Dharna all night: AAP ka Gaana

Lyrics - Akash Bannerjee
Singing - Kandarp Relhan
Production - Pankaj and Kandarp

Sandy Storm blows Viru away

As a batsman, Sandeep Patil has a modest test record - an average in the mid thirties from 29 tests - and  two remarkable innings... one in his debut series in Australia where he smashed Lilee & Co. for a blistering 174 and another two years later in England - where he smashed 24 runs of a Bob Willis over. He was a member of the squad that won the World Cup in 1983.  Patil has been the manager for the Indian team, a rebel ICL team and the Director at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore.  And then six months ago, he was made Chairman of Selectors - the wise men who pick the squad, on whose shoulders rest the hopes of a billion people.

Today he's done something that I wouldn't normally associate with him,  or for that matter  any Indian selector. He's dropped Virender Sehwag. There I said it... DROPPED Virender Sehwag!

This comes after the exit of Gautam Gambhir - who was dropped at the start of this series. So India will search for opening 'nirvana' in  the next two tests  (and may be a few after that) with untested batsmen - Shikhar Dhawan and Ajinkya Rahane.

Gambhir and Sehwag are the only Indians to aggregate more than 4000 partnership runs in Tests - and that at average of over 52 in the last 8 years. They have gone where even the exhalted Mr Gavaskar hadn't ventured (Sunil Gavaskar and Chetan Chauhan -3010 runs at 53.75) - becoming one of just five pairs in test cricket to achieve this feat.

Admittedly, there was a huge gap between  their exploits home and away but consider these staggerring stats... In Viru,  we have a batsmen who holds the record for the top three test scores by an Indian - a man with 8500 test runs at an average that had fallen in a past 12 months just a tad under 50. A man who has played over 100 tests and has 23 centuries including two triple tons. Of the 26 batsmen to debut for India in the past 12 years, he just one of the two to have  scored a century on debut - and that was against South Africa, in South Africa. 

His partner, the dour Gauti, has played 54 tests for his 4000 runs, making 9 centuries on the way.

And we've just put them back on the drawing board -- consigned them to play Ranji Trophy for Delhi -- ostensibly in a bid to regain some form.  (Note to self: Must go to Kotla if  they're playing for Delhi)

It is a brave new world that Indian cricket must venture into when the team travels to South Africa later this year. So let me throw in my two bits for anyone who's listening -  bring back  Wasim Jaffer. The Mumbai run machine has had a phenomenal domestic season - his team Mumbai won everything in sight... And he has played 20 of his 31 tests abroad - for 5 centuries and almost 2000 runs at an average of 34 is better that most Indian batsmen overseas.

Satyendra Nath Bose: The 'god particle's' India connect

Scientists at Europe's CERN research centre have found a new subatomic particle that could be the Higgs boson, the basic building block of the universe. The 83-year-old British physicist Peter Higgs, who proposed the existence of the boson which bears his name in the 1960s, was at CERN today, and was clearly overwhelmed. "It is an incredible thing that it has happened in my lifetime," he said.

Much to the discomfort of many scientists, some commentators have labelled this the "God particle." And that indeed it may be. The Higgs boson, which until now has been a theoretical particle, is seen as the key to understanding why matter has mass, which combines with gravity to give an object weight. The idea is much like gravity and Isaac Newton's discovery of it: Gravity was there all the time before Newton explained it.

Interestingly, at CERN, there is a Chola bronze statue of Lord Shiva performing the cosmic dance called "Tandav" - the dance of destruction. Indian scientists are amongst those from 100 other nations working at CERN's atom smasher, the $10 billion Large Hadron Collider on the Swiss-French border, has been creating high-energy collisions of protons to investigate dark matter, anti-matter and the creation of the universe, which many theorize occurred in a massive explosion known as the Big Bang. And India has contributed high-tech equipment worth 30 million dollars and over 100 human years of expert service.

But that's not where the India connect ends. It’s much more fundamental but seems almost forgotten. The boson is named after an Indian physicist, Satyendra Nath Bose - who lived and worked in Kolkata and Dhaka - and was a contemporary of Albert Einstein.

