Where the Mind is Without Fear . . .

Rabindranath Tagore: On Science, God and Truth

2011-05-09T23:25:00.051+05:30

It’s really a great day for florists here. It’s 25 Boiśākh, 1418 today! Rabindranath Tagore turns 150 today according to the Bengali calendar. So it’s a moment for all of us to feel proud about the man who won Asia its first Nobel, who composed songs which we cannot stop listening to, wrote poetry we never forget and the man who gave the country our national anthem. But should we? Last year, on this day, I expressed my feelings about the celebration of his 150th birth anniversary. (Why do we have such fondness for multiples of twenty-five?) We have decorated the statue of Tagore with endless garlands to feel good and have only added to the halo that surrounds the “image” of Tagore. Making Tagore a divinity to worship and not a human being to discover (and re-discover and re-re-discover) is, I believe, something Tagore himself might have considered an insult.

Today, in this post, I’ll explore an aspect of Rabindranath which is rarely discussed about him, except, perhaps, in academic circles. (I had another topic on mind which is almost never in limelight, but let’s keep that for another day.) I wish to ignore all the titles, prefixes and suffixes that surround Rabindranath’s name and cut right to the heart of his ideas. It goes without saying that I am writing this also because it’s a very personal topic to me – a topic that always stirs up my thoughts. I am absolutely unqualified and incompetent to offer any conclusive viewpoint. At best, my aim is to explain why the topic matters so much to me and I don’t think I can do that very well because some of these ideas are way beyond my comprehension.

Rabindranath is often regarded as some sort of a spiritual leader, a prophet. Some noted Westerners were openly contemptuous of Tagore’s apparent mysticism, while, needless to say, many others embraced it. Tagore’s almost-saintly appearance and the poems which, on the surface, express some mysticism, perhaps discouraged – and encouraged – those who believe a book should be judged only by its cover and they refused to delve deeper into the images Rabindanath painted with words. After his death, Rabindranath became our official Thakur (the Bengali surname for the Tagores, which also means “god”, of all things) apart from the seasonal ones. It shouldn’t really have surprised me, then, when I saw some bloke on TV claiming that Tagore endorsed astrology. Whenever I run into a discussion about the existence of a god (as described in the religious texts), the argument goes: Tagore believed in god, Tagore is god and so, such a religious god is a fact. In fact, of late, I have grown weary of seeing many people claiming Tagore as one of their own to suit their own agenda and nonsense rhetoric.

In discussion about god and religion, one name that inevitably pops up to support the existence of a religious god is Einstein, who, I am often told, worshipped His Great Powers. Just as Einstein is used an icon of dogmatic religious views, Rabindranath can't escape that as well. Let me put this clearly: there have been very few people in India who were more rationalistic than Tagore. There are not many I can think of who were harsher critics of organised religion and pointless social rites which plague our minds and make us clockwork oranges than Tagore. The poem this blog owes its title to is itself a paean to rationalism and reason. But I refuse to believe that the “Father” addressed at the end of the poem is some sort of a Great Puppeteer described in religious texts rather than an abstract manifestation of the collective soul of humanity. It’s a pity that it’s Tagore’s abstract spiritualism (for the lack of a better word) the misconception about which drives the thoughts about Tagore and not his scientific bent of mind, at home and abroad.

One of the least talked-about books by Rabindrantah is Vishwa-Parichay (1937), in which he explores the wonders of the universe. The book is dedicated to Satyendranath Bose, who needs no introduction to anyone who has heard the word “boson”. In the introduction, Tagore describes how scientific discoveries amaze him. It’s baffling for even a Tagore admirer (I wouldn’t use the term “fan” here) such as myself to learn how interested Tagore was in science and how he never missed a chance to devour any book on astronomy and physics. The science he discusses in this book is very modern. Let’s have a look at things Tagore discusses: atoms, atomic bonds, modern spectroscopy, stellar spectroscopy, nuclear physics, quantum mechanics, radioactivity, U-238, cosmic rays, X-rays, alpha-particles, bombardment of nuclei by neutrons, nebulae, Theory of Relativity, spacetime curvature, the finiteness of space, variable stars, double stars, dwarf stars, the gases in the atmosphere of Pluto, infrared imaging, sidereal day, cells among other things.

Forget the topics Tagore has discussed, the writing style itself never gives any indication that the book isn’t written by a seasoned scientist. The ease with which he explains the scientific concepts show how deeply he understands these concepts. It was written by a person who was known as poet, playwright, educationist, painter and a philosopher! It’s a common misconception that science and arts are two mutually exclusive spheres and one cannot excel in both. Rabindranth proved it wrong, as did Einstein with his penchant for music and literature. Which brings us to the conversations between the two men.

It’s a well-known fact that Tagore and Einstein were admirers of each other. Einstein was one of the very few who could actually understand Tagore and their conversation makes for a fascinating read. Their viewpoints about the universe and truth are different, but the most fascinating aspect about such a conversation is that one opinion does not have to completely negate the other. Here are some excerpts from the conversation between the two. (Excerpts are from the 1930 NYT article Einstein and Tagore Plumb the Truth and the book Three conversations: Tagore Talks with Einstein, with Rolland, and Wells.)

EINSTEIN: There are two different conceptions about the nature of the universe - the world as a unity dependent on humanity, and the world as reality independent of the human factor.

TAGORE: When our universe is in harmony with man, the eternal, we know it as truth, we feel it as beauty.

EINSTEIN: This is a purely human conception of the universe.

TAGORE: The world is a human world - the scientific view of it is also that of the scientific man. Therefore, the world apart from us does not exist; it is a relative world, depending for its reality upon our consciousness. There is some standard of reason and enjoyment which gives it truth, the standard of the eternal man whose experiences are made possible through our experiences.

EINSTEIN: This is a realisation of the human entity.

TAGORE: Yes, one eternal entity. We have to realise it through our emotions and activities. We realise the supreme man, who has no individual limitations, through our limitations. Science is concerned with that which is not confined to individuals; it is the impersonal human world of truths. Religion realises these truths and links them up with our deeper needs. Our individual consciousness of truth gains universal significance. Religion applies values to truth, and we know truth as good through own harmony with it.

EINSTEIN: Truth, then, or beauty, is not independent of man?

TAGORE: No, I do not say so.

EINSTEIN: If there were no human beings any more, the Apollo Belvedere no longer would be beautiful?

TAGORE: No!

EINSTEIN: I agree with this conception of beauty, but not with regard to truth.

TAGORE Why not? Truth is realised through men.

EINSTEIN I cannot prove my conception is right, but that is my religion.

TAGORE Beauty is in the ideal of perfect harmony, which is in the universal being; truth is the perfect comprehension of the universal mind. We individuals approach it through our own mistakes and blunders, through our accumulated experience, through our illumined consciousness. How otherwise can we know truth?

EINSTEIN: I cannot prove, but I believe in the Pythagorean argument, that the truth is independent of human beings. It is the problem of the logic of continuity.

TAGORE : Truth, which is one with the universal being, must be essentially human; otherwise, whatever we individuals realise as true, never can be called truth. At least, the truth which is described as scientific and which only can be reached through the process of logic — in other words, by an organ of thought which is human. According to the Indian philosophy there is Brahman, the absolute truth, which cannot be conceived by the isolation of the individual mind or described by words, but can be realised only by merging the individual in its infinity. But such a truth cannot belong to science. The nature of truth which we are discussing is an appearance; that is to say, what appears to be true to the human mind, and therefore is human, and may be called Maya, or illusion.

You sure realise that the religion Tagore is talking about here has nothing to do with the religion the texts of which describe an omnipotent figure creating the universe out of nowhere according to His will and being vengeful on not being worshipped. He talks about the religion that Einstein talked about all his life. (The religion Richard Dawkins distinguishes from the other Religion in his books.) Religion to Tagore, as he clarifies, is the values attached to truth.

Rabindranath, in his poems, inclined to a subjective interpretation of the world. “Subjective”, you must understand, refers to the human consciousness Tagore describes above and not merely personal opinions. In a poem titled Ami (which means “I”, no less), he says it’s because of our consciousness the emerald is green, the ruby is red, the world is full of light and the rose is beautiful and truth is poetry. (Forgive me, but I cannot hope to even vaguely translate that poem.)

In one of the essays by my grandfather Prof. Dhiranando Roy, he distinguishes between the self-centered “me” and Rabindrik “me” beautifully: the former “me” looks for material comforts of life which are determined solely by profit and loss. Rabindranath’s “me” regards loss as profit and death as an extension life. (My grandpa’s articles would make for separate blog posts.) Tagore’s viewpoint is simultaneously simple and infinitely complex to understand: Any truth completely unrelated to humanity is utterly non-existent.

“The opposite of a fact is falsehood, but the opposite of one profound truth may very well be another profound truth,” said Niels Bohr. Nothing more appropriate can be said about the versions of truth as interpreted by Tagore and Einstein. It’s worth noting that Einstein and Bohr endlessly debated about the nature of, well, nature and scientific truth and scientific determinism. Many eminent scientists, including Bohr, were of the view that quantum mechanics encouraged a subjective view of the scientific truth (as Tagore did), while many others, such as Einstein, thought otherwise. The debate has, perhaps, no end because this debate deals with truth and perception rather than mere facts such as “earth goes round the sun”. As a student of science, I can merely try to understand what the great scientists are trying to say. Can you decide whose argument you agree or disagree with? This is the highest form of intellectual debate, in which no argument could be completely refuted.

Here’s another excerpt from Tagore-Einstein conversation about scientific determinism and randomness:

TAGORE: I was discussing with Dr. Mendel today the new mathematical discoveries which tell us that in the realm of infinitesimal atoms chance has its play; the drama of existence is not absolutely predestined in character.

EINSTEIN: The facts that make science tend toward this view do not say good-bye to causality.

TAGORE: Maybe not, yet it appears that the idea of causality is not in the elements, but that some other force builds up with them an organised universe.

EINSTEIN: One tries to understand in the higher plane how the order is. The order is there, where the big elements combine and guide existence, but in the minute elements this order is not perceptible.

TAGORE: Thus duality is in the depths of existence, the contradiction of free impulse and the directive will which works upon it and evolves an orderly scheme of things.

EINSTEIN: Modern physics would not say they are contradictory. Clouds look as one from a distance, but if you see them nearby, they show themselves as disorderly drops of water.

TAGORE: I find a parallel in human psychology. Our passions and desires are unruly, but our character subdues these elements into a harmonious whole. Does something similar to this happen in the physical world? Are the elements rebellious, dynamic with individual impulse? And is there a principle in the physical world which dominates them and puts them into an orderly organisation?

EINSTEIN: Even the elements are not without statistical order; elements of radium will always maintain their specific order, now and ever onward, just as they have done all along. There is, then, a statistical order in the elements.

TAGORE: Otherwise, the drama of existence would be too desultory. It is the constant harmony of chance and determination which makes it eternally new and living.

I cannot hope to add any footnote to it without sounding foolish. It’s notable that both Tagore and Einstein are almost in agreement in this passage.

What’s most interesting to me is how Tagore sought to combine science and arts. He believed that the approach to arts should be scientific (that does not mean mechanical). Our emotions, reactions to art are not independent of science, he believed. His thoughts on this matter is evident, again, in his conversations with Einstein:

TAGORE: Melody and harmony are like lines and colors in pictures. A simple linear picture may be completely beautiful; the introduction of colour may make it vague and insignificant. Yet colour may, by combination with lines, create great pictures, so long as it does not smother and destroy their value.

EINSTEIN: It is a beautiful comparison; line is also much older than color. It seems that your [Indian] melody is much richer in structure than ours. Japanese music also seems to be so.

TAGORE: It is difficult to analyse the effect of eastern and western music on our minds. I am deeply moved by the western music; I feel that it is great, that it is vast in its structure and grand in its composition. Our own music touches me more deeply by its fundamental lyrical appeal. European music is epic in character; it has a broad background and is Gothic in its structure.

EINSTEIN: This is a question we Europeans cannot properly answer, we are so used to our own music. We want to know whether our own music is a conventional or a fundamental human feeling, whether to feel consonance and dissonance is natural, or a convention which we accept.

TAGORE: Somehow the piano confounds me. The violin pleases me much more.

EINSTEIN: It would be interesting to study the effects of European music on an Indian who had never heard it when he was young.

TAGORE: Once I asked an English musician to analyse for me some classical music, and explain to me what elements make for the beauty of the piece.

EINSTEIN: The difficulty is that the really good music, whether of the East or of the West, cannot be analysed.

TAGORE: Yes, and what deeply affects the hearer is beyond himself.

EINSTEIN: The same uncertainty will always be there about everything fundamental in our experience, in our reaction to art, whether in Europe or in Asia. Even the red flower I see before me on your table may not be the same to you and me.

TAGORE: And yet there is always going on the process of reconciliation between them, the individual taste conforming to the universal standard.

As I come to the end of this post I inevitably come back to the beginning, because it’s really a circle. It’s an endlessly rewarding experience to think about the thoughts of Tagore and how he expressed his thoughts. This deserves more posts because I have a lot more to say, but I'll stop now. Although I am incapable of properly understanding Tagore’s philosophy, I can always keep discovering him. But there is something I can say. As an atheist, I worship the god Tagore (and all great scientists) worships, the god, Tagore says, is worshipped by the Moon and the Sun, the god . . . well don’t you know which god I am talking about?

Thoughts on Inception

2011-04-22T12:59:00.030+05:30

I start my film-reviewing session of 2011 with two sci-fi movies which couldn’t be more different from each other. Released in two consecutive summers, both movies were admired by the critics and audiences alike. Enthusiasts on the Internet (to be polite) greeted the films words like “awesome”, “masterpiece”. However, what I feel about these movies has nothing to do with the general reaction to the movies or the backlashes and counter-backlashes or the publicity machinery behind these movies. (I dislike the word “overrated”.) I wish to describe my thoughts and emotions based only on the images and sounds that appeared before me. Here's the review of one of the movies. Needless to say, this review most likely contains important plot points i.e. SPOILERS, if such things matter to you. So read them only if you wish to.

Inception (2010)
Written and directed by: Christopher Nolan

Most detractors of Inception pin down the film on an essentially wrong note. They want Inception to be a dream movie in the surrealistic traditions of European films like 8½, Last Year at Marienbad, Wild Strawberries, The Andalusian Dog. It’s unfair on my part to expect a film which must submit to my preconceived notions of a dream-movie and not allow it to become what it wants to be. So Inception unfolded before me exactly the way the film wanted to.

But as the film ended, it left me curiously empty. I was utterly confused. Well, the reviews of this film are replete with that word which is meant as a compliment. (The more a film is confusing and complicated, the more “awesome” it is, the current trend goes.) But believe you me; my confusion had little to do with the comprehension of the oh-so-complex plot. It was the film’s intentions (which don’t necessarily translate to the maker’s intentions, something I am least concerned about) which put me in a state of confusion. It was never clear to me what the film wanted to become.

Did it want to become a heist movie? Well, the basic template is obviously modelled on heist movies. But the film never really exploits the possibilities of the genre. The film with its frequent stabs at profundity and an avowed resistance to humour never lets itself become anything less than a Seriously Serious Work of Art. Well, is it a dream movie, then, the movie that explores the dark lanes of the mind and the abyss of the subconscious? Yeah, the kind of subconscious depth that can be reached through . . . an elevator! Who do I think I am kidding? As the detractors have duly noted, Inception’s dream world is too literal-minded, too rule-bound, and too clockwork-ish to be called a dream world. Is this film, then, a sort of genre-sampler, which combines and maybe satirises the two aforementioned genres? I’ll now turn to my favourite contemporary filmmaker who has taken on genre films like no other filmmaker in modern film history has. Quentin Tarantino is able to see the genre films for what they are because he has wholeheartedly embraced and absorbed all sorts of genre. That’s how he can simultaneously write a love letter to and a scathing criticism of the movies. He can satirise genre conventions precisely because he understands them so well. But Inception is too timid to embrace genre conventions (well, it’s Serious, you know) and consequently is stuck in a limbo (pun intended).

Is Inception, then, an allegory about cinema itself (the last weapon in a critic's arsenal)? But do we really need a film to tell us that films are dreams? As far as I am concerned, films are dreams. Don’t we all live in the films? Don’t we consider films as the only reality while watching them, just as we do in dreams? Cinema, since its inception (pun unintended), is a part of our collective (sub-)consciousness, isn’t it? There was a John McTiernan film called Last Action Hero, in which a boy is so obsessed with movies that he literally breaks through the fourth wall to be within a movie with his favourite action hero (Arnold Schwarzenegger) and influence the way the film shapes up. Roger Ebert, in his review of the movie, questioned the validity of being-within-the-movie device because, he argued, we always are within the movies. So if Inception is equating cinema with dreams, it’s merely stating the obvious.

Let me now tell you how I perceived the film finally: a bloated, confused mess. It’s a self-conscious, self-congratulatory film which is manufactured in such a way that the audience never really forgets how “awesome” the film is. It throws up some lofty ideas in the air (such as the difference between dream and reality, the perils of being stuck in the past, detached from the world) for us to appreciate its profundity but never quite explores these interesting ideas. On the contrary, action sequences that resemble those James Bond movies and banal plot mechanics are what the film seems to be mostly interested in.

It never allows the audience to ask questions. Inception is just one set-piece crammed hurriedly after another (in other words, a 140-min trailer with one climax piled upon another). The film just wants it audience to gasp at its superficial cleverness. The film is reliant on its plot points, twists, jolts and shocks to such an extent the film is hardly allowed to breath. The film has got very little visual style to speak of. Aided by Hans Zimmer’s thumping score, it practically instructs every audience member on what to feel (namely the film’s superiority to the audience’s intelligence). Whenever there is a faint scope for the audience to ask questions, the film introduces another level of dreaming and endlessly cross-cuts between the levels to make sure we never forget we are watching the work of a genius.

I’m not really averse to exposition in films. Exposition is an essential tool of filmmaking which is employed by the greatest of filmmakers. However, there are different kinds of exposition. Some do it through a camera angle, some through editing and some through dialogue. Even exposition can be made charming at expert hands. But the exposition in Inception appears laboured and pedestrian. But the exposition has no point and doesn’t even establish the mythology of the fictional universe. The mythology is strictly limited to the required plot points and the rules set early on the movie appear to be completely arbitrary. As a result, the film is not as well-thought-out as it wants us to think it is. Take, for instance, the zero-g sequence in the films. It’s established in the film that the physical experience in the state of sleeping is transmitted to the immediate next dream level. That’s the basis of the admittedly spectacular hotel corridor action sequence involving Arthur (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) in the second level dreaming. We see that the level three dreamers are floating weightless in the second level because of the movements of the car in the first level. By extension of this logic in the film, the dreamers in the third level should be weightless too since the sleepers are weightless in the second level. But if we apply this logic, we wouldn’t get a James Bond action sequence, no? Again, it’s established that one can change the physics of the dream (even when being in someone else’s dream) at will in the dream session with Ariadne (Ellen Page, retaining the smugness minus the hipness from her endearing performance in Juno). But curiously, nobody seems to remember altering the physics of the dream world to make their job easier in a difficult situation. Why would, then, Arthur strain himself to handle the floating dreamers when they are in just another zero-g hotel room? Why would Cobb (Leonardo DiCaprio, appearing more bored than ever) and his team have to pain themselves so much to reach the ice-fortress in an hour (in dreamtime, of course!) instead of bringing the fortress closer to them? We aren’t really supposed to ask such banal questions as long as we get the bangs for bucks. I had spotted some other lapses in the movie’s internal logic but the movie is too uninteresting to go back to.

The ending aptly sums up for me all that is wrong about Inception. Thousands of words have been written about what it possibly means and there’s been all sorts of interpretations of the spinning top, the totem which is supposedly the test to distinguish between dreams and reality. There was a perfect ending set up before this. A father is reunited with his children he has long wanted to shower with his affection (whether in his dreams or in reality) and it’s this emotion which matters to him most. He has found his heaven and who are we to argue otherwise? But no, Mr Nolan couldn’t make it quite straightforward and offer a simple resolution. He has to make it something meaningful and ambiguous. So he goes for the all-too-convenient open ending to suggest that the entire movie could have been a dream. Raising such a question itself makes the dream-world collapse because, regardless of the answer, the question invalidates the movie that preceded it and takes entirely away from the essence of the final sequence. We needn’t know whether it’s a dream or not because Cobb has reached his destination.

The Wikipedia page of Inception tells me that Mr Nolan wanted to convey that the point of that scene was that Cobb didn’t care and he didn’t look at the top. As I said, I don’t care about the authorial intention; I have to make my deductions from what’s before my eyes. (You know, “Trust the tale, not the teller” and all that). But even considering that was the intention, the director fails to convey that. Let us now analyse the sequence and the camera movement. Cobb runs to his children without taking a look at the totem. As it happens, Cobb and his children become out of focus and the camera moves away from them. Perfect so far. Cobb is now in his own abode. The problem of the scene begins now. The camera slowly pans to the spinning top on the table and then places it at the centre of the frame and the rest of the table is out of focus. And then as the top slightly wobbles, the end credits begin. So what should we take away from this scene? Doesn’t this establish that the spinning top was the most important thing in the entire sequence? Doesn’t the end want us to take away the image of the spinning top and make Cobb’s happiness less significant? Why should we care whether it’s a dream or not when Cobb doesn’t? But unfortunately, the ending wants us to care. The ending, like the preceding movie, wants us to dig into layers and layers of meaning with thousands of interpretations while denying us the opportunity to take away an image or feeling from the film which resonates within us. Imagine how much better it'd have been if the camera panned away from the spinning top towards Cobb and his children, finally going out of focus. It was one of the rare occasions when I felt the classical, cheesy (or corny, whatever you like) and sunny ending of Hollywood would have helped the film.

And it’s interesting that a movie with so much talk has almost nothing to say. The moral universe of Inception is painfully shallow and I never got any indication that the movie was interested in morality at all. The characters blindly accept a feeble explanation to go all the way through four levels of dreams to plant an idea in someone’s mind. This is why the sudden surge of morality in the third level dream and the consequent explanation only undermine the film. “Are you destroying parts of his mind?” asks Ariadne when Cobb is gleefully killing the “projections of subconscious” when their mission involves planting an idea in someone’s mind so that he may break his father’s business empire! I mean, destroying parts of someone's mind in not morally sound, but changing someone's mind (in other words, brainwashing) is? Even when the movie (in another passage of dry, witless dialogue-driven sequence) asks the morality of the act of inception, the heist movie premise itself negates the possible answer of the question. I mean, everyone in the audience is expected to root for Cobb and Co. as they accomplish their mission while coolly killing dozens of subconscious projection, no? So raising such a question is pointless and pretentious. And the movie never hints that it's criticising itself.

Well, this is all I had to say about this movie. Now a bit about the frequent comparison of Mr Nolan with Stanley Kubrick. Firstly, there’s no way Mr Nolan should be compared with Kubrick because it’s completely unfair to Mr Nolan. But more importantly, this comparison reveals more about the current film culture than about anything else. It’s worth another blog post, but surely, Kubrick was more than rotating sets! Save Insomnia and Following, I have seen all films by Mr Nolan and he seems to me the cinematic equivalent of Mr Dan Brown, whose prose style is quite close to Mr Nolan’s cinematic vision. Now interpret this ending!

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UPDATE I: For interseted readers, here are some reviews of/articles on Inception which are worth reading. A. O. Scott, David Denby and Andrew O' Hehir explain why the movie didn't work for them. (O'Hehir's Michael Bay comparison is priceless.) Here and here are film theorists Kristin Thompson and David Bordwell on the film. While they like the film a lot, they also seem to share some of the concerns I have with this film (the mythology, for example) .

UPDATE II: From the blog of Bordwell, I found a link to A. D. Jameson's piece, "Seventeen Ways of Criticizing Inception". Jameson makes some fine points there. He and I seem to share some similar concerns about the film. It's worth a read, even if you don't agree with all the points. His comparisons with Bryan Singer, George Lucas and Peter Jackson are spot-on. Also see his post on the shot construction of Inception.

UPDATE III: Here's the best bit: the Inception button, which needs no explanation. A must-see!

The Last IYA2009 Event

2011-04-21T10:04:00.002+05:30

(Last year, I promised to myself not to write any more blogposts after the Avatar review, although I had a lot to write about, including this one. As I resume regular blogging once again, this is first post I could think of. It's sixteen months too late , but as they say, it's never too late.)

As you all know, we had taken part in the 100 Hours of Astronomy and Galilean Nights as part of the International Year of Astronomy 2009. We also did other events to observe the IYA2009. The efforts of our organisation, Prof. Dhirananda Roy Study & Research Centre, were extensively covered in the press. So we were invited to various parts of West Bengal to hold events to popularise astronomy.

The last event we did in 2009 was particularly noteworthy because of its extent and the number of people it reached. It was one of the most popular events we held as a part of the IYA2009. It was held at a book fair on a public holiday. More than a thousand people were part of our event that evening

The day on which the event was held deserves special mention too: December 25. Was there a more perfect day to discuss science? Our goal was to reach out to as many people as possible. And that we did. The event was held in Barrackpore at the annual book fair. We started our event with lectures and subsequent Q&A session. We showed slide-shows on various topics related to astronomy. This continued for about an hour. Then began the main business of the day: sky observation.

And what an experience that was! People were extremely excited to have a look at the sky through the telescopes. Their reaction was very enthusiastic – no wait, I have no words to describe their zeal – it was something else altogether. I had promised that I'd show the sky to everyone present at the fair. At one point, it became quite hard to control the crowd! But the situation was always under control. I must mention that some local students lent their assistance to us and their helpfulness definitely contributed to the huge success of the event.

At the end of the event, people were thanking us for giving them a rare opportunity to observe the sky. But the fact is, we were the ones who were really privileged, because IYA2009 provided us the opportunity to spread the wonder of the universe among people and interact with them. I shall say no more but leave you with some pictures of the event:

Avatar Review: John et Jim

2010-06-09T21:39:00.009+05:30

JOHN ET JIM

The Eye

As the latest James Cameron film stops being the flavour of the season (well, almost), it assumes a whole new avatar for me.

A warning must be issued here. This isn’t a “review” of the film (I mean, two paragraphs about the plot, one about the technique, one about the acting, one about this and another about that and an easy and oversimplified good-mediocre-ugly categorisation issued at the end very conveniently dismissing all other opinions) so much as a journey into the corners of my thoughts. This review discusses topics I’d hardly imagined it’d when I saw the film. This is, as you’ll discover, two (maybe more) reviews for the price of one. There was something I wanted to review on this blog since 2009, but never could. Avatar gave me ample scope to do it this time. Issuing a spoiler warning for this film (and the subjects I’m going to discuss) is not only completely pointless at this stage (given the film has grossed a meagre $2.7 billion), but defeats the entire purpose of my review itself. You’re advised to avoid reading this piece if you are not familiar with any of these (which I believe is unlikely).

