Application against NDTV dismissed

Following up on my last week's post - malicious application against NDTV by IRS officer SK Srivastava dismissed. Here's the text of the mail sent today by NDTV's CEO Vikram Chandra to all employees.

Hi all,

You will recall that an IRS officer named SK Srivastava had filed a bizarre application against NDTV and others in the Patiala House Court last week. 

You will be pleased to hear that the Court today dismissed that application, and also fined him Rs 10,000 costs.

Mr Srivastava has to pay the Rs 10,000 to the Court within a week otherwise his property will be attached.

We will, of course, vigorously pursue  our defamation suit against him. We intend to send a strong signal that baseless attacks on NDTV will not be without consequence, and that this will be a precedent for the future.

Best

Vikram

Interesting mail sent to NDTV employees by Vikram Chandra

NDTV employees got a very interesting mail this evening from  the CEO, Vikram Chandra... Here's what Vikram said ~

Hi all, 

A completely defamatory, scurrilous and fictitious application has been made in the Patiala House Courts by a man called SK Srivastava. 

 The application is full of bizarre claims about NDTV together with claims of " a serialized prostitution racket" in the Income tax department. 

This same man had filed a similar petition in the Delhi HC a couple of years back which the judge dismissed as follows. The full quote is worth reading!

"We find the petitioner to have made reckless and scandalous allegations against the various officials of the Income Tax department.

The petition is clearly an abuse of the process of this Court and intended to embarrass the colleagues of the petitioner in the department who are impleaded in the petition as respondents in their personal capacity. The petition is liable to be summarily dismissed on this ground alone. The Supreme Court in Gurpal Singh vs State of Punjab, (2005) 5 SCC 136 has held that in public interest litigation, nobody should be allowed to indulge in wild and reckless allegations besmirching the character of others. It was further held, that when frivolous pleas are taken, the Court should do well not only to dismiss the petition but also to impose exemplary costs; that when a particular person is the object and target, the Court has to be careful to see whether the attack in the guise of public interest is really intended to unleash a private vendetta, personal grouse or some other mala fide object.

          

We do not find any merit in the petition, the same is dismissed with costs of Rs.20,000/- payable by the petitioner to the respondent no.1 within six weeks from today."

NDTV has now filed a defamation suit against this person and will take similar action against anyone else who repeats complete rubbish like this.

Best

Vikram

CRICKET from a Couch: Knock yourself out on India

India has made it to the quarterfinals of the World Cup… One Hindi TV channel sports anchor could barely remain in his char – the expert rambled on about how this was a great achievement, and I sat there baffled.

Baffled -  because I was at my in-laws in Lucknow, a city where Holi seems to have combined with cricket to make for a very heady mix… bat-shaped pichkaris,  gulaal packets branded ‘Howzat’ (presumably,  the this colour intended to shock and ask questions of people playing with it!)… I understand all the gimmicks work if India keep winning – so it makes for good business, but this general euphoria about India in the knock out stages is inexplicable… The last edition where India were sent home early couldn’t have scarred the nation so, could it?

Baffled – because had anyone in their wildest dreams imagined India not making it to the knock out stages.  In one breath Dhoni and his men are talked about the favourites to win the cup (apart from patriotism, I’d like to know the cricketing sense behind that rating) – and the next moment such joy because they’ve made it to the quarter finals.

Nevertheless, India has made it to the quarterfinals and now plays Australia… so what next?

Borrowing a tentacle from the great oracle of Octopus Paul fame, I hereby predict an exit… I’d love to be proved wrong, but I just feel that Ponting’s Punters aren’t going to lose twice in a row… Pakistan beat them comfortably, the first time an Australian side has lost in a World Cup match in 12 years, but that’s all there is to it. The men from down under are a fine one-day side, and though they may not be as dominant as the side 7-8 years ago, they are still are force to reckon with especially in the limited overs game.


