Saga of a woman trailblazer By Randeep Wadehra

The Memories of Dr Haimabati Sen translated by Geraldine Forbes & Tapan Raychaudhuri. Roli Books, New Delhi. Pages 407. Rs 495.

This volume portrays the struggles, pain and tragedy experienced by a courageous woman who had to find her niche in life overcoming the forbidding, literally asphyxiating, social conditions prevailing in Bengal during the 19th century. Forbes and Raychaudhuri have translated these memoirs, using the non-published material written in Bengali by the late Haimabati Sen.

Dr Sen was born to a Ghosh couple in 1866 in Khulna district in the present Bangladesh. Married at the age of nine and a half years to a 45-year-old twice-widowed father of two daughters, Haimabati soon became a child widow in 1876. Destiny had something different, though not exactly pleasant, in store for this extraordinary girl.

Despite her unsympathetic in-laws, she determinedly pursued her education. Shunned by her brothers after her parents’ death, Haimabati went to Benaras — the refuge of widows (by a strange coincidence the town is in the news thanks to "Water" — a movie on widows). Soon she was able to find employment as a teacher in a school established by Indian reformers.

Abandoned by her own kin and in-laws, Haimabati assiduously built a network of relationships. This was essential to survive in a hostile world. She was an attractive 20-year-old woman, enough to attract undesirable attention of the local rogues. She left for Calcutta to live and study in a "home" for widows there.

She remarried at the age of 23. She was able to pursue her studies even after marriage. She entered the Campbell Medical School in 1891 for a three-year course. She proved to be a bright student. When she was awarded a gold medal the college’s male students went on the rampage! An indicator of the perennially brittle male ego.

Later on she also won the Viceroy’s silver medal — so good was her academic career. Yet she found it almost impossible to find a job commensurate with her qualifications.

This very interesting biography tells us about the social, economic and political conditions prevailing in the 19th century India with the focus on Bengal.

This is the saga of a woman-pioneer who had to fight entrenched prejudices and hurdles to achieve her ambitions — modest by today’s standards but rather big considering her days. She was a professional doctor, of whose income her husband lived. It hurt his ego, but not enough to behave in a responsible manner. Tragedy was waiting to happen in her life. And it did. How? Read this engrossing book, you will find it more interesting and thought-provoking than most of the so-called best sellers.

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Love, piety and devotion By Randeep Wadehra

Love Never Faileth by Eknath Easwaran. Penguin Books, New Delhi. Page 288. Rs 250.

Literature on Christianity is probably the most voluminous in the world. This should not be surprising as, in the past 2000 years, Christianity has been evolving at an awesome pace — from persecutions by the Jews, the Dark Ages, the Crusades and finally the transformation into world religion thanks as much to the British empire as to the missionary zeal of the clergy.

St Francis preached self-reform in order to set an example for others. It is not necessary for others to come in direct contact with the messiah to attain salvation or to shed evil. All one has to do is to mould one’s actions and thoughts in such a manner as to reach the ideal. Perfection will come in due course, if one remains consistent. Thus one should pray, "Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console."

St Paul believed in the purest form of love sans selfishness. To quote him, "I may have all the knowledge in the world, I may be able to speak 14 languages, including one or two that are spoken only by angels. I may have crossed the Atlantic in a canoe with only a cat for company. What does it matter? If I haven’t learnt to love, I am nothing."

St Augustine had to resolve the dilemma of finding happiness. As he states in his "Confessions", the first spiritual autobiography in the western world, "But where did they know (happiness), that they should desire it so? Where have they seen it that they should love it? Obviously we have it in some way, but I do not know how. Unless we knew the thing with certain knowledge, we could not will it with so certain a will .... May it be that one gets joy from this, one from that? One man may get it one way, another another, yet all alike are striving to attain this one thing, namely, that they may be joyful."

Mother Teresa was an embodiment of love in its sublime form. To bring succour to the suffering and neglected humanity requires an attitude that only a saint can possess. She was truly an incarnation of love. She also believed in relentlessly waging peace in order to avert war. She had the capacity to make even the greatest of sceptics believe in her life’s mission.

Love, compassion and serving the suffering humanity have always been the salient features of Christianity. The author has tried to emphasise these aspects by highlighting the life and times of St Francis, St Paul, St Augustine and Mother Teresa. This volume will be of interest to both the believers and non-believers.