In anticipation of Avatar, I wrote a post describing my fond memories of Cameron’s Titanic. To this day, watching Titanic remains my most wonderful experience inside a cinema hall. I was expecting Cameron to reawaken the five-year-old in me, inspire awe and induce heartfelt emotions with another powerful drama. I was ready to bow before the King. A few weeks later, I was off to the theatre, bursting with excitement. After the screening was over, I found myself sorely disappointed. I could hardly understand what the fuss was all about. Was I being over-analytical in watching a film that was simply supposed to be enjoyed and experienced? (I didn’t even take my notepad along!) Did I grow too cynical and fail to enjoy the simple pleasures of life Avatar was supposed to provide? Where was the plot? Where was the excitement? Where were characters I could deeply care about? Where was the drama? The visual effects were brilliant; 3D was also great, but I got used to it so quickly that it, in my view, could no longer be used as an excuse to camouflage the hackneyed and predictable plot. I tried every bit to be swept by it. I just couldn’t go with the ride, perhaps because I’m not particularly fond of amusement park rides. Even taken as an experience, this one didn’t quite measure up to Titanic. “Oh, Jim, did you really have to do something this unimaginative?” I said loudly as I exited the theatre, much to the bewilderment of people around me. It was a perfectly forgettable movie, I thought. Then began the problem (and, needless to say, now begins the review).

The problem was I couldn’t forget the film. No, it wasn’t the two distinct sets of opinions on the Internet (and elsewhere) which either raised it to stratospheric levels or doomed it as the worst thing to have happened to cinema since Ed Wood’s departure. Nor was it the widespread coverage of James Cameron’s Huge Ego or his award-season battle with Kathryn Bigelow. It was something I couldn’t pinpoint. It was the exact opposite of there-is-something-missing feeling. At times, there was a faint spark telling me that I had experienced something similar earlier, probably after reading something. I couldn’t remember what it was until I looked at my bookshelves.

It was a fat, red book. I’d enjoyed the book that preceded this one. I remember how I excited I was before I grabbed that book from my bookshelf and started reading it. It was an even greater classic, after all and so I had to read it, just to add it to the list of great books I’ve read. I expected it to entertain me in the way all novels of this kind are supposed to do. A little more than 100 pages into the book, I started to realise that the author was deceiving me. But I didn’t put the book back on the shelf. I needed to complete it. But I grew more and more disgruntled as it went on. It wasn’t what I’d expected. ‘What kind of book is this,’ I wrote in my notebook, ‘that pays more attention to the description of trees, hedges, bushes and mountains than to the deep emotions and dimensions of its characters?’ More such gems came from me: ‘What do the poems and legends (many of which are composed in a different language) have to do with the plot? Where’s the plot? Why is the main plotline described almost in its entirety in the blurb? Where’s the emotional high that this book must offer me? Why didn’t it evoke profound sadness in me at the death of one major character? Where’s the drama? And pray, why doesn’t the eponymous character appear even once for a thrilling showdown?’

In short, the book disappointed me. About a week later, I was quite engrossed in another book when that feeling invaded my mind. The book kept coming back to me in ways I least expected it to. The little descriptions that I’d found so boring earlier suddenly ceased being a distraction. The very things that I disliked earlier seemed lovely then. I couldn’t explain why. Even a month hadn’t passed before I wanted to bang my head against the wall and eat up all my words (thoughts?).

Prof. John Tolkien

For, I was hopelessly and madly in love with the John Ronald Reuel Tolkien’s novel The Lord of the Rings and its world. I guess part of my earlier disappointment has to do with the fact that I was approaching this book based on my pre-conceived judgment on what a fantasy novel must do to satisfy me. Initially, I refused to look at the book on its own merit. It was the book’s reputation which took over my senses. I automatically assumed that a book which didn’t live up to my expectation had little worth. I made a grave mistake and was punished. A month later, I was rewarded beyond my wildest imagination. For, the imagination of Tolkien inspired me to use my power of imagination.

Tolkien wasn’t trying to bore us with the vivid descriptions of Middle-earth. He was merely asking us to appreciate the character called Middle-earth. I realised that The Lord of the Rings, unlike its predecessor The Hobbit, wasn’t about the flesh-and-blood characters (Men, Hobbits, Elves, Dwarves, Maiar) so much as about . . . Middle-earth. Nothing but Middle-earth was the protagonist probably because everyone was inseparably linked to Middle-earth. The tales, poems and legends no longer seemed off-putting because I realised that it was those things that were more important than the plot. Having known the overall plot, it was easier to get lost in the history and mythology of Middle-earth. If anything would have worked against this novel and Tolkien’s intentions, that would be obscurity in the plot and dramatic events. I guess that’s why the death (and eventual resurrection) of someone as important as Gandalf is (admirably) treated with so few words and so little drama. It was all about the mythology. For me, The Lord of the Rings broke every myth about fantasy literature by creating a new mythology (which is rooted in the oldest myths of Europe, to which Tolkien was most affectionate) and became one of my most favourite works in English literature. I didn’t come to associate understatement (which I am very fond of, partly because of the kind of literature and cinema I grew up devouring) with fantasy. Tolkien’s work began to co-exist with everything I’d ever loved.

Just imagine my delight after having read The Silmarillion! It did away with that constriction called a plotline. He concentrated entirely on the rich and detailed mythology which we got to see only in fragments in Rings. He was wise enough to realise that mythological tales are all about stories that people in the past adored and embraced, and the drama needn’t be underlined. It needs to be felt and realised. Why, Tolkien was the first person to assert that Beowulf was something which must be considered as a serious, worthy work of literature, and not simply as a historical document and pointed out that monsters in Beowulf were no less important than humans. In The Silmarillion especially, Tolkien wrote what he wanted to write, not what his readers would have liked to read after the great success of Rings. Perhaps that’s why the early reaction to The Silmarillion was: ‘Tolkien can’t actually write.’

I was not surprised to see Tolkien’s view of dramatic representation of fantasy. He said:

In human art Fantasy is a thing best left to words, to true literature.
[...]
Drama is naturally hostile to Fantasy. Fantasy, even of the simplest kind, hardly ever succeeds in Drama, when that is presented as it should be, visibly and audibly acted.

His son, Christopher Tolkien, hit the nail on the head when he said that his father’s work was particularly unsuitable for a visual dramatic treatment. Which is why I’m still confused by the adulation Peter Jackson’s film adaptation of Rings receives. Make no mistake, the films are extremely well-crafted, entertaining and the passion and hard work that went into the production is visible in every frame. In fact, I am quite fond of the first film. Yet, for all the admirable efforts, I find the films rather oversimplified and dumbed down. The emotions and drama before my eyes hardly resonated with me the way Tolkien’s prose and poetry did. I find it more dramatic to recite Bilbo’s poem about Aragorn than to see Elrond hand over Andúril to Aragorn in an over-dramatised sequence.

Once I remembered my response to Tolkien’s work, it became easier for me to regard Avatar as something other than big-bangs-for-bucks entertainment. Didn’t it have anything beneath its admittedly spectacular surface? It perhaps had, I told myself, but I was not very sure. So I was willing to give it another chance. A second viewing was in order. More than three months later, I was off to IMAX, this time equipped with a notepad and a pen. A film which revealed its entire plot in the trailer itself perhaps had some other intentions, I thought. I almost feared that I’d be proven wrong by my instincts.

In the beginning itself, I was assured that Avatar was indeed aspiring to be something mythic. The very first line of The Hobbit reads: “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit.” We, the readers, begin the journey in a place as confined (literally and otherwise) as a hobbit-hole but the journeys that follow take us to places we (and the hobbits) can scarcely imagine. Cameron gives us a visual cue to suggest the mythical style that the rest of the film will follow. We see Our Hero, Jake opening his eyes (mirrored in the last frame of the film) after waking up from cryogenic sleep only to find himself in the enclosed chamber of the spacecraft that takes him to Pandora. In the following scene, he comes out of the chamber and the passage he enters extends to infinity. (This scene is a particularly great use of 3D, which I’ll discuss later.) In this tiny bit of a visual trickery, we were shown the trajectory of his journey.

As the film went on, I started suspecting whether I’d seen the same film earlier. For, what had appeared to be banal earlier looked like a clever trick this time. It no longer seemed that plot and characters were carelessly handled. The simplicity and predictability seemed deliberately employed. It’s simple enough or a four-year-old to comprehend. And that’s the whole point. I think the reason for removing any complexity in plot and characterisation was to establish a bigger character: Pandora. The meticulously detailed flora and fauna of Pandora, which at first appeared to be a pointless exercise in showing off the money Cameron got from the studio, served the same purpose Tolkien’s descriptions did. What John did to Middle-earth, Jim does to Pandora. I was no longer irritated that the camera (or whatever brought the image to the screen) was lingering on the plants and insects more often than on the humans and Na’vi. Jake is as useful to Cameron as the hobbits were to Tolkien. They are our eyes into the world we know nothing about. The characters of Jake and the hobbits are indistinguishable from the audience/reader who begins the journey to see the vastness of a new world. I think it’ll be quite fair to say that it’s this film’s audience who Jake resembles.

Take, for instance, the scene in which Jake spots a bunch of touch-me-nots. This is the precise moment he gets drawn into the world of Pandora. And there’s no going back. This is the first time the audience, too, thinks that this world is not as fearsome as promised earlier in the film. Delighted like a kid, he runs about touching them until all the flowers have retracted. Then, suddenly, we get to see a fearsome creature. But Cameron introduces this beast quite casually and matter-of-factly. It was simply there. Contrary to the audience’s expectation, Cameron refuses to give this creature any special treatment and so practically humanises this animal. You see, monsters are as important as the humans, er, the animals are as important as the Na’vi. A quick revisit to the fifth chapter of the Book Two of The Lord of the Rings confirms that Tolkien, too, introduced the Balrog of Morgoth (the most terrifying creature in the entire book) in a very minimalist and un-dramatic way. It also reminded me of how the ghosts were shown in The Shining. After we’re promised that the experience in the Overlook Hotel will be quite fascinating for a “confirmed ghost story and horror film addict”, the film doesn’t exactly satisfy those addicts and refuses to give us those scary moments which make us scream. Kubrick refused to satisfy his audience’s expectations with his genre-defying horror film and consequently earned a Razzie nomination for Worst Director.

A clueless gentleman seated in the row before me asked his companions whether the scientists time-travelled to a pre-historic age. His innocent question induced much laughter around. But I think he was spot-on. We all know that this film is about people of an ancient time. What we’ve failed to notice is the fact that the storytelling in the film itself is similar to how those people told stories. The Lord of the Rings and Avatar would initially appear pedestrian because they don’t follow the traditional norms. But a closer look would reveal that the method these works adopt was used when the norms were not set.

Cameron is quite competent in drama or melodrama (I hate how offensively this term is used nowadays), as he’d shown us in Titanic. But here, drama is something he’s clearly not very interested in. Forget the animal, see how the female lead is introduced here. While the camera movement and score in Titanic clearly told us that it was The Girl coming out of the car, the introduction of Neytiri was as muted as anything.

Cameron appeared to be deliberately underplaying the character moments in the subsequent scenes. He never lets the characters and drama to grow bigger than Pandora, because they are part of Pandora itself. Scene after scene, I could see him building the mythology of Pandora. In Titanic, the ship was the backdrop of a tragic love story. But here, the characters are the backdrop of Pandora. But the way he introduces the mythology is far from being a videogame experience or amusement park ride. The Na’vi are people who live in the myth and old tales and legends (like the ones in Rings) are as important as their present. It’s not just the visual effects; the mythology, too, is vividly detailed. In most films of this kind, the main characters are the ones who create new mythology and the mythology surrounds them. But seldom do we see films in which the protagonists are often overshadowed by a larger pre-existing myth and act as catalysts to create a new chapter in a myth. (Besides The Lord of the Rings, Pullman’s His Dark Materials and, to an extent, Rowling’s Harry Potter are fine literary examples to have used this method. Harry Potter is much lesser than the mythology around him and he’s an accidental hero, as has been emphasised throughout the series, in case you are wondering why I chose Potter.)

Everything that unfolds in the first act – the Pa’li! The Ikran! The animals! The trees! The language! This! That! – points toward a bigger myth. The pleasure, however, lies in appreciating how it unfolds. It’s executed in a style as casual as the introduction of Neytiri. It’s refreshing to see a filmmaker doing this when this material automatically ensures a heavy-headed treatment which never lets us forget how profound it is.

The language is as meticulously constructed as Tolkien’s Sindarin or Quenya. (It’s worth noting that the subtitles are absent in some scenes.) Even the character dynamics are used to further the myth. Consider the scene in which Jake and Neytiri fly on their Ikrans after he’s tamed his personal Ikran. This is a wonderful moment which, by any other filmmaker, would be used solely to show their blossoming romance and to give a bang-for-bucks moment to the audience. (Everyone has told us how unoriginal this film is, conveniently dismissing the older, mythic roots. Avatar might very well be a copy of many movies from the 90’s. I think the concept of two lovers flying, too, was stolen from a 1997 film which had two lovers stretching their wings atop the deck of a ship. Why can’t I remember the name?) But the very next scene confirmed that Cameron’s intentions were much broader than that. While flying, they spot a huge Ikran-like creature, Toruk, which appears to be untameable. Neytiri shows Jake the skull of a Toruk and informs him that her grandfather had once tamed a Toruk and there have been only five people in history to have tamed Toruks. At this point, it’s a pointless bit of information the audience could very well do without. This bit of information is inessential because you already know it’s untameable. Why, then, would Cameron care to go into details of the past? In Rings, after the timid hobbits were rescued from the Barrow-wight by Tom Bombadil, they find some old weapons and in a very Tolkienian way, Tom Bombadil recounts an old legend concerning the weapons. There’s this passage:

The hobbits did not understand [Bombadil’s] words, but as he spoke they had a vision as it were of a great expanse of years behind them, like a vast shadowy plain over which there strode shapes of Men, tall and grim with bright swords, and last came one with a star on his brow. Then the vision faded, and they were back in the sunlit world. It was time to start again.

The hobbits took the weapons, not knowing if the weapon would be of any use. Little did they – and we – know that one of these daggers will change the history of Middle-earth by causing the end of the Witch-king of Angmar. It’s not just the war with which Avatar shows the conflict between the past and the present. It’s the beautiful scenes like these with which it explores the gap between “the vision” and the sunlit world”, not to mention Jake’s back-and-forth avatar journeys. It’s the conflict within the Na’vi as well. Not surprisingly, the Na’vi society largely mirrors the Shire. (In fact, the entire premise appears to be an extension of “The Scouring of the Shire”.) The gathering of various Na’vi clans reminded me of many alliances in Middle-earth’s history.

Even when Jake declares his love to Neytiri underneath the Tree of Voices, the sequence is not without its share of mythological background. Now, this scene is supposed to have a dramatic effect, no matter how inept a director is. Not only does Cameron keep it muted, but he goes on to show how the Na’vi link with the past. They talk to their ancestors, they feel them. While there was not a single soul within a mile of Jack and Rose when they were flying atop the deck, this scene is full of, well, souls. Cameron sees Jake and Neytiri as just another couple. At heart, their love story is as ordinary as any other, as this scene ~~tells~~ shows us, but it’s special because it’s a catalyst of change of mythology. They are a small part of a large picture.

After all this, I needed no more proof of Cameron’s intentions. As if to confirm what’s already proven, there was the felling of the Home Tree. It’s a sad scene, a very dramatic scene. I guess everyone will agree with me when I say it’s the most dramatic, most emotional scene in the entire film. Wait! Did I just say “dramatic”? Didn’t I say this film wasn’t supposed to be dramatic? Isn’t that contradictory? But isn’t that the whole point? Cameron distances us from the characters and makes Pandora closer to us. You grow to care more about Pandora. The death scenes of Neytiri’s father and the scientist Dr Grace Augustine (both of which are understated, once again) aren’t really as tear-gland-friendly as the sight of the falling tree and the leaves floating in the air. What Cameron does, mostly invisibly, is personification of Nature.

This reminded me of a film which had similarly embraced Nature and somewhat distanced individual humans, a film which is very close to my heart: 2001: A Space Odyssey. The opening sequence was one of the most dramatic ones in the history of cinema. And what was that? A cosmic alignment set to Strauss’ Also Sprach Zarathustra. That scene made me realise that every part of my mind and body was made of strings. I perfectly understood the scientific phenomenon called “resonance” years before my physics textbook explained it at length. But the film that began on such a dramatic, pulsating note (about Nature) was so low-key in its treatment of humans that even the killing of humans (by a machine, no less) was shown coldly. Like Avatar, it wasn’t dramatic enough. Even the immdiate reactions to these two films are somewhat similar. One of my all-time favourite critics, Pauline Kael described it as “monumentally unimaginative” and “third-rate”. She went on to add: “If big film directors are to get credit for doing badly what others have been doing brilliantly for years with no money, just because they've put it on the big screen, then businessmen are greater than poets and theft is art.” That sums up Avatar’s reception, no? In many circles, 2001 is still called A Snoozefest Odyssey because of its waltzing spacecrafts, lack of storyline and great human characters. Like Avatar, 2001, however, did manage to grab a special-effects Oscar. (It’s another thing that the SFX guy who won the only Oscar in his entire career went by the name Stanley Kubrick.) Apart from the spacecraft design, both these films have a lot in common. In both, Nature deserved the top billing. Both films are about Man and Nature (as opposed to Man versus Nature).

That was just a cinematic example. Tolkien, in Rings, had personified Nature as well. The Ents (trees), most ancient race in Middle-earth, walked, talked and, as in Avatar, waged war against the forces that poisoned Middle-earth. In my favourite chapter in Rings, the old sagely ent Treebeard recounts to the hobbits the old tales of the paradise that Middle-earth was and of the Entwives, the feminine part of Nature, who disappeared from Middle-earth as the evil forces began to devour Middle-earth. Bits like this made Rings one of my favourite works of literature. (Can you imagine my outrage when I saw how terribly butchered Treebeard was to suit the dramatic purpose in Jackson’s “vision”?)

Rabindranath Tagore did something similar in his short story Balāi. Like Tagore’s most works, this was an intimately personal tale as well. It’s the story of a little child who had lost his mother before he could call her Mother. His companions were trees. He talked to trees; he listened to the voices within the trees. He could feel the life within plants. In a very moving passage (which I’m incapable of translating), the trees are referred to as our old ancestors, eager to make their voice heard. Deprived of his mother’s lap, the child finds comfort in the other mother, Nature and his aunt who couldn’t be a mother. In Avatar, Jake is a child whose mother (the earth) has died long before his birth. He never sees his mother and neither do we. (In a stroke of genius, the backstory describing the condition of the earth has been removed.) Jake finds his mother resurrected in another form. When Jake urges a tree to look into the memories of Grace, it’s a motherless child desperately trying to save the mother he found.

This film is full of references to mythological tales the world. It’d be futile to list all the nods to the myths and legends. The sights of the Jupiter-like gas-giant in Pandora’s sky are there to remind us of Zeus. The floating Hallelujah Mountains have probably replaced Olympus. I could see many, many allusions to folktales and legends of the world. The pre-release writings initially suggested that this Avatar was an extension of the videogame world. I expected it to be another entry in Matrix-like superficial profundity-cum-cyberpunk genre. But the entire concept of the Avatar Programme is taken from the very source of the word “avatar” itself: Indian mythology. It’s refreshing to see a film so wholeheartedly embrace one of the richest mythologies in the world, which, sadly, is reduced to religious mumbo-jumbo today. Most of the images directly pay tribute to Indian tales. I wouldn’t go into specific details; you always have – Eru Ilúvatar and Eywa bless us! – Wikipedia and Google for that. The clan-defying thing is Dances with Wolves, you say? How many Indian mythological examples should I cite? The best thing about Avatar is that it integrates a whole lot of ancient tales but never feels derivative. Its mythology is as refreshing as any other.

Now, I have to talk a bit about its science. Let’s just say, this film puts the “science” back into sci-fi. That’d be one of the biggest compliments for the film. I have no fondness for films which are called sci-fi simply because science is used as an excuse for idiotic (not to mention unscientific) ideas and stunts. Avatar, in the true spirit of great science-fiction writers, strives to be as scientifically accurate as possible, yet does not sacrifice its narrative flow. Best science-fictions are ones which have scientific ideas and facts within the narrative for the reader/viewer to discover. I was sold to this film’s science right from the moment it shows twins separated by light-years. I’m not sure how many films have played with the twin paradox. Even the extraordinary visuals have a detailed scientific basis. Bioluminescence is observed in Pandora not only because they are meant to stun us, but longer nights in Pandora would be a factor for such evolution. Even the floating mountains have been explained with a visual cue: the piece of the superconductor unobtanium floating in a magnetic field in Selfridge’s office.

Avatar is simply revolutionary as far as portrayal of science and scientists goes in movies. It breaks every stereotype in sci-fi films. Take, for example, Jurassic Park. That movie was not content with giving us some scary-looking dinosaurs and cheap thrills from a director who’s gifted with the art of thrilling. It also managed to put forward a 3-year-old’s understanding of the chaos theory as a broad concept and a completely pernicious anti-science propaganda. As such films always do, it put a boundary to humans’ thirst for knowledge. Anyone who strives to reach for the Fruit of Knowledge (in short, a greedy, emotionless, megalomaniac scientist committed to destroy the world) is severely punished by God. This is found in almost every film (except, of course, 2001, which celebrated wisdom and exploration). But Avatar is never anti-science or even anti-technology. It never criticises the means through which Jake could become an avatar. Science is shown to be full of wonder and intrigue. Look how surprised and amazed Grace is during her fieldwork. She is killed not because she wants to explore things, but because she wants to save the things she’s exploring. Even her last wish, in the true spirit of a scientist, is to collect samples. She is ultimately rewarded by Nature as she unites with the sample.

In terms of scientific accuracy, this is the first film since 2001 to get so many things so much right. It uses carefully detailed astronomy, physics and biology to build the myth. (Again, Googling will help you find how accurate the specific details are.) The inaccuracies are very minor, and unnoticeable if one isn’t very interested in science. It’s also the first film since 2001 to marry art, science and mythology so well. Its use of 3D is a scientific feat by itself. Of course, a film is good only if it transcends all avatars, IMAX to iPod. But then I ask myself: What about 2001? Doesn’t it lose its much of its sensory appeal on my laptop screen? I’m one of those unlucky folks who simply imagine how different the opening black screen would be in a theatre. The third dimension isn’t about breaking the fourth wall. It’s there because, in Cameron’s vision, it has to. 2001 is a big-screen film and this is a 3D film. I don’t care whether this has reinvented cinema or not. (When Martin Scorsese declares that his next will be in 3D, it certainly has changed cinema forever.) I doubt if the careful use of 3D (never once does an arrow hit us) and visual effects will soon find an equal. The visuals, unlike those of other movies, aren’t great shots in isolation. They, like the Pandoran biosphere, are part of a bigger picture. The awesome images aren’t there for the sake of it. They are, well, interconnected. I have no passion for war sequences in films, but I admired this one enormously. I finally realised how well-edited this entire film is. The editing is good because it doesn’t call attention to itself. Even during the bang-bang war scenes, Cameron (himself an editor) and his co-editors keep the film focused and manage to create some compelling images like a horse running ablaze.

On first viewing, I, too, found the film shallow in its intent. It was indeed the glorification of the white male’s supremacy over inferior races. During the second viewing I realised how flat my earlier perception was. It’s as much about the victory of the white male as Tolkien was misogynistic or as Tarantino glamorises violence. The Na’vi accept Jake back in their clan after he’s tamed the Toruk. You see, only five people in history have been able to tame a Toruk. So the Na’vi don’t show him respect because he comes from a “higher, more advanced race”, they accept him because the myth-loving people submit to the mythology of their race. He isn’t a hero because he has heroic abilities. His worth has been determined by Nature. Except to deliver a rabble-rousing speech (I must mention that this was a bit of the film I actually hated), he doesn’t really do anything to be called a hero. As I said, he’s just a catalyst. Even during war, his co-warriors display more bravery than he does.

This can’t be about the triumph of a man while the entire film debunks the victory of man. It’s an all-out ode to the female form. It isn’t one of those pseudo-feministic films in which weak women are empowered in special situations with a man’s aid. It’s sends out a true feminist message which is more pronounced than the other messages in the film. (Here, I must tell you that I’m not fond of message-movies at all and I firmly believe in Louis B. Mayer’s words. But I feel the messages here are not afterthoughts, as with so many films. They are – forgive my bankruptcy of phrase – part of the bigger picture and internally realised.) Not surprisingly, this message has been thoroughly overlooked in the reviews that have vehemently trashed the environmentalist message, perhaps because environmentalists are favourite punching bags of today.

Here, the women are already strong, bold and empowered. They require no help from any man. On the contrary, they actually help the men who are weak. From Grace to Trudy, Neytiri to her mother, every woman is complete in herself, extremely stern and yet full of sympathy. While, in other films, women are no more than damsels in distress in the men’s game called war, Avatar shows women warriors changing the shape of a war. Avatar, like the Na’vi, worships womankind. It defies all gender stereotypes typically found in Hollywood films. It’s ultimately the Mother Nature, and not Our Hero, who comes to take revenge on those who poisoned her. The Entwives have deserted Middle-earth, but they can be found in Pandora. (Interestingly, in Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds, one of the finest films in recent times, Art takes her revenge on those who insult her. There, too, Art is personified in a female form.) Even the final blow to the villain comes from Neytiri, saving the neck of Our Hero. (As the arrows pierced Quaritch’s chest I almost screamed: “Saruman!”)

The scene in which Neytiri meets the human Jake is pure magic. She holds him like a mother does her baby. She is simultaneously his lover and mother. She’s the positive force of Nature. Moreover, is she Nature herself? During Jake’s soul-transfer, it’s her hand that covers his face. She gives birth to the new, reformed Jake, doesn’t she? This image, I suspect, is another nod to 2001. Humans transforming into far superior beings with an interstellar consciousness to catalyse the progress of civilisation captures the ending of 2001 well. In purely scientific terms, it’s the next stage in human evolution.

Even the most enthusiastic reviews praised this film only for its visual grandeur and found the film lacking in other departments. (I agree that the acting isn’t exceptional but in no way does it harm the film. The dialogue, though jarring in parts, is pleasantly archaic.) Sure, it’s a treat for the eyes, but one needs much more than optic nerves to fully appreciate this film. At first Neytiri regarding Jake as a child appeared to be a condescending statement to the audience. On second viewing, it became apparent to me that the statement had more to it than met ,well, the eye. It reminded me of W. H. Auden’s (not coincidentally, a Tolkien admirer) lines from his translation of the Norse mythological poem Hávamál:

Hail to the speaker,
Hail to the knower,
Joy to him who has understood,
Delight to those who have listened.

Jim Cameron

It’s about opening the eye (something endlessly shown in the film) and discovering the unseen wonders of Pandora. There are a few things which are told explicitly. But what isn’t told or seen in the film is just as interesting as what we see. Like all great imaginative works, it requires thinking and imagination on the audience’s part. I could truly appreciate this film when I started giving it serious thoughts. “Don’t analyse, just enjoy” is a common reaction from fanboys. (I think, blind worshipping of this “visual treat” is far more damaging to Avatar than the scathing criticism.) In fact, an in-depth analysis of Avatar will reveal things the audience and make it even more enjoyable. If one knows the difference between plot and screenplay, one will see how meticulously detailed and vividly imaginative the screenplay is. Cameron has crafted his screenplay with much thought and nuance. I must admit that I haven’t yet fully “got” the film. It’ll take a third or even more viewings to sink it in.