If the men bleed blue (Sachin seems ready to bleed anything, as long as the cup is his) and get past Australia, then Pakistan may be the team next in line…  There’s been little international cricket played across the LoC, but their ‘Love of Cricket’ is undiminished. So is the erratic- yet-brilliant nature of the team. I must confess I am thoroughly enjoying watching them – especially their bowling – with Afridi and Umar Gul in fine form…   India has never lost to Pakistan in the World Cup – but I have a feeling, they just might start this time…


So why am I so skeptical about our chances? And before questions are raised about my patriotism, may I just  reiterate that I’d love to be proved wrong just this once and see India raise the cup.  But here are 5 reasons why I think India hasn’t got what it takes to win the cup….

1.     Inconsistent Batting – India hasn’t chased at all in this World Cup barring a match or two against minor teams. And when it has the famed batting line-up has struggled… Batting first India has set up decent totals, but not huge ones. England got to 325-odd to tie the match, South Africa chased down almost 300. Remember,  in the match against south Africa, after the start India got, there was talk of a 400-plus score but from about 260 -1 , the batsmen collapsed.

2.    Sachin, Sehwag and then? – Only the openers seem to be clicking for India in this World Cup… Gambhir has played well in streaks and so has Yuvraj with two 50s. But the rationale for dropping Virat Kohli to number 4, or sometimes even 5 is something beyond me… It is like tampering with the only player in the batting line-up who has performed consistently well in that spot over the last 12 months.

3.    Yusuf Pathan – Clearing the boundary on large South African grounds seems to have created an impression in the minds of people and selectors alike – this man is a match-winner… On his day, so is may be the young rookie , who has one or two 1st class matches under his belt, but that is not the point. Is Pathan a consistent performer, and the answer, as statistics would bear it, is NO . Strike rates are a good thing – you cannot  win matches on strike rates alone , you  need to bother the scorer ever so often and put runs on the board.  And Pathan bowls a bit – ‘a bit’ being the operative phrase here… in 5 matches he has just 1 wicket, an average of about 150 and an economy that around 5 runs an over… The batting fairy seems to have deserted his and taken her little glass-bat – Pathan the Mighty now has a very mortal 63 runs from his 5 innings,  some of them batting at number 4…

4.    Bowlers required, please apply to Team India – So you put up a score of 300 you need bowlers to defend it… you also need bowlers to restrict other teams to manageable par-scores should you be chasing… Even Bangladesh got over 280 against our bowling attack – so what can we defend? Let’s face it, apart from Zaheer, we haven’t got a glass act. Munaf tries, Nehra (especially after South Africa) is a No-No, Sreesanth , just scary… In the twist-and-turns department, Harbhajan is the only act that seems to be on the stage, Chawla hit out of the park,  and fill-ins like Yuvraj getting some stick and some laughs… And when it comes to getting 13-14 runs of the last over, teams have started fancying themselves against India – we have no bowler who knows how to keep it tight at ‘ the death’.

5.    Batting power plays – There is something about power plays that gets India all tied  up in knots. Our team doesn’t bleed blue – it just bleeds and gives us the blues – wickets tumble in a heap, everyone scramble for the pavilion – and the commentators and experts, for cover, revising their analysis ball-by-ball… In the match against South Africa, India lost 4 wickets in the crucial power play for just 30 runs… starting a collapse in which 9 wickets fell for just 29 runs- and India couldn’t even bat out its full quota of overs… Perhaps team India is too predictable in its use of the power play – why can’t we take it  in, may be,  the 25th over and ask a few questions of the opposition skipper which force him to make strategy changes. Taking it anywhere after 38 is expected- between 40 and 45 is anticipated and therefore bowling combinations, etc are worked out far-far in advance… I am willing to concede that the batting Powerplay has proved a puzzle for most teams, not knowing whether to take it when the going is good or when they need to find a way out of a mess. But at least teams from outside the subcontinent seem to be experimenting with the mix…


So feast your eyes on India and knock yourself out, before Dhoni and his boys manage to knock themselves out…

CRICKET from the Couch: Seeking - 5 true, blue bowlers

It’s evident, isn’t it – bowling isn’t India’s strong suit… and  yes I have heard all this talk about playing to your strengths, but in a limited over game,  if 6 batsmen don’t work, then 7 wouldn’t…  But batting later -  first, my common sense gyan about India’s bowling woes.

