An Epic Travesty (Movie Review - Adipurush)

When we were in the second year of our Engineering course, we were treated to the spectacle called "Troy", starring Brad Pitt as Achilles, and Eric Bana as Hector. While the movie was enjoyable, we were left with a wistful wish - why can't some Indian movie maker pour in a huge budget, and do such a treatment of our own epics. 

Well, we must be careful what we wish for, for it may come true, and how!

The movie opens with a shot of dementors on the lake, like in Prisoner of Azkaban. Guided telepathically by Night King from Game of Thrones! The protagonist, who is described in the scriptures as an Archer, eschews the bow, and tackles the dementors in wrestling bouts. No doubt Twitter is incandescent with rage!

For a three hour run time, (that denied us a meal post the show, despite our choosing a 730 pm show), a large part of the epic story is omitted. Movie starts at the Shoorpanakha incident and stops at the rather bizarre end of Lankesh (For some reason, the movie makers have decided not to use the proper name of the characters, but the next common eponyms - why? Plausible Deniability? There is no chance of that working.) In between those elongated 3 hours, we have gems like Dhakad-aasur (धाकड़ासुर)! (Shudders), मैं तुम्हे धो दूंगा (in Bombaiya Tapori language), and Ravana (sorry, Lankesh) giving up the fabled Pushpak (which makes a cameo at the end of the movie, don't worry), for , what can be best described as an overgrown bat-dragon hybrid. Then there is overuse of very pedestrian level CGI. Even the ground our characters stand on looks synthetic. The fabled Golden Lanka seems made of coal, especially the way the towers catch fire. Worse is the treatment of Vanara sena. No homogeneity is observed in what is supposed to be a common clan - there are langoor type foot soldiers, while the major Vanaras look like a low price copy of the Planet of the Apes. Bajrang (their version of Hanuman ji) does not even look like a Vanara, but like a ham faced actor with air blown in the mouth to puff the cheeks - only the "wrapped towel prop as a baby" in Shamshera would be a worse cop out in recent cinematic history. Overall, the Vanaras are portrayed quite pathetically. For lifelike animal characters with human voices, they need not have looked farther than the recent version of Lion King. For much better CGI and VFX, they need not have looked beyond Prabhas' own Bahubali, made around a decade back! Sadly, the makers seemed too enamored with themselves and their imagination.

All is not bad. The lead pair does a sincere portrayal of the divine couple. The 'romance' part is handled tastefully, and the romance song would be watched on YouTube a lot. Some of the VFX was good - the artillery bombardment by Lankan forces, and the serrated yo-yo like defense weapon were showed well. And, for a change, Ravana's (sorry, Lankesh's) fabled sword actually looks like Chandra-haas (crescent moon). In 3D, in an otherwise strangely bestial-porn like scene of Ravana (sorry, Lankesh) getting a massage from huge snakes, there is a moment where a snake seems to break the fourth wall - that had a good jump scare factor.

The story has been violated quite liberally, and the anger of the devout is quite justified. However, for yours truly, it is an even bigger disaster cinematically. The wait for the Indian answer to Troy continues. Maybe Ranbeer Alia duo will deliver. We can only hope. 

On Tragedy, Train and Technology

 As a member of a Railway family,  as an ex Railwayman, and as a mechanical engineer, I am much pained by the serious loss of life in the train accident which occurred in the Balasore District of Odisha.

Train accidents with passenger casualties seemed to have become part of the history. Mass casualty accidents seemed so 'last millenium' phenomenon - the days of Gaisal or Purushottam Express accidents.

One silent revolution that had happened in the last few years was the increasing use of LHB coaches, with CBCs, in place of old ICF coaches with screw couplers. Even ICF coaches have been increasingly fitted with CBCs

To elaborate further, old timers may recall the two big plate like structures on two big cylinders, fitted on both ends of the coaches. They were the buffers, to prevent impact between the two coaches during shunting, or braking. They were an adaptation of the spring dashpot shock absorber. While effective as a buffer "normally" (when the train is on the track), it offered no buffing protection when the buffers on either side did not align (in case of an accident).

Old timers may also recall the thin screw and hook sort of structure (situated near the more obvious brake pressure hose) in between the two buffers. It appears thin, and it connected the two coaches by sliding a nut sort of appendage over the screw of the other side, thus making a tension only rigidity - this means that the bond was rigid only on pulling. Otherwise, a coach was free to rotate about the other coach in any which way. It was as if two bricks have been tied with a piece of string.

In its place, the Central Buffer Coupler (CBC) combines the Buffing and Coupling components in one device. The two ends are quite rigid structural elements which are connected to the coach frame, and they connect the two coaches in a way a hinge does. The coaches are allowed to rotate only along a vertical axis. (The way one coach is 'turned' with respect to another while the train is on a curve). Plus, since the 'buffers' are positively connected, they are available for buffing protection even in "not on rails" cases.

Now we need to look into a few mechanical phenomenon which cause fatality in rail accidents -

1. The coaches of the same train run through one another, in a phenomenon known as 'telescoping' (it looks like the two tubes of a telescope sliding into each other). Obviously a coach sliding into another can cause severe trauma to any occupant of the other coach.

2. Coaches under impact climbing on each other, and then falling from a great height. This causes trauma by fall.

3. Coaches derail onto another track, and get run over by another train. Side walls of the coaches are not designed for impact and the potential for trauma is extreme. 

4. Occupants flying out of their seats / berths on impact, and colliding with fixtures.

The mechanism number one was a very common occurrence in the past, till the railways adopted the "anti telescopic design", in the ICF coaches. It was mainly done by differential strengthening of the coach body. The doorways are the weakest, and the toilets are the second weakest. The main body housing the passengers is the strongest. In case of impact, the weaker parts get crushed first, and absorb most of the energy, thus saving the main body from the brunt of the kinetic energy, as well as forming obstruction for body of one coach entering the other. That is another reason to be noted for avoiding footboard travel (or hogging the toilet for too long, for that matter!) 

