Disclaimer: This article will not make you a rocket scientist. Nor will it unveil the secrets of the universe. Or give you a concise history of the space program. Space, in the words of Douglas Adams, is ‘vastly, hugely, mind- bogglingly big’. And so is the history of the human space program.

We know you heard. They just bombed the moon for water. And found another giant ring around Saturn. And you’re wondering…who are ‘they’? And why should you care?

Every adult, at some point during his/her childhood, has wished to be an astronaut. (It is a fact - check statistics.com* . Those who’ve never made such a wish are probably liars). Ever since Galileo got tired of spying on his neighbors in 1609 through his telescope and decided to turn the lens to the heavens instead, we became aware of other earth-like planets and hills and craters on our very own moon. And the human understanding of space was changed forever. Four hundred years later, the wonders of space continue to inspire and excite generations, geeks, and of course, governments.

The first thing you should learn is that governments love acronyms. Especially if they have anything to do with space. The two important acronyms you must learn right away in order to make any sense of what this article is about, are:

i) NASA

and

ii) ISRO

It all started in 1957, with the world’s first satellite, Sputnik, being launched into space by the Soviet Union. The United States, threatened by this demonstration of another country’s power and technology, transformed its federal agency NACA – the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, into NASA, its national space agency. NASA stood for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (and not ‘North America South America’ as both authors intuitively thought when they were children). The agency marked the beginning of a ‘space race’ between the Soviet Union and the United States.

Losing that first round to the Soviets caused the United States to pour a lot of money into the space program. Since then, NASA has pioneered space exploration, sending intelligent machinery on grand tours of the solar system[1], landing on asteroids[2] and chasing comets[3], making it possible for humans in white bubble suits to float in zero gravity 200 kilometers over the earth’s surface[4], and play golf on the moon. Although it started as a political competition to prove the nation’s superiority in space, NASA soon became synonymous with the most fantastic kind of exploration humans had ever been involved in. Starting with Project Mercury in 1958 which tried to determine if humans could survive in space, and moving on to the Apollo missions which landed man on the moon, NASA has more than proved that neither does the earth rest on the back of a giant turtle, nor is there a hare in the moon.

Unmanned spacecraft have explored places where humans cannot hope to get within a thousand miles of without undergoing spontaneous evaporation or combustion. We know what rings around Saturn look like, thanks to the Cassini spacecraft which is still orbiting it. We know the surface of Mars intimately now, because of the rovers which NASA engineers control. Imagine sitting in the driver’s seat in Los Angeles and driving your car which is parked in New York 4000 km away. Now increase the distance to 55 million km, and you know that driving those rovers is no joke. Four great telescopes are constantly increasing scientists’ undertanding of the universe and the beginnings of life on earth. Over the past few decades, most of the technology developed by NASA has been commercialized and has been used in the fields of medicine, transporation, industry, and the environment. Memory foam, used to improve seat cushioning and crash protection in airlines, also used in pillows and mattresses, was one such spinoff. The water filtration system was originally designed for the international space station.

NASA is now spread out over more than a dozen locations around the United States, with each center claiming its own importance in a crucial phase of mission planning and execution. The Johnson space center in Houston, Texas is the center for mission control and astronaut training. The Jet Propulsion laboratory in Pasadena, California manages robotic missions to explore all the planets in the solar system and other celestial bodies.

The Indian Space Research Organization, ISRO, was established in its modern form in 1969 - despite doubts from several skeptics regarding the merits of such an endeavor for a new born nation struggling to feed its population (probably because they doubted the culinary competence of aliens). There are, of course, several other space agencies from around the world, all with acronym names like JAXA, ESA, CNSA etc. - but let us leave those for a later lesson. We know full well the consequences of exposing people to too many acronyms - and we try to keep bloodshed to a minimum during the off-Halloween season.

Indian rocketry was born thanks to the technocrat, Prime Minister Nehru, in his quest to align India’s ’stars’ in the right place. However, Dr. Vikram Sarabhai was the founding father of the Indian space program, and is considered a scientific visionary by many, as well as a national hero. After the launch of Sputnik by the Soviet Union in 1957, he recognized the potent power of satellites and what it they can do for India. And both the visionaries were not wrong. ISRO is now headquartered in Bangalore, and has 15 research and administrative centers scattered over the length and breadth of the country. Its motto, keeping with the true generous spirit of India, says “Space technology in the service of Human kind”. [5]

During its modest four decade old program, ISRO has some stellar achievements to brag about. Created in a country of great need, ISRO has long prioritized the practical uses of space science over the prestige it so often brings. ISRO has gone to space not only to gaze at the stars, but also to turn to look back at our small blue planet, as its motto claims. Though it operates on about one-twentieth of NASA’s annual budget, on a day-to-day basis ISRO justifies itself by making its advances accessible to its citizens as well. While every other nation made the final frontier a means of advancing military capabilities, India saw its space technology as a means to help the developing world. ISRO holds one-third of the global market for remote sensing, and is almost achieving self sufficiency in indigenous launching. In 2008, the organisation established a new world record by launching 10 satellites simultaneously, shattering the previously held Russian record of eight. ISRO claims to be a profit-making venture, with each rupee spent earning two rupees in revenue. ISRO is also slowly gaining a commercial presence in space. “We can launch a remote-sensing satellite for half the price as anyone else,” claims Shridhara Murhi, executive director of Antrix, the commercial arm of ISRO.[6]