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A rational take on spiritualism By Randeep Wadehra

The mystic eye by Sadhguru

Jaico, Mumbai. Pages: x+262. Price: Rs. 250/-

Spiritualism, as a concept, is dynamic enough to include both the conformist and the heretic. So, you can be spiritual without being religious. Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev is certainly an unusual spiritual guru who does not want “to make spirituality into a bundle of symbols”. He would rather concentrate on making spirituality a practicable concept – something that one should be able to understand rationally and benefit from its application. Although, in this volume – written in interview format – Sadhguru deals with such subjects as after-life, enlightenment and God, one finds his discourse on Dhyanalinga quite absorbing. Pointing out that the whole aspect of Shiva and Shakti is about duality of life he avers that our sense organs enhance this duality, which in turn is the source of all pleasures and pains in the world.

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Relevance of Marxism By Randeep Wadehra

The ethical dimensions of Marxist thought by Cornel West

Aakar Books, N. Delhi. Pages: xxxiv+183. Price: Rs. 225/-.

Karl Marx’s Manifest der kommunistischen Partei (The Communist Manifesto) – published in 1848 – and three volumes of Das Kapital (first volume published in 1867 and remaining two posthumously) form the underpinnings of an ideology which influenced socialist and communist movements globally. The disintegration of Soviet Union has been generally interpreted as failure of leftist ideology. The ‘triumph’ of capitalism has not really led to the end of all ideological debate however. The subaltern discourse – of which this tome is an important part – continues, involving not only African-Americans but also large swathes of populace in Latin America, Asia and Africa. Cornel West has strongly advocated reinterpretation of Marxist rubric with emphasis on its hitherto ignored ethical keystone. In fact the author, a Professor of religion and director of Afro-American studies at Princeton University, adopts a multi-disciplinary approach involving theology and philosophy, among others, in his attempt to show that ethics was an integral part of the development of Marx’s own thinking throughout his career. Although West holds “influential interpreters” like Engels, Kautsky and others responsible for “obscuring” Marx’s ethical concerns, the fact remains that his complex writings have been open to more than one interpretation. If the Kautsky school of thought failed to appreciate his moral concerns then Lenin added the theories of state and imperialism, along with the principles of revolutionary organization, to the Marxist canon, thus introducing totalitarian concepts.

While giving a ‘Christian Black African-American’ perspective to the post-Soviet Union Marxism, this dissertation, originally written about a decade back, becomes all the more relevant to the contemporary scenario obtaining in the United States hit by recession and recent Wall Street disaster. West’s longish autobiographical introduction is absorbing as it tells us of his own evolution as a thinker. Wannabe philosophers and political scientists may like to read it.

Of drug mafias, martyrs and election eve antics

PUNJABI ANTENNA

 By 

Randeep Wadehra

Well into the 21^st century globalization is no more a hot topic. It has simmered down to the status of a mundane fact. However, if one goes by a recent debate on Doordarshan Jalandhar, the phenomenon’s cultural-literary aspects are still live issues. Globalization’s influence on Punjabi literature – style and content of narratives in Punjabi novels and short story – is becoming increasingly manifest. Is this good or bad? The jury is still out.

Cut off from rest of the world Mallana nestles in the scenic highlands of Himachal Pradesh. But, instead of attracting nature lovers, it became the target of drug mafias from Europe, Israel and elsewhere who encouraged bhang cultivation here. Soon the hamlet became notorious as smugglers’ den for charas, ganja, hashish and other opiates. This not only destroyed the local culture but also threatened the health and happiness of locals. OP Sharma of Narcotics Control Bureau led a crusade against the drug mafia. In an interview with Ritesh Lakhi he revealed that today cultivation of bhang and drug smuggling has been almost wiped out, but the problem of rehabilitation continues. We learn all this in a thoroughly researched investigative report, Kee Mallana nu milegi rihayee? with Harpreet Singh as anchor and Lakhi as investigator-reporter.

