Tintin in Tawang
Tintin visited Tibet in 1958, about an year before the Dalai Lama had to flee in the wake of the Chinese invasion. Tintin loved the country and wanted to revisit. Upset by the title of his memoir published in 1960 (‘Tintin in Tibet’), the Chinese government banned Tintin and Snowy from traveling to Tibet through a special proclamation signed by the Chairman himself. In 2001, China allowed the publication of a Chinese-language version of the by-then famous book with a slightly different title – ‘Tintin in China’s Tibet’. Most Chinese came to love Tintin for his bravery when he traveled to Tibet in 1958 to save Chang Chong-Chen, his Chinese friend. Yet, the Party still held a grouse, for it was Tintin who popularized the word ‘Tibet’ across the world. Had it not been for him, China would have succeeded in its sinister plan to re-name Tibet as ‘The Liberated Land’.
Patriotism and Piety: Mutually Exclusive?
Should Muslims in India refrain from singing Vande Mataram?
To answer the question fairly, one must consider some other questions such as:
Should the state government of Maharashtra make it compulsory for cinema halls to play Jana Gana Mana before every show and exhort the audience to stand up for it?
Should Turkey make it unlawful for women to wear scarfs as a symbol of their piety?
Should China continue to ban the practice of Falun Gong?
Why I Know English Better Than I Know Sanskrit
The following is a faux excerpt of the famous ‘Minute on Indian Education’ by Lord Macaulay doing rounds on the internet. It struck as a bit incredulous to me. Lord Thomas Babington Macaulay was a highly learned man and 1835 was hardly the Golden Age of the Indian subcontinent. Unrest must have been rife – beggars and thieves might have commonplace. But, someone has taken the pain of creating an authentic-looking excerpt from his famous minute to the British Parliament on 02Feb1835.
Macaulay
Happy Diwali and Sal Mubarak
Obama scored another first. No, not the first American president to win the Nobel in the first year of presidency. That too – but perhaps more sanguinely, the first American president to light a ceremonial diya at White House on occasion of Diwali. He also recorded a video message to convey Diwali greetings to a cross-section of minority groups in the US of Indian heritage. As I watched his message, I thought of all the possible machinations in the background that would have culminated in Obama recording the message.
Stuff of Memories: Parents’ Trip to the US
My parents went back to India last month after a two and a half month stay with us in the US. This was their first visit to the West and I am sure that there must have been several big-ticket highlights for them. But for me, the small little things that they did or experienced stand out. I am listing a randomly recalled 11 occasions that have all the potential of being the stuff of memories.
Three Covers: Fact or Fiction?
Three of my favorite authors released their new books recently. I have not read any yet but its interesting how each of these three books can be viewed as either fact or fiction depending on your upbringing and perspective.
‘Road, Movie’: The Next Slumdog
Normally, people make such pronouncements after watching a movie but I am basing this on the trailer: I think ‘Road, Movie’ could very well be the next Slumdog Millionaire.
East of Mississippi & North of Carolinas
In what seems to be a faithful recreation of the actual event that took place in 1899, the picture below depicts Mr F O Stanley and wife Flora’s arrival on the first auto trip to the summit of Mount Washington in the White Mountain National Forest in New Hampshire.
A Book-Banning Nation
I can imagine a lot of things that could really harm us – like nuclear bombs, cigarettes and speeding vehicles. But books? I have never known a book that exploded as soon as you read the preface. I feel sorry for the gentlemanly Jaswant Singh who has been thrown under the bus by his colleagues for publishing a book (Jinnah – India, Partition, Independence) that does not demonize Jinnah. I feel sorrier that a society could be so intolerant of books. Books?!!
