[via email from Chetan]
You might have seen most of them before too. Just for fun. My blog isn’t allowing me to post a comment on my previous post! So, let me get on with light-hearted stuff after a heavy-duty discussion. Here are ten of the timeless wonders of RK Laxman.
I am sure many interviews happen that go on like this. With English aka communication skills being the prime objective of interviews, these things can be quite common.
A common scene in the legislative assemblies as well as Parliament of India. Unfortunately holds true for generation over generation.
This is not the age for do-gooders! When has it ever been?!
Garib hatao!
Mysore is undergoing a serious Water Famine now. I hope the problem gets sorted out.
Wait for the UP election results to come and then you will see rapid defections from various parties to BSP. And this story is going to repeat itself forever too.
How true!
This happens in a few non-government organizations also. yes. I know.
ROTFL! Now we know how money comes, but we still don’t know where it goes! ;)
PS: RK Laxman was a Mysorean. Probably one of the most famous ones.
The Most common one, –
namma deshakke swatantra bandu 50 varsha aaytu, aadru obbaLu hengsu raatri 12 gaNTeli obbaLe oDaadakkagilla…
I see people repeating this statement by incrementing the number of years after we got independance & now its sounds
like swatantra bandu 60 varsha aadru.
Did Gandhiji know that our politicians may bring laws to infact even stop girls from moving after 8 pm in the night ?
Good one!!
ps – Also, anybody seeking advice before wedding , I shall pass on your email id. hope this is okay :-)
The common one is –
namma deshakke swatantrya bandu 50 varsha aaytu , aadru raathri heNNu makkaLu onTi oDaado stiti talupalilla.
This is the dialogue I have been hearing, should say grown up hearing this.
Now the number is 60 ! :-)
Did Gandhiji know that our politicians would bring up some laws which would not allow even to go out(just to work or no where at all) after 8pm..
Good post Adi…
Simply priceless ones Adi, aren’t they? Gr8 to see them all at one place (10 to be precise). Try poasting more if u get them.
adi:
great collection.
re: # 1, it took me a couple of minutes to understand. blame it on me! the expression i am more used to now is ‘pull up a chair’ – i wonder how laxman would’ve translated that one!
- s.b.
s.b.: maybe something like this?
Middle Class Muddle
Things haven’t changed much (or is it getting worse) in India because the so called middle class aren’t interested in anything but themselves. They are neither interested in the problems nor the solutions. They just want to escape.
The craze to settle down permanently in foreign land is getting out of control. I myself have lost many alliances because the parents were interested in giving their daughters to foreign settled gentlemen. Half of my friends/relatives, if given an opportunity want to settle down outside India (I am referring to developed countries).
I met a Mysorean Kannadiga here in USA, who is now a citizen of USA. His father was a bank peon/attender and mom a housewife/homemaker. They used to label/pack Ganesh Beedis in the evening/night to meet their children’s education. Both sons got educated in a decent schools (non-government) and did well. They finished their engineering while working part-time in many not so good jobs to support their education. Worked hard for a few years in Indian companies where office politics, discrimination and other unethical practices determined promotion and pay rise. They quickly caught onto the IT bandwagon and got an opportunity through a consultant to work in USA. Their hardwork paid off and as time passed they became a naturalized citizen. Both brothers have married and their children are in engineering and business schools in USA and all are doing good. Neither our friend nor his father had anything positive to say about India. They feel that they have been lucky enough to get out of India which is getting worse by the day (Hmm!). The friend said that he doesn’t owe anything to India (I have paid my taxes, lived ethically and legally wherever possible and what did I get in India? When my mom passed away in India, I had to bribe to get her death certificate. They thought I will be making money using her death certificate to get all that was hers) and his efforts and intelligence were never recognized. He says he got immense respect in USA, rewarded amply for his work and never had to bribe or resort to anything illegal or unethical. He says getting any work from the government offices in the US is a piece of cake. He says that he can’t even imagine 10% improvement in the current state of affairs in India even after after another two decades. (If that is the case, Oh! My God! I am still in India)
When his father was still in India, his brother felt patriotic and decided to work in India. He joined as a Project Manager for an Indian IT Company whose Indianism is now in question (you know who I am referring to). He was amazed by the amount of backstabbing, his colleagues trying hard to discredit him/blame him for anything going wrong. His brother told me that he was awarded multiple times in the US company for being a team player and a role model for working in teams. Yet, he struggled in Indian Company to work with his colleagues (most were jealous for nothing and money was the prime thing in their minds). He said everybody was trying hard to malign others so they can get promoted or get credit for somebody else’s work. He had enough and came back to USA and is now running his own company. He continues to hire brilliant Indians and told me that from his experience the same Indians behave differently in India (worse behaviour) and USA (excellent behaviour).
The family told that though they intially left for greener pastures for the greens (read money) they are continuing to stay there for peace of mind! They said happiness is a state of mind and you can be happy anywhere. With the right opportunity, you might be able to make money anywhere but finding peace in India is becoming difficult by the day!
I understood what they meant by peace. In Bangalore, I was very frustrated at the end of the day. I was tired being over alert in the public transport to prevent my valuables from getting stolen. Getting change from the conductor was another marathon. Autorickshaw guys refusing to go to my destination in the evening for no matter what amount has made me get drenched in the heavy rains. Fighting with prepaid auto guys who claim my destination isn’t covered by the said prepaid route and I need to shell out more and they creating scenes in the front of my house made my neighbours look down upon me. A few trips to the RTO, Sub-registrar’s office and Muncipality drained all my energy and I was harrassed/treated badly despite paying bribes to get the work (legal work to be completed in the normal duration for which I shouldn’t be paying anything) done. I was getting angrier at the end of the day and health was taking a toll. A few months back, my friend’s car (an old car) was stolen from a locked garage and we had to lodge a complaint with the police for insurance purposes. We were treated at par (may be even worse) as if were some criminals. We were happy that no money was being asked but alas we were wrong. As we were coming out, a constable came to us asking for money (Four Figure Amount), so the police can trace our car! When we refused, the SI who had come out by now asked us to forget our car forever! Later my friend discoverd that his car had been dismantled and parts were being sold in local mechanic shop and Gujjadi! There was nothing he could do about it. I got used to this Indian System but it is making me angrier by the day.
