearby.<br />
The reason why he sent his parents to India<br />
was very practical.<br />
Care giving in America is very expensive.<br />
He would have to pay the nursing home (his<br />
mother had Alzheimer’s) almost three thousand<br />
dollars every month for the care of his<br />
parents and Medicare nor his salary would<br />
not be able to cover that. India offered a solution<br />
where the dollar went quite far and a<br />
friend who lived in Pondicherry set up the<br />
family once the decision was made. How<br />
long the parents will remain there is something<br />
their son has to consider. For now,<br />
his dad takes long walks on the beach, talks<br />
French to his neighbours, and the mother<br />
is in the hands of a loving caregiver who<br />
combs her hair gently and massages her with<br />
loving kindness.<br />
Prem Kishore is a freelance writer<br />
based in California, USA.<br />
54<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ COVER STORy ]<br />
Sunny Varkey<br />
PR<strong>OF</strong>IT & EXCELLENCE IN <strong>EDUCATION</strong> GO HAND-IN-HAND<br />
“Sunny Varkey owns the largest network of private schools in the United Arab<br />
Emirates – 26 schools with around 85,000 students of 124 nationalities and 6,200<br />
‘education professionals’ – specialists and staff from around the world, providing<br />
the <strong>Indian</strong>, British, American and IB curriculum. His goal is extraordinary – he<br />
wants to be the biggest private education provider in the world, with a global chain<br />
of top class schools.”<br />
Sunny and Sons: Dino Varkey (left), Senior Director of Business Development, aged 28 and Jay Varkey (right), aged 25 years who has recently joined the Varkey Group<br />
56<br />
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[ COVER STORy ]<br />
HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and Sunny Varkey<br />
HRH Prince Charles and Sunny Varkey<br />
[By MONA PARIKH MCNICHOLAS & FRANK RAJ ]<br />
Sunny Varkey’s mission of redefining<br />
education in the UAE and beyond has<br />
succeeded in creating what no single<br />
entrepreneur has managed to achieve in<br />
the field of Middle East education. In four<br />
short decades the Dubai based Keralite<br />
‘edupreneur’ who strategically christened<br />
his educational organization Global<br />
Education Management Systems (GEMS),<br />
has successfully developed a multinational<br />
corporation with schools in the Arabian<br />
Gulf and beyond. It is no ordinary feat for<br />
a visionary who cheerfully admits, he was a<br />
good student, but studies were not his forte.<br />
“I love doing business and have always<br />
been an entrepreneur right from the start,”<br />
Sunny confesses.<br />
Charismatic and disarming, his innate entrepreneurial<br />
skills have clearly stood him<br />
in good stead where many a person with<br />
an ordinary educational background like<br />
his may not have succeeded. His success is<br />
the envy of competitors he has left far behind<br />
and much debated by people skeptical<br />
about his ‘business as normal’ approach to<br />
education. “We are pioneers, even radical<br />
you might say, and as such controversy follows<br />
us everywhere we go.” Sunny has succeeded<br />
by bucking conventional wisdom<br />
that conforms to the notion of education<br />
as a non-profit enterprise. Challenging the<br />
way society views high quality education,<br />
he runs GEMS like any successful business,<br />
for profit.<br />
Sunny was born on the 9th of April, 1957,<br />
in Kerala. His parents came to the UAE a<br />
year later as teachers and have taught English<br />
to many of the VIP nationals of UAE.”<br />
Their tuition fee of Rs 25 a month eventually<br />
resulted in the first Our Own English<br />
High School, founded in 1968, which was<br />
then only a makeshift setup.” In the early<br />
1980s, when required by the Dubai authorities,<br />
a purpose-built school was established,<br />
becoming the first step towards the Varkey<br />
global education empire. Did Sunny study<br />
at this school? “No,” he laughs, “I was in<br />
boarding school in India, a short time at<br />
St Mary’s School in Dubai and then completed<br />
my A-levels in the UK.”<br />
He first started his career in Dubai in<br />
1977 in banking, with a stint at Standard<br />
Chartered Bank and helped with his parents’<br />
school, at times even driving the<br />
school bus at 5.30 am. But Sunny was restless<br />
for his own business. And the opportunity<br />
lay right before him. At the age of 23,<br />
when Sunny took over the management of<br />
Our Own English High School, it had 720<br />
students and 27 teachers.<br />
Today, Sunny owns the largest network<br />
of private schools in the United Arab Emirates<br />
– 26 schools with almost 85,000 students<br />
of 124 nationalities and 6,200 “education<br />
professionals” - specialists and staff<br />
from around the world, providing the <strong>Indian</strong>,<br />
British, American and IB curriculum.<br />
GEMS is the largest employer of <strong>Indian</strong> and<br />
British teachers outside of their home country.<br />
His goal is remarkable - he wants to be<br />
the biggest private education provider in<br />
the world, with a global chain of schools. “If<br />
the likes of Marriott have four or five thousand<br />
hotels, I don’t know why we should not<br />
be able to do the same,” he muses.<br />
GEMS manages a growing network of<br />
nearly 100 high quality international schools<br />
around the world. Sunny hopes to take that<br />
number to 5000 in 15 years. They currently<br />
have 11 schools in the UK and are in the<br />
process of signing up deals in the USA, Singapore,<br />
China and India. How does he view<br />
the educational sector in India?<br />
“In India, 98% of the so called ‘Educational<br />
Trusts’ are actually commercial,”<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 57
[ COVER STORy ]<br />
“We are probably the oldest for<br />
profit education chain in the world.<br />
Obviously there will always be two<br />
schools of thought in education. But I<br />
always tell people I will have the last<br />
laugh because my objective is that<br />
the children and parents get value<br />
for money. I’m not here to run crappy<br />
schools.<br />
”<br />
Varkey explains. “They are not really Trusts but an indirect way<br />
of siphoning money by people. And therefore when we went to<br />
India a few years ago to get involved in the management of schools,<br />
I decided not to go in that direction. See, when you are teaching<br />
children ethical values and principles as we do at our schools, then<br />
you can’t get involved in hanky panky stuff. I’ve been offered land<br />
many times in India, but with the condition of forming a society<br />
or a trust to get government land. I have never agreed to that. I<br />
run for-profit schools. Traditionally in India, education has been<br />
a not-for-profit industry so to change that mindset will take time.<br />
India is still not ready to accept ‘for profit’ schools. Other countries<br />
are changing and I hope India follows them quickly. We at<br />
GEMS have developed the right balance between education and<br />
commerce and my standard phrase is that we are for-profit but we<br />
don’t profiteer. “<br />
But surely the point is whether such an education paradigm is<br />
valid and ethical? Sunny obviously is used to being grilled about<br />
the issue and he is upfront and candid. “The problem with notfor-profit’<br />
schools is that they are not innovative, they don’t have<br />
enough funds unless they constantly engage in fundraising. Their<br />
teachers are laid back; they have no incentive to improve, or any<br />
sense of accountability to perform. There are many inefficiencies<br />
and much wastage. But in our case, we have to constantly perform<br />
and upgrade. We can’t live on past glories. We are very different<br />
from state schools and ‘non-profit’ schools.”<br />
The age old Gurukul system in India is redundant and the respect<br />
for teachers no longer the norm; and though Varkey believes<br />
that teachers are the backbone of education, he says that given a<br />
choice he would choose a candidate for whom teaching is a career<br />
rather than a vocation.<br />
But Sunny acknowledges the worth of teachers uniquely. “We<br />
just launched the Guruvar Awards in India which has the highest<br />
prize money in the world for teachers - US $500,000, of which<br />
60% will be given as cash and the balance is for any project that<br />
they recommend. We will do the same thing in the Middle East<br />
Sunny Varkey with an image of the first school site in Al Bastakiya, Our Own<br />
English High School, 1968<br />
and then in the UK and USA. Eventually our goal is to create<br />
teaching awards that are equivalent to the Oscars. Teachers are<br />
undervalued and we want to change that. “<br />
As far as attracting the best talent for teaching, Sunny points<br />
out the GEMS advantage, “If a new school advertises for teachers,<br />
they might get 100 responses. If I advertise for GEMS, I’ll probably<br />
get 10,000 responses, simply because people know GEMS is<br />
a brand… like a major five-star hotel chain.”<br />
What about the rumors one hears about a large turnover of teachers<br />
at GEMS? Sunny is not fazed by the query. “In regard to our<br />
Western schools, our turnover is lower than the world average,” he<br />
says. “It’s not because our teachers want to leave us, but because<br />
we can’t afford to increase their salaries due to the UAE government<br />
fee cap on some of our older Asian schools in the Emirates.”<br />
He shows a letter that he’s just written to the Ministry of Education<br />
in the UAE. “We have to remodel the low fee-paying schools,<br />
but they won’t let us increase the fees. Our Own English High<br />
58<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ COVER STORy ]<br />
School has been serving the community for<br />
so many years but we cannot increase fees<br />
more than 6% a year. With radical cost of<br />
living increases in the last few years, we’ve<br />
been lobbying the government to let us increase<br />
the fees.”<br />
But isn’t the government just trying to<br />
protect the interest of parents so that they<br />
can afford to send their kids to school?<br />
“We are not a non-profit school. If we can’t<br />
make ends meet how can we assure quality<br />
education? So I’m saying, either you allow<br />
me to close the schools and open up new<br />
schools in a new name or you allow me to<br />
remodel them and increase the fees. New<br />
schools are opening and luring our teachers.<br />
So, if I can pay my teachers only Dhs<br />
2500 per month, other new schools not<br />
subject to the cap in fees are paying more.<br />
There is a total disconnect,” Varkey says<br />
clearly frustrated.<br />
“When the cost of living goes up, the responsibility<br />
to ensure that an employee is<br />
not underpaid is the responsibility of the<br />
employer. We have to factor in the cost of<br />
living and peg salaries according to that.<br />
Just because we are educators and there is<br />
a traditional mindset that education should<br />
not be for profit, you can’t expect the schools<br />
to bear the burden. If lower income families<br />
still want to send their children to higher<br />
fee-paying schools, employers will have to<br />
seriously look at raising parents’ salaries.<br />
“We’ve been in Dubai for 40 years, serving<br />
the community. Our first school started<br />
in 1968 with fees of Dhs 30 a month and<br />
now it’s only about Dhs 300 a month. We<br />
can’t manage on that. A new school is allowed<br />
to charge whatever they want. New<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> schools opening up charge from Dhs<br />
9,000 to 20,000 per year and we are still in<br />
the Dhs 3000 to Dhs 8,000 bracket. How<br />
do you expect me to retain good teachers<br />
who’ve been loyal to me for 25-30 years?<br />
There is no justification. Just because you<br />
want to keep inflation down, you can’t expect<br />
educators to suffer. We are answerable<br />
to our bankers, we borrow money from the<br />
banks and we have to pay them on time.<br />
“At GEMS we don’t take donations or<br />
charity. Take a look at the GEMS World<br />
Academy, where we are at the first phase<br />
of development. By the time we finish we<br />
will have spent Dhs 250 million for that<br />
GEMS Wellington <strong>International</strong> School<br />
Royal Dubai School<br />
GWA Facilities – Cafeteria<br />
Our Own English High School<br />
Sunny Varkey, Sherly Varkey celebrating Our Own<br />
English High School, Dubai 40th Anniversary;<br />
also pictured are previous principals of OOEHS,<br />
Madhav Rao and Suresh Mathur<br />
school. So what happens is that in the next<br />
5-10 years we are just literally recovering<br />
this money.<br />
“If you tell me in the next 18 months you<br />
have to open 200 schools, I can do that because<br />
we have the funds. In this office we<br />
spend US $25-40 million in just back office<br />
work. We have a training department,<br />
marketing and communications team,<br />
project management, finance and purchasing<br />
department – just like a multinational<br />