Of course, India’s space adventure has had its share of failures, waste and dependance. Critics berated them by proclaiming their projects overambitious[7] and people joked about their failed rocket missions making the life of Indian fishermen vulnerable[8]. Every venture by the Indian Space Research Organization has attracted criticism from every conceivable quarter. Even INSAT-IA, which made national TV possible for all of us, was criticized for pandering to the tastes of the rich few! But a series of stunning successes are increasing every year. If villages commune over a cricket match, or our grandparents gossip about the megaserial running on TV over the cellphone back in India, this rarely remembered agency has a lot to be thanked for. Today, it is a vast organism spread all over India.They are even trying to beat Google Earth by developing a web-based satellite mapping tool named Bhuvan (‘Earth’ in Sanskrit).

ISRO, like NASA, boasts over a dozen locations panning from Chandigarh (Union Territory of India) to Thiruvananthapuram (extreme South India) ranging from research and test facilities to its commercial wing with its head quarters in Antariksh Bhavan (literal Hindi translation of ‘House of Space’) in Bangalore.

So how do two space agencies on the opposite sides of the planet, with vastly different resources, budgets and goals compare? Here’s a glimpse into that universe.

The Haves and the Have Nots

NASA vs. ISRO (table 1)

Back to the Future

The universe is expanding, and so is NASA’s ambition. Several exciting missions are lined up for the next few years. Juno, a spacecraft that will launch in 2011, will study the origin and evolution of the giant planet Jupiter. Dawn, launched in 2007, will be encountering two of the largest asteroids between Mars and Jupiter in the coming years. The spacecraft New Horizons is already on its way to Pluto, which it will reach in 2015. Meanwhile, scientists and engineers continue to dream up missions to study the origin of the universe and find life on foreign planets. The Mars Science Laboratory, to be launched in 2011, is a giant rover carrying ten different instruments which will determine if Mars was ever ‘alive’.

With increasing budget cuts and changing administrations, NASA’s future is not the stuff of fairy tales or science fiction. The space shuttles, which have been ferrying humans to the International Space Station for over 20 years, have an uncertain future ahead, and will probably be retired before the end of the decade. With the proposed cancellation of the Constellation Program (which was supposed to take humans from Earth to the Moon and then to Mars), the commercial sector may be the only means for the United States to continue its human spaceflight effort.

ISRO’s next lunar mission, Chandrayaan-2 ($86.6 million) in collaboration with Russia is set to be launched in 2013.Unravelling the mysteries of moon has given ISRO the confidence to reach out to center star-ubiquitous yet enigmatic Sun- Aditya, the future solar mission is reportedly the world’s first space based solar mission planned to study the corona, the sun’s outer layer. Mars is the next target with a mission planned around 2019.And finally, every space program’s dream mission of putting a human in space is on the go and could be expected before 2015.And If realized in the stated time-frame, India will become only the fourth nation, after the USSR, USA and China, to successfully carry out manned missions indigenously.

Space cooperation is the new buzzword. The silent space surrounding the moon is already bustling with activity, thanks to the shortlived Chandrayan 1 and its phenomenal discovery of the holy grail of lunar missions: water on the moon. And these two legendary agencies are exploring ways to expand their space ties now. The two countries have agreed to work together in a number of areas, from cooperation in the war on terror to the transfer of civilian nuclear power technology to India.Who knew all’s fair in space war?

There is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened.

Perhaps it’s a good thing that the world’s space agencies decided not to heed Douglas Adams’ excellent warning.

As long as the human race exists, the vast sky with all its mysteries will fascinate us. And every child will dream of becoming an astronaut (secretly, adults too) Everyone wants a share of outer space. Believe a rocket scientist when you hear that space is truly amazing. Robotic giants to Jupiter and Saturn have studied the volcanic rages of Io and the water cycles on Enceledus. Humans have learned to live in space for months at a time, eating freeze dried food and using a space toilet. Adams was right – space has already become more bizarre and inexplicable. But perhaps it is worth it.

* Hah - did you really? Gotcha! (beware of spaced-out humor!)
Tags: ISRO, NASA, space program

[2] NEAR: The Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous spacecraft was launched in 1996, and studied the near earth asteroid Eros.

[3] Stardust: This spacecraft, launched in 1999, collected a sample from the Wild 2 comet and returned it back to Earth.

[4] International Space Station (ISS) – International research facility being constructed in space (200 km above the Earth’s surface). Primary partners include the United States and Russia.

[5] http://www.isro.org/

[6] ISRO Press Release December 21, 2004

[7] http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7656396.stm

[8] http://blog.nikhil.co.in/2008/11/space-isro-launch-vehicles-chandrayaan.html

References:

Interview with former VSSC scientist P. V. Manoranjan Rao

http://www.thespacereview.com/article/1327/1

http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/008200903160952.htm

http://beta.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/article24715.ece

http://www.isro.org/publications/pdf/Chandra_book.pdf

http://www.sti.nasa.gov/tto/

I could hear a familiar voice downstairs. I plugged in my ear-phones and rapidly pressed the volume button on my iPod till I could no longer hear that familiar voice.

