Go ask WHY ?: Bhavi Barad

It is believed that when a child is born, he is born with all the intelligence. The world he sees growing up is something different from his own eyes. He is born with his own talent, abilities and most importantly 'questions' for us. It is also said that, "Every child is born with all sorts of inquisitiveness in him." But the thing that makes me wonder is, why can't we say "Every adult grows up with the same inquisitiveness he is born with." ? Because that is not universally true. Right? O'come on, how many of us raise the same number of questions and with the same type of mindset like the way we used to when we were little kids? Hardly a few. 

It is a bit difficult to figure out the exact reasons for a child's lost level of inquisitiveness, but still a few are playing an important role in killing all the innocence and intelligence by suppressing a young child's questions. It does happen that a child who is all playful and outgoing in his childhood becomes all timid and quiet in his teenage. Yes, hormones do play an important role. But I'd say not every time. The environment a child is brought up in also plays an important role. Your behaviour towards him, towards others, towards yourself is being carefully observed by your child. In Fact, not only your own child but even other children are getting to know about you some or the other way. A child's questions are answered by all the parents, no doubt, in fact that how we get to know the world, but the real question is 'are all the questions a child raises answered?' The answers for this would be:-

1:- Obviously No. Sabhi sawalo ka jawab thodi hota hai. Hum bhagwan toh nahi hai.

(I would say.. it is because of the questions that weren't answered in your childhood. Because if you give such a vague answer in today's tech-driven world, you definitely need to explore your smart phone!)

2:- Somebody might say a Yes. And they would assure us they answer everything their child asks and in fact they would also do some research and get back to their child with answers when they themselves don't know about it.

(I would say...Excellent. Good going!)

See, I don't say parents don't want to answer their little child's questions, it becomes a headache for them only when they are asked in some weird situations. For an instance, we avoid some cliche queries of our child in public/ in a social gathering. We try to avoid the child's questions sometimes because we don't want to look foolish or uninformed in front of them by telling them we don't know the answer. But we shouldn't forget that just because we don't have an answer to the child's question doesn't mean the question doesn't have an answer. It does but it needs to be discovered. How can we forget, when we are all stressed out, our tiny little toddler's touch, his/her smile would make us all fresh and energetic but if, when the same toddler grows up a little and comes up with questions in the same situations, we might drive him away or divert his attention. Why so? Such little things haven't even noticed by us. But they are all being captured in the child's mind. We all grown ups need somebody to talk with, where we can share all that we feel. Right? It is human nature after all. A child is also in search of that 'somebody' where he can get his answers, 'somebody' who listens, 'somebody' who is attentive towards him/her.

It is also said, "Never let that little child in you, die." It is true. Because every single thought, revolution, change was brought only when a question was raised. I don't say 'Go. Be a revolutionist.' No, but don't we know change is inevitable? We change every second, every minute. New cells are born whether old ones die. Same has to be with our thoughts too. It has to stay updated. It has to be nourished. How long have you been suppressing your questions on your own inside your mind just because of the fear what others would say/think about you? Being diverted from the questions that you raised in your childhood is not your fault, but due to fear if you let that little child in you die then, my dear, you are at fault. "Ask yourself, What would you do if you weren't afraid, and go do that."

Politics: A dirty game?: Heer Vaghela

Politics, in India the word itself is considered as an abusive word . Well  the youth  of India has one basic and simple view point which is that politics=corruption, power game and scandals. Being sarcastic; if you are in Indian politics there could be two reasons either your forefather's were in same or you are shameless. for some it is a piece of a cake and some a smart business.  youth today is not interested as they see no scope for any improvement .  the lack of knowledge about the democratic system affects here youth being ignorant seem to have no or very less knowledge about Indian politics. 

Black pamphlets, this documentary movie showed insights of campus politics. Well if we see, the student elections should be decent and should provide a platform for the development of new leaders with new and novel ideas and transparency, but it has turned out to be a war. All sorts of crime can be seen, plus the main issue  which is to clear the problems of the students on campus level; to focus on the development of the youth and to give exposure is left far behind. Everyone is just after the chair, the presentation to impress and in this race they just want to win either by hook or crook. The money wasted in such useless presentation is another big issue. 

But the bigger issue is  the goons from where all this power comes, these goons are encouraged by the the political parties and any political party is not concerned with youth development they just want their power and the puppet youth leader with no knowledge. While at the same time the educated youth amongst them, some are really trying to work for the better future and some are just sitting back and watching drama. And after that complaining about the system. Well it's very simply said by PLATO, "One of the penalties of not participating in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors." Thus I have come to the conclusion that politics is a serious matter to be left in the hands of politicians.