corporation.<br />
“But we are not big enough to be a public<br />
company yet so we don’t have to publish our<br />
audit reports. Abraaj Capital has invested<br />
from their infrastructure and growth fund<br />
for 10-12 years, and is a 25% shareholder<br />
in our company. We had top venture capitalists<br />
who wanted to be our partners but<br />
we never agreed because they look at short<br />
term investments of 3-4 years. Education<br />
is not a quick profit making enterprise and<br />
you must have a long term vision. We do<br />
have a mandate to go public in 5-7 years.<br />
These are the real challenges of privatizing<br />
education and operating it as big business.<br />
Being the middleman between the<br />
government and the parents is one of the<br />
most difficult tasks for Sunny Varkey. “But<br />
for the most part, I’m always on the side<br />
of the parents. We encourage PTAs in our<br />
schools to become involved in the direction<br />
the school is going. They are not asked<br />
to be involved in fundraising like in other<br />
schools. I am available 24-7 and parents<br />
have direct access to me.”<br />
His accessibility and personal involvement<br />
is uncommon. “I don’t know whether<br />
you are aware, but in Welcare Hospital,”<br />
Sunny’s well known medical business enterprise,<br />
“I would roam around in the lobby<br />
regularly for 2-3 years when we started. I<br />
would sit there, watching, talking to patients<br />
asking them if our doctors did a good<br />
job. They can talk to me anytime. I’m your<br />
3am guy.” People have noticed his dedication<br />
and he has been recognized with various<br />
awards, both as an entrepreneur and an<br />
educator. The most recent award conferred<br />
being the Rajiv Gandhi Award this year for<br />
his work in education.<br />
Quality education offered at a varied<br />
price range. Varkey uses the airline metaphor<br />
to compare his international-class<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 59
[ COVER STORy ]<br />
Sunny Varkey with former <strong>Indian</strong> PM Rajiv Gandhi and...<br />
...<strong>Indian</strong> Superstar Amitabh Bachchan<br />
GEMS World Academy and low budget<br />
Our Own English High School in Dubai.<br />
You pay more for a better meal with your<br />
flight, a more comfortable seat and extra<br />
leg room. But everyone gets to the same<br />
destination. It isn’t about compromise he<br />
insists. “We’re all about quality. Within the<br />
educational sphere, teachers play a very<br />
important role, so even in a budget school if<br />
the teacher is good you will be able to deliver<br />
the kind of grades that are necessary<br />
to send a child to a good university. Everybody<br />
is making money, the people who<br />
supply the equipment are making money,<br />
the people who conduct the inspections are<br />
making money, the contractors are making<br />
money, so why shouldn’t educators?”<br />
Sunny is unwittingly right in the centre<br />
of what is known as the “Adam Smith Problem”.<br />
The challenge of trying to combine<br />
altruistic human motivation with the free<br />
market capitalist economy. Adam Smith,<br />
though a philosopher, is often identified<br />
as the father of modern capitalism. In his<br />
book The Wealth of Nations, he talks about an<br />
‘invisible hand’ in society that is defined as<br />
natural self interest that would lead us to<br />
improve the lot of others.<br />
Varkey, perhaps unaware, clearly subscribes<br />
to many of the ideas expressed in<br />
The Wealth of Nations. “At all our schools,”<br />
Varkey points out, “when parents pay<br />
money they expect value and service - and<br />
we’re always on the cutting edge of service.<br />
If I want to attract parents, I have to provide<br />
the right infrastructure, technology and<br />
teachers. Unless I deliver what I promise,<br />
I’m not going to be successful. We don’t do<br />
any cost cutting. In fact with all the economic<br />
problems around us, we are probably<br />
the only ones who increased the salaries by<br />
AED 40 million last year… it was in the<br />
newspapers. Even this year we increased<br />
salaries by ten percent.”<br />
“We are probably the oldest for profit education<br />
chain in the world. Obviously there<br />
will always be two schools of thought in education.<br />
But I always tell people I will have<br />
the last laugh because my objective is that<br />
the children and parents get value for money.<br />
I’m not here to run crappy schools.”<br />
As society debates the pros and cons<br />
of ‘for-profit’ versus ‘non-profit’ schools,<br />
Sunny continues to fiercely believe in education<br />
for all, rich and poor. He gives away<br />
chunks of his fortune to the poor and needy,<br />
drawing his inspiration from the Bible every<br />
morning before getting on with the business<br />
of the day. Varkey believes that poverty can<br />
only be eradicated through education.<br />
Bigheartedness combined with astute<br />
business acumen is Varkey’s trademark.<br />
He personally pledged an astonishing<br />
AED 100 million to the Ruler of Dubai,<br />
His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin<br />
Rashid Al Maktoum’s ‘Dubai Cares’ education<br />
initiative. GEMS has also been the<br />
lead sponsor by giving 250,000 pounds for<br />
the ‘Read India’ initiative started up by an<br />
NGO called Prathim, with the aim of providing<br />
basic education to 100 million children<br />
in India. GEMS is also now managing<br />
22 State schools in Abu Dhabi, and have<br />
similar plans in Doha, Bahrain and South<br />
Africa, as well some initiatives with the<br />
World Bank.<br />
Sunny Varkey is indeed a pioneer. He is<br />
tilling new ground in the field of education,<br />
pulling out the weed of apathy, corruption<br />
and wastefulness from ‘state’ and ‘trust’<br />
schools, and sowing the seeds of universal<br />
values into private schools and collecting a<br />
rich harvest. As he ploughs it back, we have<br />
to wait and see what fruits are borne in the<br />
next generation that is being bred on unequal<br />
playing fields.<br />
Mona Parikh McNicholas is Associate Editor<br />
and Frank Raj is the Founder Editor of<br />
The <strong>International</strong> <strong>Indian</strong><br />
60<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ I BELIEVE ]<br />
Who’s The Real Hindu?<br />
“So if thousands or even millions of Dalits, who have been despised and ostracised<br />
for generations, choose to become Christian, Buddhist or Muslim, either to escape<br />
the discrimination of their Hindu faith or because some other has lured them<br />
with food and cash, it’s their right.”<br />
[ By KARAN THAPAR ]<br />
Does the VHP have the right to speak<br />
for you or I? Do they reflect our views?<br />
Do we endorse their behaviour? They<br />
call themselves the Vishwa Hindu Parishad,<br />
but who says they represent all of us? This<br />
Sunday morning, I want to draw a clear line of<br />
distinction between them and everyone else.<br />
My hunch is many of you will agree.<br />
Let me start with the question of<br />
conversion - an issue that greatly exercises<br />
the VHP. I imagine there are hundreds<br />
of millions of Hindus who are peaceful,<br />
tolerant, devoted to their faith, but above all,<br />
happy to live alongside Muslims, Christians,<br />
Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Jews. If any one<br />
of us were to change our faith how does it<br />
affect the next man or woman? And even if<br />
that happens with inducements, it can only<br />
prove that the forsaken faith had a tenuous<br />
and shallow hold. So why do the VHP and<br />
its unruly storm troopers, the Bajrang Dal,<br />
froth at the mouth if you, I or our neighbours<br />
convert? What is it to do with them?<br />
Let me put it bluntly, even crudely. If I<br />
want to sell my soul - and trade in my present<br />
gods for a new lot - why shouldn’t I? Even<br />
if the act diminishes me in your eyes, it’s<br />
my right to do so. So if thousands or even<br />
millions of Dalits, who have been despised<br />
and ostracised for generations, choose to<br />
become Christian, Buddhist or Muslim,<br />
either to escape the discrimination of their<br />
Hindu faith or because some other has lured<br />
them with food and cash, it’s their right.<br />
Arguably you may believe you should ask<br />
them to reconsider, although I would call that<br />
interference, but you certainly have no duty<br />
or right to stop them. In fact, I doubt if you<br />
are morally correct in even seeking to place<br />
obstacles in their way. The so-called Freedom<br />
of Religion Acts, which aim to do just that,<br />
are, in fact, tantamount to obstruction of<br />
conversion laws and therefore, at the very<br />
least, questionable.<br />
However, what’s even worse is how the<br />
VHP responds to this matter. Periodically<br />
they resort to violence including outright<br />
murder. What happened to Graham Staines<br />
in Orissa was not unique. Last week it<br />
happened again. Apart from the utter and<br />
contemptible criminality of such behaviour,<br />
is this how we Hindus wish to behave? Is<br />
this how we want our faith defended? Is this<br />
how we want to be seen? I have no doubt the<br />
“<br />
I’m sorry but<br />
when I read that the<br />
VHP has ransacked<br />
and killed I’m not just<br />
embarrassed, I feel<br />
ashamed. Never of<br />
being Hindu but of<br />
what some Hindus<br />
do in our shared<br />
faith’s name.<br />
”<br />
answer is no. An unequivocal, unchanging<br />
and ever-lasting NO!<br />
The only problem is it can’t be heard. And<br />
it needs to be. I therefore believe the time<br />
has come for the silent majority of Hindus -<br />
both those who ardently practice their faith<br />
as well as those who were born into it but<br />
may not be overtly religious or devout - to<br />
speak out. We cannot accept the desecration<br />
of churches, the burning to death of innocent<br />
caretakers of orphanages, the storming of<br />
Christian and Muslim hamlets even if these<br />
acts are allegedly done in defence of our<br />
faith. Indeed, they do not defend but shame<br />
Hinduism. That’s my central point.<br />
I’m sorry but when I read that the VHP has<br />
ransacked and killed I’m not just embarrassed, I<br />
feel ashamed. Never of being Hindu but of what<br />
some Hindus do in our shared faith’s name.<br />
This is why its incumbent on Naveen<br />
Patnaik, Orissa’s Chief Minister, to take<br />
tough, unremitting action against the VHP<br />
and its junior wing, the Bajrang Dal. This is<br />
a test not just of his governance, but of his<br />
character. And I know and accept this could<br />
affect his political survival.<br />
But when it’s a struggle between your<br />
commitment to your principles and your<br />
political convenience is there room for<br />
choice? For ordinary politicians, possibly, but<br />
for the Naveen I know, very definitely not.<br />
So let me end by saying: I’m waiting,<br />
Naveen. In fact, I want to say I’m not alone.<br />
There are hundreds of millions of Hindus, like<br />
you and me, waiting silently - but increasingly<br />
impatiently. Please act for all of us.<br />
Copyright HT Media Ltd. (Karan Thapar wrote<br />
for ‘Sunday Sentiments’ for Hindustan Times).<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 61
[ EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW ]<br />
The Sangliana Saga:<br />
Technicolor Turncoatism<br />
“A number of BJP MPs had voted against their own party in favor of the Congress.<br />
Hmar Tlawmte Sangliana, Mizoram-bred but representing Bangalore North, was one of<br />
them, and also the most unexpected.”<br />
[ By INGRID ALBUqUERqUE ]<br />
I<br />
n recent times, politics in India has<br />
found politicians moving in all kinds<br />
of directions. Notwithstanding<br />
that, when Hmar Tlawmte Sangliana,<br />
a Mizoram MP from Bangalore North<br />
defied his Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP)<br />
and cross-voted during the Congress’<br />
historic trust vote in July 2008, people<br />
were stunned. The amazing fact is that<br />
after being expelled from his party for<br />
“bailing out” the UPA, the supercopturned-MP<br />
is being felicitated for his<br />
“courageous stand” all around the<br />
country. This is how somebody put it,<br />
“During times of universal deceit, it is<br />
as if the mere telling of truth becomes a<br />
revolutionary act.”<br />
Sangliana’s open defiance of the party<br />
deeply embarrassed the BJP which in<br />
any case was trying to purge its stables.<br />
Sangliana was immediately turfed out and<br />
his office and residence ransacked. He is<br />
now provided with “Z” security, the same<br />
provided to the President of India!<br />
Beyond all the flamboyance and drama,<br />
the truth is that there is an urgent need for a<br />
new political paradigm in India. The question<br />
is, can H.T. Sangliana set the regeneration<br />
ball rolling? Ingrid Albuquerque finds out<br />
during this exclusive interview.<br />
We live in a degenerating world and India is<br />
neither example nor exception. As a part of our<br />
society grows more affluent and figures high<br />