The LHB coaches with CBCs took care of the second mechanism. While screw couplers are weak and limp, the CBCs are rigid. Thus screw couplers break too easily, allowing the coach to fly anyway it prefers, and even if it does not break, it can allow the coach to turn upside down. The CBC remains rigid, and even on derailment the whole train sort of "stands straight". At most it can get wavy like a snake. But coaches don't turn turtle, or climb on each other and fall. In the past decade, a Rajdhani Express had derailed at full speed, and there was not a single life lost.In fact, as a person knowing about this technology, one was rather assured about the safety of rail travel (which it still is compared to road travel). Even in the photographs of the current accident, one can see that the parts of the train which did not collide with the other train are situated in a rather 'disciplined' manner. However, much of the loss of life is due to the third mechanism.

The third mechanism cannot be secured against from any improvement in the coach design. Although CBCs restrict how far a coach can fly on derailment, still, parallel tracks are two close to avoid spillage of coaches from one track on the other. Locating parallel tracks far enough is not feasible - would be very prohibitive in cost and time cosuming.

One method which may be used, is to avoid high speed crossing / precedence automatically. The Anti Collision System is already functioning. It may be used to automatically reduce the speed of both trains to a limit where the loco pilot can stop the train by emergency brakes, if he spots obstruction by coaches of another train. It may have its costs in speed reduction, but, barring a "great wall" or "great net" between parallel tracks, no other thought comes to mind to secure against this mechanism of life loss. This may sound like an outlandish idea in rail operations, but it is a very common precaution we take everyday on roads, going slow when crossing another vehicle.

The fourth mechanism is the most unfortunate, as it is inherent independently in all the other mechanisms, and also because the simple intervention of better securing the passengers and luggage can minimize it to almost zero. Road vehicles have had seat belts mandatory for long. However, we have still not started using them, even optionally, on trains. The provision may not be that difficult - it can be incorporated in the berth itself, without disturbing the coach interior per se. A retractable net below the lower berth can be used to keep the luggage mechanically secure. 

To summarize, two low cost interventions that may be done quickly are -

1. Incorporating mandatory slow speed crossing / precedence in the General and Subsidiary Rules of Railway operations, and augmenting the ACD to actuate this automatically.

2. Provision of seat belts and retractable safety luggage nets in all high speed coaching stock.

The railways have steadily been using technology to better secure passenger safety. Anti-telescopic design, CBCs, Anti Collision Devices are some major interventions in the direction. However, misfortune is a sneaky enemy, and constant vigilance and technological improvement is the only way forward.

Movie Review (and allied discussion) - Tu Jhoothi Main Makkar

 The guy who came up with the title needs to be fired; or sent back to whatever school title-writers go to (compulsory re-training is a thing these days!) The unimaginative title was a big reason I never wanted to touch the movie with a ten foot pole. That too despite a couple of peppy songs, which I very much liked. No way I was going to watch a movie with that title. Especially one with a review of one and a half star! Still when the movie popped up on the menu on a night after a tiring trip, one either had to volunteer to browse on for a better option (and take guarantee for it!), or just watch on. So watch on we did, despite all my reservations.

Well, it had modular tropey kind of feel. However, it was nothing more than the last zillion Adam Sandler rom-coms I have seen recently. The professional break-up guy has also been done to death in the Hollywood Rom Com universe. However, professional break-up guy doing one's own break-up seems new. (That, or I may have missed a few Rom-Coms.) It was also handled professionally. However, the deeper issue which was discussed in this movie was surprisingly mature - the status of a young couple (or family) in a larger, modern loosely 'joint' family (MLJF).

 Traditional joint families (TJF) stuck to the "native place" - the gaon, the pind. The MLJF, however, began when Whatsapp first came to India. It's existence continues in an amorphous way, online. TJF also stuck to the family profession - the old khet-khalihan, the old kirana shop, or the old haweli management. Young generation taking over essentially meant the older generation effectively retiring - not only professionally, but also from all the 'wordly' life. In MLJF, however, both the senior and junior generations have been working in modern professions. The senior generation need not retire to bootstrap the junior generation. Even if they are retired professionally, they continue dwelling in the same social status - attending events, entertaining guests, taking vacations. As long as the MLJF remains totally amorphous, that is not an issue. However, since MLJF is not rooted, it can happen, by design or by serendipity, that the senior and junior generations may come to live in physical vicinity. Suddenly, there boils up a primal need for hierarchy, and the primal need to convert into a TJF, in some way. It is not that anyone tells anyone to do it. It would, in fact, be much better if someone makes one's views on it explicitly clear. Then the other party may choose to oppose or acquiesce. However, the unsaid and largely supposed expressions wreak havoc on the mental states of the parties concerned. It is wrong to assume that only the senior wing feels this longing for "return to roots". Even the juniors somehow feel that things need to be this way. It, and the ensuing confusion, is portrayed well in the episode where the leading lady dons a "traditional" kurta, instead of the usual western wear. No one asked her to. It was just the thought of meeting the MLJF, a Dadi included! 

Another issue, which is clearly brought out in the movie, is a big issue in MLJF. No, it is not the scheming saas. It is the general excess of love per cubic meter. The extended family dinners with the extended family, the need for someone to cook (when there is no need, and where a takeout would have sufficed), the lack of medical privacy, the lack of limited admission programs - the reader must be getting it. 

