Kolkata Intellectuals

Kolkata Intellectuals
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কলকাতায় বিদ্বজনের অভাব নাই । জ্ঞান-অজ্ঞানের সীমানা যতদূর সম্প্রসারিত করা যায়, এই শহরের জল-বাতাস-ধুঁয়াবর্তিত স্ত্রী-পুরুষ পাইলেই তাহার সুযোগ লইয়া থাকেন । তথ্য, তত্ত্ব এবং জ্ঞান সব এক রোয়াকে বসিয়া, এক ঠোঙা হইতে মুড়ি খাইতে খাইতে সকল বিষয়ের চর্চা করেন ।

সর্ব-সমন্বয়ের এমন শহরে সংবাদমাধ্যম বেশ কিছুদিন যাবত্ একটি নূতন শব্দের প্রচলন করিয়াছেন - "বুদ্ধিজীবি" । বিগত ২-৩ বৎসর ধরিয়া মধ্যমধ্যই শুনিতেছি, নানারূপ সংবেদনশীল ঘটনার পক্ষে-বিপক্ষে ইনারা মিছিল করিতেছেন, সংবাদমাধ্যমে মতামত দিতেছেন, "শিক্ষিত"-"মার্জিত" রূপে প্রতিবাদ করিতেছেন । সংবাধমাধ্যমদীয় সংজ্ঞা অনুযায়ী তুলি-কলম যাত্রা-নাটক দূরদর্শন-বায়োস্কোপ ইত্যাদি যাহাদের ধ্যান-জ্ঞান, সেই সকল কলাকুশলী উক্ত দলভুক্ত । উনাদের শুভ ইচ্ছার প্রতি আমার আন্তরিক শুভেচ্ছা রইলো ।

কেবল ধ্বন্দ হয় এই ভাবিয়াই যে এই প্রকার জাতিভেদের কি প্রয়োজন ছিল ? নিজ নিজ ক্ষেত্রে বুদ্ধি সকল মানুষ প্রয়োগ করিয়া থাকেন, এমনকি সাংসারিক ক্ষেত্রে (পুরুষ)বুদ্ধিজীবিদের ঘরণী অনেক বেশী বুদ্ধিমত্তা । "বুদ্ধিজীবি" শব্দপ্রয়োগে যে প্রচ্ছন্ন অপমান ধ্বনিত হয়, তাহা বড় প্রকট, বেদনাদায়ক । বহুবৎসর আগে এমনই আরেক শব্দের প্রচলন ঘটিয়াছিল উক্তমাধ্যমকর্ত্তৃক - "জীবনমুখী গান" !!! সেই সময় সাহস করিয়া জনৈকা সুবিখ্যাত শিল্পী প্রতিবাদ করিয়াছিলেন - "আমরা কি মরণমুখী গান গাই ?" (অপ্রাসঙ্গিক হইলেও পুলকিত হইতে হয় জানিয়া যে, মন্ত্যবের কিছু দিন পরেই উনি এক জীবনমুখী গায়কের সহিত একই মঞ্চে অনুষ্ঠানে অংশ নেন) ।

যে শহরে পৃথিবীর অপর প্রান্তের ঘটনার প্রতিবাদে ধিক্কারমিছিল হয়, যে শহরে ক্রীড়া প্রতিযোগিতায় নিম্নমানের প্রদর্শনের জন্য স্বদলের নিন্দা অথবা উচ্চমানের প্রদর্শনের‌ জন্য বিপক্ষদলের বাহবা সর্বজনবিদিত, যে শহরে দেশি-বিদেশি সকল কৃতীজন সমাদৃত - এমন কলকাতা শহরে জনকতক মনুর সন্তানকে "বুদ্ধিজীবি"-র মুকুট পরানো হইল, অথচ তাহার কোনে প্রতিবাদ হইল না, ইহাই আশ্চর্য সৃষ্টি করে । বুদ্ধিজীবিরাও এই অলীক শ্রেণীভেদের ক্ষীণতম প্রতিবাদ পর্যন্ত করেন নাই; artists and academicians are not the same as intellectuals - যাহারা ইহা বোঝেন না অথবা না বুঝিবার ভণিতা করেন, তাহাদের কি বুদ্ধিজীবি বলা স্ববুদ্ধির পরিচয় ?

An Eve without Web

Nearly a third of a day ago I was told by someone to lead the life of an ascetic. That was the medication prescribed for certain symptoms rising out of my habit of baring my mind. The greatest mystery about truth is that it is often more misunderstood as lie than falsehood itself. As truth got unfolded, my lines were read between and earlier statements were (re)interpreted to a completely false conclusion. I suppose we are so used to deception, that a candid expression is almost universally noticed, either to an applause or to suspicion. I take facts by facts but my expectations about others doing the same is definitely a thing of the Mars, if not Utopia.