on Forbes’ list, there is a simultaneous increase<br />
in the pockets of grinding poverty and hunger.<br />
Compassion has become chic, and even the most<br />
H.T. Sangliana: India today has attained the reputation of<br />
superpower status for right or wrong reasons<br />
casual look around will reveal that majority of<br />
people are more keen about purchasing the<br />
latest electronic gadget than doing anything<br />
about those in need.<br />
Personal morals are now considered by<br />
many as quaintly antique and envy and<br />
common greed are today’s most pervasive<br />
social diseases. We can no longer overlook the<br />
destructive epidemic of crime and violence<br />
covering bomb blasts in city after city, bank<br />
scams and political corruption.<br />
In fact, politics reached a new low when<br />
on the day the ruling party had to prove its<br />
majority with a trust vote, three BJP MPs<br />
accused the Samajwadi party and Congress of<br />
bribing them, as they flagrantly waved bundles<br />
of currency allover the place and into the<br />
camera. In the process the accusers themselves<br />
have committed offences ranging from breach<br />
of privilege to breaching the Parliament’s<br />
security to even corruption charges.<br />
Just as the nation was hanging its head in<br />
shame came the next surprise. A number<br />
of BJP MPs had voted against their own<br />
party in favor of the Congress. Hmar<br />
Tlawmte Sangliana, Mizoram-bred but<br />
representing Bangalore North, was one<br />
of them, and also the most unexpected.<br />
What made Sangliana turn coat so to say?<br />
“My conscience,” says the maverick<br />
politician without preamble. “The Indo-<br />
Nuclear deal under fiery debate had been<br />
initiated by NDA (National Democratic<br />
Alliance) in which the BJP was the biggest<br />
stakeholder. It was only because of not being<br />
in power now and due to the fear that the UPA<br />
might take full credit for implementation<br />
of the deal, that the BJP wanted to have it<br />
redrafted so that the party could gain some<br />
political mileage to improve its image. This is<br />
impure politics which went against my inner<br />
grit and grain. It hurt my conscience. Undue<br />
delay of the agreement is likely to result in<br />
our missing the proverbial boat and we would<br />
have to start from the beginning again and<br />
will surely be much costlier. The motive and<br />
patriotism of the expert team working on<br />
the deal cannot be doubted by any, so where<br />
is the scope of questioning their integrity or<br />
pretending to be fearful that our sovereignty<br />
might be lost and trampled on.”<br />
TII: You are obviously in favor of the<br />
deal; what makes you so certain it is the<br />
best thing for India?<br />
HTS: India today has attained the reputation<br />
of superpower status for right or wrong reasons.<br />
In reality, we are not yet fully fit to be testified<br />
and certified a superpower for a variety of<br />
reasons of which acute power shortage is the<br />
64<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW ]<br />
most outstanding and crippling. We ought to<br />
welcome with open arms a deal that will give<br />
us free access to the Nuclear Suppliers Group<br />
– 45 of them! – from who we will be able to<br />
buy our nuclear fuel requirements. Such an<br />
understanding will give us the long awaited<br />
infrastructure building capacity to meet<br />
our present and future need of power so that<br />
the next generation will not blame us for not<br />
taking required steps to ensure availability of<br />
sufficient power for them. This is why I stood<br />
for immediate materialization of the deal.<br />
TII: You have a calling to be “the salt of<br />
the earth”. Does that not include a clear<br />
civic and professional obligation to submit<br />
yourself to the party (you belonged to)<br />
authority, especially in its hour of need?<br />
HTS: In a democracy, when you have a party<br />
system and have to obey and act according to<br />
the direction of the whip, you really don’t<br />
have a choice. That is true. But in my case<br />
when I felt there was no valid reason to<br />
blindly obey despite my inner conviction, or<br />
to oppose the treasury bench for the sake of<br />
opposition and shout or boo, I just don’t do it<br />
as I don’t want to belittle myself.<br />
TII: The BJP expelled you from the party<br />
as a result of your cross-voting.<br />
HTS: I knew them would, I expected them to.<br />
TII: What if they (the BJP high command)<br />
feel in retrospect that it was a knee-jerk<br />
reaction, and (considering you are one of<br />
the biggest vote-pullers in Karnataka) they<br />
revoke your suspension and call you back<br />
into the party – will you rejoin it?<br />
HTS: No. They are behaving in a childish<br />
manner which is unacceptable. We differ on<br />
basics. When I was inside Parliament I would<br />
pray to God for His presence within me so<br />
that my presence will be meaningful and<br />
respectable. My main desire when I entered<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> Parliament was to pronounce the name<br />
of Jesus Christ inside the Parliament for a good<br />
reason or cause so that it will be a part of the<br />
Parliament record. Despite belonging to the<br />
BJP, I distributed about 65 CDs on the life of<br />
Jesus Christ (instead of Christmas or New Year<br />
cards) to my colleagues on the eve of Christmas<br />
2006. I had also requested the Prime Minister<br />
of India to extend subsidy to <strong>Indian</strong> Christians<br />
for going to the Holy Land just like the subsidy<br />
given to Muslims for going to Mecca every<br />
year. My proposal is awaiting a final decision.<br />
I told senior BJP leaders to avoid Christian<br />
bashing and I led a rally on Mahatma Gandhi<br />
Road in Bangalore on 22nd February this year,<br />
to protest against atrocities on Christians in<br />
India. I reminded Mrs Sonia Gandhi when<br />
we met recently that she is our Esther in the<br />
Government of India.<br />
TII: Some people think that in cross-voting<br />
against your own party, you have committed<br />
suicide…<br />
HTS: Everyone is free to think what he or<br />
she chooses. I do not agree with them. Wait<br />
and watch.<br />
TII: After having been in it for the last half a<br />
dozen years, in your opinion what really ails<br />
politics and politicians of India?<br />
HTS: Too many regional parties have resulted<br />
in horse-trading to capture power both at the<br />
State level and at the Centre. The end result<br />
is perpetual instability resulting in selfishness<br />
and personal/family agendas. Politics has<br />
turned into a commercial industry where<br />
many politicians make money by resorting to<br />
malpractice. A parent encourages the offspring<br />
to enter the political arena (rather than pursue<br />
a profession and take up a job in keeping with<br />
the child’s skills) just to hold on to power. You<br />
will find the political arena crowded with these<br />
kind of people whose priority is not the welfare<br />
of people, but selfish ends. Because of this<br />
intent, corruption prospers and the poor continue<br />
to be poor; there is no respect for law or tradition.<br />
In fact, regional parties are the creation of such<br />
power-crazed individuals or else those disgruntled<br />
politicians who were not given tickets by mainline<br />
parties to stand in elections. 3000 years ago Aristotle<br />
said that a democracy consists mostly of illiterate<br />
people and that their standard of leadership or<br />
governance could not be high. That is exactly what<br />
we see in our country today apart from the small<br />
minority of intellectual and educated politicians.<br />
My main concern is corruption and absence<br />
of serious implementation of developmental<br />
programs. Oppositions and coalition partners<br />
are thwarting development just for the fear<br />
that the ruling party might get full credit for<br />
anything well done which might help it to<br />
become victorious in its own steam in the next<br />
election. So you see it is plot within a plot within<br />
a plot in the melting pot.<br />
TII: It’s becoming painfully apparent that<br />
man’s governing institutions almost always<br />
stray from God’s path, often in hideous ways.<br />
Is it impossible of politics and spirituality to<br />
co-exist?<br />
HMT: On the contrary. I would say politics and<br />
spirituality are twins. It is impossible for one to<br />
truly exist without the other. Those who say<br />
they are spiritual should know that they have<br />
a serious responsibility in the public square.<br />
There are political implications to professed<br />
faith and these can often be realized by getting<br />
into politics and acting prudentially.<br />
TII: What are your plans for the future?<br />
HTS: What He wills for me will become my<br />
plan. I will go where He wants me to go, do<br />
what He assigns me. I want to first of all set a<br />
clean and uncompromising example in austerity<br />
and personal lifestyle, and take measures to<br />
ensure that my colleagues do the same. There<br />
has got to be quality, speed and efficiency in<br />
work performance. Punctuality will be strictly<br />
enforced, and there will be an insistence on<br />
projects being completed in time. Corrupt<br />
individuals will be trapped, prosecuted and<br />
dismissed from government jobs. Poor standard<br />
of work will automatically disqualify a contractor<br />
from future projects, in fact he will be blacklisted.<br />
There will be strict quality control and<br />
check in all government operations. Vigilance<br />
commissions will be instituted to contain and<br />
eventually do away with corruption. There will<br />
be strong action against nepotism, favoritism,<br />
partiality and selfish acts. Churches, NGOs<br />
and NRIs will be invited to partner with the<br />
Government in overhauling the nation.<br />
TII: In your view, with so much of instability<br />
and national insecurity, is it a safe time for<br />
NRIs to return to or visit India?<br />
HTS: There is no danger or insecurity to make<br />
NRIs insecure. The police and other security<br />
officials are alert and active everywhere,<br />
and the place is as safe or as dangerous as<br />
any other part of the troubled globe. In fact,<br />
if ever there were a time when the country<br />
needed its NRIs, it is now. Bring in new ideas,<br />
new paradigms and make a clear-headed<br />
contribution to the land of your birth.<br />
Ingrid Albuquerque is the Content Editor and<br />
Website Manager of the Haggai Institute’s international<br />
website; and the Managing Director of Berean<br />
Bay Media House. She has edited many magazines<br />
and is an author of a few best-selling books.<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 65
[ FROM CANADA ]<br />
Mixed Marriages<br />
“Foreign-born, first generation immigrants are more likely to have spouses of the<br />
same background. While the second generation begins to have mixed marriages,<br />
the third generation is the key to see who will intermarry.”<br />
[ By RUBINA JACOB ]<br />
Even as I sit down to write about<br />
mixed relationships or dating<br />
someone from another community<br />
I do so with mixed feelings. I’m currently<br />
in a relationship with a Caucasian, and<br />
the saying ‘love is enough’, is well it’s not<br />
entirely true. Don’t get me wrong I am<br />
very happy and content, but I must admit<br />
that being in a mixed relationship is not<br />
that simple. <strong>Indian</strong>s are a unique race and<br />
however modern our thoughts maybe or<br />
how well traveled, there are certain traits<br />
that runs like a thread in us all, and that’s<br />
what makes dating someone from a different<br />
race complicated.<br />
It is no more unusual to bump into couples<br />
that are ‘mixed’ the world over especially<br />
in North America and specifically Canada.<br />
The novelty of seeing an <strong>Indian</strong> with<br />
someone of another race is gone. The<br />
phenomena of mixed couples, is more<br />
common. People of different backgrounds<br />
meet more easily now due to increased<br />
diversity in neighborhoods and workplaces,<br />
mixed raced couples are more accepted<br />
both by their families and by society, and<br />
“mixed raced” is more frequently and easily<br />
claimed as an identity.<br />
Prabhakar an entrepreneur living in San<br />
Diego recently married an Iranian girl in<br />
a multi racial ceremony. His parents had<br />
no objection to the match, the common<br />
statement nowadays being, ‘as long as they<br />
are happy’. “I’m sure in the back of their<br />
minds they would have preferred a girl<br />
from their own community, but didn’t say<br />
anything, at the end of the day they wanted<br />
their 35 year old son to be happy and<br />
married!” laughs Prabhakar.<br />
When I initially met my partner, we were<br />
drawn to each other by our mutual interests<br />
in travel, global issues, and beliefs. I also<br />
found him to be open-minded and nonjudgmental,<br />
unlike many <strong>Indian</strong> men I<br />
knew. The only difference was the color of<br />