The leading pair of the movie break up on this issue, which many would find trivial, but which, in reality, pervades every free waking moment of a MLJF. I was waiting to see how that is resolved by the plot - over its 20 minutes short of 3 hours run. However, even after that long a runtime, the issue is left unresolved. Yeah! Apparently the leading lad's "pyaar" is so powerful that, after the done to death airport chase routine, and a bent knee proposal by the extended family, the leading lady acquiesces. What follows, in post credits, is the familiar tussle over waking routine of the juniors, or over the preference accorded to food other than the seniors' cooking. While the depiction is truthful in the enumeration, these conflicts are brushed aside with playfulness. In reality, these are not remotely playful; infact they drain the lifeblood out of the relationship, both intra and inter generation.

So, let's summarize  - one, it is a rather run of the mill rom-com, with a few time tested tropes; two, the part about the professional breaker-upper breaking up his own relationship was a new idea; three, a very big thing about the movie, the thing that drove me to right this whole article, was the fact that the movie, very gingerly, opens up the conversation about the issues of the MLJFs; and four, despite it opening the question mentioned above, it does ultimately a cop-out, remaining just the problem-stater, not the solution giver.

Hence, while it absolutely does not deserve the one and a half star rating Express gave it, the squandered chance keeps it off the big league. Still, for opening up this necessary conversation, it deserves at least a three. The big question may be left to a more mature drama, maybe a limited OTT series - maybe something by TVF!

Deferred Live from Life - Field Recap

Prologue

We are back to Lucknow, the state capital, after more than 4 years of field work. I fully intend to utilize my joining time, and that gives me the time to unpack in our relatively modest dwelling (after living in the colonial era Magistrate Residence, every dwelling appears modest!), and to pen down the first article of this calendar year.

A Brief History of Time - 2019 - 2023

The field tenure in itself was quite challenging, and gave us an experience of a lifetime. We joined Sant Kabir Nagar on 18th February 2019, just before the announcement of the Lok Sabha General Elections. Coincidentally, I had never handled an ECI election as a Returning Officer. The 2014 LSE had happened while we were in training, and the 2017 VSE happened when we had been promoted to CDO, while the RO work was earmarked for SDM level. The inexperience, combined with the inertia from being away from the field, made this task a real challenge. The ECI brooks no nonsense. Within a period of a week, one was expected to master the whole field of Election Rules and the electoral scenario and preparedness situation of the District. Being wanting in either earned one at least a public humiliation in a meeting of all the Divisional and District Level Election and Police officers, and it could proceed to the level of removal from the District! So one pored over the RO Handbook and Election Manuals like the textbooks, and the latest circulars like the news magazines we read during the time of preparation. One also toured the field extensively, to bring the field realities closer to the impossible standards set by the Commission. In the midst of this, hardly a couple of days before the announcement of the elections, we had a major crisis, when, in the middle of an official meeting, there happened a fisticuff between two legislators. The thing brought an ignominious spotlight on our rather diminutive District. However, it also showed some fine policing initiative by our young SOG incharge, which averted a guaranteed lynching in the official premises! The Election itself proceeded swimmingly well. I returned the newest MP in literally a textbook manner (I needed to read at every step!), and then we settled down to the mundane task of day to day Magistracy. The next 10 months passed eventlessly, at least from my level. There were problems, but none too big. There were petitioners, but rarely was there any scene created. We had good SPs, good ADMs, a number of CDOs with short tenures. The press was quite cooperative, to the extent they can be. 

Then came March, 2020. We found ourselves, quite suddenly, amidst a global pandemic. Though the first case in the District was found around 15th April, we started experiencing its effects in the last third of March itself. There was the lockdown. Overnight we had to plan the supply chain of all households in the District. Then we had to deal with masses of people returning to their ancestral places, from their locked down workplaces in the metropolises. Once the positive cases themselves started coming, there was the whole system of Covid hospitals as well as hotspot management. Mercifully, the wave was not as fatal as its successor. However, the panic was otherworldly. The day was had found our first case, people were wary of entering the very village. Later, we had to don the PPE suits ourselves, and enter the Hospital wards, to inspire confidence. 

The transfer to my next District happened as the Covid wave was peaking. It was not a sign of worry. In fact the peak happened because the locked down economy was steadily being opened up, as the initial panic gave way to a more pragmatic approach. The transfer orders came over a weekend, and we joined Sultanpur on 13th September, 2020, a Sunday. Immediately, we found out that it was a very different scenario. The press was quite hostile. The relations between the political and permanent executive were quite frayed. The supervisory authorities were quite aggressive. Even the festive traditions were quite different from the rest of the state. It was again a huge learning curve we confronted. The epidemic ebbed out by October. We had the traditional Durga Pooja. That was followed by the preparation for the Panchayat Elections. Each step was fraught with pitfalls. The delimitation of constituencies was a very subjective task. The determination of reservation was a totally objective exercise. Both generated unwanted attention of people. Mercifully we had a good team for both. 

Just before the actual poll, the family suffered a great bereavement, as my paternal grandmother departed from an illness. Almost simultaneously, the second wave of Covid, the infamous Delta version, started peaking quite suddenly. The election process had proceeded too far to stop it now, and their conduction did not help with the pandemic. Suddenly, Panchayat Election, usually one of biggest headaches of any Magistracy, was relegated to the background in the list of worries. This wave was lethal. Everyone was losing family, friends and colleagues. Worse, the breathlessness due to 'vitreous' formations in the lungs was quite palpable, and the demand for medical oxygen outstripped the supply for a while. It was a 24 hr struggle to maintain the chain. While the first Covid was mainly a crisis of managing our own response to a novel epidemic, the second Covid was purely a medical disaster. Our team lost some able officers; quite a few from our family came too close to that.

When this crisis abated a bit by July, the normal life returned. Here, the normal was not like the previous Districts. The problem of petty fights escalating into fatal encounters was quite big here. Holidays and nights were the best time for the aggressors to encroach on someone's property, as the State Machinery would take time, and, by human nature, hold a higher threshold level for response, on those occasions. Hence, violent aggression, and violent response, were more frequent in the times of continuous holidays. We did have to create a policy of aggressive identification and strict Chapter VIII proceedings before every major festival!

