Macaulay , Pioneer of Indian Modernization- Zareer Masani

After the history books in school where one became acquainted with British officials Robert Clive, Warren Hastings, William Bentinck, Thomas Macaulay - I revisited that part of my history again thanks to Harsha who insisted that I read about Macaulay. Zareer Masani's book recreates the person that Thomas Babington Macaulay (1800-1859) was and the impact he made (if I am writing this blog in English and if you're an Indian reading it in English, we have Macaulay to thank for as the blurb on the book goes - he was the champion of making English the medium of instruction and introducing western education in schools in India). Macaulay learned languages at a rapid pace, memorised many details, read a lot, wrote abundantly, spoke voluminously, convincingly, had a vision and worked as hard as any to rise from a common and humble background to the higher echelons of British society. He served as Secretary at War and as Paymaster General. In later years he was a regular on the list of the Queen's parties.

Vintage Books, 269 p, Rs. 450

Macaulay apparently showed signs of his extraordinary talent in his childhood - and Masani begins his story being known as Clever Tom. He must have done more than the average clever things but one thing he could do well was write very convincingly. He wrote much to his sisters, of whom Hannah and Margaret, were very close to him and from their letters Masani recreates the man from his private writings. A bachelor all his life, Macaulay spent much time in the company of his sisters, even forcing Hannah to accompany him to india where she met her husband Trevelyan. A sharp mind, a powerful speaker, a clear thinker and a belligerent attitude made Macaulay scale the highs of officialdom without any special connections with the higher classes. His Indian trip earned him much money and he was finally a rich man from his travels, his posts in the Government, his own prudence with money and to top it all, royalties and advances from publishers for his writings - a collection of poems and his magnum opus, 'History', which apparently sold next only to the Bible those days, selling upwards of 100, 000 copies! Staggering stuff.

Anyway Macaulay had some fine arguments about educating the locals in India as he felt that the British should not fear loss of control over the locals - it is better to educate them, he argued. And from that line of thought emerged the Minute which proposed English as a medium of instruction and which reduced the barriers between not just Indians themselves, but Indians and the British and now the world. It is interesting to see India through the eyes of the British official - his trip to Ooty from Chennai taking some months as he had to be carried over in a palanquin. His exposure to the double standards and hypocricy of the babus, his dislike of Indian food and fruit, even culture, and funnily his quick adjustment to the Indian weather and food - he fell ill only once, a mild fever that lasted a few hours.

Macaulay was an intelligent man and craved for intelligent company and conversations and certainly did not suffer fools. Among the people he really loved were his two sisters, of whom Margaret died pretty early when he was in India, and Hannah who was his companion for most of his life. There seems to be no love interest in his life. A lonely life otherwise, one that he filled with work, books, writing and conversations, Macaulay made some hefty contributions especially in India. He played a big role in introduction of English and western concepts in Indian education, replacement of Persian by English as official language and trained English speaking Indians as teachers. His Minute on Indian Education in February 1935 is a famous document which is still discussed and researched. His contribution to the Penal Code as Member of the Law Commission was also significant. Much of his Penal Code is followed in British colonies till date.

For someone so well read, well spoken and intelligent Macaulay was considered uncouth by the high society in London. He did not care much for them either, preferring to dine quietly with his friends and family. But good to see things from the other point of view. What amazes me is the ease with which all these foreign powers came, mingled, settled down and then ruled. Bribe a few, fight a few, and they were in. And started controlling kingdoms, cultures. Fascinating people. I found many names that are now used for places - Auckland, Lansdowne were two of them.

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The Ideal PM

It was interesting to see Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's endorsement of Rahul Gandhi as the ideal PM after 2014. I am not aware if Mr. Singh  elucidated any special qualities that Rahul Gandi possesses which make him the ideal PM of the largest democracy in the world. For someone in such a responsible post to endorse someone so strongly, specially someone as erudite as the present PM, it takes a lot. It is the kind of a statement that forces us to think about two things - whether there are some unknown factors about Mr. Rahul Gandhi's leadership skills of which Mr. Singh is so effusive and, Mr. Singh's judgment itself in putting forth his endorsement. I have not seen any case yet for Mr. Rahul Gandhi to claim leadership position yet, specially of our nation. Anyway, that can be debated, and I'd rather not judge him fully. Perhaps Mr. Singh has seen some spark in the past few years.

