Glee

Netflix has recently included Glee Season 1 into their online streaming collection, and ever since I am watching it back to back episodes late night. No wonder that it has captured so many Emmy awards and higher ratings.

It has been a while since I have enjoyed any sitcom. Glee’s retrospective of very subtle norms of education system and society in general is very brilliant. It makes you wonder if the directors have chosen the songs for occasion or created the occasion for song, but everything in the series is very Gleeful. Amazing performances by Jane Lynch and Chris Colfer.

It also gives a little glitch when visualizing the American High School environment, which has to be taken on by my kids one day :). It is worth watching to made a day filled with Glee

Mahatma A Hero

I was reading books about African American leaders for my daughter, that she got from school as part of her home. There were books about Barack Obama and Martin Luther King. Both of them consider Mahatma Gandhi as their hero.

That made me to recall that when I was in elementary school, I never visualized Mahatma as a Hero. My grand father was a true Gandhian and he was nick named as “Shadnagar Gandhi” - Shadnagar is the province of my native village. As a child, I had few negative influences about Gandhi.

At our native home we had a unique poster of a huge tree with all the Indian Freedom fighters’ faces as leaves, fruits, branches and trunk of tree. It had numerous faces which were not very popular as ‘Captain Lakshmi’. At the center of the tree was of course Mahatma Gandhi.

Once in a while my cousins used to admire that picture, going through all the faces and reading their names. Every time we used to either hate or curse Gandhi, for being in the center of the tree. Not sure, how we ended up with that thought, but we used to think that Gandhi was bad for India. May be as a kid we were just following the leader in the group. It was always Bhagath Singh and Bose that we admired as Heroes. Of course , even as of today that admiration did not diminish.

During that time we never understood the meaning of ‘Hero’. Was it because of Tollywood effect? May be or May be not. Because most of fairy tales were also involved of fighting with enemy rather than making peace with it.

I was almost in high school, to realize that, it is not Gandhi’s decision on partition that made him a Mahatma, but, it was all about his principles and binding to them, and his simple life. One of my English lessons in high school was about Gandhi’s last day. I remember my teacher mentioning that who would say ‘Hey Ram’ when he gets shot from a bullet? Gandhi dint say ‘Aah’ or any other word that an average man would otherwise utter, but it was ‘Hey Ram’ in a very mild tone. We don’t hear any complain or pain in the way those words are uttered. No ordinary man can act like that.

I am glad that, today I could make my child see as why Gandhi has to be a hero. And thanks to the brilliant Hollywood movie ‘Gandhi’. And thanks to all those books out there which are making
parents and kids to think and wonder.

Continuing Our Struggle...

It’s been a year. A year of agitations, A year of restlessness and more importantly a year filled with losses. Loss of Souls, Money and time over the past year and half, which are irrevocable.

After incurring all these, we are still circling round with same issues and demands of separate Statehood. There is no progress from Government or the leaders, towards that goal except. Over the last year and more, time has increased the strength and unity of the people of Telangana if not anything else.

Last year, Government and Police could stop Assembly Muttadi that was conspired by students with a great armed force. This year, people’s strength has overcome that force from Police and were able to achieve their aim.

It does not seem a likely factor that TDP and Congress leaders would resign to create the vacuum, as the likelihood of re-electing them after the resignation is very slim compared to that of last year. In this heat, people would not vote for them even if they resign for the cause.

Will the Government pass the bill in parliament for separate statehood or do we need to wait for elections of 2014? People have waited for 50+ years for this and they might wait for another 4 years. But at what price? Congress has spent 40+ crores on SKC, which they know from the day one, that the outcome of the committee would not be regarded. Was it worth to spend that kind of common man’s money for the sake to merely pause the agitation for less than a year? How much would they spend and how much people need to loss in another 4 years?

Last year, people of Telangana might have not seen people from Andhra and Rayalaseema with indifference. It was the conception that the agitation for separate statehood is nothing to do with the people of other regions, but everything to do with its leaders. If this agitation continues, I think the indifference and hatred would grow between the common people of three regions.

Lets hope and cross our fingers about passing the bill in Parliament by end of March 2011.

A Cooking Mishap

Weather you cook with a passion for cooking or cook because it is one of the daily chores, we do come across cooking mishap at least once. Reason for the mishap could be anything from misinterpreting the instructions in the recipe or recipe itself has missed few ‘obvious’ or ‘default’ steps of cooking which are not so obvious or default for the beginners in the cooking.

With numerous recipes by cuisines over the net, I am sure people do stumble upon making a blunder and end up either laughing at outcome or cursing about the time and work that has been wasted on the recipe.

Corn vada (Mokkajonna Vada ) was one of my favorite snack in India. I like the hot and spicy food compared to the sweets.The most bizarre part of this recipe is taking the seeds off the kernels. It is a time consuming process but all the effort is worth while for those delicious vadas.

After coming to US, I saw frozen corn seeds. Seeds removed from kernels, processed and ready to cook. I was excited because it took off the time consuming step of peeling the seeds off. So, I got them and blended them with ginger, garlic and green chilies…. the regular ingredients.