India has so far played 2 spinners Chawla and Harbhajan , and Zaheer and Munaf as the new ball options. Interestingly, while other teams like South Africa have tossed the new ball to a spinner, India has preferred to stick to medium- fast bowlers (make that more medium than fast – either seldom bowls over 135 kmph at their fastest).

As I watched India bowl at Ireland today, something that was almost self-evident struck me hard. Sure, Ireland got just 207, but both our spinners had been far from impressive.

Against Ireland, Bhajji bowled his 9 overs for 29 but got just the 1 wicket. Chawla bowled his 8 overs for 56 runs and went wicketless.  17 overs -75 runs and 1 wicket from 2 of India’s main bowlers. Compare this to the two people who in Dhoni’s lineup make up the 5th bowler – Yuvraj Singh and Yusuf Pathan. Today Yuvi was on song – got 5 wickets – but between the two of them they also got 17 overs in. 17 overs -63 runs and 5 wickets.  And if that made you say ‘Whoa!’, hold that  - there’s more…

Harbhajan’s 2 wickets in 3 matches have cost him 64 runs a piece – that when 2 of the matches were against so-called ‘minnows’ – Bangladesh and Ireland. Chawla has played 2 matches – and his 2 wickets – both in the England game has cost him about the same. Compare the runs per over – and Bhajji has had a better time – conceding just four-and-a-half, Chawla has been taken to the cleaners – the English and Irish  managed over 7 runs from each Chawla over. Compare that to Zaheer’s 8 wickets at 16 a  piece, or Munaf’s 7 at 20, and you’d know why I said the bowling woes were self evident…

Before I move on to my prescription – here’s the curious case of Mr Yusuf Pathan. He biffs the ball a long way and turns his arm over – a sort of a half bowler who makes up number 5.  And here’s where it gets curiouser – Mr Pathan has in the 2 matches before the Ireland game scored just 22 runs in the tournament – and when it comes to bowling he’s bowled 18 overs – picking up just the 1 wicket  and giving away almost 6 runs an over. Yet the wise  men of cricket ( and skipper Dhoni , et al) consider him a critical part of team . So am I the one missing something – or is it just the case of people’s vision being coloured by a couple of biffy innings in South Africa – and some lusty blows against the Irish? Perhaps the team management feels its necessary to have someone who gives the crowd its money’s worth… then have the courage to drop one of your specialist batsmen – a Gambhir maybe – and let Pathan cliam his place in the side. Currently, it seems to be in place of a bowler, and his bowling isn’t upto scratch.

So I don my ‘Dhoni’ cap – and muster the courage to say the unspeakable in the Indian cricket… play 5 bowlers, it may be important, not just to contain sides but also to defend totals… totals that have tended to be northwards of 300 this World Cup.


Drop Chawla – More than anything, his confidence seems to have taken a beating – and bring in Ashwin.

Ravichandran Ashwin is a better bat, and definitely a more restrictive spinner. He isn’t a tourist on the squad, is he… and he would complement Harbhajan quite well. Besides, if we must give him match practice, then the knockout stage isn’t really the right place to start.

Should courage find its way to the captain, then here’s the second bitter pill for Dhoni – drop Pathan and get in Ashish Nehra. The team could do with 5 bowlers – then between Yusuf and Yuvi, whatever they bowl is a bonus. Look at it another way, it covers for someone having a bad-bad night. Again, if Nehra is indeed match fit, no better way of testing it, is there…

Besides, Nehra has picked up 154 ODI wickets at an average of 31, and does exceedingly well in the World Cup where he averages 19. So, if he is fit, and given the stage, the man does have a habit of picking up wickets.

In Ashwin’s case, when he played for the Chennai Super Kings, he was Dhoni’s go to man. Besides, in the 7 one-dayers he has played, Ashwin has picked up 14 wickets at an average of 23, conceding under 5 runs an over.

