We have 100 victories

I was surprised to know that Pakistan started playing cricket 15 years later has played less test cricket than us but got 100 test victories faster than us. Actually I should not be surpirsed.

Bambai Meri Jaan Hai - Mai Hindustani Hu !!!

I could have called it Mumbai and I have learned to call the city so, but as mark of protest mad my title so

Sachin said Mumbai belongs to all - to INDIA
Balasaheb has problem - (does he think Maharashtra is a country)
is Delhi for north Indians -
Chennai for Tamil,
Bangalore for kannada,
Kashmir for Kashmiri
then who & what belongs to India.
Although silly question but how come all "so called" Marathi Manoos (Who is he & where is he - me who was born in Maharashtra or Thakre's who came from Jhansi or Gwalior, I am not sure) sentiments are hurt when Sachin say he is Indian First and Mumbai belongs to India. Did Samana conducted poll on this overnight. Quick Work Sir !

And if Balasaheb's father Prabodhankar Thakre (no Balasaheb was not part of that campaign, he was also very young & was busy drawing cartoons) along with other very respected true Marathi leaders fought for "Akhand Maharashtra" which included Mumbai with blood and sweat, how did Indians got India back from British - whose blood and sweat was sacrificed then. Who died on 8th August 1942- who died defending Mumbai on - 26/11 (horror - they came from Gurgaon - Haryana and had a South Indian group leader) They all were Indian first. By the way "Indian concept was first floated by - "Lokmanya" Bal Gangdhar Tilak and Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Veer Savarkar died for India. Chipoonkar brothers were too Indians. In 1975-77 period Madhu Dandavate, Mrunal Gore, Nanaji Deshmukh and many more went to Jail to defend democracy and nation called India, they did not sip warm beer in Bandra and praised Hitler and Emergency.

And one thing I don't understand how can regional chauvinism can be equated with patriotism. When Shiv Sena / MNS make Muslims villains the nationalism / patriotism comes into question. They talk about "Akhand Bharat". When Abu Azmi takes other in Hindi they have problem (although he is another nuseance altogether)

Is Sachin or any other sports person or film star or non-politico like me have any right to give our opinion. (keep quite if you want to survive - is the mantra - Where is? Is it the TRUTH?) It is like Bushism - "either you are with us or against us". What about having own opinion and respecting each other without offending or getting offended. When Raj or Balasaheb can give opinion so can any Indian with equal freedom. If we keep quiet and not bash up people like they do does not mean silent majority is coward. Earlier Narendra Modi made Amir Khan's life hell now it could have been Sachin. But I am glad and very confident that neither of the Uncle nephew duo have guts (to quote Balasaheb himself - "g*$@it daam nahi") to take on Sachin. Udhav was taking his party in right direction, it requires patience to get result of good deeds, and Uncle nephew duo, ti seems, does not have that. They want to be "Hinduhridaya Samrat" (King of Hindu's Heart) But is there such a Hindu?

Are they being patriotic by dividing us further by talking about marathi / non-marathi or playing cynical politics, being very short sighted and selfish. I think all three. Every one, every Indian who really loves his country his nation - sings Vande Mataram or not - must wake up to the game of these two and their likes and tell them to go to Hell.

"He who pays the price of friendship by doing friendly service knows its value, and he would not barter one little spark of it for a whole constellation of the other. The most permanent friendships are born in service... Paul Harris in 1912"

The Rotund Rotarian

The Rotund Rotarian

An Image or an outrage?

(With inspiration from here & there  Some of written below is my own original thoughts but  if I claim this to be wholly my original writing then The purpose of writing what I have written is wholly lost)

A wicked wit is said to have said that while Rotary Clubs might grid the entire free world, the conjoined circumferences of the Rotarians waistlines will easily equal the equator. I myself must confess to being above average in this respect. I have claimed it to be a sign of success, the visible symbol of prosperity, and the out ward expression of a happy man. But, deep inside I know myself to be a loser in the battle (not entirely, I may have lost few battles, but not yet lost the war) of the bulge, but still fighting hard. I have to admit to being in the illustrious company of “Rotund Rotarians”.

But does our flabbiness stop with the figure? Or does it extend to our outlook on life? Are we pot bellied organizationally? Are our thoughts as unruly as our muscles? Are our loudly lauded projects only the guilty reflexes of an overloaded conscience? Are we really the “fat cats” of popular conceptions?

Or do we represent the active conscience of social justice? Does not the popular image of a Rotarian as a “do-gooder” spring at least partly from a certain self-righteous smugness on our part? Do we beat our breasts too loudly to the local press and in self adulation? Do we exude complacency along with our pinch of generosity? Do we not vitiate our virtuous effort by an all too obvious superficiality of interest?

Is our so-called fellowship all too hollow and shallow? Does our concern with each other end with the dessert? Do we apply the 4 Way Test only to the four courses of our Rotary Dinner? Are we in any way responsible for the general conception of a Rotarian as an epitome of false brotherhood? Are we rewarding “personal loyalties at the expense of loyalty & dedication to Rotary? Do we wear our smiles in our sleeves and our hearts in our purses? Do we meet once a week for “Service Above Self” or “service about self”.

I have put forth this avalanche of questions in your collective faces with no malice in my heart towards none, because I am one of you, THE EMINENT ROTUND ROTARIAN. It is impossible to imagine – let alone expect – perfection in a man or in an organization, but let us be choosy in our imperfections and above all honest in our acceptance of it. “Let us not become the victims of our own delusions”. (I love this quote, it came to me, must have read somewhere some time).

Hence the need for a new and penetrating look at ourselves. It may be too much too demand that success and self sacrifice should go hand in hand but it should not happen that eminence in business or vocation should find sincerity a strange bedfellow. It is true that successful man is a busy man, but it should not be tolerated that such member remains as one without adequate involvement. Affluence & success are necessary, but must not be precondition to participate in Rotary. On the other hand success may place a Rotarian in elevated position but we must not let it cause us to look down on the fellowman.

Success comes rather late in life to most, and since leadership in our professions, business, or vocation is a guiding spirit of our classification principles, it is bound to be that the physical image of the average Rotarian is that of the Rotund Rotarian & alas rotundity is almost unavoidable in later life. Be that as it may, let not the image of Rotary itself be that of a smug, self-opinionated, insincere, inflated windbag – for that to my mind should be absolute no-no (taboo) to any Rotarian – the very ultimate outrage! Let the cordial image of the Rotund Rotarian remind us of the need for every Rotarian to act upon the square in humanity, in sincerity, and in service.