History as school course in India

Are you the one who dreaded History classes when we were at School in India? Well like so many of you, I too just hated history. To me, History was the subject that you have to just mug up or as we call “ratta” and somehow pass. I believe that my memory of history teacher would probably be same as yours - teachers holding thick history books in hands, monotonously describing major events of our history , and made history classes sound as interesting as the “doordarshan” news we used to watch during 80s and early 90s’ – namasakar, aaj ke samchar main “Rajiv Gandhi nain kahaa ………….’. In a way, History has encouraged the “rattafication” of our studies behavior, it was such a boring subject that most of us didn`t have any better alternative except to mug it up without knowing any reasonable meaning of this subject and get better score otherwise our ranks would go down. Yes there were other subjects we might have passed through similarly but history topped the list.

What puzzles me most why a fascinating subject was so boring in our school days? We all sneak into our history every moment of our life trying to know something about people, events, science, discoveries, and all that had happened in history. Has history become more fascinating in “AG” than in “BG” (As IT geeks say that out history is not divided in AD and BC now, its AG (After Google) and BG (Before Google) so I am using same terminology). History is definitely more fascinating now that we have complete information at clicks. Like many of us, I am rediscovering events of Indian history and India with the information available in AG world that was not available so easily BG.

My husband is avid watcher of WW2 and period movies; I have picked up his interest as well, especially the period dramas. I have come to like history because watching movies made it easier to visualize - the events, the contributions made by people, the great world wars, the pain, the suffering, the disease/epidemics, and our own India history. It’s so fascinating to know now how the civilization started in our motherland and the glorious history thereafter but back in schools days those event were echoed in an aptly worded, very old hindi song “ sikander ne porus se ke thi ladai toh main kya karoo”. I think that basic problem lies in way of teaching history as may be the case with other subjects in India. I had always “rattafied” this subject, Which is also why it was so hard to grasp/remember and just by reading history text book in class by some boring professor (excuse me for saying that...no offense) didn't make it any easier. I strongly feel that there should be some major improvements in teaching methods on this subject or for that matter on any subject. Teachers should show some type of movie/documentary to relate to the subject so that it would have greater impact on mind which will help us to remember better and appreciate it, and not just do all the “rattafication” for exams and then forget all about it. Although other subjects in science, math’s and commerce can be as boring as you want them to be but irrespective of type of teaching, young generation in India knows very well that way to succeed in India or abroad is to master subjects in science, math’s and commerce so they do whatever it takes to succeed in these subjects and thus history takes complete backseat.

History as a subject is important in India provided the teachers and students put the equal passion and interest. It is this link that tells us about the emergence of India as potential global, economic power and is not new but a renaissance and what we need to learn from some of the great leaders and our glorious history so that we rise with more confidence. Knowing our history well might provide our young generation great insight and wisdom that they may not have to look upon west for all solutions and global issues.

So you see how important it is to know the history, in order to foster personal growth - study history because everything you learn makes you wiser! How we make history a good choice as major in India is another topic and another blog to write later, I guess.

What is influencing our younger generations?

Today Sachin Tendulkar became the first batsman to score a double hundred in a one-day international. We all know how talented he is and and how passionate Indians are about the cricket game. Not only that, Indians are passionate about the bollywood movies too, probably because these are the only major source of entertainment for the common man. But nobody or very few of us remember that we had our Indian budget for 2010-11 being presented on the same day with ODI matches. Young generations are tech-savvy and they follow all the celebrities on Twitter and our old generation follow them on TV channels. At work people check their emails, messenger and Tweets on internet/phone may be 10 times a day and in doing so they loose half of the productivity of producing quality work. Not only this, people talk through emails and messenger even if that person is sitting right in the next cubicle. My point is that, If Indians put half the energy or be half passionate about science and technology, of What they are about the movies and Cricket, then our productivity will increase and India would be a very different country which will put us to advantage over the other developing nations. I am not against our bollywood movies or games or staying connected with friends but I want to emphasize to all of you that, We all need to wake up and do the right thing and put limit to such things.