I don't smoke, nor drink or have a fatal attraction towards television that I can get rid off. Must an ascetic abandon his uninterrupted nurturing of some unworthy passion, I decided to put my habit of being on the internet to a test. I decided to stay disconnected till tomorrow morning. Not doing this for the first time, but not as the first step of becoming an ascetic.

9:25pm. A force can only be replaced by another force of same or more strength. Passion must replace passion, love must replace love, hatred can be replaced by hatred towards hate, if I cannot get online I must be doing something equally occupying. I had started to watch "The Berlin Express". It just ended. Twice I had the urge to take a peek at my mailbox, but I able to curb it. Next reporting, an hour later.

10:32pm now, and I smell something burning. The scene in front is showing a person from an Italian asylum taking a leak with his fly still buttoned, but it didn't take a minute to dawn upon me that the smell bothering me isn't, possibly can't be, coming from the movie 'Amarcord' but from my kitchen where a rather watery ensemble of veggies is supposed to be slowly enraged to perfection. Shoot!!! I quickly go and fill the pot with water to its brink. Dessert to ocean in a the wink of en eye. And I have managed to spent one more hour avoiding the urge.

11:02pm. Finished making 5 round flat whole-wheat breads. Miracle of technology has gifted the ability of enjoying homemade "roti"/"chapati" to people challenged with rolling pins and dough. Now I can make chapatis at the rate of asymptotically one in every 5 minutes, start to finish and no messy guts lying around. I also reaffirmed my theory of losing weight, cooking food for self. It has nothing to do with the taste, in fact it better be friendly to one's palate to facilitate a long term entate; the energy spent during cooking is enough to burn the excess carb one might be taking in. Well of course, the person concerned has to possess the inability to sit quietly at a place for even a minute: I have been walking around constantly during the last half an hour. Still no sign of the return of any urge. Good so far.

Two minutes have passed since the hands of my watch agreed on their positions. Midnight has just happened. I had to stop "Breakfast at Tiffany's" because I didn't want to spend the whole evening only watching movies. I had to anyway switch to this Hollywood flick because it is cumbersome to eat and watch the subtitles of the previous one. I better start making my bed. I just made a quick pass at the breeze from the balcony ... it is lovely. I remembered I had to send an email to two students about some web stuff ... but I cannot take the risk of opening the door of a card house; the whole effort will wash away in an instant. There is a photo staring at me from my desktop. I will let it stare and shutting my mind, drop the curtains atop my laptop. Good night, bis morgan.

Two birds woke me up. It is 6:50am now. They were fighting, or jostling but in a rather hostile manner, out of my sight; but foolish as they are, they didn't bother to consider my ears and were just outside my window. Rascals, had to scare them off ... the next they always do is lit my floors with litter. I remember falling off to sleep last night while I was working on a, what I think is incorrect, proof in Flavio's paper; I want to email him and seek an explanation. Email?! Coming back to me pretending to be abstinent, I think I will postpone the ritual of breaking it once I reach office. Soon after I woke up, I started 'St Matthew's Passion' (this one is sung in English and indeed sounds unfit) and the wonderful sacred music is currently occupying my heart and soul. I have been told I am living in darkness, maybe this music will lighten it up. I better prepare to leave for work. Next, from froffice.

8:57am. In front of my work PC and posting this blog. Long wait is over. And I did not miss anything. The good part is for the last half of the waiting time, I wasn't even eager for this moment to arrive. Maybe I will this thing again ... but I surely will not bore you again.

April 28, 2010

Two good news! One just in, other today morning.

Brother got a surprise promotion - henceworth he will be called Senior Consultant. I think I should get used to seeing him in suit and tie doing even more late hours.

Bhavana was awared the BU CS Department Best Research Award (Grad Student). Frankly, I saw it coming once she informed me of the acceptance of her paper in STOC. But nevertheless ... WOW! (And she is also getting married during this summer, but this another story). On right, my prized possession.



Congrats to both of you. Proud to know you.

Rebecca

From which the Hindi B&W gem Kohra was adapted.

Why do I have to watch such wonderful movies alone ?

lost post

One day Comrade (oops) N. received the following email in his inbox. I had a plan of posting it here on my blog. Not sure what happened to the plan, but applying the rule of better late than never, I present to you now ... more "self chauvinism" (exaggerated).

... Even if it be not so, here are two movie recommendations, one short and other even shorter, for we are all hard pressed to succeed and supersede with little time for digressions that benefits us.

Both are available in youtube, so please accept my thanks to Google on behalf of the have-nots. If you have already watched any of these, I am shocked that you never told me about them!