So while regular cricketing wisdom suggest that 2 off-spinners and 2 left arm seamers may not be great – and 5 bowlers is a no-no, Mr Dhoni please think out-of-the-box. After all, there’s a World Cup out there to be won, so put your best foot forward, or in this case, your best arm over… After all, if runs win matches, so do wickets…

CRICKET from the couch: Why India should play a second spinner

I saw India beat the living hell out of a Kiwi team that hadn’t a clue what hit them. Sure, it was a practice match and there wasn’t much at stake – but Dhoni’s men in blue served notice again – this World Cup could well be India’s. It is in the sub-continent, India has the hopes of a billion people riding on their shoulders, the team has struck form in the last year or so and most batsmen in the team seem to have hit a purple patch.

India has an embarrassment of riches in the batting department. Sehwag and Sachin are any one-day side’s dream opening combination – between the two of them, they have over 70 one-day centuries and over 25 thousand runs.  Then at number 3, there is Gautam Gambhir – who has been batting well, can open and seems to have a wise head on young shoulder. He served notice by a run-a ball 89 at Chepauk’s warm up game, consolidating when needed and accelerating at the right time.

Let’s not forget, the top contender for the number 3 spot is Virat Kohli. He’s  also from Delhi and  has had  a year to kill for – almost 1400 runs since January 2009, at a 50-esque average and a strike rate touching 90. He has scored 4 centuries and has made the crucial No 3 spot his own with some sensible, yet scintillating batting. So clearly then this is a toss-up… not just for who gets into the final playing eleven, but also for who bats where.

The other big face-off for a slot is between Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina – both are southpaws, bowl a bit of spin and are certified partnership wreckers. So who gets in? Raina has had a disastrous series in South Africa… true he did get to fifty in just 25 balls against the Kiwis, but is that good enough for him to be picked over Yuvi? Solely on recent form, I’d pick Yuvi any day of the week and twice on Sundays. There is little to choose from between Raina and Yuvraj as batsmen. Yuvraj is also a useful left-arm spinner and has played more-than-double the number of matches  (265 to Raina’s 111). Add to that his previous experience in the World cup and he is your go-to-guy in that ‘hallowed’ middle order.

Captain MS Dhoni picks himself – after all he’s also the wicket keeper of the team – so barring any mishaps he slots in at No 5 or 6. With an unbeaten 62-ball century  in the warm up against New Zealand , Dhoni looks like he could lead the team by example with the bat – in the middle overs and at the death. And after his marauding performance against South Africa in the ODIs there, I’d say Yusuf Pathan is also a shoo-in.

So in the batting department, India has a problem of plenty – that’s both good and bad… Good - because bench strength is required to get through long tournaments and some amount of healthy competition within the team helps raise the bar. Bad – because it makes selecting the playing-eleven difficult.

And with such names in your side, there is a great urge to play all of them – so you could end up with a team that has 7 batsmen then Yusuf Pathan as an all rounder and just 3 specialist bowlers. The other day, I heard, Sunny Gavaskar say India should play 7 batsmen – pitches in the subcontinent are batsmen-friendly and the team must put up 300-plus scores or chase them down.

I read an op-ed which suggested Dhoni should come in at number 7 – and Yusuf Pathan should follow at 8. I have one question – if 6 batsmen can’t score, what makes you think the 7th or 8th can? Also on Indian pitches, having scored 350, you’d still need to defend it or if the opposition bats first, you need a bowling line-up which can give your batsmen a shot at a ‘chase-able’ total – whatever that may be.

So, with my cricket-fan common sense and perspective from the couch, here’s what the Indian playing 11 should look like.

Gambhir and Sehwag open and set it up with a right-left combination. Virat Kohli follows at number 3 – a spot that he’s made his own. Sachin, the man with the 51 centuries and nearly 450 ODIs, should come in at number 4 – good if we lose a few quick wickets and he needs to bat with the lower order, almost an anchor for the side.

Follow that up with a Raina or Yuvi (yeah, one of them should be 12th man) at 5, the skipper MSD at 6 and a Yusuf Pathan at 7. If you need quick runs, promote Pathan up the order – he’ll hit irrespective of his place in the batting line-up.

