Bias of private FM channels to RD Burman music

 Radio has seen the revolution in the post-privatization era. In present times, radio has come back with a bang. Its cool again to listen to radio as its no more an obscure object kept in the corner of the room, fighting with television, computers for your attention.
 The private FM channels mostly play similar song lists and it is difficult to distinguish one from the other, except for Big FM which now plays only old Hindi film music all the time. Govt FM channels like FM Gold (plays old Hindi film songs), FM Rainbow (mostly plays mix of old and new Hindi songs) with their jarred old world style of presentations still have a huge following in non- Metro areas. Metro cities prefer Hinglish language or English mixed with local language with light conversation by the radio host or as popularly called RJs.

Recently, my brother and I were in the car playing music on the radio, and it was him who noticed and commented that radio private FM music channels have a liking for RD Burman music, as one after the other RD song played on the radio. Our late father had great taste in music and poetry. As kids we were exposed to all kinds of music (mainly Urdu/ Hindi) ghazals, qawwalis, Bollywood music with all the stories and gossip on famous personalities related to music like music directors, singers, etc. even though we hardly understood most of it at that time. But, stories gathered in our heads which helped us to distinguish OP Nayyar from Shankar Jaikishen, Khayyam from Madan Mohan, Laxmikant Pyarelal from well, you get the point. Even writing styles  of lyricists like Shailendra, Anand Bakshi, Sahir and old singers were easy for both of us to guess.

 Probably, people playing music and especially old Hindi film music on these channels may not know about the teams of Anand Bakhshi- Laxmi/ Pyare, Sahir/ SD Burman, Shailendra/Shankar Jaikishen/ Raj Kapoor team, they just know about Gulzar- RD Burman who are great of course. But, others are not that bad either. Unless they have their birth/ death anniversary that is when they are remembered and played. I appeal for some variety on the popular radio FM music channels, there are gems of songs which are gathering dust. The new generation needs exposure to some soulful music and beautiful meaningful lyrics,  just dhin chak dhin chak gets loud and boring!

tukbandi

Dhund me chalne me safar kam sa lagta hai
dard nahi, phir bhi zakham sa lagta hai

Khuda jaane kaisi basti ka rehne wala hoon
har ek shakhs se apnapan sa lagta hai

Uljhan ka kahin koi sira milta nahi
akhir kyun har rasta ghar sa lagta hai

main khud se nazren nahi mila pata
 ab toh aaina bhi ajnabi sa lagta hai

veerane me apne talash karta hoon
tanhai me kahin saaya sa lagta hai





woh baat jo kabhi kahi hi nahi
woh raah jo chali hi nahi
woh jo kabhi rahi hi nahi
woh kyun dard deti hai
hum khud ko bhi samajh nahi paate
tum ko kyun satate hain 

Kuch Waqt Aur

Bas kuch waqt aur meri jaan
yeh din bhi guzar jayenge
baaqi din ki tarah inko bhi kaat lenge hum
sisak kar seham kar
teri aagosh ki meherban panahon me
 kaali raat ke bereham panjo se
teri palko ke band khwabo me
khud ko chhupa kar
Ummeed ki kiran ki aas me
tujhko rakh kar paas me

jab yeh raat guzaregi to
sehar aur bhi haseen hogi
woh subah teri ankh ki nami si namkeen hogi
uska rang tere chehre ki lali se phir bhi kam hoga
phir tujhe shayad na koi gham hoga

main bhi tab shayad pursukoon ho sakoon
wahin aankh moond so sakoon
phir tujhe shayad na mere liye waqt ho 
tu bhi shayad ke mujh se tang ho
meri jaan waqt to guzar hi jata hai
par admi badal jata hai! 
   
 

Informal employment in a formal system of education in India

Let us first try and understand, what we mean by the formal and informal sectors, which can also be substituted by organized and unorganized sectors. As, this classification of `organised' and `unorganised' sectors is used by The National Accounts Statistics (NAS) in presenting national income data.

‘In general, all enterprises which are either registered or come under the purview of any one of the acts like the Indian Factories Act 1948, Mines and Minerals (Regulation and Development) Act, 1957, the Company Law, the Central/State Sales Tax Acts, the Shops and Establishment Acts of the State governments, are defined as part of the organized sector. Also included are all government companies, departmental enterprises and public sector corporations. Similarly, forestry, irrigation works, plantations, recognized educational institutions, and hospitals which are registered as non-profit making bodies are also classified as organized sector. All unincorporated enterprises and household industries which are not regulated by any acts of the above mentioned type and which do not maintain any annual reports presenting the profit and the loss and balance sheets are classified as unorganized’ (National Accounts Statistics - NAS 1980: pp 69).

 We can see here that educational institutions are classified under the formal or organized sector. But, some elements of informal elements have existed in some degree or the other in all formal systems/ set-ups, the reason why we are discussing the issue of informal employment here is, because it is a current problem which is plaguing our national capital public universities now for a long time. 