He made important contributions to the field of quantum physics in the 1920s - contributions that changed how particle physics has been  studied ever since. Dr Bose's work on Quantum Mechanics was adopted by Einstein, who extended it to the concept of the Bose-Einstein condensate - a dense collection of bosons, sub-atomic particles with integer spin.

After his  graduation from Presidency College in Kolkata, and Masters from Calcutta University, Bose joined the Physics Department of the university in 1916. In 1921, he moved to the University of Dhaka where set up whole new departments and laboratories to teach Undergraduate and Graduate courses.

Bose moved back to Kolkata in 1945, and continued to research and teach there till his death in 1974. He was awarded the Padma Bhushan, India's second highest civilian award, in 1954.

Ironically, it was a 'mistake' by Bose that laid the foundations of the Bose–Einstein statistics or quantum statistics, as acknowledged by Einstein and Paul Dirac.

Bose wanted to show his students at the Dhaka University that the contemporary theory was inadequate, because it predicted results not in accordance with experimental results. But he committed an error in applying the theory, which unexpectedly gave a prediction that agreed with the experiment. Realising this may not be an error in fact, he fashioned his lecture into an article and sent it off to Albert Einstein - who translated it into German - and had it published in a leading European science journal.

In what may only be termed as a grave oversight, Satyendra Nath Bose was never considered for the Nobel Prize. Yet, at least 10 scientists have been awarded the Nobel for their research in the field of particle physics based on concepts like the Bose-Einstein Condensate or the boson - the last one in 2001, when Eric Allin Cornell, Carl Edwin Wieman and Wolfgang Ketterle were awarded for "the achievement of Bose-Einstein condensation in dilute gases of alkali atoms, and for early fundamental studies of the properties of the condensates."

 (Some parts of this write up have been published on www.ndtv.com)

No News, Bad English and a "eureka" weekend

NEWS - that is what I live for, and by. Quite literally. It is what has driven me for the last decade and more - my source of sustenance,  my adrenalin rush, the raison d'être for my being... And  with that comes the constant struggle to put out news as correctly as possible, as fast as possible - and in this endeavour to be first, fast and accurate (in which I must admit I am routinely beaten) - my effort to speak and write correct English.

This weekend past, I learnt that both these things (NEWS and English) I could do without; that maybe I have attached so much importance to these two aspects that I've had many opportunities pass me by, many moments missed and many people discarded as 'not being up to the mark.'

A view from a hilltop at Mukteshwar, 40 kms from Nathuakhan

And all this after spending two nights at a quaint cottage in Natuakhan , a village at an elevation of 6400 feet in Nainital district - 340 kilometres from Delhi (that translates into an 8-9 hour drive).

So what brought about this epiphany?

Before I get to that , here's the company - Me, My Wife (she's known me for ten years and my aunt once told me the only reason I was seeing her was that her English was better than mine), My Cousin (the moving force behind this trip, and someone who pestered me long enough to take time off for it), Her Friend (who turned out to be an affable vegetarian and a great sport).

Since names aren't really needed in what I am about to narrate - I shall - for the benefit of all - refer to our three protagonists (sans yours truly) as Wife, Cousin and Friend.

(My) Cousin, who I think pens her thoughts down as a cathartic exercise, and carries her note book everywhere, sat me down on a lazy, idyllic afternoon - and read out some of what she had written - thoughts that were meant to be intensely private - and perhaps, all she expected was an ear with empathy. Instead I had this great urge (and I did tell her so) to edit the copy for articles, prepositions - just tighten the script, say it better.  That evening on maturer (read: whiskey-laced) reflection I realised what a jerk I had been.  I had as much right in telling her that piece needed a quick spell-check and grammar-fix as US of A telling countries around the world how to run their affairs... at least the latter has money and power - I don't.