I am more concerned about the ideal PM we need to have. It is an important job I suppose and one that must not be given away frivolously. It is picking the leader of one billion and more people, one who can hold their lives, their futures, their hopes and aspirations and give them wings. A leader who belongs to all of us, who represents all of us and who understands all of us. The leader we can all respect, we can trust and someone who has, by his words and deeds, already earned it. Here is a list of attributes I will look for.

1) Vision: I need a leader with a clear and uncluttered vision that will drive us towards self-sustenance, prosperity, equality, balanced growth. Someone who does not weaken the structure by giving away freebies for votes thereby making people lazier and greedier but who makes it stronger by rewarding a good, honest work ethic, - by gradually convincing the nation that there is indeed no substitute for hard, efficient work. A vision that can leverage our strengths with opportunities . Chandrababu Naidu, ten years ago had this vision and the energy, but now I find no one who seems to have a vision for the country as a whole. If they have, I have not heard it yet.

2) Knowledge: I need a leader who has a genuine knowledge of our problems, our histories, our hopes and our complex cultures. India is not an easy nation to lead primarily because we are a fragmented bunch of people who came together as one, each with our own cultures and histories. Without an understanding of the people and our past, all future plans will be mere essays and good rhetoric because they come out of a brittle foundation. This understanding would require at least twenty or thirty years in knowing, studying, meeting and dealing with people and their problems across India. I am sure there are some worthies out there in the parliament but they are subjugated, by their own volition, being happy to be the supporting cast that I am not sure they have the spine to be a leader any more. This knowledge again must be on public display through papers, speeches.

3) Commitment: I need someone who is committed to the good of the nation, of the people, and will fight for that, even at the cost of power. We need the kind of commitment that will risk all, that may make enemies. The moment you compromise once, your commitment is shot. Someone who has shown a record of having stood up for the people's good in their public career, more than once and has remained committed until that cause has been brought in as a law. Anna Hazare, Naveen Jindal did that, the people behind the RTI did that.

4) Integrity: I need a leader who responds first to a crisis, who has his first principles clear, and who acts on those first principles. Long term or short term, the right thing is always the right thing and the wrong thing is the wrong thing, and one must have the integrity to stick by these principles. It's not about strong allies or weak ones - its about right and wrong. A leader who can stand up and say that the US, Britain, France or any other super power is wrong if it is treading down that path and not servilely toe along. I need them to show spine, pride and not fear saying and doing the right thing. A life is a life, whether it is in some unknown land in West Asia or in a developed nation. Again, a record of having stood up for what one believes in. A consistent record of having stood up for the right thing irrespective of alliances.

5) Technology friendly: I need someone who understands and who can leverage technology to break down our traditional barriers, to simplify, to make more transparent, to make more equal. Right now all administrative processes are still too complicated and they will remain so until someone has the will and understanding to use technology and make the system transparent. Using technology to educate, to simplify is something the leader must understand - it is the new power structure. Outsource the answer to the red tape - we are the outsourcing capital of the world. You may lose some power, but you will make the nation more efficient. Someone who has a vision here, a record of having used or propounded the use of technology in administration, in any of the big issues we are facing - security, education, health, governance. We had that wonderful eSeva in Andhra Pradesh which suddenly made the government appear as a single entity, not some multiple, hydra headed monster.

6) Administrative experience: I need someone who has a record of being a good administrator, of having brought in developmental ideas and implemented them well in the past. I need someone who will promise good governance, who can get the administrative body functioning and well. This needs to be backed by a record of the same, of one game changing policy statement, or experience in the past, that has made a difference. Even a head of industry who has built a corporation that ennobles these values, one which has made a significant difference, can present himself. A Narayana Murthy, a Ratan Tata are certainly people who have the experience. Any more names here?

