| 5/29/2013  Why I am reminiscing about chikankari embroidery with warmer temperatures is anyone's guess. The delicate, gossamer embroidery detailing motif ranges from flowers, open trellis, net-like patterns, leaves and paisley done on fine cotton and muslin — are all very summery in spirit. It also reminds me of a craft predominantly honed and developed by women and as they struggled in their own lives, they fought to keep this home based art form alive through their agencies and the yearning to better themselves.
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| 5/29/2013  Since the dawn of humanity, men have dominated to establish a patriarchal society. Women and their rights have been at the mercy of the men for centuries and one can discern a gender pattern, which hindered or prevented woman from achieving their productive and creative talents. Men looked at women as their property and took them for granted to fulfill their whims and demands, since men were the sole providers of food, shelter and protection for the weaker half.
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| 4/25/2013
 Some perceptions of India invoke ideas of the British Raj and the colonial rule in nostalgic terms and sometimes not as flattering as you want them to be. I remember watching films on "heat" and "dust" and the snobbish, nose-in-air attitude associated with colonial history and feeling a little uneasy. There is a bit of that even in the more recent "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel" but the story in the end is positive and kind of embraces all that is India. Coming back to heat and dust and weather one wonders what we could perhaps write about where we live and the never ending winter. It also depends on which end of the perception spectrum you happen to be located. |
| 4/25/2013
 We now have the choice of flying directly to Bangalore via more than one airline.
The new airport is able to handle the monstrous Boeing 747-400, something even the Indianapolis airport is unable to cope with. In addition to Lufthansa which we chose, several other International carriers like British Airways, Qatar Airlines, Emirates and Singapore Airlines offer service to Bangalore.
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| 4/3/2013
 A decade earlier, the weekend would be a virtual get together because Indians would call their family and friends from the United States once a week and speak to everybody at home. This was because the calling rates were exorbitant. However, calling rates dropped and then came the VoIP technology, which meant calling at any time was possible.
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| 3/21/2013
Bad news has this habit of sneaking up from behind when I am relaxing in my rocking chair. Man always has to wrestle with man-made laws, and high-handedness is universal. Little changes from country to country except the rules of engagement, but the pin hold on the individual remains the same, no matter where you live. Life, as you know, will kill you. And then, as reliable soothsayers confirm, you die. But, what if you don't leave the planet for good, and are left to nurse insult upon injury, as in the following story? |
| 2/28/2013
 As we passed the five-year anniversary of the start of the economic recession in December 2007, many observers focus on what was lost: 8 million jobs, 146,000 employer businesses and 17.5 percent average individual earnings.
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| 2/21/2013
 It is the season of increased giving. There is almost a flurry of activity heading to tax preparer’s offices to ascertain how much can be donated for a good return. Aid is built into the economic system of this country as much as it is in its culture. And charity is a most appreciated quality. Development aid has long been recognized as crucial to help poor developing nations grow out of poverty. It is of significance that the United Nations has urged developed countries to spend 0.7 percent of their national income on aid to poorer nations, a target that remains quite indefinite. According to the most recent figures of the Development Assistance Committee, a consortium of the world’s main donors, the developed world gave nearly $120 billion in assistance to the developing world in 2009, or 0.32 percent.
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| 2/14/2013
 Last month, I arrived in Barrington, R.I., after traveling to Pune for a month. I also visited Mumbai and Delhi, combining work with family visits. I grew up, went to school, college, and worked in India. I have lived in America for over 20 years and have returned to visit India on more than 10 occasions. However, every time I return from India, I feel I have entered America for the first time. America is my other home, where I work as a college professor and live in a suburban home with my wife and kids.
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| 1/31/2013
Sadly, India rapes for the same reasons that India bribes, honks unnecessarily, drives drunk and over speeds, why it pushes and pulls and can't form a line, also why it spits and urinates where it wants and why it refuses to clean its hands before dishing out food with the same hands.
