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| London Diary by Anil Thakraney |
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The Brit media is going ballistic over the case of thieving MPs. And the poor Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, is left holding the dirt can. Newspaper editorials and rival politicians are demanding his neck. One editor wrote: "If Gordon Brown was a dog, he would have been put down by now." Yelp! Most leaders of nations face mainly one challenge today: handling the economic downturn and its ramifications. Brown, apart from that, is also struggling with the problem of his team members having forwarded the bills for their private gardening tools and kitchen utensils to the taxpayer. It’s more than likely he will go, it’s now a matter of time, and one feels sorry for him. In our country, not only do we pay for our netas’ entire cost of living, we also sponsor their khandaan’s financial security. And in some cases, for generations to come. And no one bats an eyelid. Brown must dearly wish he was born brown in colour, not name.
We got caught bang in the centre of the underground rail strike. The workers’ union was demanding, among other things, a guarantee of no layoffs policy. Clearly an unreasonable demand, especially in financially stressful times, where many orgs are busy trimming flab. Expectedly, the city came to a grinding halt. And who suffered the most? Yup, the aam aadmi, as always. However, what I found interesting is that the local media (print and electronic) paid little attention to the issue and continued to be obsessed with Brown’s travails and Ronaldo’s new pay cheque, even as the janta toiled to get to work. In that context, I found the London media to be a bit elitist. In similar circumstances, our desi media, especially the Hindi news channels, would have taken the union leader and the state CM to the cleaners. We often crib about our "sensational" media, but the truth is more often than not it does stand up for the common man.
Rants and Raves
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As is the case in most large cities of the world, urban crime rages on in London. Nothing new, there. However, what caught my attention was a report that the incidents of crimes committed by Black youngsters was on the rise at an alarming rate. An interview conducted with some reformed kids revealed that within the Black communities, knives and guns get brandished for the smallest, and often no reason. One ex-gang member said, you could get stabbed if you so much as stared at a rival gang member "with disrespec". I dropped by at the Bailey’s Court, where visitors are allowed into courtrooms (with many dos and don’ts...not falling asleep being on top of the list), and the case being discussed was the murder of a shopkeeper. The accused, seated at the back row, were three Black kids. My eyes stayed focused on them, and at one point, one of the utterly bored lads gave me a cold, hard stare. Frightened, I returned the look as ‘respecfully’ as possible, and fled to the nearby St Paul’s cathedral for prayers.
Rants and Raves
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While all the India T20 matches at Lord’s were sold out, I managed to get tickets for the less critical Pakistan/Holland match. Predictably, it was a one-sided contest, as the Pakistanis had the Dutch for lunch. Yet, the atmosphere was electric, as the NRPs (Non Resident Pakistanis) got suitably drunk and boisterously cheered their home team. A small group of equally tipsy Hollanders got involved in a fun exchange with the Pak supporters, which only extended to harmless teasing, and not racist remarks (thank god). On noticing they were totally outnumbered and outshouted, one of the Dutchmen broke into his version of the Punjabi bhangra, which amused the rival fans no end. On the boundary line the fielder was Sohail Tanveer. But he did not react to all the chants of "Ik baar yahaan bhi ek nazar daaliyo, bhaijaan...." Guess cricketers have become immune to crowd adulation. But am happy our neighbours won the cup this time round. That country was badly in need of some good news, even if it came through ‘time-pass cricket’.
Rants and Raves
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Even as we regularly get hit with stories of wage cuts and staff layoffs in the UK, it’s intriguing to discover that Londoners continue to live life to the fullest. The pubs, the restaurants, the theatres, the shopping streets, are all packed to the gills, there seems to be no sign of any cutback on conspicuous consumption. Makes one wonder who exactly is getting fired in the corporate world? Peons, secretaries and trainees? Meanwhile, my Gujarati pals will be glad to hear the undhiyo has made its way to London. Should tell you something about the remarkable conquest of the Indian cuisine in gora land. At Covent Garden’s hip Indian joint called Masala Zone, the Bangladeshi migrant waiter educates me on the recipe for making delicious undhiyo. And yes, it tasted quite saru chhe! As someone said, the world is shrinking!
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