Cameron is a clever trickster. Look beyond the gorgeous visuals (that’s what Avatar asks of its audience), you’ll see he’s made an intensely personal film. Apparently, it’s quite an audience-friendly film. But his handling of this material clearly shows that he doesn’t do what his audience wanted him to do. Instead, he does what he wants to do. (Admittedly, during the first viewing, I was that kind of audience who wants a film to submit to his/her expectations.) See how he disguises minimalism with a maximalist cover. He makes the film in a largely literary/novelistic way which is hardly seen in films. Moreover, isn’t it simply fascinating that it’s a director who’s dictating the Hollywood studio system and not the other way round? I believe Jake could also be called Jim. Here’s a character who’s emancipated of his disability in another form of existence and ultimately does things the way he wants to and defies his employers. (Oh, I forgot to mention how magical the first avatar transformation is. Look at the way the camera looks at the legs!) Does it really require an over-imaginative mind to think that it’s a director finding feet to stand up against the studio bosses? I can think of only one director who used studio finances to make epic-scale independent films: Stanley Kubrick. Made with relatively unknown actors, this is very much an auteur’s film. (To cap it off, the poster outside the theatre read “Un film de James Cameron”, for reasons best known to Eywa.) I suppose, Avatar is the first example of a $300 (or 400 or 500) million Art Film.

The Eye Opens . . . Again

I’ve said before that Jake is a reflection of the audience as well. The first time, I was an audience who refused to open the eyes. To me, the final image of the transformed Jake opening his eyes actually signifies my own transformation as an audience.

As the film ended, I exited the theatre silently. I didn’t express my reaction loudly for everyone around to hear. But I did say something, to myself, emphatically and unapologetically:

Yes, I love Avatar!

The Celebration Begins!

2010-05-09T23:03:00.003+05:30

Rabindranath Tagore

The world-wide celebration to observe the 150th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore begins today. Rabindranath turned 149 today. I don't think I will be able to express in words what this day means to me. It offers me a passage to look back at the days of my childhood. Today, it will be a completely futile attempt on my part to give an account of my feelings of those days and my thoughts on Rabindranath and his vast body of work, because it will be endless. So I will keep this post short.

Bishnu De asks in a famous poem whether Rabindranath is all about the celebration that surrounds his birth and death anniversaries. All these years, after all these celebrations, it seems the same to me. On the morning of 25 Boiśākh, we turn on the television to watch the celebration taking place. We recite his poems and sing his songs with heartfelt passion.Some of us listen to Rabindrasangeet every day. Rabindranath is the reason of our cultural pride and rightfully so.

But for all our passion for Rabindrantah's works, we have strangely ignored Rabindranath himself. We love reading his poems and singing his songs, but not often do we pay attention to the thoughts and ideas expressed in the poems and songs. We have little time to look a Rabindranath's revolutionary ideas which were way ahead of his time. We have perhaps forgotten Rabindranath the thinker. It's the halo around him and his work that probably attracts us too much. We do not like to waste time to rediscover and interpret his works, because we have a notion that we know everything about Rabindranath. As I learnt from people very close to me, Rabindranath needs to be discovered everyday. He was not a man with stagnant ideas. It is fascinating to study the way he constantly changed. His works need to be looked at. His ideas are as valid today as they were a century ago.

Rock-n-roll remix of Rabindrasangeets and some abysmal music videos are not really what I call "reinterpretation". frighteningly, Rabindranath is being abused today. Only today, I caught some astrologer on a TV channel proclaiming that – are you ready for this? – Rabindranath promoted astrology! There are soaps which integrate out-of-context and horribly-sung Rabindrasangeets to add layers of meaning to them. Filmmakers alter our national anthem to use make their awful films something "deep" and then tell us that Rabindranath's intentions for writing it weren't very noble. Even the dates of his birth and death are tweaked conveniently. There are many more awesome gems, but in discussing them any further I will be giving them undue importance.

It is exciting for me that his works will be translated in many languages and be spread all over the world. People from other cultures will perhaps be able to do what we don't: perceive Rabindranath in a new way. Mixing of all forms of culture to form an enriched, superior form of culture was all Rabindranath wanted.

This year-long celebration, I hope, will bring us a new Rabindranath and help us get rid of the stagnancy of ideas.

So let's make this celebration a successful one! Let's rediscover Rabindranath!

Galilean Nights: Event Overview

2010-05-03T23:10:00.008+05:30

I am so late in writing this post because of the fact that I didn't know how I should have begun writing this. And to be honest, I still don't. This post has been under development for more than six months. So I decided to do away with any sort of beginning and get straight to the point. So here's everything (well, almost) about my Galilean Nights event . . .

This programme, like the 100 Hours of Astronomy earlier in 2009, was organised by Prof. Dhiranando Roy Study & Research Centre. In case you don't know, Galilean Nights was one of the Cornerstone Projects of the International Year of Astronomy 2009. Organised between October 22-24 2009, this programme aimed at reaching out to the people to show them the wonders of the night sky. This programme also intended to spread awareness about the great man we are remembering in IYA2009: Galileo Galilei. The main focus of Galilean Nights was on the objects Galileo observed 400 years ago and revolutionised modern science: The Sun, the Moon, Jupiter and Saturn.

I had originally planned to hold the event on all the three nights. But the pressure of my studies did not allow me to do what I'd intended to. But I had to organise it because I knew I'd die if I didn't. So I decided to hold the event for one night only. Saturday, October 24, seemed to me the best date to organise the event as more people would be able to come to the event during the weekend.

Publicity
I told you earlier that I was not satisfied with the promotion of the 100HA event. But this time, we were more focused and more determined. We started the publicity campaign one month before the event. I delivered a speech on Galileo on September 25 (Saptamĩ) during Durga Puja, a Bengali festival. During the Puja, we could reach out to a large number of people, so we made the most of this opportunity. I announced that we would organise an astronomy event on October 24 and invited everyone present there to attend it and observe the beautiful night sky with telescopes. This way, we could tell the audience about Galileo and his achievements and make them feel strongly about Galileo. Curiously, it was during a religious event when we were talking about a man who proved religious ideas wrong! This speech created a buzz in the neighbourhood about Galilean Nights. Everyone in the locality kept asking us about it.

Bengali version of the leaflet

A couple of days prior to the event, we started distributing leaflets (in both English and Bengali) among the local people. In this leaflet, we told people about Galileo and his greatness as a man who changed the entire history of mankind. We made sure that everyone in the locality saw the wonderful Galilean Nights poster. We used the Internet, especially Twitter, to promote the event. We phoned a lot of people, inviting them to be a part of this event.

The Internet campaign worked extremely well. I had received phone calls and emails from a number of students who wanted to participate in the event. I was very glad to know that Twilight and Transformers weren't all this generation was interested in.

We (Mum, Dad, Grandmother and my sister) were now eagerly waiting for October 24 to arrive. And it did.

Event Night
One did not need to buy any kind of entry ticket for this event. Everyone could participate in this event for free. We also provided the participants with snacks and refreshments.The event officially started from 1730. At first the attendance was nothing to boast of. But people started pouring in as time went on.

We set up two telescopes on the terrace of Prof. Dhiranando Roy Study & Research Centre. At first I delivered a brief speech on Galileo and then gave everyone a brief introduction to telescopes. Then came the time for the observation sessions. We showed Jupiter and the Moon through telescopes.

I received a Celestron SkyScout for my 100HA event. We used this instrument to make this event more interesting. The unique instrument caught people's attention. They were perplexed by the fact that it could identify the objects in the sky so easily. Audio presentations on Jupiter and the Moon were made with SkyScout. The atmosphere of the event was very informal and that undoubtedly fascinated the attendees. We wanted to make the attendees feel more comfortable. So I let the attendees operate the SkyScout themselves.

Attendees were shown slideshows and short video clips on astronomy and space missions. I answered people’s queries. I also talked about various superstitions and their impact.

In short, the six-hour event was very successful. I credit the success of the event to Mum, Dad, Sister and Granny without whose help it would have been impossible for me to do this.

Reaction
I love writing this part. You know why? Because it makes me very glad to say how overwhelming the reaction was.

Mr Sengupta, a very special guest, wrote: 'It was really splendid to catch a glimpse of Jupiter and his three moons in thus vast cosmos. Life itself is a riddle and astronomers throughout the history of civilisation have tried to unravel its darkest secrets. Looking at Jupiter is like looking beyond the horizon. It's really a glory to be alive and wonder at the magnificence of Nature. I'm simply left with "awe" in a word.'

Awe. Yes, that is the word we kept hearing throughout the event. Mr Panda, another esteemed guest, could successfully connect his daily life with the sight through the eyepiece. This was the first time he looked at the sky through a telescope. He imagined that Jupiter and his sons and daughters were a family like any other. 'A little child is feeling very sleepy and is just about to disappear. Another child will come out from the shelter after a long sleep. They are as happy a family as can be,' he wrote. In his imagination, the Moon, too, was something related to his household activities. This further proves how interconnected the daily life and astronomy (in fact, science in general) actually is.

Avijit, a school student like myself, was one of the attendees who contacted me after the event information was put up on the Internet. To him it was an "unforgettable" and "life-changing" experience. Shashwat described the event as an "ode to mystery". Many said that this event made them realise that astronomy could be as fun and as entertaining as anything. Mr Chaudhuri and his daughter commended our efforts for making astronomy accessible and interesting to the general public.

Most common words/phrases in the reaction sheet were “great”, “wonderful”, “awesome”, “excellent”, “splendid”, “entertaining”, “well done”, “thanks” and “keep it up”. Everyone said that this event inspired them to learn more about astronomy and made them feel very privileged. They requested more such events in future.

We are thankful to each and every person who attended this event and in any way contributed to the success of this event. The kind words of encouragement of the attendees indeed mean a lot to us. This confirms the fact that International Year of Astronomy 2009 has been such a huge, huge (any repetition would be an understatement) success. Everyone related to IYA2009 has made it such a phenomenon. We are proud to have played our part (however little that may be) in this magnificent endeavour. Beyond IYA2009 will be just as phenomenal.

In conclusion, let me leave you with some pictures of the event night.

This and That . . .

2010-04-15T23:25:00.001+05:30

It's been ages since I logged on to Blogger. Much to my delight, the homepage informed me that four comments were waiting to be published. I could hardly hold myself. Who could leave comments on a blog that's as good as dead? Who could possibly care about my random opinions? No one, I thought. And I was right. But the comments I saw pleased me in a different way. It's always a good sign when spambots leave ads on your blog. That means your blog's getting popular (among spambots, of course).

Blogging will not as sporadic this year as it was the last year, because I won't be blogging at all. You might see a couple of posts in the next few weeks. This is my final year and the NEWTs are very important. Since laying out my thoughts on the blog isn't as important as saving the world from the Dark Lord, I'm afraid you won't be seeing much of me in the year ahead. There are a great many things I wanted to write about. At first, I wanted to go back to the Leaves from My Japan Diary series. But I don't think I'll be able to do that because it will consume much of my time and energy. But I will write a few posts in the coming weeks. An incomplete overview of my Galilean Nights event has been gathering dust (the Pullmaninan one) in the drafts folder for about six months. I will also write about a major astronomy event I did in December. I will try to write about some films I saw recently. I hope I can write about Avatar, which has provoked my thoughts in a way I did not expect it to do. I had some film and book-related posts in mind, but . . .

Gosh! I almost forgot why I started writing this post in the first place.

Happy Bengali New Year! It's 1417, folks! Last year, I wrote a post on the Bengali New Year. Looking back, it surprises me how much effort I put forth for that little post, with diacritical marks and all. This year, I have decided to do away with the diacritical marks. Instead, I will use the Bengali script.

শুভ নব বর্ষ

This is exactly what the title of that post is. The arrival of Boiśākh means a lot to me, as I have discussed in that post. 24 days from now, the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the birth of Rabindranath Tagore will begin. I was delighted to find his mention in the New Year wish from Mrs Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State. It that is any indicaion, I am sure the worldwide celebration of his birthday will be hugely successful. I hope the entire world rediscovers Tagore's works and looks at the Bengali culture with a fresh perspective. This effort will be immensely important for the growth of the Bengali language and culture and how the world perceives the Bengali culture.

Hope this year brings happiness to one and all. But the beginning of this year shows little promise of happiness for us in this part of the world. It's freezing in Kolkata. As I write this, I can see flakes of snow outside the window. A thick sheet of snow has covered the entire country. It will only get colder in May. I don't know what I'll do then. Fascinating, no?

Remembering Titanic

2009-12-18T00:37:00.010+05:30

As the whole world gets ready to embrace the new James Cameron film, I decide to revisit a film which fascinated a child 11 years ago.

I was hardly five then. But to this day, the sunny April day of 1998 is as clear in my mind as anything else. A new English film had become the talk of the town. It had won 11 Oscars (I didn't know what an Oscar was) and became a global hit. (As though they were the only criteria for a good film) It had come to Kolkata and as expected, became an instant smash hit. People all over were rah-rah-ing about the film on the sinking ship.

My relationship with cinema till then was not very developed. I don't remember seeing many films before that. (You certainly wouldn't expect a five-year-old to appreciate Orson Welles or Satyajit Ray, would you?) I was taken to movie theatres a couple of times before but the experience at the cinema hall was nothing memorable to speak of.

We didn't know anything about this new movie except the fact that the protagonist was a sinking ship. I remember that Aunt managed to get five tickets for Mum, Dad, Sister, herself and well, that little child. I was very excited. I was going to watch a movie!

The day finally arrived and we were all ready to go to the movie theatre. Multiplexes were strangers to Kolkata until 2003. Single-screen halls were all we had then. We went to the Globe Cinema to see the movie called Titanic which was "edited to suit the family audiences in India". It was as clean and family-friendly as a five-year-old can possibly see.

And oh my Flying Spaghetti Monster! The crowd! What a crowd it was! Thank the FSM that I didn't get lost in the crowd that evening.

We were able to find our seats amidst the clamour. In a while, the lights were turned off and some trailers were shown (I don't remember which trailers they were). Then the movie started suddenly. The theatre became silent at once. As the treasure hunters went deep into the Atlantic, I (and possibly, every member of the audience) was immersed too.

Cut to: The scene at the Globe Cinema three-and-a-half hours later.

I was crying my hearts out. I was choked with emotion. I couldn't hold myself together. The movie gave me a feeling I wasn't yet familiar with: grief. The man called James Cameron had just given me one of the best experiences of my five-year-old life. Titanic was the power of cinema unleashed before me. In these three hours, I knew what the celluloid screen could do to a person. I knew how wonderful, how magnificent, how spectacular the medium of cinema could be. At that point, I knew I had fallen in love with movies.

I had difficulty in understanding the words mouthed by the characters but what they said wasn't hard to understand at all. To use a very clichéd expression, the language was very much universal. On that special evening, I was entranced by the vastness of the scale of the movie. I was captivated by the quiet charm of Kate Winslet, who's still my favourite actress. There were sequences which left me thrilled, amused, shocked and excited. I remember being horrified by the scene when Rose tries to commit suicide. I remember being amused by the scene when Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio, who would go on to introduce me to Martin Scorsese) almost misses the ship. I remember being awed by the scene of Jack and Rose "flying". I remember being shattered by the sight of Jack sinking to the depth of ocean. I remember the effect the James Horner score created on my mind.

I remember the experience which I don't think I will ever be able to forget.

Next few months, Titanic was all I knew. I made terrible drawings of the ship all over my drawing books. I pestered everyone in the family to bring me anything which was related to Titanic. The rooms in my house were adorned with posters of Titanic. In a couple of months' time, we had our first PC. Just imagine how excited I was when someone gave me wallpapers of Titanic on my computer! I had the opportunity to see another spectacular achievement of Cameron – Terminator 2: Judgment Day.

Let me recount a heartbreaking experience here. One fine day, my parents gifted me an audiotape of the James Horner soundtrack of Titanic. On receiving that cassette, I was, needless to say, very enthused. I kept playing the tape in a portable cassette player in an infinite loop, especially the Celine Dion song. But my joy was short-lived because the tape was somehow damaged one day. But at that moment the tape was out of stock and my parents couldn't get it replaced immediately. I had just lost something very precious to me.

Time went on and my Titanic mania eventually subsided. Gradually, I was introduced to cinema. I started realising what good cinema really was. I discovered the classic films and started to appreciate cinema as a medium of abstract art. I no longer had a soft spot for Titanic. It was just another crowd-pleaser, nothing more. It was very manipulative and unnecessarily sentimental. It's perhaps the worst Best Picture Oscar winner ever or even the worst film ever. It may even be the "most dreadful piece of work" ever, as declared by Robert Altman. I don't think it's a great film, or even a very good one. It definitely didn't deserve all those 11 Oscars. According to popular opinion, it should have deserved 11 Razzies or something even worse. Isn't it funny that we accuse Titanic of being popular (or populist for that matter) and declare it the worst thing mankind has ever experienced based on a popular opinion?

I have to repeat that I don't think Titanic is a very good film. But it's perhaps not as abysmal as it's made out to be. But I can't deny how it affected me when I was a child because it opened up a new door for me and it remains an important film of my life. This film was my first tryst with the thing called cinema.

As James Cameron comes out of his 12-year-long hibernation with the sureshot-blockbuster Avatar today (it was "tomorrow" when I started writing it), I become just as excited as the child who was floored by his earlier film 11 years ago. I think Mr Cameron will be able to bring out the long-forgotten child within me with his film and will inspire him to love a film from the bottom of his heart. It's not always the greatest of things you have a place in your heart for. Sometimes, just something mediocre can move you or inspire you. That is just good enough, sometimes. I mean, who can imagine that it was schlock and grindhouse which gave us a filmmaker like Quentin Tarantino? It's his love of films (I mean all films, not just greats or classics) which makes him the finest auteur of today.

I am more than willing to believe Ebert when he says: 'It takes a hell of a lot of nerve for a man to stand up at the Oscarcast and proclaim himself King of the World. James Cameron just got re-elected.' And I am all ready to bow before the King.

150 Years of Realisation

2009-11-24T23:15:00.157+05:30

400 Years Later ...

That was the name of the Galilean Nights event I had organised last month. The event was very successful, to put it simply. I couldn't post the pictures and event reports on this blog because my studies left me with little time to blog or even Tweet. (I'll post the pics and reports soon.)

2009, as you must know, has been declared as the International Year of Astronomy to commemorate the 400^th anniversary of that little invention called telescope. In 2009, we are remembering the Father of Modern Science – Galileo Galilei. So far, it's been an awesome and very fruitful year for all astronomers and astronomy enthusiasts. IYA2009 perfectly accomplished what it intended to do and what it did was much bigger and better than many could have hoped for. More on that next month.

But if you thought that only that was the importance of 2009, think again.
2009 also marks the 150^th anniversary of publication of one of the most important books in the history of human civilisation: On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life by, well, Charles Robert Darwin.

This book was published on this very day, 150 years ago. It was perhaps the single most influential book ever published. This book tried to tell us that we were not perhaps Created by the Big Puppeteer Above. This book revealed the crueler, meaner side of Nature. This book told us that life (in the most literal sense) was a continuous struggle – a struggle for existence. This book made us aware of the fact that the Big Puppeteer wasn't the reason we continued to exist. We existed because we deserved to. We survived because we were the fittest. We survived because Nature (not He or She) selected us.

This book told us that we have evolved.

The theory of evolution can't exactly be credited to Darwin. Lamarck had already told us about the progression of life forms. But no other theory was as revolutionary (pun intended) as Darwin's. His theory was as sharp and as potent as Hattori Hanzō's katana, which could slice Him.

Darwin's book single-handedly changed our perception of life. We were able to look at ourselves through a new prism. Could we have imagined that our ancestors were actually apes? Could we have imagined that we might have some sort of connection with the monkeys at the zoo?

A frighteningly large number of people still refuse to acknowledge the fact that we have evolved and in doing so, they insult the human race and human intelligence. The fact that we have tried to realise who we are and where we came from shows how far we have evolved. Isn't this realisation the pinnacle of human intelligence? Isn't this realisation very beautiful, perplexing and ultimately, uplifting?

150 years after the publication of the Sacred Scripture (for worshippers of science) people continue to debate this theory. Biologists continue to add to this theory. We continue to evolve in our thoughts and scientific pursuits. We continue to realise. And Darwin continues to live.

Over the Moon!

2009-09-28T20:51:00.009+05:30

The festive season is finally here! Bengalis all over the world have started celebrating. I find it very interesting to see the happy faces of people going crazy to receive blessings of goddess Durga whom they very affectionately refer to as Maa (Mother). You'll find another kind of people who find a lot of reasons to be happy, apart from, of course, the divine blessings. But that's another story altogether. Some people become happy to meet distant relatives and childhood friends. To them the Puja is a trip down memory lane, an opportunity to meet the older, younger self they have long forgotten. Then there's another kind of people whose lives are trapped in a bubble of perpetual sadness and gloom. Yet they try to force a smile on the face, hoping against hope to be happy.

My relationship with the goddess-mother (or mother-goddess, whatever you prefer) has always been very poor. As a matter of fact, there has never been any relationship between us at all. It was early in my childhood when I abandoned the idea of a Higher Power from Above controlling every aspect of the Universe from the eyelids of a child to a drop of rain. Yet I enjoyed myself during the Puja, but not by celebrating it. I have been worshipping pasta over the past few years, but still I try to be happy this season. I fail to derive joy from visiting the Puja pandals which are, apparently, the pinnacle of artistic brilliance. I don't find "hanging out" a great option either. But everyone around me is very happy, so why should I not give myself a chance to be happy? But my source of joy is a bit (OK, a lot!) different. I decided to watch a movie this time. It should have been a very entertaining, action-packed, emotionally affecting movie with a great story to tell, but it wasn't.

It was a movie I saw a long time ago and on the Şaşţhĩ (September 24, the day the Puja officially began) morning, I decided to revisit that very boring film, one of my all-time favourites: Stanley Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey.

This film gets better with each viewing and this time was no exception. Some scenes were even more effective this time. Some images had such a lasting impact on me in my childhood that they can't be any better. It'll be a pointless attempt to list them all, but if I have to pick a few, here they are (SPOILER ALERT):

1) The apes discovering the monolith and learning to use weapons
2) HAL killing the hibernating astronauts
3) Every shot of the red eye of HAL
4) The final image

The phrase "emotional vacuum" is often used to describe this film but very few films have moved me in a way this one did. It also works on a subconscious level (I'm saying this because the Star Gate sequence keeps coming back to me). I assume no one could have put it better than Roger Ebert does:

[2001: A Space Odyssey] is the work of an artist so sublimely confident that he doesn't include a single shot simply to keep our attention. He reduces each scene to its essence, and leaves it on screen long enough for us to contemplate it, to inhabit it in our imaginations. Alone among science-fiction movies, “2001" is not concerned with thrilling us, but with inspiring our awe.

[...]

Only a few films are transcendent, and work upon our minds and imaginations like music or prayer or a vast belittling landscape.

I have a lot more to say about this film, but not now. Just when the descendants of the ape find another monolith on the Moon, the news reporter on the television says something about the Moon. My attention was immediately diverted (which doesn't happen usually). I clicked "pause" and saw that the Indian spacecraft Chandrayaan I had conclusively confirmed the presence of water on the Moon (I hadn't read any newspaper yet). We are taught from our childhood that the Moon is one of the driest places in the solar system. Thanks to ISRO and NASA, the textbooks will be corrected all over again. (Update: But considering the amount of water found in the soil of the Moon, it still is one of the driest places in the solar system.) Congratulations to both ISRO and NASA! Now I am all excited for the LCROSS impact on the Moon on October 9.

And this announcement comes weeks after the news of the death of Chandrayaan I. One of my friends was quite sad about this and almost lost all hope he had in India's space programme. I told him that there was nothing to be sad about and not all spacecrafts are wholly successful. I pointed out that there was a time when most missions to Mars were "jinxed". Still I could not make him feel any better. This discovery will undoubtedly relieve him and it's also an answer to the detractors of the Chandrayaan mission.

After the viewing that classic for the n^th time and receiving that news, I thought I was the happiest person this season. But the day's surprises were not yet over. Suddenly the doorbell rang. I had received a parcel. Knowing what it was, I signed on some dotted lines and called all the members of my family to attend the "opening ceremony". I opened it. Here's what I received after quite a complicated process which I won't discuss here. I dedicated it to my grandfather:

It was my 100 Hours of Astronomy prize, a Celestron SkyScout! It's the finest gift one could receive for the Puja.

I am over the Moon. I really am. Am I a lunatic? Dunno. You tell me!

[I started writing this post on Şaşţhĩ but didn't manage to finish it until today when the Puja is over, thanks to my ISP.]

Video: 100 Hours of Astronomy: Award Acceptance / Award Ceremony

2009-09-17T19:06:00.004+05:30

I am sorry that I am uploading the videos this late. It's been more than one month since the 100 Hours of Astronomy award ceremony took place at the XXVIIth General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. I've told you almost everything about the award before. So let's not be repetitive.

The following video is the one I had originally made to be shown at the ceremony.

(You can watch it in a better quality by clicking on "HQ", if you have a fast connection.)

The video below shows the part of the award ceremony when my video was presented.

(Award Seven is not a rank. It's just a category of the award.)

The second video is a part of the 1-hour-long video of the entire ceremony. You can watch the full video with presentations from winners in other categories here. I have lost count of the number of times I watched the entire video and never has this video failed to send a shiver down my spine. Every time I watch the video, I realise how little I have done. Everything the winners in other categories have done is spectacular to say the least. My work, however passionate, is almost negligible compared to theirs. I am very glad that I got the opportunity to showcase my work alongside theirs. And I've told you before how it feels to have your video shown at the IAU General Assembly.

This award has motivated me strongly. I advance toward my aim with greater enthusiasm. I want to perform the task my grandfather has left me, though I can hardly dream doing half of what he did.

In my video I said, 'Considering that my resources were limited, I think my event was successful.' I had little resources to make the video as well. But I don't think the video is excellent, and I don't want to blame the lack of resources this time. It was simply my fault. I made the video on Windows Movie Maker which can give loads of much if you are working on a slow computer. Yet, I can't forgive the choppiness in some parts, most notably in the "About Me" part. Considering the time I took to make this video, it could have been much better.

I was anxious about how my presentation would be received. I was very relieved when Ms Jennie McCormick of the 100HA Global Task Group told me that it was "great".

I have watched that part of the ceremony over a hundred times. Ms Donna Smith, coordinator of Sidewalk Astronomy, presented my award in a very sweet and affectionate manner.

I was also worried about what people would think about my appearance as I am often told that I am very "funny and comical". My joy knew no bounds when Mr Mike Simmons (Co-chair, 100HA) said, 'Well, this is a 15-year-old young man in Calcutta, India, one of the largest cities in the world. How many lives do you think he will affect over the next 60 years or so? It's also interesting to be upstaged by a better screen presence of a 15-year-old, but I can live with that.'

So please use the comment space below to express your opinion on the videos. I am eagerly waiting.

(I haven't organised any astronomy event since June largely because of my studies. I intend to organise a couple of events in the coming weeks. If you are interested, email me from the Blogger profile page.)