our skins. And it’s not that big a challenge,<br />
but having said that everything is not as<br />
clean cut either. For most <strong>Indian</strong>s, including<br />
myself, there is a need to seek approval and<br />
acceptance, and that constant need can be<br />
a strain because you feel you’re not fully<br />
accepted, not in the same way…. Basically,<br />
being in a multi racial relationship is not for<br />
the weak-hearted.<br />
According to Nagmeh Phelan an Iranian<br />
Rubina Jacob with her partner Christopher Way<br />
(from the UK)<br />
married to a white Canadian, “It’s as if we<br />
are on the verge of leaving the problems of<br />
racism, ethnic and cultural discrimination<br />
behind, as if some perfect post-racial<br />
society is just around the corner and this not<br />
necessarily the case.” But she concedes that<br />
interracial unions are a sign that “race is not<br />
as much of a factor in people’s decisions about<br />
who to have relationships with, in general.”<br />
But once the euphoria of being in love<br />
calms down, that’s when reality strikes for<br />
most mixed couples. “You realize that not<br />
everything is that simple or easy. Starting<br />
from basic things like food, you have to get<br />
used to eating blander cuisine and less of<br />
curries, and I learn to make do with a mish<br />
mash of curry and Yorkshire pie,” laughs<br />
Deepika Jacob, an IT professional living<br />
and working in Canada.<br />
Deepika dated a Caucasian for three<br />
years and it didn’t work out but the<br />
Prabakar Mahalingam at his wedding with Nadia<br />
Eskandari (originally from Iran)<br />
66<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ FROM CANADA ]<br />
Jenni (half <strong>Indian</strong> half American) wedding with<br />
Michael Mariano (American)<br />
“<br />
Imagine telling<br />
your conservative<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> parents you<br />
are going for a<br />
sleep over to your<br />
boyfriend’s house, or<br />
you will be out until<br />
2 am for a party. you<br />
may finally get the<br />
permission to stay<br />
out late but most<br />
westerners can’t<br />
understand why<br />
the fuss.<br />
”<br />
memories of some of the struggles still<br />
remain. “At first it was great, but I think<br />
the adjustments that we both had to make<br />
to overcome our cultural roadblocks got<br />
too much. Of course they weren’t the main<br />
factors. We fell out of love, but I’m sure<br />
being from different cultural backgrounds<br />
didn’t help.” Adjustments are not with<br />
food alone, often just getting used to the<br />
accent could be a drawback. And there<br />
are other subtle differences that show up.<br />
For instance, I thought it was a big deal<br />
when my partner met my folks for the<br />
first time. I insisted it be at a restaurant,<br />
that he should not wear jeans, but be more<br />
formally dressed. I instructed him to pick<br />
the tab, not drink. He on the other hand,<br />
couldn’t understand what the big deal was.<br />
He believed that a natural setting would<br />
be more appropriate, and even stated that<br />
when I meet his folks it would be different.<br />
It’s not that either race don’t respect our<br />
families, it’s just the way we interact with<br />
them is different. For us <strong>Indian</strong>s, parental<br />
approval is paramount. Westerners don’t<br />
necessarily feel that way.<br />
General race stereotypes are also often<br />
true. Single <strong>Indian</strong>s usually live with<br />
their parents (if their parents live in the<br />
same town) until they get married, unlike<br />
westerners who move out when they are 18<br />
years old. Imagine telling your conservative<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> parents you are going on sleep over<br />
at your boyfriend’s house, or you will be<br />
out till 2 am for a party. You may finally<br />
get the permission to stay out late but most<br />
westerners can’t understand why the fuss.<br />
Social interaction and the way we react<br />
to things are also different. “Westerners<br />
in particular are a lot more pragmatic,<br />
and polite whereas we as a race get more<br />
emotional, take too much to heart,”<br />
says Kiran Mahalingam, a management<br />
consultant who has dated women of<br />
different cultures.<br />
Rashmi Devadasan, a psychologist<br />
married to an American explains that<br />
foreign-born, first generation immigrants<br />
are more likely to have spouses of the same<br />
background. While the second generation<br />
begins to have mixed marriages, “The<br />
third generation is the key to see who will<br />
intermarry.” Among Asians in Canada, the<br />
third generation population is still small, as<br />
this number grows, so will mixed marriages.<br />
She notes that men are more likely to marry<br />
outside their race, and prestige could be a<br />
factor. She also says divorced men are more<br />
likely to enter into a mixed marriage.<br />
It’s more common to see <strong>Indian</strong>s dating<br />
Caucasians, but not with someone of African<br />
origin and I wonder if we are more stuck<br />
up with prejudices and stereotypes. <strong>Indian</strong><br />
parents are a lot more accepting of a white<br />
Caucasian partner, but god forbid if you get<br />
an African American or someone of African<br />
descent. Maybe some families can look<br />
beyond color but the general mentality is<br />
that in some way if you are white it’s ok but if<br />
you’re black you’ve sunk too low.<br />
Sarah Jesudian is married to an African<br />
American and lives in Detroit, “Initially<br />
my family was shocked, they thought I had<br />
married one of those rappers, that the color<br />
of his skin meant he was a lower caste. It was<br />
only later once they got to know him better<br />
and once they found out he was actually<br />
smart and a lawyer were they ok, but it took<br />
a while.”<br />
Breaking these general stereotypes can<br />
be a challenge. Often I have discovered<br />
people of other races and our own start out<br />
with the misconception that an Asian wife/<br />
girlfriend will be meek and that she’ll cook<br />
and clean the house. But you quickly learn<br />
that this stereotype isn’t true. As tough<br />
as dating is to begin with, mixing races or<br />
cultures brings complications much tougher<br />
than introducing your date to flan or sweet<br />
potato. Novelty of something new or as<br />
some people call it “Jungle Fever” complex.<br />
A feeling of you and me against the world is<br />
a romantic notion. But what happens when<br />
the romance wears thin?<br />
My parents and his know about us being<br />
in a mixed relationship but like modern day<br />
families, are happy for us on the surface.<br />
But I always wonder what will happen<br />
when they do meet, will my <strong>Indian</strong> folks<br />
have a feeling of inferiority and be very<br />
subservient or completely snobbish. I<br />
wonder if people will stop giving us those<br />
sly glances when we walk the streets either<br />
with envy or anger. Hopefully one day they<br />
will look at us with indifference.<br />
Rubina Jacob is a free lance writer<br />
based in Canada.<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 67
[ BOLLyWOOD PR<strong>OF</strong>ILE ]<br />
A Vocational Actor:<br />
Anupam Kher<br />
“I find that many acting schools have remained in a kind of traditional<br />
time-warp. Our lives and times have changed, as have our interests, our perspectives<br />
and outlook. Our way of expressing has changed. We <strong>Indian</strong>s can be subtle and<br />
we can be exaggerated, so the style of acting must change too.”<br />
[ By AMITA SARWAL]<br />
In Singapore to stage Kuch Bhi Ho Sakta<br />
Hai (Anything Can Happen) after having<br />
performed over 200 shows globally, the<br />
actor talks about his play and his acting<br />
schools. Casually dressed in jeans, opencollared<br />
white shirt, light blue jacket, and<br />
sneakers – and his signature smile – he greets<br />
me warmly in the lobby of Holiday Inn Park<br />
View while heavy rain lashes the city under<br />
darkened late-morning skies.<br />
Bollywood’s Anupam Kher is the first actor<br />
in the world to monoact his autobiography<br />
on stage. In fact, he wrote to Guinness World<br />
Records to include him for this feat – but they<br />
said they had no such category [yet].<br />
He recalls, “There was an offer first from<br />
Penguin, and then Harpers Collins, to<br />
write my autobiography. I started collecting<br />
material but you need a writer who vibes<br />
with you. Somewhere through my writing,<br />
because most of what was coming up was<br />
very visually oriented, it dawned on me that<br />
as I am an actor, I must ‘perform’ my life.<br />
“I am an optimist. I would initially narrate<br />
my life’s incidents in a drawing room of 10-20<br />
people. Most of the episodes were funny, even<br />
my disasters and failures because I found that<br />
takes the burden off the people that they are<br />
not supposed to laugh at failures. I perceived<br />
when a successful man talks about his failures<br />
it gives people courage to talk about their<br />
personal failures without the fear of failure.<br />
Anupam Kher: If I’m known more as an educationist than an<br />
actor, I’ll be very happy.<br />
“The theatre being a means of direct<br />
communication was where I had to perform.<br />
Yet the thought of acting in front of 500-600<br />
people repeatedly over a period of time was<br />
frightening. At that point I was going through<br />
a low phase in my life. But once I did my first<br />
show in 2003 the response was phenomenal<br />
and I discovered that though it was my story<br />
a lot of the audience could identify with it.<br />
The play talks about one’s dreams, fears and<br />
aspirations, and about love. The maximum<br />
audience I have performed for was in front of<br />
7,000–8,000 people outdoors at Goa during<br />
the 35th <strong>International</strong> Film Festival 2004.”<br />
The choice of director Feroze Khan (Tumhari<br />
Amrita) was natural as Anupam had worked<br />
with him in a previous play Saalgirah (2001).<br />
“There was a comfort level. Besides he is<br />
very talented and understands the medium of<br />
theatre very well. All these factors combined<br />
[to select him]. I could have directed the<br />
play myself but as it was my life I needed an<br />
objective point of view.”<br />
Part of the reason to perform was<br />
“certainly to get back to theatre. I did this<br />
play when I was not feeling very great about<br />
myself. I wanted to do a play which became<br />
my source of income because I had decided<br />
that I would only do certain kind of films<br />
henceforth. But it was equally important for<br />
me to continue with my standard of living.<br />
I did not think the play would be a great<br />
success but God was kind and it was well<br />
received by the audience.”<br />
Anupam continues, “Each episode is<br />
absolutely bang on because I am making fun of<br />
myself. It is brutally honest. Of course, to make<br />
it entertaining one has used a kind of flavour,<br />
but the incidents are absolutely true.”<br />
Ashok Patole and Feroze [Khan] did the<br />
re-writing and condensed eight tapes of<br />
conversations into a two-and-half-hour play<br />
and it had to have a format. The narrations<br />
start from his childhood and end on a certain<br />
note, after that the milestones in Anupam’s<br />
professional life are updated on a slide.<br />
Talk then turns to Anupam Kher’s<br />
Actor Prepares (www.actorprepares.net):<br />
When did he realise that there was a need<br />
for a good film acting school in India? “I<br />
always felt it. I am from a drama school so<br />
68<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ BOLLyWOOD PR<strong>OF</strong>ILE ]<br />
I understand the importance of education<br />
in acting especially now that India is<br />
booming in the entertainment business.<br />
The audience is ready for disciplined,<br />
professional, educated actors. There are<br />
going to be less and less flukes [bad actors]<br />
in this profession.<br />
“I personally feel the death of the<br />
Bollywood style of acting has happened.<br />
It was a necessity to have that style earlier<br />
because in India films were the prime<br />
source of entertainment catering to a very<br />
diverse audience – Punjabis, Bengalis,<br />
Gujaratis, Tamilians, Maharashtrians et<br />
al. So the style, the overt gesticulating in<br />
a manner became clichéd to explain say a<br />
simple gesture in Hindi, so whatever was<br />
offered the public accepted it.<br />
“But now the moviegoer is more educated<br />
plus he has choices for his entertainment. He<br />
is not madly involved in movies. He is more<br />
relaxed as an observer. To hold the interest<br />
of this type of person, you on the screen<br />
have to be brilliant. If there are a thousand<br />
reasons for him applauding you, there are<br />
as many chances of him not liking you. He<br />
is more critical and you, the actor, have to<br />
make a special effort to be accepted.”<br />
The concept of Actor Prepares took<br />
shape about 10-12 years ago when Anupam<br />
did a three-week workshop in Mumbai with<br />
