Inspirational tales By Randeep Wadehra

The world’s best inspiring stories by G. Francis Xavier
Jaico. Pages: 164. Price: Rs. 195/-

Idealism and positive mindset are essential for the development of a healthy society. Along with other factors, inspirational literature helps in nurturing and sustaining the two qualities, thus contributing to an individual’s all round personality development. Here is a collection of hundred stories from around the world which are as much entertaining as thought-provoking. These encourage youngsters to develop the qualities of humility, positive action, love and purity of heart. However, stories like Work sharper not harder, Handicap is no barrier to achievement and Develop presence of mind give us practical advice as to how to overcome obstacles as well as develop skills for dealing with the real world.
This book is a valuable gift for your children.

THE TRIBUNE

News content: Balancing the bias

Punjabi television

By 

Randeep Wadehra

Lately one had been getting calls from viewers protesting the ‘bias’ in news telecasts by various channels, particularly by PTC News – which allegedly is ‘unabashedly’ pro-Badal Parivaar. Not only do one or the other Badal plus in-laws figure prominently in the news bulletins but also there are specially choreographed telecasts singing paeans to the Parivar’s patriarch, deifying him as the messiah of the masses whose magic wand banishes all the woes bedeviling the state. The protests do have some substance, but one must point out here that they are mistaking sponsored news items (akin to political advertisements published in the print media) for the channel’s official bulletins. Unlike political ads-in-news-bulletin-format in newspapers the ones on electronic media can be passed off as the real thing; there is certainly a need for resisting this trend.
There is always a gap between the ideal and the practical. This holds good for news dissemination too. News ought to be restricted to hard facts, with newsreaders giving carefully scripted accounts of main undisputed facts of politics and other significant events. Ideally, there should be no slant, facts shouldn’t be interpreted or analyzed. This should be left to separate current affairs programs that deliver a mix of fact, comment, opinion, analysis, and interpretation in interviews, commentaries by experts, and feature reports.
If you peruse the news contents of the three major regional channels you would notice that DDJ normally sticks to the time tested policy of playing safe by playing the role of sarkari mouthpiece. Its news bulletins more or less resemble official communiqués from New Delhi or Chandigarh. Discussions, debates and analyses are more or less absent. Zee Punjabi’s Zee Khabran, on the other hand, does its best to be evenhanded vis-à-vis the ruling and opposition parties in Punjab. However, its news content is essentially Delhi-centric. But its two current affairs programs Ikk Khas Mulakat and Khabarsaar provide regional perspective and concentrate on issues and personalities related to Punjab. This is where PTC News has proved to be different. Its news content is essentially regional in character as well as scope. It provides relatively more airtime to Punjab’s ruling party and shows deference to Prakash Singh Badal, which is not extended to Captain Amarinder Singh or other senior leaders in the opposition or even the coalition’s junior partner, BJP. However, it has quite a few current affairs programs that bring balance to the otherwise skewed perspective. Among these programs the walk and talk show Guftagu and the one on one Straight Talk have successfully put many a politician in the dock. Ritesh Lakhi’s disconcertingly searching questions often make the politicos squirm. But, in my opinion, the one talk show that is making a qualitative difference to the channel’s analytical content is the channel’s latest panel discussion show Masle. In its different episodes, be it the debate on Punjab politics featuring SAD’s Daljit Singh Cheema and INC’s Rana K.P., or the one on the Centre’s policy on giving grants that had Congress’s Chatrath at loggerheads with BJP’s Avinash Rai Khanna, or the acrimony involving some eminent agricultural scientists and environmentalists over the issue of organic farming – a lot of heat was generated, but plenty of light too. However, the episode featuring Dal Khalsa’s Harcharanjit Singh Dhami, VHP leader Vijay Bhardwaj and SGPC member Hardeep Singh did underscore the fact that the forces of intolerance and communalism still lurk just beyond the pale of our democratic polity. Ritesh Lakhi as moderator stands out as the voice of reason. Indeed Masle lends a lot of intellectual aura to the PTC News as a channel. If only its news content were less in thrall of the SAD’s First Family.

