Something Different..


Just proves how jobless I really am!!
The Iceman feature from NGM - July 07 however was totally worth the read!


Provoked!

Well, weekends in Singapore definitely mean one thing - movie marathon! So as usual I was browsing through the Google videos (I sorta dun like the way its posted in You Tube - you know..the movie coming in 12 or 13 parts of 10 minutes each - and terrible video quality at that! Hmmm..yeah, I should probably buy more CDs n DVDs - but if I were to do so every single weekend, I'll be bankrupt before I'm 21!!)

And I came across this movie - Provoked. I'm usually a sucker for any movie with a good message and decent enough screenplay! So when I read a review for this one, the woman chauvinist in me was roaring - and I thought, This one I gotta see!

Well, for those of you who haven't seen it yet (It was released in 2006), this is a movie based on the true life story of a Punjabi woman - Kiranjit Ahluwalia. She gets married to this man - Deepak Ahluwalia - who is her sister's, brother-in-law's friend, based in London. Though she hardly knows him, she gives up her dreams of studying,working and being independent and marries him and moves to London. He appears really caring at the beginning but soon reveals his true colours. Domestic violence, spousal rape and extra-marital affairs continue even after 10 years of having 2 children with him.

One night after a particularly unnerving experience, Kiranjit succumbs to her fears. She burns him alive and before succumbing to his burns, he accuses her of attempting to murder him. She is arrested and despite the extensive evidence of bruises on her body indicating abuse, she is found guilty of 1st degree murder - because the last incident took place a full 2 hours before she burnt him - which meant that the provocation clause was inapplicable as she killed him in cold blood.

Sentenced to life imprisonment, Kiranjit finds her freedom in the prison (This beautiful one-liner made the entire movie worth the watch!) and is happy, though her only complaints are with regards to her 2 children. Here, Southall Black Sisters, an NGO which fights for women subject to domestic abuse, aids her in her appeal and after 3 1/2 years, she reunites with her children.

The story was pretty brilliant - and to think of it as a true story of an Indian woman about 18 years back makes it super. Aishwarya Rai as Kiranjit gave a very convincing performance - which is saying something because I've never liked her acting so far, except perhaps in Guru. Nandita Das, the brilliant actress for whom I've seen many a movie, as usual chooses a very meaningful role. But her enthusiasm at certain times was too artificial and it somehow didn't portray the depth and strength of her character. Nevertheless, the movie is worth a watch - at least to appreciate and applaud the strength of women like Kiranjit Ahluwalia.

There were several subtle but powerful messages sent through the movie! For instance, in one scene a member of the NGO jokes that the Government never trusts an organization which claims to work for a cause alone and calls itself a non-profit organization! Then there is a line at the end which says that based on Kiranjit's case the 'wife-battering syndrome' and 'provocation' clauses were included in the British judicial system! And many more subtle dialogues which made me like the movie a lot! Ultimately, how Kiran gets to escape life-imprisonment and manages a 3 1/2 year punishment - was also quite ironic and sorta brilliant! Overall I guess, I really enjoyed watching this movie!

There are so many organizations which promote women empowerment in India today! I know for a fact that Pushpa, who helps around the domestic chores in my house, attends her Lady's Club meeting every Wednesday! They teach her to weave, stitch and a lot of other things which empower her to be independent to a certain extent! My mom always gives her Wednesday evenings off so that she can attend their meetings on time - these are small little ways in which we can help - and we all should.

Blogthings






Your Values Profile


Loyalty:

You value loyalty highly.
You're completely devoted to your friends and family.
Even if they totally screw up, you're still there for them.
Just make sure they're equally loyal to you!

Honesty:

You don't really value honesty.
You do value getting your way, no matter what.
And if a little lying is required to do that, no problem.
A few white lies never hurt anyone (at least, that's what you tell yourself!)

Generosity:

You value generosity a fair amount.
You are all about giving, as long as there's some give and take.
Supportive and kind, you don't mind helping out a friend in need.
But you know when you've given too much. You have no problem saying "no"!

Humility:

You value humility a fair amount.
You tend to be an easy going, humble person.
But occasionally your ego takes over.
You have a slight competitive streak - and the need to be the best.

Tolerance:

Not only do you prefer to be around people very similar to you...
They're the only kind of people you'll tolerate.
You know what you believe in, and you don't like to deviate from that.
You don't hate people who are very different - you just don't want to be around them.


I found this The Five Factor Values Test on Blogthings and thought it was pretty accurate! :-D Just sharing it with ya..

An outing!