Paayaliya, paayaliya kahe ke piya ghar jaoon

My mom calls my earphones an extension of my body. I guess that’s a fair assessment. No one disturbs a man wearing earphones, and if someone does, it’s fine to act like you can’t hear them. These particular earphones were cheap and an ugly blue and they lasted me for about seven months. I still wore them occasionally after that - it was only the illusion that mattered.

Paayaliya chhan chhan, chhan chhan shor kare mohe piya ghar jaoon

The TV was on. The Bangladeshi cricket team was playing Sri Lanka in a One Day International that would probably be remembered for how pointless it was. Nah, it wouldn’t even be remembered for that.

…piya ghar jaoon

Ah, I love this song. Shruti Pathak is brilliant. So is Shilpa Rao when she sings Dhol Yaara Dhol. I would marry Shilpa Rao for her voice. I’m sure Shilpa wouldn’t mind - I’ll never stop listening to her. Women like it when their men listen, right? I’ve no experience to validate that, but I’ve seen enough TV to believe that there must be truth to it.

“Can you come down? Karthik, can you come down?”

I could always use “I didn’t hear you” as an excuse. So I didn’t reply, or go down. It was not going to be important - it never was. So I shook the iPod to shuffle and closed my eyes.

Aaj ki raat…

This song has a weird effect on me. I never listen to the lyrics – the words don’t matter to me, most of the time. It’s the singer’s voice that makes or breaks a song for me. And the singer of ‘Aaj Ki Raat’ - I do not know her name - is special.

“Karthik!….”

Ah, she was getting louder now. Couldn’t she understand that I was busy? The cricket match was so captivating that I couldn’t move from my seat. Heh.

jo hamesha tha mera dil mera ho gaya

Couches are dangerous. You know that, right? Especially the old, worn-out ones. You never intend to fall asleep on a couch - it just happens. You never intend to sit on a couch for long - it just happens. You become so comfortable with the couch that you don’t want to leave her. The lack of activity will soon get to you, but by that time it’s just easier to cede to her demands and stay put. Yes, I’ve never had a girlfriend - why do you ask? Anyway, once you find your spot on the couch, the only thing more annoying than the phone ringing is someone asking you to come down.

“Are you deaf? Seriously, Karthik, are you deaf?”

Moms, I can tell from experience, are not allowed to say ‘what the fuck’ to their sons.

“Yeah, what is it?”

“Come down!”

“Why?”

“Krishnan mama has come. Come say hi to him.”

I knew shouting ‘Hi Krishnan mama’ from the couch would have disastrous results.

“Coming down.”

Krishnan mama was not related to me. I called him mama because I was told to call him that. He was an astrologer by profession - he predicted things if you fed him. My parents told me that he got things right more often than not. “He predicted that Atul would get into a good college!” Atul had topped his school in his final year. I could have made the same prediction. But then my parents already feed me, so I had nothing to gain.

All I’m expected to do when Krishnan mama shows up is to smile at him and spend a few minutes listening to him predict my ‘bright future’. Actually, even that has not been necessary of late. I’ve satisfied the parents if I say ‘Hi’ to him just to show him that I possess the ability to talk. He’s more interested in the food anyway.

“So, boy, how are you?… Karthik, how are you, boy?”

“Oh yeah, I’m doing fine, how are you?” I was deeply distracted by the spinach stuck between his teeth.

“Can’t complain.” Yes, free food has that effect on people.

I displayed my customary nice-to-meet-you-but-not-really smile and walked into the kitchen. I love standing near the door. It always hides me from the guest of the day while allowing me to eavesdrop. I also get a great view of the TV. As expected, the Bangladesh-Sri Lanka match was playing here as well. Cricket commentary always serves as great background noise.

“So, mama, we are looking to get our daughter married,” my mom said suddenly, interrupting the man and his food.

I couldn’t see him, but I knew he was taking a long sip of water. He would then give out a mild cough, scrunch up his forehead and begin his telling of the future. I wished he would mix up the act once in a while – it was getting way too predictable.

Cough. “Yes, she is what, 24 now?”

“24 and a half,” my dad said in a hurry. As a kid, I used the ‘and a half’ bit too when I was asked my age. But then, I grew up.

“It is the right age for you to be looking for an alliance¹ for her. What with the recession and all, it can take a while, haha!”

Cue nervous laughter from the parents. Cue fake gagging noise from moi.

“We’ve put matrimonial ads for her. Even on BharatMatrimonial.com,” my mom said with a sense of pride.

“Don’t worry. You will get a great son-in-law. He will be from a Vadagalai Iyengar² family.” Pause for effect. The man was a pro. “You will get a great son-in-law, I guarantee it.”

“That is wonderful to hear, would you like some more sambhar³?” Of course he would.

“Yes, that’s enough. Actually, just a little more. Yes.”

“Will it really take long to find an alliance, though?” my mom asked as she signaled to me to get the family astrologer some water. He did have to take his long sips, the poor guy.