Another news which amazes me is
Shiv Sena's Mumbai Marathi Manus

Mumbai belongs to Maharashtra and Marathi people, Thackeray maintained and added that "If anyone is going to murder this truth, he will have to face weapons of Maharashtra".

I have seen this headline news on every newspaper now. To tell you frankly, I am sick and tired of the politics that is thriving in India.

No doubt India is a fascinating country and Indian Population is poly-genetic and there is an amazing amalgamation of various races and cultures where people of many different communities and religions live together in unity. But is this diverse nature of India making a positive or negative impact? Politicians are using this difference in culture as a weapon to play dirty politics. How can one fall prey to such attacks made by politicians? How can one agree to their actions? Don't we have the mind of our own to choose the right and the wrong? Is the judgment power of people have been so obscured that we are blindly following or leaded by certain corrupt minds?

India is for all Indians and people have a right to go anywhere. I am really not interested in what Bal Thackeray or Raj Thackeray have to say. Frankly, I am interested in one concept that India belongs to Indians and every part of India belongs to every Indian. Everyone knows the fact, that during the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai , men in the NSG were from Bihar, UP, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh and Maharashtra. At that time Shiv Sena did not say that those from Bihar and UP should be taken out. India has to move forward and all have to be taken forward. Very few educated people vote and politicians take advantage of such situations, they reach to poor, uneducated people in the slums/rural areas and make false promises to them to lure them and get them to vote. If we don't make the right choice now, how can we expect the right things happening for our country in future.

This is crucial time for us Indians to step up and make a assertive move towards future. We have to explore and focus on new green technologies. I want my child to have true/positive influence about our culture, values, science and technology and not the bull-sh*t carp (Sorry to use such words) of politics and movies because they are our future.

Manisha.

Full-time mother and Working Women

Yes, Yes, I know, Here's one more post related to women but this is with different angle.

There are lots of views about being a full-time mother and working women, but here are some of my thoughts about being a full-time mother and working woman. Let me tell you the most important thing I feel, it is much rather difficult than any one would anticipate. Both situations have its challenge.

One would not realize it but being a full time mother is like having a full time job in itself and not just limited to cooking, cleaning, taking care of her children or family and passing the time either watching TV or on internet. To put it articulately, it is much more than that like delegating household chores, dealing with feelings of dependency (may not be true for most women), managing on a reduced income, and changing financial expectations, planning networking ideas, planning for activities to keep your child busy and entertain them, extensive support group lists or playgroups and looking into work options. This is not even a fraction of which a full time mother has to face. There are several aspects and each of them had its challenges. for example, in a joint family women have to face much more challenges than the individual families (some may not agree but I am taking into account all the pro's and cons), or the geographical location and cultural values also pose different set of challenges , meaning, Typical north Indian family has many restrictions on women over the south Indian family (again its my observation) and so forth...

On the other hand working women has her set of challenges. along with dealing with the family and daily chores, she has to deal with feelings about job satisfaction, job attachment, life-style considerations, making a good impression on pears at work, pressures on the working spouse, What is best for our child or children, How can we keep an equal-rights household, personal and parental Goals; spousal support; support from family and friends; and if the money is yours, mine or ours? (oh yes! believe me I have seen couples arguing about this issue too), to name few....

Each women is different and has her own way of articulating the challenges of life.

The first duty of a human being is to assume the right functional relationship to society -- more briefly, to find your real job, and do it. Be it Men or women. I have yet to hear a man ask for advice on how to combine marriage, children and a career.

By and large, full-time mothers and working women are the only workers who do not have regular time off. They are the great vacation-less class. .
Hats off... to all the women, whether its full time mother or working women.

Manisha.

What it is to be a woman?

This is just my opinion, and I'm not an expert on woman's issues or gender studies or sociology.
But I know quite a lot about being a woman.

And while I cannot speak for all (or even most) women, I have always thought that it would be easier being a man. Yes, being a woman can have it's advantages but sometimes it is not all it is cracked up to be!
What are some of the reasons you would like to be what you are not?
I would like to be a man because:
1. I could be loud and opinionated and be called assertive instead of a bitch
2. It is still a man's world when it comes to the business world
3. Less worries about getting dressed, makeup etc....
4. I would like to be able to pee outside without worrying about peeing on my leg.
(Okay eliminate the 4th statement)

It is well understood that our sex is predetermined. Even before first beat of our hearts, our genes determine our tangible futures. We become men or women. And while we cannot control the outcome, we at least have the power to decide who we become as individuals.