When I came to USA last month on a pleasure trip, I decided to get a driver’s license. The whole system was so easy and streamlined I was overjoyed. A visit to a few other government offices for my friends and relatives work left me amazed. I already have & made enough money that I don’t have to worry about it. I am happy as I live a simple life without any materialistic desires. I don’t have any wants or desires (Only looking for a life partner to spend the rest of my life). Today I hired a taxi to go my uncle’s place. I accidently paid him double (two currency notes) and never realized it. As I am walking away from the taxi, the driver came running after me trying to return my money and telling what had happened.
I was feeling good, the anger in me had disappeared ever since I came to USA. May be it is the Peace of Mind that my friend was talking about.
I realized given an opportunity, even I would like to get out of India. Well, for the time being I have to try getting out of Bangalore. (once I come back from the USA) I love to be in Mysore but alas it doesn’t have any decent jobs for me!
I now understand the Middle Class Muddle. I want some peace of mind!
Sooper collection gurugaLe. Good post :)
Veena:
Thanks! I am sure RK Laxman has interpreted what you have said too. It’s just a matter of fishing them out.
Sureshsk:
Absolutely! I will try to see if I can find more of them anywhere!
S.b.:
Thanks!
‘Draw a chair’ is Queen’s English I guess! :)
Pavan:
LOL! Apt photo!
But on the lighter side, isn’t it ‘pushing up a chair’?! ;)
Kumar Somesh:
“the parents were interested in giving their daughters to foreign settled gentlemen”
That is something I have encountered too. Also, have you noticed that they ask for BE-MBAs as if they are recruiting for some techno-managerial position!
“Half of my friends/relatives, if given an opportunity want to settle down outside India (I am referring to developed countries).”
I agree India is not perfect but as it was said in Rang-De-Basanti, “Koi bhi desh perfect nahi hota. usse behtar banana padta hai”. Okay I know it is an idealistic thought and what about the system and all that. Let us reserve that argument for later!
And that family also said,“They said happiness is a state of mind and you can be happy anywhere.”
Though I empathise with their situation, after all they have done they are saying this? Quite unbelievable actually.
I can pick thousand holes in what you have said about Bangalore, but that’s not the intention. I know of so many of my relatives and friends who have been living in Bangalore, earning decently and living life as they want to with the share of difficulties and problems that Bangalore offers. Whatever happened to you or your friend might be a case of pure bad luck too.
A taxi driver in the US returned your money and your peace of mind came back? Well, can’t say much about that except hope that you see and understand what you are looking for in life.
“I realized given an opportunity, even I would like to get out of India.”
This is desire#2, is it not?! ;)
“I love to be in Mysore but alas it doesn’t have any decent jobs for me!”
and #3!! :)
It’s become a fashion to prefix ‘middle-class’ before anything Indian and just criticize it. Somehow I don’t understand what it is all about. And today I saw it come along with ‘muddle’..hmm.. interesting.
Somashekar:
Thanks! :)
adi:
you are welcome.
pavan:
that was a nice image. combining what adi points out with newton’s third law, i come up with – the image demonstrates the sitter ‘pushing down the chair.’
of course, politics being what it is, someone will come along to ‘pull down the chair’ too!
- s.b.
//RK Laxman was a Mysorean. Probably one of the most famous ones. //
Adithya,read this one:
http://churumuri.wordpress.com/2006/04/30/javagal-srinath-worlds-most-famous-mysorean/
S. Ganesh Kumar:
Where’s RK Laxman in that list? Only his illustrious author brother is seen there?
Thanks for posting some of Laxman’s gems, Adi.
I have been fascinated by Laxman’s cartoons ever since I was in school. I regard him as the only unambiguous genius among Indian journalists.
Only he can play with every shade of humour – wit, satire, irony, slapstick, buffoonery, tragicomedy. Such versatility dazzles as does his unwearied discipline. Through the long, prolific years he has never hit anyone below the belt which is a remarkable achievement in itself. And that’s what makes Laxman India’s most beloved cartoonist…
I had the privilege to have met him and shown him the scrapbook I made on his legendary brother, RK Narayan.
Long live Laxman and his ubiquitous common man!
Superb…all these cartoons are timeless…
Classics… all of them !!!
Very nice cartoons!!
Rk:
You are welcome! :)
But more than being welcome for your gratitude, you are a very lucky person to have got a chance to meet RK Laxman. Or are you some kind of a celebrity yourself? I remember reading in your blog that you had met Dr. Rajkumar also!
Long live Laxman and the unforgettable common man!
Priya, Vijay and Jeevan:
Thanks! :)
Sorry ra,small mistake!
Classics ra!!!! Nice collection :-)
nice cartoons…these will be applicable for the next generation as well in our country.
Kumar Somesh – no doubt one can have a good quality of life in a developed country. but ‘peace of mind’ ? am not sure. a virgnia tech kinda incident can spoil the peace for the rest of one’s life.
VamC:
Thanks! :)
Arun:
Absolutely. Hence the ‘timeless’ in the title!