this young generation of upcoming actors –<br />
Hrithik Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan, Uday<br />
Chopra, Neil Mukesh and Sikander Kher.<br />
“I needed to have an acting school because<br />
I felt I am primarily a teacher. But more<br />
important, I wanted to break this myth that<br />
a Bollywood actor cannot run a reputable<br />
acting school of international standard.<br />
“In 2005, I started Actor Prepares from a<br />
small office. I also needed to space out my<br />
time which I could not do earlier as I was<br />
doing too many films. Now its almost four<br />
years old, is in a bigger place and having<br />
invested so much hard work in it that it has<br />
become an important institution,” he says.<br />
Anupam continues, “Today the longevity<br />
of an actor depends upon how good you are.<br />
The younger generation is taking acting<br />
as a profession very seriously. I personally<br />
don’t feel that “acting sikhane se nahin aati<br />
hai” (acting doesn’t come from being taught).<br />
This is an uneducated person’s point of view.<br />
Acting schools, according to me are like<br />
motor driving schools. You learn the rules<br />
of driving, to apply the brakes, shift gears,<br />
but you only learn driving by practicing<br />
driving. Similarly acting schools can teach<br />
you, give you directions on how to go about<br />
it but you improve with practice. It does help<br />
if the talent is inherent but in today’s time<br />
confidence is confused with acting. Today’s<br />
generation is more confident and the fear<br />
of the camera is not there. Everyone has a<br />
mobile, everyone can make a video clipping<br />
from it or take a still shot. So facing a camera,<br />
seeing your face on a mobile, a screen is no<br />
big deal. Being confident has nothing to<br />
do with acting. A very shy person can be a<br />
brilliant actor. It all depends upon how much<br />
you personally invest in it.”<br />
Having spent 23 years in the industry<br />
and with over 300 films to his credit, it is<br />
only expected that all that Anupam has<br />
learnt and imbibed he share with others.<br />
“You could say that I cannot ‘teach’ acting<br />
but my experience has formed a certain<br />
way of expressing which if I share with my<br />
students would make a difference to them.”<br />
Actor Prepares opened its first branch in<br />
Chandigarh with the government being a<br />
30 per cent partner. The first international<br />
branch will open in London in September.<br />
Durban is next on the agenda. “We have<br />
our partners but have not signed the official<br />
contract [at time of going to press in end-<br />
May]. We have done our homework, had<br />
our meetings and hopefully should open by<br />
end-2008,” he tells.<br />
Speaking of the monetary investments,<br />
Anupam reveals, “It is all my money. In<br />
Mumbai I am the owner. In Chandigarh the<br />
government provides the infrastructure and<br />
we bring in the expertise. In London our<br />
partners are Ealing Institute of Media and<br />
Heathrow City Partnership, a part of Ealing,<br />
Hammersmith and West London College.<br />
We are looking at a 50-50 partnership.<br />
They provide the infrastructure and we, the<br />
expertise. Sixty students will be admitted<br />
in the first year and fees have been set at<br />
£6,000 for a three-month course.”<br />
Intending to spend a week or more<br />
teaching each batch of students at each one<br />
of his schools, Anupam is positive that he<br />
will not go in for franchising. “Everyday<br />
I get calls from cities in India and around<br />
the world asking for a franchise. But this<br />
is not McDonald’s! This is an educational<br />
institution and my name is involved. I<br />
definitely want to be a partner in every<br />
school so that we can control the standard.<br />
And if 50 years hence I am known more as<br />
an educationist than an actor I will be very<br />
happy,” he smiles.<br />
Speaking of the curriculum, “Except for<br />
the dancing style of Bollywood the syllabus<br />
is the same [as other leading film acting<br />
schools]. Dance is within us <strong>Indian</strong>s. We<br />
dance at any given pretext – marriages,<br />
festivals, religious celebrations. We express<br />
our joy by dancing. We <strong>Indian</strong>s are larger<br />
than life. Our hearts are ‘bigger’ than those<br />
of normal people. That makes our joy, our<br />
celebrations and even our sorrows bigger. I<br />
find an <strong>Indian</strong> actor can do a salsa or a jive<br />
or a waltz, but a Hollywood actor will find<br />
it very difficult performing a Bollywood<br />
style dance.<br />
“I find many other acting schools, without<br />
wanting to criticise them, have remained<br />
in a kind of traditional time-warp. But our<br />
lives and times have changed, as have our<br />
interests, our perspectives and outlook.<br />
Our way of expressing has changed.<br />
We <strong>Indian</strong>s can be subtle and we can be<br />
exaggerated, so the style of acting must<br />
change too,” he explains. And concludes<br />
– in all earnestness with what comes across<br />
as a trademark of the Anupam Kher sense<br />
of humour: “According to me anyone who<br />
can lie convincingly can act. Because lying<br />
is the first step towards acting.”<br />
Amita Sarwal is a freelance writer<br />
based in Singapore.<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 69
[ FAMILy ]<br />
<strong>International</strong> Adoption:<br />
Raising Global Children<br />
“They were adopted as infants out of orphanages in New Delhi, Pune and Nagpur by<br />
British parents who had to move heaven and earth to get them. The family returned<br />
to India recently to reconnect with their roots and launch their book Three <strong>Indian</strong><br />
Orphans Touched By Destiny which reveals in abundance how international adoption<br />
brings human beings together across national boundaries, a situation le plus desirable<br />
in the global society we now inhabit.”<br />
[ By INGRID ALBUqUERqUE ]<br />
Once they were orphans in three<br />
dilapidated orphanages in New<br />
Delhi, Pune and Nagpur. Today<br />
they are in a sense international <strong>Indian</strong>s<br />
and true citizens of the world. Lovingly<br />
lifted out of their orphanages and put<br />
into the keen arms of British parents,<br />
Bina-Ruth, Rachita-Beth and Pratiksha-<br />
Kate have grown amazingly into young<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> women who have the world at their<br />
doorstep. In India they were unaware of<br />
one another’s existence. Then they met as<br />
sisters in Europe, grew up in the UK, have<br />
British passports, traveled the world and<br />
now live in the Alps in France.<br />
The parents…<br />
David John Lee is English and his wife<br />
Loralee is Canadian with Scottish roots.<br />
Their three daughters are <strong>Indian</strong>. Not flesh<br />
of their flesh, nor bone of their bone, but three<br />
wonderful girls, miraculously their own.<br />
The family moved from UK some years<br />
ago, to settle in the south of France and<br />
at some point in the future, plan to go to<br />
Canada.<br />
David who is an author, writer and regular<br />
David John Lee, Pratiksha-Kate, Bina-Ruth, MP H.T. Sangliana, Rachita-Beth and Loralee Lee at the book launch<br />
held at The Windsor in Bangalore<br />
contributor to international agencies like<br />
Saatchi and Saatchi, shares how his family<br />
came about: “My wife Loralee and I arrived<br />
rather late at the idea of having children. We<br />
could not go about this in the normal way,<br />
owing to a history of haemophilia in Loralee’s<br />
family.” However, what Loralee clung to<br />
and never forgot, was a dream she had as a<br />
teenager she firmly believes came from God.<br />
In the dream, she saw herself surrounded by<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> children.<br />
Men have their own down to earth way of<br />
70<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ FAMILy ]<br />
looking at things. David says, “<strong>International</strong><br />
adoption made sense to me in the same way<br />
as environmentalism made sense. Why bring<br />
another child into an already overcrowded<br />
world when there are so many children<br />
out there who need parents? It’s what the<br />
management gurus refer to as a win-win<br />
situation. Adults who want children; children<br />
who need mothers and fathers. What could<br />
be simpler?”<br />
When in the early 90s, David John Lee<br />
was on assignment in India, his wife Loralee<br />
accompanied him, and they shared their dream<br />
with a social worker, their jaws dropping and<br />
their heart stopping in amazement when the lady<br />
said quietly, “Well, it happens that a beautiful<br />
baby girl was left with me last week. Would you<br />
like to see her?” As the prophecy unfolded, what<br />
followed was almost surreal. Loralee describes<br />
her visit to the hospital in Delhi where the<br />
newborn child happened to be:<br />
“My eyes adjust slowly in a cool, unlit<br />
corridor. We are shown into a tiny dark room.<br />
There are maybe six cots arranged against<br />
two walls, with barely enough space to walk<br />
between them. A young nurse wearing a white<br />
sari smiles and I smile back. She bends over one<br />
of the cots and picks up a bundle. As she pulls<br />
the blanket back, I see a mass of curly black<br />
hair and a tiny sleeping face. What happens<br />
next takes me completely by surprise. As I<br />
lean forward slightly, my heart catches in my<br />
chest and I know, absolutely and terrifyingly,<br />
that I would lay down my life for this child.<br />
I have never felt or thought anything like this<br />
before, and it is a sign to me, in the long process<br />
that is to follow, that this child and I are meant<br />
to be together.”<br />
A few hours later, David and Loralee had<br />
become parents. However, they left for Scotland<br />
without their precious child because they had<br />
yet to go through the ‘paperwork’. This took<br />
an “agonizing” 14 months. Thereafter David<br />
flew back to India alone to collect Bina, to take<br />
her to their home in St. Andrews in Scotland.<br />
David explains: “Apart from the people who<br />
ran the local curry house, she was the only<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> within thirty miles.”<br />
They decided to keep the child’s <strong>Indian</strong><br />
name and simply added an English name to<br />
it. Bina became Bina-Ruth. What were their<br />
early days together like?<br />
Loralee remembers: “She was not in very<br />
good health, having arrived with a terrible<br />
cold and running infections in both ears<br />
Rachita-Beth presents flowers to Queen Elizabeth II<br />
(Ultimately the child had to go through<br />
operations to get both ear drums replaced).<br />
It quickly became apparent that she had<br />
never been given solid food, and so didn’t<br />
know how to chew. Neither had she learned<br />
how to cuddle. Although she enjoyed being<br />
held and carried, Bina-Ruth wouldn’t initiate<br />
affection.” However, soon it was as though<br />
Bina-Ruth had always been with David and<br />
Loralee. They say, “We simply couldn’t<br />
imagine life without her.”<br />
Bina-Ruth had big brown eyes and a slightly<br />
bewildered look, and on many occasions<br />
elderly Scots ladies would stop the parents in<br />
the street to coo over their daughter. Almost<br />
every time, what they said was, “What a<br />
wonderful thing you’re doing.”<br />
Though it was meant as a compliment,<br />
David could never understand this reaction. He<br />
says, “We had not embarked on international<br />
adoption as an act of charity. We did not feel as<br />
though we had “rescued” Bina-Ruth. She wasn’t<br />
our adopted orphan; she was just our daughter.”<br />
The final stage – legally adopting the child<br />
– doesn’t happen until the child has been in<br />
the UK for at least twelve months. Prior to<br />
that, the focus is on gaining permission to<br />
bring the child into the country. For this<br />
the adoptive parents need three things: legal<br />
guardianship awarded by an <strong>Indian</strong> court, an<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> passport, and an entry visa stamped on<br />
the passport by the nearest British Embassy.<br />
And before you can do any of that, you need<br />
the document without which no adoption<br />
can proceed: the Home Study Report.<br />
Basically, the HSR is a series of visits from<br />
a social worker in the UK, whose task it was<br />
to decide if David and Loralee should be<br />
allowed to become parents. Apart from a<br />
cursory count of the bedrooms in their house,<br />
not much of it was about the home. The items<br />
under the microscope were the parents. David<br />
says wryly, “The irony at the heart of all this is<br />
that couples produce babies of their own every<br />
day without anyone asking if they have the<br />
appropriate skills, opinions or financial means.<br />
It’s not uncommon, then, for adoptive parents<br />
to feel discriminated against.”<br />
But their passion for parenting was so<br />
intense, David and Loralee went through it all<br />
