Power...!

"Because of the skills of a few, the platforms of many and the will of hundreds of thousands of meddling kids unified in our intolerance of injustice, we were far more powerful than a couple people in official positions of power."

"But power manifests differently to different people. If you have a pen, write something. If you have an instrument, play something. If you have the anger of a thousand suns and disposable income, open your purse."

"The stability of democracy internationally requires that we use whatever skills and resources we have to combat hate, bring movements to life and stand united in solidarity with one another on every corner of the globe. Justice can't wait, so take what's in front of you, get really creative and cause a ruckus."

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On the 75^th Republic Day of India, we must not forget that we made a promise to ourselves...

"WE, THE PEOPLE OF INDIA having solemnly resolved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN SOCIALIST SECULAR DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC...

...this twenty-sixth day of November, 1949, do HEREBY ADOPT, ENACT AND GIVE TO OURSELVES THIS CONSTITUTION."

Seventy Five Years ago when we declared this, it became our responsibility to  UPHOLD THE DEMOCRACY and its tool, the CONSTITUTION

... As Republic of India, it’s up to us to rise above cast politics, cultural differences and devastating disparity to end all of it by raising our voice, in a CREATIVE DEMOCRATIC WAY! If TECHNOLOGY is the tool for that, let be it…!

Long live Democracy... Way to go!

Fail...?

It is no wonder when a creative person started his career as Production Controller for 'Jane Bhi Do Yaaro' [a satirical black comedy by Kundan Shah that remains unmatched in its category even after 40 years] took the path of making 'different' movies like Parinda [1989], 1942: A Love Story [1994], Mission Kashmir [2000], Munna Bhai MBBS [2003], 3 IDIOTS [2009], PK [2014] - has made another inspiring film that would be a milestone in Indian Cinema - 12th Fail!

Vidhu Vinod Chopra has nailed it with 12th Fail not just because it is a story based on real life journey of IPS Manoj Kumar Sharma or because of its authenticity in all departments like casting, acting, locations, music, look and feel that brings memories of Masaan [2015] – Vicky Kaushal’s debut film; but what makes it literally outstanding is the message it shares and the conviction with which it is shared.

It is but natural that the film grabbed attention of Legends like Kamal Hassan who after watching the film at NFDC, Chennai said, ‘…long time since we saw a good film like this. It brings back hope in filmmakers like me to confidently go ahead and do what you love most…’

Just like Manoj Kumar Sharma, VVC has made an incredible comeback after failing at Shikara [2020] and passed with flying colors with 12th Fail! Now does VVC need any other validation, appreciation or award? And do we need any other reason to watch and celebrate the spirit of this film? I guess not!

Way to go, India…!

Question...!

 

"I have a big question. 

Which is, who runs the world?

...These technology titans are not just men worth 50 or 100 billion dollars or more. 

They are increasingly the most powerful people on the planet 

with influence over our futures. 

And we need to know, 

are they going to act accountably 

as they release new and powerful artificial intelligence? 

What are they going to do with this unprecedented amount of data 

that they are collecting on us and our environment? 

And the one that I think should concern us all right now the most: 

Will they persist with these advertising models 

driving so much revenues that are turning citizens into products 

and driving hate and misinformation 

and ripping apart our society?

...Today, the United States has become the principal exporter of tools 

that destroy democracy. 

The technology leaders who create and control these tools, 

are they OK with that?

Or are they going to do something about it?

We need to know..."

Party...?

On the occasion of 28th Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC (COP 28) that is in progress [2 more days to go] at United Arab Emirates (UAE), a tribute to the creative imagination of the master creator himself playing 'The Great Dictator...!'

If you are really curious about the subject matter, are interested in getting a closer look at the truth and have the courage to stand the satire, you can watch the short film "La Fête est Finie" (The Party is Over) by Mark Donne to mark the historic Paris Climate change conference or COP21, 7 years ago.

Party will never be over... unless we end it!

Way to go...

Warnings…?

 

"On the 26th of January 1950, we are going to enter into a life of contradictions. In politics we will have equality and in social and economic life we will have inequality. In politics we will be recognizing the principle of one man one vote and one vote one value. In our social and economic life, we shall, by reason of our social and economic structure, continue to deny the principle of one man one value. How long shall we continue to live this life of contradictions? How long shall we continue to deny equality in our social and economic life? If we continue to deny it for long, we will do so only by putting our political democracy in peril. We must remove this contradiction at the earliest possible moment or else those who suffer from inequality will blow up the structure of this political democracy so laboriously built up by this Assembly."

Theses are the excerpts from the speech to the Constituent Assembly on November 25, 1949, for the full transcript of this speech check out – ‘Why BR Ambedkar’s three warnings in his last speech to the Constituent Assembly resonate even today’

The concerns he has expressed are more relevant today than ever…

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Previously published on Be[a]Cause on 26 Jan 2022.

Ingenuity...!

Worried about water-scarcity?

World will become desert soon?
Water will cause the Third World War?

Concerned about such challenges, watch this!

What Indian people engineered centuries ago to harvest water in the Golden Deserts of India will give you insights from the ancient Indian Wisdom.

Can it help us build a water-secure future?

Re[as]sume...!

"Back in 1482, a young man heard that the region of Milan was looking for an engineer, so he did what job applicants do. He wrote down his skills and his objectives and how they related to the role in what is thought to be the first resume ever created. That young man was Leonardo da Vinci – the guy that painted the Mona Lisa. Yet if you took a look at his resume, you would never guess that he was capable of achieving any of those things..."

"As if, if we spend 20 more minutes on the resume, it'll somehow be perfect. It will become the ideal resume. As if the ideal resume exists. It doesn't, it's very subjective..."

"If this is all news to you and you're looking for a job, then you’re playing the job search game, and you don’t know the rules. Hardly anyone does. And the problem there is that AI still has a long way to go, and machine learning is nowhere near to making predictions on candidates’ success..."

"A resume doesn't do you justice if you have a non-traditional path. And a non-traditional path is now the norm..."

"Subsequently, it's all about building trust and a culture of belonging. If you ask any CEO about their culture, they'll say it's unique. But to apply to be a part of it is exactly the same as their competitors, which not only limits their options, they end up competing for the same type of talent which results in workplaces that lack diversity..."

"...And once employers realize this, then we'll begin creating workplaces that feel welcoming to candidates even before they join. Plus, it will give us enough time to rethink cover letters, because those are really terrible."