The Tribune

Matters of mind and spirit By Randeep Wadehra

The midnight awakening by Rajeev M. Kaushik
Rupa & Co. Pages: XIV+247. Price: Rs. 295/-

Spiritualism, as distinct from religiosity, is a form of higher philosophy that explores the realm of hidden powers within one’s mind. You don’t have to be particularly religious to be spiritual. In fact spiritual awakening can come to a person engaged in perfectly worldly pursuits. This has been exemplified by the story of the author, a physician, who experienced the first awakening of his Kundalini even before he had become aware of Sahaj Yoga – he had a strange experience after visiting a Shiva temple. He developed backache and his entire body began to shiver uncontrollably while he was sleeping one wintry night. Unable to find any medical reason for this phenomenon he surmised that this must be the sign of his Kundalini awakening. In this way he set out on a path that unlocked the powers hidden within his mind.
This book is not just an autobiographical account of the author’s spiritual experiences but a glimpse into and lucid explanation of the development of psychic powers, the phenomenon of Chakras, the sensing of energy blocks, the phenomenon of hypnosis and extrasensory perceptions. Since Kaushik belongs to the medical profession the profusion of medical terminology is understandable. However, it has been used in a manner that the narrative becomes all the more interesting.

The Tribune

Leisure reading by Randeep Wadehra

Splendid mirror of life by NS Tasneem
Jaswant Printers. Pages: 144. Price: Rs. 200/-

The Tribune’s readers, especially those addicted to the op-ed page’s middles, are familiar with Niranjan Singh Tasneem, who is also a poet and a prolific author. His wit and wisdom may camouflage the message’s gravitas but never fail to register on one’s mind. Take, for example, The golden mists in this volume. On the surface, it is a light-hearted account – peppered with Urdu couplets and a quote from Shakespeare – of a get together of retired academics, but is actually a subtle caution against self-delusion and hypocrisy. Similarly, in The chemistry of love he goes lyrical, albeit with a tinge of sadness, over the changing chemistry of love with the passage of time; when ardor is replaced with more sedate sentiments.
If you are looking for quality light reading this volume is for you.

The Tribune

‘Remixing’ Shakespeare by Randeep Wadehra

The ghost in Hamlet by Syed Rifaquat Ali
Phulkian Press. Pages: VIII+158. Price: Rs. 300/-

There is no commonly accepted complete and authoritative account of Shakespeare’s life. However, it is believed that he was born in 1564 and baptized in Stratford-upon-Avon. He was married to Anne Hathaway in 1582. They had a daughter in 1583 and twins – a boy and a girl – in 1585. The boy did not survive. By 1592 Shakespeare had become a successful actor and playwright. The publication of his two narrative poems Venus and Adonis (1593) and The Rape of Lucrece (1594), as well as his Sonnets (1609) established his reputation as a gifted and popular poet. Shakespeare's modern reputation, however, is based primarily on the 38 plays attributed to him. He formed his own acting company, the Chamberlain's Men, later called the King's Men, and two theatres, the Globe Theatre and the Blackfriars.
The author has written a longish account of Shakespeare’s life – speculating on his antecedents and other aspects. It is interesting and absorbing and should be of some use to students of English literature. He has also successfully attempted blank verse ‘remix’ of Shakespeare’s passages from various plays. Take these lines from Love’s labour lost, “Light/Seeking light/Doth/light/Of/Light beguile/So ere you find/Where/Light in darkness lies/Your/Light grows/Dark/By losing of your eyes”.
Certainly worth a read.