One high point of this tenure was the Prime Ministerial visit for the inauguration of Poorvanchal Expressway. It is a 6 lane expressway, the longest in the state. The maximum length (about a third of it) falls in the District Sultanpur. In addition to that, the runway Incorporated in the length of the expressway lies in the District. In addition to the all important PM Visit, the function also had a whole air show by the IAF. That entailed coordination with the Airforce in a multi level way. The function saw a crowd of around 3 lakh visitors, and it was a resounding success. 

The visit, as well as a few more high level programs, were the run up to the State Assembly Elections. By the turn of the new year, we were again in the process of electoral work. I was not a Returning Officer this time, but my SDMs did gain from my experience of 2019, and all kept a very short ballot paper! (Hint - Resurgence India) It was a well contested election, that turned politically ugly by the end, near counting. Still, the general trust in our team was good, and we avoided any major controversy, and returned the five new legislators.

Post elections, the works were mainly focussed on higher goals - better civic sense and public order, control of anti social elements on one end, and easing business and living, and attracting investment on the other. Our third Durga Pooja saw a communal breakout in a far-flung area of the District. Prompt, and strict response ensured that the incident was contained and the grievance did not linger on. On the business front, the District was able to garner three times the target set for Investment. The process for grounding the same is already initiated through a high level interdepartmental facilitation cell. 

A Very Touching Farewell - the Spark for this article

Undergoing transfers is a part of a career in Civil Service. However, the response of all the stakeholders in the District overwhelmed the hard-core boarding school boarder in me! The orders were received on Monday evening, and by Tuesday evening we were all packed and ready. We were to move out on Wednesday morning. However, few friendly members of the Bar prevailed upon me to attend a farewell to be organized by them. It was hard to say no to these extremely erudite gentlemen with whom I had held Court for so long. In fact, holding court was the most favourite part of my time. I had learned a lot from the rulings they had brought forth. I could not refuse. Once the Bar was accepted, the Collectorate also sought some time. Later even the Vikas Bhawan officers decided to hold a separate farewell function. 

Wednesday was really special for me. I knew I had earned the respect of our learned advocates through my Court work, but the sheer torrent of the affection shown was overwhelming. I was given a letter of appreciation by the Bar of Sultanpur, for the volume of disposal done on merit. Of all the encomiums received, I rate it the best. I consider myself an unenrolled scholar of law, and I like to put my best effort in my Court work. The very honour of farewell by the Bar is a rare moment, as it was made known. The staff and officers of the Collectorate have had a special bond with me. We have arrived hard to keep our neck above the water in a very highly litigated workspace, and I have tried to push the diffident staff to take ownership of tasks. The same was reflected in a program well attended by persons who were not State employees - journalists, civil society, merchant guilds. I must say, half jokingly, had this affection been made known to me in-tenure, I would have strived even harder for it! Our officers and associations at Vikas Bhawan were recipients of a final impromptu training session by me. The tide of affection shown was even stronger. Finally, as I reached the Camp for the final pack up, I met the Durga Pooja society, and a friend, philosopher and guide. We were escorted right to the expressway, with visible tears on both sides. It was a touching end to a long stay in field.

Epilogue

I finish this article as my unpacking is almost done, and I prepare to join the Stamps and Registration Headquarters the next day. The topic of Stamp and valuation has always been very tricky for me. Hopefully this tenure at the heart of the beast shall equip me better for the future. I seek the blessings of Almighty and all as I tread this new path.

Alvida, KK!

 I was in the office, dealing with the mundane, when a fellow officer informed about it. That the legendary KK had expired of a suspected cardiac arrest - last night. I was shocked. The demise of the brilliant singer, with soulful voice and a repertoire of hit songs, was a huge set back. More shocking was the way my facebook timeline had been silent about it! Where two-a-penny "social media influencers" make it to headlines, there was nothing about this great loss to the music scene in India.

Incidentally, "Maine Dil Se Kahaa" (Rog) was part of my "treadmill list" this morning. I had reminisced about how I had listened to the song last (or rather, binged on it) when the news of the demise of Irfan, the actor had come. Little did I know then, that fate had already snatched another great artist associated with the song!  
My 'relationship' with KK was kind of special. He was the first celebrity I had met! I had led our school's first rookie team for participation in the Bournvita Quiz Contest(BQC), in September 1999. We came second in the Quarterfinal round itself, and returned home (or rather school) with a cheque of ₹1000, a mithai dabba full of Cadburies, and half a day at Essel World (our trip day coincided with Ganesh Visarjan Day in Mumbai - so everything was shut down early afternoon). However, it was during this outing that I met KK. 90s kids may recall that BQC back then had a celebrity round, where a celebrity asked questions (given by the team BQC, of course), shared some trivia, and signed an autograph. Our episode had Farah Khan (director, choreographer, Main Hoon Na) as the celebrity. However, while we waited in the studio, one of our preceding episodes was being recorded. When Derek O Brien (Hon. MP now) introduced the celebrity for the round, it did not ring a bell. Then he walked in. He wore his hair long back then - recall shoulder length curls. Then he sang - and it registered. No one had brought the pitch of the male voice so high since Md Rafi ji. He sang his hit - Tadap Tadap Ke Is Dil Se, and etched himself on my heart, forever. Then he sang 'Yaaron, Dosti' - from the movie Rockford. It nay have been a work in progress back then. Luckily we had a break between the two shootings, and we got to meet him backstage. Thus I met KK even before our "own" celebrity (Farah) during our shooting later. 

