Mission Accomplished

I came to India almost five months back, fuzzy-headed, confused, looking for direction and a welcome break from the six-and-half years of mechanical existence in the US. I did not know what to expect from India. India had changed in many ways from the time I left for US in 2001.

The India I left was struggling in many areas even though software and IT sectors were doing good. Life was starting to get better for the people employed in the IT industry but others went about their lives the usual way with the familiar attitude.

The India I returned to is full of energy and enthusiasm and is bubbling with hope. I witnessed the launch of the Tata Nano, world's cheapest car. The self-confidence and the can-do-never-give-up attitude of the people is contagious and amazing. People it seems are itching to change the system and the way of doing things, and they are now courageous enough to be the starting point for the change they want to bring about. New ideas are welcome in India and a lot of young people are taking the entrepreneurship route to success and change.

What has touched me most is the blend of old-world charm and the new-found desire for change. The ancient Indian tradition laid emphasis on honoring the guest 'Athithi Devo Bhava' - your guest is like God. Most people are very warm, helpful and friendly and maintain the ancient tradition of honoring the guest . Ofcourse, we all come across and read about nasty incidents, but overall the majority of people are nice and are willing to extend a helping hand sometimes without you asking. I have had wonderful experience while travelling in trains and buses.

I don't know how many people feel this way but I feel there lies a sense of peace beneath the chaos of external material life in India. People are in general happy and content with life here. In the US, I always felt a sense of chaos and fear beneath the perfection of the external material life. There everyone seems to be in a rush to head somewhere.

Now once again, I find myself at the crossroads :). I have found what I was looking for in India. I feel a sense of completion to my trip to India. I now want to move forward from here, but don't know where. As always, I believe with time I will have all the answers and life will lead me to my next destination.

IPL Rocks - Now lets extend it to other sports!

IPL is a great idea. Eight cricket leagues (teams), comprising established and well-known Indian and international cricketers and new comers, are scheduled to play 59 T20 format games among themselves. Thanks to IPL, there is something exciting to look forward to on TV that is full of repetitive reality shows and boring soaps. IPL is a great way to boost cricket in India. It provides an avenue to lesser known cricketers to show their talent, to earn good money and to mingle with the senior players. IPL seems like a win-win situation for all, though some people argue that IPL is destroying the essence of cricket. Like everything, cricket needs to evolve with time, and T20 format is a welcome change. After all, who has the patience to keep track of a 5-day test-match or spend a day tracking a 50 over match. We definitely need to preserve tradition, so test-matches and one -day international matches must stay. But blaming T20 for destroying the spirit of cricket does not seem fair.

Going a step further, why not have IPL like leagues for other sports in the country such as track&field, hockey, swimming, badminton, lawn-tennis etc somewhat similar to NCAA in the US. Such leagues will definitely benefit the sports culture in India, give an opportunity to sportsmen to earn money, recognition and experience. Though these IPL or NCAA like leagues for other sports may not be as lucrative as cricket, but in order to boost the sports culture in our country, we need to start somewhere, and forming leagues for all sports may just be the right answer to boost the sports culture. Almost every Indian wishes for more Olympic medals coming to India, and the sports enthusiasts here go into mourning after every Olympic games.
Olympics come and go, but India's medal-tally never seems to go beyond three. And it seems unlikely if the situation would ever change.

How can the medals come when there is no active promotion of sports besides cricket in India? Forming commercial leagues for other sports and actively marketing them may be the first-step towards more Olympic medals. But would there be any takers?