with a stiff upper lip, their love for Bina-Ruth<br />
increasing each day, as hers did for her parents.<br />
Bina Ruth knows her origins and says simply,<br />
“I was born in the state of Uttar Pradesh in<br />
New Delhi. I was going to be living on the<br />
streets of India or even I was going to die<br />
because of infections in my ears but that was<br />
until my mother and father adopted me.” She<br />
became part of an international family that is<br />
spread all over the globe, and she has visited<br />
and met all of her uncles, aunts and cousins;<br />
loves her granny in Canada the most, has<br />
been bridesmaid at Auntie Melanie’s wedding<br />
and is now in College in Lycee in France. Of<br />
the dozens of countries she has been to, Italy,<br />
Greece and Maui are among her favourites.<br />
I love the way she puts the story of her life:<br />
“I started at nothing and discovered I could<br />
become anything.”<br />
Rachita-Beth, adopted from Nagpur some<br />
years later, was totally different from Bina-<br />
Ruth. Her mother Loralee says with a gleam<br />
in her eye, “In every crisis situation we have<br />
faced, my middle daughter could always be<br />
relied upon to be helpful and keep her cool.<br />
Not that she was always sensible and serious.<br />
At her children’s home in Nagpur, they used to<br />
laugh and call her a naughty baby. It was only<br />
when she went to school that we understood<br />
what they’d meant.<br />
Rachita-Beth tells it like it is…<br />
When Rachita-Beth started at Cathedral<br />
School nursery in England at the age of four,<br />
she was tiny. I couldn’t find a uniform to<br />
fit her, even the size three had to be folded<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 71
[ FAMILy ]<br />
and rolled, and her navy blue stockings<br />
were always bunched up around her ankles.<br />
However, despite her size, she didn’t put<br />
up with any nonsense. If larger children<br />
bothered her, she hit them. As parents, David<br />
and I were secretly pleased to find she could<br />
look after herself in the playground, but of<br />
course the hitting had to stop.”<br />
Rachita-Beth has also turned out to be a<br />
computer whiz and spends the largest part<br />
of each day talking to her friends on MSN.<br />
She too has completed school and now goes<br />
to college in France and admits it has not<br />
been smooth sailing: “Three months after<br />
I joined school, the bullying started. Two<br />
sisters who had problems with all foreigners<br />
started calling me names and pushing me. At<br />
first I didn’t say anything, but after a couple<br />
of weeks I told my parents, and when they<br />
spoke to the teacher, she just shrugged it off<br />
and said, ‘Ah yes, we had the same problem<br />
last year with other foreign girls. They even<br />
left because it got so bad.”<br />
Rachita-Beth realized she would have to<br />
stand up for herself. “I knew they hated me<br />
so I kept out of their way. At the end of the<br />
year I was first in class and spoke ‘fluent’<br />
French. Since I was as smart as them, I think<br />
I intimidated them and the bullying was<br />
tremendous. But the year went by without<br />
any major problems.” What the young lady<br />
discovered was to be near-excellent in all her<br />
endeavours, after which here colleagues had<br />
to accept her whatever may have been their<br />
other reservations.<br />
Pratiksha-Kate the youngest and most<br />
energetic of the three – no wonder her father<br />
calls her cannonball! – is unable to keep still for<br />
a minute and so it is left to her mother Loralee<br />
to tell us about her. “Our third daughter<br />
has afforded us surprise after surprise. We<br />
thought we were adopting a three-year-old<br />
but she was only two. When we adopted her,<br />
we thought she had slight hearing problems,<br />
but subsequently she was classified as deaf.<br />
Pratiksha-Kate’s powers of observation are<br />
keen. She often surprises us by pointing out<br />
tiny details, patterns, light and shadow Her<br />
love of the natural world, especially animals, is<br />
exceptional. She is enraptured by everything<br />
from the tiniest flower to the largest dog.<br />
“The biggest surprise has been Pratiksha-<br />
Kate’s aptitude and love of music. I know<br />
of few other eight-year-olds who spend so<br />
Rachita-Beth with her father David John Lee and Pratiksha-Kate with mother Loralee Lee as they do a<br />
Scottish dance at the book launch in Bangalore<br />
much time playing the violin. I know of no<br />
other children her age who avidly listen to<br />
opera. She works hard to keep up with the<br />
native French speaking children with normal<br />
hearing. She works hard with her music. And<br />
she does all of this without complaining.<br />
“Pratiksha-Kate’s intensity and<br />
cheerfulness is surprising. When I<br />
play the violin with my daughter, I am<br />
delighted by her joy and surprised by her<br />
concentration and ability. The combination<br />
of a willingness to work hard and talent are<br />
the hallmarks of an artist.” The family came<br />
to Bangalore for a few weeks to release their<br />
book Three <strong>Indian</strong> Orphans Touched By Destiny<br />
which was launched by The Windsor on<br />
30 July. It was an unusual book launch, and<br />
many hearts were stirred as each member of<br />
the family read out a portion from chapters<br />
they’d written in the book. To everybody’s<br />
delight, they did a Scottish dance which<br />
almost brought the house down, even as it<br />
showed the global merging of the human<br />
connection. During the Q&A session at the<br />
launch, when somebody from the audience<br />
asked them whether they ever planned to<br />
return to India on a permanent basis, each<br />
one had a different response:<br />
Pratiksha-Kate, the youngest, just nine<br />
years old, endeared herself to the audience<br />
when she said: “Of course I want to come<br />
back to India. I am going to become a famous<br />
violinist, marry a rich <strong>Indian</strong> man, and then<br />
come here and have babies.”<br />
Rachita-Beth, now all of 15, said she had<br />
not quite made up her mind. Bina-Ruth said<br />
with a quiet, shy smile, “I do not want to<br />
appear rude, but no, I would not like to live<br />
here. I would prefer to live in Canada with my<br />
mum’s family.” Their father David John Lee<br />
said there is nothing he would like better than<br />
to live in India, but looking at the way India<br />
is progressing economically, he doubted he<br />
would be able to afford it!<br />
All the three <strong>Indian</strong> children say that once<br />
they are settled in life they want to come<br />
back to India and adopt children themselves.<br />
In fact, during their visit to India, their most<br />
fulfilling day was a day spent in an orphanage<br />
with 149 children from abandoned and<br />
deprived backgrounds. The event was covered<br />
by CNN-ibn. Their entire visit was widely<br />
covered by the media, a fact that left them a<br />
little bewildered.<br />
“We’re just a normal family really,” were<br />
their parting words as they stepped into<br />
Bangalore’s new international airport to<br />
catch the return flight to France.<br />
Ingrid Albuquerque is the Content Editor and Website<br />
Manager of the Haggai Institute’s international<br />
website; and the Managing Director of Berean<br />
Bay Media House. She has edited many magazines<br />
and is an author of a few best-selling books.<br />
72<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ BRAND IMAGE ]<br />
The Big, Bad<br />
Brand of Bollywood<br />
“There is really nothing wrong with the brand Bollywood, except that the<br />
<strong>Indian</strong> film industry has become far more powerful and far-reaching than anything<br />
else like this in any other country of the world and even larger than Hollywood.”<br />
[ By NASEEM JAVED ]<br />
In hindsight, decades ago, who in the right<br />
frame of mind would have picked up a<br />
blatant sidekick named “Bollywood” as a<br />
cheap copy of “Hollywood”, a theme that has<br />
already been further diluted and abused by<br />
hundreds of other adventurous film industry<br />
brands all over Asia, from “Ollywood” to<br />
“Jollywood”, creating confusion and ripping<br />
away the original centrality of the true brand?<br />
There is only one Silicon Valley, one Eiffel<br />
Tower, one Disneyland, one Wall Street, one<br />
Times Square and only one Piccadilly Circus;<br />
the other sound and or look-alikes are<br />
just desperate copycats. What India needs<br />
today is an all out war on all fronts to tackle<br />
these copycat problems, and accept higher<br />
grounds with global leadership mandates to<br />
create brand new original world-class, global<br />
potential iconic identities.<br />
Today, Walt Disney is only dancing in<br />
heaven, after seeing how Disneyland has created<br />
hundreds of similar copycats from few<br />
mega sites to hundreds of single flywheels<br />
with two guys in gorilla outfits, jumping<br />
around in similar named theme parks. What’s<br />
wrong with people, and why they prefer to go<br />
“There is no<br />
country with a film<br />
industry, with the<br />
size and dynamics of<br />
current Bollywood,<br />
which on a global<br />
scale, not only attracts<br />
a larger audience and<br />
more attention than<br />
any other force in the<br />
marketplace, but also<br />
carries the most global<br />
influence.<br />
”<br />
on their hands and knees, sneaking, picking,<br />
cutting and pasting from some one else’s well<br />
established original brand idea while patting<br />
themselves for their smartness and accepting<br />
this form of suicidal-branding, a kind of<br />
a self inflicting identity wound which never<br />
heals and never allows to becomes super icon.<br />
Surveys have proven that copying legendary<br />
icons only kills brilliant original ideas into<br />
obvious copies looking deadbeats and eventually<br />
ending up in oblivion. The black and<br />
white proof of this global phenomenon is already<br />
sitting on Google.<br />
Without a doubt, there is no country with<br />
a film industry, with the size and dynamics<br />
of current Bollywood, which on a global<br />
scale, not only attracts a larger audience and<br />
more attention than any other force in the<br />
marketplace, but also carries the most global<br />
influence. This six billion dollar industry<br />
will double again in size in few years, and is<br />
just trapped in a dumb brand identity with no<br />
direct connection to Mumbai, as the name<br />
Bombay is just passé.<br />
The real Hollywood on the other hand<br />
came about in 1887, when the founder Harvey<br />
Wilcox, Daeida’s husband, drew up a grid<br />
map for a town which he filed the county<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 73
[ BRAND IMAGE ]<br />
recorder’s office on February 1, 1887, the first<br />
official appearance of the name ‘Hollywood’.<br />
He named it after the “Mass of the Holy<br />
Wood of the Cross”.<br />
During the last half-century, all over India<br />
and including Asia, the number one practice<br />
of branding has been based on picking up<br />
names from Western Yellow Pages, “just let<br />
the fingers do the branding tricks”. Hence,<br />
hundreds and thousands of Western Names<br />
are blatantly copied, which in turn, have kept<br />
beautiful and original local ideas buried as<br />
sidekicks to Western identities.<br />
In the course of human development, countries<br />
do come up with amazing and original<br />
ideas, like the invention of Silicon Valley,<br />
which not only incubated a global revolution<br />
of e-commerce and also, the demise of<br />
hundreds of copycats from silicon woods to<br />
jungles, rivers, roads and oceans. Watergate<br />
germinated “this-Gate” and “that-Gate”. Historically,<br />
it can be proven that any copycatting<br />
on any scale fails big time, and accidental<br />
naming invites accidental cost, creating<br />
injured name brands which cripple long-term<br />
marketing, eventually fading away. Open any<br />
old magazine and the proof is right there.<br />
The global complexity of billions of<br />
name images floating on e-commerce has<br />
turned this issue into a science, and the art<br />
of fondling a dictionary is now lost forever.<br />
It requires tactical understanding of corporate<br />
and business naming rules - trademark<br />
laws, global domain management systems<br />
and international marketing issues. It demands<br />
an in depth understanding of languages,<br />
translations, connotations, perceptions<br />
and human interactions with words<br />
– ‘memorability’, type-ability, ‘protectability’<br />
and dozens of other related issues.<br />
Create an open dialogue, conduct in-depth<br />
audit, test the five star standard, available<br />
on the net, demand practitioners with all<br />
these skills in your boardroom otherwise<br />
your image and mega identity program will<br />
simply be doomed.<br />
The old mass-advertising model is dying,<br />
very fast and a new style of marketing and<br />
online access marketing offers extremely<br />
unique opportunities to become a successful<br />
brand with the smallest budget, in the shortest<br />