It is said that the sense of fragrance and that of music trigger vivid memories. KK reigned during the whole "formative period" of my life. Right from Matriculation (Yaaron) and Intermediate, through Engineering (Maine Dil Se Kahaa, Jaane Kaise, Alvida, Beete Lamhe), MBA (Zara Sa, Dil Ibadat) and Railways / Preparation (Abhi Abhi To Mile Ho). Just as we joined the Academy, a new singer Arijit Singh came to limelight, who operated in the same territory as KK. I recall less songs of KK after that. However, each song of his takes me back to a particular era of my life. For a music lover like me, all reminiscences tinged with music are good; and those haunted by KK are sublimely great. It is to his credit that "Dard mein bhi ye lab muskura jate hain, Beetey Lamhe Humein Jab Bhi Yaad Aate Hain!" 

डैडी का रिटायरमेंट

 आज एक युगान्तकारी दिन है। लगभग 41 वर्ष की सेवा के उपरांत मेरे डैडी श्री विजय कुमार गुप्त सेवानिवृत्त हो रहे हैं।

41 वर्ष एक औसत भारतीय नागरिक की आधी आयु से अधिक का समय है। उन्होंने भारतीय रेल को 41 वर्ष अपना सर्वस्व दिया। बदले में रेलवे ने भी हमें बहुत कुछ दिया, जो कि आगे वर्णित है। वह सम्बन्ध औपचारिक रूप से आज समाप्त हो रहा है, (या ऐसा कहें, कि अगले चरण में जा रहा है, चूंकि वो अभी रेलवे के पेंशनर और पास धारक रहेंगे!) आर्थिक तंगी के कारण (दादा जी सरकारी नौकरी में छोटे पद पर थे, पर एक संयुक्त परिवार में आय को बहुत लोगों की बहुत सारी आवश्यकताओं को पूर्ण करना होता था) बी टेक नहीं कर पाए थे, अतः 3 वर्षीय डिप्लोमा सिविल इंजीनियरिंग में किया। 19 वर्ष में राज्य की समस्त सेवाओं में न्यूनतम उम्र नहीं पूरी करने के कारण अनमने से रेल सेवा में योगदान दिया। धनबाद के भूली प्रशिक्षण संस्थान में अरुचिकर भोजन के साथ, एवं फील्ड प्रशिक्षण के दौरान प्लेटफार्म बेंच पर रातें गुज़ार कर के अवर अभियंता के न्यूनतम पायदान - रेल पथ निरीक्षक - तृतीय ग्रेड पर मुगलसराय मंडल (वर्तमान पंडित दीन दयाल उपाध्याय जंक्शन) में कार्य शुरू किया। लगन, कौशल, एवं दैवीय कृपा से तेज़ पदोन्नति हुई। विवाह होते होते ग्रेड 2, एवं मेरे होश संभालने तक ग्रेड 1 हो गए थे। ग्रेड 1 में तत्समय फर्स्ट क्लास पास मिलता था, एवं मुझे उस समय बम्बई (वर्तमान मुम्बई) की यात्रा AC श्रेणी में करना याद है। जब तक मैं 4 वर्ष का हुआ, वे प्रभारी निरीक्षक हो गए थे। वर्ष 1995 में विभागीय परीक्षा उत्तीर्ण कर के राजपत्रित अधिकारी (ग्रुप बी) हो कर सहायक अभियंता, गया (बिहार) बने। इसी मध्य 1994 में मैंने ओक ग्रोव स्कूल मसूरी की चयन परीक्षा उत्तीर्ण कर ली, एवं 1994 में कक्षा 3 से ले कर 2004 में कक्षा 12 तक की पढ़ाई वहीं से की। यह बात यहाँ इसलिए प्रासंगिक है चूंकि यह स्कूल भी भारतीय रेल का ही है, एवं अपने समस्त छात्रों की फीस में, और विशेषकर रेल कर्मचारियों की संतानों की फीस में, अपने समकक्ष एवं समतुल्य बोर्डिंग स्कूलों के सापेक्ष काफी कमी रखते हुए उच्च कोटी की शिक्षा प्रदान करता है।मेरे भाई (और उनकी धर्मपत्नी!) ने भी कक्षा 3 से यहाँ शिक्षा 1999 में प्रारम्भ की, पर उन्होंने कक्षा 10 तक ही यहाँ पढ़ाई की। तब तक डैडी का स्थानांतरण सहायक अभियंता बक्सर (बिहार) के पद पर हो गया था। बक्सर का AEN आवास बहुत ही रमणीक था। जब मेरा मैट्रिक लगा, वे पुनः मुगलसराय आ गए, जहाँ उनकी पदोन्नति मंडल अभियंता के पद पर हो गयी। इस पद पर आगे सोनपुर (बिहार) एवं दानापुर (बिहार) में कार्य किये। वर्ष 2009 में UPSC के अनुमोदन उपरांत उन्हें ग्रुप ए सेवा में IRSE 2002 बैच अवार्ड हुआ। उसी वर्ष इंजीनियरिंग सेवा परीक्षा से मेरा चयन रेल की ही अन्य सेवा IRSS बैच 2008 में हुआ था। यह एक सुंदर संयोग था कि हम दोनों को रेलवे ग्रुप ए में चयन का पत्र डाक से एक ही दिन मिला था! इसके उपरांत उन्हें वरिष्ठ मंडल अभियंता के प्रभार में पुनः सोनपुर स्थानांतरण मिला, जहाँ अत्यंत विशाल रेलखंड में कोशी नदी के कटान के मध्य रेल मार्ग को सुरक्षित रखने के साथ अन्य कई परीक्षाओं का सामना उन्होंने किया। वर्ष 2012 में मेरा चयन भारतीय प्रशासनिक सेवा में हो गया, और मेरी जॉइनिंग के कुछ माह बाद उन्होंने भी इलाहाबाद (वर्तमान प्रयागराज) में रेल विद्युतीकरण संगठन में उपमुख्य अभियंता के पद पर योगदान किया। मेरा (एवं मेरे भाई का भी) विवाह सिविल लाइन्स स्थित रेल अधिकारी आवास से ही सम्पन्न हुआ। 6 वर्ष से अधिक प्रयागराज में रहने के उपरांत अंततः उसी संगठन में लखनऊ स्थानांतरण हुआ। आज वरिष्ठ प्रशासनिक ग्रेड (संयुक्त सचिव, भारत सरकार के समकक्ष) से वे सेवानिवृत्त हो रहे हैं। इस काल मे कई पदक, कई GM शील्ड से सम्मानित हुए हैं, पर उनका सबसे अच्छा अलंकरण उनके वरिष्ठ जनों एवं कनिष्ठ जनों के मन मे उनके कार्य का सम्मान है।