 This is an issue which has affected me and many of my friends deeply.  Being in academics, I never imagined that jobs would be hard to come by even after a doctorate degree, or all my experience I would gain by working informally in the formal system of education.
My professors who have taught me, have found it difficult to get a promotion, either from Assistant to Associate Professor, or from Associate to Senior Professor rank.
 All the universities of Delhi- Delhi University, Jamia Millia Islamia, JawaharLal Nehru University, and even new universities like Ambedkar University, and South Asian University have instituted it and have been following this new policy.
These universities instead of recruiting permanent new faculty are hiring more and more Guest and adhoc teachers. Earlier, guest faculty jobs were given against study leave or medical leave. But, since two years or so, no new permanent jobs have been advertised, and universities are just running on guest faculties. There is no job security, no stability as after every semester recruitments are done for just three months. And after every three months/ semester, this process is repeated.  
   It is a known fact that universities are facing financial crunch, but to implement new ideas (like the 4 year Bachelor's course) with no infrastructure (especially with shortage of teachers) in place in an age old system, it does not look like a brilliant idea.

Black Hole

Sirf Jism ki maut hi kaafi nahi

Dil ko maut aa jaaye

to bhi dard bada hota hai..

khwahishen na milen

to khalish si rehti hai

yeh jo mil jaayen 

phir kyun khala sa rehta hai!

insan ke andar ka black hole

sab kuch apne me sama to leta hai

magar yeh be-hissi bhi to badha deta hai 

na kisi khushi ki khushi

na koi gham ka aansoo

bas ek raah par

musafir ke paon chalte rehte hain

na musafir ko pata na raste ko

ke rasta manzil tak jayega bhi ya nahi

kya farak padta hai

kaun udaas hota hai

kaun wapasi ki raah takta hai

bas rasta aur musafir hi sathi hain

koi aur hath na sujhai de

na koi apna dikhai de

bas raah ka patthar

jo choom le qadmo ko

ye sath bhi bada bhala rehta hai

magar zehen hai ke

soche jata hai

poochhe jata hai

jaane woh log kahan gaye

jo safar ke sathi the

jinke sath safar khatam karna tha

shayad meri tarah

yeh kambakht

black hole unko bhi kha gaya!

God- Merciful or Wrathful??

Before I start, I have to make an honest confession that I am a believer in the theory of Creationism, and I believe that there is a Higher power above us, u call him God, Allah, Bhagwan that is your business which does not interest me.

I have had many arguments with Atheists who question that if God is there why He/She/It does not help humanity, why are there mass murders, famines, etc. the usual arguments that we are all familiar with. My point is either you believe (then everything becomes a miracle of God's power and He tries you and your faith with tribulations and hardships) or you do not (when everything can be rationally explained or can it?).

God the idea or the entity that we (believers) believe in, is also a mirror of how we project Him in our heads and how this faith also affects and shapes us as individuals.

 I have people in my family who are very religious.

My elders often told me ‘do this or Allah will be angry and He will punish you!’

As I grew up and tried to understand religion on my own, I realized that more than anger it is love, compassion and mercy- attributes or words that are used more often in the Quran to describe Allah. I just could never understand if He loves us and we love Him back, why would we do anything to upset him deliberately. And even if we did something wrong, we could always ask for forgiveness. As He has said in all religious scriptures that we could always go back to Him with a pure heart.  Purity of the heart, kindness, charity, and saving others’ from one’s anger and selfishness are the things that we have heard He likes and are universally accepted by all religions as attributes of a good believer.

The idea of a wrathful God makes Him distant, a merciful God is more near, and more loving. The idea to obey Him because of fear cannot take you very far with your faith in Him, in my opinion. And if God is so loving how can the believers be far behind, why can’t they love each other. If He can be forgiving, why cant we?

Which God can be happy with hurting others physically or verbally (that too in the name of religion)? If God is wrathful, full of revenge and unforgiving, believers would be rigid too. If you want to please God, you cannot upset his creations. I cannot understand that if you are full of displeasure towards His beings, how can you please Him? 

 Our behavior is often a mirror of our personality. A very beautiful woman would not be very attracttive if her behavior is ugly or rude. Only thinking about one’s own self, or being rigid about one’s own wishes can make one not just unpopular in this world but in the Other World too. 

Bible has a beautiful passage on love, which I had the honor to recite in my Christian school in a ceremony in Urdu. But I only very recently understood its deeper meaning -

Corinthians- 13:4-

 If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. 

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

   
   It is not love towards one, but love towards all that it preaches. This love towards all will also lead to the One full of love. 

Guilty!

I was born guilty!!

Recently, there have been some construction work going on in the university where I am presently working as Project Consultant. I was talking to a Professor colleague (his office was recently broken down along with mine to enlarge library space) who remarked that without office, he felt like 'an orphan'. I just felt 'lost', not orphaned! I kept quiet for the next two minutes and ended the conversation. I have recently been  'orphaned'. This got me thinking on the plight of the orphans and I felt guilty for having not done much for them (Or for parents whom I lost, recently, earlier this year my mum, three years back my dad!)

 On Traffic signals (one of my earlier posts) it is this guilt syndrome that makes me buy stuff which I would never use or have any need for - from children, pregnant women and other disadvantaged people.

Religions dwell on the 'guilty' aspect. The thing that separates faithful from a sinner is guilt. Guilt over wrong things that he/she may have committed. Guilt can lead to redemption according to major religious philosophies. If God has given you more than others you should do charity to make for guilty conscience.

Environmentalists play on the fears of doomsday and make us feel guilty of the abuse that first world and our earlier generations have wrecked on the earth for ages. Okay, granted we may have done some damage too. Guilty we are of not doing enough or just sitting idle. 

I feel guilty if I have too much fun (usually an after thought, after having fun of course), or if I feel lazy till the deadline comes on my head!


Finally, I plead guilty to all that I have done (or not done!) and
I have been condemned to life imprisonment for it!