period of time with maximum impact.<br />
But once again, these sophisticated processes<br />
cannot be confused with general-logo-basedbranding<br />
as global icon building and name<br />
branding is a very special art.<br />
The <strong>Indian</strong> film industry has a bright future<br />
and will continue forward, but as the<br />
media blurs and the meltdown continues,<br />
the term Bollywood will diffuse into a lowtech<br />
brand perception of colourful-danceroutines-based-cinematography<br />
that has<br />
become the lead identifier, but hopefully the<br />
new leaders of the industry will re-establish<br />
brand new global iconic identities based on<br />
world-class standards.<br />
Naseem Javed has personally created global<br />
name identities. He founded ABC Namebank<br />
<strong>International</strong> in Toronto and New York<br />
over a quarter century ago.<br />
He can be contacted at nj@njabc.com<br />
74<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
Voted the best<br />
“Personal Lines Broker of the Year in 2008” at the Middle East Insurance Awards<br />
The judges assessed Nexus in how they responded to the demands of consumers<br />
for products relevant to their needs coupled with top-quality service.<br />
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Mahmoud Nodjoumi, Chief Executive Officer, Nexus Group of Companies<br />
Dubai +971 4 397 7779 Abu Dhabi +971 2 626 6669 Kingdom of Bahrain +973 1 751 1777 and +973 1 771 1355<br />
www.nexusadvice.com
[ MONEyWISE ]<br />
Employee Benefits and their<br />
Impact on our Financial Plans<br />
“Recruitment runs hand in hand with retention – after all why spend a great deal<br />
of money recruiting the best of the best only to lose them to your competitor inside a<br />
couple of years. Hence the growth in the Employee Benefits Industry<br />
and the growth in the product ranges on offer.”<br />
[ By BOB PARKER ]<br />
No longer should the<br />
expatriate worker have to<br />
rely on his own good sense<br />
and financial acumen to achieve his<br />
financial goals if they have a forward<br />
thinking employer!<br />
In the West, for many years now,<br />
the extra ‘employee benefits’ are as<br />
much a part of the ‘take home’ as the<br />
salary itself. I can distinctly remember<br />
my first company car – a bright yellow<br />
four door job with a 1.3 litre engine –<br />
but it didn’t matter that I looked like I<br />
was driving a canary - at only 24 years<br />
of age I had a brand new car! The fact<br />
that I looked like all travelling salesmen,<br />
didn’t deter my enthusiasm one bit!<br />
Throughout the 70s and 80s as I gained<br />
various promotions and company moves, I<br />
was spurred on with the promises of bigger<br />
and better cars – the salary was secondary!!<br />
Eventually I aspired to the company<br />
boardroom and the ultimate prize of a top of<br />
the range Jaguar XJ – mid life but still highly<br />
motivated by the company car benefit.<br />
Employee benefits are today a very<br />
sophisticated industry and like all things in<br />
working life we have moved on from simply<br />
giving a company motor car to dreaming up<br />
highly sophisticated packages designed to<br />
assist in recruiting, retaining and motivating<br />
the best people in the marketplace.<br />
Recruitment runs hand in hand with<br />
retention – after all why spend a great deal<br />
of money recruiting the best of the best<br />
only to lose them to your competitor inside<br />
a couple of years. Hence the growth in the<br />
Employee Benefits Industry and the growth<br />
in the product ranges on offer:<br />
Golden Hello’s, Stock Options, Share<br />
Purchase schemes, Group Medical, Group<br />
Retirement Plans, Group Life, Group<br />
Critical Illness, Motor Cars, Barter Deals,<br />
Luncheon Vouchers, Voluntary Deals, the<br />
list goes on and on.<br />
Cars probably still top the list of visible<br />
goodies – at a company meeting you really<br />
would rather be driving up next to your<br />
colleagues in a Mercedes Coupe rather<br />
than a Honda Civic.<br />
Fleet management allows employers<br />
to offer company cars to employees in<br />
different forms thus being able to incentivise<br />
and reward through choice. If employees<br />
choose not to go with a traditional<br />
company car there is always the option<br />
to give staff this perk as a cash<br />
allowance which they can then use<br />
to lease, purchase or hire a vehicle.<br />
Employers need to choose the most<br />
appropriate solution for drivers,<br />
whether that is an employee car<br />
ownership scheme or traditional<br />
company car, or a combination of<br />
schemes to meet various needs. It<br />
is a decision that is complicated by<br />
maintenance management, as well<br />
as health issues such as corporate<br />
manslaughter and fleet risk. Issues<br />
around health and safety are<br />
usually associated with the cash<br />
allowance scheme because here<br />
the employee has the freedom to<br />
choose his or her own vehicle, and their<br />
choice may not necessarily be a correct fit<br />
for the job in hand – do you want your top<br />
salesman driving a high profile flash sports<br />
car for instance? Cars are a very emotive<br />
issue and many staff have left companies<br />
simply to get a better car!<br />
Although health insurance isn’t as<br />
motivational as a company car, the day<br />
is soon coming when all expatriates will<br />
need some form of health insurance. The<br />
institutions competing for this business will<br />
often hack their rates to get the deal but<br />
companies who choose their Group Health<br />
scheme on rates alone at their peril.<br />
Many employees leave companies because<br />
their family is not covered adequately on<br />
the company scheme. You can have the best<br />
management in the world – managing and<br />
motivating your staff, but if and when the<br />
76<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ MONEyWISE ]<br />
staff member gets home, all that happens,<br />
is continuous grief over little Johnnies poor<br />
medical assistance in a foreign company, all<br />
because the company scheme doesn’t cover<br />
pre existing conditions or doesn’t provide<br />
cover in the best hospitals and your staff<br />
retention is immediately under threat.<br />
However medical and cars aside, what<br />
about the actual money rewards? Clearly<br />
salary must be positioned right and must<br />
meet the competition in the marketplace,<br />
however a salary on its own does not<br />
motivate key staff to stay with a company<br />
or to increase performance.<br />
In the GCC expatriate market there<br />
are mandatory gratuity schemes in place<br />
as an end of service bonus based on salary<br />
and years served. In many countries<br />
these gratuities as they are based on<br />
basic salary lead to the management of<br />
companies splitting salaries into a range<br />
of remuneration to deliberately keep the<br />
gratuity payments down, so a $10,000<br />
salary may be shown in the countries labour<br />
departments as only $4,000 salary and the<br />
rest is made up in housing and education<br />
allowances plus guaranteed bonus. This<br />
misguided approach to gratuity payments<br />
is not conducive to staff retention.<br />
More and more companies are now<br />
looking to manage their gratuity payments<br />
with formal retirement schemes provided<br />
either by international insurance companies<br />
like Zurich and Friends Provident or<br />
bespoke systems put together by professional<br />
employee benefit companies.<br />
One of the largest companies in the Gulf,<br />
Emirates Airline, has for many years run its<br />
own retirement scheme via an Employee<br />
Benefit Trust with the management of the<br />
employees assets contracted out to world<br />
class fund managers like Fidelity and<br />
Merrill Lynch.<br />
The Hotel industry for one is finding<br />
staff retention a great challenge – Jumeirah<br />
<strong>International</strong>, for instance, has recently<br />
introduced a Group Retirement plan, and<br />
one assumes a key driver would have been<br />
to assist in retention. However when it<br />
comes to retention there is no better way<br />
than locking people into employee share<br />
schemes, which are becoming more popular<br />
as staff retention becomes a major issue.<br />
There are a number of different ways<br />
to create share savings such as share save<br />
plan or share incentive plan managed in an<br />
employee benefit trust held in one of the<br />
world’s offshore financial centers such as<br />
Jersey. Similar arrangements can be made<br />
through executive share option plans for<br />
very senior employees.<br />
Some companies include the added perk<br />
of personal debt management, which can<br />
help to reduce employees’ stress levels<br />
and so indirectly contribute to improved<br />
performance. Many believe that financial<br />
education is going to become more common<br />
in the workplace as organisations want their<br />
staff to get to grips with making their own<br />
investment decisions.<br />
Research conducted in the US by<br />
Dr E Thomas Garman, president of the<br />
Personal Finance Employee Education<br />
Foundation, demonstrates the positive<br />
impact of financial education on employee<br />
productivity levels. Dr Thomas asked a<br />
C<br />
number of financial advisory companies what<br />
were their attitudes of employees to offering<br />
M<br />
financial education in the workplace?<br />
Y<br />
Their answers were as follows (% in brackets)<br />
CM<br />
1. It increases appreciation of the value of<br />
benefits 83%<br />
MY<br />
2. It increases retirement plan take-up and/<br />
CY<br />
or plan contributions 50%<br />
CMY<br />
3. It should be essential in all workplaces 39%<br />
4. It will help employees resolve a retirement<br />
K<br />
savings crisis 32%<br />
5. It increases share scheme take up 21%<br />
6. It is not the employer’s responsibility 17%<br />
Dr Thomas then asked the employees<br />
what proportion of respondents think<br />
employers should give staff access to<br />
financial education and financial advice?<br />
1. Yes, to both financial education and<br />
financial advice 54%<br />
2. Yes, to only financial education 35%<br />
3. No, to both financial education and<br />
financial advice 7%<br />
4. Yes, to only financial advice 4%<br />
While the overall organisation’s quality of<br />
management is the key driver of motivation,<br />
employers can use employee benefits as a<br />
major weapon in staff retention.<br />
Bob Parker is a seasoned UK qualified<br />
Independent Financial Adviser. He formed<br />
Holborn Assets in 1999, which is now a<br />
pre-eminent financial advisory service with over<br />
35 qualified advisers and staff.<br />
Email: robert@holbornassets.com<br />
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[ BUzz WORD ]<br />
NEXUS: Property Insurance Emphasised at Cityscape 2008<br />
Insurance plays a key role in<br />
protecting what is typically<br />
an individual’s largest single<br />
asset” explained Michael Walton,<br />
Director for General Insurance<br />
at Nexus. Homeowners<br />
need to realise the importance<br />
of purchasing appropriate insurance<br />
before opening the door to<br />
a new property.”<br />
The UAE’s non life sector saw<br />
a dramatic growth over the past<br />
18 months with premiums for<br />
property insurance rising from<br />
AED 8.7 billion in 2006 to AED<br />
11.9 billion in 2007, accounting<br />
Michael Walton, Director for General<br />
Insurance, Nexus.<br />
for as increase rate of 38 percent<br />
according to a report by The<br />
Insurance Authority (TIA).<br />
“With the construction market<br />
growing apace, contractors<br />
increasingly understand the<br />
need to insure these projects<br />
against defect and delay. There<br />
is a growing trend towards<br />
buying “Owner Controlled<br />
Insurance Programs” which are<br />
an effective way to improve the<br />
safety of construction operations<br />
and reduce the cost of insurance<br />
on large projects” said Walton.<br />
“OCIPs will cover the owner,<br />
contractor and subcontractors<br />
and also may include design<br />
professionals. The coverage<br />
can include general liability<br />
(CGL), builder’s risk, worker’s<br />
compensation, design errors<br />
and omissions as well as excess,<br />
umbrella and other special<br />
coverages. Such comprehensive<br />
coverage is essential for<br />
developers undertaking multbillion<br />
investments”<br />
“It is a sure sign of a maturing<br />
market when dedicated trade<br />
exhibitions focus on educating<br />
people on better wealth and<br />
asset protection practices,”<br />
concluded Walton.<br />
www.nexusadvice.com<br />
Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces<br />
appoints Helmuth H. Meckelburg<br />
as Regional Director Middle East<br />
and North Africa<br />
With the Taj Group<br />
now for almost eight<br />
years, Helmuth H.<br />
Meckelburg worked as the area<br />
director of the Goa Region in<br />
India and was also the general<br />
manager for the Taj Exotica,<br />
Resort and Spa in Goa. During<br />
his term in India, the Taj Exotica<br />
Goa transformed into India’s<br />