With parliamentary elections approaching, the region’s politicians are becoming increasingly media-friendly. If Congress Party’s Kanwar Pal Singh Rana (Straight Talk) and Ambika Soni (Guftagu) strummed up the familiar all-quiet-on-the-PPCC-front song, Akali Dal’s Valtoha and Haryana BJP’s Harjit Singh Grewal (both on Straight Talk) yodeled we’ll-sweep-the-polls-in-Punjab-and-Haryana lyric. What one finds interesting is the straight face with which our politicians pretend being virtue personified while damning their opponents. However, Soni – a minister at the centre – preferred to stay clear of local politics and talked mainly of her efforts to promote Punjab as a tourist destination. Nevertheless, with every passing day on-camera antics involving accusations, justifications and counter-accusations, seasoned with whiffs and wafts of scams and scandals, are going to get increasingly more like sitcoms.

By laying down their lives for the nation martyrs become beacons for succeeding generations. But how many of today’s youth are even aware of the sacrifices made by our freedom fighters let alone adopt them as role models? Bhagat Singh’s birth centenary has generated a lot of interest in his life and thoughts. Producer-anchor Davinder Singh’s Talaash Bhagat De Waarsan Di, telecast last fortnight in two episodes, was outstanding for several reasons. First, the attempt was more to understand the man and his ideology than to project him in a preconceived image. The documentary featured thinkers from different walks of life. Bhagat Singh’s nephew Abhay Sandhu complained that his physical appearance rather than thought content has been given more prominence in political discourse. He also lamented the attempt by political parties to appropriate him for their own partisan ends. Prof Chaman Lal of JNU described him as chetna (consciousness). Malwinder Singh Waraich dwelt upon the team work comprising Bhagat Singh, Bhagwati Charan, Sukhdev and Chandra Shekhar Azad. Other participants included Gursharan Singh (the iconic theatre personality), Satnam (research scholar and thinker), Karam Barsatt (journalist), and Balkar Singh Dakonda (Kisan leader). All agreed that Bhagat was more a crusader against oppression than an opponent of the British.

This comprehensively researched incisive documentary needs to be telecast at the national level. Perhaps the PTC News would consider providing subtitles in Hindi and English for the benefit of national audience.

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A very likeable oddball By Randeep Wadehra

Sunday Sentiments
by Karan Thapar
Wisdom Tree, N. Delhi.
Pages: ix + 232. Rs. 395

How wrong can one be while judging people, especially, when one hasn’t met them in person. After that televised interrogation of the sports icon, Kapil Dev, I’d developed a strong dislike for Karan Thapar. When I read a couple of his pieces in the Hindustan Times, I labelled him as an Anglophile and hence unpatriotic. Therefore, it was patriotic to ignore his writings. The loss, I concluded after reading this volume, has been entirely mine.

At the very outset he describes himself as an "oddball"; he confesses that his arguments are "rarely profound" and that he’s "not an original thinker"; worse, that his sense of humour "might take a little getting used to". Don’t believe him. If you do you’re going to miss reading this delightfully eclectic collection of insightful articles taking you through kaleidoscopic experiences. The prose is lucid and the style chatty.

In these short pieces he brings out the essence of his subject—be it a politician, sportsperson or a film personality. We all know that Advani is considered a hardliner vis-`E0-vis Muslims in general and Pakistan in particular. Yet, a day after the terrorist attack on our Parliament he and his wife went out of their way to greet the then High Commissioner of Pakistan, Ashraf Qazi, in a party. In another piece he reveals Qazi’s liking for Ram dhun—Gandhiji’s favourite hymn; and still another article tells us of a Pakistani lady diplomat, Tasnim Aslam, singing Ram bhajan in a party.

Thapar’s eye for detail comes through in his description of things that have gone wrong in the Rashtrapati Bhavan’s d`E9cor. Similar perceptiveness is evident in his observation on Madhuri Dixit’s penchant for sending contradictory messages through her eyes and speech; in his ability to see through Zia-ul-Haq’s elaborate graciousness; in the manner in which he portrays Bangladesh’s dictator Gen. Ershad’s attitude towards his wife; and in the discovery of Musharraf’s proclivity for wit. He’s equally sharp while portraying feminine traits of the three strong women of our subcontinent, viz., Indira Gandhi, Benazir Bhutto and Chandrika Kumaratunga.

Thapar is disarmingly honest when he reveals his ignorance of the history of Delhi or the niceties of the game of cricket. In another piece, on probity in public life, he becomes introspective and wonders whether he would’ve been able to resist the temptation of pocketing a proffered hush-money if he knew he could get away with it; after all, everyone has a price, or does one?