7) People-centric approach: I need someone who is genuinely people-centric in approach. One who feels for the most marginalised of the people and takes care to see that they are not disturbed or left out or trod over. One who feels for every farmer, every woman, every child, every small businessman. The leader must not be partisan, must rise above caste, communal, regional biases, even people and party biases. One who can rise above dividing people on demographics and targeting his vote base on such divisions. Someone who can unite with his ideas and not divide, who convinces us that in our unity lies our prosperity. The leader must feel for his people and if he cannot, he is not fit to lead. Again, we would like leaders who have shown this quality in their work, who have drawn people of all backgrounds because he understands them and their problems.

8) Communication skills: I need a leader who can communicate and strongly, verbally and non verbally, who is visible and active, who has clear views on the direction and strategy. A leader who cannot communicate is leaving his people in the dark. That said we do not need leaders who always put their foot in their mouths. Someone who can express himself, his vision, his convictions, his maturity, his capability - through his communication. On who is constantly assuring us of the path he is leading us on - not making boring statements and repeating the obvious. Not merely telling us stories well, but impressing us with content, of new thought. Visual demonstration through public debates on television is a must.

9) Healthy and vibrant public image: I need a leader who is healthy and vibrant, someone who has a positive bent of mind which reflects in his disposition, his countenance, his every act. Someone who feel we can trust to handle a crisis. Someone who makes us feel strong by reflection, makes us energised, happy. It is the public image that we carry and if that can keep us happy, positive and energised, the leader has again done a lot. Again, where are these heavies who like a Lord Krishna, smile in adversity, stand tall and confident, who makes us feel that he/she can handle whatever situation comes up in the most mature, sensible manner. It is clear that this person must already be a recognised name for these qualities by now if he/she has to be the face of India in 2014. I cannot think of anyone who fits this bill as of now.

10) Strong: I certainly need a leader who is strong. Who has strong ideas and who has the strength of conviction to carry them forward - alone if need be. This would mean that he is proactive and not merely reactive as most leaders have become. Someone who acts on his own, and not at someone else's behest. If he has to listen to someone, he should listen to the people closely and guide them in the right path. I see strength in Narendra Modi but can he carry the others with him yet? Does he have the maturity and roundedness, the patience and wisdom that one needs at the top position? He has many good qualities that one looks for in a leader but I will give him another five years in which to make his case stronger.

I look at the national scene and I find almost no one out there who can fit the bill really. We are woefully short of leaders. What we have is a bunch of sycophants, followers, narrow minded bigots. Some leaders that come to mind who come close are Nitish Kumar, Prithviraj Chavan, Raman Singh, Narendra Modi - but each one of these worthies also appear that they need some more time - some are reluctant. The other leaders we see on television are nowhere near a state-of-readiness. The younger lot is too young, too brash and too inexperienced. They are not able to break out of their party, regional or family bondage yet.

But despite the lack of a talent pool we must be careful not to have dummy leaders thrust on us, because they will never be able to do anything of their own. Time to think of who we wish to entrust our futures to. Time to think of how we can make our political parties think about who and how they wish to entrust their leadership to. I do wish that a short list is made of 10-12 names across the nation, and each be analysed publicly in our ever so willing media, so we can choose our leader better. These leaders must be nurtured.

I cannot think of many names. Can you? 

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Story idea - The Hypocrites

The Hook:
It is about a land filled with Hypocrites. They say one thing, do one thing. A new bunch of people who come to that land by mistake find out why this abundant land is stuck where it is. But can they get away?

Pic courtesy: Prarthana Nargundkar

The Story:
A group of adventurers chance upon a land of plenty. Everything about this land is perfect. The people make all the right noises and they all seem perfectly sane too. The new bunch cannot figure out what is wrong with this new land. Why can it not move forward? Why is there so much unhappiness, strife there? Soon they realise the problem - the place is filled with hypocrites who say one thing and do one thing. Everything they see is an illusion - there is another story behind it.

Can they find a way out for themselves from the land of Hypocrites? Can they find the formula to get out of the land? Is there hope for the love that they found there?