And then there was (the) Friend - a person who I'd never met before - a new acquaintance who I was busy being polite to. I 'couldn't saw' the 'didn't went'  with a grimace and a clenched fist. At dumb-charades, Cold Creek Manor was interpreted as Cold Creek Manner...and there he strutted on as I threw wild guesses.  And then I realised what an affable and fun chap he was - easy of manner and clear of thought. No, I did not like the way he spoke in English and had the greatest urge to correct him, but yes, I could understand every word he said - his thoughts well punctuated.  The man had been  to a top B-school and cracked the Chartered Accountancy exam whilst still in college; he reports to bosses in Shanghai and Hong Kong and they seem to understand him perfectly well.  So here is the question - is the obsessiveness about correct English overrated? Isn't there a world out there ( a glimpse of which I had over the weekend) which depends on language for communication, and does seem to get on pretty well in making itself understood?  Is this brouhaha of  'oh the missed hyphen' and 'such elementary mistakes' just that - floccinaucinihilipilification (much ado over something of little or no value)?

And as I was  gathering my thoughts on the way back - it struck me ~ hadn't seen a newspaper in three days, no TV or radio either - and more importantly, hadn't missed it. No NEWS - that was a first in at least 10 years, and I really can't remember the last time I went 48 hours without looking at a newspaper, or  at least a half hour news bulletin (even if it was of the Doordarshan variety). And to wonder how that though hadn't crossed my mind in all this time. I was happy star-gazing, book-reading, chit-chatting and whiskey-sipping - almost as if all was well with the world and there was nothing that I wanted to know about. Agreeable food and company, good wine and a good book - and my (long-suffering) companion of ten years - Wife, were all that I'd thought about. The only other constant presence in my thoughts - Masha - our three-year old Labrador, who we'd had to leave behind in Delhi.

Hmmm! Stunned as I am at my own eureka moments - it humbles me to know what I do doesn't even affect everyone I know. So while I still find it in myself to strive to do better at work - I realise more than ever - that is what it is - work. Yes, I enjoy it - sometime vicariously so - but that then it hits home - it's  a part of my life (by implication - there is more to life).

So here's looking forward to a few more 'newsless' days, as I set forth to discover all that  I have buried away and forgotten, locked and left behind - my 'janus' faces - and see where  or what that leads me to...

And they all fall down...

I must confess. I love watching test matches. India winning just makes the experience a whole lot better, but I'd watch a test match anyway. 

And on an Australia tour, for an Indian TV spectator, the Perth Test is most comfortable. And an 8 am start makes it the perfect accompaniment to a morning cup of coffee, in the cold Delhi morning.  But that's me.

For Indian batsmen, it’s a whole different ball game - they go waca, waca with the extra pace and bounce of the wicket. But this series was different. For once there  wasn't a perceptible difference between how Dhoni & Co played in Sydney and the way it’s been so far in Perth. And maybe as an upside, for once I can't decide whether our bowling is worse than our batting or is it the other way around.

Cricinfo's Coverdale says 'Maidens Choke India' - well, I'd have been glad if they just got two an over but hung around. The problem with the current Indian line up seems to be that they are unable  of sticking around and batting four-five sessions. In  the last four innings India has played, they've been out  for a team total of under-200 three times, and this when the hallowed batting line up has a top order with nearly 60,000 test runs between them! For Sachin, Dravid and Laxman, this was supposed to be their swansong down under. But that ain't happening - no wonder it’s called a 'fairy tale' ending... and this is after all test cricket, not a KJo bollywood special.

After the England whitewash last year, I wondered if things could get worse. The Windies provided some relief at home but then came the big boxing day loss and the massive mauling in Sydney. And still the the question persisted - Can the losses get any bigger? Well, Team India is on track - shot out for 161, and then pulverized by a David Warner blitzkrieg. And to think, this was the Team No 1 just six months ago. Gautam Gambhir keeps asking (on a commercial) - Have I made it large? Will someone please tell him - yes, you have and so have the others... Large hearts are, after all, what must keep them going in the face of such enormous losses.

Maybe, I should just blame it on Friday the 13th bringing bad luck... Yes, that's just what it was. Tomorrow is another day. I  solemnly resolve to wake up to see the Australian openers walk out and pray... uh oh!...  my agnosticism won't do any good... Hmmm, perhaps I'll wake the missus up, she'd pray... She feels bad for all the 40-year-olds  going down under...

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