Happy Teachers' Day!

2009-09-05T20:03:00.025+05:30

For me Teachers' Day is one of the most anticipated days of the year. I don't look forward to this day because this day offers us a chance to express our gratitude to our teachers and tell them how great they are. That should be done everyday. We need to thank our teachers 365 days a year from the bottom of our heart. We deliver some very emotional speeches on this day but once the day is over do we really believe in what we said?

Everyday, there's a news headline indicating the steadily deteriorating teacher-pupil relationship. What is the significance of September 5 if students don't respect their teachers as much as they should? We need to observe Teachers' Day everyday by being obedient to them and showing them proper respect, not by giving them flower bouquets. I'm not saying that giving them flower bouquets is not a good thing to do, it'd just be better if the bouquets were accompanied by true respect and love. Otherwise, the observance of Teachers' Day becomes an exercise in pointlessness and falsehood.

However, I await September 5 with intense anticipation because of the mad celebration that takes place in our school. "Dazzling" would be another word to describe it aptly. We have, to use a much-abused phrase, loads of fun on this day and today was no exception.

The most awesome part of the Teachers' Day celebration is Teacher-for-a-Day programme. Till 2007, the senior students took up the job of teaching us for a period or two. When a senior taught us, a teacher of the same subject sat with us and judged his performance as a teacher. Sometimes, some of my classmates would pull the legs of the senior by asking them particularly difficult questions in front of the teacher. But I had never done anything to embarrass the seniors as I knew how difficult it was for them to teach us in front of the teacher.

Since 2008, I have officially been a "senior". So I got the chance to teach the younger folks for two years. Last year my mathematics class won me the prize for best teacher. Today I was given the responsibility to teach class VIII students mathematics. Maths is one of my favourite subjects, so I wasn't anxious at all and it didn't take me a second to decide what I was going to teach.

So I entered the classroom with my maths teacher. The teacher sat behind them and my students said to me, 'Good morning, Sir!' Just imagine this scene! It was a great session. Thankfully, the students I got were not mischievous. They asked me questions, but never to pull my legs. It was very fun teaching them. At moments I wanted to look in the eyes of my teacher and ask him (with eyes, of course), 'Sir, am I doing alright? Have I successfully learnt everything you taught us?' But I controlled myself. Even after the teacher went out from the classroom with my marks safely clutched in his hands, I taught them on for a couple of minutes before the next teacher-for-a-day entered the classroom, because I felt that I should be sincere to the profession of teaching, even though it was for a day.

Some of my friends stood outside the classroom watching me teaching. One of them even recorded a video of me giving lecture and writing on the board. But never did they become a source of annoyance or distraction.

I was very happy after my session as a teacher. I heard funny anecdotes from the friends who took up this job. Some of the non-teaching seniors taught the juniors some tricky questions which they asked to the senior teaching them and embarrassed him no end. One of my friends had a hilarious experience:

He was teaching class X students history. The students decided to play a prank on him. He asked his students, 'What did K. C. Das do?' One of the students replied, 'He invented rosogolla (a famous Bengali sweet, which is often portrayed elsewhere as the only thing in the Universe Bengalis know and care about).' This one had everyone of us (including him) in splits.

This is the degree of fun and enjoyment we have every year. There was a short and pleasant programme after this. The programme became all the more enjoyable for me as I won another prize this year for teaching. There's a friendly football match between teachers and senior students every year, which I love watching.

But I haven't yet told you the most special aspect of Teachers' Day, have I? The Teachers' Day reminds me of my pre-school Teachers' Day celebration with the best teacher I've ever had: my grandfather.

A Moment of Ecstasy

2009-08-11T21:30:00.006+05:30

How else can I define it? I fall short of words to describe the moment that's coming in a few hours. It will be erroneous to describe my feelings as ecstasy. What I am feeling now is something I've rarely, or maybe never experienced. It's not elation, it's something beyond that. It's that something plus anxiety, fear, anticipation, awe. Now that would be a more apt description. I think I have written ample words trying in vain to do what is beyond my ability.

Let's get it straight. How would you feel if you were an astronomy enthusiast and got to express yourself in front of the top astronomers of the world? How would you feel if you were being featured at the convention where world's best astronomers meet and where every major decision about astronomy was made? How would you feel if you got the chance to represent your nation, acknowledge the part of the most important people in your life and say what you want to at such a convention?

See? Don't all these feelings obstruct your thoughts? Oh, I forgot to add: how would you feel if the highest governing body in astronomy gave you an award for your work when you are still in school?

So it'd be an exercise in futility writing about feelings, wouldn't it? Here's the thing. I've told you about my award before. Please allow me to repeat it here: I'm the winner of the 100 Hours of Astronomy Youth Participation Award. And in a few hours, (three, to be exact) the award will be presented in Rio de Janeiro at the XXVII^th General Assembly of the International Astronomical Union (IAU). (The UN, IAU and every space organisation of the world are part of the celebration that is International Year of Astronomy.)

Contrary to what the above passages may have indicated, I'll not actually be present in Rio de Janeiro in person to receive this award. A short video that I made will be shown there. And not many people are – beware of the extremely foul and offensive word – that lucky (I really, really dislike this word) to showcase themselves (even with a video) in front of some of the best astronomers in the world.

It sends shivers down my spine to think that a historic decision like this was made in the previous General Assembly of the IAU. I mean, really? In the 26th G.A., we got ourselves a new kind of objects called "dwarf planets" and after which all books in the world had to change the number of planets in the solar system. And in the next, I am featured? It can't be real! It must be a dream! But thankfully it isn't.

The award ceremony will start from 16:00 local time (that's 19:00 GMT or 0:30 IST). But the video of the ceremony will not be shown live. It will be archived after 2 hours. So you can access the video from this site 21:00 GMT (2:30 IST) onwards. So I invite you to come and share my moment of that something.

People use the phrase "dream come true" to describe something like this. But what will you say if you didn't even dream of that dream?

An Award

2009-07-21T21:02:00.000+05:30

I'll keep this post short. Promise.

No more unnecessary dramatic effect. Here's the thing. Yes, an award! That's what forced me to come out of my long hibernation. It's not some routine award I am talking about. The award I've got is pretty big.

Now anyone who's interested in science will know that this year has been declared as the International Year of Astronomy (IYA2009) by the UN (the International Astronomical Union and the UNESCO initiated this "global effort"). I've discussed at length what this year means to me.

A programme called 100 Hours of Astronomy was a cornerstone project of IYA2009. During 2-5 April 2009, professional and amateur astronomers and all sky-fanatics worldwide were united by the cause to celebrate astronomy and make it accessible for the general public. So that was the 100HA. And I was one of the passionate people who joined the celebration. It was a remarkable experience for me. (I've talked about the 100HA here, here, here, here, here and this is the final round-up.) It was announced later that they'd give away awards to 100HA organisers in 8 categories. I sent everything in. It was beyond my wildest imagination that I could win a prize for what I did.

But as you very much know, my imagination deceived me. Yes I was wrong.

Yes! I won the 100 HOURS OF ASTRONOMY YOUTH PARTICIPATION AWARD on behalf of Prof. Dhiranando Roy Study & Research Centre. But I won't write my acceptance here. I have to write that elaborately to do justice to my feelings upon receiving such a prestigious award.

But one thing I can surely say. For me, the International Year of Astronomy has just begun.

The Return of the Mudblood King

2009-07-21T08:28:00.001+05:30

Should I apologise to you? And to myself? Or should I not? That's not really the question. The questions should be: Why did I stop writing when my Leaves from My Japan Diary series was being liked? And why have I decided to return?

It's true that I've received many appreciative and encouraging responses from readers. The reaction from my fellow team member wasn't really unexpected, considering that they were all part of the experience. But the response from others was unexpected, surprising and moving. I was very moved when some readers emailed me to express their thoughts on my writing as the comment form was not working. You may ask why I decided to discontinue the series after recounting the experience of only two days in Japan.

The fact is: I wasn't really happy with how I wrote the later posts. A couple of hours after I posted the account of Day Two, I decided to read the entire series from the beginning. (Just to let you know, it was already 25 pages, 15,000 words and 70,000 characters long and I'd already written half of Day Three.) This decision to reread was right and that was what led to another decision. You probably know what that is. I discovered that when I started writing the series, my passion was reflected in the introduction, prologue and the next post or two. But as the series progressed, the writing style started showing cracks. By the time it arrived in Japan, the style had completely fallen apart. There was no passion with which I'd begun to write. I thought the style of the latter posts was slowly becoming repetitive, dull and – forgive me for using this word – boring. (But if you still appreciated my writing, all I can say is: Thank you!) However, I knew that this style wouldn't work anymore and decided not to tamper with what I'd posted. I felt that I should write well rather than just posting exactly on the same date to do justice to the beautiful moments. So I stopped writing anymore and waited for the moment when I'd be able to (cliché alert) pour my heart and soul into the writing.

Meanwhile, a lot of events happened in my personal life, my school started and there was no time to devote to writing. Occasionally I did post a tweet/status update or two, but that was it. I had a lot of things in mind to blog about. But I told myself that Japan should be completed first. But I didn't know how I could start it afresh (it certainly wasn't blogger's block). July turned out even worse. There were a lot of problems on the personal front. My poor health kept me from posting any tweets. (2009 is the worst year so far for me in terms of health) I couldn't be online for more than 10 minutes. I couldn't even go out, as my doctor had advised. I lost all interest to come online.

Circumstances snatched away my chance to watch tomorrow's total solar eclipse (it'll be a partial eclipse for me). Isn't that very cruel? Chances are that I mayn't be able to watch even that, if the friendly clouds greet me tomorrow. There was no sign of happiness or hope around until …

Until something happened I'm not going to tell you in this post. So the second question will remain unanswered. For now. The next post itself will be the answer. Watch out.

And if the title of the post makes you want to know what I thought of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, well, I haven't seen that either.

(I will resume regular blogging soon. And the Japan posts? I'll let you know when it's over.)

Leaves from My Japan Diary: Sunshine

2009-05-14T23:49:00.007+05:30

I awoke on this day with renewed enthusiasm. I knew at once that I’d not be feeling drowsy anymore. But when I looked out of the window the sight didn’t match my anticipation at all. I expected a genial, bright, warm day. Much to my disappointment, the sky was still overcast. It seemed the cloak of clouds was not to lift itself anytime soon. On the positive side, it was much less cold than it had been the day before. What I knew for sure was that I was going to enjoy this day better. I woke up very early in the morning and got ready. I felt refreshed; I saw clearly what a good sleep could do to me. Soon, the Wise Brother and the Silent Guy were ready and we were off to breakfast.

Breakfast at the Atagoyama Tokyu Inn was very interesting. I got to taste some delicious Japanese cuisine at breakfast. I always preferred chopsticks to forks and spoons while in Japan. It made me feel more Japanese. After a nice and filling breakfast, we gathered once again. I kept chatting with my friends (also from other groups). I kept saying “Ohayō gozaimasu” to everyone I met, Indian and Japanese alike. I had a feeling that I wasn’t in a foreign country at all. It felt like … my own.

I was introduced to another member of JICE, Hiromi-san, a wonderful lady. She and I had quite a lengthy conversation about our culture. (I had a similar exchange with Rie-san the day before.) I’ve just thought about two more names for the girls in our team: one will be called Pinkie Kaka (she too was a football fanatic, but two names like “Football Fanatic Guy” and “Football Fanatic Girl” may be misleading for non-Saga readers; therefore, this name, but I don’t have any particular reason for this, it’s just random) and the other, Ms Juiceless. Now everybody knows who Ms Juiceless is. And no, this isn’t a name I’ve invented. In fact, she was the one to coin the term. I’ll discuss the reason for this christening in a few days.

However, let’s get back to the day. When we went outside it was raining a bit, but it was nothing uncomfortable. In fact, I started enjoying the rain. There was a lecture on Japan at 9 o'clock. We were all going to Toranomon Pastoral (Mint), just five minutes’ walk from our inn. We were to learn a great deal more about the past and present of Japan. We arrived at the conference room in no time. Rie-san introduced us to our lecturer, Mr Takeshi Mura from J. F. Oberlin University. The lecture began at 9:05 a.m. sharp, not a minute before or after the scheduled time. Mr Mura started his lecture and slideshow. He spoke in Japanese and his words were translated by Hirooka-san. The lecture was for one hour and a half. But when the lecture finished, I didn’t realise how long it was. The lecture, as well as the slideshow, was so engaging, so interesting that I sat there captivated; I wish it were longer. The lecture was another eye-opener on Japan for me. I was getting more and more amazed and this lecture changed my perception considerably. We students were guests to Japan for cultural and educational exchange. So naturally, it was expected that we’ll be shown only about the positive side of Japan. We were indeed shown the advancement of Japan over decades and the uncountable technological achievements of Japan. I was stunned when the lecturer also chose to highlight the not-so-good aspects in the history of Japan, the mistakes Japan had committed in the past. I loved this tremendous honesty as very few dare to be self-criticising – a good sign for the progress of any nation. This highlighting of the mistakes didn’t make me any less respectful to the Japanese. On the contrary, my admiration and respect towards them increased even more after this wonderful gesture. Learning from mistakes: that’s what everybody needs to do, most don’t and Japan certainly did.

We had about half an hour to ask him questions. He was completely flooded by enquiries from the students. He answered them impeccably. I had thought of a question. But we ran out of time long before my turn came. But I did manage to take a photograph with him. He was very kind to let me (and others as well) take pictures with him.

After I came out of the hall, I saw the sky was still cloudy. But it had become a sunny day for me. Nothing could hold back my enthusiasm that day, nothing could … and nothing did. I was completely overpowered by endless – what do I call it? – joy, elation, ecstasy and what-not? I lost my self-consciousness and forgot to care about how I appeared. I didn’t notice how ludicrous I’d looked in that black jumper and scarf or how badly I’d worn the scarf until I looked at the pictures after my return home. I looked at my reflection many times that day but nothing seemed to be wrong. That was probably why many of my friends seemed to regard me as some sort of prankster. (The Vampire Addict was among them; oh, christened another girl!) But guess what, I didn’t care about that either (nor does it make me uncomfortable now). I was lost in my thoughts. I never thought about the quality of food I got because it was too insubstantial a subject to me and … I was getting something to eat. It didn’t matter to me what I looked like or what I ate or how I was perceived. All that mattered to me was what I felt. I won’t probably exaggerate when I say I was the most jubilant person there.
However, after the lecture, we went out again. There was a new bus waiting for us (we had a new bus everyday). Hiromi-san, as well as Yamaguchi-san, was accompanying us to lunch. I hardly switched my camera off this day. I took photos of anything and everything. Careful not to waste power, I even turned off the LCD screen and used the viewfinder instead. That indeed helped me take as much photos as I wanted. All I remember about our lunch is that I had a conversation with Yamaguchi-san, Hiromi-san and Mamta Ma’am about cinema of Japan and India. We talked mainly about cinema of Satyajit Ray and Akira Kurosawa and the admiration both filmmakers had for each other’s work. It was a very interesting discussion. We couldn’t continue it for long as we had to go.

After lunch, we were going to Shinagawa Waste Incineration Plant. You’ll probably refuse to believe me, but it’s true that it was exactly the kind of place I wanted to go to (funny how I didn’t even express my wish to our group supervisors and was taken there). Let’s make it simple. I’m related to environmental activities in my country. So it’s only too natural for me to find out more about waste management and pollution control in the country where the Kyoto Protocol, one of the best initiatives taken to save our environment, was signed.

We were welcomed warmly at the plant. At first, we were taken to a room (it looked something like a classroom) where we were given an introduction to the plant and the works it did. After the distribution of a document explaining the methods of the plant, we were taken around the plant. We were split into three groups. We were shown how the waste was collected and recycled. It was my thing. The process was energy-efficient and emitted no GHG. There were many other informative things.

The skyline of Tokyo looked magnificent from inside the plant and my camera was clicking again. A number of us did something unimaginable there. We saw a bullet train and lost all our sense to get a photo of it. To me, bullet train always signified Japan and so not having taken a picture of a bullet train meant no picture of Japan at all. We ran along the corridors of the plant, trying desperately to take at least one picture. And we were successful. I got to take a couple of pictures of my fantasy train. It was regrettable that none of us in the Saga Group got a chance to ride in the train.

After the quite enjoyable (at least for me) tour at Shinagawa Waste Incineration Plant, we were going to the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation, Miraikan. During the half-hour-long bus journey, I managed to take more photos. I still remember trying to take as many photos of an underwater tunnel as I could. We arrived at Miraikan in a little while.

We were given passes to enter any section we wanted. But we had to come back within two hours so. I went on my own after collecting my pass. When I entered the main section of Miraikan, it seemed as though my head had spun around. There were so many things to look at! But the time to explore the museum was so little that I thought I’d not be able to see everything in the museum. I went from one section to another, trying to have a look at everything. I can’t describe and list out the thing I saw there since it’ll be an exercise in futility. Suffice it to say, it’s the perfect science and technology museum. Scientific facts and cutting-edge technological achievements are presented in a very enjoyable and entertaining way. I must thank my friends who gladly took my photos on request. I was behaving like a crazy photographer there. It was a thoroughly amusing experience for everyone. I returned to the reporting place just in time. We had a brilliant photo session outside Miraikan. Just like the other programmes I had attended, it attracted me so much that I didn’t really want to leave Miraikan.

It was about time to have dinner. After coming out of Miraikan, we were off to Ginza. (I remember taking photos of Rainbow Bridge frantically.) When we arrived in Ginza it was about 6’O clock. All of us decided to walk and explore Ginza again. Now that I wasn’t drowsy as I had been the previous day, it was a much more pleasurable exploration there. I appreciated how it looked in the evening once again. I had a good dinner. After dinner, we were roaming about again. I walked with Rajendra Sir. We had conversation about mathematics, his subject. We also shared our thoughts on our experience. I was slowly realising that I was lucky (although I don’t like the word “luck” at all) to have Mamta Ma’am and Rajendra Sir as our supervisors. They were very nice and affectionate to me.

I remember a funny incident at Ginza. Rajendra Sir, the Football Fanatic Guy, a couple of others and I were roaming about when we spotted a phone shop. We could not hold ourselves and went inside to have a look at latest models of mobile phones. When we asked the lady in the shop if we could buy a particular mobile (the price wasn’t ridiculous), she told us that we had to reside in Japan for at least so-and-so years and needed to provide so-and-so documents. It may read like a perfectly normal situation. But we came out of the shop laughing loudly enough to make some of the passers-by look at us.

We came back to our inn. But unlike the previous evening, we had work to do that evening. We’d be flying to Saga the next day. So there was an official meeting of the group supervisors and the students. We’d be having our first cultural performance in Saga. We had to decide what we’d be doing. We decided the duration of our programme and how we’d stand together. We discussed stuff like that.

There was a difficult task for me. I had to pack my bags once again. Actually, we were instructed to leave our check-in luggage in Tokyo before going to Saga. We’d only be carrying our carry-on bags. So I had to pack my bags freshly. I decided what I should take to Saga and what I shouldn’t. I transferred all my necessary stuff to my red bag and the black one provided by JICE. Some of my friends went out in the streets of Tokyo again. But I had to pack my bags first. The packing didn’t take long and was actually easier than it seemed to be.

Now that I had everything ready and nothing to worry about, I was relieved and free to go outside the inn. I was out again on my own, roaming in Tokyo. I could feel the new kind of freedom (I discussed it in the last post) even more prominently (without the sleepiness that had almost managed to kill me the day before). I wandered aimlessly. I went strolling in the streets nearby. Again, it was wonderful being alone (not that I don’t enjoy a good company). I returned to the inn in time.

I suddenly had an idea. I did write a number of speeches before coming to Japan. But what if I penned another speech after I’d seen Japan? It was an exciting thought. I went to my room and started thinking. I listed out all the points I had in my mind and started giving shape to what I had to say. I also phoned home and noted down another couple of points. It was shaping up well.

Meanwhile, what I heard from my friends who went to have a walk made me proud of my decision not to go too far from my hotel. They went … well … a bit too far. They were actually lost. They were not accompanied by any supervisor and couldn’t find the way back to the inn. They were, however, very lucky (I can't believe I used the L-word two times in the same post) to have found a helpful Japanese person who understood they were lost and guided them safely back to the hotel when they mentioned its name.

After a bit of chitchat with friends, I was ready to write my speech. I wished goodnight to all. My roomies went to bed. We turned off all the lights. I had only a dim bedside lamp to help me. It was 11:30. I started writing. Much like this piece, the writing was a satisfying experience. Little did I know that I wouldn’t read the speech in Japan. But I don’t regret that much. Maybe I’ll post the speech on this blog sometime.

So far, the Japan I had seen in Tokyo mostly exceeded my expectations. But were tall skyscrapers, smooth roads, speeding vehicles, innumerable flyovers and cutting-edge technology the only aspects of Japan? Many people I’ve talked to have such (wrongly) stereotypical views of Japan. I could sense a different side of Japan. I waited with bated breath to go to Saga to see the other side of Japan.

I turned the light off.

Leaves from My Japan Diary: The Land of the Rising Sun

2009-05-13T13:31:00.004+05:30

Finally I was in the Land of the Rising Sun shortly after sunrise. As the plane came to a halt, everyone stood up. I took out my bag and followed the crowd to the gate. All members of the Saga Group stayed together. We could see Yamaguchi-san and other Japanese supervisors waiting for us. The pink flag of the Saga Group was in the hand of Yamaguchi-san. We followed her outside. Just as I exited the plane I got a big shock. I could see the rain from inside the plane but never did I realise that it’d be skin-piercingly, mind-numbingly cold. I was shivering. (I later knew that it was a typhoon which caused such cold on a summer day.) I was caught unawares by the extreme cold. My teeth were clattering. Thankfully, I had two sweaters in my hand-baggage. I put them on immediately. I had a scarf. I put that on as well. (You have to see it to believe how hilarious I was looking.) However, I followed the pink flag and went ahead. Here, I must note that Japanese supervisors of other groups were very helpful. My bag was heavy. I carried it on and arrived at the immigration counter. It was a smooth process. I arrived near the baggage belt before most of my friends did. I saw a Japanese gentleman coming towards me, smiling. He was, expectedly, from JICE. He helped me retrieve my luggage. I kept saying “Ohayō gozaimasu” to everyone. Maybe because I was coming to Japan as part of JENESYS, there was no hassle with the customs at all. Soon all Saga Group members formed a queue and followed the pink flag.

We were now joined by another Japanese supervisor, Hirooka-san, an extremely good-hearted lady. We exited the terminal and saw a bus waiting for the Saga Group. We loaded our luggage onto it and went inside. The first thing I did on the bus: I took out my camera, borrowed someone else’s batteries and took a photo from inside the bus. It’s the first photo in the slideshow. It’s not a photo at all. But still, it’s the First Photo I Had Taken in Japan (you understand its importance, don’t you?).

The bus started moving and my excitement was pumped up. When the bus came on the highway I was shivering not because of the cold. In wonder. For, I could see my imagination taking shape in front of me. I saw the tall skyscrapers, numerous flyovers, wide roads which I always thought existed only in films and pictures. I don’t think I can feel that thrill ever in my life. It was the first time (in my memory) I was visiting a foreign country. Everything looked so enchanting. I saw buildings of various famous international companies. Narita Airport was far from the main city. I tried to take photos of the landscape but I could no longer borrow any battery. Then I resorted to my last option: using my mobile camera. The photos were very, very unclear. That made me feel quite bad. I couldn’t even open the window as it was extremely cold. After a while, I forgot everything about my camera and actually started enjoying the scenery. What I saw took my breath away. It was wonder beyond description. I was the king of the world (though I didn’t shout it from the roof of the bus). Soon the bus entered the city area and it was dazzling.

I soon came to know that there was a Great Grandmother in our team. The team-mate was two or three years older than me, but she was the Great Grandmother of everybody in our team. She was particularly bossy towards me but quite good at heart. I even started calling her “Great Grandmother” from that day. I haven’t yet attributed names to other girls in the group. I have to choose them very carefully. I talked about the Great Grandmother as this name already existed. The Great Granny had a weird sense of humour (I remember a funny conversation about time zones), but without her helping hand, it wouldn’t have been possible for me to take photos of Beautiful Japan. Great Granny, if you’re reading this, thank you again (I can’t really thank you enough as you had a major contribution in my collection of 1266 photos I took in Japan) but please never delete precious photos from someone else’s (a friend though s/he may be) camera without permission from her/him. I’ll remind you of that again soon.

However, we soon reached the Imperial Palace of Japan. As I got down from the bus, the cold wind struck me again. I was shivering again. I went on, following the pink flag. It was beautiful. I also made friends with a Japanese gentleman (who was not related with JENESYS) who was walking with me and he seemed to know a great deal about India. It was that moment when my idea about the hospitality and warmth of the people of Japan was reaffirmed. I was a nobody who arrived there merely an hour or two ago and I had already made friends. Too bad that I couldn’t exchange contact details with him.

I arrived at the Imperial Palace and it was splendidly beautiful. I cursed myself for the umpteenth time for my camera. But I couldn’t give up the chance to photograph myself at any cost. In desperation, I borrowed batteries from the Silent Guy and took a photo or two and told him to take a photo of mine. My countenance was comical as ever. I roamed around the Imperial Palace for a while and was called for a group photograph (I am not including it here for some reason). The cold was almost unbearable then. Drops of rain were stabbing my skin. I wish I could linger there for more time but we had to go for lunch.

I got on the bus and was a bit comforted to escape the wrath of the weather temporarily. But soon, I was immune to the cold and it was no longer agonising. On the contrary, it was comforting. Meanwhile, I called home and assured everyone that I arrived in Nippon safe and sound, and was in safe hands and they needn’t worry. I was really enjoying myself. I was thirsty for more. I needed to see more of Japan to satiate my optical and cerebral hunger (a ghastly phrase, I know, I know).

The bus sped up. We passed by several Government offices of Japan, Tokyo Tower (photos in the slideshow) and finally, the Atagoyama Tokyu Inn, the place where we were staying in Tokyo. I was feeling quite sleepy as I was sleep-deprived for more than 24 hours. But we didn’t stop near or hotel. We were off to lunch at noon. For lunch we went to Ginza district, without any question the most dazzling part of Tokyo. I heard about it before. But I had to see it to believe it. All my drowsiness evaporated at once and I was drinking in the beauty of the street. I felt that it’d look much more attractive in the evening than in daytime (and the day was cloudy). I had to come here somehow in the evening, I had to. And we were taken there in the evening (more on that later).

I was getting familiar with the roads of Japan then. I was looking at the traffic signals with much concentration. I saw lots of lots of speeding (what a speed it was!) cars and mo’bikes (the bikes made a fascinating sound) on the streets of Tokyo. But there was no traffic jam at all. I saw every citizen following her/his duty and never putting a toe out of line when the signal was red. They would wait for the signal to turn green to cross a lane even if there’s no car or bike around. I saw provisions for the blind to walk on the footpaths and cross the street safely. Almost everyone was dressed in formal suits and probably hurrying to go to the workplace. The picture (though I didn’t shoot it) matched perfectly with the image of a busy foreign street I had in my mind. The dream was materialising in front of me. I noticed what is something unusual in India. A lot of people were riding bicycles to get to office. At first, I was a bit surprised, but later realised that it was a viable and environment-friendly option. I wish the Indians could do the same. The next moment, I imagined my father and mother going to their workplaces on bicycles and laughed out loud at the idea. Everybody in India would laugh if someone dressed in formal suits rode a bicycle to office.