“No… no.” He lifted his tumbler for me to refill. “I was just joking earlier. You will find a suitable boy for her in the next two months. The family will be well-to-do, the boy will be working in the US for one of those fortune companies.”

“A Fortune 500 company, you mean?” I interjected.

“Of course, of course. He might work for that company too. The stars are lined perfectly for your daughter. Trust me - this sambhar needs a bit of salt, just a bit, yes - trust me. I can foresee these things.”

“Yes, Radha, what mama is saying sounds right to me. I am also fairly certain that she is not going out with anyone,” my dad asserted with a satisfied smile on his face.

“And you know that how?” My iPod was low on battery and playing devil’s advocate would be far more interesting than watching the cricket match.

“What do you mean? She would have told us if she had a boyfriend. Did she tell you anything?”

I took longer than usual to reply just to play on the anxiousness of my parents. Yes, I can be a jackass at times.

“Of course she did. You do know how well we get along. Every evening, while I braid her hair she talks to me about her life while I gently scold her for not using enough conditioner. Sometimes our conversation turns to handbags. The other day she said she would never go out with someone without your approval, dad.”

“Good, so she doesn’t have a boyfriend.”

“Ah, sarcasm dies a painful death in this household - yet again. More sambhar, Krishnan mama?”

“Yes, yes, boy. I’m quite hungry, and this food is very tasty.”

“Yes, bullshitting does take its toll on the stomach.” It was loud enough for dad to hear - time to retreat to the kitchen.

“Radha, put aside your worries about your daughter. I don’t usually repeat myself, but you need to hear this again. She will marry a great boy - a boy who will be successful, handsome, god-fearing…”

“And Vadagalai Iyengar!” my dad said, finishing off the astrologer’s predictable prediction.

There was a knock on the door and I immediately volunteered to open it. It was my sister and, standing next to her, a tall, handsome man. And based on the cross on the gold necklace around his neck, god-fearing too.

As I let them in, I noticed that Sri Lanka had lost a wicket. Good for Bangladesh.

Footnotes:

1. Commonly used term to refer to finding a spouse.

2. Vadagalai Iyengar - Iyengar is a sect within the Brahmin community. Brahmins can be further classified as Vadagalai or Thengalai.

3. A lentil based South Indian dish

Photo Courtesy: Fe Ilya

As one of just three South Asian candidates running for UT Student Government positions this year, Bhargav Srinivasan is in a rather unique position. In the midst of an intense campaign period, Bhargav spoke to Nazar about his platform, his student group involvement and the quirks of the Indian entrepreneurial streak.

So how did you decide to run for student government?

I am currently the business school’s Senate Representative and believe that by representing our school in student life issues as well, I can have a bigger impact on campus and convey the business school’s unique needs in a way that requires knowledge of business students’ needs, internal financial structure and representation through constant communication.

What are some of the problems that you’ll be addressing/platform you’re running on?
I plan on addressing a few key issues. My platform is simple:

1. Communicate better: Everyone says this, but I have an actionable strategy, network and timeline to ensure email, digital information, social networking, and town halls will help me keep in constant communication with the business school for feedback and keeping you all updated.

2. Internal financial understanding: I was once told, “Folks, the power is with the purse-maker.” I believe that in a world of very limited resources and many objectives like better advising, free printing, better toilet paper, more resources for student workers and organizations, we MUST understand how finances work at the highest level. I will seek to understand this structure to stretch every dollar that the business school sees to improvement in these areas.

3. Student life: Ensuring that you all are endowed with the best resources and making them more affordable - this includes the cost of education, alternative book options, printing costs, course packet costs, organization cost of capital, etc.

What are some of the organizations that you belong to, on campus, and which ones are you most involved in?

I am most involved in the Undergraduate Business Council, the representative body of the business school and also serve in the Senate of College Councils as McCombs’ business representative. Furthermore, I work as a Plan II and Business Honors Peer Advisor.

How did your involvement in the South Asian community lead to your being involved in SG? Do you think there isn’t enough involvement from the community, and if so, what do you think we can do about that?

I am very culturally influenced by my upbringing and culture as an South Indian. I have attended more than a few great festivals and events on campus in the past and seen how it is such a great force of culture and special knowledge and value that it adds to UT campus. I am running for SG, in part, to increase the visibility of the community. I think that Nazar needs to find the right communication channels to ensure that students are aware of the cultures on campus and what they have to offer from a diversity-valuing standpoint. Other than increasing visibility, you can also host events with other organizations to find the cross-section between disciplines. I think, for example, it would be interesting to see HSC/ISA co-host an event with UBC to show the campus the cross-section between Hinduism/Indian culture and business. Why are so many Indians entrepreneurial? It is a funny, quirky, yet interesting question that I think can be traced back to our roots and culture.

Photo Courtesy: Bhargav for McCombs Rep

As one of just three South Asian candidates running for UT Student Government positions this year, Yaman Desai is in a rather unique position. In the midst of an intense campaign period, Yaman spoke to Nazar about his platform, his on-campus organization involvement, and the lack of diversity in SG elections.

So how did you decide to run for student government?