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| 1/10/2013
Even as the holiday festivities abound, my mind is in two places. As immigrants that is common – to straddle between two worlds. And then there are moments of pride with India “shining” and there are moments of infinite shame and anger at events that have rocked the capital, Delhi. Having spent a considerable part of my life in New Delhi I stay connected to “home” and what happens there. The recent incident of brutal rape brought to light the fact that spaces in the city are gendered still, that women are not equal citizens and the laws do not support victims’ rights. Is this the “incredible” India we are presenting to the world?
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| 12/27/2012
 Even as the holiday festivities abound, my mind is in two places. As immigrants that is common – to straddle between two worlds. And then there are moments of pride with India “shining” and there are moments of infinite shame and anger at events that have rocked the capital, Delhi. Having spent a considerable part of my life in New Delhi I stay connected to “home” and what happens there. The recent incident of brutal rape brought to light the fact that spaces in the city are gendered still, that women are not equal citizens and the laws do not support victims’ rights. Is this the “incredible” India we are presenting to the world?
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| 12/27/2012
 We all have heard the expression that time is a great healer. But what we have not heard too often is that it also attenuates the impact of the event as time goes by. The Aurora, Tucson, Virginia Tech and Columbine horrors have faded and, with the passage of time, the memory of Newtown, Conn., massacre – caused by a military-style killing machine -- will also decay for the event to become just one more carnage marker on the highway of mass murders. The tragic episode played out in Sandy Hook Elementary School proved once more that, under the veil of “citizen protection,” guns are killing Americans, including young children, and that big guns kill big time. |
| 12/20/2012
Sometime around 350 BC, Aristotle observed thus: "He who has not learned to obey cannot be a good commander."
By that token, re-elected President Barack Obama can only be a half good commander since he pushes for the causes of 50 percent of Americans and disobeys the other half. But all this can change with a stroke of boldness. The country is too divided and for it to continue like this bodes disaster from here on unless something is done quite bold. Since Obama does not have to be re-elected, he can be real bold. |
| 11/1/2012
 If you think voting is a waste of time – then think again.
It is the people, who by exercising their right to vote, elect local, state and federal officials, including the President and thus push forward policies that loom large on the town, your job, your taxes, your health care, your children’s education and hence the future of this nation itself. Elections are the cornerstones of our democracy and, in fact, voting is the process to form a healthier democracy that then is able to facilitate the most vital want of our life – happiness.
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| 11/1/2012
There have been loud voices for and against foreign direct investment in India. Rallies, “bandhs,” and strikes have expressed protests in manners only they can. This in response to the government’s decision to open up the supermarket sector to global giants like Wal-Mart, Carrefour and Tesco, allow foreign carriers to own up to 49 percent of domestic airlines, raise foreign ownership limit in media companies to 74 percent and hike the heavily subsidized retail prices of diesel.
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| 10/11/2012
With the 2012 Presidential Election looming it is time to really concentrate on the serious business of the presidential election and the real issues. Instead of focusing on the bread and butter issues of jobs and economy – Republicans for the past few months have been harping in their attack ads on Barack Obama’s pot smoking, challenging his citizenship that has been verified umpteen times and dwelling on his past contacts with Tony Rezco and Jeremiah Wright. The Democrats on the other hand keep bringing up Mitt Romney’s richness, his Mormon religion and even questioning his departure date from Bain Capital. None of these factors have much relevance in determining who the right man for the task at hand is.
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| 9/6/2012
The Internet is no longer just a screen, mouse and keyboard, it's a living organism attached to the hearts and minds of billions while breathing via their wallets. It has become a true example of a "human interface with electro-ergonomics," where human functions are intertwined with circuitry to access information, suck cash and process consumption.
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| 8/23/2012
Hailed as the author of India’s success story and savant of global economy — India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh only a few years ago was put on the short list for appearing on the Time Magazine’s cover as their Person of the Year to honor his economics wizardry.
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| 8/16/2012
 Indians celebrate Indian Independence Day on August 15. Every year this day is celebrated by cultural events and flag-hoisting as a respect to the motherland and tribute to the freedom fighters. As it is correctly said that “freedom is never free,” many freedom fighters have given their blood for the independence of India and celebrating their sacrifice is certainly a worthy cause. However, after 65 years of independence it is also worth considering if Independence Day really means to Indians what it is supposed to or if it is just another event and reason to get together?
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