Youth and Politics: Reuben Mathew

According to Google,” politics is the activities associated with the governance of a country or area, especially the debate between parties having power or the activities aimed at improving someone's status or increasing power within an organization.” The definition which has been mended by us is,” Politics is the activity aimed at achieving more than nominal status or power with the help of governance of a country or area.” This is the ideology that runs around in the mindset of the youth. As we could notice from the film, the students were less than concerned to participate or even wonder about how the student elections could produce an effect. 

They were not bothered by the power display of either of the contesting parties. Politics has been juxtaposed with hooliganism and a struggle for attaining power and fame. Yes! This is how I think currently.

I tend to disassociate myself from politics, be it taking up a leadership or playing games in order to attain favor. But there comes a catch when suddenly a session can change your way of thinking. Does discussion create a platform for us to act in the future? Can acknowledging viewpoints help broaden our database? The answers could vary. Honestly, even I am confused to pick a side. But I can certainly agree that the first step is the most crucial step as it is the foundation for further acts. So maybe discussion about politics or changing our definition of politics can help change the harsh and brutal reality that is attached to it. “They peg me to be all bark and no bite, but when my bark itself can be so tight, you, Sir, will already be out of my sight.”  

About the author: Reuben is a Second year student of Psychology who wants to make a mark in the society. He is a fresh fellow at the current batch of Sauhard Social Fellowship. He is keenly interested to work for children who are specially able.  

Are we really EDUCATED? : Shubham Malpani

Yes, this question constantly revolves in my mind that are we really getting educated.

Let me share an incident with you. One night, I was just hanging around with my friend who is also pursuing CA. We were talking about future prospects, belief in the institution of marriage, etc.

In the conversation, he said something which astounded me completely and I felt extremely miserable.

He said, " as I complete my CA I would become a brand in the society and would be able to demand as much dowry as I want in the future. My father always say that you are my blank cheque." He said this with sheer pride in his eyes and self esteem in his body language. He also said that this was one of the reason why he was pursuing CA. After hearing this I felt ashamed and embarrassed.

Now, I want to ask that is this the way an 18 year youth should think who is seeking the most prestigious and sought after professional degree in the field of commerce in the country?

What is the meaning of people like them to get education? Is this only what education is meant to be? Not just that, most people think of education as a mere source of income in future which would be able to hold their stomach throughout their life. Yes, I agree that earning money should be one of the purpose to get education but it should not be the only reason for education. You won't be earning money just like that. In return, you will have to give something in return to the society in terms of services.

Our mind and soul should evolve as we are in the process of getting education. What is the meaning of study when we still stick to the old ideas of the society. We should have a clarity that education should always change the perspective and vision of a person. For eg., irrespective of how much we criticize the reservation quotas in our country, when we meet people and get to know their names and surnames, the first thing that the minds of most of us wonder is "to which caste does he belong"

Why do we think that? I don't think that caste should become the basis of our decision making of moving ahead in a relationship or not if we are so reproachful to caste reservation quotas in our country.

We are the ones who are educated and have the responsibility to bring about the change.Just be the change you want to see in this world. The aim of our life is not just earn, spend and die. World is so beautiful, the aim should be to make it even more beautiful and better place to live in. Beauty has no limit. Change is always hard at first, messy in the middle but it's always gorgeous at the end. If change is for the betterment of yourself or just the betterment of your own life, FIGHT.

Fight with your parents. Had the every generation of mankind followed the instructions of their parents blindly, our society wouldn't have developed and evolved this much.

We need to be more responsible because we are young and educated minds of our country.That which liberates is knowledge. It's just a matter of thinking. This micro level activity can definitely bring an optimistic transformation in the perspective of education and the society as a whole in the country.

Parzania – A Black Reminder: Shalkie

The piquancy of storytelling resides in the degree to which you have raised emotions in your audience, and when that movie comes out to be a grim reminder of our existence in the savage society, among the savage coalitions, their savage members and their savage deeds, then emotions are bound to be felt.

Parzania is one such movie based on the backdrop of 2002 Godhra Riots. It tells the story of a Parsi family who were caught in the mayhem of violence and how it led to the loss of their family member, disrupted their lives and gave them a false ray of hope to survive on. It vividly describes the torments on the people of a Muslim neighborhood including inhuman violent massacre, forced immolations, boycott by police and whatever your scariest nightmare may define. So when this film was screened in one of our sessions, teary eyes, soft whimpering, running noses, scarcity of water bottles, and consoling hugs could be observed all over the room. The emotions that were felt, couldn’t be described, the war in the name of religions did not make sense, the question that haunted was whether humanity existed at all, and if it did then who and when had placed it so below in the hinted hierarchy.