I was feeling uncomfortable due to the lack of something … something very familiar … something that had to be there on a busy street. It had been bothering me from the moment I arrived in Japan but I couldn’t realise what it was till I was in Ginza. But how could it be so? I didn’t hear a single motor-horn in Japan. If you live in India you have heard the ear-penetrating sounds. But it was conspicuous there by its absence. Nor could I see any wisp of smoke cloaking the city sky.

[Update: I forgot to add that there was no policeman (at all) stationed at every crossing, of course, because, there was no need for a policeman. I was getting more and more surprised at what I saw (or more precisely, what I didn’t).]

We were roaming about Ginza in a group. It was still raining. (I had my umbrella but JICE provided me with another brolly.) We went from shops to shops, seeing new things. A group of us did a crazy thing. We took photos in front of a car showroom. I learned that the car was left open at night since no one stole in Japan. After a bit of roaming, we went to an Indian restaurant to have our lunch. Before coming to Japan I feared about the kind of cuisine we might be offered. But JENESYS had taken care of that of that too! Throughout the trip we had meals only in Indian restaurants for our comfort. (I did get the chance to taste Japanese food a number of times. But that’s beside the point here.) I had a great lunch there.

After that, we went roaming in Ginza again. Yamaguchi-san and Hirroka-san were introducing many things to us. After a bit of strolling around, it was time to go back to our hotel. And we were there in no time. We couldn’t go to our rooms just then. There was another programme orientation for an hour starting from 2 p.m. It was interesting. At the end of it, we got t-shirts and kitbags (for keeping the things we’d buy) from them.

Our official check-in time was scheduled at 3:30 p.m. At that point all I wanted to do was to go and have a deep sleep. But I knew that I couldn’t sleep then for we were to go for dinner at 6 o'clock in the evening. (I was very surprised to hear that people had dinner in Japan before 8 p.m. as it was too early for us.) The Wise Brother took care of the keys of our room (number 1026). We collected our baggage (it was found at the lobby) and went straight to the room. Meanwhile, I noticed that the flooring number in Japan was similar to what we used in India. That is, ground floor = first floor.

At the sight of a comfortable bed waiting for me I felt even sleepier. But I didn’t give in … I had to keep myself awake … anyhow! I hadn’t taken a bath since the morning of the 12th in India. The first thing I wanted to do was to take a long, hot shower. I unpacked my bags and went to the bathroom and took a very hot shower. I thought it’d keep drowsiness at bay and offer some relief from the cold. It managed to do the latter but please don’t ask me anything about the former. Suffice it to say, the hot shower made it worse. I felt drowsier. To avoid the attraction of my bed, I went out of the room and went to the lobby of the inn. Dinner was more than an hour away. I found some of my friends (from my group and otherwise) were already in the lobby. I chatted up with some of them. Many, I saw, didn’t rent a phone and were calling home from booths. I felt cheerful a bit. I had a phone!

I finally started using my rechargeable batteries to take photos. I went outside, took some photos and chatted again. At present, I don’t remember what I really did from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. Mayn’t have done anything special at all. The time came when we were called to get on the bus. We were now joined by another Japanese supervisor (she was with another group), Rie-san, a wonderful lady. I wished just a couple of hours ago to see Ginza in all its splendour and there I was again.

When I got down from the bus sleepiness struck me with a greater blow. I couldn’t realise if I was awake or not. The world started whirling around me. I could see everything … I could hear everything … I could sense everything … I could understand everything that was happening around me. I was in a very real dream or was I? I didn’t speak a single word I didn’t need to. I talked sense. But something was wrong. Was that what happen to people who were deprived of sleep for about two days? (Let me tell you here that I’m not a sleepaholic anyway. I don’t sleep more than 6 hours a day.) It felt as though I were trippy. At that point, I couldn’t enjoy anything properly … well, almost.

However, the restaurant we went to have dinner was not the one where we had our lunch. It was of course an Indian one. We were served a great amount of great food there. I talked with Rie-san a lot. She told me that she had gone to India before. She wanted to know a great deal about my city and the culture and heritage of my city. I told her all I could. She listened to me with much interest.

After interacting with so many Japanese (especially the JICE members), I was aware of another great quality of Japanese. They preserve their culture well but they are equally welcoming to people who had different cultural values. You don’t see that very often. Our languages were different. But there was no difficulty at all in communicating our ideas.

After dinner we walked briefly on the footpaths of Ginza. I took a couple of photos. We were back to the hotel again. Now I was free to sleep. I went to my room to do so. But I was informed that some of my friends were going to roam in the streets of Tokyo. I tried to do away with my sleepiness at once. I couldn’t remain indoors sleeping while I was in Japan. After all, I went there to see it! Almost everybody went out before I did and I didn’t know where the group went. So I didn’t try and join them. They, I believed, were going far from the hotel. I had decided what I’d do. I was a complete stranger in Tokyo and it was my first day there. I couldn’t afford to get lost in the labyrinthine roads of Tokyo on my arrival. We were told to take beds before a certain time and I had to obey that. I decided what I’d do. I’d just wander around aimlessly. And who’s there to say that wandering doesn’t give pleasure. I noted the exact position of the inn and I was out on the streets of Tokyo without knowing where to go. I met my roommate, the Silent Guy on the footpath. We decided to walk together. We walked along the footpath, took a turn and saw Tokyo Tower (in reality, it’s a television tower) not very far away. We photographed ourselves against the tower. After a while, he went on his own and I was on my own again.

It was probably good that I didn’t go with the group. Being alone in the streets of the largest city of the world was a different, very personal experience. The taste of a different kind of freedom in a faraway country was entirely unique for me and could possibly be enjoyed only if there was nobody to accompany. I went to almost every street nearby, conscious not to lose the way to our inn. I enjoyed myself beyond imagination. I couldn’t dream of doing that in India. I returned to get a view of Tokyo Tower at frequent intervals. At times, I wished to get near it to get a better view, but finally told myself that I might get lost if I became more adventurous than I already was. But it felt very comfortable and safe to wander in Tokyo.

And that really paid off. Some of the students were really lost the following day (more about it in the following post). While roaming aimlessly, I suddenly saw a group of people crossing the street when the signal was red. They were in fits of giggle. My impression about the law-abidingness of the people of Japan was about to shatter away when I found that they weren’t Japanese, but some fellow Indian students (not from my group). I smiled sadly.

On my way, I met Mamta Ma’am, our Indian supervisor. She was also taking a stroll and I accompanied her for a while. I looked at my watch and realised that it was about time to return to hotel.

I went to my room which was empty then. I shouldn’t really say it but I had observed one more thing about the bathrooms in Japan. Every toilet tool was manufactured by a company called Toto. The Football Fanatic Guy went on to make a great joke about it.

I scribbled down my first thoughts about Japan and its people. I see that I’d noted their punctuality, honesty and sensitivity. I wanted to see more of the country. I finally went to sleep (you must know the depth of the sleep), anticipating a bright and sunny day.

Leaves from My Japan Diary: On Board

2009-05-12T23:59:00.004+05:30

I entered the aircraft. In a few minutes’ time, I was going to fly to the Land of the Rising Sun by Japan Airlines flight number JL472 (I also saw JO472 on my baggage). I’ve already said that I didn’t have any feeling (any feeling at all) when I was entering the plane. My mind was completely blank, overpowered by an unknown something. But thankfully I didn’t lose my sense. I was able enough to walk and talk and laugh and of course find my seats. I found it. I took out my passport and locked it safely inside my carry-on bag. After everything was over, I sat down. I was one sit away from the window. I’d have preferred sitting beside the window. But I didn’t care to choose a seat for myself. (I was misinformed by a probably misinformed friend.) To my relief, however, my roommate, the Wise Brother, was there. At least, I could chat up with someone during this 8½ -hour-long journey.

We sat there. I turned on the TV in front of me. There was no way I could be on such a long flight without chatting or “in-flight entertainment”. There were the usual precautions and warnings before the flight and I couldn’t watch the TV before takeoff. Meanwhile, our group supervisor collected the boarding-passes from us. After twenty minutes or so, the plane started rolling. The TV was available again and I switched to the takeoff channel. I watched the bird’s eye view of takeoff every time I took a flight. It was never boring to me. It didn’t fail to amuse me this time either. The plane took off and at that precise moment I became surer than ever that I was going to Nippon. I remembered all the obstacles on my way to this flight. I smiled and said to myself, “Finally!”

After about an hour of takeoff (or maybe before), I heard clicks and saw flashlights all around me. Many were taking photos. I cursed myself once again for bringing such useless batteries. It seemed that my excellent camera was no use in this trip. Many students were roaming about the cabin, going to another friend’s seat. Even the Wise Brother was going elsewhere at regular intervals. Grawp, Superstar (a new nickname for another great friend of mine in my group), Diamond, the Soft-spoken Director and the Calm Guy (all from the Saga Group) were sitting near me. Now I knew everybody and chatted up with them. I didn’t wander around as I was too tired and needed rest. I could hear cuss words uttered loudly in the plane. I was initially flummoxed to hear them on board. And when I looked I saw some Indian students from other group talking among themselves. It was slightly relaxing to see that none of my group members took part in it. I am immensely grateful to whoever decided to include me in the Saga Group (which was something like Gryffindor for me). Mind you, I am not saying that the members of other group were bad in any way. In fact, I had many great friends in the other groups as well. Most of them were very polite and well-mannered. It was just five or maybe six of the Indian students who were trying to glorify our nation (remember, we were going to represent our country?) in a plane full of passengers (not to mention the Japanese supervisors who were taking great pains to bring us to their country and consolidate the beautiful relation between Japan and India) by being foulmouthed. It was indeed disappointing to see such behaviour from a tiny number of Indian students.

However, the food served in the flight was great. Thanks to JENESYS, I was served Indian food in dinner. It was filling and I wanted to sleep at once as we were supposed to land in Narita Airport at 6:30 a.m. local time (we took off from India at about 7:45 p.m. IST). But sleep was nothing more than a distant dream. I couldn’t close my eyes. I tried to play games instead. After a while, even the game got boring. Then I tried to watch movies. Many were sleeping then.

I saw the list of movies. At first, I played The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. I enjoyed it for 10 minutes or so. Then I turned it off. I hadn’t yet read Tolkien’s novel. I wanted to read the novel first. Watching the film before reading the novel always curbs the imagination of a reader. Then I tried to watch another Hollywood flick called Jumper. I was somewhat interested to see the movie as it starred Samuel L. Jackson. It was about teleportation or something. Believe me, it was the worst decision I made on board. It was such a ridiculously (forgive that) awful movie that it still pains to remember the experience.

Then without having anything to do, I switched to the channel which showed the flight-map. (I was watching it at regular intervals.) It was far more entertaining to know which country or city I was flying over (we flew over my state) or what the remaining time was or what the local times were in Japan and India.

I penned the following:

Date – ? ˜ Distance to Tokyo 3396 km
Date & Time in India – 12/5 ˜ 1124
Date & Time in Japan – 13/5 ˜ 0254

This means: it was less than four hours to Tokyo. (Sometime during the flight I changed the time of my wristwatch and set it 3½ hours ahead to keep up with the Japanese time.) A drunken co-passenger on board proved an annoyance to many. I still couldn’t sleep though I tried my best. It was no use at all. When the Wise Brother left his seat for a while, I tried to look outside. The moon looked beautiful. When I was trying to have a quiet sleep, I became merely drowsy. I soon realised that it’d be a sleep-deprived flight for me and I couldn’t see myself sleeping in Japan anytime soon as we were reaching there early in the morning.

Sooner than I imagined, a ray of sunlight entered the cabin. I realised (and the TV screen in front of me confirmed this) that in next to no time we’ll be in Japan. Everyone started waking up. I was ready.

I could see nothing from the windows. The sky was clouded. Droplets of water formed outside the window. The aircraft was descending. At long last, I could see a glimpse of Japan. As time went on, I could see many other planes at Narita airport.

Then, finally, I could hear the wheels of the plane hitting the ground with a thud.

Leaves from My Japan Diary: In India 2

2009-05-12T18:59:00.010+05:30

I awoke on the 12th at exactly 4:30 in the morning. As soon as the wake-up call was heard, I sat upright. The dread of the past two days kept coming back to me. I said earlier that I discovered myself during this trip. On the very first day of the journey I noticed something interesting about me. While I was home, sleeping in my comfortable bed, even the sound of a canon couldn’t wake me up. It took a great of effort on everyone’s part to wake me up. But as soon as I was away from the homely comfort I was conscious and careful. It happened automatically. In the following days, every wake-up call or alarm I set awoke me without failure. (There was only one event when I woke up late, but that was during the homestay. Will discuss it later.) I also got two calls from Mother and Sister early in the morning.

I took a comforting bath and got ready in my school uniform as I was told. We had to check out from the hotel within 6:30-7:00 a.m. I attached the name tags (once again, pink and the tags were given by Yamaguchi-san the day before) to all my bags. I arrived at the hotel lounge of ABC hotel at 6:20, ten minutes before the reporting time. Presently everyone else started coming to the lounge, dressed in their school uniforms. My mother arrived there shortly and she gave me some important things. She told me that my mobile was still uncertain but hope was not lost. Rohit Uncle was going to try his best. I had no hopes then. I had a photo-session with my supervisors and team-mates. When I look at the photos now, I feel ashamed as I looked so nervous, so idiotic then. I was so nervous about everything then that I didn’t even realise that I was nervous. As instructed, we kept the hand-carry luggage with ourselves and brought the check-in luggage separately to the bus.

Meanwhile, I saw the gentleman who tried to frighten me the day before once again trying his best to scare others.

I had a quiet breakfast from 7:15 to 7:45. I remember drinking orange juice and bread for breakfast. Mother went away for this mobile stuff. I had my pen, writing pad and folder (the one I got the day before) ready and went to DEF Hotel (where the orientation session was to begin from 8:30) beside ABC Hotel. It began at the correct time, following the Japanese tradition of punctuality. At the orientation session members of JICE gave us an outline of the culture and education of the country we were about to visit. They also let us know some important things about visiting Japan. I had already memorised some Japanese phrases like “Ohayō gozaimasu” (“Good morning”), “Arigatō gozaimasu” (“Thank you very much”), “Dō itashimashite” (“You are welcome”) and Konnichiwa (“Hello/ Good afternoon”). It was a great session. Meanwhile, we were given Embarkation/ Disembarkation cards and I duly filled them out.

There was an hour’s break at 11:30. All the 18 team-mates and the Indian supervisors sat together. We discussed about our cultural programmes in Japan. I told them the song I was going to sing: Kothaao Aamaar Haariye Jaawaar. (At first, I though I’d sing Ei Aakashe Aamaar Mukti but decided do sing the other one.)

During this break Mr Shukla (who was our travel coordinator in India) came to me and asked if I was Upamanyu Moitra. He told me that someone came to meet me outside the conference hall. I was pretty sure that it was Mother but it wasn’t. It was someone else I didn’t know. He, um, came from a company which gave international mobiles on rental. He was there with a fat envelope clutched in his hands. He showed me the handset and demonstrated how to turn it on and make a call to India and charge it. I was getting a mobile, at last! It was immensely relieving. I started becoming happy once again.

There was another session coming up. Some government officials came there to send us off. The send-off party was great. I had a brilliant lunch and started making new friends. After the send-off party I got a new envelope from JICE. It had some fantastic documents about Japan. There was a paper-weight as well. My bag was on the verge of being overweight. Then I started worrying once again. Another thing made me worry even more. I found that my camera was not working with the batteries I had bought before. I had a dozen of such batteries. And the camera was showing “Change the Batteries” the moment I turned it on. It was the biggest put-off at the beginning of the journey. It was the best reason to make me unhappy. The fact that I could not take pictures of Japan during the trip was more unsettling than that I didn’t have a phone. At that point, I thought I couldn’t have a perfect journey anyway. (Can you believe that I really borrowed some of my friends’ batteries to take photos? But that was before I used my only pair of rechargeables and thankfully there was a friend who had a charger. My trip would’ve been a monumental disaster had I not taken the rechargeable ones.)

My mother arrived at the end of the send-off party. I was in a bad mood because of the batteries. She had little time to go and buy another set of batteries as we were soon going to the airport. You’ll laugh at what I did next. As soon as I saw her I gave her the paperweight from the envelope (I kept the other things with me) and asked her to take it away with her to Kolkata. Even she grinned. I freshened up a bit. We were going to take a bus (which had Saga group) to the airport. I called home for the last time before leaving India.

The students of the Saga Group formed a queue at the lounge of DEF Hotel. I stood there and soon realised what was going to happen. I had lived elsewhere for competitions without my family around to support me several times in the past for some competitions. But I was leaving my country for the first time in my life (I discount a trip to a neighbouring country in my childhood as I was only 1 year old) and that too, without my family. I was going with complete strangers. (Of course, the people we ere going with took extreme care of us.) What would happen, I thought.

I went inside the bus with excitement (of going abroad without anyone I knew), apprehension (for the very same reason) and an unknown feeling which was slowly enveloping me. I bade adieu to my mother from the bus (she, I believe, was having almost the same feeling) and that was the last time I saw her before my first foreign trip. She said she’d try and see me off at the airport (more on that later).

But all unpleasant feelings vanished as soon as I was on the bus. It was only excitement and excitement. We were given our passports and e-tickets. I was sitting on the bus with anticipation building in my heart.

Soon the bus entered the International Terminal of Indira Gandhi International Airport. I held my red carry-on bad tightly. The bus slowed down and finally stopped to offer me a view of the terminal. I got down from the bus and got myself a trolley. I loaded my luggage onto it. I could sense my excitement reaching a fever pitch. We entered. My baggage was X-rayed. (All this detailing may seem meaningless to you. But it means a lot to me. I am reliving every moment for the first time by writing. It’s more of a personal pleasure.) I approached the counter of Japan Airlines (that was the airline we were travelling). The lady at the counter confirmed my meal preference. To my happiness I saw that my luggage was underweight by four kilos. I was told by a probably misinformed friend (or probably not) that we couldn’t choose our seats in the aircraft. So I didn’t care to check the seat plan and was given a seat. (All about it in the in-flight experience.)

I went ahead and did the security check and submitted my passport and embarkation card at the counter. The gentleman sitting at the counter was very polite to me. After everything was over, it was all about waiting for two hours and a half. I kept my bag on a seat and went roaming about the airport. I was incredibly thirsty then. I could find no water filter or anything around. (The airport was undergoing a facelift then.) After a very long search, I found water which was very, very cold. It was a very long and boring wait. I took out my camera once again and tried in vain to make it work. The batteries! It added to my frustration. I was also disappointed that I couldn’t bid a proper goodbye to my mother as I was in a hurry to get on the bus. Suddenly a lady (who, I suppose, was a member of the ground staff) came searching for me and gave me a number to dial. I was amazed and dialled the number from a nearby phone booth. I found my mother on the other end. Her mobile was out of charge. She arrived in the airport too late because of bad traffic and couldn’t meet me as I was within the security belt. But the security personnel at IGI Airport understood her problem and they tried their best to let her talk to me over the phone. The telephonic goodbye was short, simple and a proper one.

Only after I hung up (and talked to her for the last time) did I feel once again that I was going to leave my country. I can’t describe what I felt then. It was a feeling altogether new to me. No, I wasn’t feeling homesick. But it was something like exasperation which might have arisen out of the anxiety and difficulty I faced during the past 48 hours. I guess I may have felt what everyone feels about leaving the comfort zone of one’s own country. (It’s another thing that the country I was going to was an excellent place to be in.)

As 7:30 p.m. slowly approached every kind of unpleasant feelings (different from the ones described above) invaded my mind for no reason at all. The boarding call was finally announced. At that point, my mind was completely blank. We formed a queue once again. One by one, everyone started entering the aircraft. I had my passport and boarding pass ready.

At long last, I entered the plane.

Leaves from My Japan Diary: In India 1

2009-05-11T23:50:00.004+05:30

The sound of heavy raindrops hitting the window-panes awoke me on the 11th. For a fleeting moment, I came close to feeling cheerful. But as soon as the memory of the previous day started flooding my mind, the happy feeling was driven off. It was Sunday. No mobile shops were open nearby. I had to report to a hotel (let’s call it ABC Hotel, it’s a very, very famous one) at 2 p.m. So Mother and I decided against searching for mobile shops in the morning. Mother said she’d search for international connections in the evening after my reporting.

I remember seeing a particularly grotesque episode of a horror serial on TV before we departed from the hotel. It was pure schlock (or grindhouse kind of serial) being shown on TV in the name of “family entertainment”.

The day went on smoothly. At about 1 p.m. we departed from the hotel with my suitcase and my new handbag. I wasn’t going to be interrogated by the police. I wasn’t going to take an examination. I wasn’t going to meet my enemies. I wasn’t going to perform on stage. Nor was I going to perform a deadly stunt. But I could sense the knot in my stomach for some reason unknown to me. What’s going to happen, I thought.

We entered ABC Hotel with two monsters of a baggage. We saw the board of JENESYS or Japan – East Asia Network of Exchange for Students and Youths. (Oh my, my! I almost forgot to name the excellent programme for which I was going to Japan. It was managed by JICE or Japan International Cooperation Center, the great organisation.) I saw some Indians and Japanese sitting on three tables in the lounge. I could feel the knot in my stomach even more clearly. I was nervous as anything. I went to a table and the Japanese lady sitting on the table told me locate my name on a list nearby. I went there. To my immense relief, I could see “Upamanyu Moitra” on the list under a pink banner and the words “Saga Group” were at the top of the list. Then I went to table again and the Japanese lady introduced herself as Yamaguchi(whom I called Yamaguchi-san), a JICE coordinator who would be head of the Saga Group. I was selected to go to Saga Prefecture. I was so nervous that I was almost trembling. She assured me that there was no reason to be nervous by smiling at me gently. She is a great person.

Then Yamaguchi-san asked me my nickname and wanted to know about my food preference. She gave me a folder which contained my identity card (it had a pink ribbon, signifying our group. You’ll see photos me in future posts with that identity card.) It also contained an introduction of Japan and details of our tour (I was relieved to see that the airline allowed check-in luggage up to 20 kg and carry-on luggage up to 10 kg) and the day’s schedule. There was also a questionnaire where I had to write down my knowledge of Japan. This was slightly comforting as I was somewhat familiar with the culture of Japan. I filled the form duly and submitted it right there.

Now I must talk about a gentleman who nearly frightened me to death. I don’t know who he was or what his part in this programme was. He told me that my new handbag was too large to be allowed in the aircraft. I almost lost my senses when my mother firmly replied that we arrived in Delhi with a larger bag. The nasty, malicious smile vanished instantly from his face and he went off to another direction.

I guess this confused, nervous expression on my face somewhat affected my image among my prospective friends. It’s another thing that I was able to change this image while in Japan.

Now I was informed of something which blew my mind. An international mobile company was right there at the hotel lounge and – surprise, surprise – it was providing mobile connections with a handset on rental. I was at the top of the world again, only to be taken down once more. Mother and I approached the gentleman representing the company. Everything was ready. There was just one hitch. They would not accept cash for deposit. Nor would they accept a debit card. They could only be paid by credit card. Again, the ball was out of my court. Mother’s credit card had expired just a month ago. But she had ten times the required amount (in cash) in her purse. So what could we possibly do? The gentleman suggested that we could use some relative’s credit card. But we had no relative in New Delhi. On hearing that, he told us that if we had someone in Kolkata we could use his/her card. I gave up the thought of getting a mobile phone once again. Father was out of town. Not knowing what to do, we phoned Rohit Uncle. He readily agreed to send the details of his card to be used for this but that was not possible on that since … well, it was a Sunday. Only when he was in his office, could he send the details. I could get a mobile only on the day I was boarding the flight to Japan.

I was totally exasperated, annoyed and … you know what I could be going through at the moment. Then I came to the counter once again and met my roommates. I’d like to say something important here. I’ll not be using the names of my team-mates as I don’t know if they’ll approve their names appearing here. I’ve nothing but good things to say about them. So don’t think that I’ll not be using their names so that I can hurl insults at them. I will use some nicknames which will be funny but they are not meant to make fun of them.

However I was introduced to my roommates who will be referred to as the Wise Brother (he is very intelligent and has a genuinely brotherly concern, thus this name) and the Silent Boy (he is very shy of speaking to anyone, he’d never speak a work unless he’s spoken to, but he is a good-natured guy and I was lucky to have such roommates). We went to our room (no. 270) and for the first time in the day I heaved a sigh. We chatted up and knew where everyone was from. I looked at the list of the 18 team-mates in the Saga Group and I was happy to know that I was the only Bengali from Kolkata. We’d be having dinner at 7 p.m. Meanwhile I weighed my bag once again and it seemed to be overweight as there was a change in its contents.

Mother arrived in the room with photocopies of some important documents. The photocopies done at a nearby place cost her twenty times – yes, you read that correctly – twenty times as much as the normal rate. I told her that my luggage was possibly overweight. We considered decreasing the contents of the baggage, but there was a friend in need. The Wise Guy’s baggage was way below the limit of weight and he agreed to carry some of my things at once at my mother’s proposal. To this day, I remain grateful to him for such a lovely gesture.

Mother told me that the mobile was not arranged yet. The following day would be defining. 7 p.m. came faster than I imagined. The three of us went to the dining room. I wished Mother Goodnight and she went to her hotel. She would come early in the morning on the following day. In that state of confusedness and nervousness I entered the dining room and met the rest 15 of the team. I had my dinner and met everyone (the team of 18 was comprised of 9 girls and 9 boys). (I’ve just thought a name for another one in our group: Grawp. I couldn’t resist that, sorry; but I won’t explain the reason behind the name. I haven’t really decided the other names. I’ll disclose them in future posts. OK, here’s another name: Football Fanatic Guy.) Grawp and the Football Fanatic Guy were really nice to me when I approached them. The Football Fanatic Guy turned out to be as much a Potter fan as me and had an unusual sense of humour. I also met the other students of my group. I made friends with people who were going to other Prefectures. Some of them were really very, very nice. And some … well, let’s not get into that. Let’s say that this “some” epitomised exactly what’s wrong with the youth of India today. If this kind of youth is really the “deciding factor” in the General Elections, I am afraid of the fate of my country. Thankfully, nobody, yes nobody in our group was like them.

After dinner, there was an introductory meeting with our group leaders. We were officially introduced to each other. Our group leaders, Mamata Ma’am, Rajendra Sir (two of the Indian representatives) and Yamaguchi-san are some of the finest people I’ve ever met. I can never express my gratitude to them enough. Our meeting began with a fun game. We had to describe ourselves with a word which started with the first letter of our first name. I could find no words to describe myself. All kind of weird words like “universal”, “ubiquitous”, “über-cool” started invading my mind. When my turn came, I said, ‘Unusual.’