And then the bowlers, Bhajji – he’s no mug with the bat and can slog a few, a Piyush Chawla or a Ravichandran Ashwin, both handy with the bat and then Zaheer with either Nehra or Sreesanth.

What this would allow India to have is 4 specialist bowlers – who’d in an ideal world (and I know there are aberrations) will bowl 40 overs. Then Dhoni would need to rely on Yusuf Pathan, Sehwag and Yuvraj or Raina for just 10 overs. Of one of the bowlers has an off-day, use your part-timers for more. Under the lights on low, slow tracks, an Ashwin will be extremely restrictive and a Piyush Chawla wicket-taking as the warm-up match against Australia proved.

But this is what I want – what are the odds of it happening?

Well, there are indications that Raina may have to sit out and wait for Yuvi to goof–up, so that’s one on the checklist. Ashwin getting the nod is a long shot – conventional wisom suggests that with Bhajji in they won’t play another off-spinner. Of course, proponents say the part-time bowlers Sehwag and Yusuf also bowl off-spin, so there are enough options. I’d like to see Ashwin play because he’s a very different kind of bowler – flat and straight – ideal for keeping runs down. Piyush Chawla  is one googly even the team management may be foxed about. Chawla  has clearly proven his wicket-taking abilities, but a leg-spinner in a one-dayer is always a bit of a risk, especially when the bowler has the tendency to bowl a 4-ball each over…

India’s first match against Bangladesh may give some indications, but I think the final shape of the playing (and, I hope, winning) eleven, will be seen in the match against England on the 27th – India will be keen to pull out all stops to win against one of the strongest sides in their group. 

Egypt crisis - Talking Pictures

An Egyptian anti-government protester kissing riot police.


Those who make peaceful protest impossible make violent revolution inevitable.

CRICKET from a Couch: Bruised at Eden

The World Cup is back in India after 15 years and the enthusiast in me wants to travel across the country and track the fortunes of the Indian team.

But when it comes to cricket, I’ve firmly settled  on the couch – or in this case an office chair (a rather comfortable one, if my colleague Kumud will spare me his). That’s from where I intend to watch most of the games – cricket is a 4-letter word in my house – I’m allowed an innings of T-20 or sometimes if the wife isn’t there a couple hours of test cricket… after all monopolies aren’t a good thing and with so many regular demands on the TV, cricket takes a back seat.

But why the couch? For starters its comfy, I get to eat and drink while I watch – distance provides perspective, and in these days of snick-o-meters and stump cams, great perspective .

AND the only World Cup match I went to the grounds to watch left both for me and the nation bruised and sore.

Eliot wrote ‘April is the cruelest month of the year’ but in Kolkata, March can be equally cruel, if not more…

Over 90,000 people crammed into Eden Gardens at around noon – the match would begin at 2pm – but security concerns meant that almost everybody was seated an hour early.  In the L-stand at mid-on  I rued my decision of not going with my father to the clubhouse  - by 1pm the ruing had turned to cussing – oh what I wouldn’t give for the Bijolygrill lunch-packets and  the shade of the club house ( there was no AC then, but at least there were some fans).

But India was taking on Sri Lanka, it was the semi-final of the world cup  and I had Bhoomba for company. (Boomba- aka Amitava Ghosh- my friend from school, who had both a scooter and a car at his disposal, and a girl from the neighbouring  ‘sister’  school -  which made him an uber cool 17-year old to hang out with.  Sometimes such names of endearment make me think Bengali parents and relatives are just, plain cruel.)

On producing our tickets as we entered the stands, we’d been handed a 1.5 litre pet-bottle of cola – and by the time the captains walked out for the toss, I’d finished mine – Boomba was wiser, he was doing his best Lawrence of Arabia imitation and held on to his cola bottle as if we had the Sahara to cross…

Azhar (the Eden favourite) won the toss and invited Sri Lanka to bat – we gasped… Sanath Jayasuriya and Romesh Kaluwitharana walked out  and we wondered how many would they put on… A few days ago in a league game in Delhi they’d  taken the Indian bowlers to the cleaners  and chased down 272 with ease…  That memory must’ve  been fresh in  the Indian skipper’s mind – he did not want to set them up for another chase…