One is Renoir's "The river" (not so sure about the article). This is a simple movie, yet very very complex if you choose to dive, it is about India (and as the auteur said "about India without tigers or elephants") yet it could be about any riverbank locality, it is about three silly girls' coming of age yet it could be about how human beings deal with expectation, loss and unwanted turns in life. But all the while I was watching it, I had one of my (not oft-noticed) pleasant smiling expression on my face - because the movie was just beautiful, simply beautiful ... it is hard to describe when something which is simple and beautiful. The emotion was far from realism, there was an attempt to tell a story; tell a story like one's mom or grandmom or some old person tells a story, pausing when needed, with utmost care to ensure the kid is enjoying the story and creating a sweet-loving caring atmos. It does not remain just the story or the person or the candies that are stacked on the side ... everything blends and you just have a wonderful time. When the story ends, well... it ends. The feeling stays for a while and even water tastes better for the next half hour. As you can imagine, this was clearly a director's movie - the editing was superb, the colours ... amazing and the movie never gave me a chance to notice how the players were acting. As long as the movie was in motion, I was concerned about the characters as I would do in a dream where I never even think of figuring out who is behind the mask.

The shorter one is "The great train robbery" (1903 version). It was a notable first, you can read up all of that. Its a 10 min movie, about <15 shots. Each shot is beautiful ... each shot is shot with a static camera (panning only in two shots) and every shot could be printed on a 11x14 canvas and it would make a fascinating photograph. The contrast and the composition is of the highest quality. The other
great thing about the movie is that it tells a very simple tale, for someone in 2009, yet at about 3 mins in the movie, which is when I thought of noticing the time, I felt that the movie has been going on for quite a while. People talk about compact, solid lectures; here is a compact solid movie. It is surprising that you could show so much without moving the camera, without sophisticated acting, without a
complicated storyline just by thoughtful direction. I had to see to believe it.

Written in June, 2009. Posted in 2010.

Congrats dear.

Feb 25, 2010.
Women Reservation bill was passed in the Upper House of the Indian parliament.
After 14 years.
Scuffles. Impropriety. Rowdiness. Scorns. Attacks.
Yet, the bill was tabled and passed.

The bad is not going to sleep well.

For once, I applaud the determination of the current ruling party, Indian National Congress. It is not UPA anymore.

Congratulations and wishing you all the best. All housewives and working women (of India). And Mom.

Who manage their work, (public and/or private) relations and finance better than many MBAs, MPs and Ministers.

Salut! Let's drink to a sensible future.

It's not me, it's YOU

Media hounds didn't miss any chance of reporting this piece of sensational news "Many women think rape victims are partly to blame, says new survey". As expected, it even got the glorious cover-page spot, thanks to the credibility of BBC News who reported the findings. Here is a link to the original report.

BBC Survey (Feb 15, 2010) : http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/8515592.stm

The first impression this generates is a complete heresy against our individuality, our social identity. In the survey of 1000 people in London,

"More than half of those of both sexes questioned said there were some circumstances when a rape victim should accept responsibility for an attack."

Only careful examination of the survey, and reading between the lines, reveal the actually interesting facts. Taken in the right spirit, and boldly declaring the place and nature of the survey (including the kind of people surveyed), the conclusions may actually shed light on some facets of the surveyed society. But it is far from becoming a global truth. And that is why I demur.



First point to note is that the survey was done in a cosmopoliton city (London, but could have been New York across the ocean). Where the usual practice of one-night-dating ends with a "drink" at someone's house. And where bars are the defined place to "meet new people". Thus,

"One-third blamed victims who had dressed provocatively or gone back to the attacker's house for a drink."

Still yet, I am sure these same one-third would deplore wedding crashers arguing that open-gate does not automatically imply open-invitation.



With due acknowledgement to Stan Lee, let me quote "with liberty comes responsibility". There are many places who don't share the same liberatarian standards as the top "night-life" cities. Not only places in south Asia or Africa or remote islands but even some southern cities in the southern states of the USA. I believe there is an overdose of liberty all over the world. Overdoing anything, even charity, is suicidal

"Almost three quarters of the women who believed this said if a victim got into bed with the assailant before an attack they should accept some responsibility."

My next criticism against hidden meaning is in the context of

"When asked about their own experiences, more than a third of those polled said they had been in a situation where they could have been made to have sex against their will. Women are more likely to have been in this situation - 40% compared to 20%."

Take a deep breath, recount some of the violent, brutal rape stories from non-Western countries that sometimes come to limelight and appreciate the difference in the nature of "forced sex" across the planet. Not many capital cities cannot boast of a night when a women wouldn't be crazy to think

"Meanwhile, the survey suggested that many people are relaxed about their safety. Almost half of people have walked home via side streets on their own."

