gadfly

Unprecedented is the word to describe the way TVK stormed into power  in Tamil Nadu  – some might even say crawled into it with the help of other parties in a post-poll alliance - supposedly a state with a progressive mindset, only in comparison with the dismal records of other states. While change is permanent and welcome, the aura built around an individual is a serious cause for alarm. What propelled him to power is not necessarily the misgovernance of the past government, but rather the cult carefully developed around him. Let me decode some of the traits of a cultic figure and impending disaster for all. 1. It’s all about me, and I can make no mistake This, in a way, is a variant of narcissism. Self-obsession and invincibility are dangerous traits in any leader. From the start, Mr Joseph Vijay has consistently manifested a narcissistic tendency in his dealings. He declared that people should consider him as if he were a candidate in all the constituencies. It was ridiculo...

The election results in five states and a union territory are quite shocking in India, especially those of Tamil Nadu. Three sitting Chief Ministers – Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and West Bengal, who championed the cause of federalism in trying times - have lost their own constituencies, not because there was any palpable anger simmering against them! Let me refrain from commenting on a process so dubious for all to see. I assume, for a moment, the process is fine. Political parties vie for power, and it’s normal to lose. However, whom do people en masse choose? What has shocked, rather, is the kind of celebration among the young not only in Tamil Nadu but also in Sri Lanka. Having been in Sri Lanka and having become closely associated with students, I feel sorry to see the kind of celebration. Don’t we need to care about youth in Tamil Nadu? We have to. But for a long time, academic campuses across Tamil Nadu cultivated uncritical youth addicted to cinema. Every institute of higher learning s...

  “The Little Prince” by Antoine de Saint-Exupery is a beautifully enchanting story that I've just had the pleasure of reading for the first time this year- something I've been wanting to do for quite a while! I'm happy I started the new year with this lovely tale. It begins with the idea that “All grown-ups were once children,” setting the stage for a charming adventure. The story follows an aviator who unexpectedly crosses paths with the Little Prince, a little traveller from his tiny asteroid B-612, after the Prince finds himself stranded in the vast Sahara. Curious and longing for home, the Prince embarks on a journey that takes him across the universe- visiting a wide array of fascinating characters: an emperor with no subjects, a proud man craving admiration, a drunkard hiding his shame, a businessman eager to own the stars, a geographer who's never explored his own world but wants accuracy, and a lamp lighter forever burdened by his duties on a spinning planet th...

As the year winds down, I feel immensely thankful for what I've learned. A year is nothing but a calculation. In itself, it makes no difference. Days move on, waiting for what we need or do not need to do. All the same, meaning-making is a process of engaging with time productively. I stopped making resolutions for important occasions because I find it disheartening to know that I failed miserably at keeping them. On entering 2025, I had no particular resolution, save that to complete my PhD at the earliest. As I am an expert at failing to keep resolutions, this year too, on hindsight, my resolution to complete most of my research work remains incomplete! There is a happy side to it. I began reading, besides works related to my research and some magazine stuff, books that I picked up by chance or on recommendation. If you are still reading this scribbling, it is not a recommendation list on book-reading! I found them engaging, transforming, challenging, and, at times, sad-making. H...

  எழுத்துகளில் தான் எத்தனை உணர்வுகள். கடந்து வந்த பாதை யாருக்கும் அவ்வளவு மென்மையாக இருந்துவிடவில்லை என்பது தான் எதார்த்தம். நினைவுகளின் அசைவுகளில் தான் வாழ்க்கை பல தருணங்களில் இனிக்கவும் கசக்கவும் செய்கிறது. நினைவுகளின் அன்புக்குரியவர்களோ நாம் சிறிதும் வாழ்க்கையில் எதிர்பார்த்திராதவர்கள். ஏன், நம்மால் துவக்கத்தில் புரிந்துகொள்ளப்படாதவர்களாகவுமே இருக்க செய்கிறார்கள். மஜீதும், சுகாறாவும் வாசகனின் கண்களை குளமாக்கும் கதாபாத்திரங்கள். பால்ய காலத்தின் நட்புக்கு ஈடேது! “நாம வளந்திருக்கவே கூடாது. வளர்ந்துவிட்டதால்தானா சோகங்களும் ஆசைகளும் உருவாயின”? என்ற சுகாறாவின் வார்த்தைகளில் எவ்வளவு அர்த்தம். “மனிதர்கள் எல்லா இடங்களிலுமே ஒரேபோல்தான் மொழியிலும் உடையிலும் மட்டும்தான் வேறுபாடு. எல்லாருமே, ஆண் பெண்... பிறந்து, வளர்ந்து,  இணைசேர்ந்து உற்பத்தியைப் பெருக்கி... பின்பு, மரணம். அவ்வளவுதான்!” என்று தேசாந்திரியான மஜீதின் மனக்குரலில் வெளிப்படுகிறது வாழ்வின் எதார்த்தம். அழகும் அமைதியும் பொதிந்த வாழ்க்கையென்று ஒன்றில்லை. வறுமையின் கொடுமையிலும் நினைவுகள் ஊடாக மகிழ முடியும், மகிழ்விக்க முடியும். வ...

As a boy witnessing a drunkard’s antics on a day-to-day basis in the street was our unfortunate lot. Every evening his drunkenness was on full display. Seldom did he go sober. His schedule during the day was idle talk, playing cards and in the evening drinking and wife-beating. The poor woman earned her living through hard labour in the fields and a bottle for her sadistic ‘husband.’ In our neighbourhood, everyone felt sorry for her yet it was commonly held that it was their family affair. Now and then, someone witnessing extreme cruelty stepped in only to hear the drunkard - even while intoxicated - that he could do anything to his wife and none have the right to question him. Normally, the kind-hearted ‘man’ - I say ‘man’ because women hardly came ‘out’ to see the spectacle - used to leave the spot knowing well further intervention would worsen the situation as drunkard’s next line of attack would be ‘what is between you and my wife?’ Wait a minute, I forgot to mention that he was ex...