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The Beggars Mafia

It's aggressive. It's in the face. But  what makes it most distressing is the fact that you know that its an organised racket.

The Sanjeeva Reddy Nagar junction is a big junction these days. It has grown bigger over the years and one can see a large number of vehicles restraining themselves on all four sides, pedestrians trying to sneak off to the other side, with not an inch available for the good old push carts. These days you cannot even stand edge ways on that road.

In the old days there used to be a couple of old men and women beggars, I remember a polite old Muslim, who would beg in an orderly fashion and move on. But now it appears to have been upgraded in the records of whoever controls the beggar mafia. It is obvious from the kinds and the number of beggars that abound the junction.

There are two couples now a days. Two young women, carrying two young men, clothed in no more than a loin cloth (the guys), each without one leg, one without a hand as well. The men are perched on the backs of the young women, who are attractive as well, and they walk around among the vehicles. When the light turns green, they drop their baggage and the men hobble off to the pavement.

Then we have a group of young mothers who carry their children and beg around. Again, non locals, from the look of them. The children look dazed and are generally sleeping. Most children have bandages on their arms, legs and other parts. The mothers again are well chosen - they are not ugly.

On the pavement, one year olds are playing, precariously close to the streaming rush of heavy vehicles that zoom about. One slip, one stumble and they are pulp. One young mother somehow saw me looking at them. She came and started knocking on the window. So hard that if she kept it up for any longer it might have broken I felt. All the time looking at me with fiery eyes, spouting some unheard invectives. probably did not like the look in my eyes.

The maimed, the unfortunate, the injured - they are showcased in the worst possible manner that degrades that bit of life. Feel for this and pay your guilt money - that's the offer. One day I was going on the bike and Anjali looked on in amazement at the maimed beggars. Yes, that's life. But it's not as simple as that. How come these specialised cases have come here? Why is there a pattern? Where are those old men and women? As the beggar couple passes an SUV, they knock on the window. The glass rolls down and a crisp note passes into the young woman's hands. The cops watch, the public watches.

Who brings them all here? Who keeps the others away? Who brings the guy with no legs and hands and puts him  on the side of the road where he thrashes along all day? Who takes away all the money that they collect? Who maims them? What kind of people live off this existence? It's not a secret. It has been shown in movies, written about in books. And we look on and pay them for bringing this bit of life into our lives.

One child gets a chocolate from a kind lady on a scooter. She is no more than three or four. Her face is radiant as she flashes her chocolate. The other kids watch indolently. The mothers are hardly bothered. It's a small bar of Cadbury. How come no one is even looking at that bar? You'd think they'd fight over it. The kid tires of showing off her bar after five minutes. But for five minutes her face was heaven.

On one hand we promise schools, food, dignity, right to life, safety. On another we watch mutely as if this was a drama being played for us, in the middle of one of the busiest junctions in Hyderabad.

I heard a story a couple of decades ago when we were in college. There was an old beggar woman who lived under the Kukatpally flyover. When she died they found that in her belongings she had close to one lakh - a huge amount of money those days. Back then people did not have so many needs so they probably did not kill her. But now I see, as the beggars go around picking cash off the vehicles, there must be many in the audience who must be calculating how much they'd make by the end of the day. It's my wager that the beggars would probably have more on them than most of the people on the road then. And from the apathetic look in their eyes when they knock on the wondows, they probably know it.

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Story Idea - Love Affair With Luck

Hook:
Man who has been unlucky all his life decides to have a love affair with luck. Now all his living moments are spent wooing

Story:
Pitch in the regular guy full of bad luck stories. Take it to a limit where he breaks. But he wakes up on the other side - he feels that something he has always wanted, something that has rejected him all the time, this Lady Luck, must be wooed, if that's the last thing he does. Now how does one woo luck - that's what we need to figure out.

But interesting scope. In every situation now, our hero sees Lady Luck and her poor cousin Lady Unlucky. In every situation he chases and woos luck until he does find her.

Too abstract? I guess. Maybe we can put in a girl who represents all that luck means to him and there's a romantic angle there too.