The deterrents against rape are more realistic in only a handful countries; here I am referring to the actual implementation of the law. But even so,

"The survey also found more than one in 10 people were unsure whether they would report being raped to the police, and 2% said they would definitely not do so. The main reasons were being too embarrassed or ashamed (55%), wanting to forget it had happened (41%) and not wanting to go to court (38%). "

We largely made the stigma associated with skin colour a history; I personally maintain thar no job, when done with sincerity and in the right spirit, is inferior to another just because of the title it carries; hereditary nobility carries negative sentiment in many circles. Why can't we do the same for rape and violence against women (or weak)? Look beyond what was imposed upon a person. Correlate actions with the actor. Only count the pennies I have earned for myself.



Rape is hard to prove, rape comes with a permanent stain on every involved person as soon as their names gets disclosed (including the victim). Often the victim stands to lose everything in her attempt to regain her dignity. I agree that getting drunk and having sex is not exactly abduction of modesty against free will and I feel a lot of the surveyees related rape to something like that. Definitely not many actual victims were part of the it (which is actually good, assuming the survey was done on randomly chosen women). And definitely not people who are aware of the kind of rape that plagues the less libertarian, more conservative societies of the world, where policing depends more on assumed moral standards than written words.

Cough-Aid Sleep-Aid

Having trouble falling asleep ?

Running to the local pharmacy may not be a viable option... its past shutter-time or the pharmacist isn't gonna hand you any sleep aids without prescription (which you obviously don't have) or maybe because the sweet lady at the pharmacy knows your entire family.

And this awesome idea strikes you. To take a heavy dose of the cough syrup in the cupboard. Benadryl, Vicks NyQuil are common ones. You might have something sphancy but most likely it will contain some amount of anti-histamine (unless of course the doctor was on your side while writing the prescription). Tell you what ... it actually works.

Just a note of caution. Giving full credit to your ingenious idea, midnights are not the time to adventure and experiment. Take a small dose if you are really serious. And don't repeat this often ... seek professional medical help. These over-the-counter drugs are notorious for habit forming. Also be cautious about the dosage; overdose of sleeping medicine often lead to fatal condition.

This is a public service announcement.

For those sad clouds

Aren't clouds sad ? Not the white ones that giggle around the sun like bridesmaids. The real ones, the ones that shake you inside. Seldom with rejoice, but either with fear or with memories that you thought were history.

For those days which start with such clouds announcing the day, for those nights when the moon seems too bright, for those drops of rain which we yearn forever but never falls with enough speed, and for those walks which takes us backwards in memory, the is nothing like a soft, despairing tune humming in the background. A cheerful sonata would be as disturbing then as the bang of a metal crane crashing on a factory roof. Oops!

When I am feeling blue, I like to be alone and listen to music. Here is my personal bouquet of classical music brewing melancholy. (Links to Youtube videos).

Not really "classical" but this brings all my emotions out in front of me. One of the best. A violin piece by Nguyen Xanh Thao (some people claim it is from Final Fintasy X, though that has been debated). Everyone has their video before uploading to Youtube, so only bother about the music.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSnR80kY0m0


Beethoven's Moonlight Sonata. Right named for a wonderful composition to create the longing for moonlight to light you up, from inside. Look for the first movement, and look for a slower tempo interpretation; it is supposed to be played in Adagio. The third movement is also very sweet, a little on the romantic side.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQVeaIHWWck


Chopin's Funeral March. Need say anything more ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyFyAqLtHq8


Barber's Adagio for Strings. One Youtube user commented:

"when you speak,dont make a sound,
when you cry,look around,
to empty spaces all around,
life is hard
so it seems
when you are so alone.........
but not in dreams"

I liked the interpretation by Bernstein.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dx1lNyggrh4


Most of Chopin's Nocturnes. I have a whole box-set of them if you want to borrow. There are too many to list here. I personally do not find Beethoven matching with the gray-coloured clouds. he is too romantic to my ears; but your mileage may vary (try Beethoven's Appassionata).


There are more if you keep your ears open. If you have suggestions, please add them in the comments with links (only instrumental).

Good sources for classical music:
(1) Youtube, of course
(2) http://classicalmusicblog.com/
(3) http://www.kickassclassical.com

"... I'll you something ..."

I am sure the approaching Sunday (Feb 14) is a good enough context to talk about this song:

Oh yeah,
I'll tell you something
I think you'll understand.
When I'll say that something
I want to hold your hand
I want to hold your hand ...

If you don't recognise this very popular Beatles song from 1963, move on. Nothing much for you here.

The Beatles version was written with the American market in mind (*) and undoubtedly best represents the mood of the young romantic crowd.

I was surprised, pleasantly, to hear the version Petula Clark recorded in 1965. She dressed up the peppy rock song in a ballad form and gave it her warmest voice and finest tune to make it the best fitting complementary version sung by a girl. There is a version in Youtube here.

(*) MacDonald, Ian (1998). Revolution in the Head. London: Pimlico. ISBN 0-7126-6697-4)