Ban Bandh
I have said this before on several
occasions. Bandh has long lost its
sanctity and efficacy as a form of peaceful protest in India. Everybody now
knows that there is nothing ‘peaceful’ about the bandh. Neither does it signify people’s support or lack of it to
the issue on which the bandh has been
called. Presently bandh, no matter
which party calls it, just promotes hooliganism and creates an atmosphere of anxiety,
fear and chaos. It accords kind of legitimacy to lawlessness. In this
atmosphere hooligan and anti social elements thrive and at times take over.
This happened on 26 June in Odisha,
the day Congress Party called a bandh
in protest of what had happened in Puri during ‘bhramha parivartan’. People who pay obeisance to Lord Jagannath are
hurt, pained and enraged. But one wrong cannot be righted by another wrong.
Bandh can neither put balm on their hurt sentiment, nor can help improve the
situation at Puri. It can only aggravate the problem and bring misery and
inconvenience to the common people.
Look at the photographs. Do the
perpetrators of crime even remotely look like they care for the sanctity of
rituals at Shreemandira? Does this
kind of violence help in restoring Odisha's lost face? Or does it further push
the image of Odisha as a peace loving state to the nadir?
 |
| Photo: Ashok Panda |
July 6 is
observed as World Kissing Day. I did not know that there is a day for kissing
till somebody posted on my facebook page. And then I searched on the net and
found out some information.
“The idea
behind the International Kissing Day is that many people may have forgotten the
simple pleasures associated with kissing for kissing's sake, as opposed to
kissing as mere social formality or prelude to other activities. Kissing can be
an enjoyable experience in and of itself. It is an expression and experience of
intimacy.
A kiss is the act of pressing one's lips
against the lips or other body parts of another. Cultural connotations of
kissing vary widely. A kiss may be used to express sentiments of love, passion,
affection, respect, greeting, friendship, and good luck, among many others. The
word came from Old English cyssan "to kiss", in turn from coss
"a kiss". The act of kissing has become a common expression of
affection among many cultures worldwide.
To know
more about kiss or kissing you may read truckloads of books, surf innumerable
websites, visit Konark or Khajuraho or simply indulge in the act, (later one
would be the most pleasurable).
I did not know that competitions are organised
for what they call ‘longest kiss’. For those who want to know, the longest kiss
lasted 58 hours, 35 minutes and 58 seconds and was achieved by Ekkachai
Tiranarat and Laksana Tiranarat (both Thailand) at an event organised by
Ripley's Believe It or Not! Pattaya, in Pattaya, Thailand, on 12-14 February
2013. Nine couples entered the annual competition, including a married couple
in their 70s. However, it was previous record holders Ekkachai Tiranarat and
Laksana Tiranarat who came out on top, scooping a cash prize and two diamond
rings as well as another Guinness World records title. (Details here: http://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/longest-kiss)
Dear readers!
Try your luck and lips this Kissing Day.
My Dilemma
We are putting together a Glossary of
Media Terms.
While researching for new terms I
came across this term: 'Churnalism'. It is brash term coined by Guardian
journalist Nick Davies in his book Flat Earth News, to illustrate his belief
that many of his journalistic colleagues have become puppets for the PR
industry. This has happened in India also.
I have a dilemma now: should I
include this in the Glossary we are preparing mostly for Indian students?
Tailpiece 1: Bankrupt
Gujju
friend calls his friend Girish- Hey Girish, I am sorry about you being
bankrupt.
Gisrish: Abey, woh Greece hai.
Tailpiece 2: Going Greek
Just as you have the term “Going
Dutch” where everyone on a table chips in to foot the bill, youi have a new
term “Going Greek”. Here people eat, drink and make merry but when the bill
arrives they simply stand up and show their empty pockets and express their
inability to pay up.
***
3 July 2015
***
The author, a journalist
turned media academician lives in Dhenkanal, a small and senic Central Odisha
town. Besides his professional work, he writes fiction and tends garden.
mrinalchatterjeeiimc@gmail.com
This column is published in www.orissadiary.com
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