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Business Recorder
23-07-2025
- Politics
- Business Recorder
India in disarray
India was never in its history a unified entity. Even its name India was coined after the Sindhu aka Indus River, who the Greeks referred to as 'Indos'. India's original name was Bharat, even today many Indians more out of bigotry, prejudice and bias refer to their country as 'Bharat'; the word is a derivative from the name of the ancient tribe that inhabited some areas of India, called 'Bharata'. The Persians had named their Eastern neighbour as 'Hindustan'. Later, the Britishers recognising that Hindustan had an implicit meaning, as the land of Hindus, decided to do away with this narrow association to a single religion that had peacefully coexisted with so many other religions; Islam being the predominant of them. Hindustan became India for Britain. Till about the beginning of the 19th century, most of India was divided into individual principalities and distinctly different empires. From Maharajas to Nizams. The 1757 Battle of Plassey changed the course of the history of India. Through the betrayal by one traitor, Sirajuddula lost to Robert Clive. Most fiefdoms thereafter without any military engagement surrendered to become part of the Indian Union. Until the arrival of the British to the court of Emperor Jehangir, the 'spice merchants' of King James I, led by Sir Thomas Roe, who sought to promote trade with India, the region then was largely diverse with numerous kingdoms and empires. No ruler, inclusive of the Mauriyas, Guptas or the Mughal emperors were able to consolidate the region into a single nation in modern sense of our understanding today of what nation state means. So in reality, the concept of Akhand Bharat has been an illusionary absurdity. A deception of the narrow-minded. The divide between northern India and southern India is stark and naked. They have no common culture, nor traditions or even eating preferences. The dissimilarity is more pronounced than similarity. Recently, Narendra Modi alongside his cohorts has been planning to impose Hindi as a popular language of the common man in states like Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, where in reality Hindi is hardly spoken or understood — even its Urdu version of 'Hindustani' is not popular with the people in the South. The mantle show-piece Muslim presidents of India, starting from Dr Zakir Hussain to Dr Abdul Kalam served as 'eye sores' for the militant Hindu dominant RSS, the forerunner of BJP. Stalwarts in their own right but were positioned to offices that were ceremonial, without teeth or bite. More as an advertisement to Indian claims of secularism. Modi has destroyed that fabric. Secularism has been crushed. India is today a fanatical state. Modi is a communalist, a bigot and a die-hard hater of Muslims. Something that our Arab brothers and friends do not realise while opening their coffers to dole out dollars, or when they are head over heels while welcoming the 'Butcher of Gujarat', who initially only preyed upon Muslims, but has now gone beyond to slaughter Christians, Sikhs and Jains. Indians must stop this genocidal Hindu terrorist. He brings to the largely tolerant and peace loving Indians/Hindus a bad name. The country that prided itself as a secular state is now a hostage to Modi's fanatical Hinduism. The creation of Bangladesh neither destroyed the two-nation theory nor did it give any meaning to the concept of 'Akhand Bharat'. Bangladesh is an independent country and continues to be one; the 15-year hiatus as a satellite state of India is now done and dusted. In a judicious historical analysis, it is not India that helped creation of Bangladesh — nay, it was the folly of Islamabad that led to East Pakistan's breaking away — the blame is on us; the credit cannot be India's. In the 'seven sister states' in the North East of India, there is an active and simmering volcano of discontentment that will most likely blow up, leading up to declaration of independence from the forced Union with India. These states have nothing in common with India. Their languages, cultures and cuisines are different, with no semblance of to any part of India. India is fragmented. All illusions of unity within diversity is a result of flawed thinking that is at best beset with delusional tendencies. The Marathas can't break bread with the West Bengalis. Their food, customs, traditions, etc., are different. They cannot converse with each other, except if they know English. Even Bollywood is no exception to this diverseness and divisions either. The Assamese/Bengali music directors like, SD Burman, RD Burman, Salil Chaudhry, etc. preferred Bengali singers — Kishore Kumar being the prominent followed by Great Dutt; OP Nayyar from Punjab preferred Mohammed Rafi and Shamshad Begum, both from Amritsar/Lahore. Today a handful of Indians subscribe to Akhand Bharat as a concept — it is and shall remain a pipe dream. The diversity is not a unifying factor but is more diverse. The burden of forced Union is already under strain. Since 1947, India despite being the larger country hasn't been able to maintain good neighbourly relations with the countries in the region. The Indian quest for dominance and hegemony over the entire South Asia is the hallmark and cornerstone of its foreign and interior policy. India has problems with Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, the Maldives, People's Republic of China and Pakistan. Bhutan and Sikkim, it swallowed without a burp. With Pakistan it has already fought five wars and countless skirmishes at the border. The country truly is a war monger. It has been more acute since Modi was saddled in New Delhi; having done RSS/BJP proud by massive genocidal killing of Muslims in Gujarat, he was rewarded with the premiership. India gains appreciation for its status as the largest democracy in the world. That's a farce. It is untrue. Under the guise of democracy the various rights and privileges available to the electorate are stripped. The people are pulverised and stunned. Indian democracy is a sham. To cite only one case, the Kashmir issue still burns alive. The people stand disenfranchised. The Indian Constitution was mutilated on August 5th 2019 by the revocation of Article 370, depriving Kashmir of its special status. So much about freedom and democracy. Donald Trump has mentioned again in confirmation to the reality that six Indian planes were brought down from the skies in just a few minutes. Modi is furious. Rahul Gandhi has rightfully demanded a wily Modi come clean and admit or dare to refute. Indian leadership is suffering from an illusion of grandeur of invincibility. Pakistan recently punctured this hot air balloon. As a deeply wounded fox or wolf (cannot use Lion because that will raise his stature in the animal kingdom and the kingdom may feel repulsed, revolted and insulted by this comparison) Modi is licking his wounds from the misfired misadventure at Pahalgam. He is biding his time. Pakistan beware. India is in disarray. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
New Indian Express
04-05-2025
- Business
- New Indian Express
Crystal Clear
Back in the 1860s, the Maharajas represented Indian swish, and the ultimate in OTT luxury: think the Cartier bejewelled pet tortoise of the Maharani of Pudukottai. When it came to crystal it had to be Baccarat. The Bombay store of the legendary French crystalmaker was frequented by the Who's Who of the British empire until it closed. The brand is back with a bang with its brand-new flagship store at The Chanakya in New Delhi. Exquisitely sparkling vases and candle stands. Magnificent chandeliers. Opulent cutlery. Striking keepsakes. All made in the finest glass, in signature hues of clear crystal and red (obtained by fusing clear crystal with 24k gold). The clarity and cut of the crystals ensure a unique play of light in every piece. Limited edition selections include Baccarat's collaborations with globally renowned artists and designers for pieces such as Philippe Starck's 'Talleyrand', Virgil Abloh's 'Crystal Clear' collection, Arik Levy's 'Tuile de Cristal', as well as striking creations from Baccarat's 260th anniversary collection 'New Antique' made by Marcel Wanders. 'With over 260 years of heritage, Baccarat represents the pinnacle of French craftsmanship and luxury,' says Alexandrine Reille-Linyer, Baccarat Export Director. The new boutique offers an immersive experience where this centuries-long tradition of glassware meets cutting-edge innovation.