मैंने लेख के प्रारम्भ में ही बताया था कि डैडी की रेल सेवा ने हमें बहुत कुछ दिया। हमारी औपचारिक शिक्षा में रेलवे की भूमिका के बारे में ऊपर बता ही दिया है। अनौपचारिक रूप से उनकी लगन और मेहनत देखने एवं सीखने को मिली। मेरे बोर्डिंग स्कूल जाने तक तो उनका कार्यदिवस प्रातः 7 बजे से पहले शुरू होता था और साँय 7 के बाद समाप्त होता था। आवास रेलवे स्टेशन के पास ही होता था, और वे सुबह की पहली गाड़ी पकड़ के अपने विशाल सेक्शन के किसी दूरस्थ स्टेशन तक फुटप्लेट निरीक्षण करते हुए, फिर कुछ दूरी ट्राली से निरीक्षण करते हुए, जहाँ तत्समय कार्य चल रहा हो, वहाँ पैदल ही गिट्टी पर कई किलोमीटर चलते हुए निरीक्षण कर (हम देखते थे कि उनके जूतों की सोल कितनी जल्दी फटती थी!), एवं इसी प्रकार विभिन्न माध्यमों से होते हुए देर शाम लौटते थे। उस समय उन्हें रविवार भी घर पर नहीं देखता था। रविवार / वीकेंड मंडल अभियंता पद पर कुछ हद तक मिलने लगे, जब कार्य मे फील्ड का अंश कुछ घटा और कार्यालय अंश बढ़ा। अभी सेवानिवृत्ति  के पूर्व के सप्ताह में भी दूरस्थ जगहों पर रेल सुरक्षा के निरीक्षण कराते रहे। और यह लगनशील परिश्रम किसी बॉस के लिए नहीं, आत्मसंतुष्टि के लिए किया; रेलवे की प्रति वफादारी के लिए किया। यह हमें इसलिए पता है, क्योंकि बहुत बार हम लोगों की बोर्डिंग स्कूल में हम लोगों को लाने ले जाने की छुट्टी कैंसिल हो जाती थी, कई पर्व त्योहारों में भी उनका कम समय मिलता था, और ऐसे अवसरों पर हम अनायास इसका कारण पूछ लेते थे! कभी कभी अपने किसी दिशा विमुख कनिष्ठ को समझाते हुए भी उनसे यह बातें सुनी, एवं कालांतर में, जब हम थोड़े बड़े हुए, तो हमे सीधे भी यह बातें समझाई गईं। आज स्वयं कार्य करते समय उनकी उस समय कही बातों की सत्यता का अनुभव होता है।

रेल परिवार एवं समाज मे पलने बढ़ने के कारण हमें तकनीकी ज्ञान भी साथ ही साथ मिला। चंद कदमों पर वर्कशॉप थी, जहाँ आर्क वेल्डिंग और ऑक्सिऐसिटलीन वेल्डिंग करते हुए मिस्त्रियों को देखा। यदि उनका मूड अच्छा हो, और समय हो, तो वे चाभी वाले खिलौने की खोई हुई चाभी की स्पेयर की बना देते थे! थोड़े बड़े हुए तो विभिन्न प्रकार की ट्राली (पुश, स्कूटर, मोटर), विभिन्न प्रकार की ट्रैक मेंटेनर मशीन, एवं रेल इंजन का भी अनुभव हुआ (चंदौली स्टेशन की लूप लाइन, जो बहुत बार उपरोक्त यानों की साइडिंग के रूप में भी प्रयोग होती थी, हमारे आवास के गेट से बमुश्किल 5 मीटर की दूरी पर थी) मेकैनिकल इंजीनियरिंग के समय का व्यवहारिक परीक्षण रेल लोको शेड में किया, MBA की इंटर्नशिप भी रेल उपक्रम में की। इसी लंबे अनुभव का लाभ UPSC इंजीनियरिंग सेवा परीक्षा के साक्षात्कार में मिला, जब मुझे पता था कि लांग वेल्डेड रेल क्या होती है, thermit welding क्या होती है (मैं यह भी बता सका कि मैंने यह होते हुए देखा है!), रेल के व्हील एक्सेल की माप क्या होती है, उसपर रखे कोच का भार क्या होता है, और उससे एक्सेल में कितना बेन्डिंग मोमेंट पड़ सकता है! उस परीक्षा के इंटरव्यू में मेरे इतने अच्छे नम्बर आ गए कि प्रथम प्रश्न पत्र लगभग छूट जाने के बाद भी मेरी छठी रैंक आ गयी (और मुझे भी 2 वर्ष 3 माह तक रेल सेवा का सौभाग्य मिला!)