best known luxury resort winning<br />
numerous national and international<br />
awards.<br />
With regards to future<br />
expansion, Helmut says<br />
Helmuth Meckelburg , Regional Director<br />
Middle East and North Africa<br />
summarizes, “The Taj Group is currently in a very exiting phase of<br />
its expansion in the Middle East. Over the next 36 months we will<br />
add new properties to our Deluxe Portofolio starting with the Taj<br />
Exotica Resort and Spa on Jumeirah Palm Island, followed by other<br />
properties in Abu Dhabi and Ras Al Khaiman. Further expansion will<br />
happen in Qatar, Bahrain, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Oman, Egypt<br />
and Morocco. Our expansion is moving forward full steam, but it<br />
is not our intention to have too many hotels within any destination.<br />
We are establishing our presence in key cities around the world and<br />
choose very carefully were we want to be in the near future.”<br />
Eros launches Samsung<br />
Omnia in the region<br />
The all-in-one maxi-phone<br />
is fully loaded with<br />
top-of-the line multimedia<br />
enhanced smartphone<br />
Eros Group, the sole distributor of<br />
world-renowned brands – Samsung,<br />
Hitachi & Taurus – and<br />
one of the leading players in consumer<br />
electronics, telecom and allied multiproducts<br />
in the Middle East region<br />
announced the launch of the Samsung<br />
Omnia (model name: SGH-i900).<br />
Omnia, meaning ‘everything’ in Latin<br />
and ‘wish’ in Arabic, goes beyond the<br />
current top-of-the-line features available<br />
in today’s mobile phones. The Samsung The Samsung Omnia is<br />
Omnia presents Samsung’s leadership in priced at AED 3,499<br />
design. It features an ultra-slim 12.5-mm<br />
profile and a platinum-look finish that fits snugly in the palm of the<br />
user’s hand. With the Vivid, lively multimedia experience Samsung<br />
Omnia promises to deliver the ultimate in digital entertainment<br />
thanks to a wide 3.2-inch WQVGA LCD.<br />
Samsung Omnia also comes with a five-megapixel CMOS<br />
camera with the latest value-added features, which include autofocus<br />
(AF), face and smile detection and auto-panorama shot. It<br />
offers GPS, including navigation and geo-tagging capabilities, so<br />
users can get their bearings wherever work or life takes them.<br />
78<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
[ BUzz WORD ]<br />
LIALI introduces a new<br />
jewellery collection line<br />
LIALI JEWELLERY: So exclusive,<br />
that no two pieces of jewellery in the<br />
new collection are identical!<br />
Imagine creating a diamond-set from a<br />
collection of special cut diamonds where<br />
no two diamonds are identical. Each is a<br />
unique gem!<br />
Needless to say, that each piece in this<br />
new collection is unique - you will never<br />
find someone else wearing an identical<br />
piece. Then again, that is the hallmark<br />
of Liali: to satisfy every customer<br />
requirement. Be it for exclusivity - through<br />
custom created jewellery, to producing<br />
the finest jewels in the market, Liali<br />
goes out of their way to exceed customer<br />
expectation in every imaginable way.<br />
An endeavour that has manifested<br />
through the success of the chain that started<br />
with one outlet in 1999, and has grown<br />
into an awe-inspiring 20 in its tenth year<br />
since inception. Today, Liali is present in<br />
practically every prestigious landmark in<br />
the city.<br />
And with the launch of this unique new<br />
collection, which has been timed with the<br />
festive season, every Laili outlet in the city<br />
is going to witness a glittering response.<br />
Areeq<br />
MAEER’S MIT Group of Institutions<br />
Dr Sunil Karad, Executive Director, MIT Group<br />
MAEER is today an<br />
umbrella organization of<br />
55 premier institutions<br />
catering to more than 50,000<br />
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Our courses balance<br />
individual needs for successful<br />
careers with our nation’s need<br />
for highly educated technocrats,<br />
doctors, management experts<br />
Vishwashanti Gurukul<br />
offers holistic education<br />
In 2005, we ventured deeper into school education with the development of Vishwashanti<br />
Gurukul, a school in the ‘Guru-Shishya Parampara’ at the sprawling<br />
green complex at Loni-Kalbhor in Pune.<br />
This residential school takes a holistic view of education and trains students under<br />
the IB/IGCSE/CBSE curriculum.<br />
The school is designed for all-round development of students in a stimulating<br />
environment and equipped with highly sophisticated teaching tools including IT<br />
programmes specially designed by Hon’ble Padmashree Dr. Vijay Bhatkar, eminent<br />
computer scientist and Director of India <strong>International</strong> Multiversity. The school draws<br />
students from all parts of India as well as international students.<br />
etc. We also balance the need<br />
for a commercial orientation<br />
in a competitive scenario with<br />
understanding of spirituality and<br />
religious philosophies that have<br />
given stability to our society<br />
through centuries.<br />
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<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN 79
[ FUTURE qUEST ]<br />
The Times They Are Changing...<br />
The budget should be balanced, the treasury should be refilled, and the public debt should be reduced. The arrogance of officialdom<br />
should be tempered and controlled. And the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed, lest we become bankrupt. - Cicero, 63 B.C.<br />
There are signs throughout our economy of an impending earthquake. The tremors we have felt so far are just a little venting of steam, not<br />
an indication of how violent the blow-off can be. - Larry Burkett (1991) The Coming Economic Earthquake<br />
America exports its sin, by the most sophisticated means, hastening the moral destruction of every nation on earth. - Bill Bright and<br />
John N. Damoose in Red Sky In The Morning<br />
And the world is passing away, and the lust of it. - 1 John 2: 17<br />
[ By FRANK RAJ ]<br />
Reviewing major 20th century events of<br />
the last three decades, the following<br />
come to mind: The US Watergate<br />
scandal in 1972; the Aids virus in 1981; the fall<br />
of the Berlin Wall in 1989; the 1991 collapse of<br />
Communism and dismantling of Apartheid in<br />
South Africa the same year; The 1991 Gulf war;<br />
the exponential growth of the Internet in 1993;<br />
Nuclear tests by India and Pakistan in 1998; and<br />
the 2003 US led invasion of Iraq. Apart from<br />
the US still mired in Iraq, most of these events<br />
have had little impact on people in countries not<br />
directly affected by them.<br />
The 21st century however has just presented<br />
us with a life altering global financial crisis that<br />
could be a harbinger of other things to come.<br />
My radar is always alert for potential upheavals<br />
to examine in this column. I am continuing to<br />
keep an eye on what maybe still to come (not<br />
necessarily in any particular order): Inevitable<br />
consequences of the rise of Hindutva in India; the<br />
dreaded California earthquake; a serious China-<br />
Russia-US confrontation; another Indo-Pak war;<br />
Israel attacking Iran’s nuclear facilities; a nuclear<br />
terrorist incident, and yes I often wondered about<br />
the outcome of America’s incredible national debt<br />
in excess of 10 trillion dollars. I also figure that<br />
a day of reckoning can be expected for the total<br />
depravity of man, the extermination of innocents<br />
through abortion, mass murder in the name of<br />
religion, exploitation of women and children,<br />
destruction of the environment etc. Something is<br />
afoot, for all the signs around us seem to point to<br />
a culmination of something dormant.<br />
A cartoon once published in a New York City<br />
newspaper pictured the Titanic leaving port. Only<br />
the ship was renamed The U.S. Economy. A caption<br />
above it read: “Not even God can sink this ship!”<br />
Although the American dream is now the American<br />
nightmare, the fact is many <strong>Indian</strong>s probably share<br />
the views of a majority of Americans who had<br />
concluded only success counts, morals don’t - as<br />
Bollywood flicks increasingly depict and the rise<br />
of fascism in India clearly indicates. The general<br />
view is our politicians and business leaders can do<br />
as they please as long as our economy is growing<br />
- all that matters is prosperity! The reality could<br />
be that we are staring into the face of a storm of<br />
apocalyptic proportions.<br />
Seventeen years ago author Larry Burkett<br />
published The Coming Economic Earthquake<br />
exposing how the US government was hooked<br />
on Keynesian economic policies with their<br />
explicit license for continuing federal deficits<br />
and their implicit preference for higher levels<br />
of consumption, reduced saving, and a larger<br />
role for government in the economy. When<br />
mainstream economists since World War II,<br />
declared they were the means to continued,<br />
depression-proof prosperity, Burkett insisted<br />
they were a prescription for disaster but to<br />
no avail. Even the 1986 Nobel prize winning<br />
economist James Buchanan, whose critique<br />
of applied Keynesian theory set off a storm of<br />
protest in liberal academic circles could not<br />
change America’s Keynesian policy addiction.<br />
Will India escape the global financial carnage?<br />
Giving reasons for the relatively mild impact on<br />
India of the ongoing financial turmoil, Oliver<br />
Blanchard, Economic Counselor and Director of<br />
<strong>International</strong> Monetary Fund (IMF) Research<br />
Department in Washington noted that, “India is<br />
still largely a closed economy, has strong internal<br />
growth dynamics, from rapid productive growth,<br />
from its process of integration into the global<br />
economy that is still continuing. We are projecting<br />
that the growth in India will come down from eight<br />
per cent in 2008 to seven per cent in 2009. But seven<br />
per cent is still a strong rate of growth,” the IMF<br />
official pointed out.<br />
That is what you call expert opinion and a<br />
superpower like America too had its share of<br />
optimistic experts who never saw the writing on<br />
the wall. Perhaps if financial analysis was all that<br />
mattered we could rest easy and gloat that now it’s<br />
our turn because the centre of gravity has shifted<br />
from America and Europe to Asia. Also if man is<br />
a God like some folks genuinely believe we could<br />
surely turn things around with a mantra or a<br />
philosophy or with the help of the planets to usher<br />
in the much longed for age of Aquarius. Somehow<br />
we have been deluded into believing man holds the<br />
keys to all knowledge and science.<br />
However Professor Joyce A. Little perceptively<br />
observes: “Unwilling to be God’s image in the world<br />
and unable, whatever claims some may make to the<br />
contrary, to become God in any serious sense of the<br />
word, modern man seeks high and low for something,<br />
almost anything, to give him an identity; the cosmic<br />
consciousness of the New Age, the magic and<br />
witchcraft of goddess mythology, the archetypes<br />
of Jungian psychology, Joseph Campbell’s hero of<br />
a thousand faces, Carl Sagan’s voyage through the<br />
Cosmos, the cults of Elvis, Marilyn and Madonna,<br />
Robin Leach’s visits with the rich and famous, 1900’s<br />
psychic counselors and personal astrologers, even<br />
in alarming numbers the demonic powers promised<br />
by satanic cults. Virtually no stone is left unturned<br />
in this frenetic search for some hint or clue as to<br />
where to go from here.”<br />
We have finally come to a period and place in<br />
history when the spiritual foundations of our lives<br />
will be tested like never before and it’s time to take<br />
stock. Czechoslovakia’s former President, Vaclav<br />
Havel once spoke of a revolution in the sphere of<br />
human consciousness, noting, “We are still incapable<br />
of understanding that the only genuine backbone<br />
of all our actions, if they are moral, is responsibility<br />
– responsibility to something higher than my<br />
family, my country, my company, my success.”<br />
Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, Futurequest<br />
is a search for the truth in our times. Frank Raj<br />
is the founding editor of The <strong>International</strong> <strong>Indian</strong>.<br />
80<br />
<strong>THE</strong> INTERNATIONAL INDIAN
Possibilities<br />
Value<br />
Innovation<br />
Family<br />
Empowerment<br />
Ideas<br />
Global vision.<br />
Universal values.<br />
Transparency<br />
Teamwork<br />
Honesty<br />
Tolerance<br />
Integrity<br />
Superiority<br />
Responsibility<br />
Strength<br />
At ETA Ascon Star Group, we’re inspired by our values. The three pillars on which the Group stands. A family of over 73,000 people.<br />
A dynamic multidimensional multinational with a global vision. Made possible by our enduring, universal values.<br />
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