I was encouraged to run for student government by friends who believe, as I do, that students deserve better representation than they are getting right now. I decided to run for a University-Wide Representative position because that is where I think I can make the biggest difference and best represent the diverse student body. As for my platform, I would like to increase access to student government by students by having every member of the Assembly hold regular office hours in the building of the school they represent. Also, I would like to fight to have the Texas Legislature pass the tax-free holiday on textbooks bill, which would save students $40-$50 per semester. Additionally, I hope to work with my fellow representatives to help promote the SURE Walk program.

Your Facebook group includes details on your platform, which includes cutting some gym fees. With the University as cash-strapped as it is right now (as you mention, the Cactus Cafe also had to be shut down) how do you think you can accomplish this?

As you said, the University is quite strapped for cash and getting gym fees cut will not be easy. However, I believe that this is something that we can fight for by working with the administration in order to cut frivolous spending and trimming fat out of the budget.

What sorts of budget items were you referring to when you mentioned “frivolous spending and trimming fat out of the budget”?

For example, the University spent $2 million to covert from the old grading system to the new plus/minus system, all without student or faculty input and without any pressing need. Aditionally, the University continues building projects and the construction of new classroom halls, even while they are cutting department budgets and firing professors. These expenditures, I believe are inappropiate at the current time and I believe those funds can be better spent elsewhere.

I believe that since gym fees from these classes does not bring in relatively large amounts of money, we will be able to find the funding within the existing budget to make these gym classes and activities free to all students and to allow students to expand their interests, as well as become more well rounded people overall.

You’re involved with a number of student organizations on campus, like ICA, ISA and Student Leaders Pursuing Law. Which causes are you the most dedicated to?

I am currently involved with quite a few student organizations, but I am most involved with two organizations. First, I am an active member of the Indian Cultural Association, where I am a member of the Jashan Auxiliary Board. I believe it is important to bring Indian culture to those who are not aware or familiar with it. Second, I am involved with the University Democrats, which I believe is a strong organization that works hard to promote great candidates and works very hard to fight for policies that are good for the University of Texas, good for Texas, and good for the United States.

How did your involvement in the South Asian community lead to your being involved in SG? Do you think there isn’t enough involvement from the community, and if so, what do you think we can do about that?

My involvement with the South Asian community played a huge role in my reason for running and is a huge motivating factor for me.

How precisely has the South Asian community been a motivating factor for your running for the position?

The South Asian community has been a motivating factor in that it was the lack of representation that convinced me, in part, to run for office. I have a strong belief that every community and every student deserves to have representatives in Student Government that care about their needs and are familiar with their issues. The South Asian community has been tremendously supportive throughout this process and their backing has helped me greatly. They have always been a willing and interested audience and their excitement about this campaign has been invigorating.

As you said, there are alarmingly few South Asian, and in fact minority, candidates running for Student Government. This is unfortunate because our University is so diverse and has students from every part of the world. We need more minority candidates generally and South Asian candidates specifically because only a diverse student government can attend to the needs and concerns of a diverse campus. To change the lack of diversity in student government, we as a community must get involved. We have to stay current and active on student government issues throughout the year and we have to support South Asian candidates when they run for office. The only way we can get better representation is if we fight for it.

Photo Courtesy:

The Hindu Students Council is an award winning campus organization that works towards fostering an environment in which students, Hindu and otherwise, may learn and participate in Hindu festivals and engage in dialogue with their peers. Of the three events that Hindu Students Council, or HSC for short, puts on in the spring, Hinduism Awareness Week is the first, and its goal is arguably the most important: to pull the common misconceptions about Hinduism out of popular circulation and educate the interested on what Hinduism is really about.

This year, Hinduism Awareness Week kicked off on February 15th with a rally on West Mall. Complete with lustrous posters depicting four of the Hindu gods and listing basic facts about their origin and mythologies, games for visitors to the table, and prizes for the keenest of them, the event was a marked success. “If we had the music working earlier, it would’ve helped us voice our presence,” said Abhijith Ravinutla, a new member of the organization. The sentiment was shared by other members as well.

The second day of the event, February 16th, boasted considerably higher attendance. Guest speaker Ashok Bail, a lawyer and representative of the Life Bliss Foundation, led a discussion on meditation, drawing upon his young age and professional experience to connect to the students on a personal level. Lighthearted but point-driven, his talk kept the audience’s attention and drew some good questions at the end as well. Finally, Bail guided the students in a group meditation. Freshman BME major Sunayna Rajput took an evening off from studying and was glad she did. “He offered great insight into both Hindu philosophy and meditation. He made the topic of meditation evolve into something much more than what my parents tried to force on me,” said Rajput.