I did a really crazy, awesome thing 2 weeks back! I totally forgot to write about it and I really want to - at least to read and think about it later :-)
When I'm at Singapore, I never really leave the campus. If I do so, its usually a trip to the nearby supermarket to replenish my ever-depleting stock of food or a trip to 'Little-India' to have a good lunch or tiffin on a weekend or to a school here called GESS where I mentor secondary students. I'm this weird kind of creature which once comfortable, won't move out unless absolutely necessary! If I get totally bored sitting in my room, watching endless episodes of Prison Break or Heroes, on a blue moon day(hmm...I wonder if thatz how I always use it - what an oxymoron!), I'll just take an MRT to a random place to just stroll about.
Well, all that flashback was to justify my use of the word 'crazy'..hehe..
As I told you earlier, I mentor secondary students at a school called GESS. I do this through the NUS BP Mentoring programme of Rotract Club. Well, this time they decided to have a Nite Cycling outing for the mentors alone. I got a little mail early in June which said I could sign up. And I did! So unlike me - to sign up to go nite cycling -well, I hardly do any exercise! Imagine signing up for an activity that required you to pedal continuously and sit upright for nearly 8 hours - that too in the night - with a group of well - if not strangers - totally new people! The fact that still amazes me is that I went through with it, and didn't chicken out at the last moment..
And am I glad I didn't!! It was one of the most awesome outings!! Well, I took a bus to this place called the East Coast Park - As you can guess its a stretch along the Eastern coast of S'pore. And I'm so ashamed to say that I've discovered this lovely place only after 2 years of staying here!! Its a lovely long stretch of a thin beach - the sand trying to restrain the beautiful waves of the endless sea dotted by liners and ships somewhere far away...- and therez a road running along this entire stretch of beach thatz exclusively for cycling/skating!!
So we went to this place and rented out bikes - and they are pretty amazing ones too; with gears along both handles! That was totally new and I figured how to use them only later during the nite - ah..there were 14 of us and there were the first usual awkward,cautious hellos and introductions that were made. But well, we'd hardly started along, when it began drizzling. I enjoyed watching the tiny droplets splatter against the ground - but it wasn't long before there was a huge downpour! We rushed to a shelter nearby.
Here, as we waited for the rain to stop, we chatted and got comfortable in each-otherz company. The starting binder, being that it was the first ever night-cycling trip for so many of us! I was surprised to note that there were 9 girls - we were the super adventurous ones! okay..sorry..got a bit carried away there .. Soon, we were laughing, chatting and playing silly little games as we prayed that the rain should stop soon. Soon enough, well - thatz really an exagerration, becuase in all the laughing, talking, eating, and waiting-for-the-rain-to-stop, nearly 2 hours had gone by! So our trip which was to begin at 10pm instead got off to a late but much more enthusiastic and cheerful start at around 11 30.
We began riding, but the rain wasn't relenting so soon. It was still drizzling quite hard but not hard enough to dampen our spirits (omg..why am I getting the feeling that I'm going to end up writing this like one of the famous five adventures..hehe) We rode on the cycle tracks in groups of 3 or 4 shuttling back and forth to talk to different people. Soon we reached the end of the stretch and rode into the sights of proper roads with a few night-owls racing in their sleek designer cars. (Did I mention by the way that you need a nite-cycling license to ride around this way?!) Anyways, like the ghost rider says, Lets burn the roads baby!
We all sifted into a straight line and became much more disciplined. The chatting subsided and we began riding. Our first rest stop was the Kallang Stadium and we rode. The silence bore down upon us as each of us drowned in our own thoughts. The sound of wheels sliding over the wet roads, the light breeze blowing away my hair, the little water droplets clouding my glasses, the tall buildings and occasional greenery overwhelming me...it was all perfect!
And I realized then - I love cycling! Its been so long since I've cycled like this - I used to cycle everyday to school and then when I'd be back home, I'd take out my bike and ride around the compound...occassionaly with a few friends but I loved riding alone! I've tried many a trick and have been hurt many times - but my favourite one was letting go off my hands and guiding the bike with my legs and body-weight! As the roads cleared we began riding a faster and I was now more comfortable with my bike! So I decided - why not! and lo, I let go off my hands...and it was wonderful!! I guess I am a big show-off! 'Cause when everyone stopped by the waterfront in front of the Kallang Stadium - which was looking really beautiful, lit up and all - they asked me how I did it and I was suddenly sheepishly grinning :-P
Anyways, we proceeded on to go on to Suntech City, the Merlion Park,Robinson Road(Lau Pa Sat), Orchard Road, Newton. For those of you who've been to S'pore, you'll realize that yeah..this was some serious cycling! All these were picteresque spots and cameras were clicking away crazily at each of our rest-stops. Along the way, we drove in subways and tiny streets as well as 100 ft expressways! I really discovered how beautifully all these places are connected and tried to memorize the routes..but I guess, I don't actually remember anything further than being awed by the modernization of the place around me. But finally, at Newton, we were all exhausted and decided to turn back. We came back through Geylang and reached the East coast Park again. It was just about dawn(thatz around 7 am here) and we all sat exhausted watching the sea - still undauntedly trying against the stubborn sands- and I amazed at that energy!
We then dragged our tired feet to Macs and devoured upon the food. I greedily gulped down the hot Milo. Soon it was time to return our bikes and say good-bye! I guess all of us were too tired to be sad that it was already the end of a beautiful night out! So we just trudged along and I took a bus that would take me straight back to campus. When I reached back and entered the familiar sights of things strewn about my room, my only thought before collapsing for at least another 8 hours of deep slumber was - I should do such things more often!