मैंने बताया है कि उनकी सेवा का सर्वोच्च अलंकरण उनके साथ कार्य करने वालों के मन मे उनके कार्य कौशल के लिए सम्मान था। यह कार्य कौशल मात्र तकनीकी पहलू में ही  नहीं अपितु व्यवहार में भी था। कठिन कार्य लेते समय भी अधीनस्थों के साथ मधुर व्यवहार रखते थे। इसी कारण रेलवे अधिकारियों के मध्य कुख्यात "यूनियन" से भी उत्पन्न होने वाले सभी विवाद सहजता से सुलझा लेते थे। रेलवे स्वयं में एक स्टेट विदिन स्टेट है, और इसमें सभी कर्मचारी अधिकारियों को इंजीनियरिंग विभाग से बहुत कार्य पड़ता है, चूंकि रेल कर्मियों के आवास का रखरखाव इस विभाग के पास होता है। उक्त के सन्दर्भ में बस एक घटना याद आती है। रेलवे नियम में रेलकर्मी के पुत्र को पूरे छात्र जीवन तक स्टूडेंट पास मिलता है। (पुत्री को पास विवाह होने तक मिलता है) IIT दिल्ली में MBA करते समय एक बार पास पर रिजर्वेशन कराने के लिए निकटस्थ रेलवे स्टेशन गया था (IIT में भी एक काउंटर है पर उसपर पास पर आरक्षण नहीं होता था।) हुआ ऐसा था कि उस पास पर पूर्व में पूर्व में भी आरक्षण हो कर निरस्तीकरण हो चुका था, एवं केवल एक अवसर और शेष था (अमूमन अधिकतम 3 रिजर्वेशन/ कैंसलेशन अनुमन्य होते हैं), पर पास पर पूर्व की कार्रवाई बहुत ही अस्त व्यस्त तरीके से की गई थी (यह बुकिंग क्लर्क अपने हाथ से ही लिखता है - इसमें मेरा कोई दोष नहीं था, अपितु पूर्व के बुकिंग क्लर्क की मेहरबानी थी) पर यहाँ वाले सज्जन मुझसे बिगड़ने झगड़ने लगे - कि आपका एक बार मे मन नहीं बनता है कहाँ जाना है, कब जाना है, अब इसमें मैं आगे की एंट्री कहाँ करूँ, पता नहीं कौन कौन पास ले कर आ जाता है। मुझे पास नियम पता थे (अनावश्यक चीज़ें पढ़ते रहने का शौक पहले से है) और मैं जानता था कि अभी एक बार आरक्षण इस पास पर शेष था। साथ ही उक्त बुकिंग क्लर्क का बात करने का तरीका भी पसंद नहीं आ रहा था, तो झगड़ा होने लगा। हालांकि IRCTC के पूर्व की पीढ़ी के लोग जानते होंगे कि उस ज़माने में बुकिंग क्लर्क और बुकिंग करवाने वाले में कितना "पावर डिफरेंशियल" होता था! अतः यह झगड़ा मुझे ही हारना था, और हार को मैं स्वीकार कर ही रहा था, तभी पास को उलटते पलटते उसकी नज़र पासधारक प्रविष्ठि पर पड़ी। अचानक उसके व्यवहार में ज़मीन आसमान का परिवर्तन आ गया। अच्छा, आप गुप्ता जी के पुत्र हैं! पहले क्यों नहीं बताया! (आपने पूछा ही कब) खैर, डैडी की उस समय तक कोई पोस्टिंग कभी मुगलसराय के पश्चिम रही नहीं थी, दिल्ली तो बहुत दूर थी। और रिज़र्वेशन लाइन की भीड़ के दबाव के आलोक में उन सज्जन से इस व्यवहार परिवर्तन का सटीक कारण पूछा नहीं जा सका। पर किसी अन्य विभाग (रेलवे व्यवस्था पर विभागवाद का आक्षेप लगता रहा है, जिसके आलोक में रेल की उच्चतर सेवाओं का एक मे विलय अभी किया जा रहा है), और किसी अन्य ज़ोन के एक कर्मचारी के द्वारा इतनी आत्मीयता दिखाना मुझे बहुत प्रभावित कर गया। जब डैडी से बाद में पूछा तो उनको भी उस नाम के व्यक्ति याद नहीं थे। पर कहीं ना कहीं उसका, या उसके किसी जानने वाले का कोई कार्य बिल्कुल निर्लिप्त भाव से उनके हाथों हुआ होगा। इस प्रकार की ख्याति अर्जित करना सरकारी सेवा में एक ध्येय होना चाहिए।

शासकीय सेवा में कई अधिकारियों / कर्मचारियों के सेवानिवृति के सम्मिलित होता रहा हूँ। मेरे वक्तव्य कुछ हद तक रटे रटाए हो गए हैं (चूंकि ये सत्य होने के कारण बार बार दोहराए भी जाते हैं।) सबसे पहले तो हर सकुशल सेवानिवृत्त होने वाला व्यक्ति साफ कैरियर और अच्छे स्वास्थ्य को लेकर सेवा से मुक्त हो, यह आज के युग मे एक बड़ी उपलब्धि है - क्योंकि कई लोग कैरियर में स्वजनित (या फिर प्रारब्ध में कलंकित) स्थितियों के वश में अपने प्रोफेशनल जीवन को नष्ट कर लेते हैं, और कई बेचारे कार्य के बोझ तले बुरे स्वास्थ्य से असमय काल कवलित हो जाते हैं। अतः सेवानिवृत्त होना एक उपलब्धि है। दूसरी बात यह है कि सेवानिवृत्त व्यक्ति समाज से उऋण हो जाता है। जन्म से लेकर स्वावलम्बी होने तक एक व्यक्ति माता पिता के साथ साथ समाज पर आश्रित रहते हुए एक सामाजिक ऋण अर्जित करता है। स्वावलम्बन के उपरांत अगली पीढ़ी को इसी प्रकार उठाते हुए वह धीरे धीरे सामाजिक ऋण को उतारता है। अतः सेवानिवृत्ति पर एक प्रकार से व्यक्ति समाज से उऋण हो जाता है। अंततः मेरे द्वारा सेवानिवृत्त व्यक्ति के आगे के जीवन सुखमय एवं रुचिकर होने कामना की जाती है। पर इस बार मात्र कामना नहीं, यत्न की आवश्यकता है। अगली पीढ़ी होने के नाते हम पर यह दायित्व है, और उसके महत्त्व का संज्ञान मुझे है। इस दायित्व में सफलता के लिए सदैव ईशप्रार्थी रहूँगा।