The haunting silence of the room was broken by Rafi Malek sir; he led the post screening discussion on Communal Riots in India. He talked about the coinage of the term ‘Hindutva’, how starkly it differed from ‘Hinduism’ and also about the core ideologies of these Hindu nationalist groups in India. To have been the researcher and the activist on the same subject of communal riots, he gave us the flabbergasting details on how ‘unreligious’ the motives are behind these ‘religious’ wars. Statistics indicate how some of these riots are the manipulated shape of rivalry between local goons, how the rioters are mainly composed of disoriented men from lower castes and thus how such barbaric events tend to repeat its history. This discussion saw lots of queries and an insight from young minds also it empowered one such member to make his words count among the rest.

The events of Godhra have been deep etched into the history and the tremors of it can still be felt. With rooted involvements of prominent figures from political and administration background, it has been one of the most disgusted evidence of the genocidal approach towards one of the most prominent segment of our country. The three day long period starting from the morning of 27^th February, saw humanity in pitch dark and what followed is now a grim reminder that how Gandhi was once pushed out of his own land.

Religion is one, But Religions are Many: Mehreen Quadri

Hinduism, Islam, Christianity; are these Religions chosen by a child when she is in her mother’s womb? Does choosing any of these religions give a perfect identity to an individual?

Religion was initially introduced as an easy way to worship the supernatural power. The one and only one God. God could never have been more than one, if such a thing would happen, then why wouldn't the Gods create their own world? Why would the different Gods send their worshipers only to one world for spreading terror and fights for the so-called ‘God-worshiping’ religion? The multifaceted God, has different appearances, but the people worshiping him, having the same body cannot be together or even tolerate each other.

Religion is one, but it has a large variety because of the different geographical and social situations. Religion was just a way of spreading faith, trust and love for the Almighty, but  people used and abused religion for their own benefit. Communal violence, frightening riots, honor killing- all these terrifying  events are not a result of diverse religions, but are done in the ‘name’ of religion.

Tall and short, black and white, women and men, if there is so much diversity in the human race, diversity in religion is bound to happen. What is required the tolerance, acceptance and respect towards other religions.

Differences in religion our made by God. If the “religious” people worship their God, they need to learn how approve the diversity created by him.

People of today’s era have made the olden traditions, the Religion of today. The crux of every religion has lost its identity today. The crux is- Unity, Equality, Non violence, Friendship, Brotherhood. The Crux is same to all the religious books, but it is just not reflected in the people studying these books. The crux makes all religions one, people make it many. 

Human Rights: For Common People or for the Goons?: Mehreen Quadri

RIGHTS: the Principles of Freedom. Human Rights are gifted by the world to a child born in any part of the world- the Country which has accepted the Rights laid down by the United Nations. Human Rights are such Rights which are common to everyone-the common man and the powerful one, female and male, young or old, normal or abnormal; under all circumstances.

India, has also accepted the Human Rights. The citizens of India have been given the Right to use any of the human Rights. Few of the human Rights included in the Indian constitution are: Equality to all, non discrimination, gender equality and freedom of expressing one’s opinion.

Are we really free? Do we really have the Right to express whatever we feel? Are we actually allowed to use various forms of expression to express our opinion? Being an Indian, and knowing the reality of the society, we can frankly answer all of these questions.  Candle march, writing articles, putting our opinions on social networking sites, performing theater and making a movie on the topics we wish to- all these are our Rights but they are exploited on a great margin.

Safdar: A documentary on the legend Safdar Hashmi- a communal playwright, lyricist, director and famous for his contribution to the street theater. He went from place to place: villages, cities, different organizations, for spreading awareness and making people realize the importance of peace and brotherhood. Wasn’t this his Right? Was it against the law? On January 1, 1989, Safdar Hashmi was performing a street play in a village near Delhi, where he was stopped and brutally beaten by the goons of a political party. On the next day, he died at the age of 34.

The entire nation was moved and shocked with grief watching this non violent man, killed by violence. He was a man whom the entire nation adored and loved. If such a violation of law can happen with a man like him, what could we say about the common man? Are these human Rights only limited to the powerful leaders and their goons? Does the common man have no Right over them?

Rights are not for exploitation. Rights are minimum standards what a person deserves. People committing crimes like small robbery or cutting animals are putting behind the bars, but what about those who steal the essence of humanity and cut apart the human? more on mental level rather than physical.