On third night of the week, February 17th, HSC invited students to an interfaith panel. It featured representatives from the Muslim Students Association, Texas Hillel, UT Baha’i Association, and HSC itself, with two speakers from each. First, they all introduced their organizations and the faiths they represent to the audience. Then they answered a set of questions intended to further inform those attending on the foundational principles and beliefs of their faiths. This was especially helpful from the Baha’i faith representatives, as it gave us a feel for an entity most people knew very little about. Following the initial round of questions, more were picked up from audience members who penned them on note cards and passed them to the moderators. Of these, a few were chosen to be asked aloud and answered by all of the representatives. During this period, the exchanges were jovial but meaningful, the responses thoughtful and the mood light. There was great chemistry between the presenters of each faith and the groups as a whole as well, which made the audience comfortable enough to submit many questions for consideration. Following the affair, pizza and drinks were served and the panelists stayed a few minutes afterwards to answer any lingering doubts or respond to the many note card questions that weren’t read aloud. Altogether, the panel was a very successful affair, and was the third event in what was proving to be an increasingly interesting week for Hinduism awareness.

The fourth and final event managed to preserve that trend with flying colors (literally!). On the Main Mall from 1 to 4 pm on February 20^th, Hindu Students Council, in partnership with Delta Kappa Delta, a service oriented sorority, organized a celebration for Sankranti open for all. With ravishing samosas, free kites, palmistry by a distinguished local (edit: very local)¹ swami ², sari dress-up, and a booth for henna³, the organization duo entertained hundreds of passersby, while simultaneously sharing with them a little bit about the significance of the festival. The cosmos itself seemed to conspire to make the event a success, thwarting any attempts of the all too familiar cold winds or cloudy skies to make an unwelcome entrance. Instead, there shone a pleasant sun on the faces of those present, an apt symbolism for the week of events that had just ensued. Senior Atul Agrawal offered that “usually when an event is smaller and more intimate, we can offer a greater quality experience to those who are there.” Many of those present agreed, and with that, HSC had gotten just that much closer to a world that understands Hinduism better, and a Hindu community that had become just that much closer in the process.

Photo Courtesy: ronnie44052

Footnotes:

1. Senior Atul Agrawal

2. A master in religious studies

3. A cream drawn from the processing of the henna plant, used to dye skin temporarily with a dark red hue

Sarath Babu is anything but ordinary. His life story is almost like an incredible fairy tale, and his political ambitions and societal convictions can put any politician to shame. “I dream of a hunger-free India,” says the 30-year-old CEO of Food King. “There is no reason why a country that has clocked a previously unimaginable GDP of 9% can’t ensure that every one of its citizens has food in his stomach.”

Sarath is used to achieving the unimaginable. Born in a slum in Chennai, where his mother sold idlis on the pavement to feed him and his four siblings, Sarath went on to attend two of the most prestigious institutions in the country: BITS, Pilani and the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad (IIM-A). “My mother did three different jobs to put us through school, and I was determined that her hard work should not go in vain,” he says. “I was a topper throughout school. After Class 10, I had to enroll in a private school to complete my senior secondary education. The school fee was expensive, but I had a plan.”

Inspired by the never-say-die spirit of his mother, and inheriting her entrepreneurial instincts he spent his Class 10 summer vacation taking book binding orders. “The binding orders flowed in, so I took on 20 other children to assist me. By the end of the summer, I had earned enough to pay my school fees for the next two years,” he says. Babu’s streak of entrepreneurship didn’t end there.

Straight out of IIM-A, he began Food King, with a seed capital of Rs.2, 000 in 2006. Now, the company has a turn over of over 7 crores and supplies several college and corporate canteens in many parts of the country. “My mother’s risk taking tendencies as an entrepreneur inspired me. The motivation factor behind entrepreneurship is the fact that I can feed whole families, lifting them out of poverty,” says the Pepsi-MTV Youth Icon award winner of the year 2008, who aspires to take Food King to more than 200 cities in India and employ 50,000 people.

Sarath also stood for the 2009 Lok Sabha Elections from the South Chennai constituency. “I wanted to shatter the idea that one needed hi-flying connections, family backing and money power to stand in elections. I also think that politics is the best platform available in a democratic country to serve people,” he says, having managed over 14,000 votes. “The response that I got from people of all walks of life was fantastic. People seemed relieved that a person who dared to think radically finally showed interest in entering mainstream politics”, says Sarath. His future political plans including contesting in the 2010 Tamil Nadu State Assembly elections. “The Lok Sabha elections have been a good learning curve, and I’m now well versed with campaigning techniques and publicity plans,” says the young tycoon.

Sarath is also involved in other charity programs and organizations that help in the education of the underprivileged. “Education has the potential to empower an entire generation, it is the best antidote to poverty. I have experienced this first hand,” he says. Sarath is passionate about sharing his life story with as many youngsters as he can: “When I address a college gathering of 1,000 students, even if I can inspire 10 of them to become businessmen, I have achieved something substantial.” Through his forum, www.sarathbabuspeaks.com, he looks to take his interaction with students to the Internet. “I dream of entrepreneurship models where young graduates can work with farmers, providing them with technical and technological consultancy to achieve good crop outputs,” he says enthusiastically.

With a head full of ideas and a heart full of good intentions, Sarath Babu definitely has all the right ingredients to become one of India’s future leaders. “Five to ten years is all it will take to revamp India’s public systems and march into a developed future,” he says. With a candidate like himself to lead the march, why not?

Photo Courtesy: B. Sandman

Footnotes:

1. Rajya: kingdom

Austin is internationally celebrated for its live performances. But I find it remarkable that of the many I have watched this past year— ranging from experimental music to classical ballet— by far the most impressive dancing, and most enthralling choreography came from a group of dancers from Chicago specializing in the Bharata Natyam style of Southern India.

