In the Name of God!

I finally watched he movie, 'Khuda Ke Liye' (In the name of God!). My interest in the movie actually came from my deep love in Pakistan and Afghanistan, which in itself comes from the great interest I have in Islam as a religion.

To be frank, the movie can be watched from 2 perspectives - one which might consider Islam as a very austere and rigid religion, the other which expresses that Islam is a religion, and what shape it takes in your life depends entirely on how you perceive it, how you practise it! I chose the latter perspective.

The movie makes you see the perspective of those people as well who might do anything In the name of God! Thats how Jehad can take so many different forms. The belief of these people is so strong in whatever they are doing that all logic leaves them. They are as keen to kill as they are to die. And its extremely difficult to make them see what impact that creates on the world.

But at the same time, it doesn't mean that all the followers of Islam are like that. Its just a matter of how the same religion can influence different people in so many different ways. How it can have so many different dimensions! The final objective of all this is to come close to God.

The movie also shows the Male Chauvinism so widely practised in Pakistan, Afghanistan and though not mentioned in the movie, I dare to say, the entire South Asia. Previously, I used to feel that Islam prefers males, by not allowing females to have more than 1 husband while men can have upto 3 legitimate wives. Then I came across the logic behind all this, and I actually started believing in it. And the male chauvinism is more of a culture thing than a religious thing.

All religions give you a way of living lives. They always have a valid logic and reason behind it which is very well explained in the holy scripts. To understand the religion with more depth and follow it, we need to understand the logic. If that logic applies in today's times, good enough, if not then we can chose to follow it or not!

Leia Mais…

Rio De Janeiro!

If Sao Paulo was about being introduced to the Brazilian culture, then Rio was about being awed and shocked by the culture, beauty and reality of Brazil all at the same time. The loud music, the most exotic beaches, a warmer weather, bus breakdowns a number of times and one of the seven wonders of the world present a striking contrast between the 2 cities.

Journey to Rio: So we joined the Study Tour to Rio on 15^th (which is also the independence day of India) and reached Rio at 10 pm. However, it being a Friday night we all went to a club. It was great to see the live culture of Brazil. One striking difference between the clubs in Singapore and in Brazil is the music. While in Singapore we dance on world popular songs, the Brazilians enjoy dancing to Samba music. Samba is a very close couple dance. I was introduced to the open and fun culture of Brazil. I am not sure if its true but from my observation, I think that if a guy wants to approach a girl here, he passes her a flying kiss. If the girl shows welcoming signs then they start dancing together. Another thing which I observed about Samba is that it usually ends in people kissing each other and many times being more physically intimate. It is also not uncommon to have more than 1 Samba partner on the same night. I could also see some budding AIESEC couples in all the festive mood J

The next day (Happy Raksha Bandhan to all the brothers and sisters of the world) started with a bang (no perversion intended) at the Copacabana Beach. Copacabana is one of the Best and most famous beaches in the world, and I would definitely give my vote to it. The sand was super cozy. I could just sleep on it (if the sunshine wasn’t so staunching). The water was crystal clear and to my great relief was quite cold. The waves were also quite high and I enjoyed watching some people water surfing. There were a lot of people wearing too scantily-covering bikinis on the beach which as an Asian is a rare sight for me. I also savoured the Best Coconut milk I have drunk till now on the beach.

Our next destination was the Maracana Stadium which is the largest Football stadium in the world and will be hosting the finals of FIFA world cup 2014. The finals were held in 1958 in which Brazil was defeated by Uruguay and they are now all looking forward to win the world cup in 2014 to get back their pride. We also went to the changing rooms of the players (my first time in a football team’s changing room). I had certain shots from the movie ‘Remember the Titans’ running in my mind. And when I was entering the field from the changing room, I had goose bumps.

Our next destination was Sugar Loaf. For this we could either go by cable car or hike up the mountain. Esvi and I decided to hike up (very tiring but a cool experience). The hiking was all worth it. The sight from the sugar loaf was mesmerizing. We could see the entire city of Rio De Janeiro from the top.

The next day started by going to Ipanema Hippie Fair where I did a lot of shopping. And then boom - We saw the most inspiring sight of our tour – the Christ Redeemer. I don’t think I can describe the experience in words, but it truly is one of the seven wonders of the world. (So, now I have seen 2 wonders of the modern world).

Another key highlight of the tour was striking a lot of friendships, 2 of which are quite close – with Joey (LCP, New Zealand) and Pedro (LC VP Finance, Brazil). Also, I came to know the weird Mathematics practice in Brazil. They interchange the use of decimal point and comma in numerals. Example, 1.230 is one thousand two hundred and thirty while 1,230 is one point two three.

The OC had done a great job and they were all very warm people. But now was time to move on for the Asia Pacific Growth Network Pre-Meeting (APGN Pre-meeting) which was to be held in Hotel Del Verde, Sao Paulo.

Leia Mais…

Eklavya!!

Today was an extra-ordinary day, just for the simple reason that I woke up at 7:30 am (Ok, I might not sleep for 2-3 days at a stretch and be up at this time, but waking up at this time is certainly no longer my type....though earlier I used to wake up at 4 am).... Yesterday, I slept at around 2 am and today, at 7:30 am I got a message from Rene. He invited me to have breakfast with him... So ya, I got up and had BREAKFAST... Does breakfast still exist, I had a doubt!! But now I think it does. And I felt so happy to be an early bird again... :) Thanks Rene!!

After that we went to Boon Lay to collect his ticket to Penang, Malaysia. And then we went to NTU.... I met Alvin after such a long time!! I was so happy to meet him.... Yesterday only Pam n I were missing him!! Dei also came down to meet us.... We had a good time at NTU. We also took a quick tour of NTU.

Then I went for a movie, 'Eklavya' with Snigdha, Manavi and Komal.. It was a girl's day out!! Well, the movie is just awesome!! Its just so well directed and everybody has acted so well. I suggest everybody to watch it. Its centered around the theme of Righteousness.... Where the story makes you think what righteousness actually is!! Is it the set of rituals, values and principles written in some ancient scriptures or is it something which your soul agrees to carry out?? The movie gets you thinking.... The plot is also very well planned!! It reminded me of 'Omkara' in some respects... However, the story line is completely different in Eklavya!! It also poses a question regarding if 'Eklavya' in Mahabharata did the right thing by cutting his right thumb when his mentor asked him for that.. The concept of 'Dharma' was linked to the story... In all a good movie.. Serious but good!!

Then, Snigdha n I did some crazy things on the road which scared Komal n Manavi!! Komal scolded me even two hours after the incident!! But I am fine with it, I enjoyed what we did!! When we reached NUS, Komal realized that her wallet was missing!! We called Jade... Fortunately, they found it!! Then we had our NUS SASS (South Asian Studies' Society) meeting from 8-10. By the way, I am the Assistant Publicity Head for the society. Tomorrow and Day after, we will organize Cricket Matches in NUS!! So ya...., Tomorrow again I will have to wake up early!! Around 6 am....Thats bad!! :(

Leia Mais…