A page from my lifebook

I guess I was about 9 years old then. We were staying in Bangalore and went to a school which was about 3 km from home. Those were days when we all used to cram in a van and jingle all the way to school! That particular day, the driver had informed my mom that the van would not pick us (me n my sis) from school that evening as it had to be serviced. So it was decided that my dad would pick us up.
Well, school got over and as usual I rushed, lest my sister beat me to the gate..hehe..well, honestly that never happened - my ever social little sister would come after having a long chat with her other little friends - after having a go at the swings and see-saw(s) (wow! I can't believe I still have doubts over that particular spelling!)
When she was done, we both walked up a little beyond the gate to look for our dad. By then, the senior students were leaving as well and butterflies were beginning to hurt my stomach! Where was my dad? Wasn't it already 3 45?(Well, we weren't allowed to wear watches back then) He was supposed to be here by 3 35 when the primary and middle school students left - I decided that perhaps it was the traffic jam and let my sister - who was looking longingly at the suddenly empty swings - go (haha..yeah! I can't believe that she used to ask ME for permission back then!)
Time crept by and soon the watchman locked the front gates. I was shell shocked! How could they lock us up at school!! Anyways, he came and told us that we would have to wait at the back gate. By now I got really anxious - would we be stuck at school the whole night?! Why was Daddu taking such a long time to come? I carefully counted the coins that my mom usually gave me and dialled her office number written boldly on the front page of my diary. She calmly answered saying that my dad had left and would be there soon. I was assured again and me and my sister went back to playing a game of 'Name-Place-Animal-Thing'!
But soon we tired of it! The watchman was now grumbling saying that he could have locked up the gates and left for home, if it weren't for us! He allowed us to make another call, and this time my mother answered again saying that my dad was on the way and must be stuck at a traffic jam - I was angry with her - I'd guessed as much by now myself! I'd called for more information than this!!
With no clock to guide us, each second felt like a heavy burden to shoulder! Soon, it began drizzling and suddenly got dark. When me and my sister huddled together under the tiny shelter under the terrific gaze of the suddenly evil-looking watchman, my sister began weeping on my shoulders! She demanded that we leave this place and go back home to amu and daddu! Well, that was exactly what I wanted to do too, and tears welled up in my eyes as the thought of being stranded there all night loomed over my thoughts. I even conjured up an idea of taking an auto all by ourselves back home...
But something suddenly snapped. I thought, if I were to begin crying as well, what would happen to the little girl next to me? If I cried, wouldn't she only cry harder? I couldn't bear that thought. Moreover Amu had said Daddu was on the way. So if he turned up and we weren't there?!
And so I drew up the little courage I had and hugged her tight and somehow got out the words, Its going to be okay! Daddu's just in a traffic jam and he'll be here soon to pick us up!
To just keep her from crying, I began talking to her about her class and friends and things that she generally liked to talk about. She soon forgot everything and began chattering happily! But I was only half-listening to her. My eyes danced back and forth from the watchman to the gate - lest he lock it before my Dad came...
And Thank God! Daddu came there and smiled at us. My sister took one look at him and ran and hugged him! I guess I cried a bit then as well - more with relief than anything else! And I went and hugged him as well, a bit grudgingly I guess..I was so mad at him for having made us wait so long, but nevertheless very happy to see someone else to take care of the situation now!

Well, I suddenly remembered this incident today, mainly because, I guess, my sister has joined college! I'm missing her a lot and was thinking back upon the happy moments we've shared together - and I realized - that evening in school was the moment I truly became her elder sister! When you really love someone, you do something you never would have done before - for the 9 year old girl that I was, it meant not crying in front of her and taking charge of the situation. I guess it sounds really silly - I mean, after all, my dad was just a bit late to pick us up from school! But there it is - its a moment that I remember even now after 11 years - and so it means a lot to me!

Writing about this has also generated a sudden thought - if this miniscule incident has impressed such a deep print on my heart, imagine the thoughts of those children who are abused, or who work more than 70 hours a week in construction sites or match factoriees - or why even those children who help out around household chores in homes where their employers' sons and daughters go to school while they sweep and scrub floors! My parents have never encouraged this and I'm really proud of them. These are the little hands that are going to shape our future - We should indulge in making them strong and capable hands.