In a lighter vein, yet with brutal frankness, he describes how he walked off with a dressed chicken, costing `A3 7, from a London store without paying for it. His ruminations on morality and journalistic ethics are both pertinent and weighty.

His pieces on Afghanistan are nostalgic. He had spent a part of his childhood in Kabul. His chance encounter with a salesman of a London store who turned out to be a former Afghan diplomat belonging to the deposed royal family is poignant.

One didn’t know he had a sense of humour. His ability to laugh at himself is a revelation. When someone asked him at a party if he was Karan Thapar, he replied in the affirmative–ignoring his wife’s advice. "How odd. On screen you look tall and handsome but actually you’re short and ugly," his prospective "fan" observed. On more than one occasion Thapar has tried to demolish his, what he describes as, rakshas image.

Of course, Karan Thapar is no Tim Sebastian (of BBC’s Hard Talk fame) who believed in taking apart the interviewee with a lethal mix of polite fa`E7ade and pitiless interrogation. But he’s in a class of his own. The most enduring image one has is of Kapil Dev breaking down on the sets of Face to Face, courtesy Thapar’s relentless, almost brutal, questioning on the match-fixing issue. He certainly looks a "stern interrogator" on the small screen. Seldom saw him smile; and if at all he did it resembled a grimace. Yet, the pages of this book crackle with varied hues of humour.

His interviews with the two Laxmans, VVS and RK, introduce us to the typical South Indian brand of jest—biting satire articulated with a deadpan expression enforced with philosophical inflexion. Then you’ve the more robust Punjabi wit accompanied with backslapping bonhomie, as illustrated by an ex-diplomat’s observation on media’s status in Pakistan, viz., it’s not freedom of speech which is the issue there but freedom after speech.

The fact that he hasn’t written a word on the Kapil Dev episode shows that the man is truly of heightened sensitivity. From now on I’m not going to miss a single word written or uttered by Karan Thapar.

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Is SGPC now retreating from politics?

By 

Randeep Wadehra

Apart from being ‘mini parliament’ of Sikhs the Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee is a cash rich politico-religious entity has played a major role in the evolution of the Sikh society. With an annual budget of more than Rs 330 crore, the SGPC runs several hospitals, orphanages and educational institutions in Punjab and elsewhere, apart from spending on “dharam prachaar”. With this sort of financial and socio-religious clout it’s no wonder that the state’s two major political parties tried to get a stranglehold on the SGPC. However, due to historical reasons it remained more or less a handmaiden of the Shiromani Akali Dal, with Congress being the perennial spurned suitor. In fact it was the Akali led reformist movement during 1920s that culminated in the SGPC’s formation under the Sikh Gurdwaras Act, 1925. Since then, the Akali Dal and SGPC have monopolized the Sikh political space, leaving secular parties, especially the Congress, with no option but to either resort to not-so-democratic machinations or best the Akalis in the panthic rhetoric. Both were attempted but with tragic consequences for the state as well as the country. During the 1980s several militant organizations tried to upstage the SGPC by repeatedly convening Sarbat Khalsa – a sort of general body meeting – to seek legitimacy for themselves. However, with return of normalcy today the organization has resumed its role as the supreme representative of the Sikh Panth, with Shiromani Akali Dal dominating the body that has 140 elected members, five head ministers and 15 co-opted members (20 seats are reserved for scheduled caste Sikhs).

However, going by the tone and tenor of the two panthic organizations today, the political climate is changing. Moving away from the sectarian rhetoric the Akali Dal under Sukhbir Singh Badal, has adopted development as its main political agenda. Power generation, education and building of infrastructure are getting a never-before priority in the state government’s budget. Even SGPC is refraining from going ballistic on such sensitive issues as the Dera Sacha Sauda controversy and the Congress attempts at setting up an independent Haryana Shiromani Gurdwara Prabandhak Committee. Instead, it is focusing on such issues as eradicating female feticide and promoting environmental rejuvenation in Punjab. Not that the panthic issues are being ignored, it’s just that these are being kept on the back-burner for now.

The longevity of this phase will depend upon the success of these programs as well as electoral benefits in future elections. After all the Akali Dal cannot afford to displease its constituency, viz., the rural Jat Sikhs, who form the backbone of its political superstructure.