A Small World

A small world to me is an imagination where ideologies converge, equality prevails and therefore nations unite – A Distant Dream.

How many times have we talked about inclusive growth and how many times have we actually done something about it? Bihar, for instance, under the leadership of Nitish Kumar has reached the governance that was unheard of in Bihar. The state now is one of the most “progressive backward” states in India. It requires support from the more established counterparts en-route inclusive growth. Although the state government assures requisite infrastructure among all other amenities, how many Indian corporate houses have shown interest in such a proposition?

Well, on paper the idea seems powerful; however, in the real world at a micro level nobody wants inclusive growth. The reasoning is simple – our roots have taught us to be competitive and in the age where people sell Unique Selling Propositions, it is rather difficult to conceive such an idea. I am a student pursuing a diploma in management – and I do not see a reason why a fellow student would vote for my credibility in a job interview in front of a panel, or, tolerate me having an edge. Actually, the problem is in the very human nature. Leave apart competitive platforms, in day to day life, how many of us even intend to share knowledge?

To realize the dream of a small world, we need to address the basic human instinct – survival of the fittest. We need to catch them young, promote the concept of building a team, open them to the idea of equality and not attach the adulterated beliefs that we have thrived on. Celebrities, entrepreneurs and people with social relevance should endorse this belief and lead through actions. For in times to come the only way forward would be ‘convergence’.

Change is the only constant: against the motion

Change is the only constant – yes, the girl I was with till last year believed that. Repeatedly she told me how I should behave and how I should change to make her happy. Well, unfortunately things did not work quite as the way she would have expected. And, guess what she said after she moved on – Change is the only constant.

Change could be anything; anyone could perceive anything as a change. Of course, at a micro level, with time everything around us changes – toddlers grow up, teenagers poke each other on Facebook, Shah Rukh Khan dances for some more moolah, etc. However, is that real change? Change to me is a significant positive shift from the existing state. And I find it difficult to believe ‘it’ is a constant.

It is basic human nature of getting discontent over a period of time with what we have. We grow used to everything around and more importantly we understand the system well enough to find the loop holes. Change, therefore becomes important. Barack Obama campaigned with the intent of bringing about change – and guess what, Americans who “have it all” wanted a change and elected him President. Our countrymen, on the other hand, screamed out on top of their voices to bring about change. We shouted for a change in governance – inflation was on our faces, we shouted for a more effective judicial ecosystem – Arushi Sharma’s murder still poses a puzzle, we stood up for being progressive – Gujjar riots put our behinds back on seat, we wept for security – the horrific Mumbai attacks made us more vulnerable. We sought matured cinema – Dabang rattled the dancers in us, for more meaningful prime time serials for heaven’s sake – Rakhi Sawant is made bigger than Indian Penal Code. Where is change? Years together the homeless have struggled to find a place of shelter; they shiver through the cold nights and cough blood in the morning. Sadly, change does not brush through these topics of relevance.

Yes, we all want change – we want our salaries to be fatter, cars to be bigger, houses to be taller, wives to be prettier, et al. However, we resist change at the same time. Let’s say, you could get a better salary in Afghanistan. You could buy a bigger car in Botswana. Build a better house in Nigeria. And find a better looking wife in Puerto Rico (that might be an incentive). Would you work in Kabul, stay in Ghanzi, buy a property in Ibadan and get a Puerto Rican wife stay with your parents? While some might be delighted, while some might think 20 times, most of us might decline these offers – now that is the irony – we do not wish to step outside zones of familiarity. At some level, we do not wish to change what we already have. And even if we could, we refrain from bringing about changes.

While we cannot disagree that some changes give us dynamism, initiate new inventions, improvise on things outdated and betters the current state of being, it is not necessary that all changes have positive connotations. Or that things change at all.

I am a management student studying in Mumbai and even if I know there are better opportunities here, I ‘wish’ to go back to Delhi – the place I have been brought up. Not that I do not desire a fat salary or a taller house, I would ‘want’ to get all of that without compromising with change. Therefore, change for me is not a constant. It is a dependent variable, dependent on many other variables and constants.

Sports in India: a vision over the next 20 years I shift in my bed, unable to sleep. Open a wink of my eye to gaze at the clock - still four hours - I tisk. It was the fifteenth time I looked at the clock in the past one hour. While I shifted in my bed revising the batting lineup in my mind, I had already heard the cheers from my camp as I hit the lofted drive over covers – my favorite.

Times have changed and quickly. In a span of a decade, ‘our’ cricket ground transformed to a heaven for couples - sitting by the fragrance of lilies. Over a period of time, we all got so busy with our lives that we hardly had any time to pick up a bat or re-string our rackets. While all of us still meet and discuss those days, I try hard to find something that would keep me awake the whole night in excitement and anticipation. Today uncles don’t scream anymore over broken window glass or bark at little boys while twisting their ears clockwise – like they would ignite their battered Fiats in winter mornings. Has the love for outdoor sports died?

There are reasons why there has been such an abrupt shift.

As India grew, grew the disposable incomes of parents and concurrently demands of children. The generation grew up with mobile phones, internet and plasma televisions. Also, the last decade brought with it advanced technologies that helped create entities such as the X-Box and the Play Station. And more recently, a revelation called Facebook was born. Before anybody could realize virtual socializing was more important than actually meeting people – worse – it was cool.

While one school of thought says this will continue, I believe this fad would die down with time. Physical exercises (sports) and physical interactions with other kids shape a child’s character and it is imperative to keep real interactions alive. The current generation that thrives on ‘virtualization’ would realize what they had missed. Chances are they would be more careful raising their kids.

Also, some people are born talented; however, a career in sports in India is considered forbidden territory. For some reason it makes more sense to become ‘professionals’ and become one among the millions produced every year. The bigger problem, however is this – in most cases, not pursuing sports is a logical decision. Many talents emerge from rural parts of India, and often they have to choose between pursuing sports and supporting their families. Other factors like the dogma attached with women pursuing sports in the rural society, the cost involved in seeking professional training and not to mention the lobbying and ‘politics’ in sporting camps are serious road blocks. More often than not the decision is already made for them.

However, the brighter side is that India is making progress - the second position in the final medal tally at the Common Wealth Games 2010 says a lot about the progress we have made. With the current scenario, India finished with an impressive 38 gold medals. Now imagine the possibilities with a population of 1.3 billion having access to world class training facilities.

By 2030, India would recognize the potential in talents from far reaching corners of the country. Probably a Government institution would be set up to train these gifted individuals across disciplines. To ensure that financial woes do not effect participation, all athletes/sportspersons enrolled would be given an annual scholarship. This initiative would ensure that talents are spotted, parents encourage their children to take up sports as career options and India carves a niche in the arena dominated today by nations with one-tenth its resources (read population).