We all know there isn’t a magic mold that makes up the ideal woman. We ladies cannot be cloned and it is obvious that the world would be a very boring and monotonous place to live in if we did. My women friends are not the least bit like me (probably a good thing). We each have our strengths and weaknesses. We compliment each other, not with words, but with our actions.

Being a woman does not mean we meet some qualifications on a checklist. It’s not a group of character traits or physical distinctions. It’s not a set of virtues or standards that we must live up to. What it is like to be a women? I can only speak to the universal experiences that we ladies share.

The most common and basic experience that we all know is fear. A woman who knows how to recognize and leverage fear to her advantage is the one who will succeed. Fear can either propel or repel us. If it’s not pushing us to do better, be better or improve ourselves in some way, then it could be repelling us away from the greatest and most fulfilling experiences of our lives. We must recognize the opportunities before us and push beyond the fear. Once we see that fear can be healthy and move us towards better opportunities and experiences, then we begin to learn who we are as individuals.

We must know who we are as women. If we cannot be who we were made to be then we have failed. Knowing who we are means we know our talents, our likes, our dislikes, our limits and our dreams. It also means that we can see ourselves completely outside of those limitations and dreams and recognize that anything is possible.

The word “can’t” serves only as a challenge to a woman. It is not a word that one can use to hold us back. Having recognized who we are and knowing that we can be whatever we choose, we can learn, we can train and we can overcome any challenge set before us. Simply put – we can.

Once we are comfortable with who we are and what we can do, we are not afraid to reinvent ourselves. This does not mean we put on a mask and hide. Reinvention is simply the art of stretching and growing into something stronger and even more beautiful.

It's not what I wear or how I do my hair, I'm convinced it's that I carry myself with confidence. I don't feel like I'm the all-around perfect catch, but I've been through enough to know I'm a great mother, a loving daughter, a good sister, an honest friend, a good wife and a great lover. You grow into the title of woman.

That's what it is to be a woman....

Manisha.

What is Life?

Life has many meanings or definitions. It has been the subject of much speculation in terms of philosophical, scientific and theological aspects.
For me life had different meaning at different stages of my life-cycle.
According to me ,
Life is a BITCH! and we all are the DOG, we have to follow her, no matter we like it or not, or makes us happy or sad.
At the same time... Life is never stops, it goes on...
Life is too short to get stuck with the grievances, jealousy and failure. so move on...
Sometimes, Life is like a Treadmill,
no matter how fast we go, how hard we try, we will never get anywhere.
I know life sometimes freaking hurts, but its a life, its real and its pretty much all we have got.
Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, its about getting out there and dancing in the rain.
Life is Significant and it has a purpose...don't count the number of years in your life, but count each year in life where we made a positive difference in your or somebody else's life.
There are so many things that can be done in a lifetime,
but doing it is the important thing to do...
Live life to the fullest..... so that when we have a flashback at some point of time in your life....we may consider as worthwhile and be proud of it.

Manisha.

I am a Believer

I am a 'Believer'

When something is taken away from you, so dear to you and you cared about it, you feel disappointed.

I remember the days when I was feeling so low,
Thought that this is the end of the world for me,
No one believes in me and frankly, I have stop believing in myself and my abilities.

But in the corner of my mind I had some hope.
I knew deep down inside my heart that some days are good, some days are not,
some days are fast that you feel you can't catch up to it,
some days are slow that the earth stood still and you are all alone,
But never stop believing that "Every dark cloud has a silver lining"

Take me higher
Open the sky up
I believe
Even if it's just a dream

I woke up this morning
with a memory
Today might be a great and wonderful day.
It depends on you if you believe in it.

Believe me friends, even if the things are looking bleak and you can't do anything about it,
Don't give up. Keep trying even if it takes infinite efforts from you.
You will get there.

So believe....

Manisha.