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Teachers Day - Teachers I Remember

On Teachers Day I remember with gratitude all the teachers who have taught me and made me. More so the teachers who left a lasting impression on me by their words and deeds, their intensity to teach and impart knowledge by being themselves.

1) L.T. Ramasarma: My first teacher at Eluru, when I was all of five. He would come home in his dignified yet friendly manner, well dressed, clear about all he wanted to teach, strict when he needed to be. Perhaps my early grounding was based on watching him - the epitome of a principled teacher, most concerned with imparting the right knowledge to his wards. 'Sir' as he was known was a headmaster at a government school, rode a cycle, and remained a close family friend for over three decades. Much gratitude is owed to him for all that he taught me with such patience and love. I lost touch with him after he moved away from Eluru.

2) Sister Mercy: The one who epitomised kindness, Sister Mercy taught me at St. Joseph's, Nellore or Fatima High School, Kazipet I fail to recollect. But what I do recall is her warm nature, her perpetual smile and her kindness. On the last day of school at the completion of the year, the sentimental sister gave us all lovely little stickers, glittering with gold and silver, of little angels and fairies. It was such an unexpected gift that we were all floored. We were so sad to leave the smiling sister's class. And she did have tears in her eyes that day. I do not know where she is, but wherever she is, she will always make people happy.

3) Bro. K.M. Joseph: The Cricket brother of All Saints, mentor of many great cricketers including Mohd. Azharuddin, Bro. K.M. Joseph never taught me when I was in school. But these days I seek him out when he is in town and we talk about this and that. I learn from him how the mind of a teacher works. One who has taught me much by just being himself, Bro. Joseph shares openly his methods in teaching children. Never punish when you are angry, Tell children that the action was bad, not them, Give them space to grow up by themselves, Show them right values by living them yourselves - and so many more wonderful little lessons that he shared with me. Thank you Brother Joseph. He gave me a testimonial for my first book, attended the launch and even watched the movie Golconda High School with us. We had a fun outing then. I met him last week, the day he was leaving for Rome, where he is stationed now.

4) Bro. Vincent: The strict disciplinarian Bro. Vincent was my Principal at Warangal and then at All Saints Hyderabad. I best remember him for being kind and strict too, but mostly for calling us, the All Saints Cricket team and urging us to beat the HPS Begumpet, team - a near impossibility. He promised us a treat if we won. We did. We asked to see a movie, a dinner and he readily funded that. "Jaws" at Maheshwari followed by dinner at Mohini's, with a double round of ice cream. Bro. Vincent became bitter in his later years, and sick. I met him in Boys Town in the late 80s while playing a match. He died shortly after.


5) Dikshit: The loud mouthed Physical Director at All Saints brooked no nonsense from anyone. He was the man who picked me in the cricket selections in the tenth and pushed me along as I represented the school, state and South zone. The lovable old man did much more than he revealed for us behind the scenes. Inside that loud demeanour he had a kind heart.

6) M.R. Baig: My first cricket coach and one of the greatest teachers ever for sheer commitment and knowledge. With the slightest effort and correction, he set right the biggest of issues, tells you only as much as you need to know. He is kind, he is strict. He is stuff that books can be written on. Sadly for all his commitment and love of the game, he is shunned into oblivion, his great knowledge, left to the winds. Cricketers from out of Hyderabad seek him out, this BCCI Coach who is well renowned all over.

7) M. K. Joseph: Tall and kindly, one with a good humour, Bro. ML. Joseph taught us in Warangal. I have no specific incident to relate of him except that he would let us play table tennis with him after school and was a good sport. I have no idea where he is.

8) Sastry sir: The stylish English teacher who taught us how to pronounce 'tortoise' the right way, and so many other things, a great dramatist and stylist, and one who held the class in absolute silence. Mr. Sastry was the first to find a spark in my writing skills - upon seeing me write an essay in English in the tenth he called me over and told me in his inimitable style - "You have talent you know. You could make a career as a writer." I was flummoxed to be in his presence, mumbled something and ran away. Sastry sir is no more. he would have liked the idea that his student wrote a novel or two.