Then we were told what we had to do in Japan. I knew it somewhat. I had to represent my culture and country. I had also prepared some speeches to deliver. But I was told that we had sing songs. It was completely unexpected. I had not prepared any such song. My voice was broken and dreadful then. It was decided that we’d sing some songs in chorus. We’d also sing some songs individually. There had to be some regional songs to represent the spirit of India: unity in diversity. I instantly decided that I’d sing a Tagore song. We were also told to prepare some speeches (I had already prepared one but sadly, I could not deliver my speech throughout the trip. My other friends were chosen. But I was one of the three who sang solo songs. So I don’t regret not delivering speeches.) We were also told a few important things. There would be a briefing session on the organisers’ part the following day. We went to our rooms. We were supposed to go to bed at 10:30 p.m.

I set a wake-up call for me at 4:30 a.m. though we were told to wake up at 5:30. The knot in my stomach had loosened a bit. I was in my bed with only one thought (which was similar to what I felt the night before): what will I feel after 24 hours? And I thought no more …

Leaves from My Japan Diary: The Beginning

2009-05-10T23:39:00.001+05:30

As I have said earlier, I didn’t know how the 10th of May arrived. It caught me unawares. Only on the sunny morning of the 10th did I realise that the day had finally come when I’d be leaving my home to visit a country – all alone. But the realisation had vanished at once. For there were more things to pack and the mobile connection was far, far away. Everyone was trying his/her best to get me a mobile. The final packing was done in the morning. Sister created several lists for me to find my things in the baggage. My parents helped with the packing.

I was going to Delhi with Mother as Father had some important business to attend to. In the afternoon we were off to Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Airport to board a flight to New Delhi. I was still unsure of the weight of my baggage. Till then, there was no chance to talk to my family from Japan. I was in an absolute confused state. I almost wished that I were not going. The check-in counter confirmed my assumption that my check-in baggage was underweight but there was another problem: the rucksack I took was suddenly torn at the airport. You can guess my feelings then, can’t you?

Father, Sister and some of our family friends saw me off. I was not going to see them till the 23rd. I bade them adieu and boarded the aircraft with Mother. I was frustrated and exasperated. To add to my irritation, we got seats in the front row of the aircraft. It was definitely annoying. Mother was also in the same state of mind.

We landed in New Delhi late in the afternoon. We took a taxi to the place where we were staying. So far it was bad but nothing unmanageable. Things turned worse after we came to the place. We discovered that the handle of my suitcase was broken, thanks to the deft handling of the luggage by the airline crew and my rucksack was completely torn. We had to do three things within eighteen hours: getting my suitcase repaired, buying a new bag and getting an international mobile connection.

I will never forget the horrible night when Mother and I went out on the streets of New Delhi on Saturday night without having a clue about where we are going to and we were completely alone and helpless. The street where we were roaming about was not particularly safe at night. We took a taxi and went from shop to shop in search of a mobile connection. But nobody was able to give me what we wanted. We visited a retail shop of a major connection provider, but we were told that we had to come on Monday to “talk about it”. There was no way we could harass ourselves in search of a connection and we almost gave up the idea to have an international number.

We then searched for a very important thing: a bag I could use as a cabin baggage. We went to many famous shops but no bag could fulfil my requirement. Looking back, I think the uncertainty of getting a bag or a mobile actually channelled the difficulty I had to go through to be selected to go to Japan.

At long last we got a bag, which albeit very expensive, was fit to meet my requirement. At one point, the taxi we were travelling by left us and went somewhere else. It was 10:30 at night. Most of the shops were closed. There was not a single vehicle we could see nearby. The way to the hotel was very long and possibly dangerous. And we were alone …

The drunken taxi driver came back shortly and told us that he went off to chat with some of his friends. We came back. I repaired the suitcase with Mother’s help. At least, those things were alright.

I took a very long and cold bath. The temperature was surely above 40°. After our dinner, Mother and I sat on our beds and stared at each other. All I wanted was to embrace her and cry. At that point, I didn’t want to go to Japan at all and preferred my sweet home to everything else on earth. Mother soothed me with her inspiring words and told me to completely forget everything else. I felt a bit better.

A deep sleep enveloped my eyes and senses as soon as I lay on the bed. I remember thinking only one thing: I’ll be in the aircraft in 48 hours.

Leaves from My Japan Diary: Prologue

2009-05-09T23:40:00.003+05:30

Before I begin my description of the tour, I must write the quite long story behind my journey. Believe me, it was full of what we may call suspense and drama.

I still remember the rainy September day (22nd September, Saturday) in 2007 when I was called to the office of our Vice-Principal. I was in IX then. Some other students were also there. Our Vice-Principal told us to sit down and began talking. He said that as a part of an international exchange programme between India and Japan, students from Japan were coming to India and vice-versa. Then he told us that if we wanted to be a part of this programme we should submit our names to him within two or three days. He said that we must treat the foreign students well and give them a taste of our Indian culture.

But there was one thing he almost didn’t tell us before we left the office. I thought we were supposed to welcome our foreign guests as I had been a part of many such exchange programmes. Naturally, I thought our part was to play the host. Suddenly he said, ‘Do you have a passport?’

And I stood there, awestruck. I wasn’t supposed to be the host. It was the other way round. I was told that the school had chosen me (and also a couple of other students) because of some of my extra-curricular activities. The tentative date of departure from India was December 22, 2007. I had to submit my documents to the school within three days for my nomination. The nomination would then be sent to the concerned government office for further selection.

I remember coming back home with a weird expression on my face. It can’t happen, I thought. It’s too good to be true. But can’t it be true?

The stories of Japan I heard always fascinated me. After coming home I opened my computer and visited many sites where I could get more information about Japan. I thought I was acting foolishly, for it was not yet confirmed that I’d go to Japan. I told my close ones about this but requested them not to tell anyone about it. They were ecstatic. Mind you, they were happier to hear that I was chosen to go abroad than that I was actually going to Japan. I feared that I’d become a laughingstock if I made such an announcement and later told them that it was not happening. I was definitely hopeful but not too happy.

And then, it started raining. I’ve already said that it was a rainy day. The rain continued … and continued … What a fierce rain it was! Many roads in Kolkata were completely waterlogged. And I caught fever. I couldn’t imagine going to school for the next few days. The school remained closed, perhaps. But I was dreading that I would lose this opportunity for bad weather (which has been a pain in the neck for me more often than not). On Tuesday, the rain stopped. But I was unable to go to school and submit my application.

Then, finally, Mother took a leave from her office and went to school with my application. She arrived in my school when I was about to lose this opportunity. The Vice-Principal was going to send the submitted names just the moment she arrived. She was at the right place at the right time. He added one more name to the list and sent it … And the lamp of hope brightened itself once more. But I was unsure of my journey.

The next few weeks were a whirlwind of sorts. I had to apply for a new passport. I had to fill out forms and go to another school to submit it. The Puja vacation had started. I can’t imagine what I’d do had the members of my family (Father, Mother, Sister, Granny, Aunt, Uncle and Rohit Uncle, who is as good as family) not stood by me. My teachers also stood by me like a pillar.

The Principal of the school I went to submit the form told me about a possible selection process. I was also told that the date was uncertain. Meanwhile, my passport came. I engaged myself in other activities. I conveniently forgot that the tentative date was December 22 until the very date arrived. On this day, I said to myself, ‘Your chance is gone, baby. You were never meant to be selected. There are better people. Get over it.’

I had already given up. There was no way I could go. During this, I was informed that I had won the National Bal Shree Honour, which would be awarded by the President of India. This news was so overwhelming that I forgot any disappointment I ever had about my Japan journey. I was passing every level of Junior Science Olympiad. I won an interschool quiz contest. I was at the top of the world.

Then came a call again. I was once again summoned to my Vice-Principal’s office. The chance of going to Japan hadn’t really vanished. I had to submit another set of forms. I didn’t feel very hopeful this time. I went to the aforementioned school once again and filled out another set of forms which wanted to know about my achievements and all. Two days after the Joel and Ethan Coen received four Oscars in total for No Country for Old Men, I did this. Then in March, I had to submit some forms again (the Annual Exams were going on then).

Then I received a piece of news which made me incredibly happy. I was selected for the final level of Junior Science Olympiad. The camp was to be held in May for a couple of weeks in Mumbai. It was my first shot at the Olympiads and I got it! I immediately sent back the confirmation letter. I started studying. Even the tickets to and fro Mumbai were booked. There was possibly nothing to stop me from going to attend the camp … or was there?

On the 18th of April in 2008, I got a call from Mother (as discussed here). She told me that she had just got a call from a travel agent. I had to submit my passports and visa forms positively by the following day. I was supposed to report in New Delhi on 11 May.

And then came the biggest dilemma of my life so far. The schedule of the Olympiad overlapped with that of the Japan journey. I had to choose one. Mind you, each was as important as the other in my opinion. But I had to make a choice. Either I had to go to Mumbai where, I was told by the organisers, “very lucky few” get the chance to showcase their talents or I had to go to Japan where I was sent (to represent my country) after being chosen (again, on basis of my previous achievements) by the Government of India. In no way was it an easy choice. Sacrificing any of them meant letting go of a golden opportunity. I thought and thought. I discussed it with my parents. I cursed my fate. But there was little time to think it through. I had to make a quick decision. Of course, you know what choice I made. It was not a bad choice, I told myself but the sacrifice was heartbreaking. Believe me, the sacrifice still gives me pain.

This decision was not driven by the urge to go abroad on government money. I was motivated by the strong connection I felt from my childhood. I guess this decision was stimulated by the Japan travelogue of Rabindranath Tagore, Japan Jatri and by the cinema of Akira Kurosawa. I had always felt a strong affinity towards Japanese culture. What was more, it was a student exchange programme where we could exchange our cultural values and I’d be staying with a family for a whole day to get a taste of their culture. I felt very few students of my age would get this opportunity. I’d probably visit Japan many times in my life, but would I be able to have such an experience? If I were selected from the Olympiad, I’d still go abroad on the government’s money. So wanting to visit foreign country wasn’t what drove my decision. Moreover, I’d still be able to sit for Olympiads in subsequent years. But this chance would never come in my life.

So I made the decision.

The next few days were a complete pandemonium. We had to cancel the tickets to Mumbai and send a notification letter to the organisers. We had to go to New Delhi on the 10th and booked tickets. We purchased many things which would be necessary for my trip. I thought that I’d be served Japanese cuisine in Japan, so bought some snacks in case I was not comfortable with the food offered. I had no idea about the weight limits set by the airline. So I had to pack my bags very carefully. And I had to get an international mobile number. Whenever Father, Mother, Sister or I called any mobile company, the response was more or less the same: Japan is a 3G country. You’ll need a so and so mobile set. You’ll need to deposit so and so amount. If you hadn’t been a subscriber to our company since so and so, this would have been easy. You have to deposit so and so amount. You’ll get the connection after so and so days after so and so verification.

I was really put off at that. Meanwhile, I studied all I could about Japan in those days. We had little time and little could be arranged in time. We didn’t know where we could exchange INR for Yen. One of my parents’ friends got it done and there was ample money for me to shop in Japan to my hearts content.

I thought my rechargeable battery charger wouldn’t work in Japan. So I got a dozen of normal batteries (which would give me nightmares later). But I also got a pair of rechargeables (which would prove a boon for me later).

In such pandemonium I completely forgot to look forward to my trip and anticipate a great experience. I guess that was why May 10 arrived out of nowhere …

Leaves from My Japan Diary: An Introduction

2009-05-08T23:12:00.001+05:30

If you’ve looked at my earlier posts, you’ll know how much I like to relive my memories – little memories which have become an inseparable part of me. I really wish I could live my thoughts in the Pensieve (like many characters do in the You-Know-What series). I don’t have access to such an object, but there’s way I can plunge into the sea of my memories and make myself happy – writing.

I’ve already said that, pleasant or unpleasant, little memories are very precious to me. But there are some memories which, in no way, are little. Try as I might – but I’ll never dream of trying such a dreadful thing – I can never erase those memories. There were some experiences which are etched on my mind for ever. Such a beautiful experience was the trip to Japan last year, as a part of a cultural-educational exchange programme. I am not exaggerating even a bit when I say that I spent some of the finest moments of my life in Japan. The experience in Japan was full of some little moments I loved. But the experience was far greater than the sum of such individual moments.

What I got and felt in Japan is nearly beyond words. And indeed there were moments which I can’t describe. I made new friends during this trip: Japanese friends, American friends, Indian friends, young friends, friends of same age, some friends who are older than me and some who are much older than me. Never did I imagine that my experience would be so overwhelming. I saw a country. I saw a new culture. I saw nature. I saw people. I saw … well, too many things. And quite unexpectedly, I saw myself.

For the next thirteen days or so, I will write my travelogue (it will be a part of the On This Day series), but it may not feel like a travelogue at all. It will be leaves from my diary at best. I warned you in my very first post that there would be occasions when I would be speaking to myself. I assure you that this series will be exactly that. It will be a totally personal journey down memory lane. I think that some of the opinions expressed in this series will be highly subjective. (I think all my writings are subjective.)

But if you want to be part of this journey … well, what on earth are you waiting for? Come and join!

Happy May Day

2009-05-01T22:48:00.004+05:30

"Happy" to you, of course. This May Day wasn't exactly a heyday for me. Suffice it to say, I've been suffering from a badly-performed Conjuntivitus curse, which is likely to be performed by someone like Stan Shunpike. That actually means (well, you of course know what it means if you know the difference between a Cleanswep Seven and a Comet Two-Sixty) that it's not conjunctivitis I'm suffering from. But it's definitely an eye (the left one, to be precise) that's paining me. Which explains why I'm not blogging too often (I'm still not finished with the RTR campaign) or the absence of my Tweets.

I planned to write a lot starting from today, but I can't. Sigh. When I will come back I don't know. If everything had gone right, I'd be writing my first review now. But no such luck ("luck" is a word I despise, though).

I am Ill

2009-04-26T20:54:00.002+05:30

Yes, I am. I have been ill since Friday. That explains why I posted only once on Friday. I did turned the computer on to check if had new comments, but didn't have the energy to write a post. This is more of a tweet than a proper blog post. I have to, therefore, abandon the idea of writing the series as I planned here. I will have to rely on links instead. Will post tomorrow.

An yes, it's the weather that has made me sick.

Replanting the Rainforests: The Importance of Rainforests

2009-04-24T11:00:00.002+05:30

The title, I think, is enough to indicate that this is either a very long post or a very short one, as the first part of a series. The latter is right. The importance of rainforests and forest in general is ... well, you know that.

Let me start with a story.

Long, long ago, in ancient India there lived a sage. He was also a teacher. All his life he taught his disciples earnestly. After their formal education was over, the disciple had to give their teacher a reward. What the teacher wanted was very simple. He said, 'Go to the forest and bring me plants which don't have any medicinal value. I give you the whole day to perform this task. That'll be my gift.'

So all his disciples went to the forest in search of such plants. They searched all day. Everybody returned at night. Almost everyone had plants in his hand to offer as a reward. Some of them returned with a lot of plants. But the sage found that one of them didn't bring even a single plant. He was sitting in a corner of the room. He seemed to be very gloomy.

After all his disciples offered him all kinds of plants, the sage went to the student with a strange expression on his face and said, 'I see that you have failed to perform the task I gave you. Where is my reward? Would you like you explain?'

The student said, 'Sir, you gave us the task to find a plant which didn't have a medicinal value. I went to the forest and examined every kind of plant. But I could not find a single plant without usefulness. I have failed and I am ready to accept any punishment.'

At this, the sage smiled at him and said, 'Son, don't be disappointed. That was the reward I was asking for. No one else ever offered me such a reward.'

The student, in question, was Jeevak, one of the pioneers of ancient Indian medical science.

This story – or legend as you may call it – beautifully illustrates how our ancestors understood the importance of our green friends and developed a relationship with them. Sadly, we possess neither their deep understanding of Mother Nature not their concern for it (her?). If we did, the rainforests wouldn't have covered a mere 5% of earth's surface.

As I've already told you that I'd continue the series, let's discuss the importance of the trees in medical science since the story is related to that.

A look at alkaloids derived from trees will show us various benefits. Quinine (derived from cinchona) is anti-malarial. Reserpin reduces hypertension. And ... well ...

Tulsi (Osimum sanctum) and Neem (Azadirachta indica), found in almost every corner of India, have disinfectant qualities. They're not exactly part of rainforests, though.

I've just found a page where a list of such drugs and medicines is provided. It's here. So the post almost ends here.

Suffice it to say that we are using the trees to find a cure for AIDS. We are already fighting cancer with their help. Only if they could help us fight psychological cancer.

Replanting the Rainforests: Projects

2009-04-23T17:17:00.002+05:30

I am not writing anything here. Will write a lot in the upcoming posts. Meanwhile, have a look at these projects:

Borneo Reforestation Project
Related Posts: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Costa Rica (Mono Titi) Project
Related Post: 1

Belize Jaguar Project
Related Posts: 1, 2, 3

I have many things to write ...

Replanting the Rainforests: Donation

2009-04-22T23:11:00.001+05:30

I provided a link for you to donate to the RTR Campaign (if you wished, that is) for the last couple of posts. In case, you've ignored them here's the full message from RTR. Read it. I thought Aprill 22 would be the best day for such a request:

The Earth Day Birthday Campaign is designed to give those of us that care
about the environmental health of our planet a vehicle for effecting change. This is a grass roots campaign that is designed to empower people to help shape the destiny of the Earth without the need of governments and global institutions. This campaign is designed to engage people and to reach across borders and join together all those that care about our environmental future.

Earth Day Birthday - Give a Gift to Our Planet - Replanting the Rainforests

Replanting the Rainforests is not a passive program for conserving existing rainforests. Protecting our last remaining forests is vitally important, but it is not sufficient. Over 80 percent of the planet's native forests are gone! We must do more if we are to maintain a healthy environment for future generations.

Replanting the Rainforests is not another "Plant a Tree" campaign.

Virtually all tree-planting campaigns in third world countries take place on lands that have a history of illegal deforestation. Many programs take place on farmlands. Ask yourself: What do farmers do for a living? They plant things, they grow things, and they cut them down and sell them. This is clearly not the way forward if we want to permanently reestablish our lost forests.

What makes us different?

Sustainably Managed Permanent Rainforest Habitats

The Replanting the Rainforest Program creates Sustainably Managed Permanent Rainforest Habitats. Within these habitats both sustainable forestry and permagriculture techniques will be employed that will as close as possible mimic natural processes so as not to upset the continuity of the forest environment. The natural array of biodiversity is meticulously safeguarded, while at the same time we create the economic engine necessary to prevent the un-sustainable exploitation of the resource.

Our focus is to find under-producing agricultural lands, cattle ranches and degraded forests and restore them to more natural conditions. Our methods include analog forestry, wildlife habitat enhancement, biomass carbon negative energy production, and BioChar soil augmentation and edible forest gardens.

The Earth Day Birthday Campaign is run by the Eco Preservation Society in conjunction with Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation and the Rainforest Trust and in cooperation with TreeBanking LLC, and I Empower U.

We are Turning the Tide on Global Deforestation

Our Campaign Goals ---- Find Out How We Do It! ---- Get Involved

Letter from our CEO:

Dear Friend,

Welcome to Give a Gift to Our Planet - Replanting the Rainforests. Thank you for joining.

Through the venue of social media, over the course of just 3 weeks, The Earth Day Birthday Campaign has been joined by nearly 3000 people from more than fifty countries across the globe. Day by day the campaign continues to grow and the excitement build.

In another time and in another era this would have been impossible. In our era things are possible that were previously beyond imagination. Within this group lies the power to reach out to every corner of the globe. Within this group lies the power to reshape the destiny of our planet.

This is a call for action for all of those that share my passion and vision for the need to chart a new course for our future. It is no longer enough to sit back and wait for someone else to solve the problems that are faced by our Mother Earth. This is our time to make a difference. The world is in desperate need of solutions and we have solutions. All that is lacking is the will to act.

Now is not the time to talk and complain. Now is the time to seize control of our destiny. We have everything we need before us to reshape the world for future generations. We must act and we must act with purpose and resolve to avoid the catastrophe that our world faces.

I am asking each and every one of you to reach out to everyone that you know and invite them to join our cause and to let them know that we can make a difference. We need to make people aware that we have the power to change the course that we are on. Awareness precedes action and we must make people aware that there are solutions and that they have the power to make things right.

Make your voice heard. We need not wait for politicians and power brokers to shape our destiny. We have the power to shape our own destiny and to make a better world for our children and for future generations and it all starts with you.

Thank You!

Warm Regards,

Kevin Peterson, Founder
Eco Preservation Society
Replanting the Rainforests

Follow the link if you wish to donate. And you'll donate nothing to me. Everything will go to this campaign. And if you thought this is the last RTR post from me, let me tell you it's not. I'll keep posting for a while. Cheers!

Replanting the Rainforests: Carbon Sequestration in Soils

2009-04-22T20:50:00.005+05:30

I've already talked about Biochar at length. It seems that there are more ways apart from Biochar to sequester carbon in the soils.

Here's simple set of data enough to make things clear:

• One hectare = 10,000 sq. metres
• Soil 33.5 cm deep (1 foot approx)
• Bulk density = 1.4 tonnes per cubic metre
• Soil mass per hectare = about 4,700 tonnes
• 1% change in soil organic matter = 47 tonnes
• Which gives about 27 tonnes Soil Carbon
• This captured 100 tonnes of atmospheric CO₂

This is from a report by Soil Carbon. Have a look at it, it's pretty good. There's a plenty of information on this subject. But the first article argues that: 'As reasonable as a simple “1 % increase” may sound, it appears not to be scientifically valid.'

The FAO (Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN) estimates that the soils can contain twice as much carbon as the atmosphere. (The extensive report by the FAO can be found here.) It says (page 19):

Soils are the largest carbon reservoir of the terrestrial carbon cycle. The quantity of C stored in soils is highly significant; soils contain about three times more C than vegetation and twice as much as that which is present in the atmosphere(Batjes and Sombroek, 1997). Soils contain much more C (1 500 Pg of C to 1 m depth and 2 500 Pg of C to 2 m; 1 Pg = 1 gigatonne) than is contained in vegetation (650 Pg of C)and twice as much C as the atmosphere (750 Pg of C). Carbon storage in soils is the balance between the input of dead plant material (leaf and root litter) and losses from decomposition and mineralization processes (heterotrophic respiration). Under aerobic conditions, most of the C entering the soil is labile, and therefore respired back to the atmosphere through the process known as soil respiration or soil CO2 efflux (the result of root respiration – autotrophic respiration – and decomposition of organic matter – heterotrophic respiration). Generally, only 1percent of that entering the soil (55 Pg/year) accumulates in more stable fractions (0.4 Pg/year) with long mean residence times.

The report is 129 pages long. It's useless posting excerpts from every chapter. You had better read it. I will highlight some of the key points here.

As I was saying earlier, the FAO report doesn't exactly validate the statistics provided by Soil Carbon. The carbon contents of the soil vary with the condition of the soil, i.e. dry or wet. It says that carbon content ranges between 7 tons and 24 tons in normal (non-depleted) soils, depending on the climate zone and vegetation. If we make a few calculations we'll find that an increased carbon sequestration of 14 tons/hectare is the best possible value – much less than the value SC provides.

Soil Carbon reckons that ruminant grazing plays an essential part in restoring the soils, sequestering carbon and, of course, keeping an ecosystem healthy. But the FAO doesn't agree wholeheartedly with this either. It argues that while their role is important, ruminant creatures don't increase the net amount of carbon in the soils; they merely shift carbon from one piece of land to another. The FAO also highlights the fact that cattle release methane (a much more dangerous GHG than carbon dioxide) into the atmosphere.

But such disagreements between the FAO and SC are beside the point here. And that too, is just a difference of numbers. I think both the FAO and SC agree on one common environment-friendly point. We can (and we need to) sequester more carbon in soils. That can act as a weapon against GHGs and Global Warming. The farmlands will also be improved. To cut a long story short, it'll benefit us almost as much as Biochar.

That's it!

Happy Earth Day

2009-04-22T17:02:00.000+05:30

I have been meaning to write this post ever since I participated in the RTR Campaign. I was sure from the very beginning that my first post on April 22 would have the title Happy Earth Day. Now, after writing the title, I'm feeling uncomfortable about the title. I mean, how exactly can I wish you a "Happy" Earth Day when there's no reason we should be happy about. On the contrary, there are things which can actually make us unhappy.

Should I be happy when Kolkata has had the hottest April ever – a clear indication of the ever-increasing grasp of Global Warming – at 42° C (107.6° F)?

Should I be happy because of the fact that we're still wasting energy shamelessly? Or should I be happy to experience frequent power cuts as the power stations are running low of conventional energy resources?

Should I be happy that many species of animals in India are just one step away from extinction? Should I be happy that the number of the Royal Bengal Tigers is decreasing rapidly? Should I be happy that mangroves of the Sundarbans (the Royal Bengal Tigers' dwelling place and the largest mangrove forest in the world) are severely damaged due to sea-level rise?

Or should I be happy because the groundwater of Kolkata is no longer at a safe level? Or because the groundwater in some places of West Bengal (which, needless to say, are far away from the sea) have become a bit saline?

Even if I don't talk about my own state, I find even fewer reasons to be happy about.

Should we be happy because the rainforests are in danger? Should we be happy that the Mono Titi, jaguars, orangutans are endangered? (This 'endangered' is not the IUCN classification.)

Should we be happy that the ice in the polar region is melting? Should we be happy that the amount of GHG emission is still very high? Should we be happy for sea-level rise?

Should we be happy that we have not yet put unconventional energy resources (like solar energy, wind energy, geothermal energy among many others), our possible saviour, to full use? Or should we be happy because of ozone depletion?

On and on I can go. But I need not. We know the answer.

No, if we look at the present scenario, we can't help being unhappy. But we should be happy on Earth Day 2009 as there is hope, however faint it might be. We are thinking and acting. We are trying to replant the rainforests and preserve the balance in our ecosystems. That's only one part of our efforts. We are devising new methods to save our earth everyday.

Please, please, swear on your earth that you'll try to save it with all your might.

Done it? Now tell me if you're unhappy.

Replanting the Rainforests: The Secret of El Dorado

2009-04-21T23:33:00.002+05:30

Now you know the secrets, don't you?

Donate, if you wish.

Replanting the Rainforests: Biochar Video

2009-04-21T23:28:00.000+05:30

After the last post, here's this:

Donate, if you wish.

Replanting the Rainforests: Biochar

2009-04-21T22:22:00.001+05:30

[Once again, this is my reinterpretation.]

Now the first question is: what is biochar?

Simply –

Soil enriching, carbon gobbling, lo-tech remedy to greenhouse emissions

Source.

The Biochar (you can split this word, of course) technology is not a new invention. Our ancestors (much more intelligent than we are) devised this ages ago. We know Biochar by another name. Terra preta, or "dark earth" in Portuguese, is found in the Amazon basin. The soils were created by humans in about 450 BC (see the last link). It is reportedly regenerating itself.

We can create Biochar by pyrolysis of biomass. That is, we have to heat biomass under low-oxygen conditions.

Now the question is: how exactly can Biochar help us?

The answer is long.