In the first over Jayasuriya slashed – Eden roared – he was caught on third man – and the next ball, Kalu went playing a mirror image – 2 gone for just 1 run on board and India couldn’t have asked for a better start – we were jumping for joy… the cola pet-bottles becoming poor ‘champagne’ substitutes for many… (Boomba  was still waiting for his oasis to arrive)

In walked Aravinda – he crunched a few – at the other end Gurusinha gave him company – but he perished when Sri Lanka was 30-odd… 3 down in the  first 15 overs – Srinath on fire, Lankans on the mat…

And that’s  when  the plot started to unravel – first Mahanama, then Ranatunga – the Lankan middle order started getting a few – nothing spectacular but still enough to keep them in  the game (or so we thought at that time) They ended up with 250 -51 from their quota of overs and India needed just over 5 runs an over under the lights.

That was easy-peazy – Sachin ‘smashing’ Tendulkar could get them all… at 6 pm the crowds were pleased -  India was almost there… Boomba went hunting for water – his cola bottle firmly tucked under his arm…

India did not begin tool well either – Sidhu went within the first 15- 20 minutes. Sachin and Sanjay Manjerakar looked to keep us on course… not spectacular but efficient enough – almost a 100 runs were added…

And them started the tumble, first Tendulkar, then Azharuddin for a duck and then Manjrekar – India lost 3 wickets for 5-6 runs as Jayasuriya tightened the screws -  Dharmasena, Murali chipped in…

And another 3 went – a deluge. India lost 7 wickets for 22 runs (I did research this one) and that was simply too much for us to take. First paper sunshades rolled into balls, accompanied by boos, newspaper rolls, etc soon followed, as did the empty water bottles… The crowd was too fried to think rationally – India had collapsed and that was perhaps the only way to express their frustration…

 We stood up on the concrete benches (no bucket seats back then in the stands) and joined the ‘hai-hai’  chorus. Clive Lloyd called-off the match , awarding it to Sri Lanka, Kambli walked off in tears (why I wouldn’t know, he’d played painfully slowly for his 10 runs).

Riot control personnel of the Rapid Action Force had been deployed around the boundary when the crowd had started to get restive – may be that’s what allowed the match to go on for a bit more , for India to slide further…  These personnel now tried dispersing the crowd from the stand  - they tried to shoo us away….

And at that moment Boomba let go off his cola bottle – all 1.5 litres of it filled with a now-lukewarm cola drink – straight at on of the riot control cops. As it transpired he wasn’t alone – some others had (perhaps  of social politeness) ‘nursed’ their drink – and had the same idea…

Which bottle hit the blue camouflaged men, I don’t know… I ran almost the instant Boomba threw – the wicker batons flashed, the cops charged and we ran – out  the compound of the stadium, out on to the road, past the Gostho Pal statue, right across the Maidan. Mounted policemen everywhere not wanting to spare the rod, eager to ensure that as the team buses rolled out, the players were not attacked by the irate (and by now bruised and fast-dispersing) mob.

I ran till the Grand Hotel, my father had asked me to meet him there… Baba got his disheveled son something to eat, and as we drove back, innocuously told me ‘some Mike Jagger’ was sitting right behind him – ‘very disturbing it was’ he said as people wanted this Jagger guys’s autographs.  Wow – that was just how I wanted the day to end… Mike Jagger-ed…

So  now for one-day internationals in general, and the World Cup in particular, I’ve confined myself to the couch… that from where I stand, has the best view in the house… and no ‘Mike Jagger’ surprises.

My Take : Huns Dhun & displacement

This is a great video I found on You Tube - which depicts of the forced repatriation of Afghan refugees from Pakistan. Its also one of my favourite taranas from Rāga Hamsadhwani - brilliantly done by the Mekaal Hasan band.


I was stunned by the fact that an experience of displacement in North-West Pakistan could be so well captured by a Rāga of south Indian origin.


Hamsadhwani is a janya (derivative) rāga of Shankarabharaam, the 29th Melakarta Rāga. It has a pentatonic scale and doesn't have the Madhyamam (mā) and Dhaivatam (dhā).