9) Mrs. Luthra: The beautiful and kindly Mrs. Luthra taught us Hindi and was even class teacher for us  one year. One day she punished me unjustly - I protested. The next day she realised her mistake, called me to the staff room, apologised and gave me a small gift - a book of 100 sayings by Dada Vaswani. She was kind, taught me the value of accepting one's mistake, and gave me a gift I really cherished. Lost touch with her.

10) Joshua: Our English sir at St. Alphonso's, stylish and lively, he made the classes come alive. He also bought style to our lives. I remember him roundly flogging me for using the word 'facade' in an essay - insisting that I used it wrongly. I contested and he flogged me even more. I backed off. But years later when I met him, he still remembered me much to my surprise and was rather emotional too. He is someone one can never forget.


11) Jagannath Mishra: One from the North and a puritan as far as Hindi goes, he was a wonderful teacher. Full of anecdotes and some cheesy jokes, Mishra ji, our Hindi teacher at St. Alphonso's Junior College, revealed a soft side to him by crying uncontrollably like a baby on the last day of our class leaving us all in shock. We never thought he cared for us that much.

11) M.L. Jaisimha: Though he was never my coach or teacher, the very fact that I shared time with him on the field was a huge education for me. One was the manner in which one can conduct oneself, the way one can be at ease with life and people, to have that perfect balance that few of the assured are blessed with, he shared his amazing knowledge on cricket among many other things in such a simple and effective manner - a quiet word, a joke and that was it. Perhaps one of the biggest influences on me and many more of our times. I learnt not just a subject from him, I learned about life. Jai Uncle is no more and I really miss his wisdom now when I have so many questions to ask.

12) Sampath: For sheer commitment none could beat Sampath, the coach for the Hyderabad team for many years. I got along well with him. When I got dropped he came all the way to Osmania University and sought me out. 'Give me one year of your time and I will see you will play Test cricket,' he said. I have no doubt he would have - Sampath knew what he was talking about. He was a tough taskmaster. I did not have the sense or maturity to accept. But I am eternally grateful to him for showing me how teachers can go to that lengths for their wards. No one has ever done that for me. Sampath died soon after in an untimely accident.

13) Prof Shamraj: The big hearted, sporty Professor of Mechanical Engineering Prof Shamraj knew his sports as well as human nature. He helped me in every way as I struggled to balance cricket and engineering, as he helped every other sportsman he came across. One that I have great regard for, Professor Shamraj played tennis and cricket equally well. He'd share a smoke with the boys, a joke, put an arm around the shoulder and was immensely popular. I sought him out and gave him my book in Muffakamjah a few years ago. When I met him last he congratulated me on becoming the Chairman of Selectors and assured me that I was doing a good job. Eternally grateful to him as well.

14) Venkat Reddy: More of a friend than our teacher, the young and ever smiling Physical Director was a big hit with us. He was really affectionate, fun loving and helpful and we have many wonderful stories about him. Generous to a fault he offered me every help including giving me expensive kits when I played for the state.

15) B. Trivikrama: Again, stylish and dramatic, clear in his concepts and sweeping in gesture, BTV as he was known to us made a big impression and impact with his teaching style and methods. The three day pre-placement training at NAARM where he along with Balaji and Hanumantha Rao taught us several wonderful concepts through personality development games was brilliant. Much learning. BTV left the campus for a corporate assignment and then, to the USA.


Many other gurus of course. Many more to thank. Thanks all. And another time, the bad teachers should be listed too.

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Anjali - We Don't Know What Will Happen In the Future

I guess I got what I was asking for. In one quiet moment between a game of cricket with the young lady I asked her - "Anjali, when you grow up, will you fight with me?" I would not be telling the truth if I said I did not expect her to say that she would not fight and that she would love me forever and all that.

But she took a rather simplistic view of the whole thing. "We don't know what will happen in the future na?' she said very practically. "We only know what happened in the past. So I cannot say if I will fight with you or not. I may or I may not. So what is there. Okay let us play."

Thank you Anjali my dear. That does make immense sense. Live the present. And shut up.

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