First thing first. While Biochar is produced, not only does the process not release the carbon content of the heated biomass into the atmosphere, but the process draws more carbon (in form of carbon dioxide) from the atmosphere. It doesn't stop at that either. Biochar is able to sequester carbon in the soils for millenia. Therefore, it can consume more carbon from the atmosphere and increase its own volume by regenerating itself and rebuild the geological carbon sink.

The microorganic activities in the Biochar soils are very high. Such microorganisms improve the soil by fixing more carbon and making it more nutrient-rich and fertile. Moreover, there's little chance that Biochar will be damaged or the soil will erode. So we won't require any extra measure to conserve it.

Apart from drawing carbon dioxide (a major Greenhouse Gas or GHG), it absorbs other significant GHGs from the atmosphere. It also decreases the soil emissions of GHGs. According to the Wikipedia article, it can "reduce N₂O [nitrous oxide] emissions by up to 80% and completely suppress methane emissions." That's one of the best ways to fight Global Warming. To add to this list, Biochar can also act as a source of renewable energy. The energy used to create Biochar can power tractors. Also see this.

Apart from reducing environmental pollution, it can also help us socially, economically and, of course, agriculturally. As it increases the fertility of the soil, the production of crops is much higher. It can help the economy. But most importantly, we can do away with hunger and insecurity of food. It can also help us cut down the high costs of irrigation and harmful chemical fertilizers. (Have a look at this article to see how we've already been benefited from Biochar.)

Wait, there's more. It can also act as a dietary supplement for animals and improve the quality of drinking water. It can reduce the acidity of soil too.

In case you thought that wasn't enough, I haven't really discussed the main thing – the relation between biochar and the rainforests.

One of the main causes of deforestation in the tropical areas is the increasing need of farmlands. Slash-and-burn method is used widely. Apart from destroying the trees, the process harms bio-diversity.

Biochar can create highly fertile lands and put an end to the practice of deforestation. It will restore the ecological balance by saving the forests and wildlife. Biochar will not only save the forests, but will do something the forests do – prevent pollution.

I don't need to say more, do I?

There's a fascinating video on Biochar. I thought that I'd include that in this post but decided against it. That deserves separate viewing. Will post two videos in an hour or so..

Donate something, if you wish.

Replanting the Rainforests: Tree Avalanching 1

2009-04-20T23:13:00.006+05:30

I must admit that I didn't hear the term "Tree Avalanching" till I came across this article. But as I have to write things about this subject, this post is, more or less, heavily dependent on that article. In other words, this is nothing but my reinterpretation.

The article begins with a theory I talked about in this post – that we should not just plant trees, we should restore the forests. To quote the article, replacing deforestation with reforestation must meet the following three requirements:

The trees must be able to fund land preservation.
The trees must be able to diversify.
The trees must be able to fund more acquisition of more land.

Point # 1:
What use is tree plantation or reforestation if we aren't able to protect it? We have to preserve the land where we are reforesting. Otherwise, it'd become a victim of tree poaching. As the article indicates, we don't need another law to protect the forest. We need activity.

Point # 2:
This is pretty simple. We need a variety of trees. And "continuous monocrop plantations of trees all of the same age" face a huge risk. The trees easily fall prey to insects, pests and diseases. Naturally, they would spread more easily when there's only one kind of tree in a particular area than when there are various trees. Can we really call something a forest if it had only one species of tree?

Point # 3:
This is best explained like this:

Most reforestation efforts are being spent on plantations, not on genuine new
forests. We use the term "reforestation" a lot, but in reality, unless the lands
are permanently returned to forest, you are not reforesting, you are raising a
crop of trees. Tree plantations can reduce commercial pressure on remaining
forests, but they are not themselves new forests. Just like a loss of trees is
not deforestation unless the land usage permanently changes, it isn't
reforestation unless the end result is a forest.

Now let's come to the point of the post – Tree Avalanching.

There is a way to pay the trees. We call it the Tree Avalanche. The Tree Avalanche works by using donated trees to create a pioneer forest of valuable wood. Among these trees are also planted the succession trees that will make up the more mature rainforest. Most tropical succession trees require shade to grow; that's why planting pioneer species speeds up the creation of the new forest.

The article explains this with a beautiful story we all have read in our childhood. It's about a king and a beggar. The beggar wanted something really negligible from the king. The following day, he wanted twice that amount and so on. It would have continued for days if a mathematician hadn't pointed out that the king would go bankrupt after a few days.

At first, the pioneer trees are planted. Over a long period of time, the succession trees are planted. But the pioneer trees are gradually removed. That'll not only make way for the new trees but will also bring money for improving the forest. This programme serves all the requirements simultaneously.

Firstly, after removing the pioneer trees and planting the succession trees, we will have a true, diversified forest.

Secondly, we can invest the money earned from the pioneer trees on planting more trees. Note that we'll not chop trees mindlessly. We will just remove and sell the "sellable" parts without harming the forest in any way. That will make the forest cover greater. Therefore, we'll have a greater area of forest.

But there's something it can't do. We will have to do that. We will have to protect them. But that isn't a very difficult task. If there's enough job opportunity for the local people in and around the forests, that'll do. Not only will the forest help them earn their bread, but it will be loved and protected by them. Isn't that the best possible protection?

I just realised that I learned a lot more about reforestation after writing this post. But have to stop now. Expect more posts on this.

Donate something, if you wish.

Replanting the Rainforests: In Papua New Guinea

2009-04-20T21:08:00.003+05:30

I read the title of the video 3 times before I was sure I wasn't wrong.

I did intend to write something but I don't quite know what I should write.

Donate something, if you wish.

Replanting the Rainforests: Sustainably Managed Permanent Rainforest Habitats

2009-04-20T16:31:00.006+05:30

Finally, I'm getting back to writing.

Today, we're talking about Sustainably Managed Permanent Rainforest Habitats. Here's an introduction from the RTR website:

The Sustainably Managed Permanent Rainforest Habitat concept is a key differentiation point with other Tree Planting projects run by other organizations.

Because these programs do not have control of the lands where the trees are planted and in most cases the trees are planted in areas that have a history of deforestation. Many programs take place on farmlands. Ask yourself: What do farmers do for a living? They plant things, they grow things, and they cut them down and sell them.

What we do is different. Our projects mix a variety of technologies to create an economic engine to support the creation of these habitats. These technologies include analog (sustainable) forestry, wildlife habitat enhancement, biomass carbon negative energy production, BioChar soil augmentation and edible forest gardens (Permaculture).

That's where the uniqueness of this programme lies. We just don't want to grow trees in our locality. We want to – we need to – regrow the whole of the rainforests. There's a lot of difference between planting a tree randomly and replanting an entire rainforest. As you have understood, such scattered tree plantation does not make up for the loss of the rainforests because that doesn't support a habitat. Nor does it offer us so many benefits as the rainforests do.

At present, much of the forest cover we had 100 years ago, is lost. As a result, many species of animals are extinct today. Therefore, the bio-diversity is considerably endangered today. That's not the only loss. We have been victims of pollution in water, air and soil – a direct effect of deforestation. While we are being more conscious about the benefits from trees and the bad effects of deforestation, we are not really doing what we should do. We are planting trees at random places. Although that's a very admirable effort and must be encouraged, that doesn't offer a solution to the bigger problem.

Surely we can't expect our backyard trees to be the dwelling-place of jaguars and orangutans, can we? Can we expect the trees we planted to control the climate of our entire region? Can we ensure that our trees will prevent landslides, draughts and floods? Will they provide us with 30% of our planet's fresh water? Will they give us what the rainforests do?

Of course, you know the answers, don't you?

Yes, we need to restore – and if possible, create – the rainforests for the very same reasons. We have to give the habitat back to the animals, whom we've treated so wrongly. We need to create habitats which are permanent. We need to create habitats which we can manage well. And finally, we need to create habitats which can be sustained.

We don't want to see a time to come when the existence of the rainforests and the animals of the forests is limited to picture story-books. If such days are ahead, we must be aware of the fact that we won't even have a place in such books either.

So plant a tree, for sure. But also think about the forests.

Here's an awesome video.

Donate something, if you wish.

Replanting the Rainforests: From BOS Sanctuary

2009-04-19T22:35:00.001+05:30

It's the last post today. Actually, I was not able to write anything today for many a reason. From tomorrow, I will start writing.

So wait...

Replanting the Rainforests: Another Video on the Orangutans

2009-04-19T22:28:00.003+05:30

This may present the facts you already know, but it's quite interesting:

Replanting the Rainforests: A Video on the Jaguars in Belize

2009-04-19T18:34:00.003+05:30

I won't write anything creative today as well. The writing will start tomorrow. Another video:

Replanting the Rainforests: Saving the Orangutans

2009-04-18T23:50:00.000+05:30

Watch the Borneo Orangutan Survival Foundation team here trying to save the orangutans:

On This Day in 2008, I Was Informed That ...

2009-04-18T19:55:00.001+05:30

...I was going to Japan. (The trip I mentioned in my profile.) My mother called me up at probably 11 a.m. She told me that she had just received a call from New Delhi. My passport had to be submitted to the travel agent the following day. I was going to the Land of the Rising Sun in 22 days!

I will soon write more about my Japan trip. Watch out!

***
I also remember reading Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban on the 18th of April last year.

And yeah, the Indian Premier League (IPL) started last year on April 18 as well. (I'm adding the label "Sports" to this post, but this may be the only post under this label you'll ever see.) There's no team that I support in the second season of this cricket tournament. There's no choice, actually. The team which had the name Kolkata Knight Riders (you know that Kolkata is my city) have shed the word "Kolkata," for reasons I don't know nor do I wish to. Of course, some very intelligent (perhaps the most intelligent) mind is behind this extraordinary decision. And did I mention that the team have (or the Great Mind has) invented (but I guess, not yet implemented) a brilliant theory: multiple captaincy - as a part of the game strategy. I wonder how much better it'd be if every country had multiple Presidents, multiple Prime Ministers, multiple Queens and Kings and so on ... Surely, it'd benefit every country.

So there's no way I can support my city team when there's none. I have to support teams representing cities my friends are from. But if there's a match - and there will be - between two such teams, I don't know I am going to do.

So enjoy!

*

My blog template is making me crazy. You'll have a new template within an hour or two.

Replanting the Rainforests: A Video

2009-04-18T19:14:00.005+05:30

Have a look at it. It's pretty long by YouTube standard:

Donate here, if you wish to.

Replanting the Rainforests: Orangutan Diaries Preview

2009-04-18T12:49:00.002+05:30

I am not wrting anything on RTR today. I am providing a video instead. Here you go:

Go Green!

Replanting the Rainforests: Orangutan on the Brink

2009-04-17T20:37:00.000+05:30

One of the many pleasures of childhood is going through every kind of picture-book. I had many of them. Some of the books contained talking animals. And I loved those books! I guess my childhood affection for the cutely-drawn animals is responsible for making me concerned about wildlife today.

One of the animal I liked was the orangutan. For they were always given intelligent, witty dialogues. They were a sort of "respectable" species for me. Around the time my grandfather told me briefly Darwin's Theory of Evolution. He explained it in a way a four-year-old could understand. I was even more glad to know that humans and orangutans were related in some way. (It was only when I studied biology, did I know that both of them are hominoids and, more specifically, part of the same family Hominidae.) When I was about 6 (or maybe 7), I read detective stories where an orangutan was subdued and trained to rob banks or something like that. Though these stories fascinated me no end, the line between fact and [children's] fiction became clear as I grew up.

But somewhere in my mind, the apparently ugly-looking, super-intelligent animal still had a place. Probably that's why I (two years away from my school-leaving exam) was so shocked to read this:

The Sumatran species is critically endangered and the Bornean species of orangutans is endangered according to the IUCN Red List of mammals, and both are listed on Appendix I of CITES. The total number of Bornean orangutans is estimated to be less than 14% of what it was in the recent past (from around 10,000 years ago until the middle of the twentieth century)[.]

I need not say what's responsible for this as this is basically the point of the whole programme:

Orangutan numbers have declined sharply on the only two islands where they still live in the wild and they could become the first great ape species to go extinct if urgent action isn't taken, a new study says.

The declines in Indonesia and Malaysia since 2004 are mostly because of illegal logging and the expansion of palm oil plantations, Serge Wich, a scientist at the Great Ape Trust in Iowa, said on Saturday.

The survey found the orangutan population on Indonesia's Sumatra island dropped almost 14 percent since 2004, Wich said. It also concluded that the populations on Borneo island, which is shared by Malaysia, Brunei and Indonesia, have fallen by 10 percent. Researchers only surveyed areas of Borneo that are in Indonesia and Malaysia.

See the full article here.

The orangutans don't deserve such short posts. I will definitely come up with more posts on the orangutans. As they say, it's just the beginning.

[Donate something, if you wish.]

Replanting the Rainforests: Jaguar - Part 2

2009-04-17T12:37:00.001+05:30

[If you want to contribute to the Replanting the Rainforests campaign, see this page]

Here's more about the urgent condition of the jaguar after the last post:

Jaguars may be large, measuring 1.8m from snout to tail and weighing up to 158kg. They may live in places like Sirena, a tropical rain forest on the southwestern peninsula of Costa Rica, where every day is an ecotourist's Mardi Gras of spider monkeys tumbling over howler monkeys, Muppet-face sloths and toucans and scarlet macaws flapping overhead like crayons with wings. Yet even when other normally shy creatures feel free to make spectacles of themselves, the jaguar remains aloof.

[...]

Individual jaguars can be distinguished and accounted for by their singular patterns of spots. This spring, the cameras took a picture of a black jaguar, the first one known in Corcovado. Carrillo is reluctant to make estimates in advance of the data analysis, but he said he expected 50 to 100 jaguars in Corcovado [a biologist] and its environs, a reasonable density for a large meat eater that needs a extensive space to earn a living.

Rabinowitz, author of the influential "eco-memoir" Jaguar: One Man's Struggle to Establish the World's First Jaguar Preserve (2000), said such numbers were on the high end of jaguar statistics and applied to relatively pristine places like the Santa Cruz ranch in Bolivia and his hard-won Cockscomb jaguar preserve in Belize. Elsewhere, however, the jaguar is losing range to familiar culprits like logging, slash-and-burn agriculture and poaching.

More stuff here.

The jaguar is also posed a threat in Belize.

I don't like the fact that I'm writing nothing and providing links to other articles – a sign of laziness. But I want to write something original soon. Have been thinking about it.

Replanting the Rainforests: Jaguar

2009-04-17T08:36:00.001+05:30

[If you want to contribute to the Replanting the Rainforests campaign, see this page]

Looking at my last post, I realised that my last post was somewhat cold. I couldn't understand why. You may also find this post very similar to the last one. But I guess this "coldness" is inevitable. I'm discussing the critical state of wildlife. I'm not discussing anything about how to save them. So I don't really have a scope to get creative now. I'll add my comments in future posts.

After Mono Titi or Squirrel Monkeys, we'll now talk about the jaguar. Jaguar conservation has become an important subject now. Here's a brief introduction (from Wikipedia):

The jaguar, Panthera onca, is a big cat, a feline in the Panthera genus. It is the only Panthera found in the Americas. The jaguar is the third-largest feline after the tiger and the lion, and the largest and most powerful feline in the Western Hemisphere. The jaguar's present range extends from Mexico across much of Central America and south to Paraguay and northern Argentina. Apart from a known and possibly breeding population in Arizona (southwest of Tucson), the cat has largely been extirpated from the United States since the early 1900s. There is, however, a high probability that (given the surveyed population in southwestern Arizona) populations of Jaguar exist in other unsurveyed regions within southern Arizona, New Mexico and possibly even Texas.

The jaguar is known as "a largely solitary, stalk-and-ambush predator," but it has never been known as a man-eater. It is located at the end of food-chain or at the apex of ecological pyramid. Therefore, it plays a crucial role in maintaining the stability of an ecosystem. But ...

Inconsiderate deforestation has imperiled this species. The IUCN has declared this species as "Near Threatened," which means "it may be threatened with extinction in the near future." Along with deforestation, poaching and hurricane (which is a result of the change of the climate pattern – another effect of deforestation) are also to blame for this. The "increasing competition for food with human beings" is also a risk factor for the jaguar.

Have a look at this to know better about the present condition of the jaguar.

[Is this post very cold as well? I think so. I am looking forward to the upcoming posts where I want to write in a more creative way.]

Replanting the Rainforests: Costa Rican Mono Titi

2009-04-16T19:18:00.000+05:30

[This the second part in the series Replanting the Rainforests.]

If we need to know the need for saving the rainforests and their present state, we must know how it (or the lack of it) affects us.

We know it very well that bio-diversity is one of the key aspects of our environment. The health of an ecosystem greatly depends on its bio-diversity. The current critical situation of the rainforests has had an adverse effect on bio-diversity.

At present, bio-diversity in Costa Rica has been threatened. The number Mono Titi, a species of squirrel monkey, is decreasing rapidly. Mono Titi is one of the smallest and most peaceful primates. Mono Titi are very dear to the Costa Ricans. You can find more about Mono Titi here.

However, there is great need to save Mono Titi. I will write more posts on Mono Titi soon.

To know more about the dangers Mono Titi are facing now, visit this. It's quite informative.

In the upcoming posts, I will provide links to the Saving Mono Titi project.

Replanting the Rainforests

2009-04-16T12:21:00.000+05:30

I don't really need to tell you – and I'm really fed up of telling this to everyone – that our environment is seriously, brutally and almost irreparably endangered. You already know that. But there are some who know it, or shall we say, read and heard about it in details, but refuse to acknowledge the very existence of the environmental pollution. To them, Global Warming is a myth. So is every news that concerns the environment and the pollution that's affecting the environment and us. (By the way, what are we if not a part of the environment?)

No, I don't want to write a high school essay on The Bad Effects of Environmental Pollution, which we forget right after we have written the last word. Our (with "our," I mean the students) environment-consciousness usually stops right after we've scored fascinating marks. That's why I prefer a practical approach to environmental study to a theoretical one. While theoretical environmental study no doubt supplies us with valuable and necessary information, a practical approach enriches us with knowledge. Not any kind of knowledge, the knowledge which makes us think of the environment and protect it from all evils.

That brings us to the point of this post.

I am blogging now to be a part of the programme that's trying to spread this knowledge. I don't imagine in my wildest dreams that my blog, in any possible way, would rescue the planet from its present situation. I am blogging to spread the awareness. With my blog, I will urge everybody to devote their time to think about the condition of our earth. I will request them not to be limited to thinking. I will urge them to be active and do something...anything! If you plant a tree, you are doing something. So, become an active part of it!

With Earth Day coming next week, I start the "Replanting the Rainforests" campaign here. Our precious rainforests are in danger. Over the upcoming posts, I am going to discuss the present state of the rainforests, how important they are (not only from a natural perspective, but a social one as well) and how we should restore them.

We need to act before it's too late. Please think about it.

We can do it! Can we not?

[Note: I couldn't start posting yesterday as I was having problems with the template after the last post.]

Śubha Nava Varṣa (or Śubho Nôbô Bôrṣô)

2009-04-15T16:34:00.008+05:30

[This is the first time I've tried my hands at flower-photography. I switched to the "macro" mode. But the result is not very good. Do tell me if you know how to photograph a flower properly.]

Here's Upamanyu wishing you: A Very Happy Bengali New Year (or Śubha Nava Varṣa or Śubho Nôbô Bôrṣô) 1416.

Today is the first day of Voiśākh/ Boiśākh (or Pôela Voiśākh or Pôela Boiśākh).

The first day of the Bengali calendar transports me back to a distant past, a past that was so dear to me. So many colourful events shaped those days. Those days were distinguished by simple, limitless and unadulterated joy. Every single moment those days was filled with wonder. I can never feel the joy and wonder again. That's why this day makes me simultaneously sad and cheerful: sad, because I know I can never get the days back, and cheerful, because I can almost feel the joy and wonder of those days.

The arrival of the new year is deep-rooted in the culture of Bengal for more reasons than one. It was officially the start of summer before the menace called Global Warming came into the picture. It's also the beginning of the season of mangoes and lychees, the favourite summertime fruits of Bengal. For me, the new year announces the coming of the 25th of Voiśākh/ Boiśākh, the birthday of Rabindranath Tagore. The Bengali new year is important to me in many other ways.

So, Śubha Nava Varṣa / Śubho Nôbô Bôrṣô to all Bengalis and non-Bengalis.

***

From now on, I am starting a new series called "On This Day."

In such posts, I will recount one (or some) of my experiences which happened exactly on the day of posting "n" year(s) back. I may even include two (or more) years in one post.

Let's start with what happened in 2008 on April 15. (That was, of course, the first of Voiśākh/ Boiśākh 1415.)

I started reading the first book of Harry Potter, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone on this day, about nine months after the publication of the final book, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. I finished the entire series within 9-10 days.

Won't write anything about Harry Potter now. Expect more posts on this in future.

***

I've already finished The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien. I've also read Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy after that. Have been meaning to blog my thoughts about the books. I completed The Hobbit more than a month ago. But my involvement with a few other important things (100 Hours of Astronomy, to be precise) hasn't allowed me to write it. Will also be reading Midnight's Children soon.

But you may expect the writings after April 22, Earth Day. I'm actively participating in it. So, I'll have a plenty of free time after April 22. I'll write on books and films more often

***

Once again, Śubha Nava Varṣa/ Śubho Nôbô Bôrṣô (That's the third time in this post, or fourth, if you count the post title. Hehe!) to every person who visits (and doesn't visit) this blog.

[Note: In case you're wondering why I've used the alternatives while ~~spellinng~~ (heh, what a spellinng!) spelling the Bengali words, I'll clarify. Both are correct. While the former is in fact the exact written form of the Bengali script, the latter is the way the words are pronounced. For example, the Anta(h)stha "va" is pronounced like the Ōshtya "ba." I love the study of phonology of a language. The phonology of Bengali (or ANY language, for that matter) is a fascinating study in itself. So, it's no use explaining everything here. Suffice it to say, both of the forms are correct. That's all. Thanks]

100 Hours of Astronomy: The Final Word

2009-04-14T11:00:00.005+05:30

It's finally over. The 100 Hours of Astronomy. The hundred hours went away as if they were a dream. But they were a dream. How else can I explain the immense joy I derived from organising the 100HA events? Now that the 100 hours are over, I'm looking back at the event and penning -- sorry, blogging -- my thoughts about it.

The Idea
This programme, as you all probably know, is part of the International Year of Astronomy 2009. There's isn't much to comment on this idea as this idea is beyond all superlatives. The idea of holding such an event is nothing less than extraordinary. In the International Year of Astronomy, what else could be better than this? Could there be any other event which allowed us to keep ourselves immersed in astronomy and also to mingle with people continuously for 100 hours? The amount of effort that has gone into making this possible is simply outstanding. The Around the World in 80 Telescopes programme and live webcasts provided a better opportunity to reach out to the people. The blogs on the website allowed us to interact with people from all over the world. Through this forum I came across Lee Pullen, a digital photographer, science communicator and ice-cream taster, as he describes himself. Lee is a very friendly person and he encouraged me a lot.

My Role
I am glad to say that I was a part of this great programme. My part might be -- it indeed is -- very little. But the fact that I was the only event organiser from West Bengal (I haven't checked the event page of India for a while. If there were any other organiser from West Bengal, forgive me!) made my task enormous. I had my limitations (see below) but I tried as much as I could. I played my role by showing everybody the films and the live webcast, delivering lectures, replying to queries I received over the phone / through email and, most importantly, holding observation sessions. Only through observation could we break the invisible wall that existed between "Sky & I." (That, by the way, was the name of the event of Day I.) I think that's precisely what my role was -- breaking that barrier.

My Limitations
I am glad to say that I played my role earnestly, but I can never overlook the woeful limitations of the event. And I couldn't overcome them either. I have discussed all these limitations in this post, so won't elaborate further. In short, there was little time to arrange everything. I wish I had got the help of some big organisation to make it really grand-scale. I had only two telescopes to use. I couldn't get a large hall or something to manage the crowd. It'd have been better if any nearby multiplex had shown space films. I can think of few other complaints I had. It didn't happen exactly the way I wanted. But what it eventually turned out to be wasn't bad either.

What I Think I Did Well
I love bragging. So here I am. There are a few things I think I did well. I tried not to alienate my audience with the latest news from the Chandra X-Ray Observatory. That probably worked. I tried to keep it as simple as possible. I used mythological references to explain things about stars and constellations. I tried to get them interested in astronomy. I also think that my explanation of the webcasts, NASA videos and images worked well with them. I thought I was best during the observation session. The email/ phone answers probably satisfied the enquirers. There are a lot more great things about me. Wait, there isn't! I can remember nothing else I did right. Phew!

What I Think I Didn't Do Well
As much as I love bragging, I must stay honest to myself. So here are things I thought I didn't do quite right and could actually improve. My individual explanations may have entertained the audience, but I'm pretty sure that my lectures on some topics were plain boring. My good audience didn't tell me that directly. In fact, I was bored with my own lectures. I can understand the plight of my audience. I think I should have discussed the history of astronomy in a more detailed way. I should have promoted this event more aggressively. It'd have been better if I had invited more schoolchildren. I suppose, I should have allowed my audiences more freedom in handling the telescopes. On second thoughts, that was not really possible, for we had little time. It'd have been so much better if I started showing the webcast two days earlier!

The Favourable Conditions
The most favourable condition for me, undoubtedly, was the schedule of the programme. I was on my holidays after the exams were over. So I could spend my time without thinking of my studies and all. I couldn't have got a better time to organise this programme. Thankfully, I had all my astronomy-related stuff ready. Therefore, it was super-easy to make it happen. The easy access to astronomy blogs (thank FSM they were there!) was great! I could get the schoolchildren (little though the number might be) because they too were on holidays. Otherwise...well, let's not think about that.

The Not-So-Favourable Conditions
When I started writing this post I thought of many obstacles. But now I can remember few. The main dampener for the webcast session was the inconsistency of my Internet connection. I am willing to change my ISP. The waxing Moon didn't help us in observing the sky either. At present, can't think of anything else. Will add later if I remember.

The Advantages and Disadvantages of a Sky Observer in My City
Absence of any kind of tall buildings around where I live (this part of the city is great!) is surely the best advantage for me as a sky observer from Kolkata. The eagerness of people from Kolkata to observe the sky was what made the programme a hit. Now the disadvantages. Firstly, a polluted atmosphere which cuts the enjoyment of watching the night sky in its full glory. Secondly, the lights. My FSM, the lights! It seemed that almost every light in Kolkata was on for no reason. When will people stop wasting the energy? (I smell a post on this topic coming soon.) Light pollution is one of the ugliest enemies of sky-observers. That said, the condition in Kolkata is possibly no worse than in other big cities.

The Weather...Grrr
I could include this in the previous passages. But it, in my opinion, deserved a separate mention. It almost managed to ruin the entire programme. This is the hottest April in Kolkata I've seen in many years. Even full-time air-conditioning could hardly comfort the audience. (It's the audience I'm talking about because being an avid sunspot-observer I am impervious to extreme heat.) Had it not been so hot, the audience would have enjoyed themselves better. Then there were the clouds. The night sky remained overcast for the most part. I cursed them all along the observation session. They were indeed the single most annoying thing of all. There's nothing more to write about it, really.