Movie Review - The Kashmir Files

 One of the best things about my current address is the fact that the only multiplex mall in the town is just across the road! This has dramatically increased the number of movies we have watched in a hall, recently, as the hall has been just a walk away. Watching movies has been my (and our, after 2016) "thing". However, going out to watch a movie has not really appealed to me. The best of recliner chairs cannot rival a bed, no cinema cafe can match the variety and convenience of own kitchen, and one cannot just pause the giant screen to check that important whatsapp! In the era of OTT screenings, it is much harder to find a valid reason to visit a movie hall. May be some opulent movies deserve the grandeur of a large screen - like Bahubali, or the much awaited RRR. Then, there are some movies that do not release on OTT at the time you want to watch them.

The Kashmir Files was one such movie. One usually comes across movies these days through their top heavy marketing campaigns. This movie was in news when a marketing partner declined to showcase the movie, maybe finding it too hot to handle. Although, I am left wondering how could India's version of Schindler's List have been promoted on a show comprising of slapstick and (literally) Dad jokes. Still, that is how the buzz was generated on Facebook - how a genuine documentation of a genocide was deplatformed, and how it was our "patriotic duty" to watch and promote the movie ourselves.

What unfolded onscreen was the truth. The bare naked ugly truth. Not that the things shown in the movie were 'secret'. The events shown unfolded in the early years of our lives, and significant parts of those are still recalled by me, as snippets of adult conversation and news. So it should be even better etched on the minds of those who were adults at the time. Still, as a society, those memories have largely been repressed by us. Recently, the whole horrid drama was brought out again in Rahul Pandita's moving autobiography, Our Moon has Blood Clots. Books, by themselves, however, have a limited reach. Their adaptation into movies make them available to the masses. However, Shikara, which was claimed to be an adaptation of Pandita's book (but was in fact a new fictional screenplay written by the same author), was a travesty as far as the narrative was concerned. It was mainly a love story of a couple set in the times of the exodus and later. The worst part, though, was the subtle justification of the communal violence that was meted out to the displaced community.

This movie does not justify anything. It does not mince its words. It does not filter anything out - it rather revels in the blood and gore of it. So it is not for the squeamish. It also has a hefty runtime a little short of 3 hours - a runtime of little joy on-screen. Hence watching it is not a task to be taken lightly. However, the movie is not dull for a moment, except for a monologue by the protagonist just before the climax - and even that monologue is quite informative. 

The movie starts dark, and ends dark. The characters shown are not ordinary being. There is a Divisional Commissioner, and the Director General of Police, both of them friends with the protagonist family, and both equally helpless to do anything. When mobs of women picket the ration shop to stop the KP women from getting food, all the Commissioner sahab can do is to tear a notice issued by the terrorists. When Air Force Officers are gunned down, the PAC jawans simply cower behind their sandbags. When the protagonist's family is besieged and his father gunned down (after a seemingly fast friend betrays the fact that he is hiding in the grain bin, by silently pouring grains from his hands while gesturing towards the terrorists - a particularly ominous and haunting scene), the PAC team again cowers down, and when a livid DGP asks them about it, they clearly state that the orders of the terrorist area commander override his orders!

There are many reviews that state that the narrative shown is "not true". If we delve deep into it, the "untruth" is a matter of details. The characters are "fictional" - yes. Villainous deeds of a number of terrorist overlords have been combined into one solitary character, yes. One review goes to the heights of nitpicking that it points out that the wife of the person, who was riddled with bullets in a grain bin, was not sawn in half, nor was his family shot in Nadimarg massacre. Give us a break! Was a man riddled with automatic fire while hiding in a grain bin - Yes. Was a women sawn in half, while alive, like a log, on a sawmill - Yes! Were people shot point blank next to their own graves - Yes. Were Air Force officers shot dead on the road - Yes. Was a Judge of the High Court, no less, killed violently - Yes. All the scenes shown in the movie - including the most horrifying ones, are truth as to their happening, and as to the ethnic classification of the perpetrators and the victims. Individual names on either side are mostly fictional, touche!

Some have faulted the movie for being a propaganda piece. I found it was not so. The character of Professor Radhika Menon, played superbly by Pallavi Joshi, is one of the most convincing in the role of the pro-separatist University professor. In a propaganda movie, the characters voicing the contrary opinion are usually caricatured one dimensional beings. Prof Menon is a very well worked out character, and watching scenes with her makes one really doubt the gruesome scenes one has seen oneself just minutes ago! So no. While the movie may serve as propaganda, it is not a 'propaganda piece' but a well worked out movie. Then again, some have faulted the undiluted senseless violence shown in the movie. It is true, but the same is true of Schindler's List. To satisfy these detractors, either some of the violence meted out in reality would have be hidden, or part of it would have to be justified, as in Shikara. Either course would have been a travesty.

To conclude, I think this is one movie where the reviews of the mainstream media and the word of mouth review on social media are so divergent! The funny thing is, the word of mouth is winning. In a movie hall where I have seen barely ten persons even in the evening shows of "highly acclaimed" movies, I saw the hall almost full in a show starting at 1045 in the night! All spellbound for all of the three hours - and shocked to the core. It is definitely a movie worth watching.