The Tribune

Fighting environmental pollution

Punjabi television

By 

Randeep Wadehra

Although environmental pollution is a serious issue it seldom hits media headlines owing to the fact that politics and crime offer juicier stories. The havoc caused by environmental degradation is far more pervasive, debilitating and enduring than any other natural or manmade disaster. Rajesh Inderpall, a lawyer by training and a senior PTC News correspondent, has been meticulously collecting data on the types of pollutants that have endangered the health and life of people in and around Ludhiana. In the second episode of Manchester Vich Failda Zeher – an eloquent and powerful indictment of callous indifference towards environmental issues – we learn of the extent of damage done by heavy metals and carcinogens present in drinking water in Ludhiana and its surrounding villages, viz., increasing number of cancer patients, physically/mentally challenged newborns, ailing milch cattle and once green but now barren fields. The interviews with environmentalists like Seechewal and various officials show how serious the problem has become. The question is: will this powerful documentary move the authorities concerned to do something concrete on war footing? Nevertheless, we need more such investigative reports on other aspects of environmental pollution and its consequences. Sound pollution for example.
Readers may recall that last year this column had protested the change in format of Lok Bani which had turned it into a sort of public relations platform for Punjab’s ruling dispensation. The good news is that the LB has reverted to its original trenchant self – unerringly focusing on the general urban decay and rural rot wrought by official apathy. The show on Kartarpur revealed another well known but rarely articulated aspect – the citizenry’s poor civic sense.
Aayee Basant Paala Udant on PTC, celebrating the occasion of Basant Panchmi, was much more than a colorful fare. It enumerated the various folklores, folk songs and dances performed on the occasion and showed how the various communities in India and Pakistan celebrate this occasion. The conversational style of the two anchors, Radha and Nirmal, made the show quite interesting.
Finally, white collar crime has established its global credentials. This becomes clear from the fact that cyber crime is becoming increasingly complex and widespread. One is familiar with those emails from UK, Africa and other parts of the world declaring one winner of million dollar lottery or heir to untold riches bequeathed by a rich relative/potentate whose existence one wasn’t even aware of! The sensible would simply delete such mails. But PTC’s investigative report, Hi-tech Jurm, tells us that many people – even educated and presumably well informed – are gullible enough to fall for this trick. The show goes on to reveal other types of cybercrimes too, viz., hacking of demat accounts, sexual harassment and pornography. Luckily, the police are catching up and quite a few criminals – some of them from the tri-city – have been either arrested or identified. Daljeet’s comprehensive report should help spread public awareness regarding such dangerous cyber-tricks.
Meanwhile, Zee Khabran concentrated on the revelations regarding Saji Mohan’s alleged links with drug mafia across the border and the trafficking he was said to be indulging in – most of the focus being on his tenure in Chandigarh. Interviews with Chandigarh and Punjab’s policemen of all ranks seemed to suggest that Saji was running a drug smuggling network.
TV news bulletins on various channels mostly consist of crime related incidents happening in different parts of the region. The details are enough to cause depression in the healthiest of minds. Is there really any need for a full-fledged show dedicated to crime? Zee Punjabi thinks so. Every week it telecasts Punjabi Chargesheet that purveys details of crime of every imaginable type. The gory facts and the victims’ laments do no good to one’s peace of mind.

The Tribune

Need to avoid fanaticism by Randeep Wadehra

Hindu Nationalism edited by Shyam Khosla & BK Kuthalia
Shree Natraj Prakashan. Pages: 214. Price: Rs. 495/-

Savarkar gave currency to the term Hindutva and today it has become an ideology that seriously challenges India’s secular ethos, even though the proponents of Hindu Rashtra claim to be genuinely secular while condemning the INC and leftist parties as pseudo-secularists. In this collection of fifteen essays different aspects of Hindutva have been examined. Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi advocates the revival of sanskriti as the basis for Indian society. Justice Rama Jois presents eighteen principles of Dharma (way of life) while Francos Gautier visualizes India as 21st century’s superpower. Other issues like terrorism, future of the Hindutva and communalism too have been discussed. For example Trayambaklal U. Mehta asserts on page 105, “…tolerance and understanding are the essential elements of real Hinduism and a chauvinistic as well as aggressive projection of our creed, tradition or religion, however noble and altruistic they may be, have no place in true Hinduism”. Well said, but this does not gel with what has happened in Mangalore recently where women were molested in the name of preserving our hoary traditions. Hinduism is being Talibanized by the lumpen. Hope Messrs Khosla and Kuthalia would come up with an introspective tome next time around.

The Tribune