Reactions
'Nuff said. See these posts: Days I, II, III, IV

The Lessons I Learned
I have been holding SOC events since 2003. But the 100 Hours of Astronomy taught me lessons I will never forget. I learned a great deal more about how I should plan my programmes and carry them out. I learned how to manage a huge crowd. I learned that I should visit the astro-blogs more often. I learned that people don't really like their photos posted on blog because it might harm them. I learned that I should look for sponsorships next time. (I've arranged all the programmes on my own so far.) I learned that I should visit a village for my next session, as I mostly do. This list is long. Let's stop here.

The Final Word on the Event (in general)
A-W-E-S-O-M-E

100 Hours of Astronomy:Day IV

2009-04-09T10:01:00.000+05:30

April 5
This was the final day of the 100 Hours of Astronomy. It was very saddening to close the event. The whole event was as enchanting as a beautiful dream. I will cherish the 100 Hours for ever.

Now let's talk about the event of the final day. Wait, there's not a lot to talk about. No, I'm not feeling lazy to write the report. But I've observed that all my previous reports had a sense of déjà vu. I'm pretty sure that if I start writing the event report of Day IV it will be nothing but a rehash of the reports of Days I, II and III (especially of Day III).

Here's the short of it:
From 10 a.m. in the morning I started showing webcasts. I also showed the NASA DVD on Saturn. The number of attendees was the highest this day. Therefore, I had to entertain the guests in several batches. The reaction was great, to say the least. (I can't find any other synonyms of "great." I've used a lot.) It was a busy day for all of us. People were disappointed with the observing session. But that's not my fault. You can do nothing if the sky remains clouded. Only the Moon was somewhat visible. So the observing session was not as satisfying.

But if you ask me how the day was, I'd say just one word: Excellent!

Here are the parting images of the 100 Hours of Astronomy from Kolkata. I could take these photos only after the participants left.

A rare moment when I could see the Moon fully.

Otherwise...Behind the clouds...

The photos are not good. I know, I know.

100 Hours of Astronomy: Day III

2009-04-08T19:18:00.001+05:30

April 4
Of all four days, this was easily the finest. The 100 Hours of Astronomy couldn't get any better for me. This was the busiest and most noisy day as well. After the good reaction to the events of the first two days (reports: Day I, Day II), people came in pouring. In fact, at one point, it became quite difficult to manage the crowd and, you won't believe this, count the attendance. It was overwhelming in every possible way.

Non-observing session

I intended to start from 11:00 a.m. For various reasons I had to start 30 minutes after the scheduled time. And when I started, I barely had a moment to breathe. I was completely clueless about what I should do.

To my great relief, the Internet service was active once again. So I was able to what I couldn't do for the first two days. I had the webcast ready. I was showing the live feed from 80 telescopes around the world. It was very enjoyable to watch the webcast. I also undertook the task to explain everything that was being shown on my computer screen. I also had to reply to specific queries. Then I showed them the NASA DVD "Ring Worlds."

As it was difficult to manage such a large number of people together, we decided that the guests should come in batches. And so they did. We allotted every batch about 1.5 hours of time to view the webcast. We invited every batch to come back at 6:30 p.m. to attend the observing session.

Reaction to the first part of the programme
I believe everyone enjoyed the webcast as much as I did. The webcasts were very informative and enriching for everyone. The reaction was great. As was the reaction to the NASA DVDs. The images fascinated everybody.

Observing session
It was much better than that of the earlier days. For one, the sky was less clouded till 7:30 p.m. But, to our surprise, not everyone from the day session came back to attend the observing the session. But the number was high, nonetheless.

As the number was high, it was not possible for me to show anything apart from the Moon and Saturn with two telescopes. It was great seeing them watching the sky with wonder etched in every line of their faces. I had to keep giving lectures while they were watching.

Reaction
The reaction to this session was much better than that of the non-observing session. The craters of the Moon, as always, made them "spell-bound," to quote a member of the audience. The reaction to Saturn's rings were much better. I promised to organise some more observing session on a Moonless night for them in near future. So the reaction was, in one word, spellbinding.

Celebrity Session
There are more than one reasons why I call this day the best. Some noted personalities from Kolkata and Delhi attended my event on my earnest request. Most of them are from cultural fields. One of them was a professor of physics at Delhi IIT.

They were very encouraging and humble. I took help of the physics professor to explain some of the things I was showing. He, of course, knew things better than I did. In his presence, the programme got easier for me.

They arrived at 8 p.m. At first I showed them the NASA DVDs . Then I showed them the webcast on my computer. This session continued for 2 hours. They loved this session.

Then we went to the terrace to observe the sky. But the sky was clouded. But we did get a view of the Moon and Saturn. Everyone was amazed at the observing session. The commended my efforts and congratulated me. And believe me, they are very famous in their respective fields. Their words of appreciation filled up my heart with joy. As a matter of fact, they also invited me to host such an event elsewhere in West Bengal.

None in our centre got the time to breathe during the morning session. I completely forgot to take photos. Thankfully, the evening session was not as demanding. So I did manage to take photos a couple of times during the celebrity session. So here they are:

One of the celebrity guests watching the NASA DVD on Saturn. He is engrossed.
He is looking at the Moon through my Newtonian.

Another celebrity guest is looking at the Moon.

The IIT physicist is looking at the Moon and adjusting the telescope.

Three of the celebrity guests are captured in one frame.

Looking at Saturn.

And finally here's an image of what the Moon looked like in the clouded sky. The picture is not very good as I had no tripod.

And the parting shot...

Yeah, that's what the sky looked like. Sigh.

100 Hours of Astronomy: Day II

2009-04-08T15:00:00.002+05:30

3 April
The second day of the 100 Hours of Astronomy was not really satisfying for me as an event organiser in terms of public outreach.

I've already discussed my limitations as an organiser before. On this day, the limitations kind of started harming me as I had no access to the Internet (see the same post). As a result, I couldn't show the live webcast (from 80 telescopes all over the world) I promised my guests.

It was a bit disheartening to see so many people disappointed. But I had to go on. So, the second day was basically a rehash of Day I - Part 2. Number of attendees on Day II was higher than that of Day I. The participants were mostly adult. Accompanied by their guardians, some school students also came.

Save the initial disappointment, the programme was not bad at all. In fact, it was quite good. The DVD movie on Saturn didn't (thankfully) fail to charm them. I had many pictures and other videos on my computer. I used them too. The lectures, I am told, were "eye-opening" for many. Thank FSM they liked my lectures which, in my opinion, were not up to the mark.

The sky-watching session wasn't as good. The clouded sky, you know. The only objects we could observe were the Moon and Saturn. The general reaction was better than that of Day I.

So that was it. I can't remember anything special about Day II to write about.

P.S. I simply can't comprehend why so many people are afraid of being photographed. Whenever I took a photo, almost everyone asked me what I was going to do with it. When I said that the photo would be published on this blog, they refused vehemently. Why? They apparently had no objections to the photos. They read about the perils of posting photos on social-networking sites. They (politely) told me that they trusted me, but not the intentions of the people who would visit this blog. I was dying to tell them that, of all the fine pictures on the Internet, none would choose photos of a public astronomical event photos to send hatemails to the attendees or harm them in any possible way. And if this blog had any reader at all!

100 Hours of Astronomy: Day I - Part 2

2009-04-06T23:02:00.003+05:30

2 April
Oh, what a wonderful experience I had!

This was the first event for 100 Hours of Astronomy I organised for the public. (I did one before, but it was not open to the public.)

And it was brilliant.

The programme for this day was aimed at some students of a local school. The program was also open to some of their guardians. I persuaded those guardians for long before they finally allowed their children to come here.

The event started at 5 p.m. and it was supposed to continue till 9 p.m. But guess what, it continued till 11 p.m. I had no idea on how to show a webcast to the people. So the first event didn't have any webcast session.
When the students and some of their guardians arrived, I started showing them the DVD on Saturn I received from NASA. Forget the commentary, the spectacular images left them fascinated. Meanwhile, I told them briefly about the mission.

Next session was telescopic observation. It was even better. When I saw their expression after looking at the craters of the Moon, I felt that I too might have had the same expression on my face when I observed the Moon for the first time.

Meanwhile, I gave them lectures on the basics of astronomy. I tried not to focus on the recent researches as it would have definitely alienated them. My primary objective for this programme was to make them interested in astronomy. I used mythological references to make it easier for them to understand it. I also showed them Saturn. Imagine what their reactions would be on seeing the rings of Saturn!

The condition of the sky, however, somewhat betrayed me. Patches of clouds were frequently shielding the sky from our view. Only if the clouds had any power to curb our unending enthusiasm!

Reactions
I believe that's the most important part of any event. Public reactions are what can make such an event a success or a disaster. I needn't have included this section as it's fairly evident (in the previous passages) what the reactions are.

Of course, the students and the guardians gave a big thumbs-up to this event. They expressed their wish to know more about astronomy and wanted to be in touch with me.

Oh wait, a (only one) guardian was not very pleased with me because I, well, told them that Saturn is not a harmful planet at all. I also told them that the Moon and the planets have no effect of their daily lives. But this wasn't the first time I faced hostility for saying this. I have to bear this burden for the rest of my (event organiser) life.

But the rest readily accepted the truth. Some remained doubtful, but did not reject it either.

But I forget everything when I see those happy faces. That is what matters.

Server Not Found (or How My ISP Almost Destroyed the 1OO HA)

2009-04-04T10:20:00.002+05:30

This error message (and its variations like "The Page Cannot Be Displayed") irritates you and me, of course. But never before, I guess, this message has made me cry...well, almost.

That's what happened to me yesterday and the day before. Before I could submit my further plans for 3-5 April on the 100 Hours of Astronomy website, my truly great server went off. You may argue that reporting doesn't mean much (or anything at all) if I really celebrate the 100 Hours of Astronomy and reach out to everybody. And I'd agree with you, no doubt.

But there was one irreparable damage done. I invited a number of school students to my place on Friday. I promised everyone to show them live webcasts from various observatories across the globe. Alas, that didn't happen. I showed them the material I already had with me and gave them lectures on the basics of astronomy. Thankfully they went home satisfied. The sky in Kolkata is betraying me too. The night sky remains clouded, mostly. Also the waxing Moon is proving a bad thing for observation. (The sky looked something like the sky in the photo yesterday. It's not my photo, by the way.)

My job as an organiser of the 100 Hours of Astronomy isn't easy because I'm doing it on my own. I have no grand-scale club involved with me. I have to show people the sky with my limited number of telescopes. I have to show the films and webcasts with whatever limited resources (the Internet and my computer, to be more specific) I have. If those fail, I cannot but feel a little ashamed as I fail. If, and only if, an organisation with better resources were involved with me, I could have done this on a much bigger scale. How much better it'd have been if the webcasts and films were shown on multiplex screen and more telescopes were arranged! Sadly, I found no such organisation in Kolkata involved in this project.

Wait, I don't think I have the right to blame anybody. I guess I should have been more active in finding such resources. But I came to know about it too late for my good, thanks to my exams. But I discussed the importance of my exams before. So there's none to blame.

But am I failing to enjoy the 100 Hours of Astronomy? No way! Remember, it's about loving astronomy as a whole. And I do it.

Now that the Internet has come back, there's no stopping me. Till 5 April, 23:59:59.9999, I will continue what I am doing.

Meanwhile, I embed the webcast on my blog.

CONTACT ME THROUGH THE COMMENTS SECTION IF YOU WANT TO PARTICIPATE.

Considering the visibility of my blog, there's little chance that I'd ever get a comment. Sigh.

(Will post the event reports soon.)

100 Hours of Astronomy: Day I - Part 1

2009-04-02T12:37:00.000+05:30

What more can I say except that the very first hour of the 100 Hours of Astronomy was underwhelming for me?

I didn't really intend the first hour of 100 Hours of Astronomy to be like this. As you know, the 100 hours started from April 2. I wanted it to start with observing the sky through my telescopes. So I was there on my terrace with my two telescopes. The people I invited were there.

I scheduled an observation session from 00:01 to 01:01. But, alas, I was disappointed.

I was ready. I had everything ready. But something undesirable -- and also unchangeable -- happened. The weather in Kolkata proved a dampener for me. The sky was overcast! The red clouds created an impenetrable wall between the two of us -- the sky and yours truly. How much I loathe those red clouds!

But I was not completely disappointed. I did get a very faint and very brief view of Saturn. Just that, nothing else!

But astronomy isn't limited to observation. 100 Hours of Astronomy means the endless celebration of this branch of science, right? So who can possibly stop my celebration?

I will do more stuff today, involving even a greater number of people.

The celebration has begun. You better take part in it before it's too late.

[For more on this topic, click on the labels]

100 Hours of Astronomy: The Beginning

2009-04-02T07:28:00.002+05:30

Ah, it's begun. We have started celebrating!

As part of the International Year of Astronomy 2009 (IYA2009), astronomers worldwide have started celebrating 100 Hours of Astronomy.

Astronomers -- professional, amateur or otherwise -- and even astronomy-lovin' non-astronomers from almost every corner of the world are participating in this.

How proud I am to say that I started celebrating the 100 Hours of Astronomy before most people could. I have to thank the longitude of Kolkata for this.

I'll be organising various 100 Hours of Astronomy events here in Kolkata and around. I aim at reaching out to as many people as possible. I will be holding events at various locations, including schools. As a member of NASA's Saturn Observation Campaign, I will show films on the planet Saturn. It's also a great that Saturn can now be observed easily. And, of course, there's this telescopic event. I'll organise the events also a representative of Prof. Dhiranando Roy Study & Research Centre. I'll be holding events everyday there.

[Note: If you live in Kolkata and want to participate, please leave necessary details at the comments section of this page. Please provide your email.]

Coming up: DAY I - Part 1

2009: The Universe - Yours [and Mine] to Discover

2009-03-29T10:46:00.004+05:30

I couldn't have imagined before that the year 2009 would be so special for me.

It's been a roller-coaster ride for me already. I took my Board exams. My exams prevented me from doing what I liked, as I discussed in this post.

But it wasn't till my exams were over when I realised that there couldn't be a better year for the exams. I couldn't have got three long months for myself. Next couple of weeks, I believe, would enrich me with a number of remarkable experiences. I'd have been deprived of these extraordinary experiences if this were not 2009.

Why do I say so? Of course, you should know if you've looked at my profile!

2009 is the year of my love: Astronomy.

Yes, the UN declared 2009 to be the International Year of Astronomy (IYA2009), thus making it my year -- and the year of the millions who lose themselves in the sky. This is a year-long celebration which I wanted to join for long. And now, I officially take part in the jamboree that celebrates the triumph of science, the conquest of the unknown by human race and humanity itself. Yes, I use the word "humanity" as humanity and astronomy are so inter-related.

Some may question the significance of IYA2009. Yes, we, who worship science, (more specifically, astronomy) celebrate astronomy all our life. But this year is needed as we want to spread our madness among those who aren't crazy already.

We also need this this year to pay tribute to the man who revolutionized modern astronomy with exactly 400 years ago. We pay tribute to the man who faced the wrath of religion for simply stating what he saw. The man is Galileo Galilei (in picture, in case you didn't know already) who touched the sky with his new eye -- the eye which we call telescope.

No, not only Galileo, we also celebrate the intelligence of extraordinary minds (from all over the world) who made astronomy what it is now. They also made us what we are now.

This year is specifically mine in another way. This year, India is going to see a Total Solar Eclipse after a long time in July. This is the first TSE in India after I became seriously involved with astronomy.

So you've understood why this year is mine. This year can be yours too, if you join the craze.

I'll be discussing astronomy all along the year (of course, it doesn't stop on 31 December). I'll try to popularize astronomy more than I ever did. I will kick-start this event on the 2nd of April by hosting 100 Hours of Astronomy, a programme scheduled to take place during 2-5 April. It's also a part of IYA2009. The details of my plans should be up soon.

Also visit my astronomy-specific blogs:
1) Night Sky Fanatics (observation blog)
2) Go to Space (news blog)
[Some of the contents from these two blog will also be posted here.]

For now:

The Universe - Yours to Discover

I'm a Big Idiot

2009-03-27T20:17:00.001+05:30

Yes, I am. Indeed. Forsooth.

The way I have messed up with my Internet browser proves that I'm nothing short of an idiot. I've been cursing myself since I did this.

Here's what I did:
Till Wednesday, I had Internet Explorer 7 running on my computer. Then I got to know that IE8 was released. I didn't care to look at any reviews or bloggers' reactions. I was informed that it was "fast," "compatible," and who-knows-what-else. Then I downloaded IE8. It was pretty fine until I (in my infinite wisdom) decided to uninstall IE7 before installing IE8. And boy, what a wonderful decision it was!

IE8 was slow in my computer and I decided to revert to IE7 at once. Then I uninstalled IE8. Meanwhile, I may have messed up with a thing or two. Now neither IE7 nor IE8 can be installed on my computer on account of "Cryptographic Service errors" and "Win32 generic host" stuff.

Now I've definitely reverted. To IE6. I don't know what I should do now. I'm so put off.

O' course, I'm an Idiot (with a capital I).

Now there's something coming up which can actually cheer me up. Watch out...

Do You Want to See a Bloodless Kill Bill?

2009-03-24T21:43:00.003+05:30

For those who want to, here's this for you.

I'm writing this as PIX shows both the volumes of the spectacular Kill Bill. I am not watching, though. I like both the movies a lot, but (you won't believe this) I can't watch the [extremely] violent scenes. I know they're completely comical and all, but I don't have the stomach to digest some particular scenes from Kill Bill as the IMDb describes. It's not that I have anything against this superbly stylised movie by Tarantino. By "violent scenes", I mean these hand-slicing, eye-squishing ones, of which I've only heard, but never seen. So whenever it's aired on TV, I skip most of "The Showdown at the House of Blue Leaves" (Vol. 1) and "Elle and I" (Vol. 2). I think I will be able to digest 'em, someday. I love "The Cruel Tutelage of Pai-Mei." Just look how hilarious Pai-Mei is in this video, which, I think, is one of the best creative works I've ever seen on YouTube.

For now, enjoy.

Ringing Out the Old

2009-03-21T22:54:00.004+05:30

I realised only now that it's been two weeks since my last post. How could I not blog for two weeks?

Then again, I haven't really blogged since....,well, I don't remember. It may also be the exam hangover -- for the lack of a better word -- which prevents me from writing.

All these days, my life's been pretty irregular. Reading books, surfing the Net and spending "quality time" with the family kept me engaged and made me forget blogging.

[In an earlier draft of this post, I wrote a lot of stuff on The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Then, bless my unlimited wisdom, the title of the post made me aware of the fact that I was writing about something different. Then I deleted all that I had written and started afresh. What a brilliant(ly bad) blogger I am! No?]

On the 8th of this month, I woke up at 8:30 in the morning. The morning filled me with a new kind of joy (the joy of the marriage mentioned in the last post) and refreshed me. I could not but be gay (yep! The Daffodils is one of my favourite Wordsworth poems.) as this was the first morning after ages which didn't greet me with the tension for the Board exams.

Little did I know that ten minutes later I would be overcome with a sadness for the very reason which gave me joy. When I went near my study-table I found my parents gathering all my books of IX- X in a corner.

Father was removing all my text-books and stuff from my shelf (he wasn't throwing it away) and carrying it away to our library (which is located elsewhere in our house). He was "freeing" my shelf for other books to occupy them. I must tell you that I haven't yet got "other books" i.e. textbooks of XI. Why read them now when I have so many other "other books" i.e. stories to read? So my favourite fictions occupy the shelf now and will continue to do so, at least, till I am admitted to class XI, probably in June. But that's not the point. Lemme get there.

Never in my wildest dreams did I think that I'd actually feel sad to part with my text-books of IX-X. For two years, those books frightened me and almost enveloped me like an octopus.Before my exams all I wanted was to get rid of them as soon as possible.

Then why did it hurt me when I was getting rid of them? Why did I feel sad when I realised that I'd never make notes of the pages and underline important sentences? Did the books anyhow became a part of me without my knowledge or realisation? Was it that I started loving them while disliking them?

These are the questions which I asked myself for the past few days.

Another question bugs me: Can I actually avoid these feelings ever in my life? You don't have an answer, do you? Nor do I.

I know that we must "Ring in the new/ Ring out the old." But doesn't this ringing-out-the-old gives us the "grief that saps the mind," sometimes? Oh, we have to ring that out too.

Marriage Time... Again

2009-03-07T19:00:00.004+05:30

Oh! Finally, the day has come.

Finally I'll be able to marry. Again.

Why again?

A prolonged -- almost perpetual -- wait separated me from the one I married...long ago. (Both of us met, but very infrequently. We spent very little time with each other.)

Yes, I am meeting The One again.

Today, at 3 pm, I reunited with the one.

Today I married my older self...again.

Yeah, yeah, yeah! I know it was not a great kind of introduction. But then, how else can I express what I am feeling...now? Lemme come to the point. Today was the last day of my Board Exams (Madhyamik or Secondary, to be more accurate) and I can't simply express the jubilation that fills my heart.

I took the examination today on Mechanics (Optional Elective). According to the new system formulated by the West Bengal Board of Secondary Education, this subject is of no importance. This is a very student-friendly move. Though I studied Mechanics thoroughly, the new system allowed me to spend more time with the compulsory subjects. But the examination today was great, to say the least. The question paper was pretty easy.

The Board had done away with the aggregate marking system. Gradation (for every subject) has been introduced this year. That's not a bad thing.

Speaking of other subjects, every paper (Bengali, English, History, Geography, Biology, Physical Science, Maths) was fine. Every question in every paper was set in the exactly the way I wanted. I don't know how it happened. Even the unexpected questions were quite easy. The questions being easy, it was great to take the exams.

(If possible, I will discuss again about the exams and the overall experience later)

Now I have to wait to see what result my efforts have produced.

On my to-do list:
1) Marriage with the other self. That is, following my passion (astronomy, writing blogs, reading book and most importantly, spreading my wings)
2) same...same

The first book I will read now: The Hobbit

I know it's a shame not to have read it. But this book (as well as The Lord of the Rings and Midnight's Children, also on the to-read list) has been gathering dust on my bookshelf since August. I promised to myself that I wouldn't touch them before March 7.

My brain is being choked by an enormous amount of thoughts. I need to give it a break.

More talk later.

I have to reunite with The One. Now.

The Presidential Experience

2008-10-14T23:03:00.000+05:30

[I know it's a tad too late to post this, but I had to! Currently I am under a lot of pressure created by a huge syllabus for the final Board exams of class X. So blogging is an activity I am trying to avoid. So, not surprisingly, I am probably the only person ever to visit this blog. This is probably (or rather, this is) the final blogpost from me this year.]

[play the video to see photographs]

So, the D-Day finally arrived.

And what a day it was!

Strangely, on June 10, 2007, exactly a year before The Day, I didn't even imagine that such a day would ever come in my life.

And on a sunny January day it was confirmed that I was going to be awarded by H. E. The President of the Republic of India! This very thought sent shivers down my spine.

The experience at the Rashtrapati Bhawan (where I was accompanied by my parents and sister) on June 10, was, in real sense, an out-of-the-world experience. There is much to be told about the wonderful experience I had there. However, in this post, I will only narrate my interaction with the President herself.

I started getting goose bumps just a couple of seconds before my name was announced. Then, ah, finally, as soon as I heard the words Master, Upamanyu and Moitra, the fact that I was supposed to get up from my seat hit me like a ton of bricks.

I don't know how I walked up to the particular carpet I was supposed to stand on without losing my nerve (if you haven't already conjectured, let me tell you that I was very nervous). I was about five metres away from the President. I folded my hands and smiled at her and she did the same to me. As the announcers read out my citation, I thought that I was going to faint. It may seem a bit exaggerated now, but believe me, that was the exact condition of my mind at that particular moment.

Then I heard the words Master, Upamanyu and Moitra once more and I knew the time came. My heart was beating very fast as I reached the podium and I was sure that I wound stumble. But, thankfully, I walked up to the podium without committing any of the dreadful things I had imagined.

After reaching the podium, I touched her feet and she touched my head and blessed me. Then she asked me some questions while giving away the citation, plaque and the KVP. I was the only Bengali and, of course, the only one from West Bengal to receive the Honour in the field of Creative Scientific Innovations. She talked a lot with me. She asked me: 1) which state I was from, 2) which city I came from, 3)what my field of interest in science was, 4)which my favourite subject was, 5)what I did in that field of science, 6)what I wanted to become in future. I replied to all her questions enthusiastically and she also listened to all my answers very attentively. She talked to me for more than a minute.

Then I posed for photographs with her. And I walked back to my seat with a very different state of mind. At that point of time, I was awed and excited. I just talked to the President of India!

The most fascinating this about this interaction was that, of all the recipients, she talked to me for the longest duration. You may think that I am bragging or lying, but believe me, this is the truth! Even the Security Officers at the Rashtrapati Bhawan confirmed this when they asked me why I took so long on the podium and what conversation we had.

So, that's it!

As I have said before, there is much to be said about the extraordinary experience I had at the Rashtrapati Bhawan. But sadly, I cannot afford the time now. The experience was very rich and needs to be detailed. I just can't write two lines and leave it at that. But it's still very vivid in my memory and I assure you that I will write another post and share that experience, of course, in neither-so-near-and-nor-too-far future.

I also assure you that you won't get a post from me till, at the very least, March 7, 2009. That's the day I will (once again) spread out my wings since that's another D-Day for me. (Do I really need telling that that's the day my exams will be over?)

[Note: I will not visit the blog very often. So the comments may not appear for a while as I have comment moderation activated. But don't hesitate to comment.]

Thanks!

... And the Head is Held High

2008-06-29T14:41:00.002+05:30

Is there any specific reason I've christened my blog after my favourite Tagore poem (Chitto jetha bhoyshoonya)? The answer is unknown to me as well. This, I think, is enough to indicate that this blog will feature my random ramblings more than anything else. You may very well understand that this post isn't my introductory post so much as the articulation of my intensely personal feelings.

Though I am very fond of science as a subject, I can't deny that I love, love, love writing. I admit that I get a bit (yeah, a bit!) bored after writing for long. But writing gives me a particular kind of pleasure nothing else can. I am better at writing without a specific purpose (what that means is not even clear to me) than with a particular aim. I mean, I'm much better at articulating my thoughts than writing traditional high school essays.

So, I start blogging. No, actually, it's not the first time I'm blogging. I maintain a lot of blogs (see profile). But they are only science-related. Through this blog I will share my personal experiences and thoughts with you. Occasionally (and, perhaps, rarely), I will blog just because I want to talk only to myself. Some posts will appear like pages from my very personal diary. So, am I self-indulgent? I don't really know.

But the sole reason that fascinates me about blogging is interacting with readers. Even if I'm writing a post too personal, I love to talk to my readers. I want to know about their reaction to my posts. That's certainly one of the best things blogging offers. To me, blogging is a way to broaden the Inner Eye. (Is that too philosophical?)

So, here I begin the absolutely wonderful journey of blogging. I will be very, very irregular thanks to my studies. Feel free to write to me and do share your thoughts with me.

This isn't a Welcome Post, I know. But everyone is welcome to this blog. I conclude by saying that this blog is such a place

WHERE the mind is without fear and the head is held high