Saturday night’s performance of Shakti Chakra by the all-female Natya Dance Theatre at Akins High School, as presented by the Indian Classical Music Circle of Austin, was something I would recommend to anyone even vaguely interested in beauty, rhythm, or dance. At the end of a long week of midterms, it lifted my spirits to no end.

Shakti Chakra, The Energy Cycle, was like a trip to India − all color and heat. Natya Dance Theatre offers the experience of Indian Classical Dance in its purest, most captivating form. Bharata Natyam unites artistic expression with spirituality. Nine dancers were adorned in traditional costumes consisting of embellished saris¹, jewelry, and hair ornaments. Natya dancers act out a story and create drama on stage by injecting traditional moves with bold theatrical flair and dazzling simplicity.

Natyam dance presents the five divine acts of the gods according to Hindu philosophy: creation, sustenance, protection, purification and dissolution. The acts are displayed in abstract segments using pure dance movement to convey the idea of each act, followed by interpretational segments using expressional dance and gestural sequences.²

The center dancer’s arms were stunning, sharply delineated angles and dreamy spirals, merging in with vivid snapshots of mime, drawing us into the narrative that seemed to reel through her imagination as she danced. The beat of the drums felt more like a parsing of technical effects, showcasing the percussive intricacies of the dancer’s footwork and the blurring speed of her turns.

There was meticulousness in her approach that gave every split-second twist and torque of the body a gleaming clarity midst the maelstrom of her company.

The dancers surrounding her bounced about, dividing from circles into more intricate variations of tone and rhythm. Bodies folded and unfolded in an exacting origami that reached every corner and accounted for every digit. Most beguiling were the dancers who seemed to effortlessly float off the stage as their strong, spatula-shaped feet brushed the floor ever so slightly.The dancers’ splayed knees, shrugging shoulders and jutting hips could look trapped, as if they were defensive cobras preparing to strike but could never quite take off.

The percussive footwork was powered into gusts of rhythmic intensity so elaborate, you could hear them as a despairing cascade of bells. Their arms were almost as indicative, carrying on in a heartbreaking simplicity, harnessed to control and grace.

As the performance continued, and new styles and arrangements of dance were carried out in a more modern style, at no point did I feel that the traditional dance form was at risk of losing its identity. This is something I long to experience again soon, and thanks to ICMCA, that is very possible.

Photo Courtesy: Amitava Sarkar

Footnotes:
1. A length of un-stitched cloth, six to nine yards, worn around the midriff with one length thrown over a shoulder. Mainly worn in India.
2. Information courtesy ICMCA

Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy have once again created a musical treat. Though two of the original tracks sound better as part of the movie, the others do well as stand alone tracks. Lyricist Niranjan Iyengar had no small part in creating the magic of the My Name is Khan album.

The first song, Sajda (Prostration), is a heart-wrenching love song to God. It is of utter and complete devotion and infatuation, a surrender of the body and mind, part by part, to God. The lyrics are poetic in a way that is rare in modern films; kudos to Iyengar for this success. Richa Sharma’s rich husky voice starts the song and is joined by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan’s in a pseudo-Qawwali style. Though the back-up vocals can be distracting, the technical expertise of the singers makes this song worth a listen.

The second track, Noor-e-Khuda (Light of God), grabs your attention from the very beginning with the sound of Shankar Mahadevan’s voice effortlessly holding notes that float in the air and carry the entire melody. After about half a minute, the guitar kicks in and the song turns into a spirited protest against the state of the world and where the blessings of God have gone. At about four minutes, Shreya Ghoshal’s voice swings into play and takes the solo. At this point the song is at its zenith, and is definitely the best song in the album. Not only are the lyrics spectacular and the arrangement evocative, but the singers also display amazing skill in emoting the meaning of the song.

Tere Naina (Your Eyes) is typical of Bollywood and seems almost completely situational. Shafqat Ali Khan croons the song with a gentleness that makes it more bearable than most Bollywood love songs.

A completely traditional Sufi devotional track, Allah Hi Rahem (God is Merciful/Kind) is sung beautifully by Ustad Rashid Khan, invoking the infatuation with, and complete immersion in, God:

Tu jo karam pharmaye, adam insaan ho jaaye
When you bestow your grace, we become non-entities
Mastana ho ke, deewana ho ke tujhe pal mein paa jaaye
Intoxicated (with your love) we become one with you
Saans-e-fiza mein tu hai, rooh-e-bayan mein tu hai
You’re in every breath, in every soul
Har ibtidaa mein, har inteha mein, har ek nazar-e-zabaan tu hai
You’re in every beginning and every end, in every gaze and word spoken

Khan Theme is a sweet instrumental with a heavy symphonic arrangement and theatrical feel. It almost seems to be a reflection of the movie from its introduction to its denouement. This is most certainly a track fit for the movie and other than that not really interesting.

The final song, Rang De, is truly amazing. It is a rock-influenced tune, calling people to create brotherhood and hold on to their faith through trials and tribulations. It is a rare lyrical composition for a movie, especially because of its message of faith.