I first heard the rāga at the Dover Lane music conference in Kolkata. It was the concert-closer (quite appropriate since it is intended for the second quarter of the night) and it stayed with me.


Ritwik Ghatak's Meghe Dhaka Tara  also has a very soulful rendition of this rāga by A Kanan. In Hindustani classical music (my apologies for making such a brouhaha of the north-south divide), Hamsadhwani is associated to the Bilalwal thāt.


Here's my lastest encounter with Hamsadhwani...

When I finally saw Sourav Ganguly

I remember staying up to watch Ganguly get a century at Lord's on debut - the summer of 1996, I'd been in Kolkata for four years, and yet with all my 'non-bengali' friends at school, reading Hindi, and still being a bit of a Delhi-wallah (where I grew up and went to school for almost a decade) I did not carry the burden of the entire 'Bengali nation'  on my shoulders.

I cheered for India - and remember feeling terrible as Rahul Dravid got out on 95. Sourav Ganguly, the first Bengali cricketer of note perhaps after Pankaj Roy, meanwhile, got his century - 131 he made before being bowled by Alan Mullaly, an English left-arm seamer who'd played much of his cricket in Australia.

India drew the match - and the next one at Nottingham, where Dada got another century. Good going, I thought... but that was about all. Dada wasn't still to die for.  So the guy had a good outing in England - let's wait and watch, I thought!

I sat up next year - Sahara Cup... Sourav was the only player playing the tournament it seemed, with bat, with ball, he could do nothing wrong...  Match-fixing and Sachin's poor run  as a captain meant Sourav was in the driver's seat by 2000. He'd played many a memorable innings, started opening in the shorter format - forming a successful partnership with Sachin, helped India chase a 300-plus score against Pakistan...

One innings that stood out was a 183 in the 1999 World Cup.

I was part of the audience at a TV show hosted by Dr Prannoy Roy at the Science City in Kolkata. Before the show, the large monitor was switched on to the match being broadcast live from Taunton, Dravid and Ganguly were smashing the Lankans all over the ball park. Everyone was hooked on.  Dr Roy walked in, saw how things stood, and joined us in watching the match - the recording for the show started over 2 hours behind schedule, after India finished their innings (having worked in TV for many years now, I know just how big a decision it is the postpone a shoot, or better still hold it up).

I appreciated but still did not see. It was as if Ganguly had a job to do and he was doing it well. Captaincy, batting, whatever...

All that changed on a Sunday morning in 2003. I'd woken up to see if the Indian openers would  survive the chin music at the Gabba ~ and I wasn't exactly disappointed. Sehwag got a breezy 40-odd and Akash Chopra survived well over a 100 balls for some 30-odd... And then an Indian collapse... In a space of 2-3 overs Sehwag, Tendulakar and Dravid back in the hut...

I'd seen this often - in the 1990s India won at home but not abroad. This was Australia...India was going down under... And then I saw Ganguly.

It was one of the finest counter-attacks by an Indian team (ranks right up there with Laxman's 281 in Kolkata). In cavalier fashion, Dada got 144 - ably supported by Laxman, India's often unsung hero in away-tests and Parthiv Patel, who hasn't been finding favour with the slectors ever since Dhoni arrived. Dada ensured India overtook Australia's 1st innings total - it was the 1st test of the series, and that set the tone for the tests to follow. Granted that both Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath were missing - but that Sunday at the Gabba, it was as if Gillespie, Braken and Co. has challenged Sourav Ganguly's manhood - he was a man possessed, riding his luck - and with him rode the nation - and I.

That's the day I saw Sourav Ganguly -  that's perhaps the day the probashi in in me turned madly Bengali... But is Sourav just a Bengali obsession?  Is cricket a bengali sport? Can Sourav Ganguly's contribution to Indian cricket be so overlooked?

We aren't a nation which respects its heroes- Dada'ism' is the philosphy by which the Dhonis of the world live... Is it fair to judge him because no one thought it fit to pick him for an IPL squad?