The blended paste dint look like how it supposed to look. Nevertheless I convinced my mind that, it is alright since all it matters is the taste. I heated oil in the pan and started dropping the batter into it. I could not make the shape of the vada with the batter as it was too soft. So, I went ahead and dropped the batter as round balls with the spatula. The batter was breaking in the oil which it was not supposed to. Then I was little suspicious that there might be a mishap on the way.

After frying the first batch of vadas or balls, I have put one of it in my mouth with imaging the authentic corn vada taste… as salty, spicy and with little crunchy. To my surprise…it tasted too SWEET :(. I dint read the bold letters on the package ‘Sweet Corn’. :(

That was my last attempt of making corn vadas. Though I am not very passionate for cooking, I do try new and old recipes from the family, friends and of course from cyber. Nothing yet has disappointed me as Corn Vadas.

How about censor rating to songs?

Lately I was thinking may be it is the time to give censor ratings to song lyrics and video weather it is a private album or filmy. Today, there are just a couple of lyricists in Bollywood who are known for clean and good lyrics. Most of videos of songs in Indian cinema have moved beyond the point of vulgarity and we could no longer watch them along with kids let alone enjoy them.

Though the entertainment channels and means have increased tremendously, none of them are relaying quality work that would make an average educated consumer to wait eagerly for the next episode.

Let alone picturization of songs, but the lyrics itself are not appropriate for all ages. If we think they are not appropriate, then don’t we need to have censor ratings for them? Recently I was listening to pee loon from Once upon a time in Mumbai. The voice of the singer and music are really soft and melodious. But the lyrics made me not like it. Imagine the kids singing it, in all their innocence.

That was just one song that is top of my head now, but even in Telugu movies the lyrics are at the lowest level in terms of quality. Except for Javed Akhtar and Gulzar in Bollywood I dint come across the lyricists in recent times whose lyrics really mean something and make you feel the words. So, is with Telugu. Except for a few as Veturi and Sirivennela there are no lyricists who are doing justification to the thoughts intentioned in the song.

For me, it is all in the alfaaz along with the melody. That is what touches your heart and that is what makes you connect to the feel of the song weather it is sad or joy or love.

Deepavali Bommala Koluvu

It was Deepavali and as with every year, it was busiest time for me to arrange Bollamala Koluvu. I was packing all the toys, dolls and decorations after one week of displaying them. There is one 4” doll with cute braids for which my mom crocheted a dress a couple of years back. It reminds me of one my own doll that I had when I was little. I remember, the day when my peddamma asked as what I would like to have for a gift for my birthday. I don't remember which birthday that was, but i was fancied with a doll which will close its eye when tilted.

It was one adorable doll to have. It was a dream come true of a typical girl when peddamma got it for me. I sure did spent a lot of pretend play with it. There were other dolls which my mom used to take out only during Deepavali for Bommala Koluvu and pack it back once it is done. Nevertheless I still used to feel attached to every single one of it. May be that is the beauty of Bommala Koluvu, it makes you get fond of it.

I come across people who ask as what is the significance of Bommala Koluvu. Coming to significance, apart from praying and thanking God, it was a form of entertainment and relaxation for the women in the olden days. One would think as if that significance still hold good for today’s times, when women of today have numerous other things to amuse themselves with. Well, I look at Bommala Koluvu as an exhibit of collections, talent and imagination of women who arrange it and imagination and creativity will never become obsolete.

It is a kind of art, where you could display ones talent of sculpture to landscaping to designing to painting in the means of rangoli or modeling a town or village or an mythological or historical epic. It is one household’s museum where the family will open their exhibition once a year and each year has a new collection of imagination adhering to the old ones at the same time.

What other best way could you think of for kids of today’s generation, here at overseas, to get acquainted with Indian culture and history, and at the same time, have an opportunity to express their own art? We tend to take up classes for our children to learn art, and Bommala Koluvu in my thoughts is one of the means to enjoy that art. Bommala Koluvu is a conglomerate art of entire family.

Here is our collection of toys - Traditional, Modern, Contemporary, Sweet and everything in between :)

Holding on to traditions.

Few weeks’ earlier Telangana Foundation has organized Bathukamma celebrations in NJ. This is one of the events they are organizing since few years now and it is a candid feeling to see all the arrangements of flowers and going round in a group around them. The event exemplifies the significance of holding to the traditions and passing it over to our next generation. I am glad that these events are being organized and were successful over seas.

I think Dasara is the festival and gala meant for towns and villages. There is no equivalent atmosphere to celebrate it in cities. I remember the boring days of Dasara in Hyderabad during 90’s when our family had to celebrate it there. I encountered people whose family tradition had Bathukamma but they just wanted to get it over with it by placing a few petals in the saucer and immersing in a small container of water within the portico of the house. It could have been due to the limited resources in the city or due to our inherent shyness and introvert nature of Telanganites. Probably my family would have done the same if we had tradition of Bathukamma and had to celebrate it in the city.

Thanks to Telangana movement for taking out that introvert nature from the people and making Bathukamma an event to cherish and celebrate no matter where you live. This year’s credit for success should go to KCR’s Kavitha, for mobilizing and giving that confidence and push to the people.

I hope we will hold on to this and many other traditions even after we achieve the goal of independent State. I also hope we won’t get carried away with it so much that we end up incorporating non – green paraphernalia into it as we did with Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations.

Few Snapshots of the event in NJ