Despite the small criticisms, the album itself was an amazing listen. The lyrics by Iyengar are more poetic in quality than those that Bollywood has produced in almost five decades. And the reflection of Islam in the songs is a great counterbalance to the negative portrayals often found in media since 9/11 throughout the world today.

How well did the movie compare to the music?  Check out our My Name is Khan movie review here.

Photo Courtesy: Wikipedia

My Name is Khan opens with Asperger sufferer Rizvan Khan being pulled aside at the San Francisco airport and interrogated. The officer in charge, about to let him go, asks why he wants to see the President. With touching earnestness, and considerable irony, Khan replies that he has a message for him: “My name is Khan and I’m not a terrorist.”

Karan Johar’s latest venture is as different from his previous offerings as it is possible to be. US immigrant Rizvan (Shahrukh Khan) arrives in California, and falls in love with Mandira (Kajol), a single mother who works as a hairdresser. They marry, and for a while it looks as though the socially-crippled Rizvan has finally found his ‘happy life’ with Mandira and her son Sameer (Yuvaan Makaar). But in the wake of 9/11, Sameer is killed in a racist attack, and Mandira rages at Rizvan for being Muslim. She demands that he leave and Rizvan, who takes her at her word, begins tracking the President down so that he can deliver his message.

SRK describes the themes of the movie in terms of relationships: the Mandira-Rizvan story, an individual’s relationship with Islam, and the citizen’s relationship with his country¹. Strangely, he also claims that the movie isn’t about 9/11 or terrorism, but those are some of the strongest themes present in the film.

In fact, MNIK’s main failing is that it tries to do too much within the scope of one movie. There’s the Asperger aspect, which sets up the narrative of Rizvan’s journey. Khan’s and Mandira’s love story and their Hindu-Muslim marriage are secondary, but important, themes. 9/11 and its impact on the Muslim community is, of course, a crucial component of the story, as is the good Muslim/bad Muslim thread. The Muslim community’s relations with the United States is also explored. And as if that wasn’t enough, another story arc focuses on a natural disaster in Georgia, serving as a reminder of Hurricane Katrina.

Some of these themes - like Khan’s Asperger condition - work well. SRK delivers his best performance to date, capturing the awkwardness, facial tics, and random verbosity of an Asperger sufferer excellently. Shorn of his usual Bollywood persona, he creates a character who’s unwittingly, but thoroughly, charming. The script, however, doesn’t do justice to the issue - how exactly would Rizvan, lacking the most basic social skills, ever perform a salesman’s job? His heroic efforts in Georgia leading a rescue team are equally implausible. Bollywood normally isn’t fazed by this suspension of disbelief, but Karan Johar seems to be trying to make this movie fairly authentic.

Kajol is another strong point in the movie, as is her chemistry with SRK; years of anticipation as the pair reunite certainly paid off for the audience. Kajol’s vivacity and sheer liveliness, as well as her grief and anger in the latter half of the movie, are highly believable. But again, the plot could’ve been a little better - as it stands, there’s no indication that Mandira put any thought into marrying a man whose ability to interact with others is significantly worse than that of her pre-teen son. Watching the pair interact, it sometimes feels as though Rizvan is an adopted second son.

A couple of the other themes, though, could’ve been omitted entirely - like the mini-Katrina incident in Georgia. Whether it was to belabor the point that the government is faulty, or to add superhuman dimensions to Khan’s character, the story arc was superfluous. What’s worse is Johar’s depiction of blacks. Mama Jenny is a loud, heavy, Aunt Jemima²-type woman who gives Khan a place to sleep, after which he joins her in an all-black church service where the worshipers break out into cheerful chorus. I’m not sure if Johar only intended to introduce comic elements, but this was bordering on the racist.

There are other concepts in the movie that chip away at its credibility, like the theme of “good” and “bad” Muslims. It is one that has already been done to death. But Johar sets up a highly contrived scenario where Khan helps apprehend a radical Muslim doctor, for which he gets melodramatically stabbed during his rescue efforts in Georgia.

Despite these issues, My Name is Khan is a good movie (and its music is excellent). It makes an honest and mostly successful effort at addressing the concerns of Muslims in a world that has become increasingly hostile towards them. It handles, with a surprising amount of sensitivity, the plight of an autistic human in our society. And it is, eventually, a movie about building relationships that are free of fear and prejudice.

1. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bollywood/news-interviews/Meet-my-new-avatar-SRK/articleshow/4873405.cms

2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aunt_Jemima#cite_note-1

There is a little blue world called Fei Ma

And in this little blue world

A little girl practices backflips off a sink everyday

And everyday she breaks her neck

There is a god in this world,

But not the kind you love

He hides in the shower

And makes loud sounds with his throat

To make the little girl fall

And laughs at her bleed

When she falls

The blue world becomes red eventually,

As the little girl flips no more.

From this curious little blue story

Comes a message

Which makes the little girl wiser than us all

“I am hurt by fear - not by pain.

It is only restraint which makes me strain.

Rather I’d fall, than to sit and stall,

As pain to my heart is a friend by name.”

Photo Courtesy: Jer Kunz