Malala – A Little Girl as Brave as a Lion

 

Hi guys,

 

A few days back as I was skipping thru the pages of the newspaper with my usual alacrity I came across the name “Malala”. The article didn’t offer many details. I asked my family and friends and it seemed everyone knew about her while I had totally managed to sidestep her. When I finally unravelled the Malala story, I was held spellbound by her valor, grit and was amazed at the passion of her conviction.

 

For those of you who like me don’t know much about her, Malala is a 15 year old (12 July 1997) school girl from Swat Valley in Pakistan. She has been fighting against the Taliban from the tender young age of 11 for girls right to education. As a result of which, on 9th October 2012, she was shot down by Taliban gunmen while returning from school in a school bus.

 

Malala sustained critical bullet wounds in her head, neck and shoulder and was rushed to local hospital. Swelling developed in her left brain, necessitating a decompressive craniectomy, in which part of the skull is removed to allow room for the brain to swell. She remained critical and was moved from one hospital to another in Pakistan and finally to Birmingham, U.K, where she received a titanium skull plate and a cochlear implant in her left ear on 2nd February 2013.

 

Malala’s journey started in 2009, when the Taliban banned girl’s education in the valley and shut down schools.  With her father’s encouragement, an education activist himself, Malala protested by writing a BBC blog under the pseudonym “Gul Makai” - corn flower in Urdu. The blog which gave a young girls account of the happenings in the valley under the Taliban rule, gained popularity both nationally and internationally. Malala’s wrote her blog entries in Urdu and passed them onto a reporter who scanned and e-mailed them to be posted.

 

Malala received massive support from all sections.Eventually her identity was revealed leading to numerous print and television interviews. It was at this time that New York Times did a documentary on her, which gave her an international platform to raise her voice against the Taliban. She also became the chairperson of the District Child Assembly Swat and was nominated International Children's Peace Prize by Desmond Tutu and won Pakistan's first National Youth Peace Prize. There is also a school in her name in Pakistan.

 

Since then many people have been joined her cause. The Taliban assassination attempt on Malala, was condemned all over the world. The list of her exponents includes the likes of Angelina Jolie and Madonna to name a few. Gordon Brown, former British Prime Minister, started a campaign “I am Malala” to have all children in school by 2015. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon announced 10th November as “Malala Day”. Malala is currently the youngest nominee in history for the Nobel Peace Prize 2013.

 

There is much more to the Malala story then what I have mentioned here. As I read more and more about her I feel that the term, Courage Under Fire, will not find a better example than Malala Yousafzai. At present, Malala is recovering at Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, U.K.

 

You can contact Malala through her facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/malalayousafzaiofficial

 

 

You can view Malala’s journey through this cartoon trip from www.zenpencils.com by Gavin Aung Than.

The Krishna Key by Ashwin Sanghi

I read The Krishna Key recently. I was impressed by the rave reviews on multiple sites and zabardast promotion. I was a little skeptical at first (having read the Chankaya’s Chant – an okey doeky book) but the summary was interesting enough to encourage a buy. I received the book from flipkart.com with their usual swiftness. (kudos to flipkart!)

The book is about a professor at St. Stephens College who is unwittingly pulled into finding the truth about the Krishna Key ---as his best friend has been killed. Aided and abetted along the way by his student and hounded by the Kalki avatar out to kill him. Of course, our Indian police detectives are not far behind. The story takes him across the country from Kailash to Kanya Kumari, unearthing various clues and murders along the way.

However, time and again your attention is shifted from Prof. Saini’s latest predicament to a historical monologue that the author insists upon. Mr. Sanghi wants to be sure that this is one history lesson that we do not manage to skip.

Having been a history student myself….. just across the road from St. Stephens at Hindu College, sometimes I felt that I was in the middle of a gripping history lecture though the content is a little out of the course.

But once you accept that .....Yes,....... the Krishna key has lot of historical facts --- monologue style,.......... the book is a good mix of mythological, historical and fiction. 

The book is certainly very readable, once I picked it up………. “I had to read it through”. I needed to go through the journey with Ravi Saini and find the culprit with him. And the surprises that were there in the book were really surprises for me.
Of course it is not the next, “The Da Vinci Code” or even “Angels & Demons” though there are similarities between Ravi Saini our hero and Robert Langdon …… (our author is certainly a fan).

But, for a quick read it is good. It is important to approach it simply without expecting to come out of it enriched or something. Yes, it certainly wouldn’t feature on your favorites list for years to come , but it will certainly pass the time, make a afternoon enjoyable. And may also make you Google: Somnath temple as I did.
 

Mystical Ghazals from Films

Chalte-chalte yunhi koi - Pakeezah (1972)

 

Thare Rahiyo - Pakeezah (1972)

 

Dil dhoondhta hai phir vahi - Mausam (1975)

 

Hoton se chhoo lo tum - Prem Geet (1981)

Phir chhidi raat baat phoolon ki - Bazaar (1981)

In Aankhon Ki Masti - Umrao Jaan (1981)

 

Tumko dekha to yeh khayal aya - Saath Saath (1982)

Tum Itna Jo Muskura Rahe Ho - Arth (1982)

Huzoor Is Kadar Bhi Na Itra Ke chaliye - Masoom (1983)

Kisi Nazar Ko - Aitbaar -(1985)

Khali haath shaam aayi hai - Ijaazat (1987)

Jab Koi Baat Bigad Jaye - Jurm (1990)